Demon Slayer: Upper 0 seems to be a waste

"Rinko—Hey, let me have a bite—I'm sure Akaza-dono has eaten you before, so it's okay if I have a bite—"

The first second that Rinkou woke up from the dream, she heard a nagging voice. She opened her eyes and met the beautiful eyes with Upper Rank 6 written on them. In an instant, the face enlarged in front of her eyes, and she could even feel the coldness of the voice.

Very beautiful eyes, very beautiful face, very nice voice.

It's just that the frequency of the sound is too high and the face is too close.

Lin Guang doesn't like adults, and even though his personality has improved now, this instinct still remains.

Especially tall adults, Douma is obviously within this range. He is tall, big, overly enthusiastic, and his strength is visible to the naked eye.

His opened mouth was covered by one hand, his eyes were blocked by another hand, and his entire head was slowly pushed away. Lingguang took advantage of the situation to turn over and create some distance.

"Lord Akaza has never eaten me."

Lin Guang's tone was not very friendly.

"Huh? How could that be? I heard that Akaza-dono never eats women or children, but I thought he was joking. Women are obviously the most nutritious... Does Rinkou like to eat women?"

The topic was changed in the blink of an eye. Douma seemed to never be unhappy or depressed. Even though he was pushed away by Rinko and then avoided for a distance, he still looked very excited.

This is Rinko's seventh day here, and it is also the seventh day that Douma has been squatting by his bedside waiting to bite him.

Frankly speaking, Rinko couldn't understand why Douma didn't eat humans but instead kept targeting him, a demon. He had never encountered such a situation before.

"Rinko, Rinko? Don't ignore my question—"

Douma stared at the boy, his eyebrows furrowed, trying to suppress his emotions but still revealing a hint of displeasure. Rinkou was indeed a ghost, but he didn't act like one at all. He looked groggy and drowsy just as a human when he woke up. His eyes were still fuzzy when he opened them, his voice was sticky, and his messy clothes were stretched out bit by bit. As the boy slowly stood up, his body, which had remained in the same position all day, groaned in pain, his bones cracking as they moved.

He was completely defenseless while asleep, and even though I was sitting here, ready to try, he showed no signs of waking up. What an incredible child.

"I don't like eating. I don't like eating women, and I don't like eating men. I don't like eating."

After stretching himself, Rinkou turned around and saw Douma still staring at him. He tilted his head at his answer, his face trying to show confusion.

"How could he not like to eat? It must be because Akaza-dono always picks out those who taste terrible that makes Rinko hate eating."

Douma came to his own conclusion, and before Rinkou could say anything, he stood up, picked him up from behind and held him in his arms.

"Hey, Rinko, do you want to come and see what I usually do?"

It didn't sound like an application that would give him a chance to refuse, and judging by the actions, it didn't seem like there was room for him to refuse.

Rinko remembered that Muzan had mentioned to him that Douma seemed to have some kind of church-like organization under his command. Rinko did not believe in the so-called gods and Buddhas, and found it difficult to understand the corresponding theories.

The final conclusion is that Douma raised a group of animals, coaxing them to grow up quickly every day and then spreading feed, and occasionally picking the one he liked the most to eat.

Muzan didn't seem to agree with this, but he didn't find any fault with it, so Rinkou just concluded that it was true.

"it is good."

When Douma heard Rinko's agreement, he was exaggeratedly surprised and expressed his joy. He immediately turned around and hugged Rinko and walked out of the room.

As expected, he was not given the opportunity to refuse, although he certainly would not refuse.

Rinkou, who was held like a doll, was really as obedient as a doll.

Just as he couldn't understand why he was left to Akaza, Rinkou also couldn't understand why he was given to Douma. But his thoughts were fruitless. Douma was constantly around him, and even if he wanted to, there was no way to escape. All Rinkou could do was find something else to do and try not to pay attention to the oversized adult next to him.

------

The ceremony was different from what Rinko had imagined. The humans in the audience were well-dressed and polite, and Douma on the stage sat firmly in his seat. It was indeed a proper ceremony. The humans in the audience knelt in submission, expressing their wishes to the demon on the stage.

Human desires are pure, and men can't avoid money, power, and women. Most problems can be solved with money, so they pray for money, begging for favors, hoping for a smooth career, or perhaps even some ill-gotten gains.

For women, it's simpler: men, children, and then money.

Rinko had no concept of money. When she lived in the mountains with Kokushibo, she barely saw any money. Later, when she followed Akaza, it was even less so. They didn't even have a "home" in the proper sense of the word.

Ghosts don't need to eat or drink, or find a special place to live. Even their clothes can be restored with blood ghost magic (Akaza has mastered this little skill to perfection, but Rinkou hasn't yet). They truly regard money as a thing outside of themselves.

"Hey, money is an important thing, right?"

A tender child's voice suddenly rang out, echoing in the silent hall.

"Wha, what?"

No one would have objected to Douma showing up with a child in his arms, but no one would have imagined that the usually well-behaved "doll" would suddenly speak on its own. Including Douma himself, who was holding the doll.

But Douma reacted quickly.

"Rinko is asking you a question, remember to answer him."

He narrowed his eyes with interest. Lin Guang was looking at the audience and didn't notice him, so he turned to look at the man kneeling on the floor and reminded him gently with a smile.

"Yes, yes, Lord Rinkou. Money may not be worth your attention in your eyes, but it is very precious to me, to me. I really need that money."

The people in the audience put their heads to the floor, and the sound seemed muffled.

"Which is more important, your life or money?"

Lin Guang tilted his head, and the question came without warning, his tone was flat, and it was hard to tell whether it was a question or curiosity.

"Of course, it's life, but without money, my life will be taken away soon."

The man hesitated for a moment, his voice stumbling, but as soon as he finished the first sentence, he became firm again.

"Life is more important, yet you chose to trade your life, which is about to end, for the less valuable money. And then, with your life now insufficient, you beg the gods to grant you money so you can take back the life you gave away. Is that right?"

Lin Guang's tone was very flat, so flat that it was hard to tell whether it was a disciplinary education, a mockery, or just a statement of fact.

"Well, is that so? Sir, it would be rude not to answer the question. Rinko is very particular about manners."

Douma rested his fan against his head and tapped it gently, seeming troubled by this. The man nodded hurriedly and stuttered in response.

“Yes… yes…”

"You didn't come with sincerity when there was still a chance to exchange, but instead came when you were desperate... Do you truly believe in the gods?"

Lin Guang's voice was not loud, but in the empty and silent hall, it echoed like a bell or drum.

"Yes, I'm sorry. I'm sorry..."

The man kowtowed again and again, but Lingguang didn't know who he was apologizing to, to the non-existent gods, to his past self, or to them on the platform.

"It's okay... God is willing to accommodate lost believers. Stay, your problems will be solved. Don't worry, you will be reborn."

Rinko felt that Douma had been raised to this position for a reason: a gentle smile, a sweet voice, a beautiful appearance, and a godlike tolerance that Rinko wasn't sure about but others firmly believed in.

At least when he sat here and spoke, the humans in the audience looked at him with glowing eyes.

Like a ghost.

-

"Rinkou is even more ruthless than I thought. I thought Rinkou would be a cute kid with a lot of sympathy, but this isn't so bad either."

"what?"

Rinkou expressed confusion about the inexplicable label of "heartless" being applied to him, but Douma didn't address his confusion. Douma always did this, insisting he was polite and asking others to answer questions, while simultaneously ignoring their inquiries.

"Rinko, do you want to eat that person together?"

Rinko knew who Douma was talking about, the man who had just knelt in the hall. Rinko reached out and touched his belly, then raised his head and thought for a while, and finally shook his head.

"No. Put me down. I want to go somewhere else."

"Hey, Rinkou won't even eat with me? Doesn't Rinkou like me? He seemed so close to Akaza-sama and Kokushibo-sama before, but he's unwilling to get close to me? Or does Rinkou only like stronger people? If I were ranked higher, would Rinkou like me more?"

Douma is a very difficult ghost, and Rinko confirmed this point once again when the head was talking to itself and rubbing against his neck.

The fangs were very close to the flesh, and a slightly cold breath spread on the side of his neck as he spoke. After experiencing seeing a ghost with his own eyes, he felt it again, that he was haunted by a ghost.

"If you were to perform a story, Douma-dono would definitely be very popular."

"?"

The mouth just froze there, freezing its owner along with it, completely unaware of what was going on in the mind of its prey.

"what?"

Lin Guang raised his head and nodded seriously.

"Because Mr. Douma is like the ghost in the book. He will haunt people, whispering day and night, tempting them to do what you want him to do, and finally eat them."

Douma retracted his fangs, stood up, and thought seriously for a while.

"But I am a ghost."

Douma tilted his head, his voice ending in an upward tone, expressing confusion.

"So that makes it even more fitting. The book also says that ghosts don't appear during the day."

Lin Guang answered seriously.