Ever heard of minesweeping? Not the computer game—real minesweeping.
Using a metal rod, carefully sweeping the ground, scanning multiple times until every buried mine is found.
Horitake's situation was much like that.
The red-black flesh orbs were the mines, his spirit vision the scanning range. He moved swiftly, scouring every corner of Kusatsu County.
The results of checking for stragglers were decent—Horitake found a few more.
But with stakes this high, he didn't stop at two sweeps. With his super speed, he flashed across Kusatsu, scanning repeatedly.
He checked on the kids, destroying the one or two orbs they found, then continued his search.
Horitake lost count of how many times he swept Kusatsu.
No choice—caution demanded it.
Like some readers here, have you done a nucleic acid test lately? Multiple tests ensure thorough screening. Same principle for Horitake.
In later sweeps, he found no orbs.
Good news: Kusatsu's flesh orbs were completely cleared.
During his final sweep, Horitake tallied the night's work. Exactly 500 orbs destroyed.
That should be all.
He trusted his instincts and abilities. Multiple sweeps with no finds meant the job was done.
Besides, he was worried about Miri.
With her Hashira-level strength, handling Lower Moon Three wasn't an issue.
Even if Lower Moon Three had lackeys, no problem.
Dragging out the fight for hours to stall him? Manageable.
But Horitake was unsure about Lower Moon Three's Blood Demon Art.
The female snake demon revealed it was disease-related, though specifics were unclear.
Horitake feared it was something nasty and tricky.
Worse, he worried Miri might be infected during battle.
The Demon Slayer Corps' medical skills were decent, but the era's limits couldn't be overcome quickly.
If Miri caught a troublesome disease, Horitake would blame himself forever.
Not that he was irresponsible with Kusatsu. He'd swept it over a dozen times—extremely thorough and dedicated.
With about an hour until sunrise, Horitake completed his final sweep.
Perfect result: not a single orb.
Relieved, he returned to the town entrance, gathering the kids.
As expected, they hadn't found any orbs in the later searches, confirming his thoroughness.
Facing the nervous kids, Horitake gave instructions:
"Alright, all orbs are collected and destroyed. Kusatsu's plague crisis is averted. The outcome's good, and you've somewhat atoned for your mistakes.
I'm off to support my comrade. You kids stay here.
At dawn, officials will likely handle the aftermath and make arrangements for you."
Seeing Horitake leave, the kids panicked.
The night's events were overwhelming, and Horitake had been their anchor. His departure unnerved them.
The most defiant kid, now humbled, knelt before Horitake, crying, "Sir! Will we go to jail?"
Glancing at him, Horitake replied coolly, "Who knows? You didn't know better, but you aided evil and nearly caused a catastrophe. Still, you're young, so jail's uncertain.
Hmph! Frankly, jail's better than staying with demons, not knowing when you'll be eaten, right?"
The kids fell silent. Harsh but true.
The oldest, thinking more clearly, pointed to the female snake demon hanging in the tree and asked, "Sir, what about her?"
Horitake glanced up. The demon, seeing his gaze, pleaded, "Save me! Spare me!"
He ignored her, telling the kids, "Leave her. Let her enjoy the sunrise."
Her screams echoed from above.
Done with the kids, Horitake turned, becoming a purple lightning bolt, speeding into the mountains.
He ran several kilometers, spotting signs of battle ahead. Accelerating, he flashed forward.
A purple spark, and Horitake stood atop a tree, overlooking the scene.
The area was a wrecked battlefield—fallen trees, torn ground, evidence of a fierce, prolonged fight.
Two figures clashed below.
One was Miri; the other, a demon.
The demon looked unremarkable: narrow eyes, pointed ears, three forked scars on his forehead and cheeks—distinctive.
Horitake, familiar with the original story, recognized him: Lower Moon Three, Byouyo!
As expected.
He assessed the battle.
Miri held her own against Byouyo, perfectly executing the strategy to stall him.
No other demons were around—likely already slain by Miri.
After prolonged fighting, Miri showed slight mental fatigue but was otherwise fine, with no visible injuries or signs of illness.
Byouyo, with a demon's strong regeneration, showed no clear weakness either, just growing irritation from being stalled.
Miri had the upper hand.
Horitake relaxed.
Byouyo, despite his rank, wasn't a strong fighter.
His Blood Demon Art, like Narume's, likely earned him his rank.
From the tree, Horitake shouted, "Miri, Kusatsu's handled! Finish it! Kill Lower Moon Three! Let him be your stepping stone to Hashira!"
He hadn't forgotten his unfinished mission.
Miri's slaying of Byouyo would secure her promotion to Hashira—and complete his task.
Haha, everything falling into place!
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