The air was unnaturally still.
The fog around the quiet district melted away like ink in water, revealing a narrow stone path lined with lanterns. Tanjiro and Nezuko were resting far away, unaware. Zenitsu had fallen asleep, exhausted.
And Jinwoo—after escorting them safely—was walking alone toward the town's outskirts.
His footsteps echoed softly.
Then the moon went red.
A cold, suffocating presence swept across the district like an invisible wave. Even birds trapped mid-flight froze, unable to flap their wings. The night warped.
Someone stood at the end of the road.
Calm. Still. Pale.
Wearing a perfect human disguise… but not fooling Jinwoo for even a second.
Kibutsuji Muzan.
He didn't move.
He didn't breathe.
He just existed, and the world bent around him.
Jinwoo stopped walking.
The fog returned—only around Muzan—like it obeyed him.
Muzan spoke first.
"Hand over the girl."
His tone was velvet, smooth, emotionless.
"The demon who walks in sunlight. She belongs to me."
Jinwoo exhaled, annoyed.
"So you're that guy," he said casually.
"The one who told me to 'borrow her' that night."
A vein twitched in Muzan's temple.
He hadn't forgotten.
That night.
The alley.
The human man who dared to place a hand on his shoulder.
Who ordered him like a child.
Who Muzan couldn't smell. Couldn't read. Couldn't intimidate.
Even now, his senses returned nothing.
No heartbeat.
No scent.
No fear.
Jinwoo took one step forward.
"You want Nezuko?"
His eyes sharpened.
"I thought you demons don't ask. You just take."
Muzan smiled thinly.
**"I merely offer you a chance. She carries my cells. My curse.
That demon is my creation. She is my property."**
Jinwoo laughed.
"I guess you're confused."
His aura flickered like a dark pulse.
"I don't care who created her."
The ground cracked under his feet.
"But she's under my protection."
The mist around Muzan thickened, coiling like snakes.
"You're protecting her?" Muzan asked.
His voice stayed eerily calm.
"Why? For sympathy? For pity? For her brother?"
Jinwoo shrugged.
"Because someone has to stand between monsters and the weak."
Muzan's eyelids lowered.
"…You dare call me a monster?"
Jinwoo tilted his head, smirking.
"What else should I call a man who hides behind fake families and kills children in alleys?"
A thin, razor-like silence filled the street.
Then Muzan's smile vanished.
"You will regret this."
Jinwoo noticed something—Muzan wasn't trying to fight.
He was trying to judge him.
Threat analysis.
Understanding the unknown.
Fear disguised as arrogance.
Jinwoo lifted two fingers.
A ripple of black mana spiraled around him, subtle but vast—like the presence of something ancient waking up.
Muzan's pupils contracted.
He felt it.
That bottomless place…
the abyss Jinwoo carried inside his bones.
"I don't answer to you," Jinwoo said.
"And I won't give you anything."
The lanterns flickered.
The moon dimmed.
Jinwoo's shadow expanded behind him like a living beast ready to devour the world.
"If you want Nezuko—"
He leaned forward.
"—come take her."
A cold wind slashed between them.
For the first time in centuries, Muzan took a step back.
He didn't even realize he had moved.
Jinwoo's presence had triggered something instinctive—
the same feeling only the progenitor of demons himself had ever caused.
Muzan narrowed his eyes.
"Very well."
His voice regained its composure, but his fingers were trembling.
"Enjoy your borrowed time, Sung Jinwoo.
When the moment comes… you will kneel."
He dissolved into a swirl of flesh and mist.
But before he vanished completely—
Jinwoo reached forward and caught the fading edge of Muzan's aura.
Just for a fraction of a second.
And Muzan felt something horrifying…
Jinwoo was tracking him.
Following his scentless, traceless existence.
Like he was prey.
Muzan ripped himself free and disappeared.
Gone.
Silence returned.
Jinwoo stood alone under the moonlight.
He brushed the dust off his jacket.
"Annoying," he muttered.
"But now I know your face."
Jinwoo looked toward the sky, toward the place Muzan had vanished.
His expression darkened.
"Next time… you won't walk away."
---
The night after Jinwoo's confrontation with Muzan was eerily silent.
Urokodaki's mountain home, usually peaceful, seemed to breathe with tension.
Inside, the warm orange glow of the fireplace lit the room where Nezuko slept.
Jinwoo entered quietly.
Her breathing was calm… almost human.
He stood beside her futon and whispered:
"Just wait a little longer.
Me and your brother… we'll turn you human again."
Her fingers twitched slightly—whether dreaming or responding to his voice, Jinwoo wasn't sure.
DING—!
A translucent blue window flashed into existence.
MAIN QUEST: "ELIXIR OF LIFE — FINAL STAGE"
Objective 1: Locate the Red Spider Lily
Objective 2: Craft the remaining Elixir of Life
Objective 3: Create the Concentrated Elixir of Life
Final Goal: Restore Nezuko Kamado's humanity
Jinwoo's eyebrows raised.
"A concentrated version…? So it's not over yet."
The system rarely gave quests that involved hope.
Most led to death, blood, or war.
This one felt different.
It felt… human.
Then..
Footsteps approached.
The sliding door opened.
Urokodaki Sakonji stood there with his fox mask, his presence calm but firm.
"You're Sung Jinwoo, aren't you?"
Jinwoo nodded.
"Kagaya-sama informed me about you," Urokodaki continued.
"About the man who faced Muzan Kibutsuji… and made him retreat."
Jinwoo shrugged.
"He's annoying."
Urokodaki chuckled softly behind the mask.
"Then you and I will get along well."
---
For the next three days, the mountain became a fortress.
Shinjurō Rengoku
—stood at the gate, drink in one hand, blade in the other.
"Anyone approaches this home… they die."
Tengen Uzui
—sat on the rooftop, dual blades resting across his shoulders.
"This guard duty is not flamboyant at all… but whatever. The girl deserves it."
Jinwoo
—stood silently in the shadows, arms crossed.
Igris and Beru hidden but ready.
Even the birds were afraid of coming near.
Muzan's aura hadn't been felt since the confrontation.
But nobody dropped their guard.
Not after what they sensed from Jinwoo…
Not after seeing how Muzan reacted.
---
Inside the house, Urokodaki held a small vial with shimmering purple liquid—Shinobu Kocho's specialized serum.
Derived from Jinwoo's mana.
Purifying. Stabilizing.
Capable of suppressing Muzan's cells.
He knelt beside Nezuko.
"Nezuko… this might hurt. But it will help you."
Jinwoo placed a hand gently on her forehead.
"Stay strong. You've survived worse."
Urokodaki injected the serum.
Nezuko's body trembled—once, twice.
Her demon markings faintly dimmed, shifting color.
Then she relaxed.
Her breathing steadied.
Urokodaki sighed in relief.
"It's working… better than expected."
But Jinwoo didn't smile.
The system window still hovered in his mind.
> Find the Red Spider Lily.
Create a concentrated Elixir of Life.
This wasn't the end.
Not yet.
---
TWO WEEKS LATER — THE SYSTEM CALLS AGAIN
Nezuko could now walk outside briefly without losing control.
Her eyes softened.
Her heartbeat faded in… and out… like it was slowly returning.
That was when Jinwoo felt it.
A new window appeared in front of him.
MAIN QUEST UPDATE:
Search for the Red Spider Lily.
Alone.
Jinwoo clenched his fist.
"So it finally begins."
He didn't tell others like
Urokodaki.
Or Shinjurō.
Or Tengen.
Some truths would crush them with hope.
Some may risk Nezuko's safety if Muzan found out.
Before leaving, Jinwoo looked back at the house.
"I'll return with the cure," he said quietly.
"Don't allow anything else."
Urokodaki nodded.
"May your steps be safe."
Jinwoo stepped into the forest—
—and vanished.
---
MEANWHILE
A blue-lit apartment in Korea.
Jinah was sitting on the sofa, clutching her phone.
"Mom… it's been one month now…"
Her voice trembled.
"He always calls. He always comes home…
So… where is he?"
His mom forced a small smile, patting Jinah's back.
"He'll return.
Your brother keeps his promises."
But even she looked at the door.
Waiting.
Praying.
Not knowing their world had lost its Shadow Monarch.
Not knowing he was walking in another era… another universe… chasing a flower that didn't exist in their world.