Chapter 60: When Slaying Monsters, Aim for the Head

Chapter 60: When Slaying Monsters, Aim for the Head

"Damn bastard..."

Looking at Byakuya hiding behind him, Rui clearly understood the scheming plan of this jerk.

But with Muzan Kibutsuji watching his every move from behind, there was no way Rui could turn his back on Hachiman Hikigaya now.

"!"

Rui opened his mouth and emitted a series of meaningless sound waves, then controlled his spider threads to lash out at the human blocking his path.

"Spirit Flow!"

Seeing the two demons lined up and charging at him, Hachiman Hikigaya thought they had coordinated to use a tactic to disrupt his vision.

He raised his hand and unleashed another Spirit Flow blast toward Rui, hoping to break their formation.

But midway, the Spirit Flow was cut in half by an invisible blade, instantly splitting into two and dissipating into spiritual energy in the air.

"Such sharp threads…"

Hachiman's sharp eyes caught the transparent threads hidden in the falling snow at the very moment his Spirit Flow vanished.

Seeing threads sharp enough to cut through his spell, a look of caution appeared on his face.

Taking advantage of this moment, Rui and Byakuya closed in on him.

Rui swung his arm, sending a spider thread to wrap around Hachiman's neck, intending to sever his head.

Having witnessed the threads' sharpness, Hachiman naturally wouldn't let that happen.

He continuously spun his demon-slaying sword before him, wrapping the spider threads around the blade.

Then he tugged hard backward!

The spider threads—stronger and sharper than ordinary alloys—were cut cleanly by the sword.

"What?!"

As Rui's threads loosened, he immediately realized his once invincible weapon had failed against Hachiman.

But how could that be?

His spider threads could even cut through the Demon Slayer Corps' Nichirin blades!

"The credit's mine!"

While Rui was still stunned, Byakuya suddenly leapt into the air and lunged at Hachiman.

It turned out Byakuya had misunderstood the situation, thinking Hachiman was locked in battle with Rui after seeing his sword tangled in threads.

So he wanted to ambush and steal the glory.

"Is this guy an idiot?"

Seeing Byakuya jump at him from mid-air, Hachiman was dumbfounded.

But of course, he wouldn't miss such a prime target.

His arm trembled, and all the spider threads fell off his sword onto the ground.

Then, taking a deep breath, he calculated Byakuya's landing time and assumed an attacking stance.

"No good!"

Byakuya instantly realized his misjudgment when Hachiman wasn't fighting Rui as he had thought.

But already mid-fall, there was no way to retreat.

With no choice, Byakuya braced himself and charged at Hachiman, silently praying Rui wouldn't abandon him.

"Mother's Rosario!"

The moment Byakuya landed, Hachiman struck.

Imitating Yuuki's move, he swung the demon-slaying sword in an eleven-hit combo, dazzling white lights flashing in Byakuya's eyes.

While pushing him back, each strike accurately targeted Byakuya's vital points.

"Big brother! Its weak spot is its neck! You have to cut off its head!"

Seeing Hachiman attacking the demon like a human, Kamado Tanjiro quickly cupped his hands around his mouth to warn him.

"The neck, huh?"

Hachiman's eyes flickered with understanding after hearing Tanjiro.

No wonder the system hadn't announced a kill despite so many hits on Byakuya's core.

He needed to cut its neck to finish it.

"You damn human brat!"

Terrified by Hachiman's sudden combo, Byakuya was already lying in the snow pretending to be dead.

But after hearing Tanjiro, he suddenly opened his eyes, filled with hatred and resentment, rising to pounce on Hachiman for a final fight.

Mid-air, Hachiman swung his sword and cut off Byakuya's head.

"I... won't accept this..."

Byakuya's severed head fell onto the snow, eyes wide as he stared at his dying body spreading black aura, filled with unwillingness.

He was a Lower Rank demon—how could he die so easily?!

"Congratulations, Host, you have successfully eliminated one Special Grade evil spirit, earning 1000 spirit coins!"

Finally, the system notification appeared.

Watching Byakuya's body fade away, Hachiman resolved internally to always aim for the head in the future.

His gaze then shifted to Rui, who stood there confused and lost.

"You just killed it like that?!"

Rui was momentarily shocked that Hachiman had so easily killed someone ranked higher than himself.

"Or else?"

With a flick of his sword, Hachiman bent low and charged at Rui.

Until the battle was over, he had no time for idle chat or showing off!

"There's no way I'd be taken down by you so easily!"

Seeing Hachiman rushing toward him, Rui wore a panicked yet furious expression.

But Hachiman didn't care about Rui's feelings.

After all, only evil spirits that turned into spirit coins were good evil spirits — a rule that applied to demons as well.

He reached Rui and decisively swung his sword at the neck.

"Pshhh!"

But what fell to the ground wasn't Rui's head—it was a thick arm.

"Multiple evil spirits detected nearby, please be cautious, Host!"

Hachiman retreated to Tanjuro's family, watching warily as a spider-headed demon with a humanoid body appeared.

This demon had sacrificed an arm to block Hachiman's last strike, and several other spirits gathered around it.

"Take him down!"

Rui breathed a small sigh of relief seeing his "family" gathered.

He had summoned these demons to help when Byakuya had used him as a shield earlier.

He planned to team up with them and Byakuya to corner Hachiman, but Byakuya died too quickly.

No matter — with his "family's" help, no matter how strong Hachiman was, he couldn't protect Tanjiro's family!

At Rui's command, the newly arrived demons turned into black shadows and lunged at Hachiman.

Rui secretly followed, aiming straight for the boy who had just told Hachiman about their weakness—the neck.

"Watch out!"

Seeing the demons charge the group, Hachiman immediately met them head-on.

After dispatching a few filler demons as easily as chopping vegetables, soon only the spider-headed demon who'd blocked his strike remained, along with a seemingly fragile but high-level demon hiding behind it.

Something was off!

Hachiman glanced at Rui's previous position and immediately noticed Rui had vanished.

"System, scan the surroundings!"

Without hesitation, while turning to rush to Tanjiro's side, Hachiman ordered the system to scan.

Instantly, Rui's figure appeared in the falling snow, silently approaching Tanjiro.

"Mother's Rosario!"

The moment he spotted Rui, Hachiman activated his skill again, becoming a blur as he charged toward him.