"What are you doing to my mom?!"
The angry shout rang out right as Shuya finished wrapping the three figures—a woman and two small boys—in his conjured Nen chains, turning them into three tightly bound bundles.
He turned around.
A pretty girl with a fierce, adorable scowl stood in the doorway, glaring straight at him.
Her eyebrows and eyes carried the same soft, familiar lines as Kie Kamado. Given her age, there was no doubt—this was Nezuko Kamado, the heroine from Demon Slayer.
Behind her stood two even younger kids, a boy and a girl, half-hiding and looking scared. All three of them were staring daggers at Shuya.
Nezuko didn't make any sudden moves. She kept her glare locked on him while stepping protectively in front of her little brother and sister, exactly like the responsible oldest daughter she was.
"Mom…?"
Takeo—always the impulsive one—saw the pained look on his mother's face and couldn't hold back. He broke free and charged straight toward her.
"Takeo!" Nezuko cried, lunging to grab him.
She was too late. Her hand closed on empty air.
The second Takeo got close to the bound trio, a hand shot out from behind, grabbed the back of his collar, and lifted him clean off the ground.
It was Shuya.
He wasn't about to waste more of Muzan's blood turning this hot-headed kid into a demon too. With a gentle flick of his wrist, he tossed Takeo back toward his siblings.
"Damn it!" Takeo yelled, already trying to rush forward again.
Nezuko caught him and pinned him in place. "Takeo, calm down!"
She had already noticed something was seriously wrong.
Under normal circumstances, their mom and brothers should have said something by now. But they hadn't made a sound. Worse, their faces were twisted into expressions she had never seen before—savage, animalistic, like wild beasts.
That was why she stopped her brother. Plus, when Shuya had thrown Takeo back, the boy hadn't been hurt at all. Maybe this man wasn't the enemy after all.
Nezuko took a steady breath and asked calmly, "Sir, can you please tell us what just happened here?"
Shuya gave a small smile.
He had been ready to chain these three up too just to keep them out of the way. But the heroine was sharper than he expected. Looked like he wouldn't need to.
Still, he didn't bother explaining. People always trusted their own guesses more than someone else's words. Trying to talk them down now would just be a waste of breath.
Better to let Kie explain everything once she regained her sanity.
"You three just stay back and watch quietly," Shuya said evenly. "When your mom wakes up, she'll tell you herself."
"No way we're just gonna stand here!" Takeo shouted, still struggling against his sister.
"Takeo!" Nezuko snapped, voice sharp.
As the oldest daughter, she carried real authority with her siblings. Takeo wilted instantly.
"But—"
"Enough," she cut him off.
Right now, the smartest move was hoping this man wasn't their enemy. If he was, two girls and one boy had zero chance against an adult like him. And his suggestion to wait actually worked in their favor—if Tanjiro got home from selling charcoal soon, his older brother's strength from years of chopping wood might tip the scales.
Running away? Not an option. They'd never outrun an adult, and the deep mountain forest at night was probably more dangerous than staying put.
So Nezuko kept her voice as steady as she could. "Sir, can you promise you won't hurt us while we wait?"
"I can," Shuya answered with a nod.
He didn't care about their little plan. As long as they stayed out of his way, it was fine.
Nezuko let out a relieved breath, but she didn't drop her guard. She kept her younger siblings behind her and never took her eyes off Shuya.
Only now, with her nerves calming a little, did she really look at him.
She had never gone to school, so she didn't have fancy words for what she saw. The only thought that came to mind was simple.
Handsome.
She had never seen a man this good-looking in her entire life.
While she was staring, Shuya walked a short distance away. That was when she finally noticed the other figure in the darkness—a massive, hulking demon standing silently like a small giant.
"Do you have a Blood Demon Art?" Shuya asked the controlled demon, not wasting any more time.
"No," the demon answered in that flat, emotionless voice.
Shuya sighed, disappointed. He didn't bother asking anything else.
The demon had only been turned recently, and the blood it received was only meant for the transformation. It made sense that it hadn't awakened any special ability yet. If Shuya fed it more of the blood he was carrying, it probably would develop one… but that would be a terrible trade. Better to save the blood for experiments.
As for this demon? He'd just leave it here so Kie and the boys could take out their anger on it once they came to their senses.
"...Nezuko? Hanako? Takeo?"
At that moment, Kie Kamado finally started to regain her mind.