Yuka had been taken?
"Weren't you two together? How... how could Yuka have been taken?" Akino rushed over to Noe, demanding an explanation.
"Everything... everything was fine. We were on our way back when, suddenly, a monster that looked like a spider jumped out from nowhere. It... it grabbed Yuka from behind and dragged her away. I tried to chase after it, but... but it was too fast. I... I..."
That's it!
Akino's heart sank.
It had to be the Spider Demon—the same demon that had broken through the middle of their group and caused everyone to become separated. It was also the demon that had lured that enormous meatball-like demon toward them.
Noe was so anxious that tears streamed down her face. She spun around in place, completely at a loss.
"Cold Cry, please! You have to save Yuka!"
Seeing how distressed Noe was, Cold Cry sighed.
His guess had indeed been correct.
He raised his head and glanced at the stars filling the night sky.
With his strength, if he simply waited until dawn, he would definitely pass the Demon Slayer Corps Final Selection. But for some reason, he felt as though something was missing.
When he had come to participate in the Final Selection, his ultimate goal had been to pass and join the Demon Slayer Corps. However, he had also wanted to test the results of his training.
Now, the seven-day selection was nearing its end. He had already killed seven or eight demons, but every single one had been defeated in a single strike.
They were too weak.
So weak that he hadn't felt the slightest bit of excitement while fighting them.
The only demon that had managed to make him feel even a hint of anticipation was the Jumping Demon. Unfortunately, aside from their first encounter, it had never appeared again.
Fine.
Since the Final Selection was almost over, he might as well make a big scene.
It wasn't as if he was going to lose his life here.
Cold Cry jumped down from the stone platform and walked quickly toward Noe.
"Which direction did they go?"
Noe sobbed and pointed toward a section of the forest.
"You two stay here. I'll go find her."
"I... I'll go with you," Noe said immediately.
Yuka had been taken by a demon. How could she possibly stay behind and do nothing?
"I'll go with you too."
Cold Cry glanced at the two of them.
"Alright. But you must stay close to me. Don't run around. If you get separated, I don't need to explain what will happen. You understand, right?"
The two of them nodded vigorously.
The three quickly rushed into the forest, following the direction in which Yuka had been dragged away.
"Help! Help!"
The Spider Demon was especially skilled at snapping people's necks. From the moment Yuka had been dragged away until now, they hadn't heard a single cry for help.
Akino had already assumed the worst.
However, he suddenly heard Yuka's cries coming from the forest ahead.
The three of them immediately quickened their pace.
The Spider Demon was dragging Yuka through the dense, obstacle-filled forest, so it naturally couldn't move at its full speed. However, Yuka's body couldn't endure being dragged across the ground for long.
If they failed to catch up soon, she could be seriously injured or even killed before the demon ever had the chance to snap her neck.
"You two stay together and watch each other's backs. Under no circumstances are you to separate. If you encounter a demon, fight only if you can. If you can't, stay where you are and wait for me. Understood?"
For an instant, a sharp aura erupted from Cold Cry's body.
It was as cold as a winter wind.
Both Noe and Akino shivered involuntarily.
"Understood!"
After giving them their instructions, Cold Cry increased his speed.
In the blink of an eye, he disappeared into the pitch-black forest, leaving the two of them staring after him in stunned silence.
The two months of training on White Dragon Mountain had finally begun to show their results.
With the assistance of his Breathing Technique and his extraordinary perception of temperature, the darkness of the forest posed almost no obstacle to him.
Following Yuka's intermittent cries for help, Cold Cry soon reached a hillside not far from the mountain peak.
A large tree stood on the hillside.
The Spider Demon apparently hadn't expected Cold Cry to catch up so quickly. It was currently dragging Yuka up the tree, its six legs gripping the trunk as it climbed.
Cold Cry guessed that the tree was probably the demon's lair.
However, there was something strange about it.
Unlike the other trees, whose lush leaves made them resemble enormous balls of green cotton candy from a distance, this tree was almost completely bare.
Under the moonlight, something seemed to be hanging from its pitch-black branches.
Cold Cry didn't have time to investigate.
Seizing the opportunity, he stepped onto a protruding boulder and leaped into the air.
Facing the Spider Demon clinging to the tree trunk, he swiftly drew his sword.
"Ice Breathing, Third Form: Shattering Drizzle!"
A flash of white light streaked through the darkness.
Several thumb-sized ice spikes shot toward the Spider Demon's right-side legs and hands.
Sensing the danger behind it, the Spider Demon let out a strange screech. It immediately released Yuka and fled toward the treetop.
The ice spikes struck the trunk with a series of dull thuds.
Taking advantage of the opening, Cold Cry rushed to the base of the tree and caught Yuka as she fell.
The moment he looked up, he couldn't help but gasp.
Under the moonlight shining down through the branches, he finally saw what had been hanging from the tree.
Corpses.
Human corpses had been skewered on the branches, hanging from the tree like dried meat.
The Spider Demon let out a series of furious screeches.
Its food had been taken away.
With all six of its legs moving rapidly, it scrambled up a thick branch before suddenly pouncing toward Cold Cry and Yuka.
Cold Cry held Yuka in his arms and leaped down the slope.
He quickly reached a clearing not far away, gently leaned Yuka against a rock, and turned to face the rapidly approaching demon.
An indescribable rage began to rise from the depths of his heart.
The anger burned through him until his blood seemed to boil.
The scars on his body began to ache faintly once more, as though countless ants were gnawing at his flesh.
The moment he saw those corpses, the image and voice of his sister suddenly appeared in his mind.
Would his sister also be hung from a tree branch like this?
Would she also be treated like dried meat?
In reality, the Spider Demon had not hung the corpses from the branches to dry them. It had done so to prevent other demons from stealing its food.
But to Cold Cry, that distinction didn't matter.
The sight had ignited his anger.
Cold Cry was truly furious.
Cold air surged from his body, forming a dense white mist around him. The temperature in the surrounding area instantly dropped.
Thin ice crystals began to form on the ground beneath his feet.
The Spider Demon moved rapidly.
Its six legs darted across the ground as it twisted its flexible waist, moving in a serpentine pattern that made it difficult to predict its movements.
Cold Cry remained completely motionless.
Seeing this, the Spider Demon mistakenly believed that the human before it was no different from its previous prey.
Another prey whose neck it could snap effortlessly.
When it was only a few meters away, the Spider Demon suddenly reared up and pounced toward Cold Cry.
From the furious screech that escaped its mouth, it was clear that it was enraged.
It couldn't wait to bite through its prey's neck.
And at that moment—
Cold Cry moved.
He stepped forward with his right leg, lowered his body, and assumed a sword-drawing stance.
"Ice Breathing, Fusion Technique: Phantom Snowfall!"
He launched his attack almost simultaneously with the Spider Demon.
His figure flashed forward like a gust of wind and snow, passing straight through the demon's body.
The Spider Demon's screech suddenly turned into a shriek of pain.
Its body crashed heavily onto the ground.
Its entire body was covered in dense, snowy-white sword wounds. Frost had formed around each slash, and cold air continuously seeped from the injuries.
The Spider Demon struggled desperately.
But something was wrong.
Its wounds weren't healing.
Not nearly as quickly as they had before.
For the first time, fear appeared in the Spider Demon's eyes.