Igris tried to stand, but it was in vain. His head was completely covered in blood. Slowly, painfully, he dragged his body forward. He spat blood, paused for a moment, then continued. Eventually, he reached Sempai's lifeless body.
He began to cry, calling out. And for the first time in twelve years, he called him by his real nademon
« Sempai! Sempai! Yann! Wake up, Yann, wake up! Please, don't do this to me! You can't die! Tell me, if you're gone… who will I have left? What will I say to your mother tomorrow? To your little sister? Why did you die?! You shouldn't have died for someone useless like me… »
« I'm sorry, Sempai… I'm sorry I couldn't help you. You shouldn't have died for me. I wasn't worth it… »
Then his voice changed—cold, determined, filled with fury:
« But I promise you this… I will avenge your death. I will show those so-called Demon Slayers how worthless they truly are. I swear it, my friend. I'll go all the way to the demon continent and kill them all, one by one. I won't leave a single one alive. I won't die until they're all burning in hell. I swear it on my life! »
A few seconds later, he heard footsteps approaching. Lifting his head, he saw several Demon Slayers coming his way. When he saw them, a deep hatred surged within him.
« Bastards… They ran when the demon was here! And now... »
They all had blue-colored marks—Class B. Among them, a woman had a crescent-shaped mark on her right shoulder, identifying her as a healer. She came closer and began healing Igris' wounds.
Seeing her so near, and feeling her magic touch him, enraged him even more.
« Leave me… Get away… Don't touch me… he whispered, lying on the ground. »
When she finished healing him, she asked with a soft smile:
« Young man, are you alright? »
Igris stared at her with burning fury and threw a punch filled with rage. But the tank of the group blocked it and shouted:
« Hey, kid! What's your problem?! »
Igris stood up slowly and answered in a cold, flat voice:
« Bunch of hypocrites. Tell me… where were you? You're just cowards, waiting for the demon to leave so you can act brave. You're worth nothing. I saw one of you run while my best friend was being slaughtered. So really… between you and the demon… I see no difference. »
The team leader turned to Igris and asked:
« Hey kid, what's going on? What happened? If you explain, maybe we can help. But as for your friend… there's nothing more we can do. If a hunter had been nearby, maybe he could've... »
Igris cut him off, his voice burning with rage:
« There was one! But he was such a coward, he ran off like a rat seeing a cat! You don't even deserve to be called heroes. You're just pathetic opportunists.
His eyes fell on Sempai's hand lying on the ground. The sight deepened his sorrow. He placed both hands on his face and began to cry, dropping to his knees. But suddenly, he stopped.
He walked toward the hand, lifted it gently, and took Sempai's ring and watch—an engraved silver ring with a "Y" at the center.
He stared at it for a moment and said softly:
« I'll avenge you, my brother. I swear… »
A siren wailed in the distance. The Red Cross had arrived. Two medics got out of the vehicle and rushed to Sempai's body. After checking him, they confirmed he was already dead.
One of them turned to the Demon Slayer leader and asked:
— Sir, do you have any information on this boy?
But the leader didn't even have time to reply. Igris stepped forward and said firmly:
— His name was Yann. Yann Steven. He was 16 years old.
Igris gave them all the necessary information. A few minutes later, his mother arrived, running and panicked.
— Igris! Igris! Are you okay? You're not hurt, are you?
Igris didn't look up. When she stood before him, she immediately sensed something was wrong.
— Igris, what's wrong? You look… shaken.
Then, she saw the medics placing a body into a bag. She understood everything.
Igris turned away and said to her quietly:
— Mom… can you call Sempai's mother? Tell her… he's dead. Oh, and by the way… I almost forgot. I won't be going to college for the next three days.
Then he walked off toward home, hatred burning in his chest.
One thought filled his mind: Kill those demons.
Igris came home and dropped his bag on the floor like everything was over, like his life had lost all meaning. He closed the door, still staring at the ground.
His 13-year-old little brother, who was playing video games, noticed his unusual entrance. Sitting in a chair, he looked up and asked:
— Hey, big bro… Are you okay?
Igris, not wanting to worry him, gave his usual smile. Well… a fake one, obvious enough that even a stranger could tell it wasn't real.
— Yeah, I'm fine, Chris. Don't worry.
Chris stared at him, suspicious.
— No, you're not. You're lying. Usually, when you get home, you say something like "Sewer rat" or throw out some weird insult… But today, nothing. And I heard there was a demon outside…
He glanced at the door, curious.
— Where's Sempai? You always come home together. Normally he leaves around 8 p.m.… But he's not here.
Igris's smile faded. He said quietly:
— Sempai… He was killed by the demon.
— What?! Killed?! Chris asked, terrified.
Igris, overwhelmed with rage, slammed his fist into the wall multiple times, shouting with a broken voice:
— He's dead! He's dead! He's dead! That damn demon killed him… And I will avenge him. Even if I die trying!
Their mom came into the house, her face full of sorrow. She saw Igris heading upstairs. He stopped and asked:
— Mom… Is dad's training equipment still in the basement?
She hesitated, then answered:
— Yes, but why?
— The bank wants to kick us out in three months, right? Because you couldn't pay back the student loans for Chris and me?
— …Yes. But why are you asking?
With determination, Igris replied:
— I'm going to become a Demon Hunter. I heard it pays well.
Chris jumped up, panicked:
— Whoa, whoa, whoa! But you don't even have a mark! That's suicide! You'll get killed instantly!
— Yes! That's madness! added their mother.
Igris looked at her with a lifeless expression and said:
— If I become a Demon Hunter, I can help us in more than one way. First, I'll bring in money. Second, I'll avenge Sempai. And third, I'll prove to those damn Hunters that they're not the only ones who can fight back.
Chris looked him in the eyes and said seriously:
— Not to be rude, big bro… but you don't exactly have the build for that. Leave it to the pros…
Igris smiled and replied:
— Don't worry. I'll handle it. If I don't do this, I'll never be at peace. If I don't find that demon, I'll lose my mind. My conscience won't rest until I've killed them all.
He climbed a few steps, then paused and said:
— Chris, bring me all your demonology books. Please. Thanks in advance.
Then he resumed his way to his room.
Igris entered his bedroom.
Chris looked at their mother and noticed she seemed worried by Igris's words. He reassured her, saying:
— Don't worry, Mom. He won't do anything. And besides, the NDHS (National Demon Hunters Service) doesn't recruit the unmarked.
Igris stepped into his room. It was dark, so he turned on the light and walked to his desk.
He sat down, then turned his head to the right and saw a photo he had taken with Sempai back in high school.
Staring at it, he began to cry, then whispered in a trembling voice:
— Ever since I was a kid, I've always had this frail body… Everyone used to call me "the skeleton" because I had no strength. There was nothing I could do…
But you… you were always there to protect me, from kindergarten to your final day…
He suddenly stood up, eyes full of determination, and declared:
— But I swear I'll become stronger! I'll fulfill your dream and avenge you.
I'll become the greatest Demon Hunter the world has ever known!
I'll prove to them that I will never be weak again… I swear it.
The next day, 4 a.m.
The sun hadn't risen yet. His mother heard noise outside. Curious, she looked through the window and saw Igris. He was wearing a grey tracksuit and black shoes. He stretched a little, then began his morning run.
He ran for over an hour before arriving in front of a massive building with the words:
N.D.H.C – National Demon Hunters Center.
He clenched his fists and murmured:
— I'm coming...
Then, he resumed running.
Back at home, he immediately headed to the basement. When he turned on the light, he discovered a room filled with training equipment, worthy of the greatest warriors.
He started lifting dumbbells, but quickly realized he severely lacked strength. Despite the pain, he forced himself to do sets, starting with just ten reps. Then he trained with all the machines available. By 9 a.m., exhausted, he went up to his room—still carrying a dumbbell in hand.
He grabbed one of the books on demonology and dove into studying demons.
During lunch, he surprised his mother and brother by eating everything on his plate, including things he usually hated. After dinner, he went to bed at 10 p.m.
The entire family was shocked.
Chris, seeing this, told their mother:
— Forget what I said… He's really going to do it.
The next two days, he repeated the same routine: jogging, intense training, and meals.
---
The day of the fight
That morning, he only did a light jog. Out of breath, he said:
— I shouldn't wear myself out today… And it's not like a few jogs are going to give me the power to kill demons like in manga anyway...
Back in his room, he sat at his desk and opened the demonology book. He flipped through it and stopped at a passage he had already read—about Shadow Demons:
> "Shadow Demons, creatures from Tagdrasil – a realm shrouded entirely in darkness – cannot bear bright light. It acts like acid on them, causing serious injuries and heavy damage."
— Oh… so that's why he attacked us at night. It all makes sense now, he said while reading.
Then, he smiled confidently, as if victory was already his:
— With everything I saw… and what I've learned from this book… I've got a plan. And it guarantees victory.
---
Evening of the third day – 6:19 p.m.
The demon was perched on a pole, looking annoyed. He growled:
— Where is that twig-bodied brat? I'll give him a little more time, then I'm gone. If he doesn't show up, I'll wipe out everyone in this district...
7:10 p.m.
The demon sighed in boredom and started losing patience:
— Did he chicken out or what?!
Frustrated, he added:
— Fine, I'm leaving...
But just as he was about to vanish, a voice rang out behind him:
— Leaving already?