"What are you standing around for? Run!"
Riku casually shouted to the bystanders as he charged toward the demon, who had staggered back a few steps.
The onlookers didn't need to be told twice. They were already scared out of their wits. A talking head flying through the air? Who'd ever seen something like that?
"You… you're a demon too?!" the demon spat, its head not even reattached yet, but its mouth running nonstop. "This is my hunting ground! Get lost!"
Its face was like a kabuki mask, shifting from terror to confusion to rage in a split second. Talk about a performance.
"Shadow Wolf."
Riku didn't bother responding. He'd have plenty of time to interrogate this thing later.
The shadow at his feet morphed into a streak of light, darting out and materializing into a wolf behind the demon.
In the cover of night, the shadow's movement was swift and stealthy. The demon had no idea it was about to get jumped from behind.
Shadow Wolf pounced, pinning the demon to the ground, its sharp fangs sinking into the demon's neck.
The demon's head and body were still knitting back together, but Shadow Wolf's bite sent the head rolling off again with a thud.
Riku drove his blade through the demon's temple, skewering its head like a kebab.
Meanwhile, Shadow Wolf kept the demon's body pinned, tearing off its limbs one by one with savage bites.
The demon tried to fight back, sprouting new limbs, but every time one grew, Shadow Wolf ripped it right off.
"I'll let you have it! Take it all! I'll find another hunting ground!"
With its head impaled on the blade and its body restrained, the demon changed its tune faster than a shamisen player. Even a veteran of Sichuan opera would've been impressed by the flip.
"You're weaker than I expected," Riku said, lifting the blade to inspect the demon's head, his expression odd.
Kibutsuji Muzan, that bastard—what kind of comparison was he making? Compared to this demon, Riku was on a whole other level.
"Jerk!"
The demon, thoroughly humiliated, let out a string of curses.
They were both demons, so who was afraid of who?
A pair of arms sprouted from below the demon's neck, flailing wildly to attack Riku.
But Riku had seen it coming. He'd deliberately held the blade at a distance, just out of reach.
The demon's arms were too short to touch him, making its thrashing look almost comical.
"Oh, nice trick. Is that your Blood Demon Art?"
Riku raised an eyebrow, genuinely curious. Was this the demon's Blood Demon Art? It seemed… kind of pathetic.
"Think you're hot stuff just 'cause you've got a Blood Demon Art?! Or because you got more blood?!" the demon roared, its face twisting with rage. "If I had more blood, I'd be stronger than you!"
Riku blinked, a bit stunned. Was this demon… jealous of him?
Jealous that he'd gotten more blood? Muzan's blood? So, the more of Muzan's blood a demon gets, the stronger they become?
Without warning, Riku threw a punch, his fist slamming into the demon's face with explosive force.
This wasn't just any punch—his fists could shatter bullets against his subdermal armor, leaving only scratches or dents.
The blow caved in the demon's face, silencing it for the moment.
Riku directed Shadow Wolf to grab the demon's body, then carried the skewered head into the forest. Interrogating it on a public path wasn't exactly ideal.
Deep in the woods, Riku found an open cliffside with no cover, making sure the sun would hit it come morning.
"Alright, time to talk. I've got questions," Riku said, his face expressionless as he stuck the blade into the ground and sat cross-legged.
The demon's head had healed on the way, but every time it tried to speak, Riku would slug it, flattening its face again.
After a few punches, the demon finally got the hint and stayed quiet.
"What do you want?" it asked, eyeing Riku warily. It knew Riku couldn't kill it, but it was tired of the torture.
"What's a Nichirin Blade?"
Riku started with a term the demon had mentioned earlier—one that had terrified it.
"A Demon Slayer's weapon…"
The demon stared at Riku, confusion written all over its face. Why was this guy asking something so obvious? Wasn't this common knowledge?
Wham!
Riku landed another punch, making the demon see stars and leaving it utterly baffled.
"What's a Nichirin Blade?" he asked again, fist poised for another swing.
"…"
"A Demon Slayer's weapon! It can kill a demon by cutting off its head!" the demon shrieked, its voice thick with confusion and fear.
"Good. No need to yell—I can hear you," Riku said with a nod. Just as he'd thought: a Nichirin Blade was a weapon that could kill demons.
Made sense. Demon Slayers needed something to take down demons, just like Witchers had their silver swords for monsters.
"You don't have a Blood Demon Art?" Riku continued, his face still a mask of calm, like a cold-blooded inquisitor.
"No…"
The demon braced itself for another punch.
"Hm. Is that because you got less blood, or because you haven't eaten enough people?"
This time, Riku didn't swing. He just kept questioning.
He knew there was no reason for the demon to lie—if it had a Blood Demon Art, it would've used it by now.
"I got less blood, haven't eaten many people, and my talent as a demon is garbage," the demon admitted, its tone painfully sincere after Riku's iron-fist education. It didn't want any more punishment.
Hearing "garbage talent," Riku's mouth twitched. He'd gotten the same critique before.
Come to think of it, his own Blood Demon Art had only awakened after he leveled up his skills.
So, was Muzan calling him talentless because he was supposed to have awakened a Blood Demon Art but didn't?
"What else do you know about Blood Demon Arts?"
Riku asked, though he wasn't holding out much hope. This demon's knowledge seemed pretty limited.
"Nothing…"
The demon looked helpless. You've got a Blood Demon Art, and you're asking me, a nobody? Are you just messing with me?
"What about Demon Slayers?"
Riku sighed inwardly but kept his face neutral as he pressed on.
"Uh… that's all I know."
The demon swallowed hard, getting nervous. It had no idea what was wrong with this guy, but it was pretty sure he wasn't normal.