It was the end of the Taisho era. Affected by domestic and international economic crises, the prosperity built on the dividends of past foreign wars had begun to decline.
Society was becoming restless. Ambitious schemers were stirring. The common people, affected by these upheavals, found their lives growing increasingly difficult.
The further north towards the Tohoku region he travelled, the stronger this feeling of unrest became.
Along the road, he could see families selling their children just to cope with soaring rice prices, and propagandists shouting slogans for war, agitating for the cabinet's intended plan to dispatch troops to Siberia.
In short, turbulent winds were gathering.
On this day, Taka passed through a desolate town.
With the industrial development of the Tohoku region, the town's young people were increasingly gathering in larger cities like Fukushima and Sendai.
Now, those remaining were either farming families who had lived here for generations or merchants running shops. New faces were rarely seen.
So when Taka appeared in the town, most passersby looked at him with inquiring eyes, wondering why this decent-looking young man had come to this small village.
Especially at a time like this....
As soon as he entered the town, a strange feeling settled over Taka.
The atmosphere here was oppressive to an extreme, giving a very bad feeling.
Although the shops along the road were open as usual, pedestrians moved about normally, and occasionally someone would kindly smile and nod at him.
But everyone seemed to be shrouded in a layer of grey film.
It was a shadow in their spiritual pressure, reflecting the deep unease, anxiety, and fear in their hearts.
Taka didn't stop to ask questions. He just moved forward without changing his expression, keenly eavesdropping on the whispers in the streets and observing everyone's flickering gazes.
"...Yuuji too? Sigh... another one..."
"Your shadow... how is it?"
"I feel it's a bit faint today... feeling not so good..."
"Koji died last night.... It's too eerie...."
These fragments of speech coalesced, making Taka's nerves twitch slightly.
'Was this city experiencing strange deaths?'
'Could it be a demon?'
He instinctively reached for his Nichirin Sword, but withdrew his hand before touching the hilt.
'...None of my business.'
Taka's judgment was straightforward and simple.
He would carry out the mission assigned by the Demon Slayer Corps, the tasks his teacher had told him about, the request Rika had entrusted... and perhaps even the personal matters of Kenichi and Shinsuke.
But aside from that, he didn't want to get involved in trouble.
Whether this town was haunted by a demon, and how great the threat was, he didn't want to intervene until an official order was issued.
As long as that demon didn't stand in his way.
His mission was in Sendai. No need to stir up extra trouble.
Taka adjusted the black haori that concealed his swords, looking for a general store to replenish his dried food and water, and planning to buy a map of the Tohoku Region.
However, as he walked down the desolate street, his gaze happened to fall on a relatively quiet alley, and his line of sight caught a small, curled-up shadow in the corner.
Three or four children, the oldest no more than eleven or twelve, the youngest still needing to be held.
They huddled in a corner piled with discarded wooden crates and rubbish, dressed in rags, their faces dirty.
'Street children?' Seeing their state, Taka stopped in his tracks.
Not only because he saw his former self in them, but mainly because of their unhealthy complexion.
It was as if their blood had been drained, or the deathly stillness one has at the moment of death.
Yet their eyes were bright. They huddled together for warmth, and the leader's voice was especially clear.
This wasn't the pale face brought on by simple hunger, injury, or being beaten.
Taka calmed his mind and used his Reiatsu Perception to probe around those street children....
Just as he thought!
The afternoon sun shone into the alley, casting clear shadows on the uneven ground. Whether from the crates, the stone wall, or the small tree by the wall, all were as black as thick ink.
But these children, their shadows were like poor-quality ink marks soaked in water, the edges blurred, the color so faint it nearly merged with the ground.
It was as if something was continuously devouring the color of their shadows, draining their life force through them.
It was a demon!
Although he didn't understand the specific logic of its actions, without a doubt, these children had been marked by a demon.
Taka fell silent. He didn't know what force kept him rooted to the spot, quietly watching these little stray dogs huddled together.
He retraced his steps, went back to a stall selling coarse grain cakes, and sat down expressionlessly:
"Boss, business good?"
The old man selling cakes was startled. Looking at this unfamiliar young person, he gave a forced smile and sighed, "Eh, what's good or bad about it... just fellow villagers supporting each other. Young master from out of town? Best buy what you need and leave quickly. Things aren't peaceful around here lately...."
His eyes flickered as he handed Taka the coarse cake and tea he had ordered.
"Hmm... what's going on? I just heard something about shadows?" Taka took a bite of the cake, asking casually as if he didn't care, but it made the old man's expression change. He quickly looked left and right and lowered his voice:
"Shh! Don't speak so loudly! It's eerie! Sigh... it's this shadow, somehow it just fades on its own! When the shadow's completely gone, the person dies! Dried up like a mummy...."
"I'm telling you, young master, don't pry. It's nothing good! Take my advice and leave quickly!"
Taka nodded, asking no further questions.
He paid a little extra, signaling the boss to bring some food to the children in the alley, then took his own portion and left.
Next, he made similar inquiries at several different stalls. The information he got was all sorts of strange.
Some said it was a rumor, some said it was the Tengu-sama's wrath, and others refused to speak at all, directly trying to drive him away.
But recalling the conversations he had overheard on the road, coupled with these fragmented pieces of information, he eventually pieced together a rough conclusion:
A strange disease was breaking out in this town. The shadows of the afflicted would grow fainter and fainter, and their health would weaken accordingly until death.
The first victim was Asano Shigeru, a barely surviving man on the east side of town. The rest were mostly poor people or solitary men. Their deaths were all consistent… their bodies seemed drained, reduced to mummies.
'How strange. Don't demons eat people? How can there be a demon that eats shadows?'
Taka didn't understand, but he respected a demon's peculiar eating habits.
It was still daytime, so demons wouldn't come out. To make sense of things, he decided to go to the place of the first victim, Asano Shigeru, and see if there were any clues.
After some somewhat difficult inquiries, he finally found a small, fenced yard almost submerged by wild grass.
The sunlight here seemed stingy as well. The low earthen house was covered in thick dust, and cobwebs hung in the corners.
Part of the courtyard wall had even collapsed, looking as if it hadn't been tended to in a very long time.
'This was Asano Shigeru's home?'
Although it looked rundown, as someone who had once been a street child unable to afford shoes, Taka wasn't one to criticize others' living conditions. He silently pushed open the creaking, broken door.
A powerful stench, a mix of strong cheap alcohol and sweaty sourness, rushed out:
Broken bottles, scattered firewood, and unknown filth were wantonly splattered on the dirt floor.
A gaunt, hollow-eyed man was curled up on a ragged straw mat under the eaves, his hand still tightly clutching an empty bottle.
His hair was greasy and matted, his clothes tattered, his bare arms covered in bruises.
Judging by his appearance, he was clearly in a state of severe, sustained hangover.
This was another reason the townsfolk were unwilling to talk about Asano Shigeru… his younger brother, Asano Sakae.