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Marcus closed the door to Tamayo's bathroom and leaned against it for a moment before moving.
His hands were shaking.
He stepped under the stream of ice-cold water without bothering to wait for it to warm up.
He needed it cold.
He needed it to hit his skin and remind him he was still alive, that he had a body, that he was breathing.
The water washed away the sweat, the blood, the dust.
But it didn't wash away the fear. The sweat Muzan had caused him.
'Good thing I was fast…'
He ran his hands over his face, scrubbing hard.
'Luckily, Muzan didn't take me seriously.'
But that was what churned his stomach the most.
He hadn't survived because he was strong... He'd survived because Muzan didn't consider him worth chasing!
If he'd given him a single chance to attack for real… he'd be dead.
Pressing his knuckles against the tiles, he let the freezing water pour over the back of his neck. It trickled down his back while he watched the swirl being swallowed by the drain: water, diluted blood, dirty foam.
All of it spiraling into a dark hole.
Outside, in front of Tanjiro, he had smiled. In here, alone, his legs could barely hold him up.
He didn't like that feeling… Not the one of having been close to death, but the other one. The worse one… HELPLESSNESS.
The feeling that things weren't under his control. That no matter how much he planned, no matter how carefully he calculated everything, there was someone out there who could erase him the way you'd crush a bug.
Without effort. Without even remembering it afterward.
Fighting for your life and winning thanks to a sudden burst of power, a miraculous awakening at the last second… that was a privilege reserved for protagonists. For the chosen ones.
He wasn't a protagonist, and he wasn't about to bet his life on being one.
He clenched his fist.
First, he would build up strength. He would build up so much strength that when he came face to face with something like Muzan again, there would be no suspense. No drama. Just absolute annihilation.
That was his path—the only one that would let him sleep at night.
But today, Muzan had taught him something no training could teach.
No matter how careful you were, no matter how many plans you laid out, there would always be the unexpected. There would always be a moment when everything crumbled without warning and the only thing standing between you and death was what you carried inside.
And the only thing you can truly carry inside…
…is strength.
He turned off the water. He stood there for a moment in the silence, listening to his own breathing return to normal, drop by drop, beat by beat.
Then he dried his face, looked at himself in the fogged-up mirror, and began rebuilding the smile he was going to wear when he walked out.
When he stepped out, he didn't even glance at his shredded haori.
Just looking at it made his blood boil.
'A grown-ass man running for his life... Damn you, Muzan!'
'I'm keeping score.'
He sighed when he saw the folded clothes set to one side. The house, kept immaculate by Yushiro, didn't have clothes for guests. And Yushiro's own clothes… well, that size was a whole different story.
Better not even try.
The Demon Slayer uniform was also covered in dust, but the fabric—made of God knows what kind of technology—looked more or less presentable after shaking it out a bit.
It would do.
When he reached the living room, Tanjiro was sitting across from Tamayo, speaking in a low voice. Yushiro, off to one side, alternated between gazing at Tamayo with absolute devotion and glaring at Tanjiro as if his very existence offended him.
Marcus, his composure fully rebuilt, sat cross-legged between them.
Nezuko climbed up to him immediately and rested her little head on his leg, staring at him without blinking.
And she wasn't the only one. When Marcus looked up, every pair of eyes in the room was locked on him.
Tamayo watched him for a moment, and after a brief greeting, got straight to the point.
"Mr. Marcus… forgive my bluntness, but… did you really face Muzan and come out unscathed?"
Marcus was already holding a cup of water in one hand while petting Nezuko's little head with the other as she stayed curled up against his leg.
But when he heard the question, he looked at her.
Not at her as a person, but as a possibility… His eyes gleamed with a searing intensity.
[Name: Tamayo: Demon]
[Strength Classification: B]
[Potential Classification: Extremely High.
(can activate Level Four analysis)]
[Analysis Grade: 0.15%]
'Sure enough… another one capable of reaching Level 4.'
Tamayo, under that fixed and indecipherably intense gaze, lowered her eyes and murmured:
"…Marcus?"
"Ah—sorry." Blinking, Marcus snapped back to himself and flashed her an easygoing smile. "I only got away by sheer luck, that's all."
A flicker of surprise crossed Tamayo's eyes.
'Luck…'
That's what he said, but she had spent a long time reading lies, and that one didn't quite add up.
"Even so, it is extremely impressive. Forgive my boldness, but young Tanjiro mentioned that you had just joined the Corps, so I assumed that in this confrontation you would have—"
"Miss Tamayo."
Marcus cut her off with eyes that smiled before his lips did. "Please don't be so formal with me."
"HAH?!"
Before Tamayo could even open her mouth, Yushiro exploded like a pressure cooker on the other side of the table.
"Tamayo-sama treating you that way is because she holds you in high regard!! Don't take advantage of it to—!!"
But a single look was enough to shut him up.
Marcus simply turned his eyes toward him.
No hostility. No killing intent. Not even a change in expression. He just looked at him, and the second half of Yushiro's sentence died in his throat.
A chill ran down his spine, like an icy finger tracing his vertebrae.
The person sitting across from him had looked Muzan in the eyes and come back...
"Gulp."
Every fiber of common sense screamed at him to shut up.
But that feeling of cowardice only lasted a second.
Because immediately after, something worse than fear flooded through him: shame. A burning, suffocating, unbearable shame.
Right in front of Tamayo-sama, of all people…
He couldn't back down!
It didn't matter that this guy had fought Muzan! Even if Muzan himself were sitting right there!
HE COULD NOT BACK DOWN!!
"B-besides, let me ask you! How… how did you find this place?!"
Marcus didn't even flinch. After taking a sip of water, he replied, "I followed you here. Obviously."
"IMPOSSIBLE!!" Yushiro jumped to his feet. "I never once made myself visible! My presence was completely hidden!"
"Yeah, yeah. You were very hidden." Marcus took another sip of water and looked at him over the rim of the cup. "But tell me something… didn't you forget that what you were carrying back was my sword?"
"..."
Yushiro's mouth fell open and stayed that way.
Marcus set the cup on the table. "It's true that I can't sense your presence. But did you really think I wouldn't sense my own sword? The traces of my own breathing? It was forged for me. I could find it blindfolded in the middle of a storm."
Yushiro opened and closed his lips several times, until he finally clenched his jaw and looked away, defeated.
Tanjiro, for his part, hadn't heard a single word of the exchange.
He had a dopey smile on his face, one hand holding Nezuko's little foot. His eyes wouldn't leave Marcus. He didn't dare blink, as if he were afraid that closing his eyes might make his senpai's figure vanish and everything would turn out to be a dream.
But the longer he looked… something felt off.
Tanjiro tilted his head slightly, without realizing it.
He had watched every one of Marcus's gestures for weeks, and now, something was different.
The Marcus from before, even when he rolled his eyes or shot someone a death glare, always had a spark in the depths of his gaze. But now… behind that relaxed smile, in the very depths of those green eyes, Tanjiro caught a glimpse of something he hadn't seen before… A sharp edge.
Like a blade hidden beneath the surface of the water.
Marcus was smiling, but inside…
Tanjiro's chest tightened.
"Senpai… Your sword... it broke."
"..."
Marcus looked at him for a second, then waved his hand dismissively.
"I'll just ask them to forge me another one when I get back. That sword was disposable anyway."
Right after, he absently stroked Makomo's hilt at his waist. As long as she was still with him, everything else was replaceable.
"That bastard probably got pissed because I wounded him and took it out on the sword." He clicked his tongue in annoyance. "How petty... The most powerful demon alive, and he destroys a rookie's sword out of spite."
And no matter what he said, Tanjiro watched him with shining eyes, absorbing every word.
In that moment, anything that came out of Marcus's mouth was absolute, unquestionable truth.
"Senpai, you're amazing!!" he exclaimed with an admiration so transparent that Yushiro's eye twitched.
Marcus got goosebumps.
He knew why Tanjiro was looking at him like that. He knew that just moments ago, Tanjiro had genuinely believed he was dead, that he had cried, that now all that pain had flipped on its head and the joy was overflowing from him without filter or shame. He understood.
But understanding it didn't make it any less uncomfortable.
"Stop looking at me like that!" He shoved Tanjiro's head to the side with a disgusted expression. "You look like a stalker!"
"Yes, senpai, sorry!"
Marcus pulled his hand back.
Tanjiro turned his face right back. The exact same look and the same terrifying gleam. As if nothing had happened.
Marcus stared at him for a second.
'…Crazy bastard.'
Tamayo watched them without realizing the corners of her lips had curved into a small, soft smile.
"Your relationship is really lovely~"
"Right? He's a good kid, just a little intense." The moment her honeyed voice reached Marcus's ears, Tanjiro ceased to exist, and he turned his head toward Tamayo with a charming smile.
"And if Miss Tamayo is also interested in that kind of close relationship… I wouldn't mind at all if you joined in."
Tamayo tilted her head with a subtle smile. "Mr. Marcus is joking. I'm not combat personnel."
"You're misunderstanding me, Miss Tamayo." Marcus rested his chin on his hand, his smile turning ambiguous. "I was talking about family ties. For example… you could be Tanjiro's sister-in-law."
"...Huh?"
Tamayo's smile froze.
Tanjiro, beside him, stood there slack-jawed with his cup halfway to his lips, processing what he'd just heard.
Sister-in-law…? Whose sister-in-law…? Sister-in-law how…? Wait… does that mean senpai is…?
And Yushiro… he broke.
"YOU BASTARD!!!"
With a roar that shook the walls, he shot out of his seat like a spring.
"HOW DARE YOU BE SO SHAMELESS WITH TAMAYO-SAMA!!! I'M GOING TO RIP YOUR TONGUE OUT!!!"
"No, no, no, Yushiro, STOP!!"
Reacting quickly, Tanjiro threw himself forward and wrapped his arms around Yushiro's waist before he could leap over the table. "He just runs his mouth!! He loves saying stupid shit whenever he sees a pretty woman!! He doesn't mean anything by it, I swear!! HE'S LIKE THIS WITH ALL OF THEM!!"
"Yushiro." However, Tamayo didn't seem to mind, and smiled. "Sit down."
"But Tamayo-sama!! This guy just—!!"
"Sit down."
"…Yes, Tamayo-sama."
Deflating like a popped balloon, Yushiro dropped back into his seat, nostrils flaring with steam and his jaw clenched so tight the muscles bulged.
Right after, Tamayo looked at Marcus with curiosity. "Mr. Marcus is truly interesting."
Marcus raised an eyebrow.
"While you were bathing, young Tanjiro gave me a rough overview of your Breath of Desire. But I didn't expect that not only the technique would be so unique… but that the person behind it would turn out to be so… lively."
Catching the reference, Marcus smiled.
He leaned slightly forward, resting his elbow on his knee, closing the distance between them.
"If you're willing… I can help you understand it on a deeper level."
On the other side, Yushiro began to tremble. Tanjiro, without even looking at him, placed a hand on his shoulder and squeezed hard.
Marcus knew exactly what he was doing.
With Nezuko, so innocent, what was needed was companionship.
With Makomo, so naive, a playful provocation was enough. A little push to pull her out of her comfort zone and make her react.
With Kanao, so locked up inside herself, what was needed was patience. Slipping in slowly, without forcing the door, until she opened it herself.
For someone like Tamayo—rational, measured—he needed a different approach. With her, you had to go on the offensive.
And faced with Marcus's bold words, Tamayo didn't take offense—she laughed.
"Very well." She nodded, her eyes narrowing and a smile that was suddenly not so innocent anymore. "Then let's start by talking about your blood. Sound good?"
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Thank you for reading! 🙏 Things are getting very interesting between Marcus and Tamayo! 😏 Let me know your thoughts in the comments and remember to support the novel with your Power Stones! 💬
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