Muzan: My daughter can't be that weak!

"Okay..." Xue Nai slowly pulled her hand out of her pocket. "Dad, this is a gift I prepared carefully."

She took a thin, rectangular box out of her pocket.

Muzan glanced down at the box, a vague guess forming in his mind.

The lid was lifted, and just as he had expected, a postcard lay inside.

A few days ago, this idiot had subtly asked him several times if he found the postcard that had recently been sent from abroad interesting.

There probably isn't a ghost dumber than her; she even asks before giving a gift.

The postcard in my hand was covered with colorful drawings on the front—a tall and straight person standing under the moon.

Upon seeing this painting, Muzan was unwilling to admit that he was the one depicted, because the person in the painting was not only ugly in appearance, but also in his smile.

On the back was a whole bunch of blessings, which he figured were all the empty-headed idiots could think of.

"Daddy, Daddy, don't you think my drawing has improved a lot this time!" Xue Nai looked up at him.

"It's well drawn, don't draw it again next time." Muzan said indifferently, putting the postcard back into the box and stuffing it into his pocket.

Yukina covered her ears, only catching the first part of the sentence, "Oh, thank you, Daddy! I also think this drawing is especially beautiful!"

After she finished speaking, she turned around with a grin, put her hands behind her back, and skipped away to the next room, pretending not to have heard the second half of her sentence.

Downstairs, Kurokawa Kaidai was speaking as if he were on fast-forward.

Pine trees were placed on either side of the entrance hall, shimenawa ropes hung from the lintel, and even the stair railings were wrapped with red ribbons. The entire first floor was completely transformed, a world apart from when I first arrived.

After packing up the last item, he stood in the center of the living room, looked around, and nodded in satisfaction.

Then he froze, wondering what to do next.

Should we leave? But the adults haven't given the order. Should we go upstairs? I don't dare.

He just stood there in the living room.

"What are you still doing here?" a voice came from above.

Kurokawa suddenly raised his head.

Muzan stood on the stairs, looking down at him with a blank expression. His crimson eyes swept over him, and he felt a little uncomfortable.

"Should I ask you to leave?"

"Sir, I'll leave right away."

Kurokawa bent down, turned around and walked towards the door, his pace twice as fast as when he came. At this moment, he wished his Blood Demon Art was a teleportation ability.

"etc."

"Sir, is there anything else you need?" Kurokawa paused, his scalp tingling with nervousness.

"Any new information about the Blue Spider Lily?"

Although Kurokawa was afraid of death, he had an excellent business sense. After becoming a demon, he not only expanded the industries he was involved in, but also secretly opened stores almost all over Japan.

He quickly reviewed the recent intelligence in his mind, making sure nothing was missed, before cautiously speaking:

"There is no new information yet. If there is, I will inform you immediately."

Muzan walked down the stairs step by step.

The leather shoes made a slow, deliberate sound when stepped on.

"Oh, really?"

"Then tell me, when will you have any new information?"

Kurokawa opened his mouth, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down, but the sound got stuck in his throat and couldn't come out.

He didn't know when.

He even doubted whether blue spider lilies truly existed. After searching for so many years, he hadn't even seen a single petal.

But he dared not voice this guess.

"My lord—" he began, forcing himself to speak, "Recently, while exchanging ideas with foreigners, I heard about a flower called 'Moonlight Beauty.' It's said that the flower blooms for an extremely short time, usually closing after only a few hours. I was thinking…"

"You're thinking, is the blue spider lily like this too?" Muzan's lips curled into a smile, but the smile didn't reach his eyes; instead, it made the demons even more terrified.

He walked down the last step and stood in the center of the living room.

"Do you really think that if an idiot like you could think of this, I wouldn't?"

"I don't need to know how long this flower will last. I just need you to bring me the fully bloomed flowers."

"Did you understand? Otherwise, I really don't know what use you are."

"Yes, sir, I will certainly continue to send more people to search."

After Kurokawa finished speaking, he waited for a while without receiving any response, and then carefully backed away.

night.

As the day before the New Year, apart from the commercial streets, people in other places generally stay up quietly with their families to welcome the New Year.

"One hundred and five, one hundred and six, one hundred and seven..."

The temple bells rang out from afar, one after another, deep and resonant, echoing through the night sky.

Yukina pricked up her ears, listening to the distant chimes. When she counted to the 108th chime, she sprang up from the fireplace, pounced over, braced herself on the sofa armrests, and leaned her whole body in front of Muzan.

"Happy New Year, Dad!"

Muzan had already anticipated her actions, and looked down at the furry head in front of him.

Suddenly, the streets outside became lively. Someone opened their door, and people were talking and children were laughing. The sounds carried on the wind from afar.

"These humans," he frowned, his tone disdainful, "it's just New Year's Day, why are they so noisy?"

Xue Nai raised her head, covered her ears with both hands, and smiled sweetly: "Daddy, if you do this, it won't be noisy anymore."

Muzan stared at her expressionlessly.

"Don't talk, you're noisy too."

Upon hearing this, Xue Nai exclaimed, "Daddy, really? Then I won't say anything, boohoo..."

Her eyes darted around, then she lowered her head, slumped her shoulders, and pretended to be very sad.

But after waiting for a while, the ghost above her head didn't make any move. She couldn't help but raise her head quietly and glance upwards with her eyes slanted.

And so, two pairs of bright, crimson eyes met.

"Why did you stop?"

"What? What do you mean, 'continue'? I don't quite understand." Yukina rubbed her nose, then poked the dog lying on the ground, about to fall asleep. "Amber, do you understand what Daddy is saying?"

"Woof woof woof?"

Master, is it really useful for us to pretend to be stupid?

Amber voiced a question emanating from its very soul, but unfortunately, only Muzan could understand its thoughts.