"..."
Muzan once again met with Kokushibō and Doma.
However... he received no answers. As for Oboro himself, there wasn't even a shadow of him.
Neither of them mentioned anything about the pleasure quarters. When he brought up Oboro again, Kokushibō and Doma looked as if they were hearing the name for the first time.
This left Muzan feeling extremely heavy-hearted.
Could it be... that he would have to use all members of the Twelve Demon Moons to find Oboro again?
This was certainly not feasible.
After all, the Demon Slayer Corps still existed. If all the Twelve Demon Moons were wiped out, his situation would become dire... and his long-standing search for the Blue Spider Lily would be forced to a halt.
More importantly, from Muryo's experience, Oboro knew of him.
For someone possessing such immense power, it was temporarily impossible to ascertain if he was friend or foe. This probing had already carried the risk of angering him.
"I have already witnessed the Demon Slayer Corps' new breathing technique. Compared to the original breathing forms, its enhancement to the body is much more significant."
Muzan lowered his gaze, changing the subject, and said indifferently, "Their movements have been very frequent recently... Upper Ranks are not irreplaceable, and my tolerance has its limits. What happened with Muryo and the two Pillars he let go, that's enough of that."
"Yes," Kokushibō responded.
Muzan's meaning was clear.
He wanted the Upper Ranks to launch a counter-attack against the Demon Slayer Corps.
To teach them a lesson and curb the arrogance of those swordsmen.
"How strange..."
Doma, standing nearby, stroked his head and smiled. "I feel like I've forgotten something... why am I with Senior Kokushibō?"
"Leave," Muzan said coldly, without engaging.
Immediately, the two Upper Ranks departed one after another.
After they left, Muzan's fingernails traced the tabletop, his eyes gloomy.
He recalled the feeling when Oboro, through his cells, had directly looked into his soul... that overwhelming power.
And just like with Muryo, he received no information about the man from Doma or Kokushibō.
Clearly, the other party had done it on purpose.
"What is his objective?" Muzan wondered.
Initially, he believed Oboro was on the side of the Demon Slayer Corps.
After all, this man had passed a new breathing technique to the Demon Slayer Corps... However, whether it was Muryo, or Doma and Kokushibō, they had all returned unharmed after their encounters.
If Oboro held animosity towards demons, he would have already lost three Upper Ranks.
Especially Kokushibō's strength, which Muzan understood and greatly respected.
Now, Muzan was somewhat bewildered by the situation.
Until he could ensure absolute safety, he could only distance himself from this person for now. He also needed to gather as much information about Oboro as possible from the Shogunate.
And he had to be constantly careful not to let his own identity be discovered.
...
While Muzan was on pins and needles, contemplating how to deal with Oboro.
Oboro was already sitting in his bedroom, holding a portrait.
Even though it was only rendered in ink, the man in the painting exuded an exquisite, captivating beauty.
Especially his eyes, which were distinctly different from ordinary people's.
"Is this him?" Oboro asked, showing the portrait to an elderly man who had traveled a long way to see him.
"Yes," the old man immediately nodded upon seeing the person in the painting.
Muzan Kibutsuji!
One of the daimyō currently under the Shogunate.
To prevent the Demon Slayer Corps from finding him, Muzan had "wiped away" his traces very thoroughly. However, the appearance of Kokushibō and Doma still made Oboro realize Muzan's current disguised identity.
After all, given his own status, only an "insider" could investigate through the Shogunate's channels.
Muzan had become a daimyō and lived a reclusive life, with few ever seeing his true face. Even within the Shogunate, information about him was scarce.
But he still had to maintain the persona of a daimyō; he couldn't simply avoid everyone.
There would always be clues.
Oboro merely consulted various local records and, from the rather peculiar circumstances surrounding Muzan's position as daimyō, pinpointed him.
This portrait of Muzan was also personally drawn by Oboro from memory.
Next, Oboro had Chiyoko escort the old man away.
He threw the portrait into a brazier and burned it.
To search for news of the Blue Spider Lily, to suppress the Demon Slayer Corps, to delve into various academic fields... all required a noble status and power.
However, it couldn't be too ostentatious. Therefore, from the perspective of the Shogunate's political landscape, a daimyō was the best choice.
While the Ubuyashiki family's influence also extended into the Shogunate, it was nowhere near Muzan's level.
Additionally, the Ubuyashiki family likely had a premonition that Muzan might be secretly observing everything operating within the Shogunate. Hence, they acted cautiously, not wishing to be noticed.
In this situation, due to the disparity in status and position, it was difficult for the Ubuyashiki family to discover and confirm Muzan's identity.
However, Oboro's status was above Muzan's.
His authority within the Shogunate was higher than the demon's.
It would not be easy for Muzan to hide under his nose.
"Hereditary system, heh."
Oboro chuckled.
Muzan had inherited the position of daimyō.
For both Muzan and the Demon Slayer Corps, the Shogunate was merely a tool to be utilized, not affecting their warfare.
If the Shogunate were dragged into the fray, the consequences would be unbearable for everyone.
Firstly, the Demon Slayer Corps had always been led by the Ubuyashiki family. If the Shogunate got involved, the Corps would undergo structural changes, and the Ubuyashiki family would likely lose its voice.
The inherited will of generations of swordsmen would also be destroyed, as secular power is very complicated.
Secondly, casualties would also increase significantly.
For Muzan, he had to control the number of demons... If the Shogunate shifted its attention to him, the pressure he would face would be unimaginable.
To counter the Shogunate, he would have to convert more demons, and once the number of demons surged, it would mean losing control.
Once control was lost... and the demons formed alliances, his position as Demon King would be precarious.
Therefore, in the world of Demon Slayer, the concentration of power lay with demons and human swordsmen, unrelated to the Shogunate.
The secular government was merely a backdrop.
"But it's precisely because you all hold this view that the power system has been slow to advance... the size of the soil determines the harvest." Oboro murmured.
No sooner had he spoken than Chiyoko, who had left and returned, led a person back, standing at the doorway.
It was Daisuke Inada from the Magistrate's Office.
"What's wrong?" Oboro asked, seeing the urgency on his face, having anticipated something.
"Lord, something happened in Edo." Daisuke hurried forward, knelt, and said solemnly.
"Speak."
"That person... is dead."
Daisuke swallowed hard.
The person he referred to was undoubtedly the head of the Tokugawa family.
The current ruler of the country.
"How did he die?"
When Oboro had stayed in Edo Castle before, he had seen the ruler full of vigor. It couldn't have been a natural death; it had to be a sudden, violent one.
"He was... ambushed and killed at night. The culprit... the culprit might very well be... the young man named Zekawa who escaped from our pleasure quarters."
Daisuke stammered, "Someone drew a likeness of the culprit... and it closely matches the description given by the pleasure quarters' residents."
This was also why he came to Oboro!
"Mm... I understand."
Oboro nodded, remarkably calm.
It was easy for a demon to kill an ordinary person, even a national ruler.
But before this, Muzan had deliberately controlled them... forbidding demons from extending their claws to high-ranking Shogunate officials, to avoid major upheaval.
But now... "It's time," Oboro muttered.
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