Chapter 2: The Perfect Cure?! |
"When I spoke of regret, I wasn't referring to such trivialities," Yeruashi replied with a carefree smile, his gaze fixed on Tamayo.
True, Muzan's existence had brought immense suffering to this world, but Yeruashi himself wasn't particularly troubled by that fact. After all, human existence had been accompanied by suffering since the dawn of time, regardless of whether a monster like Muzan existed.
War, chaos, violence... they were inevitable.
A few inhabitants of this world were capable of catching his attention, but on the whole, from the perspective of his long life, humans were not much different from any other living creatures.
In truth, only one inhabitant of the Demon Slayer world had earned Yeruashi's recognition: Yoriichi Tsugikuni.
"You know the past well..." Tamayo replied, her expression clouded with confusion.
Yoriichi had lived hundreds of years ago, and that battle against Muzan had unfolded right before Tamayo's eyes. To her, it felt as though it had happened only yesterday. Yet Yeruashi spoke as if he, too, had witnessed it firsthand.
The more Tamayo thought about it, the deeper her bewilderment grew. No matter how she looked at him, the stranger was no demon.
How then could a human have witnessed events that occurred centuries ago?
"Stop talking nonsense!" Yushiro, standing nearby, could no longer restrain himself and turned to Tamayo. "Lady Tamayo, you shouldn't listen to the mindless babble of this psychopath."
She frowned in response. "Yushiro, that’s enough! Do you want me to drive you away from here?"
"...Forgive me, Lady Tamayo. It won't happen again!" The boy instantly drew his head into his shoulders the moment the fragile-looking woman raised her voice.
Tamayo then cast an apologetic look at Yeruashi. "I apologize on his behalf. The child lacks etiquette and manners."
Up until now, their acquaintance had been limited to an exchange of a few vague phrases. But that was enough for Tamayo to recognize Yeruashi’s extraordinary nature.
Perhaps the stranger did not possess the strength of the Hashira, but his wisdom and insight were beyond question.
It was possible she might gain inspiration from him, or even some practical assistance.
Then Yeruashi spoke calmly, looking into Tamayo's large lavender eyes as if peering through her soul. "I know which drug can suppress Muzan's mutated cells, and I know how to kill Muzan himself."
Boom!
Those words were like a thunderclap.
Tamayo truly had intended to discuss this matter, albeit with little hope. She herself had been unable to create a completely effective drug despite centuries of painstaking research. The question had not even left her lips before the stranger provided a crystal-clear answer. The revelation shook her to her core, much like the ancient scene of Yoriichi's blade nearly destroying Muzan.
"Are you... are you telling the truth?" Tamayo's voice trembled, her composure dissolving into a pool of hope. But mere words were not enough to make her believe.
"Did I not say that I know everything?" Yeruashi smiled nonchalantly, turning his deep gaze toward the dark sky. "But I have no intention of telling you."
"But why?" The woman's eyes widened at his indifferent words, and she couldn't help but add, "If you truly know everything, you must realize that Muzan has no place in this world! He must be destroyed!"
"That may be true from your perspective," Yeruashi said, scooping up a handful of sand with a graceful motion. He watched the grains stream through his fingers. "Life is like a grain of sand, and Muzan is but one of those grains. You believe he should disappear, but from my vantage point, he is no different from any other speck in this pile. It matters not whether he vanishes or remains."
Yeruashi sighed inwardly, lamenting how his consciousness was gradually drifting away from humanity and drawing closer to divinity.
Back when he was weak, news of a cruel monster like Muzan—who brought nothing but death and sorrow—would have triggered a surge of hatred and a desire to see justice served.
Now... what hatred could there be? The entire world appeared to him as nothing more than a handful of sand in his palm. Every grain was identical; there was no black or white.
The greater the power and the higher the vantage point, the closer the mind came to the divine—neutral and indifferent.
"Stop talking such rubbish!" Even the calm and polite Tamayo was driven to anger. How could she accept Yeruashi's words about the pointlessness of Muzan’s atrocities, which were seared into her memory?
"I see. You've simply read books and seen nothing with your own eyes! You will never understand the suffering Muzan has caused! You know nothing!" Tamayo exclaimed, casting a furious glare at the stranger.
Yet in her anger, she was even more beautiful and charming than usual, causing Yushiro to lose himself in his own fantasies.
'What a beauty...' Yeruashi smiled, as if oblivious to the beautiful woman’s angry shouts.
"What did you say, you arrogant bastard?! It seems you need to be taught a bitter lesson..." Hearing those words, Yushiro flew into a rage. Unable to restrain himself any longer, he lunged at Yeruashi. He would teach this insolent fool a lesson for daring to insult his mistress!
But...
As Yushiro approached and threw a punch at Yeruashi's head, the air suddenly grew heavy. His fist slowed uncontrollably until he froze completely, like a statue captured in mid-strike.
"Yushiro!" Tamayo cried out in shock, witnessing the scene from the side. She whispered in disbelief, "A Blood Demon Art? No, he's definitely not a demon, so how..."
There were strong swordsmen, incredibly strong ones like Yoriichi, but none of them possessed such techniques.
Looking at Yushiro's current state, only a Blood Demon Art came to mind.
"Of course not."
"Blood Demon Arts stem from the blood and essence of Muzan, who underwent an incomplete ascension of life after consuming a prototype medicine," Yeruashi said casually.
The demons of this world were more accurately described as monsters; they remained beings of flesh and blood, essentially defective life forms of a higher order.
"Incomplete... ascension of life?" Beads of cold sweat broke out on the woman's forehead. The current situation was spiraling far beyond her initial expectations.
Tamayo knew of the medicine prototype—the Blue Spider Lily—that Muzan had taken many years ago. It was because of this that he persistently searched for the spider lily required to complete the formula. Thus far, his search had been in vain.
Tamayo's wisdom and intelligence far exceeded that of normal humans. Even a phrase that brief was enough for her to form clear conclusions and spark new ideas.
Prototype medicine...
Ascension of life...
A condescending attitude...
Full indifference...
A mysterious ability resembling a Blood Demon Art...
Mention of a drug capable of suppressing Muzan's cells...
Piecing all these facts together, an incredible idea took root. Tamayo cast a shocked look at Yeruashi. "Could it be that... you have taken the completed Blue Spider Lily?!"
Now his dismissive attitude toward Muzan made sense.
Now his profound knowledge of the distant past was explained.
Now it was clear why he possessed something like a Blood Demon Art despite not being a demon himself!
Everything fell into place if the stranger had consumed the perfected Blue Spider Lily, becoming a being far more perfect than Muzan himself!