Demon Slayer (Tsuki X Kerzin)

[Kerzin Kalamond]

@Tsuki
The call for the slayer to show up seemed like an urgent one. People being enslaved, children being eaten, farms being destroyed, ‘My people will starve!’ The letter from Elder Shinu said. The local farmers are to terrified to return to their fields, fear is ruling people’s hearts. 
 

The village itself itself looks rather ordinary, the houses made of cheep wood but solidly made to withstand the weather, some dirty and showing warping from age but solid for the most part. On many door frames hangs charms to ward away evil. The smells of unwashed bodies and fear is strong in the run down place. No children play in the streets, no adults tending to choirs, the fields are in clear need of weeding, the farm animals are in the large fenced in pasture but look like they haven’t been take care of in sometime. Everything is frozen with fear. 
 

Elder Shinu came out to give her his sad story, he was pushing fifty and looked ancient, his skin hanging around his bony frame, deep bags under his eyes, almost no hair on his head to speak of, his beard white, long, wispy, and unkempt. His out fit is very plane brown fabric that is in need of cleaning and patchwork. A simple wooden cane is in one hand to support him walking. A light of hatred burns in his eyes. “This monster stole my daughter!” bellowed the old man, his body looks spent but but voice is thick with venom and strong. “This evil red onii stole her! The monster has stolen everything I love!” His breath caress a faint smell of sour wine, his fist in the air to shake it at the heavens. “Please Master Slayer, Go destroy this darkness! Save my daughter and bring her back to me!” He clearly favored his daughter over everybody else that is ‘Missing’ even tho it seems most of the huts are full of people but is to afraid to come out. 
 

The secluded farm was a few short miles east of the village. It was a rather large house that looks to have been expanded on a few times, as if it had been there for generations and has been made larger and larger for the expanding family. On the main road there the Slayer could see four small boys playing, some running around trying to play samurai and ronin with sticks they pretending to be swords. Rows and rows an array of fruits and vegetables grow in the fenced in field with people tending the planets as they chattered happily. The produce look unusually large, almost double what you would see anywhere else. On the porch of the house sit an elderly couple, hand in hand, smiling as they talked to each other while somewhat keeping and eye on the small girl playing with a wooden doll at their feat until they noticed the Slayer. They froze.. a sudden panic coming over them.. then the old man raises to his feet and starts yelling. “No!” Over and over as he walked toward her, he was old but many years of farming made his body strong but it is clear moving is still painful for the old man in the plain white outfit. People in the field look up from what they are doing, fear coming their eyes as they see whom is approaching before they go stood up, “No!” “Go away!” They would yell until the elder would make it to the Slayer and hold up a hand, it was clear they respected the old man greatly for the quieted shortly after so he could say these words. “We don’t need your kind around here. Whatever that old fool Shinu told you it was all lies! Yoshimaru is the kindest person I ever meet and couldn’t hurt a fly. So please, just go.” His voice carried strength but he was clearly afraid, of her, and the pleading was genuine. He shows no signs of being possessed, the people looked happy and health. 

[Tsuki]

Name: Kari Udo

Age: 18

Feature: like in pic. She lost her right eye at 5 during a demon attack. 

Personality: fair, courageous and reserved

Work: demon hunter

Weapons: katana

Backstory (I will write it) 

Edited September 13, 2020 by Tsuki

[Kerzin Kalamond]

Name: Ykoro Kiro 

Age: 93

Features: Unlike most demons this one was born from the power of nature (with some demon blood) rather then hair he has plants that he can shape at will. 
 

Personality: Tranquil, calm, he is a pacifist and could never bring himself to hurt a person even if they cause him harm.

Traits, Powers: Superhuman Endurance (Can run for days without tiring).
Only needs water and sunlight to live.
World class speed, not superhuman level, just on par with the quickest humans alive.

He can shape the plants on head at will, can grow them at will but they are still only as strong as just a few small vines. 
His real power lies in his blood, his blood makes planets grow rapidly, bigger, healthier, and packed with more nutrition. No disease, harmful parasites, or bugs bother plants grown with using his blood. It just makes him weak for awhile. 
 

Bio: Born from a very small fragment of Gaia that was exposed to very potent demon blood, this kind soul spent most of his existence roaming the forest, helping animals, aiding plants destroyed by humans to regrow. It was a easy and calm life for he can understand the ways of nature. However it was a very lonely life, it drew him to humans even though they hated him, he never allowed it to hamper his will to continue trying however.

[Tsuki]

After listening to the old man, Kari got up and walked towards the village. Misery, kidnapping and devastation were her daily bread. At 5, the woman had her entire family and her right eye following the onslaught of demons in her village. She remembers the cries, the screams, the moans associated with the heat of the flames. She was saved by a group of demon hunters: being the only survivor, they took her with them, guaranteeing her shelter, food and a deep training in demon hunting techniques. Kari creebbe and became the best huntress the village had ever forged. Together with "Dragon's Claw", the katana she wore beside her, was invincible. The description of old Shunu that day was too vague to speculate what kind of demon was involved. She walked for several hours before reaching the small village. Her breath caught: luxuriant and florid, but the eyes with which we had looked at the villagers were anything but pacifists. Kari was greeted by an old man who yelled at her.

"Oji San, please keep calm," she bowed her head in respect. "I'm Kari Udo. Demon Hunter." The woman heard the murmur grow thicker. "Although my fame and my profession anticipate my person, I would like to emphasize that I am not here as a mercenary. I do not work for anyone: I am free. I usually offer my help to people like you, but old Shinu told me about strange happenings: I only came to see how the conditions of the village are appropriate "fear was painted on their faces, everything in that place seems to work in reverse. They had to be afraid of demons not hunters! "Who is Yoshimaru? And above all why is Shinu an old fool?"

[Kerzin Kalamond]

The elder studied Kari Udo, even in this secluded farm land her name is known. Merchants that come to buy pipe weed that is grown in the region as it tends to be higher quality then the rest of the country, something to do with the mineral deposits underground but the land is to soft for proper mining and the only crop it seems to make better is the pipe weed. 
 

Elder Youta grumbles under his breath before clearing his throat. “Shinu is a cruel and abusive man. The villagers listen to him when he cried his daughter stolen by the demon.” His expression and slightly more aggressive way he balls his hands up in a fist accompany his next words. “True be told he uses her body for his own sick twisted ends.” Youta closes his eyes shut to help block out the anger he feels, it’s best to talk to a Slayer with a calm mind rather then one clouded by rage. “Would you like to come inside so we can speak in a more private way? My daughter Sana was making tea if you would like some.” 
 

The elder didn’t feel right about discussing this all in the open like this, most of the people knew the story but not to the extent he does. On a close inspection many of Youta and Shinu’s facial features look similar. The lines of age are different which at first glance make them look different. They both have the same almond eyes, they have the same ‘to strong’ if a nose that almost make it look beakish. The jawline has the same almost blocky shape but while Shinu’s mouth seems to always be in a scowl, this elder has a slight upturn as he is more then used to smiling.

 

 

[Tsuki]

Kari did not miss the old man's expression: anger, rage, the intensity of the feelings that the human being felt in front of her was directly proportional to the tremor that shook his body. That same body of leathers shared connotations with Shinu. The huntress waited to speak although she noticed it as soon as she set foot in the village. "I'll gladly have tea while we smoke your Oji-san weed." The woman followed the old man and together they entered a small peasant house: a single room that was adovisa by rice paper walls to distinguish the sleeping area from the living area. Inside the house was a girl with simple and pure features who bowed to her father before looking with bewilderment and apprehension at the figure who accompanied him. Youta spoke a few words to reassure her and in a short time the two speakers were seated with a cup of tea in front of them and some sweets, while the woman served the drink. "May I know what your name is Oji-san before starting your story?". The huntress stared at the man with genuine interest, waiting for an explanation of what was really going on.

[Kerzin Kalamond]

Sitting down at the table with Kari, Elder Youta bows his head to her. “Meiyo aru hogo-sha, Kari Udo. My name is Youta Sasaki.” The elder lifts his head up with some effort. Taking the cup of green tea up, he brings it up to take a small draw to moisten his throat before putting it back down. “Shinu Sasaki is my twin brother.. he used to be a good man, honorable soldier, loving husband and father...” the elder stops for a moment, it was a painful memory, a slippery slope where things went from a pleasant to a nightmare. “His wife, Emica, took ill one harsh winter a few years back and passed away.. he never left her side as he tried to keep her comfortable and the same sickness struck him. Between losing his wife and the fever he became a broke man, it damaged his brain. He because harsh, twisted.. he was a shell of what he used to be. So quick to anger.. he started taking it out on everybody around him, his daughter Maiko most of all. He almost beat her to death for telling him he insults Emica’s memory, she is still recovering from it.” Youta’s voice grew angry toward the end, understandably so. 
 

“That is when Ykoro saved her. He took her away from hell, tried to find a place for her to be safe at. He landed here. I didn’t think the best of him when I first saw him, me and my wife Kura had fallen on hard times. I was growing to old to keep up with everything.” Stopping long enough for some more tea he continued on. “To make a long story short that demon saved us, he helped save everybody here. He brought back life to these lands, he made this place a home.. even if he has to bleed himself till he is to weak to stand. It pains all of us to see him do it.. but he keeps giving and giving.” The elder takes a rice ball from a large tray his daughter had, it was time for a midday snack until dinner was cooked to keep everybody’s strength up. After offering one Kari she would leave to bring some to the others. “I can use a smoke.” A small drawer with his pipe sits inside the table they are at, sliding it open with the sounds of wood scraping wood he retrieves his pipe, tobacco, his strikers, and his tinder box with tow in it. Packing his pipe he offers some to Kira, then lights up his pipe to start puffing until it catches to take a few calming inhales of smoke. “What else would you like to know Sureiyā Kira?”

[Tsuki]

Kari listened silently while sipping the tea she was offered. The old man's eyes were tired but not false: she read the same expressions of the twin as if they were the opposite sides of the same coin. The truth and the lie. Gratitude and resentment. The woman lit her pipe and the red embers highlighted her only amber eye. She nodded slowly. "I am a demon hunter, but I do not exterminate them. The people you fear are defined as exterminated mercenaries. They are paid in gold with one goal: to kill any living creature, man or demon that is. I work alone. As the exorcist monks I walk around the region and listen to calls such as Shinu's "she let go of a cloud of white smoke from her mouth" I have met multiple people and creatures in my wanderings and I have learned to investigate before acting. They exist. harmless demons. Sometimes these creatures manage to fit into human communities making them flourish, as in this case ". Kari took a scoop of sweet rice and swallowed it. "Do you know the miraculous herbs of Shimejii village? They are cultivated by Jumeirah, a lizard demon with frightening physical features, but extremely harmless." The woman finished her cup of tea. "I have no other questions Oji-san. I would like to meet Ykoro personally, if possible." The Slayer bowed her head in respect, as she had been taught by Master Hitachi.

[Kerzin Kalamond]

Youta shook his head slightly at the bit of knowable about the herbs. “Until Ykoro came into our lives I never knew demons could be kind and gentle, all the stories always points to them being viscous flesh eaters. My eyes wear closed then but now they are open.” A small genuine smile touches his lips before he puts his hands on the table to help lift himself up with noticeable effort and stubborn resolve. “I will show you to him.” Taking his pipe with him, the old man takes a few more puffs while showing her towards the big rooms meant for sleeping.

Down the small hallway, the second sliding door on the left. Youta slides open the simple door that has small flowers and animals painted on them to make it look more cheerful, to reveal a large room meant to hold up two six people and their futons for resting. Four of them are currently folded and resting against the wall while two more are currently on the floor, one has a young woman with raven black hair and soft blue eyes in bed looking up at the demon currently kneeling down next to her talking softly. The words cut off as both of them look to see who is coming. 
 

Ykoro’s ‘hair’ was several colorful flowers in bloom, adding a slightly sweet, flowery, fragrance to the room as he was doing it to help put a smile on the young woman’s face. His features wear smooth and gave off a very open feel, from the gentle serenity in his eyes, the soft turn of his lips, the passive nature of his body language as he is sitting with his legs folder under him. A look of quiet resolve comes to his face as he sees the demon hunter, looking between her and the elder rapidly but not seeing any look of malicious intent he relaxes. 
 

The young woman started to sit up, mouth opening, eyes going wide, but as quickly as she tried to move, Ykoro was there to stop her, one hand on her shoulder to stop her movement, his hand came to put a finger over her mouth to cut off what she was going to say before she could even start. The demon was incredibly swift with how fast he reacted. “Shhh, stay still. Don’t upset your injuries. Let’s hear them first.” His words came out with tranquility, to visibly calm Maiko.

Looking back up at Kari, “What brings you here Slayer?” He asked in the same kind voice, he never had a place to call home before and he is ready to do whatever it takes to keep them safe. 

[Tsuki]

Kari remained in the doorway. He did not enter. The room smelled of flowers, yet her nose perceived the acrid smell of medicinal herbs and a metallic tip of blood. He observed the young woman with a white complexion and hair as dark as night: the few centimeters of skin that could be seen were covered with bluish bruises: probably the yukata that covered her forms hid deep wounds still not healed and numerous scars. The huntress saw terror break through Maiko's blue eyes .She answered the demon in the same calm, confident tone she had spoken to the old man.

 "You" the woman did not look away from the emerald eyes of the creature in front of her. "When you are done with the girl you will find me waiting for you under the Sakura". Kari turned her back to her interlocutors, but first placed a bag on the bamboo table next to the door. "They are the herbs grown by Jumeirah. I suppose you know very well who they are and their healing power." The huntress came out of the old Youta's house without forgetting to thank him and his daughter, she also asked where to find a place to spend the night. The spring air was warm, she could have lain under the stars as in many of her travels, but at the villages part of her reward revolved around food and lodging for the rest period. The young woman walked towards the clearing at the end of that enchanted place: in the center of it grew an old flowering cherry tree that stretched its branches on a crystalline lake, mirroring itself every day. She sat under the foliage: clouds of soft pink cushions dressed the branches of the old tree, while with every breath of wind cascades of petals fluttered in the air like snow in a storm. Kari sat at the foot of the old plant and lit her pipe: the herb they grew there was particularly tasty, she had to admit. Circles of white smoke came out of her mouth as she rested her limbs. It had been 20 days since her departure from Sumo after her last job: the eastern mountains had been an obstacle, as well as the harpy demons that nested them and her shoulder trauma had left her with a still visible and painful hematoma. However, the body of a huntress needed toughness, patience and training to develop. Despite being lost in her thoughts, Kari felt Ykoro's light footstep as it reached her. "Good evening demon. Sit down." Kari continued to stare at the horizon: the sky had turned the color of fire and ignited the surface of the water in front of them. "Do you know the stories Shinu tells about you? I was asked to hunt you down. I didn't accept. My working methods are ....." she hesitated for a moment "... different. I would like to know who you are . Why you chose this place is evident "the woman said as she pointed to the landscape in front of them" and perhaps I begin to understand why you have decided to choose these people ... ". Kari took the last breath of her pipe before turning to look at the demon.

[Kerzin Kalamond]

The young huntress would find the elder accommodating. “You are most welcomed to stay here, me and my wife would be most honored to have you here. Food is plentiful and my daughter is a talented cook so we will have a feast in your honor.” The elder bows his head, as he spoke in his gravely voice, both in thanks and acceptance of the kind gift. The herbs will go a long way to helping people, 

Ykoro brushes Maiko’s hair softly after Kari leaves, a soft soothing sound of nature leaving the demons mouth as he does. The blossoms in his hair change to valerian while she tells him to be careful. “I will my friend. Rest now and I will see to applying the new herbs to your wounds before nightfall.” The demon cooed softly, using such soft sounds with the sleepy scent to send her to sleep despite her weakening protest, she does need all the rest she can get after all. Slowly Ykoro stands up, still partly weak from the bloodletting predawn to help breath more life into the soil with his own life essence, the scars on his wrist are already faded to nothing from where he sliced them. Leaving the room behind as quiet as he can be, sliding open the door with minimum sound as we as closing it behind him, the demon joins his friend elder in the looking thoughtful into his tea while smoking his pipe. The smell of tobacco, tea, bread, and a light haze of smoke filled the room. 
 

“I hope you are well my young friend.” Ykoro asked in his soft voice, it’s like being washed over by a pure sound only nature can make yet still sense to human ears.
 

“Young?” Youta replied, a look of disbelief on his face as he looks up at the demon, he often doesn’t even think of Ykoro as old being how young the demon looks despite being older then his deceased grandfather. “Go get you some sun and try to look your age.” He said in a good manner, gruff sounding but still has warmth to it. Ykoro simply nodded with a small curve of his lips showing how fond the demon is of these humans. 
 

A few minutes later the demon Ykoro approaches the slayer known as Kira, the only difference between then and now is his hair has changed once more to simple green vines with small sakura like blossoms budding in them. The lake was such a beautiful sight to his green eyes, the way the sun, the clouds, and all the sky was reflected in the tranquil waters gave the illusion of two skies. It always gave the lonely soul pause to admire it, but the person there pulled him from his reverence. With soft steps the demon of nature came to a halt a few feet from the huntress to move to his knee’s and sit on his heels. “The words of untruth is still a new concept to this one. When one spends most of their existence in nature, one becomes used to seeing things as they are. Shinu is a damaged soul that holds tightly to his wounds, this confused me. Why would one wish for such continued pain when one can heal?” The demons voice is as soft as a gentle stream, clearly not human but kind and partly bewildered. Replacing the troubled expression with one of serenity. “It is hard to understand human ways.” He continued, lifting a hand to show he doesn’t need an answer to his question as it is beyond him. 
 

“Who am I? That is a question I wish I knew.” He sounded as lost as looks at that moment, shoulders slump slightly, eyes unfocusing for a moment, the way he said ‘Who am I?’ carried the weight of a thousand questions that was asked a thousand times. With a voice as distant as the far side of the lake and as old as the waters resting inside it, “Ykoro...the lost child of the ancient mixed with the blood of the old ones.” his gaze refocuses on the huntress In front of him, back straightening and shoulders squared as if the moment of being lost never happened. “Ykoro.” He said once more in his soft voice, “I don’t understand who I am, everytime I ask a faint echo of an echo answers back Ykoro. As to why I am here, it’s that echo of an echo that pulled me here..” The demons voice grows slightly frustrated while his expression doesn’t change from the calm visage. “It’s like a feeling I always had but never knew I had until the faint echo brought it to the surface. Even saying it like that doesn’t even come close to the way it feels... if they have words for what it is, this one doesn’t know them.” After that he falls silent, those emerald pools gazing at the slayer, studying her body language and expression, from the small way it shows that her shoulder is bothering her to the comfort she feels from the soft foliage underneath. 

[Tsuki]

"Deep pain can make the soul go astray, demon." Kari let go of the last puff of smoke as she silently listened to the demon's words. Not knowing your origins or having experienced its destruction? Even today the young woman wondered what was best. She stared back at the lake. "If you don't have origins you have two choices: you can look for them or build them with your own strength and start a new path in the map of destiny" the girl's voice was more serious and raw than she would have liked, as if she knew the subject they were about speaking. "I will not hunt you down. You injure yourself to heal the people of this village" she said pointing to the scars on her wrists that were faded away "You risk your life to guarantee them a hot meal and protect this place like a precious jewel. knowing souls like yours: much more human than humans themselves, but devoid of any malice or malice typical of our species ". The girl stood up, removing her clothes. "Look at the present demon and what you have, the past has slipped away now." Kari looked one last time at the body of water which now reflected the blue night of the sky and the first crescent of the pale moon. "The village chief was kind enough to offer me a hot meal. I don't want to decline his invitation. You should go back to look after your girlfriend too. Lest my herbs be wasted, I count on your medical mastery." The woman walked towards Youta's house, where she met the old man's wife: Chie. The old woman had prepared a hot bath for her which the girl did not refuse. She asked to be left alone: she didn't want to upset the woman by explaining why her young body was inlaid with multiple scars. To dress the daughter of the two elderly hosts, he had lent her a kimono. The dress, albeit simple, slid over the slender and athletic body, emphasizing its curves. Kari put her hair in a soft ponytail before getting dressed and heading to the kitchen: she was a guest but didn't want to feel treated like one so she helped the women prepare dinner. It was at that moment that the huntress saw Ykoro return, she barely greeted him: the change of clothes and the hairstyle had softened the features of the young woman. Kari took a large bowl of soup and carried it into the room where the injured girl lay. "You need to eat if you want to recover faster." The young woman's face still showed insecurity and fear towards the huntress, who was not particularly capable of weaving bonds. She set the tray beside the girl and bowed her head before retreating. Kari sat down with the family, thanking her for the warm meal and recounting some of her adventures, taking care not to talk about her past. The woman could not help but notice that the demon had not joined them for the duration of the dinner. "He is very protective and attentive to his friends .... Ykoro I mean" she pointed out, turning to the head of the family.

[Kerzin Kalamond]

Ykoro remained silent as he watched and listened to the demon hunter. He raw voice struck a cord in the wayward soul, what do with his life? To the demon the origin of a life means far less then what they do with it, but the words were sound. Watching the female undress in front of him was an oddity he didn’t expect, to him it’s just the purest form one can hold but humans tend to be shy with such things. His own ‘clothing’ is just plants his body grew to ‘fit in’ as his own natural form wasn’t as acceptable in everyday life so learned to hide what he was born with, but she just did such a thing without warning and for no reason. Her scars drew his eyes as well as the damage to her shoulder, it made his hands twitch to tend to her lasting wound to heal but the last words confused him as well. Girlfriend? What does a children’s taunt have anything to do with her health? The only understand he has with the word is when the children play games and tease one another? For sometime after she left he sat there in silence while looking out at the lake. Something happened there but he isn’t sure what, he hasn’t been living with them long enough to know many of their customs yet but always seeks to learn more. 

Once back at the home he noticed the change in Kari and found it to be another interesting thing humans do, so the plants forming his ‘clothing’ shifts into a state of fall so the leaves turn from green to gold, orange, and red to mimic a change himself. Feeling it awkward to be at a table when he doesn’t eat the demon checks in on Maiko to find her slowly eating, “Let me help you, you need your strength to heal.” He said softly while closing the distance to kneel down and help feed the poor woman. 

Youta nodded his aged head at her words, “There is something special about that man. He does whatever he can to heal anything and anybody, even ones that wanted to drive him away.” His old gravelly voice turned partly to shame at the end. An unspoken event that lead to where they are now, “I’m not one to judge a book by its cover but I even tried to drive him away when he first arrived, right after he just made the fields bloom to life when they was dying. In my rush I got a nasty twist on my ankle and it was him that picked this old bag of bones up and brought me inside when he barely had the energy to. He helped tend to my old ankle and made sure we had food.”

[Tsuki]

"It's complicated," the Slayer said, pointing to the rice paper door that separated them from the adjacent room. "You will never understand why she acts this way." The young woman took a sip of beer. "Good souls are lost souls, misunderstood in this present time: only the future shows us their essence, the end of their work". Maiko finished her portion of soup "So my teacher told me" the girl's fist just tightened on her glass. "There are spirits that protect us and others doomed to destruction. I made a detour from my path to come to you: do you know the legend of the lagoon?" the pupils of the two women suddenly dilated. "In the villages built along the water it is said that there is a Kappa demon that leads to misery in these places. In the most conservative countries, young virgins are offered to domone as a pledge". The huntress helped the women tidy up "The demon aura probably didn't affect your village thanks to Ykoro" before sitting down again and lighting the pipe. "Many young women have disappeared in the adjacent villages: my mission is to find them" concentric circles of smoke with an aromatic scent formed in the air. "Would you be willing to help me?" she dropped the sentence without giving further explanation.

[Kerzin Kalamond]

Ykoro gently tended to Maiko, feeding her as much as she can safely eat while his ‘hair’ gives off its calming sleepy flowery scent as he changed them to his ‘Goodnight’ blend to help send the poor woman back into slumber, which is easier when her belly is as full as it can be. It’s a routine she has grown accustomed to since being under the demons care, which is why she is recovering at considerably faster rate then it would have other wise. Next growing a few strands of aloe  the demon will snap a few pieces off while recovering the Jumeirah herb. Inspecting the strange plant he places it up to his nose to test its earthy scent that caries just a very small demonic touch, a touch that almost smells like sunshine to reflect the gentle nature of the demon that grows it. Putting one whole into his mouth he consumes the herb whole so his body can break it down and he will be able to grow it himself, one of his unusual traits. Making his hands as rough as tree bark the demon grinds up the aloe with the herb to make it into a thick herbal paste so he can slowly apply it to the lingering wounds on Maiko’s body, the bruising on her neck, chest, and arms then carefully turning her to the side to apply more on the lashes on her upper to lower back that looks to have been made by a thick leather strap. Every so careful, he has her back flat to then tend the bruising on her legs and the fading swelling on her ankle. Probably a week before she can walk again with assist, maybe less.

While Ykoto was tending his friend, the demons sharp ears was picking up on what Kari was saying, right as she finished her question, Ykoto came out of the room to look her in the eyes. “I will help you. I can in a way feel my own kind, it’s like heroine and echo of an echo but I can ‘sense’ them in a way.” His ‘hair’ slowly changes back to his normal green vines as he spoke, so the flowery scent doesn’t invade the living room it’s it’s sleepy scent. “I don’t need to breath like you do. If this Kapa has an underwater lair I can find it and I can lead you there after. Being I am not human I doubt it will be overly aggressive to me... whatever it is you need me to do, I can do it. Nonviolently.”

[Tsuki]

 "Not violently?" I raised my eyebrows.

 "Kappa demons are devious and selfish creatures. They feed on people's ignorance, fortunately they are not particularly strong."

 He pondered your offer again. "You could be useful to me, but you won't be taking me to his lair" I turned my gaze to the landlord "I thought I was offering myself as a bride. Or more precisely: Oji-san would you like to marry me to the demon Kappa to ensure the monthly harvest ? " I waited for an answer under the ardent gaze of the people gathered in the room. "No preaching. I know how dangerous my job can be" I instinctively wrapped my hands around my arms. "But with your help I will be able to enter the demon's lair directly" I turned my gaze back to Ykoro. "You will be useful to me, but not as you think. You will follow me and the Kappa from afar to his lair and once I have rendered him harmless, you will have to get the girls to safety. They will need treatment immediately after recovery." I waited for a response from both of them as I sipped the sake served by the hostess.