Demon Slayer: I am a Demon

The sun was high in the sky, right at noon.

Inside the cave, Kanao groggily opened her eyes and habitually looked around. She only breathed a sigh of relief when she saw her uncle beside her, constantly stroking the blade of his knife.

She took small steps and walked naturally toward her uncle, then nestled against him like a kitten.

Su Mu, who was gently stroking the blade of the Nichirin Blade, turned his head and glanced at Kanao:

"woke up?"

"Um."

The girl reached out her small hand and gently added a small piece of firewood to the campfire. Watching the flames suddenly leap up, she blinked her pinkish-purple eyes.

"I was in such a hurry when we left the city that I forgot to bring any food. I'll take you to find something to eat after the sun goes down."

He watched as Kanao threw another branch into the campfire and then spoke softly.

Kanao looked at him and blinked.

He gently scratched Kanao's little nose and said helplessly, "Even if I'm hungry, there's nothing I can do. There's nothing to eat in this cave."

After saying that, he couldn't help but look outside the cave. The warm sunlight felt like needles pricking his eyes, and he lowered his head.

But as soon as I lowered my head, I saw a small hand placed in front of me.

That tiny little hand was holding a wrinkled chicken leg.

Su Mu was stunned for a moment, then looked up at Kanao.

At that moment, the girl held a chicken leg and placed it in front of him as if presenting a treasure.

"You actually hid some food?"

Su Mu was somewhat surprised.

Kanao blinked, then brought the chicken leg to his mouth with anticipation in her eyes.

In the girl's memory, her uncle had never eaten anything, and she had no idea how hungry he was.

"I won't eat it."

Su Mu smiled and took the chicken leg, then found a clean twig, stuck the chicken leg on it, and put it on the campfire to roast: "I'll give you the chicken leg to eat after it's heated up a bit."

After saying that, he smiled and looked at Kanao: "Is there anything else to eat?"

He asked casually and didn't think Kanao had any other food. The fact that she could sneak a chicken leg was already beyond his expectations.

Then, he kept searching through his clothes.

Soon, a small pile of food began to appear on the ground in front of Su Mu.

A small steamed bun, a few crumpled rice balls, a small piece of meat, a few pine cones, a small orange...

Su Mu was quite shocked when he saw this small pile of food:

"It really is like a little hamster; it's amazing at hiding things!"

However, after the initial shock, thinking about Kanao's past, I began to understand.

For Kanao, who had never had enough to eat since childhood, her desire for food was obviously very strong, and she also lacked a sense of security, so it was natural for her to hoard food.

He reached out and gently patted the girl's head, saying with some tenderness:

"From now on, you won't go hungry."

Kanao blinked her beautiful eyes at him.

Su Mu didn't say anything more and continued grilling the chicken leg. When he felt it was almost done, he handed the chicken leg to Kanao: "Eat it."

Kanao took the chicken leg and instinctively wanted to take a bite, but stopped when she got to her mouth and handed the chicken leg back to her.

"I can't eat this."

He patted the girl on the head: "Ghosts can't relieve their hunger by eating these things."

Kanao tilted her head, blinked, and showed a thoughtful expression. Then, she naturally put her arm to his mouth.

Last time, the evil spirit that Uncle killed said that she was Uncle's food, so eating herself should relieve her hunger. If she ate a bite of herself...

A pale arm landed near his mouth, and he could vaguely smell a sweet fragrance that was irresistibly alluring, making his throat move involuntarily, almost to the point of losing control and wanting to start biting.

What surged within me was an infinite longing for flesh and blood.

His face immediately turned very ugly, and he forcefully slapped the girl's hand away.

"Don't do that again."

He lowered his head, suppressing the sudden surge of craving for flesh and blood in his heart. His voice was no longer gentle, but even carried a hint of anger, because Kanao's sudden action had almost made him lose control of himself.

The longer he remains a ghost, the stronger his craving for flesh and blood becomes, making him easily succumb to the instincts of a demon if he's not careful.

Once that opening is made, he will become a monster, a demon in this world.

"call……"

He took a deep breath to calm the surging desire in his heart, and only then did he turn his gaze to Kanao.

Perhaps his outburst had frightened Kanao, who was now cowering there, her eyes filled with terror.

I felt inexplicably guilty.

He opened his mouth, wanting to say something to Kanao, who was curled up there, but when he opened his mouth, he didn't know what to say. So, he silently returned to the campfire.

Kanao curled up on the spot, feeling that she had angered her uncle and aroused his annoyance.

They might even be driven away by their uncle.

The thought of these things fills me with inexplicable fear and panic, as if I am about to return to that cold, damp, and dark place.

Time passed second by second. Su Mu sat silently in front of the campfire, while the girl curled up in fear beside him.

"Clatter..."

The wood burning in the campfire made a crackling sound.

The noise seemed to startle Kanao awake, bringing her back to her senses. She carefully raised her pinkish-purple eyes and saw her uncle sitting there silently.

After hesitating for a moment, the girl took a small step. Seeing that her uncle did not object, she carefully took another step and slowly moved closer to him. She tentatively approached him, and when her uncle did not object, she rested her head on his body. Suddenly, the girl's eyes narrowed in enjoyment.

Su Mu had actually seen Kanao's actions. He regretted his outburst earlier, but he was more shocked and fearful than anything else.

The sudden surge of desire in his heart almost made him lose control, almost made him do something he couldn't accept, and almost made him treat Kanao as food.

She knew that Kanao's actions were unintentional, but they made him realize that he was no different from other demons, and if things continued, he would eventually become a monster that devoured flesh and blood.

His will can last for one day, ten days, or a hundred days, but it absolutely cannot last for a thousand days, or even less.

If this continues, he will eventually succumb to the same insatiable craving for flesh and blood as the other ghosts.

"call……"

Taking a deep breath to suppress his emotions, he picked up the chicken leg that had just fallen to the side, cleaned it, and then handed it to Kanao: "Eat it."

Seeing that Kanao seemed a little nervous, he lowered his eyes slightly and said, "I'm sorry..."

I wanted to say something apologetic, but in the end I couldn't bring myself to say it. I could only turn my head and silently watch the burning campfire and the flickering flames.