Chapter 3: Reaping 

Wisteria flowers

They are the natural deterrent when it comes to flesh-hungry demons who wants to kill your child and murder your warm little family in the dead of the night. Basically, they are like soaps that kill 99.99% of the bacteria in your hands

Except there's that 0.01% that is guaranteed to either escape, evolve, or is completely overlooked in the search. If that is the case, you and your family is fucked

And I just found out the wisteria around the house has mysteriously vanished just recently. 

It was just a few patches of flowers at first, and therefore i thought it was one of those village boys who often came across this place. But over the past few days 

"Kekeke, a child for dinner is always the best!"

Sakonji always told me not to go out at night in fear of demons seeing me. And now I've done just that

I kept calm as the surrounding around me shifted to reveal a hunched back man with ominous red eyes glowing in the shadow. The sound of my breathing remained even, my heartbeat steadied, but my body's already tensing up in preparation for battle

"What's wrong, little one? Scared of little old me!?"

The trees swayed again. Amidst the howling wind his voice resounded clearly, yet I can't determine his location. The demon's moving around to scare me, which makes it hard to pin him down

Demons, as depicted in the manga, are physically superior to human. Stronger, faster, more agile, and possess superhuman regeneration which makes them extremely hard to kill if you don't know the proper method

My eyes glanced toward the axe hanging loosely on the nearby shack, then back at home where the kitchen knife was situated, pondering on what weapons to use

[Killing Intent] is not a combat-applicable skill. It can increase stagger duration and cause some mental freak-out from people of lesser mind, but at low level the thing is essentially useless

I dashed toward the shack. The demon's footstep sounded close behind me, swiftly piercing through my chest just moments before I reach the door

With a sickening squish, my heart was crushed between its palm

"Kekekeke. Had you been a little faster you would have escaped~"

"Who said I was trying to escape?"

The look on his face as the demon turned back to see me being okay, then back at the non-existent bloodstain on the wall, then back at me showed this is the first time he has to deal with immotal human. 

I dedpanned as realization settled on his face and the demon's eyes widened

"...How?"

I only shrugged. With a growl his hand snapped toward my head and crushed my skull in one clean punch

"Must have been an illusion of sort" He wondered "Dead people tends not to be alive. And I've killed this kid, which makes him not alive. As a result, he is a dead kid. Therefore, logically concluding, he should not be living...."

Yes. People die when they are killed

But who said they cannot be alive after they are dead? The dead who is alive, or the living who are dead?

A tenth of a second ticked by before the resurrection finally kicked in. I walked behind his exposed back unnoticed. With the demon distracted, I finally have time to sneak away and get to my weapon

This time I raised my axe and split the his head in two.

Blood sprayed in the air. Before he could recover I smashed my fist into his chest. His heart exploded to the other side of his ribcage from the force which staggered him.

"Kekekeke. Nice trick" He turned around, blood dripping out from the corner of his lip "Did you really think that would work?"

No, I don't. I'm just doing some damage testing on you

As expected, only Nichirin steel would work on these creatures. Since that is the case I figured that would have made normal armament useless in killing them. However, to an extent I was able to deduct demons can, in fact, suffer from injuries when the correct force is applied

All I need is the right amount of force, the right amount of timing, spatial positioning, momentum, acceleration ..and the right angle of attack 

I shifted my foot, weaving through his outstretched hand as he tried to get me. 

My foot shot up at the same time, impacting against the demon's ballsack with a resounding crunch

There was a long, pregnant pause of utter disbelief, before the front yard was filled with a high pitched shriek that proves even when one had stopped become human, certain aspects of their body still remain the same

But now I've known what the demon's weak spot is. It's their dick

Wounds made on lethal spots are nullified, thus I was forced to use another factor against them: Pain. Pain hinders proper concentration and caused your opponent to lose their composure. Pain makes you lose control of the situation than actual damage, and pain deals stagger

And if staggered, [Killing Intent]'s condition will be fulfilled

My foot smashed down agains the bridge of his nose. The demon yelled out something incomprehensible, compose of gibberish and the sound pigs would make when they are getting sodomized

As long as I can keep the guy occupied with the pain, I'll have an advantage over him. Physical superiority means nothing when you're crawling around with your jewels broken on the ground

Seeing that it's not entirely decimated, I raised my foot and hit his right testicle with a powerful stomp, earning another pained squeak from him. He doubled over, only to be knocked up by a well-timed hook from me

Using my other leg I kicked him in the balls again. The demon screamed in anguish as the sound of his left testicle being crushed could be heard by his  rapidly paling comrade

He staggered backward and fall on his back. As I approach him he started backing away like a horror movie victim. 

"No. No please stop OH GOD NO-"

I pulled the axe out of his head and slammed it against his crotch in a tight grip, perfectly splitting the his genital from the base to the tip. The demon's eyes rolled to the back of his skulls in pain while foam gathered at his mouth, he looks like he's having some difficulty thinking

Though it looks overly brutal at first glance, this is necessary to crush his spirit, thus ensuring he won't immediately think of fighting back against me

"Alright. Play time's over. Let's get serious"

I pulled on the sobbing demon's hair and dragged it toward the edge of the forest where the other demon in hiding had been silent ever since. All the while, I'm trying to ignore the incoherent noise coming from underneath me

"I will fucking kill you. You hear me? I will rip you from limb to limb, string your corpse up and left it there to be devoured by the bird!"

With a sigh, I kicked him in the balls once more, making the sobering demon lost his consciousness

A metal chain wrapped in my hand, I tied up the creature to the base of of a desolate tree just underneath the night sky,

I turned toward the forest once more

The second demon, unknown to (Y/n) was ready to pounce on him. But at that exact moment he turned back, making them froze in their position

He can sense me. It realized with horror. He knows where I am

"In another four hours your friend right here will be turned to ash by the sunlight. Come out, have a talk, and he will be spared".

I activated [Killing Intent] to make the one in hiding obey. But after a while there was still no response from the forest

I should have known that wouldn't work. Honestly, what kind of flesh-feasting demon would be scared of a child?

Shaking my head, i propped myself up on a nearby rock

Unknown to (Y/n), his killing intent did work. Only that it affects his target just a tad bit more than he thought

A sense of vulnerability enveloped the demon. They started shaking at that look in the child's eyes. It was the gaze of a predator ready to devour their prey at a moment's notice. Cold. Focused. And utterly void of emotion

'I must tell of this to the high lord Michael Jackson"

Silence again. The rustling sound of the demon retreating back into the darkness echoed around us - something that does not escape the child's attention 

Judging by the rapid pacing of their footstep, they must have made the wise choice and fled from this place

Though it was cowardly and somewhat of a dick move for abandoning your bro, you can't deny making a retreat have more of an appeal in this situation

But the truth is far worse

The demon is experiencing an emotion they hadn't felt for a long time. Fear.

The primal instinct of fight or flight take dominance in their savage mind as they fled. For even if they are a demon, the human before them had displayed a brutality only befit of the cruelest of monsters. And perhaps that's what he is

Because that thing definitely isn't human

I looked at the demon's retreating figure, before turning back to the first guy who's now awake and eyeing me with something akin to terror in his eyes

"You don't have very good friends, do you?" I patted his shoulder "I can understand that. Not many people like us loners much. So what's your name, demon?"

"W-what?"

"What's your name? I'm speaking Japanese here. Isn't that kind of your language?" I flicked his forehead "You're going to die a painful death anyway. Why not have some conversation with a normal human being instead of eating them for once?"

He growled at me. Unperturbed by the uncooperative attitude, I shrugged and hop on a large boulder just opposite from the tree he's tied up on, intending to watch him burn at sunrise

We sat in relative peace and quiet once more. 

It was only after the first three hours that he started opening up

"...Tachibero Muika...that's my name"

"...."

"...zzzzzzzzzz"

"Are you even listening!? Fucker!"

His cursing and thrashing successfully woke me up from my sitting spot. I can't help it! The rock's too comfortable and I'm kind of a sleepyhea-

"Huh? Oh! Deeply sorry for that, Muika-san. My name's (Y/n) (L/n). It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance" I rubbed my eyes in sleepiness "Had we both been human, our first meeting could have certainly went a lot better than last night!"

For one, he wouldn't try to make me his dinner

For two, I wouldn't have to humiliate him like that

"Are your balls alright though?"

"They're mostly healed" He grunted "The pain went away quickly. Thanks for having the decency to ask, human"

"You're welcome, but I had thought you wouldn't even talk to me" I crossed my leg "Now, what spur this conversation on?"

"Nothing. It's just that sitting near you for the last few hours makes me start to remember back when I was human" Muika shook his head "It's strange. The memories are blurry before, but now they appear clearer than ever. I could finally remember everything. My family...my childhood...my beloved..."

He looked down on the ground, remorse in his eyes.

"...And the victims I killed"

I blinked in surprise

The demon had waned away, revealing the human remnant underneath. For after the ravenous hunger is the empty feeling of tragic loss. Ironic really. I would have chuckle had the man in front of me wasn't in such a somber mood

"Don't be sad. If anything be happy that you won't get to murder people unwillingly anymore" I offered a comforting smile and a shrug "Being burned to death by the sunlight is less painful than having your humanity disappear in my opinion"

"Perhaps you're right" Tears welled at the edge of the demon's eyes as he started sobbing "I just want to go meet my loved ones in the afterlife. But after what I've done, I supposed it should be fair that I burn in the fire of hell as atonement"

Another round of uncontrollable sobbing ensued. I don't know what to say to him

How could I, after knowing what I'm about to do?

"M-may you have your rest in Hell? "

As the sun finally peaked beyond the horizon, the smell of ash and burnt meat permeated my nose. Muika was gone, in his place now nothing more than dust and the chain that tied him up just moments before

But that's not the only thing that remained.

My eyes were drawn to a floating orb of light lingering just above his corpse. Normal people can't see it, but [Spirit Sight] enables me to see things that are supernatural in nature. Namely, the presence of souls from recently deceased people

Soul: Tachibero Muika

Status: Cleansed

[Reap]

[Consume]

[Free]

"I'm sorry. But you won't be meeting your family anytime soon"

Reaching out a hand, I gently grasp the orb in my palm. My fingers curled around it as vision of Tachibero's memory surfaced through my mind. From his childhood, to adolescent, to adulthood

The memory where he lost his families. The memory where he was attacked by a lone demon. The memory of him drinking the blood of that demon. I witnessed as this individual turned from a hapless man to this vicious demon from last night

I witnessed everything. His pain. His fear. His joy. The man's life flashed before my eyes like a film in slow motion while I could only watch as a distant spectator in the front row. Slowly it came to a stop as I rolled to the moment of his death

Releasing a sigh, I crushed his soul with a decisive tightening of my palm, making it shatter into a million pieces that evaporated into the air

Soon enough, the game window popped up again to signify my first step toward mastering the power of death

You have chose to [Reap] the demon's soul

The path of mortality welcomes you...

Infamy +5

[Reaping Scythe] (E) had been learnt

- The symbol of the last Shinigami. This scythe represents the fragile balance between life and death. Though its power is lacking right now, further harvest of fresh souls might sharpen its edge...

- Allow you to summon a scythe that instantly reap enemy's souls if their HP fall below 10%

<><><><><><><><>

I walked back home with the chain and axe in my hand. After a night of encountering fearful demons, I haven't got a speck of sleep. As such my body felt heavier...more sluggish than normal

I guess I'll crash a good nap when I get home

In my fatigued state I did not recognize the noise coming from the house. As I approached the sound of Sakonji and some children talking could be heard. I rounded the corner, only to froze as I came face to face with the appearance of another two Canon characters in front of me

Makomo and Sabito looked over from the front porch to me. Their childish appearance indicates they're just as young, if not younger than me, which means...

"Sensei, is that also a fellow student of ours?"

"Yes, he is" The old man turned to me "(Y/n), these two are Sabito and Makomo. They're younger than you by a year, so remember to treat them well"

"Got it" I sighed "So you've decided to train me?"

"That's all up to you"

"Then I'm in. I believe I'm ready to take on some training after all these time" I stretched my limb "Also, you might want to check on the Wisteria flowers around our house. I saw some demons outside last night"

"What!?" The old man looked alarmed as he turned to me "What happened last night? Are you okay?!"

"Nothing much. I am not hurt if you're asking" I walked around the shack "Two of them are present, though one only show himself. I managed to drive them off and hold the house until sunrise, but I think I'm going to need some sleep now"

Yawning, I walked past the two children who's looking at me with awestruck expressions and a contemplative Sakonji into the house

The old man looked at the ashes stuck on the chain, to the bloodstained axe, before snorting

"Hold them off my old arse. This kid straight up killed one of them"

The enigma that is (Y/n) once again completely elude him

<><><><><><><><><>

It was evening until I woke up. And oh boy was I surprised to see both children sleeping soundly next to my bed. I rubbed my eyes carefully and open them again, only to see them still there

Yeah. This is apparently not just a dream. I'm truly a part of the plot now, aren't I?

Sighing, I got out of bed and walked toward the kneeling Sakonji. His mask was taken off, revealing the old, wrinkled face underneath. Though he does not seem to be as old as in Canon, the man certainly seems weary. Experience born from years of slaying demons, I presume

Out of curiosity, I used [Spirit Sight] on him to see what happen. In front of my eyes, a new window appeared that told me of his statistic

Sakonji Urokodaki

Natural Lifespan: 49/73

Soul's Value: 120

Let it be said that I'm not surprised this exist. I'm actually surprised it works in the first place.

To start with, the concept of gauging your enemy using this skill is only a draft idea on paper. It wasn't even supposed to be programmed and applied until a month later in my world

This mean...unlike the previous beta I possess, the system I'm playing now is a completed version based off my game, with all concepts and abilities integrated with each other. In other word, this is a finished product

As an average game developer, I feel happy to see what my project could ever hope to be

As a person who got reincarnated in my own game however, I felt downright plagirized

Deciding that such things should be left for a later time, I reached out my hand and tapped him on the shoulder

"Old man"

"Hm? What is it, (Y/n)? Eager to have a headstart on your training?"

"Partly so" I smiled, handing him the piece of paper "Yesterday Jigoro, or the Thunder Hashira is here to meet you. He gave me this piece of paper so I can bring it to you"

He unfurled the wrinkled paper and laid it out on the table. His hunched form covered most of the paper's content, so I can only take a few sneak peeks into it before giving up.

A new hoard of demon spotted? A request for another Hashira meeting? Some secret love exchange between the two old men that is forbidden by their culture?

I mentally slapped myself

'Get your mind out of the fucking gutter. I don't want to imagine that!'

"Interesting" He muttered, standing up "change of plan, (Y/n). Get out the house now and I'll teach you the basic of our Breathing techniques. It's up to you to train the two other when I am gone"

"Wait, what? You're going out on a mission again?" I waved my hand "Old man, need I remind you that you're nearly at that age where people have all kind of diseases and complain regularly about the sorry state of the younger generation? You'll overwork yourself to death at this rate"

"It's demon slaying business. Better me than some unprepared younglings who's still wet behind the ears" The door slid open as he walked into the courtyard "Now, are you going to train or not?"

This is too sudden to be something Urokodaki 'd come up. Chances are he's going to be away for quite some time and want me as well as the children to remain safe in his absence

I mentally sighed

Fuck. Why did I even tell him about the demons in the first place?

Reluctantly, I followed after him