Chapter 21 — The First Encounter with Shizuka Hiratsuka!
Since Yukinoshita Yukino had already filed a formal excuse and was still recovering from her leg injury, she naturally had no need to go to school today.
But the same couldn't be said for Yukinoshita Akira.
No one had taken the liberty of excusing him.
And at this point, he was already late for second period.
To make matters worse, Akira didn't have a single classmate's contact info—let alone his homeroom teacher's number. So even if he wanted to call and explain his absence, he had no way to do it.
He let out a quiet sigh, then stood up and made his way to the door. After a long, deep sleep, he needed to wash his face and get ready. No matter the circumstances, he had to head to Sobu High today.
Besides, he still had something important to do. He'd promised to meet Saeko Busujima. A high-grade katana—classified as Sandō—was waiting for him at the school.
"Where are you going?" Yukino asked instinctively as she watched him walk to the door.
"Obviously back to my apartment. It's already daytime, and there's no need to worry. Demons rarely appear under the sun. Sunlight is their natural enemy. Even the slightest exposure will burn them to ash."
"I see. That makes sense."
"If anything happens, just call me."
"Mm."
Akira stepped outside. Even though he had basically broken in the night before, the apartment door—true to its luxury status—still worked perfectly.
After returning home, he quickly cleaned himself up and threw together a light meal.
He changed into his official Sobu High uniform and left again a little after ten.
— — —
"So let me get this straight—you skipped nearly half a day, the second period's already over, and lunch break's about to start… and you show up now? I'd love to hear a very convincing explanation."
Inside the faculty office of Sobu High, a sharp-eyed female teacher stood in front of Akira, arms crossed and clearly unimpressed.
Her name was Shizuka Hiratsuka, the Japanese language teacher and student life advisor. She was well-known for being strict but deeply caring.
Incidentally, Yukinoshita Akira was one of the students under her direct guidance. Thanks to her connection with Yukinoshita Haruno, she also knew Akira on a more personal level.
"…Personal reasons, Sensei."
"Personal? What kind of 'personal'?"
Shizuka knew a fair amount about his background. He was supposed to be the fiancé of a very… notorious student she happened to know well.
And yet, instead of relying on the powerful Yukinoshita family, Akira chose to live independently—working part-time jobs to cover his expenses.
Despite that, his grades remained top-tier. It was no wonder most of the teachers considered him a model student.
And being a model student came with certain privileges—teachers were more inclined to give him the benefit of the doubt.
Still, Shizuka was not someone who let things slide easily.
"I went to bed late last night… so I overslept."
A metaphorical exclamation mark popped up on Shizuka's forehead. A vein visibly pulsed at her temple.
Thwack!
Without warning, she threw a solid punch at him.
Akira could've dodged it easily. But he didn't. He took the hit head-on, not moving an inch.
"You little punk! Are you messing with me?!"
Her voice sliced through the room like a blade. Her expression was pure frustration.
"I wouldn't dare, Sensei. I promise it won't happen again."
"Hmph. If you weren't normally such a well-behaved kid, I would've dragged you out of here and banned you from school grounds for the rest of the week."
"Thank you for your generous mercy."
To be honest, Akira was a little shocked.
That punch hurt.
Even though his body had undergone massive enhancements ever since inheriting the special constitution of Yoriichi Tsugikuni—including physical talents and an active inherited pattern—the blow had still managed to sting.
His current integration level might've only been around 0.2%, but even that made his physical resilience far superior to any normal human.
After all, Yoriichi had been a monster even from birth—someone who defied all natural laws.
And yet… Shizuka Hiratsuka had made him flinch.
Not just anyone could pull that off.
Meanwhile, Shizuka herself was taken aback.
She knew exactly how hard she'd hit. It hadn't been a playful tap—more like a strike that could send an adult man to the ground.
And yet, Akira had only grimaced for a split second before returning to normal.
Maybe… this kid wasn't so ordinary after all.
"You've skipped two full periods. I want a full reflection essay. Three thousand words. Deep, thorough, sincere. And if I'm not satisfied, you'll do it again until I am."
"Understood."
"Now get lost. Go!"
"Yes, ma'am. See you later, Hiratsuka-sensei."
Akira bowed politely and exited the teacher's office.
Naturally… he had no intention of returning to class. Not after being two periods late. If he went now, all eyes would be on him. He'd be nothing but a spectacle.
Instead, he figured he'd skip the morning entirely and rejoin the day during the afternoon session.
With that in mind, Akira made his way to the top floor of the school building.
The rooftop was technically off-limits to students. But in practice, it was a popular hideout—usually for smokers or couples trying to escape prying eyes.
Teachers knew this, too. That's why the rooftop was one of the main patrol zones during break periods.
But right now, all students were in class, and no teacher would bother coming up here.
Akira leapt over the waist-high fence and found a secure spot where he could sit and relax.
From up high, he looked down at the Sobu High campus, letting his thoughts wander freely.
This world wasn't ordinary. The existence of demons here was real.
But still… he wasn't fully convinced. Was this truly the world of Kimetsu no Yaiba? Did the Demon Slayer Corps still exist in this modern era?
And if they did—how was one supposed to acquire weapons to fight demons?
Sure, last night he'd used cursed blood—Muzan Kibutsuji's blood—to burn a demon from the inside.
But that wasn't a long-term solution.
He couldn't rely on that kind of method every time.
Special swords like Nichirin Blades—crafted in the past to slay demons—would be nearly impossible to find in this age.
Other than that, sunlight remained the only confirmed weakness of demons.
If that's the case… could modern technology be used to replicate or weaponize sunlight?
In theory, it was possible. There were machines that could mimic sunlight. But obtaining one? That would be incredibly difficult.
Still, the question remained—what part of sunlight did demons actually fear? Was it the ultraviolet radiation? Or something else entirely?
Sunlight consisted of three main components: ultraviolet, infrared, and visible light.
Infrared had wavelengths between 760 nanometers and 1 millimeter—completely invisible to the human eye.
Ultraviolet (UV) ranged from 10 to 400 nanometers, also invisible to the naked eye.
Among the three… UV seemed the most likely to cause fatal damage to a demon's body.
Which meant—
Was it possible to build—or find—a UV light weapon that could replicate the demon-burning effects of sunlight at night?
If so… then perhaps he'd found his first modern solution to an ancient enemy.
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