Demon Slayer: I Level Up Alone

Chapter 22

A dirty little boy led Akito back to his home.

Along the way, a strange floral scent filled the air, and many expressionless people were watching Akito and the little boy.

Akito frowned but didn't say anything.

As soon as he opened the door, Akito found that this home did not match the little boy's appearance; the entire house was clean and tidy, resembling an ordinary family.

But why did the boy look like a little beggar?

"Go ahead, tell me in detail what you know."

Akito casually found a stool to sit on, unfastened the wooden box on him, and let out the Ritoruho creature inside.

"Big brother, you must save my sister!"

The little boy cried out, kneeling on the ground.

"Don't rush. You need to tell me the specific situation first so I can help you."

Akito pulled up the crying little boy.

Ritoruho also comforted the boy by nudging him.

"Big brother, the story starts from half a month ago…"

"Half a month ago, our town was still very normal, but suddenly one day, strange red flowers inexplicably grew in the homes of the town's residents."

"At first, people didn't pay much attention; after all, it was just a small flower. Some even nurtured the flowers carefully, while others removed them."

"But it was all in vain; the next day, the same flowers would grow again, and it was from that time on that the people in the entire town changed…"

"Continue."

"They began to worship the Kashin and even established a follower organisation called the Kashin, led by the family that first had the flower bloom in their home." [Tl/N: Kashin = Flower God/Demon]

"They set a rule: if the flower in the house withered, it meant that the family had disrespected the Kashin and would have to undergo the Kashin's baptism."

"During that time, every household would be filled with the scent of flowers, and during that time, those people seemed to be enchanted; they no longer acted like before. Although their daily routines remained normal, their personalities completely changed."

"My family also had a flower bloom at that time, and my family members changed…"

The little boy wiped his tears.

"Then why weren't you affected?" Akito asked.

"I… I've been sick for half a month. When I noticed that people were acting strangely, I decided to pull out that flower, but my family looked at me as if I were a monster and stopped me."

"However, I still found an opportunity one night to pull out that flower, and at that moment, I discovered that my parents had returned to normal and were no longer acting strangely."

"I told my mother everything, but not long after, that strange flower appeared again. A wave of floral scent passed by, and my mother turned back into her previous self…"

"I was afraid that if I continued to pull out the flower and let those who were enchanted know, I didn't dare to pull it again, because those who had supposedly undergone the Kashin's baptism never returned."

"My neighbour, Hinata, was the same; he never came back…"

"That day, I, as usual, ran out to observe everyone and then encountered Hinata. I was surprised to see that Hinata had returned to his previous self."

"So I asked him if he had pulled out the flower at home, but Hinata told me he didn't know what had happened and didn't understand why he was on the street, clearly remembering that he was sleeping at home."

"So I went back to his house with him, and sure enough, there was no flower in his home."

"At that time, those who were enchanted began to come to Hinata's home, declaring that his family was also disrespectful to the Kashin and would have to undergo baptism after dark."

"Hinata was confused; he said he didn't even know what the Kashin was and that his family hadn't done anything, so they began to resist, but it was useless. They were tied up by those who claimed to be from the Kashin organisation, and after dark, Hinata also disappeared…"

"Since then, one after another, people have been taken to undergo the Kashin's baptism. I found that they all have one thing in common: the flowers in that family's home mysteriously disappeared."

"I suspect that the man-eating monster picks its food like this; when the flowers in the house disappear, it means that today that family is being treated as food..."

"Until today, our family has been chosen; the flower in our home has disappeared, and my father still hasn't woken up for some reason. You also saw it; there are all those people outside our house, and I estimate that once it gets dark, they will take me and my father to the monster for dinner..."

"Big brother, you must save us..."

The little boy knelt on the ground again, pleading with Akito.

Akito rubbed his forehead, feeling a bit helpless; why do people nowadays kneel so easily?

"I've already told you to get up..."

Akito pulled the little boy up and patted his clothes.

"Then why did you make yourself so dirty?"

"I... I thought that the monster might not eat dirty people, so I made myself and my father dirty..."

"You really are a clever little guy... But this Demon is a bit interesting..."

Akito thought to himself.

"Alright, don't worry, you and your father will be fine. Go wash yourself clean quickly."

Akito patted the little boy's head.

"No... I won't go. I'm afraid that if I wash myself clean, the monster will really eat me..."

"Kid, you don't believe me, fine, then you don't have to wash."

Akito didn't pay too much attention to this; after all, they were two strangers. He had already decided to get rid of that demon tonight.

He found this demon quite interesting; it had enchanted the whole town with the scent of flowers, keeping the entire town as its garden, eating one or two people every day.

When he reached the bedside, Akito found that the man on the bed was indeed dirty, knowing it was the little boy's doing, all for that little bit of hope.

In fact, Akito admired the little boy; everyone in the town had changed, yet he remained normal and could notice so many details. No mature mind could achieve that.

But calling for help was futile; no one could assist him.

It was quite despairing.

"Don't worry, I won't let anything happen to you and your father..."

Akito reached out again and touched the little boy's head.

"Big brother, it's okay. No matter what, I am very grateful to you because you are the only one who has been able to talk to me normally during this time. The others all..."

"Don't worry!"

Akito suspected that the flower scent might not be too strong; after all, from the moment he stepped into the town, he had been inhaling the flower scent but had not been affected.

Thinking of this, Akito felt he didn't need to deliberately avoid the issue of the flower scent.

Until dusk fell.

Someone came to the little boy's home.