CHAPTER 111: CHAPTER 111: REVIEWING THE BATTLE

Sosuke felt a pang of melancholy.

Even though the path was clearly blocked, she spoke as if there were still a chance.

Gazing up at the ceiling, Sosuke’s mind began to wander.

Kanae couldn’t help but let her imagination run wild. A jumble of thoughts swirled through her mind. Finally, after Sosuke remained silent for a long moment, she whispered, "You don’t... you don’t really want to, do you?"

"Huh?" Sosuke looked at her, his eyes still slightly dazed.

"You know... that... um..." Kanae, who had never discussed such a topic with anyone before, struggled to find the right words.

Sosuke looked genuinely confused. "What?"

"You’re asking me that?" Kanae gritted her teeth. "It’s... it’s *that*!"

"Which *that*?" Sosuke wasn’t teasing her; he genuinely didn’t understand.

Seeing her hesitate, her face flushed crimson, he finally snapped out of his daze and slapped his forehead. "Oh, you mean..."

"I didn’t say anything!" Kanae huffed, turning her back to him in a huff.

Sosuke chuckled awkwardly, tugging on Kanae’s sleeve from behind. She immediately turned around, silently looking at him.

"I was just reviewing the battle," Sosuke said softly.

"Ah?" Kanae’s face flushed even redder. ’So, all this time, I was the only one overthinking things?’

"Yeah, I’ve been thinking about everything that happened tonight," Sosuke continued. "The three demons we faced all had unique abilities. If the one you fought had a Blood Demon Art that could create its own dimension, the one I faced had a Blood Demon Art focused on lethal combat. Her swordsmanship and ability to transform bones into blades were truly formidable."

Hearing this, Kanae immediately began to ponder, nodding gently.

Sosuke continued, "But the first attack tonight actually came from the other demon—the one with the least courage. His Blood Demon Art must be the most peculiar. I was sitting on the bed when I was suddenly pulled into a hazy gray world. Looking back, that must have been the start of the attack!"

"Hmm, that must have been the Demon’s unique Blood Demon Art," Kanae said. "Not just you, but everyone else in the house must have been affected simultaneously. Meanwhile, I was pulled into another dimension by Lower One almost at the same moment."

Kanae frowned. "Why didn’t they just drag all of us into that hazy gray world and attack us there? How did you break free from it?"

"Lower Third attacked me," Sosuke replied. "I figured that attacking someone under the Blood Demon Art might disrupt the Demon’s technique. So, Lower One’s initial plan must have been to use the Demon’s Blood Demon Art to confuse me and the others in the house. They probably didn’t know Tengen was here, so they only dragged you into the Blood Demon Art’s dimension. On one hand, they hoped to kill you if possible, but if not, they could at least separate us and pick us off one by one. That’s why I felt something was off about today’s events. If they didn’t know about Tengen and had no way to restrain him, what exactly was the Sound Pillar doing at the start of the battle?"

Sosuke and Kanae couldn’t find a rational explanation for this. They simply sensed that something had definitely happened to the Sound Pillar.

His hollowed-out body served as proof.

"Speaking of which, how did Zenitsu manage to break free from that Blood Demon Art?" Kanae asked, changing the subject. "According to their accounts, the Demon didn’t seem to have any particularly aggressive intentions."

"That... I honestly don’t know," Sosuke replied, shaking his head. "Even Jigoro-san couldn’t escape that Blood Demon Art on his own, yet Zenitsu managed to do it. It seems the Former Sound Pillar was right—this kid’s potential is truly immense."

"If only he weren’t so timid," Kanae chuckled. "A timid person facing a timid Demon... that must have been quite a sight."

Sosuke rubbed his forehead. "What I was just thinking about was how much of our victory against the Lower Third was due to luck."

Kanae fell silent for a moment, glancing at Sosuke.

"At least sixty percent of it was luck," Sosuke said. "That demon’s swordsmanship was inherently powerful, but she had a fatal weakness. Her obsession with beautiful techniques actually gave me a chance to breathe. If she had attacked me with her initial ferocity, I wouldn’t have stood a chance. But in the end, she used a technique called ’Breath of the Moon.’"

"Breath of the Moon?" Kanae’s expression shifted slightly. "I think I’ve heard of it before."

"Hmm?" Sosuke looked at her. In truth, he was sharing this information in the hopes that the Demon Slayer Corps could glean some details about Upper One.

During the final battle at Infinity Castle, if they had understood Upper One better beforehand, the outcome might not have been as tragic as it was in the manga.

While Upper One’s swordsmanship was undeniably terrifying, being unprepared and being prepared were entirely different concepts, an irrefutable truth.

"Perhaps they both use the original breathing technique," Kanae mused after careful consideration. "The earliest breathing technique is known as Sun Breathing. The five major breathing techniques that exist today all evolved from Sun Breathing. Because Sun Breathing itself is extremely difficult and not suitable for every individual’s constitution, the other techniques were developed. Given its name, the Breath of the Moon might have a deep connection to Sun Breathing."

At this point, Kanae suddenly turned to Sosuke. "Regarding Sun Breathing, we’ve always suspected that the nameless breathing technique you inherited might actually be Sun Breathing."

Sosuke froze, momentarily unsure how to respond.

"But it’s just a theory," Kanae said with a gentle smile. "Whether it’s true or not doesn’t matter. Now, what happened next? She used the Breath of the Moon. How did you escape her grasp and ultimately defeat her?"

"Well, she’s probably just a Breath of the Moon enthusiast," Sosuke said, resuming his explanation. "Though she kept mentioning the Breath of the Moon, her actual swordsmanship was all form and no substance—not particularly skilled. Still, I suspect she might have seen someone use the Breath of the Moon, or perhaps... a Demon. Otherwise, she wouldn’t be so obsessed with it!"

Kanae nodded silently. "We should report this to the Lord. He might have additional insights."

Sosuke nodded lightly. That would suffice.

’We need to learn more about the Breath of the Moon and Kokushibo!’

’No matter when we encounter them, at least we won’t be completely ignorant.’