The forest no longer existed.
Where there were once trees and trails, birds and wind, now stood only charred wood, smoking soil, twitching limbs, and pools of blood too thick to flow.
Demons lay split, severed, crushed, melted, and mangled—pieces of their once terrifying forms scattered like meat through a blender.
Silence.Not peaceful.Horrific.Only the crackle of flames and the drip of blood onto ash dared to make a sound.
The Final Priest
The only thing still alive—barely—was the Hell Priest.
He crawled, his ornate robes in shreds, one arm missing, eyes glowing with dying embers. His twisted voice slithered from his throat as he looked up at the Slayer, who stood tall and motionless amid the carnage.
"You think this changes the will of the Dark Lord…?"
"You are a relic, Slayer... a ghost in the wrong world…"
He coughed blood.
"He will end you. This realm will burn... you cannot kill—"
The Slayer reached down and grabbed the priest's head.
The priest's words stopped instantly.
"Hrk—!"
With one slow, brutal motion, the Slayer ripped the head off, spine snapping loose with a sickening crunch.
No ceremony. No mercy.Just execution.
He crushed the skull in his hand like an overripe fruit, the black blood spraying across his armored gauntlet. Then he threw the remains into the fires behind him.
It was done.
Return to HQ
When the Slayer returned, he walked alone.
Behind him, the Hashiras, the Slayers, and even the Upper Moons, followed. None spoke.
They watched the back of this man—this monster—the same one who burned down Hell's army without help, without pause, and without hesitation.
Even Muzan didn't dare make a sound.
Tanjiro whispered, "He really meant it. When he said he would rip and tear… until it was done…"
Gyomei had tears in his eyes. Not out of grief. But out of awe.
Sanemi stared at his own sword, thinking of how useless it looked now.
They returned to the HQ gates, where the Kakushi were already preparing barricades and healing grounds. The bodies of Demon Slayers, some wounded but alive thanks to the Slayer's front line, lay tended to.
When the Slayer entered, the guards didn't salute—they simply bowed.
He walked to the central hall, blood and smoke still clinging to his armor.He didn't stop.Didn't sit.Didn't rest.
Because he didn't need to.
Kagaya's Voice
From the tower, Kagaya's voice echoed calmly, though more reverent than ever.
"The first wave has fallen."
"Hell will not take this world easily. Not while he stands among us."
Far Away, in a Realm of Fire…
In the depths of Hell's burning dimension…A roar was heard.Dark, ancient, trembling.
The Dark Lord sat upon his throne of bone and fire, his eyes flickering as he felt it…
"...No… no…"
The essence of his fallen priest returned to the void.
He stood slowly.
And a single name emerged from his cracked lips:
"Slayer."