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Chapter 84: Do You Have the Courage to Walk With a Demon?
"Kibutsuji Muzan?" Suyan looked at the target bound by his conjured Nen chain and asked tentatively.
"Who are you?" The dark figure was startled, but instead of answering Suyan's question, it shot back one of its own.
"No, you're not him." Suyan shook his head and said, "Although I've never seen Kibutsuji Muzan, your aura is far too weak."
"So weak that I could easily crush you with a single finger."
"While it's true I look down on that coward Muzan's strength, he shouldn't be as pathetic as you."
But this didn't make sense.
According to the anime's lore, wasn't Kamado Nezuko turned into a demon personally by Muzan?
Otherwise, it would've been impossible for the protagonist, Tanjiro, to track him down later by relying on his scent.
Not to mention, when frightened into fleeing, he actually apologized twice to a normal human standing in his way.
It was hailed as the Demon King Muzan's most polite episode.
"I'm weak? Then let me show you my strength!" The dark figure scoffed at Suyan's words, its muscles suddenly bulging taut.
It flexed both arms violently, intent on shattering the chain binding its body.
The dark figure roared, "A mere iron chain like this can't hold me! Break!!"
Suyan just watched him quietly.
One second, two seconds, three seconds...
Time ticked by little by little, yet the dark figure was entirely unable to snap the chain binding it.
Just as helpless as Kamado Takeo had been when trying to pry its hand off earlier.
"How is this possible?" the dark figure said in disbelief.
Even if its strength wasn't as formidable as the Twelve Kizuki, how could it be unable to break a mere iron chain?
Simple. While it was indeed an ordinary iron chain conjured into existence...
The Nen enshrouding it was very real.
If any random demon could break free from it.
Then Suyan wouldn't even need to bother looking for Muzan.
He could just go back to Greed Island, wash up, and go to sleep.
Suyan coldly demanded, "Now tell me, why wasn't Muzan the one who came?"
"You think I'll tell you? Dream on!" Even in this predicament, the dark figure remained unyielding.
Suyan smacked his forehead.
He was being a bit foolish.
After all, given Muzan's extreme cowardice—a man who would flee in a panic just from seeing Tanjiro.
Any demon who even spoke his name would be immediately and remotely forced to commit suicide.
Let alone a demon intent on leaking information about him.
Realizing this, a Nen needle materialized in Suyan's hand, and he thrust it straight into the demon's forehead.
At a time like this, using the Undead Overture ability was still the most fitting approach.
Soon, the demon before him underwent a transformation similar to the one he had overtaken with Undead Overture previously.
"What did you do to me?" the dark figure cried out in horror.
Yes, not joy, but horror.
Because it could clearly feel the power within its body intensifying, even far surpassing what it had before.
Yet, despite this surge in strength, it still couldn't break free from the chain binding it.
Moreover, the looming dread within its body—the sensation that it would die the moment it spoke Lord Muzan's name—had disappeared.
Unlike that brainless Sano from earlier, it knew exactly how terrifyingly powerful Lord Muzan was. If this betrayal was discovered...
Never mind the guy in front of it not letting it go; Lord Muzan wouldn't spare it either.
Snap.
Suyan didn't answer. He simply snapped his fingers, coldly watching as the eyeballs of the demon before him were covered in white.
Only then did he ask, "Now tell me, why wasn't Muzan the one who came tonight?"
"I don't know," the demon replied, its voice devoid of emotion like a robot.
Suyan realized his phrasing was flawed. He asked again, "Then what is your purpose in coming here?"
The demon answered, "To find food to grow stronger, and to bestow Lord Muzan's blood upon others to create more suitable kin."
"Muzan's demon blood?" Suyan paused.
Aside from a very small number of Upper Rank demons, Muzan had actually granted other demons the ability to turn humans into demons?
Suyan pressed further, "Why did Muzan give you this?"
"I don't know." The demon repeated its previous answer, but added, "After Lord Muzan granted me the demon blood, he said he was going to cause trouble for a woman named Tamayo, and then he left."
Suyan grew even more confused after hearing this.
How did Tamayo get dragged into this?
He initially thought it was the butterfly effect caused by his arrival in this world.
But besides going on a blind date, he hadn't really done anything! No matter how much his presence affected things, it shouldn't have impacted this Miss Tamayo, right?
"Whatever, just extract Muzan's blood from your body and put it in this bottle." Suyan didn't dwell on it too much. At the very least, one of his current goals—Muzan's blood—was in his hands.
He could test its effects first. If it worked, he would go find Muzan and drain him dry.
If it didn't work, well, he would leave Muzan to his luck.
Suyan conjured a glass bottle, handed it to the demon, and casually asked, "When did this happen?"
"Five days ago." The demon answered while dripping Muzan's blood from its body into the glass bottle.
"Five days ago?"
Wasn't that the day he entered this world and went on a blind date with Kanroji Mitsuri?
Was it really the butterfly effect?
Aside from the blind date with Kanroji Mitsuri, what else did he do that day?
Suyan glanced at the demon before him, and a spark of realization flashed through his mind.
Wait.
Was it the Nen needle?
Five nights ago, he used his Nen needle's Undead Overture ability to seize control of a demon, which Muzan sensed on the other end.
And Muzan assumed Tamayo was the one who did it.
So he ran off to deal with her?
After all, for a thousand years, Muzan didn't even dare to let his Twelve Kizuki gather together.
He was terrified they would team up and betray him.
As for a subordinate demon suddenly losing control... naturally, that was an even more intolerable offense.
So dealing with Tamayo was bumped up to his highest priority.
But perhaps due to the inertia of history, Muzan chose to grant his blood to the demon in front of Suyan, sending it to sneak into the Kamado house in his stead.
Which allowed Muzan to keep his little life for now.
Figuring this out, Suyan couldn't help but feel speechless.
So it really was my fault after all?
"Please... save my children."
At that moment, Kamado Kie, lying on the ground to the side, reached out toward Suyan with a weak plea for help.
She was actually still alive?
Suyan glanced at Kamado Kie and sensed the auras of the people on the ground.
He realized that not only Kamado Kie in front of him, but even her two children nearby still maintained a faint heartbeat.
However, their breathing was so shallow that it felt as though they could die right there at any moment.
This left Suyan feeling a bit powerless.
Even though Nen abilities possessed all sorts of bizarre and wondrous mechanics, abilities suited for healing were pitifully rare.
In the Hunter x Hunter world, there was a world-class billionaire named Battera who spent almost his entire fortune just to obtain a certain healing card from the Greed Island game to save his terminally ill girlfriend.
This showed just how rare healing-type Nen abilities were.
As far as he knew, the only healing abilities were Phantom Troupe member Machi's Nen Stitches, Chimera Ant Royal Guard Neferpitou's Doctor Blythe, and Kurapika's Holy Chain.
Aside from Kurapika's chain, the other two's Nen abilities wouldn't be much help in the current situation anyway.
Suyan first looked at the glass bottle holding Muzan's blood still in the demon's hand, then turned back to Kamado Kie.
After thinking for a moment, he spoke a classic line uttered by the secondary protagonist Philip in Kamen Rider W.
"Madam, do you have the courage to walk with a demon?"
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