Muzan: My daughter can't be that weak!

"Yes, you can." Nakime looked down at the child in front of her, nodded, and showed no further expression.

...

Meanwhile, in the study of an elegant mansion.

"Just put it here."

Muzan's current appearance is that of a boy named "Ogawa Jiro" who is about seven or eight years old, speaking coldly in a childish voice.

His nominal mother, Mrs. Ogawa, held a plate of exquisite wagashi (Japanese sweets), her face showing helplessness.

She put down the plate, couldn't help but squat down, and tried to look her increasingly distant son in the eye: "Jiro, are you really not going to eat with us? Your father came home early today."

Muzan didn't even lift his eyelids, turning straight to the tall bookshelves deep in the study, leaving her with only his back. "No need."

Mrs. Ogawa sighed and eventually left.

The study returned to silence.

Muzan turned a yellowed page, his face showing extreme impatience.

Damn!

Another fruitless day.

No, it was another year of nothing.

The blue spider lily, a legendary creature, with very few clues.

He searched through almost every medical classic, local chronicle, and even secret historical records he could find, investing countless amounts of money and energy, only to be disappointed time and time again.

This sense of futility repeatedly stung him.

Suddenly, Nakime's voice rang in his mind through the blood connection: "My lord, Yukina-san has woken up. She says she wants to see you."

Muzan's fingertips paused on the edge of the page, his brows furrowing impatiently.

Woke up?

They really know how to pick their timing.

He has no time to pay attention to that silly little kid who just woke up.

"Let her stay by herself, I have something to do," he replied coldly.

He could almost picture Yukina waking up looking bewildered and clingy.

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the connection.

He forced his gaze to refocus on the dense text on the pages, but the characters seemed to be dancing.

The sky outside the window had already turned tinged with twilight, and the dim light filtered through the gaps in the curtains, casting shadows on the tatami mat.

What a troublesome idiot.

She woke up and immediately started clamoring to see me. Couldn't she look around herself and play with the childish things Nakime prepared?

They just had to bother him.

He tried to bring his attention back to the book, but his mind was clearly elsewhere.

Come to think of it, the last time I saw that sleeping idiot was over a decade ago. Now she's just woken up, and she's in the completely unfamiliar Infinite City...

Given her timid and tearful nature, will she panic because she can't find him? Will she ask Nakime some silly questions?

If she starts crying or keeps asking Nakime about his whereabouts, it will only delay Nakime from carrying out her other tasks and also disturb his own peace of mind.

Tsk.

"Never mind," he said to Nakime, "Send me back to the Infinity Castle."

He needs to change back to his original appearance before he can see her again.

This "Ogawa Jiro" look doesn't seem quite right.

However, the spatial transformation occurred faster than he had anticipated the moment the command was given.

Zheng—

A few clear and urgent notes from the pipa seemed to ring directly in my ears, and the scene in the study before me distorted and dissipated like a reflection in turbulent water.

-

Inside the Infinite City.

Nakime was looking down at Yukina, who was standing close to her, her little hands clutching the hem of her clothes.

The child's upturned face was full of anticipation and joy, his eyes fixed on her, as if waiting for her to say, "I'll see my father soon."

This made it difficult for her to say, "The adults are currently unavailable."

Fortunately, this brief predicament did not last.

The pipa plays softly.

The surrounding scenery was like building blocks, instantly reassembled and pieced together.

Yukina felt a blur before her eyes, and the slightly cozy room was gone, replaced by a more spacious and deserted Japanese-style room.

"Wow!"

Yukina was stunned by the rapidly changing scene, her small mouth slightly agape.

She loosened her grip on Nakime's clothes slightly, her eyes filled with surprise and undisguised admiration, and looked up at Nakime: "Big sister, you're amazing!!"

Nakime was slightly taken aback by the straightforward praise and turned her face away a little uncomfortably.

Just then, a boy's voice, clearly tinged with displeasure, rang out:

"Yukina."

Yukina looked in the direction of the sound and saw a black-haired boy wearing an exquisite short-sleeved shirt standing deep in the room.

The boy didn't look much older than her, and his appearance was impeccably handsome, but when his dark eyes looked at her, there was a sense of familiarity.

Yukina was stunned.

Hey, where's Father? And who's this unfamiliar person?

She instinctively hid behind Nakime, clutching Nakime's clothes even tighter with her small hands, peeking out only half her head, looking at the other timidly and full of doubt.

How did this person know her name?

She lowered her voice and asked Narumi beside her in a soft whisper, her tone full of confusion and wariness, "Sister, sister, who is he? How does he know my name?"

Muzan: ...

He stood there, looking at the little thing huddled behind Nakime, staring at him with the eyes of someone looking at a stranger, and suddenly realized something.

The teleportation happened so fast that he forgot to revert to his original appearance.

Sure enough, his foolish daughter didn't recognize him.

Not only did he not recognize him, he even whispered to others who he was.

What an idiot!

She was the one who kept insisting on seeing her father, but when he was right in front of her, she couldn't recognize him!

Muzan could almost hear the sound of his own sanity tightening.

He should have known that expecting this sleepy idiot to have any discernment was simply wishful thinking.

Nakime felt the sudden drop in air pressure around her and the tugging at the hem of her clothes. She lowered her eyes and subconsciously took another half step back, trying to completely blend herself into the background.

The situation was somewhat beyond her control.

"elder sister?"

Yukina received no answer, so she gently tugged at Nakime's sleeve again. Her upturned face showed even deeper confusion, and her eyes darted back and forth between the strange boy and Nakime.

This person looks fierce...

"I'll say it again, come here, Yukina."

Muzan gritted his teeth, his voice even colder than before.

Ah!

He refused to revert to his previous appearance; he wanted to see when Xue Nai would recognize him.