Explosion of piled-up Misfortune!

It's coming, Kai thought, frowning. The mind-jewel can pop out anytime now. Tch! I can't even use the Novice Collector Title. Not until the completion of Heart Rhythm.

Unlike the Insect Hashira, Kai knew the reason for the sudden abundance of demons.

With Kai's Luck, he would've been attacked by Hashiras and Upper-ranked demons several times by now. Yet, by keeping himself near to Shinobu, he had somehow countered this Luck.

The threat of Hashiras had drastically reduced, and even the stronger demons were wary of approaching him, seeing a Hashira around him.

However, it didn't mean his misfortune had vanished, as Luck remained the greatest contributor to a Contestant's random encounters.

If Kai were to judge his situation, then all his misfortunes had been piling up since his fight with the Flame Hashira.

When the time came, these piled-up misfortunes would erupt, drowning him in the absurdest and the most fatal situation.

Kai's grip on the chair tightened, thinking about the eventual arrival of that time.

He wasn't ready to face an Upper-ranked demon. Not after what the Insect Hashira had told him about them.

For Kai, any number of extra points in his Luck was far better than none at all.

However, despite the three Resonances, he refused to unequip Adulterer for now. Who knew what circumstances would lead to the fourth resonance, and when? Kai couldn't afford a single instance of losing opportunity regarding Shinobu.

Suddenly, the bathroom door behind him creaked, and the thin, fruity and flowery fragrance flooded the room.

Kai got up and turned around to look at the heavenly sight.

Shinobu was still wearing her Demon Slayer uniform, but her face was glowing like a moon now that the hot bath had sucked some tiredness out of her. Her hair was wet, and she was patting them with a white towel.

A stray drop of water ran down her chin, dropped on her collarbone, and then vanished under her kimono, tracing a path running through a thin valley.

Shinobu threw her head behind, bringing her long, purple hair out of her eyes. She found Kai standing and her reflection in his eyes, rippling like a shy moon in the lake.

"Ara!" she said, giggling. "Did I take too much time?"

Kai said nothing. He could say nothing.

With slow steps he approached her, advancing towards her like the coolest breeze on a summer's eve.

Shinobu stepped back in surprise. Behind her, the door betrayed her first, blocking her retreat.

By the time she could step aside, Kai was already standing in front of her, his figure tall and his eyes clear and bright.

Time seemed to have slowed down for them.

The only sound that one could hear was the buzz of the crowd outside and the beating of hearts in the room.

Their breaths steamed, and Kai took one more step.

He could smell the warmness of her flustered, rosy cheeks.

Kai lifted his hand and picked up a tangle of wet hair off her face, putting it behind her ear.

His fingers then found her lips, and he rubbed away the trembling water droplets off them as well.

When he leaned, there was no escape.

Perhaps, no one wanted to escape.

Their lips pressed on each other, their breath melting like snow inside them. And for once, she wasn't Hashira, and he wasn't a demon.

Knock-Knock!

Shinobu's eyes snapped open, and her palm struck Kai's chest, throwing him off.

There was such a dominant force behind it that Kai flew across the room and slammed into the wardrobe.

Wood splintered, and a few plates shattered. Nezuko woke up under the might of the commotion.

"Cough! Cough!" Kai coughed, panting for breath. He slid out of the rubble and saw a fuming Shinobu, her face red, pink, and blue.

"Come on," he breathed out, smiling and massaging his chest. "You didn't have to hit me so hard."

"Humph!" Shinobu snorted and with large strides went away to open the door.

Kai motioned Nezuko to back away lest the waiter was to see her.

They couldn't afford to make a commotion now. A small gallery was leading into the room from the entrance, so whoever was at the door wouldn't be able to see them without coming in.

Kai stood up, saw the broken wardrobe, and shook his head.

Near her, backed up against the wall, Nezuko eyed him, her glance full of blame.

"Believe me," Kai whispered, patting her head. "I did nothing."

Suddenly, he frowned. What's taking Shinobu so long? He thought. Who's at the door?

A dull thud replied to him, the sound of someone falling on the floor.

Kai's eyes widened, his heart screaming, roaring, and screeching within him. He grabbed Nezuko and threw her towards the wooden box while dashing towards the gallery.

The sight at the door awakened the demon within him on the spot.

Shinobu was lying on the threshold of the opened main door, and a child was standing outside, smiling at Kai.

It seemed the bucket of piled-up misfortunes had exploded at last.

…

Why didn't you use Bankai in your fight with the demon on the cliff? Kai had asked Shinobu a few days ago.

This question had been popping up in his mind for a long time.

Especially after learning about Bankai, it made even less sense to him that the Insect Hashira had been beaten to a pulp by that demon.

And sure enough, it turned out that Kai had assessed the situation, while spying on them, correctly.

Shinobu had been ambushed, and not by a low-class demon.

Before arriving in the mountainous region, Insect Hashira had been commanded to lead Zenitsu and Inosuke in search of Kai, with Giyu and Tanjiro making a second team.

At some point, Shinobu separated her team into two groups, with the newbie demon slayers making one and herself another.

It was then she had sensed the foul presence of strong demons.

While pursuing the said clue, she had come face to face with a white half-hand, having a mouth and an eye, at that cliff, who sent her to sleep instantaneously.

Recalling her experience, and depending on her astute instincts and analyzing skills, Shinobu had concluded a few points about that encounter and this demon's Blood Art.

Not to mention, her Sword Spirit had helped her in painting a clear picture of the situation as well.

First, according to the Insect Hashira, this particular demon could force anyone into a deep sleep.

Second, the demon could enter, manipulate, and control dreams. He could make his victims experience joyous dreams, suited to each person, taking advantage of their vulnerabilities and ensuring they could not differentiate dreams from reality. Thus, it rapidly seduced them to embrace the Utopian visions that lay before them.

From her experience, Shinobu had told Kai that the dreams were too lifelike, and she had almost wished to not realize their falseness.

She had also guessed that the demon could induce nightmares, too, despite not having them in her dreams.

Third, and the most fatal, was the fact that the demon could enter the dreamer's mind.

This dream realm had clear limits with boundaries, beyond which lay a person's subconsciousness, or the Inner World.

This Inner World housed the Spiritual Core of a person, and for the Demon Slayers, their Sword Spirit as well.

The demon could enter this Inner World, without letting the dreamer know about it, and destroy the Spiritual core, destroying the dreamer's mind along with it.

In Shinobu's case, the demon had indeed entered her Inner World hoping to destroy her Spiritual Core but got thwarted by her Sword Spirit.

From what her Sword Spirit had told her, they were evenly matched in the Inner World, making Shinobu guess the demon was at least a…

… Lower Rank Demon from the Twelve Kizuki — an elite under the King of Demons.

**************

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