CHAPTER 86: CHAPTER 86: BATTLE SUMMARY

Kanae quickly regretted making that promise.

A promise is just a promise, nothing more than psychological comfort. In the future, they would inevitably face countless worries. This was the first time she had experienced such a state of mind, but she knew it wouldn’t be the last.

What would they do then?

Could she really let Sosuke swallow a thousand needles?

She couldn’t bear the thought!

Rather than that, it was better to call it off. The final agreement was revised: no matter what dangers they faced or how formidable their opponents, they would overcome them and return victorious!

This promise was for both of them.

Under the silvery moonlight, the earth glowed white. The moonlit vow was sealed, and the two returned to town hand in hand.

Sosuke’s wounds needed immediate attention, and the rescued girl couldn’t be left unattended. They had to wake her up and take her home.

Whether his severed hand could be reattached—these were all urgent matters that required handling.

Moreover, they needed to report the elimination of the demon to the Demon Slayer Corps.

No one knew if the Demon Slayer Corps had received any prior intelligence about this town. Reporting the Demon’s extermination would prevent them from sending more Demon Slayers here, avoiding unnecessary manpower expenditure.

After all the commotion, the two returned to their inn, both utterly exhausted.

After washing up, changing into clean clothes, Kanae went to Sosuke’s room and found him sitting at the table, writing something.

"What’s this?" Kanae asked curiously.

Sosuke smiled faintly. "A battle summary."

Kanae blinked. Sosuke explained, "I need to record the gains and losses from the fight, as well as any mistakes I made. My combat talent is only average. Shinobu once said I don’t even know how to fight properly. Since I’m not a natural genius, I have to put in extra effort. Facing Demons, especially man-eating ones like this, provides invaluable combat experience. Having survived and won, I must write down these hard-earned lessons, study them carefully, and avoid repeating the same mistakes in future encounters."

Kanae’s eyes lit up, and she immediately nodded. "Then I’ll help you!"

"Great," Sosuke replied. "With your help, I’ll be able to better understand my weaknesses."

"Hmm... let me think carefully," Kanae said. "In your initial, hasty confrontation, you used that hammer strike—what you call ’Gale Sun.’ Using such a powerful technique right away was disadvantageous. Without understanding the enemy’s capabilities, you risked exhausting yourself without achieving any results. In fact, that’s exactly what happened. Your first strike missed, giving the demon an opening to counterattack. But your backward leap and counter-strike with the hammer was perfectly timed and unexpected, leading to an unexpected success."

Sosuke nodded immediately. "So, when facing demons, I shouldn’t use my full strength right away. At least, until I’ve assessed the situation, conserving my stamina as much as possible is the wisest approach."

"Exactly!" Kanae nodded. "But it also depends on the situation. Combat is ever-changing. Shinobu told me that when you encountered the Demon in the cave, you used a single hammer technique to blast it out of the cave, inflicting significant damage. Using that technique at that moment was the perfect choice."

Sosuke nodded thoughtfully.

The techniques used must adapt to the circumstances.

Without absolute certainty, it’s best to avoid using stamina-draining moves directly.

After noting this down, Kanae raised another point: "There’s something I’m not sure if you noticed."

"What is it?" Sosuke asked.

"That Demon had no eyes," Kanae said. "Its combat awareness, predictions, and all its offensive and defensive maneuvers relied entirely on its sense of smell. It fought by sensing disturbances in the air’s scent."

Sosuke paused, thinking it over carefully. It was true. Every time he attacked, the demon had been frantically sniffing the air. He nodded decisively, confirming the observation.

Kanae then asked, "So why didn’t you just cripple his nose directly?"

Sosuke immediately felt ashamed. "You’re right. If I had destroyed his nose, he wouldn’t even have had a chance to escape. Without his sense of smell, he might not have been able to discern the direction of his retreat. We could have finished him off in the town, and none of the subsequent events would have occurred. My observational skills are still lacking!"

He immediately wrote on the paper: Missed first strike; failed to observe demon’s key weakness.

If he had noticed this vulnerability and tailored his attacks accordingly, his chances of victory would have been greatly enhanced.

This demon had a glaring flaw, yet Sosuke had failed to see it right in front of him. This was a clear sign of his immaturity!

After recording his notes,Sosuke repeatedly pondered the matter, extracting valuable insights and feeling that he had gained considerable experience.

After further discussing the matter, Kanae shared as many of her observations as possible Sosuke diligently recorded her insights, then reflected on them. They continued their work late into the night until Kanae decided to return to her room to sleep.

But Sosuke stopped her.

Kanae’s face flushed crimson as she turned to look at him. "What do you want?"

"...I’m hurt. It hurts... I need comfort," Sosuke said, pointing to his stomach.

Kanae rolled her eyes, but finally sighed. She had been about to open the door to leave, but she closed it again.

"If you’re injured, you should rest properly."

With that, she climbed into bed, glanced at Sosuke, and pulled the covers over her head.

Sosuke grinned triumphantly. He quickly blew out the candle, extinguished the flame, and slipped into the warm bed.

The familiar scent of the girl filled his senses as he held her close. Moments later, Kanae had already fallen asleep.

Sosuke stared at the ceiling for a long time, wide awake.

His mind was still racing with thoughts...

For instance, the sudden palpitations he’d felt tonight.

Or the first time he’d used his Nichirin Blade against a Demon, the strike that severed its arm.

He believed that if he could grasp and master these two unique sensations, it would greatly aid him in future battles.

Unbidden, he recalled the old man wearing the Tengu mask.

’Is human potential truly limitless? Must we dig and search endlessly to unlock its full power?’

He pondered this, yet couldn’t find a direction for his exploration.

After exhausting every impossible method in his mind, he fell asleep before finding an answer.