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Noe couldn't understand what Cold Cry was thinking.
If there had really been demons in the baths...
Didn't that mean she had unknowingly bathed beside one the previous night?
The thought sent a chill down her spine.
"Those two demons gave me a strange feeling," Cold Cry said as they walked.
"They weren't ordinary demons."
"If they were, they would have attacked us the moment we entered the courtyard."
"Even after they realized they had been discovered, they still chose not to fight."
Noe found that just as puzzling.
Based on everything she knew about demons, if there had truly been demons hiding in the baths, she shouldn't have survived the night unharmed.
"I think they possess a high degree of intelligence," Cold Cry continued.
"They reminded me of the Hair Demon we encountered during the Final Selection on Mount Fujikasane."
At the mention of the Hair Demon, Noe's expression stiffened.
Her thoughts were instantly dragged back to that terrifying day.
For nearly a month after leaving Mount Fujikasane, she had been haunted by nightmares.
Sometimes it was the Hair Demon lunging toward her with its writhing hair.
Other times...
It was Cold Cry lying in her arms, covered in blood.
She hurriedly shook her head, trying to drive those memories away.
Unaware of her thoughts, Cold Cry continued.
"I didn't attack last night for two reasons."
"First, I wasn't confident I could defeat two demons while also protecting Fukada."
"Second, I wanted to observe them."
"I wanted to know what they were trying to accomplish... and whether they were connected to the missing women."
"Did you discover anything?" Noe asked.
Cold Cry shook his head.
"Not much."
"But it wasn't a complete waste."
"They possess at least two abilities."
"The first is concealment."
"The second is a strange fragrance capable of causing dizziness, confusion, and physical weakness."
"They used that fragrance to withdraw at dawn."
Noe vaguely remembered smelling a faint fragrance that morning.
Everything after that had become a blur.
If what Cold Cry said was true...
Those demons could easily have killed all three of them.
Yet they hadn't.
Why?
Had they deliberately spared them?
Or did they have another objective?
"They can hide themselves..."
"They can weaken people with a scent..."
"Are they really ordinary demons?"
Cold Cry looked ahead.
"I've already thought of a way to counter both abilities."
He glanced sideways at her.
"Can you?"
Noe lowered her head.
After thinking for a while, she quietly shook it.
"When I left the inn this morning," Cold Cry continued, "I sensed they were still inside."
"I wanted to see their true forms."
"They reminded me of someone."
"Who?"
"...That's none of your concern."
Those cold words instantly extinguished Noe's enthusiasm.
She lowered her head without another question.
She didn't think Cold Cry disliked her.
He had always spoken that way.
Still...
She couldn't help feeling disappointed.
After a long silence, Cold Cry spoke again.
"It's not too late to turn back."
"If a fight breaks out, I won't have the attention to protect you."
Noe smiled faintly.
"It's alright."
"Just worry about yourself."
To anyone else, those words might have sounded encouraging.
To Cold Cry...
They were only frustrating.
Just moments ago she had nearly screamed because of a stray cat.
Now she was calmly talking about facing Upper-level danger.
Was she overestimating herself?
Or simply underestimating the demons?
Cold Cry let out a quiet sigh.
"...Suit yourself."
---
Before long, the two arrived at the hot spring inn.
The building stood exactly as it had the previous nights.
The moment they stepped inside, Cold Cry immediately sensed the two familiar presences.
This time...
They were hiding on the second floor.
Naturally, the demons had also noticed the arrival of the two Demon Slayers.
Cold Cry still couldn't shake the uneasy feeling in his heart.
As they reached the entrance to the changing rooms and prepared to separate, he suddenly grabbed Noe's wrist.
He leaned close and whispered a few instructions into her ear.
Without waiting for a reply, he released her and walked into the men's changing room.
Noe remained standing where she was.
Her cheeks gradually turned crimson.
Her heart was beating so loudly that she hadn't heard a single word he had whispered.
---
Moonlight poured over the steaming hot spring.
Everything looked exactly as it had on previous nights.
Yet the atmosphere felt strangely oppressive.
Cold Cry quietly lowered himself into the men's bath.
Although separated by walls and drifting steam, his senses remained focused on the second floor.
He was certain...
Tamayo and Yushiro were watching everything from above.
Meanwhile, Noe quietly entered the women's bath.
Still remembering how close Cold Cry had leaned moments earlier, she unconsciously covered one ear with her hand, trying to calm her racing heartbeat.
She never noticed...
Small bubbles had begun rising from the bottom of the pool.
One after another.
As the final bubble burst at the surface...
A faint ripple silently spread across the water.
It slowly drifted toward her.
Neither Noe...
Nor Cold Cry...
Noticed anything unusual.
The hot spring itself concealed temperature differences, making Cold Cry's perception far less effective underwater.
The ripple reached Noe.
Without warning
A sphere of water suddenly surged upward from the pool.
Noe stared blankly at the floating mass.
Before she could react...
It exploded across her face.
Warm water instantly wrapped around her entire head.
"Wha"
She instinctively opened her mouth.
The spring water immediately rushed into her throat.
Panic flashed across her face.
She desperately tried to hold her breath.
Instead, the water entering her airway forced her into a violent coughing fit.
Each attempt to breathe only drew in more water.
Then...
A humanoid figure slowly rose from the pool before her.
Its entire body was composed of flowing water.
Noe tried to call for Cold Cry.
She struggled to splash the water.
She tried to move.
Nothing happened.
The surrounding hot spring water had become strangely viscous.
It wrapped tightly around her arms and legs like invisible restraints.
Her muscles instantly expanded as she activated her enhanced physical strength.
Even so...
She couldn't break free.
The Water Demon lunged forward.
Its fluid body completely engulfed her.
In an instant, Noe was dragged beneath the surface.
The creature pulled her deeper toward the center of the bath.
Her vision blurred.
Her consciousness gradually faded.
Only moments ago...
She had been thinking about Cold Cry.
Now...
She was about to become a demon's prey.
Regret filled her heart.
If only she had listened to him...
If only she had stayed behind.
---
Hidden within the shadows of the second floor, Tamayo and Yushiro silently watched everything unfold.
"Lady Tamayo," Yushiro asked quietly.
"The target has appeared."
"Should we intervene?"
Tamayo calmly watched the water below.
"Not yet."
"Someone else will make the first move."
At that very instant
"Ice Breathing, Fifth Form: Swift Ice Thorn."
---
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