The aura felt wrong.
It carried the unmistakable scent of a demon, yet beneath it lingered something refined, almost fragrant.
Raiden rose slowly to his feet. For a brief second, his heartbeat quickened.
His gaze fixed on the tightly shut gates of Golden Pavilion Temple, doors that had never opened at this hour.
The night was still. Yet an oppressive presence approached, obvious and subtle at once.
The gates creaked open.
A narrow beam of pale light spilled through the gap. It should have signaled dawn's approach, yet what stepped through was anything but morning tranquility.
A man entered the courtyard.
His movements were light and graceful, each step measured, almost elegant. He wore dark robes adorned with a crimson droplet pattern across the chest, an outfit both theatrical and menacing.
A tall black hat rested upon his head, decorated with intricate designs. Beneath it, his face was strikingly beautiful. His skin appeared nearly luminous beneath the moonlight.
What caught Raiden's attention were his eyes.
Heterochromatic. Seven colors shimmered within them like fragments of a fractured rainbow.
Upper Rank Two.
Doma.
[Upper Rank Two: Doma]
[Race: Demon]
[Level: Hashira Class]
[Comprehension: Superior]
[Aptitude: Superior]
[Skills: Blood Demon Art, Lotus Leaf Ice, Spreading Lotus, Scattered Lotus, Withered Garden Snowfall, Frozen Cloud, Piercing Lotus, Winter Ice Pillars, Crystalline Divine Child, Frozen Mist, Sleeping Lotus Bodhisattva, and more]
"Doma?" Raiden said quietly.
So the one connected to the Horned Demon had been him.
Strange. The Upper Ranks were meant to be searching for the Blue Spider Lily under Muzan Kibutsuji's orders. Why would Doma come personally for something this minor?
Doma stepped further into the courtyard, glancing around with mild curiosity before turning his radiant gaze toward Raiden.
"Have you been waiting for me?" he asked, smiling with his eyes gently narrowed.
His voice was soft and pleasant, dangerously so. To the untrained ear, he might have sounded kind.
Raiden knew better.
Doma, founder of the Eternal Paradise Cult, devoured women under the guise of salvation. During the battle within the Infinity Castle, he had overwhelmed Shinobu Kocho, Kanao Tsuyuri, and Inosuke Hashibira simultaneously. Only because he absorbed Shinobu's body, already saturated with wisteria poison, did he fall.
Even Akaza, proud and battle driven, had accepted Doma's position as Upper Rank Two. That alone spoke volumes about Doma's strength.
Raiden let out a steady breath.
"Something like that," he replied.
There was no point pretending ignorance. Doma's arrival meant he already understood the situation in Hirai.
Raiden's fingers rested lightly on the hilt of his sword. His breathing slowed, steady and controlled.
The bamboo leaves rustled softly in the night breeze.
Doma lifted the golden folding fan in his hand. Its surface shimmered under moonlight, painted with pink lotus blossoms and green leaves in delicate detail. The edge of the fan gleamed faintly, sharp enough to cut.
"You seem tense," Doma said gently. "Isn't it pleasant to finally meet the one you've been waiting for?"
Raiden felt the weight of Doma's presence. For any Hashira, this would have been suffocating.
But he was no longer the boy from the mountains.
He possessed mastery over multiple breathing styles, access to the Transparent World, and abilities beyond that of ordinary swordsmen. His strength had already surpassed the standard of a Hashira.
The tension in his shoulders eased.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"Pleasant? Of course," Raiden said smoothly. "After waiting this long, how could I not be happy? So tell me, would you like to be my friend?"
Doma's smile did not falter, though a flicker of curiosity passed through his multicolored eyes.
"A Demon Slayer asking to be friends with a demon," he mused softly. "How interesting."
Was this ignorance? Or intention?
Hirai had become a forbidden zone for demons because of this white haired swordsman. The news had spread widely. The Horned Demon who once supplied women to the Eternal Paradise Cult had also vanished.
Doma had wanted to visit sooner, but Muzan's assignments had kept him occupied.
Now he had finally come.
"Friends?" Doma echoed pleasantly. "Why not."
[Ding]
[Successfully added Upper Rank Two Doma as a friend!]
[Friendship Level: First Acquaintance. Random reward granted.]
[Obtained Skill: Blood Demon Art, Crystalline Divine Child, Mastered]
[Fuse Blood Demon Art, Crystalline Divine Child now?]
[No]
Raiden's smile widened slightly.
Just as expected.
Doma had accepted without resistance.
Crystalline Divine Child. The technique that allowed Doma to create independent ice clones capable of wielding his Blood Demon Art.
It was not as devastating as Sleeping Lotus Bodhisattva, yet it was
one of Doma's core techniques, versatile and dangerous.
Raiden's gaze remained steady on the smiling Upper Rank.