CHAPTER 126: CHAPTER 126: REENCOUNTERING KAIGAKU

Throughout the night, Sosuke hadn’t encountered a single opponent worth fighting.

The demons on Wisteria Mountain were, after all, meant for trials, not slaughter.

If they had placed demons who had devoured countless humans here, it would have been far too cruel.

Likely, none of the children undergoing the trial would have survived.

As the sun began to rise, Sosuke surveyed his surroundings before settling down in a sunlit spot.

He casually retrieved food from his pack.

Having learned from previous experiences with seasoned veterans, Sosuke had come well-prepared this time.

He had enough food for seven days, spare clothes, and other essentials.

He pulled out a rice ball, eating it while taking a swig from his water flask.

"Rice balls spoil quickly. Eating this today is already pushing it; it’ll probably be inedible tomorrow. The dried rations that follow will be tough to swallow, but thankfully I brought some pickled vegetables."

As he rummaged through his pack, he glanced at a demon lurking in the shadows nearby and said with a smile, "See? Eating dried rations and drinking water—it’s so much better. Why bother eating people?"

"Boy, if you’ve got the guts, come over here and say that."

The demon lurking under the tree’s shadow looked furious.

Sosuke chuckled. "I think I’m fine right here. By the way, do you remember your name? You know, from before you became a demon?"

The demon glared at him fiercely, refusing to answer.

Sosuke sighed. "This is getting boring. How about we have a proper conversation? Do you even know what that is? It’s when two people ask and answer questions, exchanging thoughts. Or, if you prefer, you can just agree with everything I say. For example, if I say Kanae is beautiful, you’d have to say, ’Yes, yes, you two are a perfect match!’"

"...I’m going to eat you!!!"

The demon roared in fury. ’How dare you mock me like this?!’

Sosuke sighed again. "It’s like playing the qin for a demon—even playing for a cow would be more worthwhile. At least cows are herbivores. You only know how to devour humans."

With that, he suddenly leaped forward. Before the demon could react, Sosuke had grabbed it by the collar. "Come on, let’s get some sun."

"Ah? No!!"

The demon’s protest was cut short as it was dragged into the sunlight, instantly disintegrating.

Sosuke stood in the sunlight, watching the dust fall from his hand. He shook his head slightly and turned to the young man hiding nearby. "Planning to add laxatives to my food again?"

The words seemed to come from nowhere, yet they instantly froze the young man who was holding a bamboo tube, poised to sprinkle its contents into Sosuke’s lunchbox.

Sosuke turned to face the young man, a faint smile playing on his lips. "After half a year, we meet again, Kaigaku. You haven’t grown at all."

Kaigaku remained frozen in place, his face stiff as stone. Suddenly, a wild grin spread across his features. "Let’s see how you handle this!"

With a flick of his wrist, white powder cascaded into the lunchbox. "I spotted you yesterday, but I hid to avoid trouble. Since then, I’ve been carefully tracking your every move! Damn you! You’re just a ridiculous swordsmith, yet you possess such formidable strength! Damn it, damn it! Do you know what this is? The dose I’ve added to your food is twice as potent as what that unlucky Sound Pillar ingested! Of course, I originally planned to slip it in unnoticed, but since you’ve caught me, you might as well have a choice!"

"Choice one!"

Kaigaku’s face twisted into a sinister grin. "Refuse to eat these things and endure for seven days. Let’s see if you can actually make it. If you can’t, there’s only one fate for you: being torn apart and devoured by demons!"

Sosuke nodded. "And what’s option two?"

"Naturally, you eat these things." Kaigaku’s smile grew even more twisted. "But after you eat them, you’ll barely be able to move. I won’t care what happens to you then. If you can’t even pass the selection, it just proves you’re nothing special. Every year, countless weaklings like you fail! If you want to blame someone, blame fate for putting you in the same selection cohort as me! Otherwise, you wouldn’t have given me such a perfect opportunity to avenge that blow you landed on my chest!"

Sosuke remarked with a hint of admiration, "Kaigaku, you truly are an unexpectedly vile villain."

"Damn you!!!" Kaigaku’s expression grew even more ferocious. "Villain? You’re the one who struck me in the chest! How dare you act so self-righteous and call me a villain?"

Sosuke didn’t want to argue with him in this place, so he asked, "If I apologize to you right now, will you forgive me?"

"Forgive? Hahahahaha!!!!"

Kaigaku burst into maniacal laughter. "Of course I’ll forgive you! Once you’re dead, I won’t hold any grudges anymore. After all, I had to endure that old man’s scolding because of a worthless piece of trash like you. And that Flower Pillar bitch—she has such a lovesick look on her face, yet she didn’t say a single word for me! If she had just spoken up, I might have shown her some mercy and liked her. But it seems she prefers you, doesn’t she? Well, she’ll be heartbroken when you die, won’t she? Hahahahaha! Just imagining her misery makes me so happy! Oh, and Tengen—he has three wives, but that doesn’t matter. I’ll find a way to get my revenge eventually..."

As he rambled on, Kaigaku failed to notice that Sosuke’s smile vanished the moment he mentioned Kanae.

When Kaigaku finally finished his tirade, Sosuke suddenly asked, "Do you know what this place is called?"

"Huh? Wisteria Mountain, of course." Kaigaku paused, confused. "Why are you asking?"

"There are demons on Wisteria Mountain," Sosuke said. "If I were you, I’d be taking a good look behind me right now. See what’s standing there."

"What?" Kaigaku’s heart jolted. Sosuke had just dragged a demon into the sunlight. If another one was lurking behind him...

He whirled around, his hand gripping the sword hilt, ready to draw.

But when his eyes cleared, he found nothing behind him—only empty air.

A low whisper reached his ear: "Hey... there’s a third option, isn’t there?"

The moment the words faded, Kaigaku felt the ground tremble beneath his feet. A hand clamped down on his left cheek, and with a clang, he was hoisted into the air. The hand on his cheek then slammed him violently to the ground.

"Villains always talk too much. If you’d just poisoned me and run, you might have had a chance. But no, you had to stand here blathering on and on. Who do you think you are? Muzan?"

Sosuke roughly flipped Kaigaku onto his back and casually placed the Hammer-Sword across his stomach.

Caught completely off guard, Kaigaku was nearly crushed to death!