On the other side, Spider Daughter was running desperately through the trees.
The forest closed around her like a throat. Branches scratched her arms, roots bit at her ankles.
She could even hear her own breathing and the dry crunch of dead leaves bursting under every step.
…But there was another sound.
Behind her, footsteps. Unhurried. Each one falling slowly, as if whoever was following her didn't need to run. As if he already knew exactly where she was going.
And the distance between them neither grew nor shrank. It was always there, fixed.
It was something inevitable.
Finally, she dared to turn around, and on that face that almost never showed cracks, panic appeared.
"W-Why are you chasing me?"
"…"
About thirty feet behind her, Marcus stood with Ivy curled up in his arms. He didn't answer. He just watched her with an amused smile.
"If you want to fight, go fight Rui!" Daughter's voice cracked, gone hoarse from the urgency. "Why are you wasting your time with me?! Aren't you afraid Rui will kill your friends?"
"Kill them?" Marcus tilted his head, genuinely entertained. "With what?"
And at that precise moment—
BOOM!!
The night sky behind them was torn open. A column of crimson flames devoured the darkness, dyeing half the firmament a brutal, imposing red. Even at that distance, a phantom wave of heat licked at their skin.
Daughter stared at it with eyes blown wide.
And through the glow of fire that turned the night into a bloody dawn, she heard something: a distant roar, soaked in humiliated rage.
R… Rui?
Marcus also raised his gaze toward the flames.
'As expected, Nezuko…'
The current Tanjiro wasn't the same rookie who had barely survived Final Selection. He'd been practicing Constant Concentration Breathing for over two months, already far removed from the inexperienced kid of the original storyline.
And the same went for Nezuko. Though she hadn't been through battles, her strength was innate. During the two months at Tamayo's house, she hadn't just been sleeping and recovering.
Marcus had used his own blood to strengthen her.
She had also learned, under Tamayo's patient guidance, the Exploding Blood Art.
Tanjiro and Nezuko together…
Defeat Rui? Difficult.
But hold him off? Survive until everything was over?
Absolutely no problem.
"Stop worrying about them."
His voice reached her like a whip crack, ripping Daughter's attention away from the burning sky in an instant.
Swish
And in a blink, he appeared ten feet directly in front of her, blocking her path like a wall.
"Now's the time for you to think about your own future."
Daughter clenched her teeth until her jaw ached, her nails digging into her palms.
She'd realized a while ago that this human wasn't chasing her—he was herding her. Every step, every appearance, every block… he'd been pushing her in a specific direction, like a shepherd guiding livestock toward the slaughterhouse.
If he'd really wanted to catch her, he could have done it when she was still next to Rui.
"…What do you want?"
Marcus smiled, and instead of answering, he set Ivy down on the ground and gave her a smack on the rear to get her walking.
"Mmmh~!" Ivy's face lit up red instantly. She stumbled clumsily, barely stabilizing herself on her trembling legs.
"Tell her," Marcus then turned all his attention to Daughter, "what I want her to do."
Ivy hurried to pull the bamboo from her mouth and took several quick steps back, putting considerable distance between them.
The smell of Marcus's blood was too intense. Too sweet. Being that close made it impossible to string two words together.
Then, clutching the bamboo with both hands like it was an anchor, she looked at Daughter. "E-Experiments… it's f-for experiments… they won't kill you…"
"Experiments?" Daughter scoffed. "Something like dissection? Dismemberment and regeneration? Mommy, you're really so naive it makes me want to laugh."
Those words petrified Ivy, and the color drained from her face in an instant.
But she still took a deep breath and mustered the courage to push back. "The Master said it would mainly be drawing blood and stuff like that!"
"Master? Drawing blood?" Daughter threw her head back and laughed heartily, a cackle that echoed through the trees. "Hahahaha!"
"How fast you switched sides, Mama. But do you really believe it'll be as simple as he says? A human experimenting on demons… just drawing blood?" She gave her a smile. "Are you trying to kill me with laughter?"
Ivy puffed out her cheeks, red to the tips of her ears. "E-Even if it's not just that, I'm willing! He's the first person who was ever kind to me! Even if I die, I—!"
But a large hand settled on her head, cutting off those foolish words, and ruffled her hair affectionately.
"What's all this about dying? Don't talk nonsense, Ivy~"
Marcus fixed his gaze on Daughter. "You're right, it can't be just drawing blood. Some experiments… carry considerable risk."
Daughter arched an eyebrow and shot him a sharp "See?" look. But then she heard Marcus continue:
"That's why I came looking for you."
"You…!"
Daughter's expression changed drastically. "Are you planning to…?!"
Marcus nodded without remorse. "The dangerous ones, you do. The safe ones, Ivy does. Simple as that."
"Bastard!" Daughter's fists were shaking. "W-What gives you the right?!"
"The right that you…" Marcus's eyes narrowed slightly. "…called me a bastard."
With that, he wrapped both arms around Ivy's small waist from behind, pulling her into his warmth. "But now that I think about it… given my relationship with your Mommy, wouldn't it be perfectly reasonable for you to call me Daddy?"
Those words turned both their faces red at the same time.
One, red from embarrassment.
The other, red from pure rage.
"In your dreams!"
"Hehe~"
Chuckling under his breath, Marcus let go of Ivy, who was already starting to steam from the ears. "Whether it's a dream or not, I'm the one who decides that. Not you."
"…"
"So?" He tilted his head. "Are you considering it?"
A tense silence stretched between them. Marcus let it grow for a moment before adding, temptingly:
"Instead of dying… why not take the risk?"
"…"
Daughter's expression shifted constantly. Her gaze fell for an instant on the swords hanging from Marcus's waist, then drifted to the crimson glow growing behind them, more and more intense.
After a silence that seemed to last an eternity, her shoulders collapsed.
"Do I even have a choice?"
Marcus's smile widened and he extended his hand toward her. "Smart girl."
Daughter stared at the hand. She hesitated for a few seconds.
Then she moved forward slowly.
One step… Another…
Her fingers drew closer to Marcus's palm, the distance shrank to inches, to fractions, and right at the instant when the tips of her fingers were about to brush his skin…
Deep in those resigned eyes, a cunning glint flashed.
She snapped her gaze up and raised her palm.
Poof!
A monstrous amount of white, viscous threads erupted from her hand like a volcanic burst, expanding in every direction.
They quickly took a twisted, living shape that lunged at Marcus like the jaws of a pale, gigantic beast.
And swallowed him in a single bite.
___
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