By the time Luke came down the mountain, the Demon Slayer Corps support personnel had only just arrived. But there was no fighting left for them to do. All they needed to worry about was putting out the fire.
Given the era's technological limits, though, a forest fire that had spread this far was most likely impossible to extinguish. They could only wait for it to burn itself out.
Luke did know a few Kidō spells that could spray water, but they consumed far too much Soul Source. In a dangerous mission world, he was not about to burn through a massive amount of Soul Source just to put out a forest fire for the locals.
"Senior Brother Luke!"
Once he reached the foot of the mountain, a yellow figure lunged at Luke. Luke caught Zenitsu by the face with one hand. He was highly experienced at dealing with this sort of thing.
"How are your injuries?"
Luke set Zenitsu upright. The question was directed not only at Zenitsu, but also at the others, including the Sound Hashira.
"Not bad. I won't die. Since you're down here, I take it you've handled everything?"
The Sound Hashira spoke weakly.
"Damn it..."
Zenitsu gritted his teeth in envy as he looked at the Sound Hashira. After coming down the mountain, they had run into the three wives who had followed the Kasugai Crow's directions to meet up with him. Right now, the Sound Hashira was having his bandages changed by all three women.
"It was close, but everyone on the mountain is dead now."
Luke gave a simple answer, scanning the woods as he spoke. He still had not seen Tamayo and Yushiro. Those two had hidden themselves extremely well.
"As long as everyone's all right, that's what matters. It's just a shame about the Corps members who died on the mountain..."
Tanjiro was first delighted that they had survived and that Luke had successfully killed the Twelve Kizuki. But then he remembered the Demon Slayer Corps members who had fought at his side, and sadness filled him.
"Lord Luke is really incredible. I heard it was Upper Rank Five and Lower Rank One this time, yet neither of them was a match for you."
Suma looked at Luke, who still appeared completely uninjured, and spoke with open admiration. Makio promptly smacked her on the head.
"Thank you again, Lord Luke. If you had not arrived in time, we might never have seen Lord Tengen again."
Hinatsuru gave Luke a graceful bow of thanks. She had always been the most mature, steady, and courteous of the three.
Luke waved a hand casually. "Killing Demons is part of my duty. I merely happened to pass through this place."
Then he looked at the Sound Hashira. "By the way, are you really all right?"
The Sound Hashira had not only had huge chunks of flesh bitten away by Gyokko's catfish, but some of his internal organs had been injured as well. If Luke had not given him emergency treatment with Kaidō, the Sound Hashira likely would not have survived long enough to come down the mountain.
But Luke's Kaidō was not omnipotent. Gyokko's Blood Demon Art also contained poison. While it was not as vicious as Gyutaro's poison, it was still enough to kill the weakened Sound Hashira.
If the Sound Hashira had not undergone poison-resistance training since childhood, he might already have died in his current condition.
"Lord Tengen has been poisoned, and we don't yet know how to cure it. We wanted to take him back to the ninja village to detoxify him."
Hinatsuru looked worried. Having grown up in the ninja village, they knew quite a bit about poisons. Unfortunately, there were no medicinal herbs here, making it difficult to prepare an antidote.
"If you do not mind, I can take a look at this Hashira."
A voice sounded from the woods. Everyone turned toward the dark forest, where two figures emerged and slowly approached.
Hinatsuru and the others immediately tensed. They could sense that the two figures were clearly Demons, and they were about to attack at once.
"Don't get worked up. These two aren't evil Demons. I invited them to the Demon Slayer Corps headquarters, and the Master has already approved it. You should receive an escort order soon as well."
Luke spoke up to stop Hinatsuru and the others. The Master had replied to him the previous night, saying that he trusted Luke's judgment and would receive them at the location of the Hashira Meeting.
Though still suspicious, Hinatsuru and the others felt that Luke would not lie to them, so they lowered their Nichirin Blades.
But there was still one hothead here. "There are kind Demons? I don't believe it!"
A young man wearing a boar mask gripped two swords and charged at Tamayo and Yushiro.
He dropped from the air, both blades descending toward Tamayo's neck.
Bang!
But someone was faster. No one saw Luke move. He simply appeared in midair and kicked Inosuke in the waist, launching him into a tree. The collision knocked off his mask, revealing a delicate, beautiful face that looked almost feminine.
The kick left Inosuke dizzy, yet strangely, his waist did not hurt much. He stared at Luke in astonishment. "You're strong! Come fight me and let's see who wins!"
Tanjiro, who had rushed over to help Inosuke up, quickly held him back. "Inosuke! What are you doing? Big Brother Luke is a Hashira! He was the one who saved us just now."
Inosuke's not particularly bright mind turned that over for a long while without getting it. As far as he knew, he had gone up the mountain with Tanjiro, heard a whispering voice, and fallen asleep. When he woke up, he was already at the foot of the mountain.
"Hashira? What's that? Can you eat it?"
Inosuke voiced his confusion.
"Inosuke, you don't even know what a Hashira is? How did you even join the Demon Slayer Corps?"
Zenitsu looked utterly shocked. "Hashira are the strongest swordsmen in the Demon Slayer Corps. My senior brother, for example, is the Thunder Hashira—the current strongest user of Thunder Breathing."
Inosuke nodded blankly before his expression turned solemn. "He really is strong. One kick sent me flying, and I didn't even feel pain."
"And since Senior Brother Luke says these two aren't evil Demons, then they should be fine. How could you charge in to kill them without even asking questions?"
Zenitsu had finally found an opportunity to teach Inosuke some common sense. Earlier, he had been beaten black and blue for protecting Nezuko. Since he had met Nezuko, he was also willing to believe that good Demons existed in this world.
Besides, this female Demon was truly mature and beautiful.
"Yushiro, please get the medical case from the carriage for me."
Tamayo ignored the children's squabbling. Once Inosuke settled down, she walked over to examine Tengen Uzui. "His injuries are too serious. He needs a blood transfusion. Does anyone here have the same blood type as him?"
"Blood type?"
Seeing that everyone except Luke looked confused, Tamayo could only give them a brief explanation. "You can think of the same blood type as blood sharing the same traits. Only people with matching blood types can give each other transfusions."
Yushiro was quick on his feet and had already run back with Tamayo's medical case.
Tamayo took the case and pulled out several reagents. "Since you do not know, we can only test you here. I hope someone has a compatible blood type."
Watching this, Luke could not help marveling that Tamayo truly was a medical genius. Blood types had first been discovered in 1900 by an Austrian pathologist.
By all rights, that knowledge should not yet have reached Japan in this era. Yet Tamayo already understood it so well, which meant that in her centuries of medical practice, she had long been at the forefront of blood research.
Next, Tamayo tested everyone's blood type. One of Tengen Uzui's three wives happened to be compatible, and Tamayo swiftly began the transfusion.
During the transfusion, she took a sample of Tengen Uzui's blood to analyze the poison. She began mixing an antidote, and in less than five minutes, she had reached a conclusion. Once she injected the prepared medicine into Tengen Uzui's vein with a syringe, his complexion gradually improved.
After that series of treatments, Tamayo's skill and kindness had won over Hinatsuru and the others. Even the Sound Hashira, who had initially glared at her with obvious resistance, now looked much gentler.
"Auntie, you're amazing. You fixed that half-dead giant in no time at all."
Inosuke stared at Tamayo in amazement, circling around the Sound Hashira as he observed him. He could not understand how people's blood could be switched around like that.
Yushiro immediately looked furious. "Hey, you! Don't call Miss Tamayo auntie! Lady Tamayo is clearly still young and beautiful, not even over six—"
"Yushiro."
Tamayo's voice cut off his explanation. She wore a gentle smile, yet Yushiro inexplicably shuddered and did not dare continue.
For that instant, everyone beside Tamayo felt an inexplicable chill. Tanjiro and Zenitsu were equally bewildered.
"Idiot. How can you casually discuss a woman's age?"
The Sound Hashira, feeling much better now, spoke as he looked at Tamayo. "Thank you for your help, ma'am. I trust the judgment of the Thunder Hashira and the Master. Once you reach the Demon Slayer Corps, make a spectacular showing."
After that minor episode, the atmosphere between everyone became much more harmonious.
At that moment, Luke walked over to the box that had been left on the ground. "There seems to be a Demon's scent coming from in here."
Luke's words instantly put Tanjiro, who had been chatting and joking with Zenitsu and Inosuke, on alert. He sprinted over and stood in front of the box. "Big Brother Luke, please listen to my explanation!"
Zenitsu was not slow either, chasing after Tanjiro. "Senior Brother, don't get worked up yet. Listen to me explain."
"Luke, don't attack just yet. You should have seen it earlier—the Demon girl fought alongside us."
The Sound Hashira also spoke up for Nezuko. When he first saw her, he too had planned to cut her down. But there had been too many Demons at the time, and dealing with Upper Rank Five alone had left him no room to spare.
During the later battle, he saw Nezuko constantly protecting Demon Slayer Corps members and fighting Demons. He had come to acknowledge her as well.
Luke looked at the tense Tanjiro and Zenitsu and found it a little amusing. He stopped teasing the kids. "I'm not some vicious maniac who cuts down every Demon he sees without caring about right or wrong. Why are you two so nervous?"
Everyone present except Zenitsu and Tanjiro silently complained inwardly, As if you aren't a vicious maniac?
At that moment, the box shook. Its lid opened, and a petite girl with a bamboo muzzle crawled out. It was Nezuko in her shrunken form.
Nezuko gazed at Luke groggily and tilted her head. She seemed not to understand what he meant, nor why her brother and Zenitsu were so nervous. Her instincts only told her that the man before her bore her no hostility.
"Big Brother Luke, this is my sister. Even though she became a Demon, she has never eaten a human. She fights alongside me, and she isn't a bad Demon. Please don't hurt her."
Tanjiro briefly explained the situation. Ever since he had met Luke on Mount Fujikasane, he had deeply admired this powerful fellow recruit.
When he and Zenitsu received word the next day that Luke had already been promoted to Hashira, they had been happy for him for a long time. Tanjiro instinctively felt that Luke was a good person and should understand their situation.
"Relax. I'm not blind. I saw her fighting alongside you."
Luke said, "Don't worry. When the Hashira Meeting comes, I'll speak for you."
Tanjiro was deeply grateful and bowed. "Thank you, Big Brother Luke!"
He knew that once the matter of traveling with his Demon sister was exposed, it would certainly cause a stir in the Demon Slayer Corps. The Kasugai Crow that had arrived earlier had also mentioned taking them back alive, showing that the upper ranks of the Corps had already taken notice.
Fortunately, both the Sound Hashira and Big Brother Luke, the Thunder Hashira, recognized him now. Perhaps the situation would not turn out too badly.
"So there really are Demons like this. Could you tell me about your circumstances?"
Tamayo was extremely curious after seeing Nezuko. She felt that Nezuko seemed to be free of Muzan's control.
Hearing Miss Tamayo's words, Tanjiro immediately brightened. It suddenly occurred to him that Tamayo was a Demon doctor. Perhaps she might have a way to turn his sister back into a human!
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