"Muzan-sama..."

With Daki recovering slowly nearby, Muzan advanced directly towards Tamayo. Muzan seized Tamayo's hair and began to ‘absorb’ her.

"She is weakened now. Seize this opportunity and end her!"

Tamayo cried out, a warning to the demon slayers.

"You will join me... in death here!"

Even until her final moments before fading, she gazed at Muzan with a glare of resentment, unyielding till the end.

The fairy with crimson pupils remained silent. What could she say? She had indeed committed numerous sins, directly or indirectly causing the demise of countless human lives. Perhaps her innate afflictions had inflicted so much suffering upon her that she was blinded to the goodness of the human realm, which led her to harm others without remorse.

"I might probably end up in hell, huh?" She chuckled.

A heavy iron ball hurtled forth. His allies helped block the attacks from upper-rank demons, and he seized the chance to break free, the weapon in hand aimed squarely at Muzan.

Before ingesting Tamayo's drug, Muzan could have easily deflected the iron ball with her whips, but now, her focus was on breaking down the drug within her. The speed and power of the whips lagged much, and it would fail to halt the hashira's attack.

What they didn't know was that Muzan had overcome the weakness of decapitation by nichirin swords—only sunlight could kill her. Hence, she coldly observed as the iron ball approached, prepared to initiate regeneration.

An unbreakable blade severed the spike of the iron ball. Freed from restraint, it crashed into the ground with formidable force, leaving a deep crater.

It was Teru’s unbreakable sword.

A man stood before her, adorned with a malevolent demon mask.

He patted Muzan's head, who beamed with contentment.

"I knew you'd eventually seek out the Demon Slayers."

"Are you mad at me?"

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“...”

He lunged forward, not attacking the hashiras, but their nichirin swords. Leveraging their invulnerability, Teru, with his sheer physical prowess and precision swordsmanship, sliced through the swords with each strike. Soon enough, the hashiras' swords were nothing but broken fragments.

Though puzzled by this unexpected reinforcement, Doma and Akaza were about to retaliate when Kokushibou intervened.

"The battle has come to the end."

He recognized it was the swordsman he had encountered on the roof of the train.

And...only one could be this close to Lord Muzan.

Seeing the masked man standing defiantly, a boundary between humans and demons drawn by his presence, the hashiras conceded.

"No more fights."

...

"Why would you, a human, help demons?"

Wind Hashira's grip tightened on his broken blade, anger radiating. As a swordsman who had pushed his physical limits, he easily detected Teru's humanity through breath and blood flow.

The doctor remained silent, sheathing his weapon and turned around.

Suddenly, two cyclonic figures materialized on either side. Wind, Flame, and Mist Hashira converged from different angles.

Wind Hashira aimed for his legs, Flame Hashira struck for his chest, and Mist Hashira's fierce blow descended from above.

He’s not human anymore the moment he decided to fight for demons!

Teru blocked Wind Hashira's thrust with his hilt, kicked Mist Hashira away, and caught Flame Hashira's broken sword between his palms. Punches and kicks followed, Wind and Flame Hashira were sent tumbling.

So formidable... he hadn't even activated the Mark... how could it be?

Empowered by newfound strength, Teru marveled. Weeks ago, he had merely sparred with Kokushibo, and now, the hashiras and upper-rank demons combined couldn't rival him. This progress was astonishing...no, is it progress, or recovery?

"Amitabha!"

Gyomei, the Stone Hashira, was the last to charge. The others suffered from low morale.

Teru contemplated Gyomei's complex gaze. Had he recognized Teru? Or did he lament that a human was so affiliated with demons?

Gyomei heaved the short spike of the shattered iron ball and hurled it with all his might, his strength being his greatest asset against this mysterious man.

Out of an inexplicable instinct, Teru refrained from slicing the iron ball with his sword.

"Boom!"

A powerful impact erupted, dust raised and vision shrouded. When the debris settled, Teru stood, having caught the ball in his palm and crushed it completely. His hand bore pierced holes from the ball's spikes, now marked with oozing flesh and blood.

"!"

Ignoring his weakened state, Muzan rushed over to examine her husband’s wounds.

As he raised his injured hand, Teru watched the wounds visibly heal under the moonlight, vanishing within seconds.

"So that's how it is..."

Teru turned, his gaze still tender, yet Muzan sensed a shift, a sudden transformation.

This fleeting sensation dissipated. Teru held her hands and spoke.

"Use the Infinity Castle to transport us away. I have something to tell you."

Muzan commanded Biwa Demon through her mind and promptly ushered the demons away.

Gyomei helped the unconscious Kagaya, weakened by his injuries. Amane and the two little girls emerged, now sleeping in a corner.

"Let's depart. This commotion will surely attract attention."

The hashiras carried the Ubuyashiki family and left the site. Police arrived shortly, only to find an empty scene as if destroyed by dinosaurs.