Morning arrived quietly over the floating island of Asterisk.
The buildings shimmered faintly as sunlight reflected off the glass towers and elevated roads, giving the entire city an almost unreal feeling. People moved through the streets below in neat crowds while holographic advertisements flickered across distant buildings.
And somewhere inside Seidoukan Academy,
Muzan Kibutsuji was sleeping peacefully on his desk.
"..."
"..."
"...Muzan-senpai?"
A hesitant voice called out softly.
No response.
Kirin stood beside his desk awkwardly while holding two cans of coffee she had bought from a vending machine.
She looked conflicted.
Very conflicted.
On one hand, waking someone up felt rude, while on the other hand, classes had already ended ten minutes ago.
"...Senpai?" she tried again, this time poking his shoulder carefully.
Muzan's eyes opened instantly.
No confusion, no grogginess.
One moment he was asleep, and the next,
Fully awake.
Like a machine activating.
Kirin jumped slightly seeing this.
"S-Sorry!"
Muzan blinked once before stretching lazily.
"No, no, you're fine." He yawned lightly. "I was just resting my eyes."
"...You were snoring."
"...I was just cultivating."
Kirin stared blankly at him.
Muzan kept a perfectly serious face.
"..."
"..."
"...Cultivating?" she asked uncertainly.
"Indeed." Muzan nodded in a sagely manner.
"A secret breathing technique."
"..."
Kirin looked like she wanted to question it further but eventually gave up.
Instead, she carefully handed him one of the coffee cans.
"I bought this for you, Senpai."
"Oh?" Muzan took it with mild surprise. "Thank."
Kirin immediately turned embarassed and bowed again.
"N-No problem Senpai!"
'She is improving,' Muzan sighed internally, and after a moment corrected himself.
'But very slowly.'
'At this rate she might stop bowing every seven seconds by next year.'
But progress was progress.
Compared to their first meeting, she had become noticeably more relaxed around him already.
At least now she could hold conversations without looking like she was about to apologize for existing.
Muzan opened the can and took a sip.
Very sweet.
Too sweet infact.
He looked at the label in astonishment.
"...What is this? 50% sugar?"
Kirin looked slightly embarrassed.
"S-Sorry..."
"It's fine." Muzan chuckled lightly. "I just forgot teenagers consume liquid diabetes willingly."
Kirin tilted her head.
"...Diabetes?"
"Nothing important."
He stood up from his seat and stretched again.
Honestly, school life was surprisingly relaxing.
Compared to Muzan's previous existence which was filled with paranoia, life-and-death battles, centuries of hiding, and getting chased by stable and unstable swordsmen screaming about justice,
This was peaceful.
Almost boringly peaceful.
Though admittedly, the academy itself was still interesting enough to keep his attention.
And it wasn't because he was interested in the geography, history or language of this world, obviously.
Lux weapons.
Prana.
Genestella physiology.
Scientific advancements.
These were the things that kept his attention occupied. Science was fascinating.
In 'HIS' previous life, he had been a supporter of the science power community.
"F*ck magic! Science is thevtrue magic of humanity!!!" had been there slogan.
And now because of Muzan's knowledge, intelligence and personal researches,
his understanding and fascination with science has only grown.
And while he was almost 80% sure he didn't need scientific advancements based on a single element, (like it was the case in this world) knowledge was never too much.
Maybe in the future he would find himself in another such situation, and at that time, maybe he'll find something from this world's science that could lead to a breakthrough.
Especially after last night's experiments, he was now interested in the Genestella's and how Prana works.
Muzan's thoughts drifted toward the other him.
Toward the Infinity Castle.
Toward Jorge.
The experiment had produced... mixed results.
Interesting results.
And, painful results.
The last one's were mostly for Jorge though.
Still, the most important conclusion remained the same:
Prana was not impossible for him to acquire.
Just extremely difficult.
The issue wasn't a lack of compatibility, but rejection.
Demonic biology evolved through predation and adaptation.
Prana systems evolved through mutated organs developed after exposure to Invertia radiation, that radiation was the main factor stopping him from acquiring this power.
The physiology resembled each other enough to interact, and even if it didn't he could replicate any kind of difference himself.
But that was somehow, not enough to merge naturally.
Forcing integration caused violent instability, which unfortunately resulted in Jorge exploding.
Partially.
Muzan considered that acceptable progress.
"...Senpai?"
Kirin's voice pulled him out of his thoughts.
"Hm?"
"The Student Council office..." she hesitated slightly. "Your compatibility test is today right?"
"Ah, right."
Lux weapon compatibility.
Honestly, he was curious.
Theoretically, he should not possess Prana at all.
But after experimenting with Jorge's body and consuming portions of Genestella tissue...
Things had changed slightly.
Not enough to call himself a Genestella.
But enough for something to exist now, now the full energy, but atleast temporary generation of it.
Even that could be said to be just, storage of the energy he got from Jorge.
As he changed his internal structure, he could store and channel prana now
Like a foreign spark buried deep within his body.
But ofcourse, it was temporary.
He wanted to see how the academy would interpret that.
"Are you worried?" Kirin asked carefully.
Muzan smiled lightly.
"No. Just curious."
The two walked out of the classroom together.
Students filled the hallways around them while conversations echoed throughout the building.
Most people glanced nervously toward Kirin before quickly looking away.
A few glanced toward Muzan instead.
Mostly girls.
"Heh." Muzan noticed.
"You know," Muzan spoke casually while walking beside her, "you're pretty popular."
Kirin nearly tripped.
"No! I-I'm not!"
"You are though."
"N-No I'm not!"
"You literally have a fanclub over there."
He pointed to one of the groups holding something like a banner.
"...
Kirin's face turned red while Muzan laughed quietly.
Bullying timid people was surprisingly entertaining.
Not cruel bullying ofcourse, just mild teasing.
Before Kirin could recover, a familiar voice suddenly interrupted them.
"Ah, Kibutsuji."
The two turned.
Sato Takuya approached calmly while adjusting his glasses.
His expression remained as stern and professional as always.
Beside him stood another student council member, a girl with short dark blue hair.
"Good afternoon." Sato greeted politely.
"Afternoon." Muzan nodded back.
Sato glanced briefly toward Kirin before returning his attention.
"The preparations for the compatibility examination are complete."
"Preparation? Is this really that big of a deal?."
"There are two compatibility tests today, one for each transfer student. The other student is currently going through the test."
"Did you come out to look for me? You could've justt called."
He sook his head and said.
"No i was heading there myself and saw you here."
Muzan nodded. He genuinely liked this guy.
Straightforward, professional.
Talking without any unnecessary drama.
A miracle by anime standards.
"The president is also observing the examination personally." Sato continued.
"Oh?" Muzan raised an eyebrow. "Should I feel honored or nervous?"
"Probably both."
That answer came from the girl beside Sato.
She looked at Muzan curiously.
"Everyone's talking about the new transfer students, the president usually doesn't do these things personally."
Muzan looked at her curiously.
"Really? I thought people were talking about Kirin."
Kirin froze again.
The girl laughed lightly.
Sato, meanwhile, remained serious.
"The president has taken interest because your records are unusual."
That makes sense.
After all, most transfer students probably did not appear out of nowhere with partially fabricated documents and suspiciously vague backgrounds.
It would be dumb of them not to be suspicious.
But he didn't care what everyone thought, he wasn't here to stay anyway.
"Also if possible," Sato continued, "please avoid damaging the testing room excessively."
"...That sounds oddly specific."
Sato adjusted his glasses again.
"We had an incident last year."
"...Should I ask?"
"No."
"... alright."
After exchanging a few more words, the student council members finally left.
Muzan watched them disappear down the hallway thoughtfully.
Far away from the floating island, deep beneath an abandoned industrial district,
Another Muzan was tallying up everything that he'd done, everything that he'd discovered.
And every way that he had failed.
The Infinity Castle shifted around him quietly.
Organic walls pulsed faintly while corridors twisted endlessly in the distance.
The experiment room smelled.
A lot of blood, bio matter and other stuff was scattered everywhere.
Like some kind of decoration theme inspired by heavy gore.
Muzan stood calmly beside a large table made from hardened black flesh, Jorge was on that table.
And he was still alive.
Surprisingly.
The man's body trembled violently while veins bulged unnaturally beneath his skin.
Prana instability.
An interesting phenomenon he discovered.
Very painful too, judging from the screaming earlier.
The experiment itself had already produced several useful conclusions.
First: Genestella biology was superior to normal humans by an average of three times.
Denser muscles, more durable bones, enhanced nervous system response.
And this was just comparing the similar biological structures.
The main difference came in when observing the new organs, the prana circulation pathways integrated directly into their bodies.
Second: Prana and demonic biology were not completely incompatible, barely.
That was the most important part.
But the issue was that, while his demonic biology could devour and integrate the prana pathways, the energy itself could not be made.
So he has the lines that carry the energy, but the generator that creates that energy is missing.
And not just that! The prana pathways actually conflicted with the demon pathways, the one's that carried the life energy to use blood demon art.
That was the biggest issue, because it was like a intricate puzzle that he couldn't find a complete answer to yet.
Once he did he'll be able to integrate another blood demon art, or could also integrate another power system like the prana.
But alas, he couldn't figure out a way to generate the prana naturally so that plan is a dead end.
Muzan adjusted a pair of glasses he absolutely did not need, the glasses, ofcourse, were purely for aesthetics.
Researchers looked smarter with glasses.
That was simply a universal truth.
"Hm."
He tapped Jorge's exposed chest lightly.
The man convulsed instantly.
"AAAAAAAHHHH!!"
"Still alive." Muzan noted with mild approval. "Genestella vitality is quite impressive."
Jorge glared at him with bloodshot eyes.
"You... fucking... monster..."
Muzan ignored the insult completely.
After all, being called a monster by a serial killer was hardly offensive.
In fact, it was almost funny.
Muzan walked toward a massive organic wall where countless veins pulsed beneath semi-transparent flesh.
Inside the wall rested several preserved biological samples.
Genestella tissue.
Blood.
Cells.
Organs.
Even fragments of Prana circulation pathways.
Research materials for future use.
He might be lacking for now, but in the future he'll definitely be able to do almost anything he wanted. He'll have a solution for all these problems.
Although it wasn't that big a deal.
'This isn't some power fantasy! I'm here to have fun dammit!'
Even if this wasn't one of his known world's, he will have fun here.
Suddenly, Jorge laughed weakly.
"You think... this matters...?"
Muzan glanced over calmly.
"Of course it matters."
"You'll never become... one of us..."
"That depends." Muzan answered casually. "Biology is surprisingly negotiable."
Jorge spat blood onto the floor.
The blood was immediately absorbed by the living flesh beneath them.
Convenient cleaning system.
"You don't understand anything..." Jorge hissed. "The King will change this world."
There it was again.
The King
Just a handful of radicalized Genestella gathered by one charismatic manipulator with a hypnosis-type Orga Lux.
A terrorist startup, without much power, backing, influence or connections.
An amateur Akatsuki.
And yet they were going around flaunting some "King" like it was destiny.
And the funniest part?
Most of them genuinely believed they were revolutionaries.
The Orga Lux itself fascinated him too, but it was not a big deal either.
Hypnosis.
Suggestion.
Emotional manipulation.
Dream Control already allowed him to dominate minds far more effectively, even if he couldn't hypnotize people, momentary confusion or false memories were still possible.
Perhaps seeing the expression o Muzan's face, and understanding something, Jorge suddenly spoke again.
"...why?"
Muzan looked at him.
"Why what?"
"Why are you doing this...?"
A reasonable question.
Muzan thought about it briefly before answering honestly.
"Curiosity."
"..."
"I spent centuries trapped in one world." Muzan continued casually. "Now I can explore infinite realities. Infinite systems. Infinite possibilities."
He walked slowly around the room while speaking.
"In one universe, power might come from magic. In another, science. Somewhere else entirely different principles could exist."
His red eyes gleamed faintly as he spread his arms.
"So why shouldn't I learn?"
Jorge stared at him silently.
Probably realizing that this conversation was completely beyond normal insanity.
.
.
.
.
.
.
A few more hours passed, and finally,
the experiment came to an end.
"..."
Jorge lay motionless on the table, simply starjng at the ceiling.
At some point, he had stopped screaming.
Not because the pain had lessened, but because his body had simply run out of ways to express it.
His already ruined throat had become nothing but mush. The constant strain had torn his voice into nothing more than a dry rasp. Every breath rattled weakly through damaged flesh.
His teeth were in even worse condition.
Several had cracked. Others had shattered entirely after hours of grinding against one another so hard that the enamel just, gave way. Bloody fragments still rested on his tongue.
Even now, small tremors ran through his body from time to time.
Instinct.
Habit.
The remnants of a nervous system that had spent too long drowning in agony that would make anyone's bones shiver.
Muzan stood beside the table, flipping through notes.
The results of the experiment may have been disappointing, but the gained knowledge was still enough to make everything the poor bastard went through to be worth it.
Jorge watched him through half-lidded eyes.
The hatred was gone.
The fear was too.
There was only exhaustion left now.
For the first time in what felt like forever, he wasn't thinking about the King, or revolution, or Genestella or humanity.
He was simply tired.
Muzan eventually looked up from his notes, and their eyes met.
No declaration, no final threat. Now words were spoken.
But there was an understanding between them.
The experiment had ended, and so had Jorge's purpose.
So he just closed his eyes.
And for the first time since entering this nightmare, he found himself welcoming what came next.
A moment later, the flesh beneath him shifted,
and Jorge disappeared without another sound.