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"I've retrieved the Blue Spider Lily." The Marauder states as he presents the plant to Muzan much to the demon king's amazement as Muzan's eyebrows raise in shock. Muzan didn't believe that the Marauder would be capable of retrieving something that he was incapable of finding for centuries. Regardless, what matters now is that the Marauder has found it and it's his for the taking.
Tanjiro felt the Marauder let go of him in that moment. As the boy was released from the Night Sentinel's grasp, he turned towards the demon and realized that Xernex was giving Muzan exactly what he wanted. This made him plead with the demonic Night Sentinel, "Don't give it to him, Xernex!" Muzan smirked at the sight of Tanjiro in front of him, not only did the Marauder retrieve the Blue Spider Lily but he also managed to snag the boy with hanafuda earrings. The last warrior he saw wearing those earrings nearly killed him, that's why he wasn't going to take any chances with this boy as well who wore the same exact earrings. Muzan praised:
"I commend your work, Marauder. You really are efficient, not only did you manage to bring back the Blue Spider Lily but you also brought back the boy I've been hunting down as well."
Upper Moon Two, Doma, sized the boy up before turning to Akaza while still pointing at Tanjiro, "Say, Akaza, do you know this child?"
Upper Moon Three, Akaza, crossed his arms out of distaste as he answered, "Yes, he was the one accompanying the Hashira I nearly killed."
"Oooooh! A Hashira, you say? I encountered one recently as well! She was quite pretty, let me tell you. Apparently, she was the sister of another Hashira I killed a while back so she came storming in, declaring that she was going to kill me! It was a lot of fun but too bad it was short-lived. She didn't taste as good as her older sister, though. She was really bitter compared to her sibling. Do you think it's because of all that anger she held?"
Akaza shook his head in disappointment as he turned towards his peer and complained, "As always, you lack standards."
"You're the one depriving yourself, Akaza! Maybe if you started eating women as well, you'd actually get stronger!"
Tanjiro understood immediately who Doma was referring to as he whipped his head towards the demon and shouted, "So you…! You're the one that killed Lady Shinobu!"
Doma returned a cheerful smile towards Tanjiro as he said, "So Shinobu was her name? How pretty!" Tanjiro grinded his teeth together out of frustration as he looked at all the demons in front of him. He hated them all for different reasons. Muzan took his family from him, Akaza nearly killed Rengoku and Inosuke, and Doma has taken Kanao's only family away from her. He may have learned to accept demons and forgive them but he has no plans on forgiving ANY of the individuals in front of him. His veins pressed against his skin due to the fury building up in his body, he readied his body to lunge at the demons as he yelled:
"YOU'RE THE ONE RESPONSIBLE FOR MAKING KANAO GRIEVE! YOU'RE THE ONE THAT TOOK HER SISTER AWAY!"
Doma seemed intrigued as he questioned, "Kanao? Oh! Is she Shinobu's younger sister? How ironic! The cycle continues, then. I wonder how she'll end up tasting." That was the straw that broke the camel's back for Tanjiro as the boy attempted to lunge towards Doma in a blind fury but the Marauder gripped Tanjiro's shoulder to hold him in-place, preventing him from attacking. The boy stopped moving once he felt the Marauder hold him back gently. Tanjiro looked back in surprise at the Marauder who made eye-contact with him. Xernex wasn't death-gripping Tanjiro to hold him in-place, he was being gentle and only applying enough force to keep the boy in place. Xernex stopped him from attacking the demons in front of him just now… Was he trying to protect Tanjiro?
The Marauder spoke, forcing a threatening tone, "You aren't going anywhere." before pulling the boy back next to him and thoughtlessly tossed the Blue Spider lily towards Muzan who caught it with excitement flowing through his body. Muzan said underneath his breath while raising the Blue Spider Lily:
"With this, I will become perfect…!" Muzan brought the plant close to his body as it morphed to absorb the plant into his essence. The demon king's body began to convulse widely as his skin pulsated. His pupils remained red but the color of his skin began to shift back into a normal color. A bead of sweat formed on Tanjiro's forehead, he quickly looked towards the Cultist Marauder to see his reaction. The demon's expression didn't change as he blankly stared at Muzan's transformation and watched as the demon began to chuckle to himself.
Tanjiro didn't understand why the Marauder was so calm about this, Muzan will be invincible if Nichirin Blades won't work on him now! The demon king's chuckles began to evolve into insane laughter as he couldn't contain his overwhelming excitement and pleasure any longer and stated, "How foolish of you to allow me to reach perfection like this! No one can stop me now!" Muzan extended his arm which transformed into a humongous, spiked tentacle that zoomed towards Tanjiro. The boy could barely see the attack coming and he had no time to dodge. The Marauder's lightning-fast reflexes allowed him to activate his argent axe and sever the tentacle before it hit Tanjiro. The boy couldn't remotely process the night sentinel's speed, it was ridiculously fast. He only saw a blur of bright red pass in front of him that saved him from danger.
The demon king retracted his arm and attempted to regenerate but was unable to, just like the last time he was wounded by the Marauder's argent axe. The Cultist Marauder explained, "Immunity to the sun doesn't grant immunity to Argent. You would be wise to remember that." Tanjiro was amazed by the Marauder's strength and speed. However, his eyes were now glued to the Argent Axe that saved him and took note of the fact that Argent Energy is still able to stop Muzan. There is hope after all!
Muzan removed his arm so he could regenerate a new one. After doing so and regenerating his new limb, he flexed his arm around to get adjusted to it as he responded, "Is there something I should know about you and that boy? Why do you insist on keeping him alive?"
"This boy must live in order to lure out the Doom Slayer. Killing him would be ill-advised, lest you wish to incur the wrath of the Doom Slayer." Muzan didn't buy the Marauder's explanation and gave the demonic night sentinel a skeptical look. There was a brief silence before the Marauder continued, "Now that you've reached 'perfection', the Dark Lord will replicate your regenerative abilities for the rest of Hell's armies."
Muzan assumed a fighting stance as he complained, "I refuse! My power is mine and mine alone! I will not allow my perfection to be shared amongst others!" The demon king was silenced once several portals opened next to him and through those portals emerged the Marauder's night Sentinel squad.
The Avenger (Sentinel name: Tux), emerged through the portal with this Argent Rapier ignited and ready to go. Through another portal, the Crusader (Sentinel name: Vilsiff) revealed herself as a very muscular yet tiny night sentinel, wearing a modified version of the Sentinel training armor that was made to be wide enough to fit her body but small at the same time. She carried an enormous boardsword, composed of Immoran metal, that was much larger than she was, that rested on one shoulder.
The Reaver (Sentinel name: Orkos), was a demonic night sentinel of average height, donning crimson-red Immoran armor with a special visor jutting out in front of his helmet. He had several ammo belts slung around various parts of his body, all carrying numerous slug rounds for the Immoran Shotgun he carried with him, equipped with a large, extended barrel meant for snipers.
The Raider (Sentinel name: Ragnar) wore his night sentinel armor underneath his bulky, Immoran armor meant to provide protection from the elements. The armor made the Raider's physique look larger than it actually is. He carried with him a strangely-shaped chaingun that looked as though multiple sniper-rifles were attached to it. He had a twin pair of horns curling upwards from his jaw similar to a walrus.
The Pillager (Sentinel name: Aegaeon) is a slender girl wearing a heavily-decorated yet sharp night sentinel armor. She possessed a pair of wings attached to her back that were covered in Immoran metal. She also had a set of horns that stemmed from the back of her head that curled over the top and protruded forward.
The Marauder threatened, "That was not a request, those are your orders. Either follow them or be executed." The demonic night sentinel squad all pointed their weapons towards Muzan and his demons, they were fully prepared for a fight if it was necessary. Muzan and his Upper Moons assumed fighting stances as the demon king assessed the situation. It was a safe bet to assume that all of their weapons were capable of using Argent just like the Marauder. If they engaged now, who knows how fast he would get disintegrated if they all attacked him at once. He has to reserve himself if he wants to keep himself alive. The time will come when he has a chance to counterattack but for now, he will go along with what the Marauder says (even if it comes at the cost of his demonic pride).
Muzan dropped his guard as he told the Marauder with hatred in his voice, "Fine, I'll do as the Dark Lord wishes." He orders his underlings to stand down and to do as the Marauder says.
"Step through the portal, the Dark Lord will deal with you once you arrive." Muzan and his Upper Moons begrudgingly stepped through the portal. As Akaza and Doma stepped through, Kokushibo stopped to look at Tanjiro who had been silent as he had no idea how to process or respond to anything that was happening.
The Upper Moon said to Tanjiro, "You remind me of my brother."
Tanjiro was surprised that he was acknowledged by Kokushibo and responded, "Yorichii told me about you. How could you turn into a demon?! Do you know how distraught he was once he heard the news?!"
"I couldn't give a damn if he cried or not about my boost of power. He's already dishonored me multiple times as it is. He even had the audacity to die of old age during our most glorious moment together: the showdown I had been waiting decades for, the chance to prove my superiority over him once and for all but he never gave me that chance. However, it seems that he's left a bit of his legacy behind." Kokushibo couldn't help but smirk after saying the last sentence and decided to step through the portal behind his comrades.
Once all of Muzan's demons were removed from the scene, the portals closed, leaving Tanjiro with Xernex and his night sentinels. Tux looked towards Tanjiro and mockingly leaned in towards him as he pointed out, "Is this the brat that the Slayer went berserk over?"
The Marauder simply nodded and released Tanjiro as he was still holding the boy back from Muzan but released him once the demon king was gone. Tanjiro couldn't understand Xernex's motivation or what his goals were as he pointed out, "Even though I'm your hostage, you seem very relaxed about me being unbinded. Most people would just use a rope to make sure I can't get away."
Tux was baffled by the boy's logic and mockingly teased, "That can be arranged."
Xernex explained to Tanjiro, "You couldn't escape me if you tried." As true as that statement was, Xernex couldn't bring himself to harm a child in any way, shape, or form. It was a code he was unwilling to break. He winces at the thought of how many children he was forced to kill under the control of the Khan Maykr. She distorted him, turned him into a loyal puppet while making him forget about who he was.
Tanjiro decided to sit on the floor, he felt relaxed enough around Xernex to drop his guard significantly. He looked at the Marauder's mechanical body and was intrigued by how alike him and Xernex were. Both of their bodies were mostly machine now except for their heads and right arms. It was almost like looking into a mirror for Tanjiro, it was surreal seeing someone he admired be in the same condition as him. The other sentinels were surprised to see the boy relaxed as much as he is and were more surprised by what the boy said next, "I suppose you're right. Either way, you're not going to do anything to me so I have nothing to worry about."
The Avenger shouted at Tanjiro for his insolence as he prepared to grab the boy, "YOU BRAT! YOU BETTER SHOW THE BOSS SOME DAMN RESPECT!" However, he was stopped by the Marauder squeezing his wrist. The Avenger looked into the Marauder's eyes and felt his body get covered in goosebumps upon seeing the furious glare he received from his superior. Tux backed off and shook his hand in an attempt to get rid of the pain.
The Marauder looked down towards Tanjiro and asked, "How much has he told you about me?"
Tanjiro didn't feel the need to lie as he answered, "He told me everything about his time with you and the Night Sentinels. However, he didn't really want to go in full-detail about what happened during the civil war. He only told me bits and pieces of it."
Xernex burst out laughing after hearing that explanation much to Tanjiro's surprise. The boy cocked his head in confusion and watched as the demon settled down and told the boy, "Of Course he didn't tell you about what happened. He doesn't want to tarnish your image of him."
"What do you mean by that?"
"He didn't tell you about what he did to us Night Sentinels during the civil war, did he? He broke us, he disgraced us on the battlefield. However, I suffered my worst humiliation at his hands during the last moments of the civil war. A moment that is ingrained in my mind."
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Reminded by Drowning Pool
"Haha! We finally found you, bastard!" Tux exclaimed to the Doom Slayer. Surrounding him was the rest of his Night Sentinel brethren minus Xernex. They stood on top of the debris caused by the Night Sentinel's intense battle at Exultia. Tux, Vilsiff, Orkos, Ragnar, and Aegaeon all drew their weapons as well as the other Night Sentinels that accompanied them. "We're going to make you pay for all the Sentinel blood you spilled because of your betrayal!"
Elsewhere, much further away, Xernex ran across the desecrated streets of Exultia as he received a transmission from one of his squadmates. He answered the call and awaited the report, it was Orkos who responded as he briefly explained, "We've engaged the Doom Slayer." Xernex stopped and barked at his squadmate:
"No! Do NOT engage! Wait until I get there!" By then, he was already hearing the screams of his comrades on the other side. He was wide-eyed with panic and shock, his heart was racing at a million beats per second as he was worried about the safety of his comrades. He heard several guns point towards him, compelling him to look around as he noticed he had been ambushed by a group of rebellious Night Sentinels. He didn't have time for this, he had to get to his squad, NOW! Xernex screamed at the top of his lungs, "GET OUT OF MY WAY!" as the enraged Night Sentinel stomped towards his former comrades and began cutting them down with his Argent Axe. He shed tears as he killed them, they used to be unified under a single banner yet it was because of the Doom Slayer that they are divided.
He killed his brethren one by one without mercy. He had no time to waste as he urgently rushed towards the location of his comrades. The longer he took, the more frightened he became as he received no feedback on their current condition. The adrenaline flowing through Xernex's body allowed him to perform feats he would normally be incapable of doing. He fought through the damage he took, his physical injuries were miniscule compared to the pain in his heart.
He fought for minutes on end, rushing through the combat until he approached the area where his comrades engaged the Slayer. He began slowing down and looking around as he noticed the blood covering the streets and the mangled corpses of his Night Sentinel brothers and sisters crushed underneath the debris. Xernex began repeatedly cursing "no…" underneath his breath as he began picking up his pace once more to see if he could identify any of his comrades. He stopped once he saw the desecrated corpse of Tux laying on the pavement of Exultia. The poor man didn't stand a chance, the Night Sentinel's brain was blasted out with a single strike to the face, leaving only the lower half of his face below his nose. He looked around and it didn't take him long to identify the corpses of his other comrades nearby. Tux, Vilsiff, Orkos, Ragnar, Aegaeon… they were all dead! He was too late to save them… Xernex felt the tears well up in his eyes. As soon as he began shedding them, he heard the screams of nearby Night Sentinels which drew his attention. The Slayer… he was still here! The Night Sentinel was going to avenge his fallen brothers and sister once and for all by eliminating the Doom Slayer!
He made it towards the scene of the crime before the Doom Slayer left. There, he could see the warrior crush the skull of a Night Sentinel with his bare hands. The man's armor was coated in the blood of his brothers he used to fight alongside. Does the man not feel anything?! Does he feel no sympathy or shred of care for the people he used to consider family?! Perhaps they were never family to begin with, perhaps the Doom Slayer was using them for his own selfish gain. No more! The Night Sentinel's suffering ends today! Xernex screamed at the Slayer so his voice could be heard, "SLAYER! COME AND FACE ME!" Xernex charged towards the warrior with his argent axe drawn.
The man shouted as he charged towards the Doom Slayer and swung his axe in an attempt to kill the warrior. Unfortunately, his rage made him poorly miscalculate the Slayer's strength and speed as Xernex was quickly disarmed and delivered a swift strike to the rib cage. He felt all the bones in his chest shatter and he was blasted into the debris behind him. He profusely coughed out the blood swelling up in his body, he could barely breathe. No! He couldn't fall here, not while the Slayer was right there! He pushed himself up and managed to fight through the pain of his broken rib cage before charging towards the warrior once more. Xernex was blasted back by a simple backhand from the warrior which knocked out a majority of the teeth in the Night Sentinel's mouth.
He couldn't bear the pain he was experiencing, his mind was going into an overload from processing all the pain he was experiencing. However, the Doom Slayer was not done with him yet as the large man towered above Xernex, crouching down in front of the Night Sentinel and balled up his fists angrily. Xernex heard the man growl intensely through his helmet. The warrior drew his fist back and snapped it forward to strike the Night Sentinel across the head. The Slayer threw another one, and another, and another as he kept smashing his fist in the Night Sentinel's head.
Xernex felt entire chunks of his skin rip off with each punch as his head split open. He could feel his skull flatten with each punch as his brain rattled back and forth through his mind. Soon, the top of his skill shattered as the excess blood leaked out from the open end of Xernex's forehead. The man was barely alive and breathing, his eyes had been blown to smithereens by the Slayer's might and his nose had already flattened into a tiny mess of bone and tissue. The man's face was no longer identifiable as a face yet he was still miraculously breathing, clinging onto the life he cherished. All it took was one more strike and Xernex would be finished. However, the Slayer stopped. He could hear the warrior's fist clench tightly as if preparing to deal the final blow but the man gave up.
The Doom Slayer raised his voice angrily as he began shouting at the Night Sentinel, it was the first time Xernex had heard the man's voice in years, "Why are you doing this?! Your loyalties are to Argent D'nur, not to the Khan Maykr! Why would you WILLINGLY serve her knowing that she's using you?!" Xernex couldn't respond, he couldn't muster the strength due to how damaged his body was. He could hear the warrior stand up before taking his leave a few seconds later.
However, Xernex managed to speak despite how injured he was as he uttered to the Doom Slayer, "I… thought you were one of us…! You… were supposed to be an IDOL… to bring hope to the people of Argent D'nur… but I suppose I was blind to the truth… you've helped me see that…"
The Doom Slayer had nothing to say in response to his friend's accusation and continued walking away, leaving the Night Sentinel, his friend, to bleed out and die.
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"The Khan Maykr later resurrected me and my comrades into the demons we are now. She filtered our memories to make us more loyal to her as opposed to Argent D'nur." The Marauder concluded, having taken a seat in front of Tanjiro as he explained his story. Tanjiro was unable to fathom what he was hearing, he didn't know what to make of it all. Tanjiro couldn't help but say his thoughts out loud as a result:
"I can't believe he really left you to die like that… you were his friend!"
"I acknowledge that I was misguided when following the Khan Maykr. He was right, she was using us for her own personal gain. However, I would like to think that if the Doom Slayer had never ventured into our world, none of this would've ever happened. The Khan Maykr would've never discovered the demons and our people could remain unified as one. The demons only showed up as soon as the Slayer did, the timing was too perfect."
Tanjiro put his hand on his head due to a headache that was forming. He shook his head in denial as he tried to reason with Xernex, "B-but what about your loyalty towards Argent D'nur?! They explained exactly what she was doing at the time, it surely didn't take that long for you to realize what she was doing!"
"My loyalties are towards my people. If the people of Argent D'nur are in full support of the Khan Maykr and her actions, then I have no choice but to go along with it. The people's will is my own. I know what I was doing was wrong, I was essentially helping the Khan Maykr enslave my people. However, to me, if I had joined the Slayer and his rebellion, it would feel like I was abandoning everything I fought for. I couldn't do it, I couldn't bring myself to abandon my people simply because myself and a few others had issues with how the Khan Maykr treated us."
"So now you work for the DARK LORD and continue spreading the chaos you so despise?!"
Xernex was silent after the last response, the other Night Sentinels wanted to lash out at Tanjiro so badly for his blatant disrespect of their superior but they knew Xernex would be upset with them if they stepped out of line. The Marauder exhaled as he answered, "I don't have anything left. Argent D'nur has fallen, no amount of reformation can restore it to its former glory. I have nothing to prove, nothing left to defend except for the one who took it all away from me: the Doom Slayer. My people may have fallen, but I can still avenge them by taking him out. He has betrayed the friendship we once shared. All the years I spent with him was nothing more than a lie. Even knowing that he was right in the end, I still can't forgive him."
Tanjiro felt a heavy weight pull at his heart, he won't be able to change Xernex's mind at this rate. The demonic night sentinel was resolute on continuing this path. Tanjiro began to reflect on the story that Mister Flint told him. That's when Tanjiro remembered something crucial and told the demonic night sentinel, "You know, despite everything you two went through… Mister Flint still considers you his friend. You were the only one he had an admiration for back then which is why he opened up to you at the time. I'm sure if you two had a chance to talk everything over, I think you can sort everything out."
Xernex lost his patience with this conversation the moment he heard Tanjiro's idea slip his mouth. The demon stood up and said in an aggravated tone, "You think it's that simple?! Do you know how many times he's killed me already?! This isn't some middle-school argument between two friends, kid! I don't think you quite grasp how angry either of us are! There's no turning back, the Xernex he knew is gone! Every fiber in my body wants to rip him apart! The same can be said for my squad, we've all felt his wrath and it's time for payback!"
Tanjiro was intimidated by the anger of the Marauder, it reminded him of Mister Flint. However, Tanjiro didn't quite believe the demon as he responded one more time, "I don't believe you. The fact that I'm still here is proof that there is still some part of you that can be reasoned with. You're just too stubborn to admit it." Xernex didn't feel like repeating himself so he decided to drop the conversation and return to patiently waiting for the hours of the day to pass by so he can finally face the Slayer in combat.
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The Slayer was so close to figuring out how to power the beacon. He could feel he was at the verge of coming to a solution but his train of thought was interrupted once he heard rapid footsteps approaching his room and without knocking, Kanao slammed the doors to his room open. The warrior turned his head to look at her and was surprised to see she was coated in sweat. He could tell she was filled to the brim with fear and adrenaline. The girl composed herself as she stood up and explained, "Mister Flint! Some demon, I think his name was Xernex? Took Tanjiro and the Blue Spider Lily and said that if you don't meet him at the wreckage of the Super Doom Hunter in 24 hours, we'll never see Tanjiro again!" The Slayer stood up from his seat so fast that his chair was blown back. So, Xernex has finally made his move. He's using Tanjiro as bait to lure him out, that's low. If that man so much as lays a hand on Tanjiro, the warrior was going to lose it. The Slayer quickly grabbed his makeshift Super Shotgun before speeding out of the room, being careful not to ram into Kanao along the way. He raced out of the Butterfly Mansion as fast as possible. If it's a fight that the Marauder wants, it's a fight he's going to get!