Zenitsu raised his hand and saw that the place where the spider had bitten him had already turned purple.
"You've already been poisoned by my spider venom. The toxin will spread throughout your body with your blood flow. The more you run, the faster the toxin will spread. Gradually, you'll feel dizzy and weak, eventually collapsing to the ground, where I will eat you bite by bite. Ara ara~"
Zenitsu stood in place, as if pondering the demon's words. After a moment, he let out a series of high-pitched screams and dodged the attacks of the human-headed spiders.
"Hah, not only are you a coward, but you're also a fool. You all, go together and don't let him escape."
The human-headed spiders received the command and surrounded Zenitsu from all directions.
Seeing no escape route, Zenitsu scampered up a large tree behind him, clinging to the trunk and refusing to let go.
But he soon realized something was wrong with his body. His arms started to lose strength, and then his body uncontrollably fell to the ground.
At the moment he hit the ground, he recalled the days when he trained in the mountains with his grandfather.
Back then, whenever he felt tired and didn't want to train, he would hide in a tree, and his grandfather would stand below with a stick, scolding him.
Even though he was cowardly, lazy, and not talented, his grandfather never gave up on him. Unfortunately, in the end, he only mastered one form of the "Thunder Breathing" technique.
Zenitsu landed on the ground, his knees bent, his left hand pressing the scabbard, his thumb on the guard, and his right hand gripping the hilt, assuming a stance to draw his sword. He closed his eyes tightly, gritted his teeth, and took a deep breath, his body emitting crackling arcs of electricity.
The surrounding human-headed spiders were electrocuted and scattered, screaming.
Zenitsu's sudden change gave the demon a bad feeling, so he quickly climbed up a thread of spider silk to the sky.
"Why are you running? He's already been poisoned; he won't last long. Go together and bite him to death."
The human-headed spiders, unwilling to disobey the demon, shrieked and pounced on Zenitsu again.
While jumping and dodging the attacks of the human-headed spiders, Zenitsu maintained his stance, charging his strength. With several quick jumps, he distanced himself from the human-headed spiders, stepping on the tree trunk and rushing towards the demon in the sky.
The demon couldn't understand what had happened to this cowardly boy; he seemed like a completely different person compared to before.
"Hmph, impressive. Although I don't know what's happening to you, I doubt you can dodge in mid-air."
"Poisonous Spit!"
The demon puffed up his cheeks and spat a mouthful of venom at Zenitsu below. To the demon's astonishment, Zenitsu shifted positions in mid-air, easily dodging the attack.
The venom hit the tree trunk, corroding a large hole in it.
The demon's unease grew stronger. Even when Zenitsu landed, he maintained his stance, charging his strength.
As time passed, Zenitsu's aura became sharp and fierce, and even the air around him seemed to stop flowing.
The demon sensed that Zenitsu would soon complete his charge and launch his attack.
"He only knows this one move. Don't be afraid, attack together and bite him to death."
After saying this, the demon turned and quickly climbed into the small wooden house, hiding in the dark corner, trembling.
"Sixfold."
Zenitsu's figure disappeared from where he stood, transforming into a golden lightning bolt, slicing through the surrounding human-headed spiders. Using the spider silk in the air, he pierced through the small wooden house.
Under the moonlight, the demon's head and body fell in different directions.
"Im-impossible. How can you be this strong? I... I was defeated by a coward."
In a voice filled with reluctance, the demon turned into ash and scattered with the wind.
Zenitsu, exhausted from using up his last bit of strength, fell onto the roof. The toxin had spread to most of his body, and his consciousness began to blur.
"Chirp chirp."
He heard a few anxious bird calls in his ear and recognized it as his Kasugai crow—Chuntaro.
Zenitsu turned to look at the little sparrow. "Chuntaro, you... you came."
Chuntaro: Zenitsu, how are you?
"I... I don't think I'm going to make it."
Chuntaro: No, Zenitsu, you'll be fine.
Zenitsu opened his mouth, wanting to say something more, but he couldn't feel his tongue or throat.
Chuntaro: Zenitsu, hold on. I'll find someone to save you. Chirp!
The little sparrow let out a sorrowful cry and flew into the distance.
Tanjiro, Nezuko, Inosuke... I won't be able to go on adventures with you anymore.
As Zenitsu was about to close his eyes, he suddenly heard his grandfather's stern voice in his ear.
"Hold on, hold on, Zenitsu. Don't give up."
The tone was exactly the same as during training. Although he was scared to death back then, now it felt incredibly comforting.
Grandfather!
Zenitsu slowly opened his eyes and tried to adjust his breathing, using his breathing technique to slow his blood flow and, in turn, slow the spread of the toxin.
He didn't know how much time had passed when he saw a butterfly fly past his eyes. At first, he thought he was hallucinating.
But soon, he realized it wasn't an illusion. A girl as beautiful as a butterfly landed beside him in the moonlight.
"Hey, hey, are you still alive?" Shinobu Kocho asked.
Zenitsu looked at Shinobu, blinking twice.
Who is this?
Demon Slayer Corps uniform?
One of us? Are there such beautiful girls in the Demon Slayer Corps?
Shinobu pressed her fingers to Zenitsu's forehead, checked him over, and smiled in relief. "Fortunately, the toxin isn't too deep. There's still hope. You did well using your breathing technique to slow the spread of the toxin."
Shinobu took out an antidote and injected it into Zenitsu.
"Did you see a white-haired boy and a girl?"
Zenitsu shook his head.
"Alright, stay here for a while. The rescue team will be here soon."
Shinobu jumped off the wooden house and ran towards the depths of the forest.