Chapter 117: Kotoamatsukami!
The three leads finally converged in front of a secluded Western-style villa on
the outskirts of Nagoya. This was the residence of a local tycoon. The owner had
once been a prosperous merchant with a beautiful wife and a happy family, but a
tragic accident had claimed the lives of his loved ones. Since then, the
merchant had spiraled into a deep depression, spending his days either drowning
in sake or locking himself in the depths of the estate.
He abandoned his business, and his fortune plummeted to the brink of bankruptcy.
But everything changed when a new butler arrived. Though the merchant remained a
recluse, his business interests in the city stabilized in a bizarre fashion.
People would "inexplicably" feel an urge to buy antiques from his shops or
invest massive sums into his ventures.
Following this recovery, the merchant began donating large amounts of money to
hospitals and orphanages—places that had no logical connection to his industry.
"So the shut-in millionaire is our target?" Sabito asked softly, looking at his
seniors. "Demons can't move during the day, and lately, terminal patients and
orphans have been vanishing right after he makes a donation."
Uzui stared at the ornate, gloomy exterior walls. "It could be his butler, too.
A demon masquerading as a human living in the heart of high society? That's some
twisted hobby. Lord Uzui will take point—Natsuya, you cover my back?"
Natsuya didn't respond immediately. He silently scanned the heavy velvet
curtains and the faint, drifting scent of demon aura in the air. He felt like he
was missing a specific trigger point.
Best to just go in and look, Natsuya thought. One glance at their nameplates and
I'll know who's a mob and who's an NPC.
The trio slipped through the corner where the demonic scent was weakest,
cautiously sweeping through the dim, silent corridors. However, after a full
sweep of the house, they found neither a demon nor a single living human soul.
The ninja ran a finger across the dining table. "Dust. But not thick."
Natsuya checked the kitchenware. "The dishes are clean. Someone is definitely
living here on the regular."
"Just not a lot of people, right?" Uzui noted.
People using silverware suggested humans, or at least creatures mimicking human
biology. While the house was mostly dusty, certain items—specifically a portrait
of the late wife and her personal belongings—were polished to a mirror shine.
Natsuya walked to a window and whipped the curtains open. The amber glow of the
setting sun flooded the room, making the candle flames on the walls flicker
uneasily.
"Open every curtain," Natsuya ordered. "Sweep it again, frame by frame."
The demon scent was thick here; the objective had to be local. Sabito sniffed
the air, whispering, "Senior Kokonoe... the scent is strongest... underground."
The basement? Of course. Every haunted mansion has a secret dungeon.
Natsuya looked at Uzui. "Brother, you're up."
The ninja didn't disappoint. In the study, he quickly located a hidden latch
near an inconspicuous bookshelf. With a soft click, a section of the wall
vibrated and slid aside, revealing a dark, yawning passage leading into the
earth.
If you need to find a secret door, call a rogue or a ninja, Natsuya mused.
"Senior..." Sabito looked at Natsuya, hesitant. "Is it wise to just charge into
a demon's nest?"
Natsuya and Uzui didn't even pause. One after the other, they stepped into the
descending darkness.
What's a demon nest to a Demon Slayer? Natsuya thought. It's just an instance
with a higher drop rate.
"Sabito, stay close."
The tunnel was wider than expected, a passage capable of letting several men
walk abreast. Torches lined the walls, illuminating a grotesque door at the end.
The door was warped, shaped like a screaming human face that, upon closer
inspection, looked like a gargantuan, hollow eye.
The demonic aura leaking from it was stifling.
Uzui stepped forward first. He brushed aside a set of bells hanging from the
frame, and after a soft chime rang out, he shoved the heavy wooden door open.
"Hiding behind a door like this? How un-fla—"
Creak—
The door moved only a few inches when the ninja's words died in his throat. His
pupils shrank to pinpricks. A bloodless, familiar yet alien face was pressed
against the narrow gap, staring directly into his eyes.
WHOA!
Uzui's Breathing Style kicked into an instinctive high-rev state. His blade
began to clear the scabbard before his conscious mind even registered the
target. But at the final frame, he froze.
By the flickering torchlight, he saw the face clearly. Even after all these
years, despite the subtle changes, he recognized him instantly.
"Tengen-aniki," the figure behind the door whispered. The voice was terrifyingly
calm, a cold key that unlocked memories Uzui had fought a decade to bury. "After
betraying the village... are you now going to personally slaughter your only
living brother?"
The ninja's expression turned to stone.
"弦之介 (Gennosuke)... you... why are you here?"
Behind that door lay the life he had tried to leave behind—the bloody past he
fled. His younger brother. The only other survivor of that horrific tragedy
where siblings were forced to murder one another until only two remained.
Beside him, Natsuya's eyes sharpened. He noticed Uzui's movement hitch halfway
through the door-pull.
The next second, the battle-hardened ninja looked as if his soul had been
deleted. His consciousness vanished. His forehead hit the wood with a dull thud.
"Tengen!" Natsuya barked.
No response. The God of Festivals remained in his door-opening pose, but his
eyes were shut tight. His breathing was unnervingly rhythmic, as if he had
fallen into a deep, instant REM sleep.
Sabito reacted with a snap, drawing his blade. "It's a Blood Demon Art!"
[Water Breathing, First Form: Water Surface Slash!]
A blade of cold blue light flared in the tunnel. Sabito slashed at the wooden
door, hoping to break whatever spell or seal was in effect. The Nichirin Sword
bit through the wood effortlessly.
But the scene that greeted Sabito on the other side made his heart skip a beat.
There was no secret room. No tunnel.
Instead, he was standing on a mountain path shrouded in thin mist. Purple
wisteria flowers bloomed as far as the eye could see.
Mt. Fujikasane?!
How?!
Sabito whipped around. Senior Natsuya, Uzui Tengen, the dark tunnel, the
torches—all gone.
"Sabito? What's wrong?"
Standing beside him was Giyu Tomioka, wearing his tattered Final Selection gear,
looking at him with a face full of confusion.
"The exam is about to start. We can't afford to get separated."
I'm back... at the Final Selection?
Sabito's heart plummeted. His palms grew slick with sweat against his hilt. Is
this a spatial warp? Or is it the 'Hypnosis' Senior Natsuya warned us about?!
Giyu tugged at his sleeve. "Sabito, are you okay? You're acting weird."
Sabito took a shuddering breath, forcing himself to remain calm. "I was just...
I was on a mission with Senior Natsuya..."
"Senior Natsuya?" Giyu blinked. His handsome face was a mask of genuine, utter
bewilderment. "Who is that?"
A wave of ice-cold dread traveled from Sabito's spine to the top of his skull.
He frantically checked his own gear. His Nichirin Sword, his uniform—all gone.
He was wearing the plain trainee robes he had worn the day he left Master
Urokodaki's house.
What the hell is going on?
He turned back to "Giyu," staring intently at his friend's face. He searched for
a glitch, a seam, a single "frame" of inconsistency.
But all he saw was Giyu's sincere concern and his own terrified face reflected
in Giyu's pupils.
There were no cracks in the logic.
☆☆☆
-> 20 Advanced chapters Now Available on Patreon!!
-> https://www.pat-reon.co-m/c/Hollowborn
(Just remove the hyphen (-) to access patreon normally)
If you like this novel please consider leaving a review that's help the story a lot Thank you