Chapter 49: Success and Awakening

The delicate, tender hand was smooth and soft, hard to imagine that such slender, pristine fingers, untouched by mundane chores, could easily shatter a normal person's chest into a pulpy fracture.

Her long, graceful fingers pressed tightly against Shiraki's palm, interlocked, entwined, inseparable.

Souls identical across every dimension fused through bodily contact, thoughts flowing. In an instant, Kiana knew everything that had happened to Shiraki in the Demon Slayer world during his time there.

Jealousy? Out of the question!

Or rather, Kiana was thrilled beyond measure!

After all, they were all Shiraki—one person!

Kochou Shinobu was her sister too. Switching to Kochou Kanae's mindset, Kiana would act exactly the same.

Just as, if Kanae were in her place, Kanae would surely scheme to pair Shiraki with Mei.

Hmm, speaking of which, Kanae's methods for playing wingwoman for 'herself' and her sister—maybe she could try them too!

Rubbing her smooth, glossy chin, Kiana's expression turned pensive.

After a moment, the girl's long, curled eyelashes fluttered, her crystalline lips quirking into a playful, enigmatic smile.

Catching Kiana's look, Shiraki grasped her pale hand, reading her thoughts, then… sighed, palming his forehead.

[Let's take it slow with Mei. I still think something's off with Shinobu—she must've misunderstood something.]

If Shinobu weren't 'Shiraki's' sister, and if Kanae hadn't insisted on force-feeding him that bowl of rice mouth-to-mouth, Shiraki would never have acted toward anyone beyond 'himself.'

With outsiders he couldn't sync minds with, he lacked security.

[Okay, okay! I get it.]

The white-haired girl bounced beside Shiraki, her lips unconsciously curving, radiating indulgence and ease.

She was Shiraki—how could she ever do anything to trouble 'herself'?

Whatever Shiraki wanted, she'd support unconditionally, and vice versa.

Elysia trailed behind them, but the pink fairy lady seemed to have lost her usual vivacity and fiery zeal, instead grappling with doubts about modern world romance.

The black-haired youth and white-haired girl before her were a picture-perfect couple anywhere, their clingy, seamless harmony—thick as glue, fluid as fish—impenetrable to outsiders.

Even watching their sickly-sweet interactions made hearts race and faces flush, urging one to chug lemon juice under a lemon tree!

Yet Elysia's intuition screamed that Kiana's earlier words to her were no joke!

For a fleeting moment, Kiana genuinely wanted her to become Shiraki's girlfriend!

Even the CPU of a social butterfly terrorist couldn't withstand such a bizarre twist, baffled beyond reason, her brain now stalled in overthinking overload.

Was modern love really this wild!?

Ignoring the pink busybody, shell-shocked by Kiana's 'self-cucking' antics, Shiraki and Kiana held hands, minds syncing, her summer-flower smile dazzling.

Anyone witnessing this felt like a stray dog!

Just then, the lab door opened, and a figure in a black coat with a white-scarred mask emerged, holding a sealed tube of red liquid.

"Gray Serpent? Why's it just you? Where's Dr. Mobius?"

"The Master said she's seizing this chance for more experiments. You needn't wait."

Gray Serpent regarded them, his low, synthetic voice rasping from his throat.

"This is the recovery serum you need, made by the Master using trace special blood from that lab rat. As long as over one-fifth of the body remains, it can revive even the dead."

Gray Serpent handed the red vial to Kiana, her face alight with joy, and continued.

"Of course, revival assumes no Honkai energy in the subject's body."

The abrupt caveat turned Kiana's right eye to molten gold, glaring coldly at Gray Serpent.

Sensing the surging Honkai energy in the air via his detection device, Gray Serpent hastily added:

"Rest assured, even if the subject is a Valkyrie, as long as their brain is intact and they haven't fully died, this serum can restore them perfectly, with no side effects."

Kiana and Shiraki exchanged a glance, exhaling in relief, their faces easing.

The demons of the Demon Slayer world were, in some ways, truly perverse creatures!

Reviving the dead wasn't shocking.

Upper Rank Six, the twin demon Daki, revived from ashes after accepting demon blood.

The only variable between this world's humans and Demon Slayer's was Honkai energy.

In bodies with Honkai energy, demon blood's regenerative effects were sharply reduced. For beings like Fu Hua or Theresa, with Honkai beast genes, demon blood couldn't even activate.

Demons were perverse, but they couldn't match civilization's apex fusion warriors.

Thankfully, Teacher Himeko was biologically 'human.'

"Are you sure there are no side effects?" Out of concern for Himeko, Kiana pressed again.

"The Master said so." Gray Serpent bowed slightly. "She also noted that demon cells lack a critical component, so only that special blood can produce a side-effect-free serum."

Shiraki nodded calmly.

The missing blue Spider Lily wasn't an issue—he could get blood from Nezuko or harvest some when the flower bloomed.

The question was, if this serum wasn't as effective for Valkyries as hoped, was it worth continuing with 'demon blood'?

[Forget it, we'll deal with that later. Right now, we need to save Teacher Himeko.] Kiana gripped the vial tightly.

[Mm.]

"Ellie, want to come with us outside?" Kiana turned to the pink fairy princess behind her.

"Me?" Elysia twirled a pink strand by her ear. "I'll pass this time. You're off to save someone, right? Hurry! Later, bring Miss Himeko here to meet us!"

Could sparks fly between a paradise lesbian and an older bachelorette?

"Mm, no problem at all!" Kiana's youthful, radiant voice chimed, her smile beaming.

"See ya next time~!" Shiraki waved goodbye to Elysia as Kiana pulled him through a virtual space gate.

…

Anti-Entropy Headquarters.

"Dr. Einstein! Dr. Einstein! We're back!"

Combining Sirin's and Kiana's powers enabled ultra-long-distance teleportation, and soon Kiana and Shiraki were at Anti-Entropy Headquarters.

"Ah! What?!"

The sudden high-decibel shout jolted the red-haired shrimp-head, dozing on the couch, upright like a corpse revived. Demon cells were fascinating—she'd studied all night without noticing.

"Hurry, come with me to Teacher Himeko—she's saved!"

To avoid mishaps, a scientist should tag along.

Though biology wasn't Tesla's forte, her 'slight knowledge' at eighty-eight years old was, well, legendary.

"You've developed the serum already?"

Eyelashes fluttering, Tesla looked dazed, then spotted the red vial in Kiana's hand.

To produce a clinically viable serum so fast, that Dr. Mobius's biological prowess was terrifying.

Sighing inwardly, Tesla rushed Kiana and Shiraki to the medical wing where Murata Himeko lay.

Injecting the demon-blood serum into Murata Himeko's body, her recovery was visible to the naked eye.

Her scarred, ravaged shell peeled away, revealing skin as tender and fragile as a newborn's, soft enough to break with a puff.

Flesh and bone wove new tissue, replacing organs eroded to particles by the void, a complete rebirth.

A total transformation, making Murata Himeko look years younger—once a mature 30-year-old, now a vibrant 24-year-old big sister.

Her cheeks and lips regained a rosy flush, blooming like cherry blossoms.

"Mother Himeko…" Kiana's radiant smile shimmered with misty tears.

As if hearing the girl's whisper, the sleeping princess amid rose petals slowly opened her eyes.