"Mister... why are you so kind to me?"
The girl's soft voice made Toji pause slightly.
He had only said he would bring her some food. In truth, he had simply seen a thin, malnourished girl scavenging through trash just to survive and felt a little pity for her. Was that really considered being very kind?
"It's just some food."
Toji replied casually. For him, it was something easy to obtain.
The girl looked up at him with a puzzled expression.
Food was incredibly precious. When your stomach was empty, the gnawing pain of hunger was almost unbearable.
At that moment, Toji also looked carefully at the little girl.
Her clothes were tattered, her cheeks pale from malnutrition, and her face slightly sunken. Yet even so, there was still a hint of vitality that couldn't be hidden.
She was looking up at him now, her bright eyes fixed on his face.
Meeting that clear gaze, Toji suddenly felt as if he could see fragments of her past.
A poor family.
Parents who constantly beat and scolded her.
Never enough food to eat.
Never enough clothes to wear.
All of these were things the little girl was currently enduring. To him, it was merely a little food, but to her, it was something incredibly precious.
"Wait here for a moment."
He spoke gently to the girl.
The girl tilted her head, looking at him in confusion.
Toji said nothing more. With a light step against the ground, he leapt onto the eaves like a bird. In just a few swift movements, he disappeared from the girl's sight.
Not long after, Toji returned.
The girl was very obedient and had remained in the same spot, quietly waiting for him.
"Here."
Toji handed her a chicken drumstick he was holding.
The girl was stunned, especially by the rich aroma coming from the drumstick. The smell made her throat move involuntarily as she swallowed.
"Is this… for me?"
She asked in disbelief.
"Mhm."
Toji nodded and placed the drumstick into her hand.
Feeling the warmth of it in her palm and smelling the fragrant aroma, the girl finally believed that the man truly meant to give it to her.
The warmth in her hand made her feel as though she were dreaming.
She had never eaten a chicken drumstick in her entire life.
"Go on. Eat."
Toji said quietly.
"Mhm."
The girl picked up the drumstick, stuck out her tongue, and gently licked it, like a small kitten tasting water.
Toji reached out and lightly ruffled her head. Her hair was dry and yellow from malnutrition, and messy from a lack of care.
"From now on, come here every night. I'll bring you something good to eat."
The girl looked up at him, her pinkish-purple eyes fixed on his face.
The chicken drumstick was clearly something extremely precious to her. She was reluctant to eat it, only finishing it slowly under Toji's watchful gaze.
After the girl finished eating, Toji accompanied her part of the way back.
Under the dark night sky, the little girl walked home, her steps lighter than when she had arrived, as if she had regained a bit of the vitality a child her age should have.
Toji stood beneath the moonlight, watching her small figure gradually disappear into the distance.
Only then did he raise his head and look at the full moon hanging in the sky.
His hand unconsciously pressed against his abdomen.
At that moment, an intense hunger surged through his body. His stomach churned violently, as if countless acidic fluids were urging him to find food immediately.
But for him, food was completely different from what the girl ate.
If the girl's food was rice balls and chicken drumsticks, then his food was humans.
His own kind.. no.. More precisely… his former kind.
And for Toji, who had once been human himself, this was something he simply could not accept.
Even after becoming a demon, how could he commit such an act—feeding on his own kind?
But demons were like this.
They possessed an overwhelming craving for human flesh and blood. If they went too long without feeding, that craving would only grow stronger with time.
Little by little, the instinctive desire would intensify, becoming harder and harder to suppress.
Feeling that his body's craving for flesh and blood had grown even stronger than the day before, Toji's expression turned extremely grim. In truth, he did not even know how much longer he could continue holding on.
But no matter what, there was one line he would never cross.
The bottom line of someone who had once been human.
"Whew…"
Taking a deep breath, he tried to suppress the violent craving for flesh and blood rising within him. Then he focused his attention inward.
Inside his mind, a panel resembling a game status screen appeared clearly.
When his gaze settled on it, the information surfaced clearly in his consciousness.
Name: Toji
Race: Demon
Lifespan: Unlimited
Abilities: Pseudo-Immortality, Regeneration, Enhanced Physique
Weaknesses: Sunlight, Wisteria, Nichirin Blade
Status: Hungry, Curse (Kibutsuji Muzan)
Blood Demon Art: None
Physique: 3.1 (Average adult physique = 1)
Agility: 3.2 (Average adult agility = 1)
Strength: 3.1 (Average adult strength = 1)
Spirit: 1.2 (Average adult spirit = 1)
The information appearing in his mind was simple and clear, allowing him to understand his current condition at a glance.
As a demon, his physique, agility, and strength were already more than three times that of a normal human.
Even with intense training, ordinary humans could only improve their stamina, agility, and strength to a limited extent.
But exceeding three times the level of a normal person was practically impossible.
Generally speaking, for a person to exceed three times their normal limits meant they had already broken through their physical boundaries and transcended the limitations of the human body.
In other words, as a demon, he had already become a powerful being who had surpassed human physical limits, except in terms of spirit. Ordinary humans had almost no ability to resist demons. Because of this, demons no longer regarded humans as their own kind, but simply as food.
Of course, the reason demons crave humans is not only because of the gap in strength between the two. More importantly, it comes from a demon's instinctive desire for human flesh and blood. In addition, consuming human flesh and blood can further enhance a demon's body, allowing them to grow even stronger.
Becoming a demon meant not only gaining tremendous physical power, but also possessing an almost endless lifespan.
And immortality is one of the most coveted things in the world.
If there was any flaw, it would probably be the fear of sunlight, the need to hide forever in darkness, and the inability to completely control the instincts of a demon.
For Toji, the most unbearable part was precisely that uncontrollable instinct.
That overwhelming craving to devour flesh and blood.
If he continued to suppress his hunger and refused to eat human flesh, the craving and deepening hunger would surge through his heart like a rising tide.
Perhaps, if he were willing to lower his moral boundary just a little, he would no longer have to endure such suffering.
But to Toji, if he abandoned that final line…
Wouldn't he completely lose what made him human?
And if that happened…
Would he still be himself?