SLASH!
SLASH!
SLASH!
The sound of the blade slicing flesh hit as hard as torrential rain!
"AAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!!!"
While Marcus plunged into absolute madness, the Demon unleashed the most gut-wrenching shriek since the start of the battle.
He frantically flailed his remaining stumps, trying to dispel those pink illusions, failing completely to capture Marcus's true body.
"Slow! Way too slow!! FASTER!! Fail to give me enough to cut, and my next slash will be your NECK!!!"
"STOP!! I was wrong!! L-LEAVE ME ALONE!!!"
The demon trembled violently from the pain and the extreme exhaustion of constant regeneration.
In a mere three minutes, his body mass shrank to a third of its original size.
Dark blue blood gushed constantly from the wounds, and new sprouts of flesh writhed spasmodically, attempting to rebuild the lost limbs.
But every single time they grew, Marcus severed them cleanly from the root.
He discovered that applying the slash at that exact instant maximized the suffering!
"KEEP GOING!!! KEEP PUSHING!!!"
Witnessing Marcus surrendered to terrifying butchery, Tanjiro dropped his guard stance and collapsed sitting on the ground, completely drained of strength.
He watched in astonishment as the Demon got sliced layer by layer, growing thinner and thinner under Marcus's blade.
This had transformed from the simple act of killing a demon into pure torture, a prolonged execution, a slow and atrocious death!
That expression on Marcus was completely new to him.
He believed... Marcus solely enjoyed playing pranks.
Whether displaying a mischievous, cold, or mocking smile, he remained always laughing.
But in this instant, he met the real Marcus, the mirthless Marcus.
It felt... terrifying.
This torment finally came to a halt five minutes later.
The Hand Demon was reduced to his most basic title, "Demon."
He lacked arms completely. To be exact, his entire body exhibited exclusively exposed flesh.
He remained exclusively a mass of red-hot and deeply bloodied tissue.
"Why... why?..." His former yellow eyes were now a pair of completely empty sockets.
His healing failed entirely to regenerate the gouged-out eyeballs.
Stopping right beside him, Marcus lightly shook the thick blood off his blade.
In the middle of the muddy clearing filled with deep craters, he and his sword maintained absolute cleanliness.
"Why?" He tilted his head, emitting a completely neutral and cold voice, "To help you... to help you redeem yourself."
"Are you refusing to thank me?"
TCHAK!
The tip of the steel sank deep into the Demon. The sharp and cold piercing pain forced the demon to scream madly, "Aaaagh! T-thank you! I thank you! THANK YOU!!"
After expressing his gratitude, he launched a desperate plea.
"K-Kill me! I BEG YOU, KILL ME!!!"
"..."
Remaining silent, Marcus looked at his sword.
On the surface of the blade, the purple-pink glare continued to flicker rhythmically, imitating a deep breath.
Its rhythm evidenced a clear stabilization.
Makomo showed evident signs of satisfaction.
However...
I am still incredibly pissed off!
Had this demon stayed away, I would have already seized the chance to completely take Makomo!
Marcus's swordsmanship adopted an extreme precision, or rather... an absolute cruelty.
He abandoned the strategy of severing limbs. The Demon was completely stripped of any remaining tissue capable of regenerating.
He opted to use exclusively the tip of the weapon to dig inward. He advanced millimeter by millimeter, tearing the edges of the open wounds.
The freezing steel sliced through the muscle layer, methodically scraping the surface of the bones.
"AAAAAHHH!!! STOP! STOP IT NOW!"
The Demon's scream exhibited a completely different tone, evidencing a total mental and physical collapse.
He writhed frantically, striving to escape his torment. He had exhausted every last drop of energy, rendering him entirely incapable of regenerating even a measly tentacle.
He was reduced to merely howling while being sliced.
One minute... two minutes...
Seeing that the Demon's skeleton was on the verge of being completely exposed...
"That is enough, Senpai!"
Tanjiro firmly gripped Marcus's hand, halting his advance.
His face looked pale and his body trembled visibly. Despite the evident terror, his gaze transmitted an unbreakable resolve.
He felt a profound fear.
Directed entirely at Marcus!
He feared seeing his senpai obsessed and consumed by the abyss of hatred. He feared he would sink into madness.
"That is enough... Senpai... kill him already..."
Turning his head, Marcus locked his gaze on him with a raised eyebrow.
Upon seeing his worried look and hearing his pleading tone...
At that precise instant, a faint and warm sensation of relief emanated directly from Makomo through the hilt.
Marcus looked at the demon, whose flesh and bones appeared completely separated, and sighed deeply.
He relaxed his tense facial muscles and formed a slight smile once again.
"Alright, I'll indulge my brother-in-law."
This time Tanjiro maintained absolute silence, accepting the remark. As long as Marcus managed to keep his sanity... he was willing to nod along to any crazy idea, even if he decided to call him his son.
"Now, kill him."
"Huh?!" Tanjiro's eyes widened, astonished.
Marcus shrugged with total naturalness. "I am completely unfamiliar with the Water Breathing forms."
Tanjiro pointed at himself and then at the mutilated creature, feeling completely confused.
"He is in this state and you still want me to use a breathing technique?"
Marcus patted his shoulder, maintaining his smile.
"I firmly believe... that the old man would love to see him die by the hands of Water Breathing..."
Tanjiro froze for a moment and his eyes instantly turned red.
Senpai... really... is so kind…
Marcus handed Makomo over to the astonished Tanjiro. "Use my sword."
Upon gripping the sword, which his brother strictly reserved for his own hands, Tanjiro's first reaction was: 'How heavy...'
The second reaction surprised him internally.
'How familiar...'
The third reaction was... "Ouch!" Pain.
Gripping the back of his neck with resentment, he looked at Marcus with teary eyes. "Why did you hit me?!"
"Hurry up! How long do you plan to keep groping her?!"
"Tsk!"
Looking down at the Demon, who had been stripped of his ability to scream and existed entirely as a formless mass, Tanjiro acted immediately. He gripped the hilt with both hands and raised it to the side.
"Water Breathing - First Form: Water Surface Slash."
When the edge finally sank into his neck, the Demon felt an unexpected kind of relief.
However, that incredibly familiar technique made the anger sprout inside him once again.
UROKODAKI!
Loaded with frustration and resentment, The Hand Demon... was exterminated.
Meanwhile, Tanjiro stood astonished, watching the demon's remains turn into ashes.
Marcus had already snatched Makomo back, blowing on the spot where Tanjiro had held her with a clear trace of disdain.
He permitted Tanjiro to touch her exclusively to let Makomo execute the demon.
"...." Tanjiro put on a face of absolute disbelief.
"Now..."
"Now!" Interrupting him, Marcus hugged the already sheathed sword, having completely turned around.
Adopting the solemn posture of a sage, he spoke slowly. "Tanjiro, you have grown! It is time to accomplish your feats on your own! You must learn to rely exclusively on yourself!"
"Huh?" Tanjiro tilted his head. "What are you talking about?"
"... What I mean is that, from here on out, you should walk your own path!"
Feeling something strange, Tanjiro sniffed the air slightly and his gaze transformed completely, becoming loaded with suspicion.
A fixed stare.
"... Your scent has changed... Are you... planning to leave me here... to run off and find that Kanao..."
Upon observing Marcus's back tense up suddenly, he confirmed his suspicions instantly.
"Absolutely unacceptable! You promised the Master that—"
"Desire Breathing - Second Form: Fox Walk!"
"..."
Tanjiro stared in astonishment at the pink trail dissipating in the palm of his hand. The space in front of him became completely empty in the blink of an eye.
"MARCUS!!!"
______
The Hand Demon is dead, but my hunger for Power Stones isn't. Hand them over right now!
________
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