The Blue-Faced Demon had originally assumed that the ruthless, silent, slightly vacant-looking girl would keep pummeling him until sunrise.
He had endured a full night of relentless beating, but even he hadn't expected Nezuko to be so sharp. Just as the sun began creeping over the horizon, her demonic instincts awakened. Without a moment's hesitation, she retreated back into her bamboo box—leaving the Blue-Faced Demon alone to face his fate.
"…Wait. There's still that guy. I'm only stuck here waiting to die because of him."
As if suddenly remembering something, the Blue-Faced Demon turned his gaze toward Yuto, who was sleeping peacefully on the ground nearby. A sinister grin twisted across the demon's half-ruined face.
But he quickly stifled his voice, terrified of waking Yuto.
The girl had already slipped into her box, but the red-haired devil who had tortured him nonstop last night was still lying right there…
The morning sun pierced the clouds like a blade, washing the mountainside in warm light. Pinned to the stump, the Blue-Faced Demon was the first to feel the deadly rays crawl over him.
To demons, sunlight wasn't warmth—it was poison.
Smoke began billowing from his flesh as his skin charred and cracked. Agony unlike any he had ever experienced ripped through him, as if his blood itself were catching fire. Despite the torment, he clenched his jaw and held back every scream.
He refused to make even a single sound.He wanted to hold on long enough to witness Yuto's screams—Yuto's death—under the very same sun.
That obsession was the only thing keeping him conscious.
The sunlight crept farther and farther… and finally reached Yuto's sleeping face.
Now reduced to only half a head, the Blue-Faced Demon stared with a warped mixture of agony and excitement.
Yes—this was it. The moment the half-demon boy would burn with him.
The sunlight touched Yuto's skin.
The Blue-Faced Demon's eyes filled with triumphant anticipation.
One second passed.His excitement swelled.
Two seconds passed.His expression froze.
Three seconds passed—And he burst into hysterical screaming.
"Impossible! This is impossible! Why isn't he burning?! We're both demons—why is he immune to the sunlight?!"
But the sun wasn't going to give him time to process the answer.With a final hiss, the last half of his head disintegrated into ash.
"…Seriously? All that howling first thing in the morning?"
Slightly irritated, Yuto blinked awake—roused by the Blue-Faced Demon's dying shriek.
Basking in the gentle morning sunlight and the chirping of birds, Yuto stretched lazily. He glanced at the axe still embedded in the stump and murmured:
"Demons who lurk in darkness have no right to the beauty of sunlight. Your only end is death."
After letting out a quiet breath, his eyes shifted to a shadow among the distant trees.
"No point hiding," Yuto said calmly. "A presence that strong… you must be Urokodaki Sakonji—the one that guy mentioned."
No sooner had the words left his mouth than an elderly man appeared right before him—white-haired, dressed in mountain garb, and wearing a red tengu mask.
Even though his expression was hidden, Urokodaki Sakonji's scent betrayed his shock.
He was surprised Yuto had detected him.Surprised by the strange aura radiating from him.But most of all—
He was stunned that Yuto could stand in the sunlight unharmed.
Like Tanjiro, Sakonji possessed an exceptional sense of smell. He could immediately tell that Yuto's scent was not fully demonic… but it wasn't human either. It was something in between. Something dangerous.
And every demon-slayer knew one universal truth:
Sunlight is fatal to demons.Even the Demon King cannot withstand it.
Yet this boy—whose aura was unquestionably demon-like—was completely unaffected.
To a seventy-year-old veteran who had hunted countless demons over his lifetime, the implications were terrifying.
Demons could only be killed by sunlight or by Nichirin Blades—swords forged from ore imbued with the sun's essence.
But a demon who could walk in sunlight…
Was effectively invincible.
Not that Sakonji knew the whole truth.
Yuto, a "Demon Clan" hybrid, didn't suffer the sunlight weakness of true demons—but his vitality was far lower. While a normal demon could survive having its heart pierced or body mutilated as long as its head remained intact, Yuto would die from such wounds.
Of course, Yuto had no intention of revealing any weaknesses.
Fear, when used properly, was a very useful shield—especially against someone who might very well be strong enough to kill him.
And while Nichirin Blades could injure him, they wouldn't kill him the way they killed true demons.
Being a half-demon had its perks—his regenerative ability, while nowhere near a demon's absurd level, far surpassed that of humans.
Sakonji stared at Yuto through his mask and finally spoke in a low, steady voice:
"You're similar to Giyu. You bear the scent of a demon, yet you've been slaughtering demons rather than protecting them."
His posture stiffened.
"But that alone isn't enough for me to trust you. I will observe you myself. Only after that will I decide whether to teach you the method of obtaining a Nichirin Blade."
Sakonji's sense of smell had already told him something important.Yuto's scent carried demonic traits—but lacked something crucial:
There was no trace of human blood.
Not a single drop.
Which meant Yuto… had never eaten a human.