On the edge of the forest stood a house. Followed by shops, trees, paths. Everything that composed a village. Yet, it was empty. Abandoned, probably a long time ago. The stench of the moss was permanently lingering in the air, keeping my nose from smelling anything else.

Somehow, something lead me there. Call it instinct, perhaps? Or maybe just whatever clue happened to tell me this is where I had to go. I'm not sure.

To be honest, I was a little bit unsatisfied by my mission. I barely knew who I was looking for, or what he did. I didn't know how he looked like, what powers he had, or anything of the sort. I only had a hint about the direction he went in, and his name: Haru. Which lead me here. An old, dusty town. Abandoned for who knows how many decades.

My guess is that I wasn't sent out here for nothing. There was probably something that was linked to the demon I was looking for, anywhere around. But whether it was in plain sight or deep hidden, I didn't know.

I looked around, noticing the details. All the buildings were crumbling, eaten by the passing time. I could hear myself stepping on the tiny stones scattered on the dusty road, despite being barefoot. The silence was heavy, even the birds didn't dare to make a sound. 

It was morbid, yet had its own beauty. 

Away from the world, the small town was following a different timeline. 

I took some time to explore it all, and not much thing caught my attention. But, one house seemed worth exploring. Hovering a small pond, it was the biggest building of the whole place. Surrounded by trees, the traditional japanese house seemed in worse state than the others. 

Entering through a hole on the left wall, I was left speechless at the sight. The place seemed like it got destroyed from the inside. Someone had punched the walls till their hands bled, tainting the wood with a bloody brown. 

Going up, it didn't seem to get any better. Opening a panel door, I looked at what probably proved Haru was there. The skeletons, decrepitating on the rotten floor, were all stuck in their dying position, except one who fell on the floor and broke down, leaving its bones on the rotten floor. 

I closed the door and continued my search. If Haru passed by here, there probably was something that carried his scent, no matter how faint it was. Proof of someone's existence always sticked around, even if a lot of time had passed. 

I arrived at the third room. As I stepped forward, I felt my foot breaking through the decayed wood, but it didn't exactly go all the way through. It encountered resistance in about 5 inches down. Carefully lifting my leg, I leaned and extended my arm to reach if there was anything in the hole. 

Feeling an object, I picked it up and sat down, observing my find. It was a dusty fan, covered in moss and on the verge of breaking. I could distinguish the letters H-R-U inscribed on the handle. It probably was his. 

Now, he could not escape me.

~•~

Haru was extremely good at hiding himself. Good, but not perfect. After all, the clues I had found in that old town were enough to betray him.

On the 5th month of searching, I picked up another demon's scent. It was oddly similar to the one I've found on that fan. Following it, I arrived in a town. Emptied, similar to the previous one, if you didn't count the decapitated bodies laying everywhere. Lingering in the air, the smell of fresh blood.

Upon closer inspection, I noticed some houses were broken down, others busted open. Usually, demons tend to be discreet. They don't want any slayers to find them. Their absence was equally strange. This massacre probably had happened just a few hours ago.

I continued my inspection, getting closer to the source of the stench. I was sure, it was the one I've been searching for. An isolated house, away from the rest, stood in the middle of the fields. I could hear banging coming from inside.

I ran in its direction, preparing my claws. I would finish the mission quickly, and gain power. Something weird, was the absence of reaction to my presence. Any demon would probably have noticed me, but the banging continued. I busted the door opened, and was surprised to see a man. Hitting his head on a wall and blood streaming down his face.

He stopped, standing still for a second, then looking to me. His eyes, bright red, proved to me that he wasn't human.

"Please. Kill me," he spoke.

To answer his request, I launched forward, slashing his head. Of course, I didn't dare to deem myself strong enough to kill a demon. Only the sun or that man could do it. I would bring back the head to him, and gain power. My claws met resistance, but with more effort, cut through without problem. He, who was probably the person I was looking for, passed out.

I stared at the head, for a moment. Now that I had nothing to think about, I realized something incredibly weird. He still seemed to have humanity.

According to that man, he had been repeatedly defying him, yet he seemed so defenseless in that moment. He was probably the one who caused those villagers to die. The hunger made him lose his mind, and when he realized what he had done, he desired to die.

It was... odd.

From the moment they became a demon, anyone would lose their humanity. Feeding on humans was no problem to us. Never had I met a demon who regretted his actions.

This encounter made me realize something. Humans were meaningless to me, that is true. And yet, I still felt like there was a bit of the past me, hidden deep in my mind. Blood drove me crazy, but I could control myself. I was still able to think like my old self, having the same morals. The only thing that had changed was my thirst for blood. No not exactly. Maybe I've always been a demon at heart.

I looked outside. It was still night. How I would contact that man was unknown to me. He would probably find me himself. I brushed away all my other thoughts, and concentrated on the present events. He chose me to complete that task, and I felt content. I did not fail him, I have succeeded. I was safe. I had proven myself.

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