A full moon hung high in the sky as Soma walked through the pitch-black night. Before long, he arrived at a small town near Mount Sagiri.
At night, the town was nearly deserted. Every household had its doors tightly shut. Trying to find someone to ask for information was extremely difficult.
As a demon who moved through the darkness, he could only knock on doors late at night—but for the families inside, that was undoubtedly terrifying.
The male head of the household stood protectively in front of his wife and child, gripping a hoe tightly in both hands, staring warily at Soma, who had entered the room.
"What exactly do you want?"
"I just need to ask for some information. Tell me, and I'll leave."
"You break into someone's home in the middle of the night just to ask a few questions? Who are you trying to fool? Get out right now, or else—"
The man tightened his grip on the hoe, glaring at Soma.
"I only need some information. Once you answer, I'll go."
Seeing the man's vigilance and the terrified expressions of his wife and child behind him, Soma sighed softly. He understood—anyone would be wary, even attack immediately, if a stranger slipped into their home in the dead of night.
In fact, the man had attacked the moment he discovered him. Unfortunately, Soma had knocked him down with a single punch, and only then did the man realize the vast difference in their strength and dare not strike again.
Soma paid no attention to whether the man believed him. Instead, he asked calmly,
"Are there any families nearby who sell charcoal?"
The man continued gripping the hoe tightly, staring at Soma without speaking. Clearly, he did not believe that someone who broke in at night was merely asking about charcoal sellers. He suspected Soma was trying to lower his guard before doing something worse.
However, the little daughter behind him was still young. She naïvely believed that the stranger was truly just asking for information and answered softly,
"The Machida family at the very east end of town sells charcoal… and Uncle Kimura's family does too…"
"Oh? Think carefully—are there any charcoal sellers nearby with the surname 'Kamado'?"
Soma's voice grew gentler.
The man still held his hoe tightly but did not stop his daughter from answering. Though he did not trust Soma, there was always the slight chance…
"No."
The little girl thought for a moment and shook her head.
"Think again…"
Soma frowned slightly, tapping the table lightly with his fingers.
"N-no…"
The girl shook her head again and looked toward her father—perhaps he would know.
The man clearly did not trust Soma. If he truly wanted such simple information, why not ask during the day? Breaking in at night meant ill intent.
"There's no one around here who sells charcoal with the surname 'Kamado,'" the man said firmly, gripping his hoe. "If you try to harm my family, I'll fight you to the death. Even if I die, I'll—"
"None?"
Soma sighed softly. Looking at the man—clearly afraid yet still summoning courage to protect his wife and child—he showed a hint of apology.
"Sorry for disturbing you so late."
With that, he turned and left.
"He… he left?"
After Soma's figure completely disappeared, the man still found it hard to believe. Had the intruder truly come only to ask for information?
And incidents like this began occurring repeatedly, spreading outward from Mount Sagiri as the center.
Most towns in the area had small populations. Such strange occurrences quickly became a topic of discussion. People were baffled—why was this peculiar man breaking into homes in the middle of the night to search for someone? He could clearly ask during the day. Why insist on entering houses at night? What kind of bizarre habit was that?
…
After running through five consecutive towns, Soma finally stopped and looked up at the sky.
The high-hanging full moon was gradually sinking, and a sense of unease began rising within him.
"The sun is about to rise."
He murmured softly. A demon's instincts were extremely sensitive to such things.
At this point, he was already far from his original dwelling. It was too late to return. He needed to find a place nearby to hide from the coming sunlight.
For a demon, this was a matter of life and death.
After searching for a while, he found a basement in an abandoned courtyard in one of the towns. Without hesitation, he slipped inside.
Before long, dawn broke. Morning light filtered through the mist and spread across the earth. The blackness of night faded away as sunlight filled every corner.
Soma concealed himself deep within the basement's darkness, silently watching the world outside bathed in light.
…
In front of a household marked with wisteria crests.
A young man with a Nichirin Sword hanging at his waist appeared at the entrance.
His youthful face carried a cold, unapproachable expression. In his sharp eyes, beneath the fatigue, lingered a deep sorrow.
He wore a tight black uniform, and on the back of it was the character "滅" ("Destroyer").
"Come in and rest. Your companions are inside."
An elderly woman stepped out and ushered the young man inside.
The young man's name was Furukawa Hiroshi, a swordsman of the Demon Slayer Corps who practiced Flame Breathing. Not long ago, after accepting a demon-slaying mission, he had bid farewell to the Flame Hashira, Kyojuro Rengoku.
His squad had since begun searching the surrounding area, hoping to find traces of a demon.
For Demon Slayer Corps, the ideal time to kill demons was during the day. If a demon could be exposed to sunlight, even the powerful Twelve Kizuki would be reduced to ashes.
However, after centuries of conflict, demons had learned to hide themselves thoroughly during daylight hours. Now, finding a concealed demon during the day was nearly impossible. Even if discovered, they would be hidden deep within mountain caves or underground tunnels—places sunlight could never reach.
At this point, demon slaying essentially only happened at night.
Furukawa Hiroshi entered the room. Several other men dressed in the same tight black uniforms stood up, their faces faintly shadowed with grief.
"Still no sign of Murayama?"
Furukawa looked at his companions, a trace of hope hidden in his eyes.
Murayama had been part of their squad. A few days ago, while searching for signs of a demon nearby, he had disappeared. There had been no news since.
The others all shook their heads.
Seeing this, Furukawa unconsciously clenched his fists. Everyone knew what it meant to go missing while tracking a demon.
Though they had understood from the moment they became Demon Slayers that they might one day die on this path, when it actually happened, the sorrow was still overwhelming.
"Where was Murayama last investigating?"
Suppressing his grief, Furukawa questioned his companions. The likely loss of a comrade had not crushed him—it only strengthened his resolve to slay demons.
"Taro Town," one companion replied through gritted teeth.
"Head to Taro Town immediately and search. The demon must be hiding nearby."
Furukawa pressed a hand against the hilt of his sword. His eyes were fierce, boundless anger gathering within him—and the only way to extinguish that anger was to sever the demon's neck with his Nichirin Sword.