A cult…?
Yuko stopped in place and leaned back against the wall to continue listening.
"What do you, a mere woman, know?!"
Smack!
Along with the man's furious shout, the crisp sound of a slap rang out.
"Being able to serve the Cult Leader is Kyoko's honor!"
"Our whole family will be able to enjoy eternal bliss and suffer no more—what are you dissatisfied with?!"
"You should be grateful and repent for receiving such a blessing!"
In this era, cults like this emerged one after another. Because of the prosperity of Buddhist culture, traces of Buddhism could often be seen within such sects.
They urged people to entrust their hopes to the heavens, to believe that the good might suffer in life but would find joy after death, while the wicked indulged in life only to fall into eternal hell afterward.
But if that were truly the case, how would evil people dare to commit evil so freely?
Even in modern times, if you claim that gods and spirits do not exist, someone will still argue that just because you haven't seen them doesn't mean they don't exist. Even materialist thinking has never fully taken root.
Let alone in ancient times.
Destitute people desperately needed spiritual comfort, and the ruling class also needed such lies to pacify the masses.
Thus, cults were able to thrive.
At least, that had been the case in her previous world.
But this world seemed different.
Yuko calmly gazed up at the sky. This world truly seemed to possess heaven and hell.
Just as Tanjiro had met Sabito, just as she herself had once personally witnessed Yoriichi's soul vanish.
Since then, her eyes had often been able to see things ordinary people could not.
Spirits.
For example, right now—a young girl with her head lowered drifted out from behind the door.
After stepping outside, she crouched at the doorway, clutching her head and curling into herself like an ostrich.
Yuko subtly shifted her gaze.
She looked about thirteen or fourteen—probably the family's daughter.
The girl's body trembled slightly as she hugged her head. Clearly, this family likely argued often, and every time they did, she could only hide outside with her head buried in her arms.
After a moment of silence, Yuko removed the bamboo hat from her head and walked over to squat in front of her.
"Are you okay?"
The girl's trembling paused. She slowly lifted her head, somewhat stiffly.
Yuko's face was close before her.
Although the lower half of Yuko's face was still wrapped in white cloth, from the bridge of her nose upward it wasn't hard to tell—this was a gentle person.
You could tell just from her eyes.
Even though they were an eerie pair of crimson double pupils, the girl could read the word gentleness within them.
Just like her mother's eyes.
Nervously, the girl asked,
"Y-You… you can see me?"
"Yes, I can."
"Really?"
"…Really."
Perhaps, this child wasn't very sharp.
Yuko spoke gently,
"May I ask you something?"
"Please go ahead."
"The question might be a bit upsetting."
The girl's eyes filled with confusion, but she still said generously,
"I-It's okay."
"How did you die?"
...
The girl froze.
Then her pupils shrank rapidly, her whole body beginning to tremble violently.
Yuko didn't offer comfort, nor did she rush her. She simply waited.
After a long while, the fear on the girl's face still hadn't faded as she trembled and said,
"A demon… a man-eating demon!"
Yuko's expression shifted slightly.
"Does it have something to do with that cult?"
The girl nodded in fear.
"Lord Doma… is a demon."
"He… ate me."
In this era's rigid hierarchy, even someone who had harmed her would still be addressed with an honorific.
But Yuko wasn't focused on that.
Doma?
When she heard that name, Yuko paused slightly.
She recognized it—which meant that this Doma was definitely not some insignificant character in the story.
One of the Twelve Kizuki?
By now, Yuko could hardly remember the plot anymore.
She had been in this world for hundreds of years, and human memory simply cannot last that long.
Perhaps it was the influence of Muzan's blood, or perhaps it was because her body had always been weak and she had never truly fed—
After becoming a demon, not only did this situation fail to improve, it actually became worse.
Especially since Demon Slayer had only entered her mind as an anime in the first place.
Even things that had truly happened to her in her previous life had already been completely forgotten.
The only reason she still remembered fragments of Demon Slayer's plot was because she had consciously tried to recall it after realizing this.
She had even recorded what she could remember in a way only she herself could understand.
"What is the name of the cult?"
"The Eternal Paradise Cult."
"Do you know where this Doma lives?"
"In the cult."
"…I mean the address."
The girl shook her head blankly.
"Then do you at least remember the route you took when you went there?"
She shook her head again.
Yuko felt a headache coming on—but at the same time, she felt an inexplicable sense of relief.
Because if this Doma truly was one of the Twelve Kizuki, she probably couldn't kill him.
Not because she was incapable.
But because she shouldn't.
If it were a Lower Rank demon, then killing one wouldn't really matter.
But if it were an Upper Rank…
The power balance in Demon Slayer is extremely unreasonable. The Hashira can easily kill Lower Rank demons, yet are easily killed by Upper Ranks.
Which is why people say the final battle was full of "plot armor."
This isn't even about changing the storyline.
Because fundamentally, even the Twelve Kizuki are nothing more than toys for Muzan to pass his time—creatures he can create at will.
Perhaps the top-ranked Upper Moons truly possess talent—like Kokushibo.
His strength needs no explanation. He was acknowledged by Muzan as a partner—a status no other demon had ever achieved.
For hundreds of years, the Lower Ranks changed generation after generation. Even the Upper Ranks had rotated many times. Only Kokushibo had always dominated the position of Upper Rank One with overwhelming power.
The fact that Yuko had nearly beheaded him back then was truly a matter of luck.
Using the description she disliked most—it was "plot kill."
At that time, her condition had been worse than it had ever been.
It was entirely because Kokushibo had been too careless that she managed to disrupt his rhythm with a surprise blade form.
If she were to kill Doma here, the vacancy among the Upper Rank wouldn't remain. Muzan would simply replace him with someone else.
A demon's strength is largely related to how many people they have eaten.
That statement isn't entirely accurate—it is also connected to how much blood Muzan gives them.
If he so desired, creating another Upper Rank wouldn't be difficult.
It might even be stronger than Doma.
And it might very well cause the final battle to fail because of this change.
Yuko fell into deep thought.
At some point, the girl—who had regained a little clarity—looked up at her.
"Big sister."
"Hmm?"
The girl looked at her with hopeful eyes.
"Can you help me?"
Yuko lowered her gaze slightly. If this was about revenge…
"Can you make my parents stop fighting?"
The girl's words pulled Yuko back to the present.
Yuko's eyes flickered faintly.
She doesn't want revenge—just that?
Yuko thought she understood why the girl hadn't appeared in the cult, but instead remained at her home.
She lifted her gaze slightly toward the door.
It was because of her obsession.
---
Currently at chapter 270 for advance chapters
https:// ko-fi.com/rabi08