Chapter Twenty
The cool touch was like fireworks exploding overhead, disappearing in an instant, yet leaving a clear lingering warmth on the lips.
"Eee-ya—!!"
In the bustling crowd, someone let out a short scream.
The exclamation was like a drop of boiling oil falling into boiling water, instantly causing a commotion in the surrounding area, with the chaotic sounds and the explosions of fireworks spreading further and further.
Chika released Doma and was about to peek when he pressed her head back down.
"Chika~ I'm so happy! Hey, can you say it to me again?"
Doma's eyes were filled with tears, and his voice was slightly hoarse, yet it still carried his usual light and sweet tone.
The force with which he gripped Qianxia's arm was astonishing, forcing her to stand on tiptoe and bend slightly at the waist just to maintain their embrace.
Chika blinked, her body reacting before her mind—
She hugged him back.
Doma's chest was much broader than she had imagined. Even when she pressed her cheek against his warm chest, her arms could only barely encircle his back.
The deafening roar of fireworks and the screams and commotion of the crowd filled her ears, but Qianxia's attention was completely focused on his warm arms and slightly trembling shoulders, leaving her no time to notice anything else around her.
Giyu, Shinobu, Kanroji, and Obanai hurried past her, and through the small eye holes of their masks, Chinatsu could clearly see the panic on their faces.
"What happened?" Chika murmured.
Nestled in Doma's arms, her chin rested against his taut chest, her voice soft and indistinct.
Doma licked his lips, not responding immediately. He slightly raised his eyes, his gaze passing over Chinatsu's head and lingering on something not far away.
Several ordinary people lay sprawled on the ground, writhing wildly, the dark red blood seeping from beneath them starkly bright in the fireworks light. The Demon Slayer Corps members tried to subdue them, but their efforts were futile and they couldn't control them at all.
After all, the Demon Slayer Corps only deals with demons...
"It's nothing, it's just fireworks~"
A cryptic smile slowly crept onto Doma's lips, but his eyes remained utterly devoid of warmth.
He held Qianxia tightly around the waist, keeping her firmly in his arms. His other hand went around her shoulder and neck, gently pressing against the back of her neck with an unyielding force, preventing her from turning around to look at the chaos.
"Does Chinatsu like fireworks? This is a special treat I prepared just for you~"
He originally wanted the Demon Slayer Corps to see it. To see a different Chinatsu, the real Chinatsu, a Chinatsu unlike ordinary humans.
But now, holding the warm breath and soft body of the person in his arms, he suddenly felt that those superfluous spectators were completely unnecessary.
This vibrant Chika seems more interesting.
"Hmm—! It's alright, it's nothing special after seeing it so many times." Qianxia answered truthfully, "Back when we didn't have cell phones, we used fireworks to communicate with each other in the organization. They would pop and crackle, all sorts of colors, I'm used to seeing them all."
"Could you let go of me for a second? I can't breathe."
With her neck held tightly, she couldn't turn around. She could only bury her face in his warm chest, her nose surrounded by his faint, sweet scent, like the crispness of plum blossoms after a snowfall.
But this reassuring atmosphere was mixed with an increasingly serious commotion in the surrounding area.
The clear tearing sound, along with someone's suppressed groans of pain, made her feel inexplicably uncomfortable.
"Doma, was that really just fireworks?"
She asked again in a low voice, her fingers unconsciously tightening around the fabric of his shirt.
The Demon Slayer Corps members who had just passed by didn't seem to be seeing a normal riot; rather, it looked like they had encountered something extremely dangerous.
"Hmm~ No, I was just kidding."
Doma lowered his head, gently rubbing his chin against the top of Chinatsu's head. His tone was full of soothing gentleness, yet it concealed an undeniable forcefulness.
"But Chika, don't worry about that, just stay by my side obediently~"
As he spoke, he gently rested his head on Qianxia's shoulder, his cheek brushing against her soft hair as if absorbing some comforting scent.
"Get out of the way! All of you, get out of the way!"
Sanemi's roar was particularly jarring in the noisy crowd, carrying his usual irritability, as if he was both driving away the onlookers and suppressing some kind of out-of-control emotion.
Upon hearing that familiar voice, Qianxia's body stiffened abruptly. "I'm serious, please let me go first."
She gently pushed Doma's arm away from his embrace, her gaze instinctively turning towards the source of the sound.
The chaos continues to spread.
Not far away, a man collapsed to the ground, his body convulsing uncontrollably. His once rosy skin lost its luster at a visible speed, turning as pale as paper.
His fingernails were a dark bluish-black, and he kept emitting low growls like those of a wild beast from his throat.
It still retains the outline of a human, yet it is enveloped by an eerie aura, as if it is on the verge of transforming from a human into a beast.
The surrounding crowd was so frightened by the horrifying sight that they retreated one after another, their faces filled with terror and bewilderment. Whispers and suppressed gasps mingled together, but no one dared to take a step forward; they could only stand at a distance.
Sanemi and Obanai were holding the convulsing man on the ground tightly. Their arm muscles were taut, and fine sweat beaded on their foreheads. Their faces no longer showed the decisiveness they used to have when slaying demons, but only hesitation and panic.
Shinobu Kocho was checking his pulse, her eyes filled with confusion, her lips moving as if she wanted to say something.
However, the clamor of the surrounding crowd, the shouts of men, and the booming of fireworks in the distance intertwined, drowning out the whispers in the noise, and they couldn't reach Qianxia's ears at all.
Chika looked at the center of the chaos and subconsciously took a few steps toward it.
But after taking only two steps, her wrist was gripped tightly by a warm force, instantly pulling her to a stop.
Doma stretched out his arm from behind, wrapping it horizontally around her shoulder and holding her firmly in front of him.
"Chinatsu~?"
His voice remained gentle, and with his other hand he gently lifted her chin, filling her eyes with his image.
Qianxia looked at him, scrutinizing his excessively handsome face, meeting his ever-smiling eyes, and softly asked, "Wait here for me for a moment, okay?"
She raised her arms, slowly freeing herself from his grasp, and gradually pulled away from his embrace.
The tightly fastened mask concealed all her expressions, with only the slightly downturned corners of her mouth revealing her somewhat melancholy mood.
"They're from the Demon Slayer Corps. Don't go over there. Wait for me here, okay?"
Chika gently comforted him, but her eyes widened suddenly when she saw the convulsing man burst into a rage and rush toward Genya.
"not good!"
Chika's eyes narrowed, and she snatched the metal fan from Doma's hand.
A flash of blue-silver electricity appeared, and Douma found nothing when he tried to hold onto something.
Where their skin touched, the warmth of each other still lingered. Douma's fingertips curled slightly as he quietly watched Chinatsu's resolute back, slowly suppressing his smile.
"elder brother!"
Genya burst out from the crowded throng, his face full of panic, his eyes fixed on Sanemi, who was entangled with the man on the ground.
He was a little confused about what was going on.
"Save me...save me, I still have a wife and children..."
The man on the ground was still struggling, his hands and feet held down tightly by Sanemi and Obanai, unable to move. He could only tremble and desperately cry for help, his voice filled with despair and a longing for life.
The faint yet desperate cry for help instantly attracted the attention of the onlookers.
The crowd, who had initially been observing, suddenly erupted in uproar.
Someone pointed at Sanemi and his companions, shouting angrily, "Who are you? Let them go!"
Others waved into the distance and shouted for help: "Help! Someone is beating people up in broad daylight!"
The cacophony of accusations and cries for help made the already chaotic scene even more difficult to handle.
"What should we do?" Giyuu frowned as he looked at Shinobu Kocho.
Shinobu's fingertips were already clenched so tightly they turned white, and her knuckles turned bluish-gray.
She withdrew her hand from one of the men's pulses, shook her head, and spoke in a calm voice that carried an undeniable heaviness.
"They are still human now, but the blood of the demons is spreading too quickly in their bodies. I'm afraid they won't last much longer..."
She could clearly sense the ever-expanding ghostly aura emanating from these people, and she could also see the lingering human consciousness in their pained eyes.
That is a deep attachment to life and a concern for the world.
It was those eyes, filled with longing, that prevented her from raising her hand, which held the Nichirin Blade.
Suddenly, one of the men's eyes changed drastically, and an unusually powerful energy exploded around him.
"boom--!"
The massive energy shock spread instantly, and the surrounding crowd was swept up by a whirlwind and blown away.
Screams and crashes filled the air, and the already chaotic scene spiraled completely out of control.
The man's eyes were bloodshot as he lunged at Xuanmi, who was closer to him and appeared relatively weak.
Everyone was caught off guard by this sudden turn of events. By the time they realized what was happening and tried to draw their swords, the man was already only a step away from Xuanmi.
"Xuan Mi!"
Sanemi's eyes were bloodshot as he roared and released the person he was pinning down, then lunged forward.
He moved quickly, but was ultimately a step too slow.
"Whoosh—!"
A crisp sound of wind breaking suddenly rang out, and warm blood splattered all over the ground like a broken beaded curtain, splashing mottled scarlet stains on the bodies and faces of those around them.
A short while later, a strong smell of blood filled the air.
Everyone looked up in surprise and saw a slender figure appear in the center of the crowd.
She wore a simple pink kimono, without any elaborate patterns or fancy accessories, and a pair of plain wooden clogs on her feet, each step light and steady.
A small white rabbit mask covered her face, revealing only her jawline and a section of pale pink lips. The mask was outlined with simple ink lines to depict the rabbit's round eyes and long ears, yet it exuded an indescribable coldness.
The iron fan in her hand was raised high, its surface still stained with a glaring crimson, and the cold light from the edge of the fan ribs had not yet faded, clearly indicating that she had just completed a swift and decisive kill.
Without any unnecessary movements or hesitation, the man who had been so ferocious just moments before was now decapitated and lay motionless on the ground.
From appearance to execution, it was all over in an instant, clean and efficient, with a chillingly swift and decisive action.
No! My husband!
A woman's piercing scream suddenly rose from the ground and echoed throughout the street corner.
It was this sound that brought everyone back to their senses.
"She...she just killed someone, didn't she?"
"Ah! Murder!"
"Ah—! Ah—!"
The crowd erupted into chaos, and the surrounding area instantly descended into disarray.
Amidst the chaotic crowd, a few people who were still desperately suppressing the humans on the verge of demonization stood frozen in place.
Shinobu Kocho stared intently at the golden fan in Chinatsu's hand, a hint of seriousness in her voice as she murmured, "Who are you? That fan..."
Sanemi held Genmi tightly, looking him up and down to see if he was alright.
Protected by his brother, Genya stared intently at the person in front of him, then turned to look at the terrified Shinobu Kocho, swallowing hard.
He dared not utter a sound, fearing that if he opened his mouth, he would call out her name and cause trouble for everyone.
Doma, waiting quietly in the distance, opened his fan with one hand, partially concealing the slightly upturned corners of his mouth, his interest impossible to hide.
"Oh dear~ I already told you not to go there. What are you going to do now?"
"Chika~chan~"
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