Chapter 7: Planting a Strawberry

As soon as Nezuko was thrown towards him, Haru's keen senses noticed. He leaped into the air, catching Nezuko in his arms, and without hesitation, he bit into her neck, planting a strawberry-shaped scar.

Haru dared not drink too much of Nezuko's blood; if he drained her, he'd end up with the same fate.

With Nezuko's blood helping him, Haru began to recover. The blood-red skin gradually faded away.

Seeing that he was starting to improve, Haru stopped feeding. As soon as he pulled away, he noticed that Nezuko had somehow woken up and was staring at him with a blank expression.

Haru was startled, and he immediately pushed Nezuko away, feeling nervous.

After a while, Haru realized his earlier actions were impolite. He cleared his throat and apologized, "Sorry! It wasn't intentional. I had no choice but to drink your blood. Please don't hold it against me!"

Then he remembered that Nezuko was a demon, so he did something unexpected and bowed to her.

Nezuko just kept staring at him, completely clueless, like a wooden figure.

Not wanting to deal with Nezuko for now, Haru stood up, brushing himself off.

Shivering from the cold, Haru realized how freezing it was in the snow without a shirt, and it was his first time in this situation.

"Hey, kid, hurry up and give me your coat!" Haru called to Tanjiro. The only one he could ask now was Tanjiro, as Giyu seemed to be too serious to bother.

Tanjiro quickly took off his outer coat and ran over to Haru, handing it to him.

"Thanks!" Haru said briefly before putting on the coat.

As Haru put the coat on, Tanjiro glanced over at Nezuko.

"Is my sister alright?" Tanjiro asked Haru.

Haru waved his hand dismissively. "She's fine. I just drank a little of her blood. Don't worry!"

Relieved by Haru's answer, Tanjiro felt at ease.

At that moment, Giyu walked over and asked Haru, "What happened earlier? Why did you need demon blood?"

Haru looked at Giyu, then mirrored his serious posture as he answered, "My body is special. Every time I enter that state, I need demon blood. That's why I'm a demon slayer."

"What happens if you don't get demon blood?" Giyu asked.

Haru smiled faintly before answering, "I would be endlessly tortured by the demon spirit until I die."

Giyu, hearing this, realized that there were indeed such unusual people in this world, ones who survived on demons.

"If you live off demons, then why save one?" Giyu asked, puzzled.

"You saw her condition. It's special. Maybe she can help me escape the demon spirit," Haru said, offering an explanation.

The real meaning behind Haru's words was that as long as he completed the task, he could move on to the next world, because he wasn't very fond of the current one.