⎣Demon Slayer: Yōkai Wife⎤ [雪花] |Kyōjurō Rengoku x Yuki-onna!Reader|

50: Flowers of Blood

A/n: Ayo, we have a special guest in this chapter! ⚠Warning, strong description of blood and gore!⚠

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Deep within an isolated woodland area, surrounded by tall trees was small abandoned Shinto shrine.

From the outside, it was small with a torii gate that stood in front of it─it's wood old with age and covered in mold. Small stone toro lamps aligned the stone steps that lead up towards the entrance.

Inside this seemingly small shrine, was a secret door that led down into a secret corridor. Apparently, below this small shrine were unknown rooms and corridors.

During the Meiji period, there was once a Shinto priest named Komobuto, who went insane and killed his shrine maidens, before taking his own life.

The temple laid buried and forgotten as time passed, until there was nothing left but rotten wood and broken stone. Thus, a small shrine was built in its place before it too, laid battered and forgotten by time itself.

Within a dimly lit tatami room, a man sat on the floor as he idly picked up a dismembered head belonging to that of another unfortunate victim.

Hands with long black talon-like nails caressed the black hair of the head as thick red blood oozed from the neck. The severed head was that of young female and she had been beautiful when she was alive. Her eyes had been brutally gouged out, her tongue ripped, and teeth broken.

Ashamed, she wasn't expecting to be the victim of a demon as the man gently shook her severed head up and down, causing even more blood to pour out and onto a pot filled with black soil.

Once the blood flow stopped, the dark-haired man glanced at pot in wonder as the soil began to stir. A bloody embryo of a flower slowly sprouted from the soil as it graudly grew and took the shaped of a flower.

Red eyes widen in anticipation as a wicked grin stretched across the man's face.

The result... a fucking tulip!... Again.

At that, a snarl escaped the demon's lips as harshly threw the dismembered head across the room with aggressive force. It smashed against the wall with a bloody splat and landed into a pile with other severed heads of previous victims.

"Useless, useless, USELESS!" He shouted in frustration, dramatically gripping his hair.

"Poppies, carnations, and roses! Not one of these heads can grant me the blue spider lily!" He groans.

"Then, why don't you just paint a red spider lily blue, master Satsujin?" Said a female voice.

"Perhaps the Lord wouldn't tell the difference."

The demon man, Satsujin glanced at his young subordinate as she mindlessly played with the hanging tailsman of her hat. He chuckles darkly, amused at how naive his little jiangshi could be.

"My dear, Wuying. That simply won't do. The Lord would surely have my head if I present him a fake." He tells her.

"With my red soil, I could easily create a blue spider lily. I just need to find a human with blood that's perfect to nourish the soil just right." Satsujin licks his lips.

"Unfortunately, the blood in these heads are useless. Disgusting." He growls, before turning to face Wuying, his red eyes glaring and smile maddening.

"If I am successful, our King would have no choice but to make me an Upper Moon, perhaps even his right-hand man." He adds, chuckling.

Wuying blinked owlishly at her so-called master. She still didn't quite understand as to why Satsujin was so obsess with becoming an Upper Moon?

"Why so obsessed with becoming an Upper Moon, Master Satsujin?" She asked, tilting her head to the side.

"Because, the other Upper Moons are all idiots! I feel like I'm the only one putting effort into searching for the blue spider lily for our King, while everyone else is just prancing around, twiddling their fingers and toes like humble jesters. Also I'm tired of being at the bottom of the rank." He says the last part in a fake sadden tone.

"Aw, poor master Satsujin." Wuying says nonchalantly, before embracing him in a comforting hug from behind─wrapping her arms around Satsujin's neck.

"I owe the Lord so much. He'd saved me from a pitiful existence I called a human life. Becoming a demon was a blessing and for that, I am truly grateful! My wondrous King and Lord deserves perfection and I feel I'm the only one who can make it happened. I'm so close.. I just know it!" He mumbles, a hopeful smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

"Close to what?" Came in soft masculine voice.

Both Satsujin and Wuying quickly turned to see a man standing in the doorway.

He wore a blood-red turtleneck and tan-colored hakama pants. A black crown-like hat topped his head as beautiful rainbow eyes glanced at the pair. It was then, Wuying noticed he was dragging a decapitated body in his hand.

"Oh dear, I hope I'm not intruding?" The Upper Moon says, sarcastically. Of course he knew was intruding.

"Lord Douma! What a marvelous surprise! What brings y-you here?" Satsujin kneald to his knees.

"Haha~ oh, I was just in the area and thought I'd stop by." Douma explained, with a catty grin.

"I see you brought me a gift?" Satsujin gestures towards the bloody corpse the Eternal Paradise Cult leader was carrying.

"Ah yes, I heard through the grapevine that you were.. "experimenting" with these and said you were in need of donations, so I figured I contribute." Douma says, tossing the body onto the floor.

Apparently, another one of Douma's hopeless cult members.

"Lord Douma, y-you really shouldn't have. Thank you!" Satsujin bows.

"It was my pleasure. Anywho, I must get back to my worthless followers. A farmer must always keep his cattle in line for the slaughter~ hahaha." Douma says, hiding his sadistic grin behind his fan.

"Also, do be careful..I was told Demon Slayers are in the area. I wouldn't want you losing your head, now would I?" He chuckles.

With that, the Upper Moon took his leave as Wuying looked on, before glancing down at her master who remained kneald to the floor.

She could see him shaking in fear, his red eyes blown wide in horror, his messy black hair soaked with sweat, and a Cheshire smile slowly morphing into a frown.

"What's wrong, master?" She asked.

But the answer was obvious! He was afraid.

"My dear Wuying, L-Lord Douma shouldn't have known of this place. He shouldn't have no knowledge of my e-experiments. Upper Moons usually don't care what we low-rank demons do." Satsujin trembled, before pointing towards the body Douma had brought him.

"That body is no human, but a low-rank demon like me." He says, "My─our King must be displeased, which means, low-rank demons are slowly being disposed of."

Seems time is of the essence and there's not a minute to waste..