Demon Slayer: Seraph of Radiance

Like a dragon coiled around her, thick black thorns wrapped around Satsuki's body, rhythmically contracting and expanding as she moved swiftly across rooftops under the alluring moonlight. In no time, she had reached Mount Manchiku.

Meanwhile, back at Takahashi's clinic, the woman was sleeping deeply, unaware of the massive hole that had appeared in her own roof. The moonlight poured through the broken ceiling, casting a pale glow over her peaceful face.

Suddenly, a gaunt, bony shadow appeared, blocking out the moonlight. He stood silently, gazing down at Takahashi.

In his hand, a small, razor-sharp scalpel glinted coldly. With a flick, a thin crimson line appeared over the blackened wound on Takahashi's ankle.

A black liquid seeped out, slowly turning back to normal red blood.

Her peaceful expression began to shift as if she were about to wake.

The skeletal shadow gently picked her up and placed her onto a bed in the back room of the clinic.

Then, with a flash, the figure vanished inside the house, reappearing on the rooftop. His twisted form moved unnaturally as he twirled the small scalpel between his fingers like a butterfly dancing.

"Killing you all..."

Under the moonlight, the shadow dashed off in the direction Satsuki had fled.

…

3:00 AM, Mount Manchiku

Satsuki lightly tapped the bamboo stalks beneath her feet, gliding gracefully through the swaying forest. Behind her, the massive black thorn dragon writhed and swelled unnaturally.

"Onii-chan, stop struggling. Once we leave here, I'll let you out. Then we can have our world of just the two of us."

"Blood Demon Art — Thorn Bind: Coiling Dragon."

A surge of black thorns entwined around the black thorn dragon, making it even larger and stronger. But within its belly, Kawanishi was no longer willing to let her have control.

He had allowed her to swallow him only to prevent their battle from harming others — especially since Takahashi had been sleeping nearby, defenseless.

Now that they had left the town, it was time to end this.

"Blade Prison — Black Cleaver!"

In an instant, the Black Cleaver appeared in Kawanishi's hand. The cold gleam of its axe-blade split the black thorn dragon wide open like slicing through cloth.

Riiip—

Kawanishi's muscles bulged as he pulled the blade, tearing the dragon clean in two, its screams like wailing cries of agony.

Leaping out of the creature's ruptured body, Kawanishi hurled the Black Cleaver mid-air like a spear, aiming directly for Satsuki's back.

With a whistling roar, the weapon pierced through her body at blinding speed.

Yet, as Kawanishi landed, his brows furrowed. The blade had passed through her without a drop of blood or any real impact, embedding deeply into the ground instead, leaving only the metallic shaft quivering.

Satsuki's body dissipated into moonlight — another illusion.

That same Blood Demon Art… an illusion technique.

Satsuki's silvery laughter rang out from the bamboo grove. Turning his head, Kawanishi spotted her once more.

She lay reclining on a thick bamboo stalk, propping her head with one pale arm while her thorn-like black hair fanned out in the air.

Waving playfully, she giggled:

"Onii-chan, are you here to play with me? Come on, let me feel your power."

"The strength within you — I really love it."

Is this another illusion?

You must not know — my sense of smell is very sharp.

Closing his eyes, Kawanishi flared his nostrils, concentrating on her scent.

With a sudden burst of strength, he stomped through the ground, retrieving the Black Cleaver and gripping it tightly.

Fixing his gaze on the reclining Satsuki, he leapt forward. The crescent-shaped blade cut a gleaming arc through the air, aimed directly at her neck.

Satsuki giggled again, even tilting her head slightly as if to make it easier for him.

But her crystalline pupils spun wildly, like countless clock hands accelerating.

"Blood Demon Art — Thorn Mirage."

As the axe cleaved down, the bamboo suddenly transformed into coiling black thorns, and her body once again vanished.

The black thorns wrapped around Kawanishi's waist and wrists, trying to force him to drop his weapon.

But Kawanishi remained unfazed. Twisting his waist and wrists, he used the momentum of his spinning strike to sever the thorns, slicing them apart like threads.

His sense of smell confirmed her true location behind him. He had deliberately struck at the illusion to lower her guard for a decisive blow.

"Satsuki, you got too close. You seem to have forgotten the difference in our strength."

Splurt—

The Black Cleaver pierced through her chest, shattering bones and splitting flesh. Blood slicked Kawanishi's hand.

Without pause, he drove the blade straight into the earth, pinning her down.

"Onii-chan… it hurts… please let me go," she whimpered, tears welling in her eyes.

Satsuki's body appeared fully in Kawanishi's vision, pinned helplessly beneath the embedded weapon.

She clutched the axe handle desperately, but with her shattered chest bone locking the blade in place, she couldn't pull it free.

Her body tried to heal, but the weapon inside her blocked her regenerative abilities.

Kawanishi pressed lightly on the axe's shaft, keeping her firmly restrained.

Realizing she couldn't escape, Satsuki gave up her struggle, gazing at him with tearful eyes.

"Onii-chan… I was wrong. I shouldn't have trapped you in my thorns. Please let me down."

"I just… I just wanted to be with you forever. I love you too much."

Kawanishi looked down at her, gently smiling.

"Yes… let's be together forever."

The long-dormant Asahi Blade began to shimmer behind him, its feathers merging into a brilliant blade.

With a flash of white light, the heavenly blade streaked toward Satsuki's slender neck.

(End of Chapter)