The woman glared at the group of men in front of her, who all looked stunned by her sudden entrance. "Just who the hell are you?" one of the men finally sputtered out.

"Isn't it obvious from my uniform, you idiot?" the woman snapped. "I'm Akari, a Demon Slayer of the Demon Slayer Corps." She reached up and grasped the hilt of her katana.

"I've been tracking a dangerous demon that appeared in a nearby town which led me here. But instead of a demon, I find you worthless pigs here, conspiring with demons behind the Corps' back." Her glare deepened. 

"You traitors disgust me. I can see the demon inside you." The men started to panic, reaching for their own weapons like knives.

But in a burst of speed, Akari leapt forward and slashed her unsheathed katana in a wide arc, which smashed the faces of the people in a row.  

Akari put back her blade. She looked around to find anything to tie them up and found a rope bundle in the corner of the room.

Taking it, she tied them up, the nods are so tight that they can't even move. "Pathetic." She scoffed, turning to leave. Her work here was done.  

Akari stepped out of the house, breathing in the cool night air. In the distance, she could hear the excited chatter of townspeople mingling with the calls of panicked guards trying to maintain order.

She glanced up at the night sky. The commotion seemed to be centered around the town's main square.  

With a burst of speed, Akari leapt onto the rooftops and began jumping swiftly through the darkness. As she drew closer to the square, she could see the withered sakura trees that confirmed her suspicions - a dangerous demon had been here recently.

Landing softly on a roof overlooking the square, she scanned the chaotic scene below. Townspeople were in panic, gesturing wildly at the dead sakura trees and bombarding the flustered guards with questions. Her sharp gaze moved on, searching for any sign of her target.

There - on the far side of the square, she spotted two figures slowly making their way down a side street. One was a young man with dark, unruly hair, leaning heavily on the other, a petite girl with a familiar butterfly hairpin in her hair.  

Akari's eyes widened in recognition. She had seen that hairpin before. The girl was the Tsuguko of Shinobu Kocho, the Insect Hashira of the Demon Slayer Corps.  

Recognizing the boy as also a demon slayer from the uniform, Akari jumped the roofs as she landed deftly in front of the pair. Kanao started in surprise while the boy simply stared at her, seemingly unsurprised by her sudden appearance.

"You two are Demon Slayers, right?" Akari asked directly. "My name is Akari Hayashi. I was tracking a demon with some clues I have, but it seems you've already taken care of it." She glanced between them. "Am I correct?"

Kanao nodded slowly and did not speak. 

"My name is Kenshi Tanaka. We don't know if it was the same demon as the one you're looking for, but we indeed taken care of a demon." Kenshi replied as he looked into her eyes.  

Akari studied Kenshi with interest. He looked quite young, but the lifeless look in his eyes told her that he had exhausted. She also noticed his awkward stance and the rips in his uniform.  

"You seem to be injured." She stated flatly. "Let me take a look."

"I'm fine." Kenshi said, turning away. "We need to report back to Shinobu as soon as possible."  

Akari's eyes narrowed. She didn't like his dismissive tone.

"I don't know how powerful the demon you killed was, but there were some people who seemed to be allied with it. I beat up a few of them and tied them up. Although I would like to send this report back with my crow, with you both being injured I don't think you can make it back to the Butterfly Mansion until you've recovered."  

"You've been to the Butterfly Mansion before?" Kenshi asked.

"Yes, I have, so let me help you get there." She insisted. "You can barely stand. What use will you be hobbling around by yourself?"  

Kanao looked between them anxiously. She could sense the tension.

"Um, yes, please help us Sister Akari." She said quickly. "I'm also a little hurt so I can't support him well."  

Akari glanced at Kanao again, noticing her complexion. The poor girl was clearly exhausted. Akari sighed, letting go of her irritation with the boy.  

"Alright, come here then." She said gruffly to Kenshi. Without waiting for a reply, she stepped forward and grabbed him, lifting him up and putting him onto her back before he could protest.

"H-hey!" Kenshi yelped in surprise. "Put me down!" He struggled weakly but Akari's grip was like iron.

Being carried by a stranger and that too a women made him very uncomfortable.

The reason he didn't want her help was because, after seeing how the demon controlled the humans, he didn't want to trust a stranger. Although his skill didn't give him a warning, it also did not do so when he met the Mayor. However, it seems he didn't have any choice since what this woman said was also true.

"Stop squirming!" She ordered. "You'll just make your injuries worse. I'm getting you to Lady Kocho safely whether you like it or not, so shut up and bear it."  

Kenshi grumbled but stopped resisting. Satisfied, Akari turned to Kanao. "Let's go."

The three made their way through the chaotic town, Akari easily carrying Kenshi on her back while Kanao walked beside them. As they reached the outskirts, the commotion faded behind them, replaced by the tranquil sounds of the forest at night.

After some time walking in silence, Kanao spoke up hesitantly. "Um, thank you for helping us, Sister Akari. That was very kind of you."  

Akari glanced at the shy girl and felt her expression soften a little. "You're welcome. It's my duty to help fellow Demon Slayers in need."

She decided to make some conversation to help pass the time. "So, how long have you been training under Lady Kocho?"

"Oh, um, since my childhood." Kanao replied.

Akari nodded. "I think Lady Kocho is an excellent teacher."  

Kanao returned a small smile. Encouraged, she ventured to ask, "What rank are you, Sister Akari?"

"I'm a Hinoe rank." Akari answered. "I'm aiming to become a Kinoe soon though." Her voice took on an edge. "I swear one day I'll be strong enough to take down the demon king Muzan."  

Kanao's eyes widened slightly at the venom in Akari's tone but she didn't pry further. The three continued on in silence.

...

At 9 AM, Kenshi, Kanao, and Akari were eating breakfast noodles at a noodle shop.

After walking for hours last night, they had finally reached the next town and rented two rooms at an inn. After all, the forest between this town and Butterfly Mansion contained many dangerous animals and demons, so it was better to just sleep here in this town and start traveling after sunrise.  

While eating noodles, Kenshi noticed the surrounding conversations.  

"Have you all heard? Last night, a huge fire suddenly broke out in the neighboring Sakurai Town!"  

"I heard. Supposedly many buildings were burned down by the fire."

"Moreover, I heard there were ghosts and demons in that town, fighting all night. The ghosts also made all the sakura trees wither at the same time!"

"That's nothing! I got some insider news saying that the mayor was a black magic expert and sacrifice the town's people to the demons."

"Really?"

The diners excitedly shared their experiences, causing even Kanao to turn her head to look. After all, they had just left the town and the news traveled so fast.  

Kenshi was very composed in contrast. He rapped the table to pull back Kanao's attention. "Hurry up and eat! We'll set off once done." He didn't even check the system rewards as he wanted to wait until he got back to Butterfly Mansion.

Kanao turned her head and resumed seriously eating noodles. After all, as Kenshi said, they could return sooner once done eating and she could meet her big sister faster.  

Thinking of this, Kanao couldn't help speeding up.

Kenshi finished first. Seeing Kanao and Akari had only a bit left, he silently waited.

As his thoughts wandered, Kenshi recalled the mayor's words last night and looked at Kanao asking, "Kanao, is the Demon Slayer Corps strictly forbidden from killing people?"

Kanao was startled.  

But before she could talk, Akari looked at him. "Yes, killing people is a serious violation of the rules that warrants punishment!"

"Even criminals conspiring with demons aren't allowed? Actually I forget to ask, what happens to the people you tied up back there?"  

"Not allowed..." She shook her head. "Such actions have been strictly prohibited ever since the Demon Slayer Corps was founded. At most, we can only hand them to the police for processing. As for those people, they will be taken care of by the police.

"What if we don't have evidence of their crimes then?" Kenshi asked again.

This time, Kanao also looked over, but Akari suddenly fell silent with no reply.

Kenshi didn't expect Akari to truly answer anyway. He sighed, "My apologies, I said some unnecessary things. Hurry up and eat! We'll set off once done."

Kanao nodded and continued devouring the remaining noodles.

Kenshi gazed into the distance and sighed again. 

The Demon Slayer Corps are indeed too soft on these criminals just because they are humans.