Higashikuze Akiho's very existence was thought to be taboo among demons and humans alike: she was a half-demon, the first of her kind. But being taken in and rasied by a former pillar with a strong sense of justice and a hatred for Kibutsuji Muzan...
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第一话
The strong scent of wisteria flowers that surrounded Akiho made her scrunch up her nose.
She was near the base of Mt. Fujikasane where the Final Selection will be taking place. The mountain was essentially a prison for lower level demons and the wisteria was what kept them there. Demons cannot stand the smell and avoided it like the plague. While the scent of the flowers tickled Akiho's nose irritatingly, it thankfully was not enough to deter or affect her abilities. It was merely one of the many inconveniences of being a half-demon.
There were a few advantages of being one, however. Akiho was stronger and faster than any human can ever be without formal training. Her skill was further trained and honed by the former Stone Pillar Higashikuze Musashi, and so among participants in the selection, she knew she was a tier above most of them.
A small smile graced her lips as she thought about her master. Musashi had went hunting at the break of dawn to bring back wild boars, rabbits, and pheasants to prepare her meal for the Final Selection. In exchange of human flesh, she only needed to consume the meat of animals to sustain herself, but the amount had to be a lot more than a mere human serving. He went above and beyond to make sure that she was fed well, and she knew it was his way of caring for her. Even as a half-demon, there was no guarantee that she would survive this.
"I'll be waiting."
Musashi never said more than he needed to, and that simple request was clear. She will not let the man sit and wait for a corpse that will never come back.
I'll come back alive.
She took out the thick, good-luck red string gifted from the man from inside her kosode and used it to tie the ends of her long, soot-colored hair. The small golden bell attached to it gave off a soft jingle as she walked up the stone staircase toward the entrance of the mountain. She was met with the 20 or so young swordsmen waiting to start; immediately, she was aware that there was a boy with red-tinted hair and a burn mark above his forehead who gave her a peculiar look as soon as she became visible to him. Musashi had cautioned her about the small percentage of humans who had an extraordinary sense of smell and can pick up even the subtlest differences between people, but she knew that her human scent was stronger than her demon one and she hoped that he was not intrigued enough to be alarmed. She chose to ignore his red gaze and went to stand by one of the large red pillars closest to the one black- and white-haired Ubuyashiki twins.
There, she saw an another boy standing not too far away by himself. He had messy back hair that was shaved off at the sides and a mean scar across the right side of his face.
From the claws of a demon, she sympathized and clenched her fist on the hilt of her master's nichirin sword. The former pillar was kind to her despite that she was half of the very being that he hated, and with that kindness she desired to protect humans for their ability to have such strong love, bonds, and morals for each other. Demons were selfish, only seeking to destroy and harm, and to her that was unforgivable.
