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But for some reason, Kanae Butterfly felt her heart was unusually soft, her usual shrewdness and competence had all disappeared, and her personality had become very spoiled.
This made her feel somewhat wronged, and her gaze towards Xia Yan held a hint of resentment.
If Kanae Kocho were a modern person, she would have heard of a widely circulated psychological term—
—The suspension bridge effect.
When a person is feeling anxious or apprehensive, their heart rate will unconsciously increase. If they happen to meet someone of the opposite sex at that moment, they will mistake this increased heart rate for feelings of attraction.
In short, external stimuli can cause the brain to confuse facts with emotions, leading to incorrect judgments.
In response, U.S. five-star general MacArthur once made the following assessment.
If you're showering attention on someone of the opposite sex and they remain unmoved, you might as well tie them to the edge of a cliff, hang them up, and ask them again.
Trust me, you will get a different answer.
However, as a young girl from an island nation who had just transitioned from the Meiji era to the Taisho era, Kanae Kocho obviously did not know what the so-called suspension bridge effect was.
Naturally, she mistook this strange feeling for being attracted to someone.
"Ouch! That hurts!"
As soon as she said those words, Kanae Kocho regretted it.
She felt as if she were under a spell, her voice becoming sticky and slightly trembling, as if she were being coquettish.
"It's nothing serious, just a tiny scrape..."
Xia Yan wore a slightly frivolous smile, and with his exceptionally handsome looks, he actually made Kocho Kanae somewhat infatuated.
Under Kanae Butterfly's gaze, Natsuhiko slowly reached out his hand towards her ear.
This made Kanae blush deeply, her whole body stiffen, her heart pound wildly, and she couldn't even control her breathing.
Kanae Kocho is already sixteen years old. In an era where women typically get married at fourteen or fifteen, she is already considered an old maid.
She naturally longed for a sweet romance.
However, being a member of the Demon Slayer Corps, even as a Pillar, does not guarantee absolute safety.
He might die on the path of demon hunting at any time.
Therefore, Kanae Kocho has always suppressed her inner emotions and constantly told herself to be prepared to dedicate her life to the Demon Slayer Corps.
At that moment, this restrained emotion, like an Akita dog that had broken free of its leash, became uncontrollable.
As fellow members of the Demon Slayer Corps, and soon to be "Pillar" level members, Natsuhiko would surely understand him.
Moreover, with such formidable strength, the other party is sure to be able to protect their family in this dangerous and chaotic world.
Kanae Butterfly thought to herself.
As Xia Yan's fingers drew closer, Kanae Kocho could even feel the warmth of his palm on her cheek.
This made her gaze towards Xia Yan become somewhat moist, and she almost gave herself away.
Just when she thought Xia Yan would gently brush away her pain with his fingers and softly comfort her in a tender voice—
—An even more intense pain came from my earlobe.
"it hurts!!!"
Unlike the previous calls that had a somewhat coquettish tone.
This really hurts!
The sudden pain was like a heavy hammer, shattering all of Kanae's romantic fantasies into pieces.
Chapter 47 It's a man's nature to bully cute girls
"Yoshi~, they're out, they're out..."
Xia Yan pinched Kanae Butterfly's earlobe and squeezed it hard, forcing out a drop of blood from the small, slightly scratched wound.
What was originally a frivolous yet gentle smile in Kanae's eyes has turned into a heartless, mischievous grin.
"I deliberately left a small scratch on your ear."
"My sword technique is extremely dangerous! How can you expect to witness it without paying a price?"
As he spoke, Xia Yan gently ran his index finger across Kanae Butterfly's earlobe, which had been squeezed and turned bright red.
Using tension or some other physical principle, he managed to completely absorb the drop of blood that he had struggled to squeeze out onto his finger, and then playfully placed it in front of Kanae Butterfly to show it to her.
This immediately made Kanae Kocho feel extremely angry.
Good grief, I'm practically lying on the ground ready to die, and you're still thinking about your ridiculous breathing technique sword form?!
Thinking about it this way, Kanae Kocho felt even more wronged, and she almost burst into tears.
Then, under her ashamed and indignant gaze, Xia Yan licked the drop of blood into his mouth, and then, with the saliva on it, smeared it on the wound on her ear that was almost healed.
“It tastes good.”
"Saliva can disinfect and kill bacteria, and also—"
Xia Yan lowered his head and whispered in Kanae's ear, gently blowing a breath into her ear as he spoke in a soft, low voice:
"You must have encountered it too, the claws of that white beast. Prey that is targeted by those beast's eyes will be captured by its claws no matter where it tries to escape."
“I’ve already marked you; you can’t escape now.”
This blatant flirting brought Kanae's heart, which had nearly stopped from pounding with anger, back to life.
Just as Kanae was anticipating what would happen next, she noticed that Natsuhiko's head suddenly tilted to one side.
A delicate foot, clad in straw sandals and encased in tabi socks, kicked out precisely from the spot where his head had just moved away.
"You bastard! Pervert, lecher, you big pervert! How long are you going to keep clinging to my sister?!"
However, Shinobu Kocho saw the two lying on the ground for a long time and thought that Natsuhiko was doing something bad to Kanae Kocho, so she rushed over to stop him.
Although, in some ways, what she thought wasn't wrong.
"Hahaha, you found out!"
Xia Yan flipped over and stood up from the ground, laughing as he ran away, but Kocho Shinobu still chased after him relentlessly.
Kanae Butterfly was left lying on the ground, her face flushed, lost in thought.
"You perverted lecher! How dare you do such a thing to my sister! Unforgivable! May you be punished by Heaven!!!"
Enraged, Kocho drew her Nichirin Blade and, while chasing Natsuhiko, launched continuous thrusts from behind him.
Her Nichirin Blade has a very unique shape, with only a small portion of the blade remaining at the tip, while the rest of the blade is completely missing.
The inside of the blade is engraved with grooves, which can store the prepared poison inside the blade like a syringe. The poison can be injected into the body of the demon by inserting the tip of the blade.
It was a Nichirin Blade specially designed and crafted for Shinobu Kocho by the village chief of the sword-forging village.
Because Shinobu Kocho's strength was insufficient to sever a demon's neck, she used a Nichirin Blade specifically designed for thrusting attacks.
"Don't you dare run away, or I'll gouge your eyes out!"
Shinobu Kocho launched a thrust at Natsuhiko's back, but Natsuhiko easily dodged it.
On the contrary, Shinobu Kocho slowed down because of her attack, which caused the distance between the two to widen again, and she could only try her best to catch up again, repeating this process over and over again.
Meanwhile, Kanae Kocho, having adjusted her mindset, watched the two chasing and playing like children, sighed softly, and shook her head with a hint of helplessness.
Then, as if he had just thought of something, a happy smile appeared on his face.
"Wow-wow-"
Just as Xia Yan and Kocho Shinobu were chasing and playing around, the cawing of a crow came from outside, attracting everyone's attention.
Then, Xia Yan's Kasugai-chan, Kikuko, flew in through the window.
Xia Yan tossed Shinobu Kocho, who was trapped under his arm and unable to move, only able to kick her legs, aside and stretched out his arm for Kasugai Crow to land on.
"Lord Xia Yan, a crow has come to deliver an order—"
Kikuko spoke in a slightly dazed, soft, and light female voice in Natsuhiko's ear:
"Head to the town in the northwest. Ten team members have gone missing there. Please have Hanahashi Kocho Kanae and Natsuhiko-sama accompany you to the town in the northwest!"
"I just tested the performance of my Nichirin Blade and now I have a mission! I was just feeling a bit unsatisfied!"
Xia Yan's mouth stretched from ear to ear, revealing a tyrannical smile on his handsome face, making him look somewhat sinister.
Chapter 48: Changing into a uniform boosts style
Seeing that the real mission had arrived, Shinobu Kocho stopped chasing after Natsuhiko and instead stomped on his foot viciously.
However, given her strength, her kick was completely ineffective against Xia Yan.
Instead of being a punishment, it made Xia Yan want to ask her why she was rewarding him.
But in the end, he still didn't say anything.
After all, pursuing jade will only harm yourself.
"Then let's release it now!"
Xia Yan secured his Nichirin Blade to his waist and prepared to leave, but before he could even step out the door, Kocho Kanae called him back.
"Wait a minute, there's no need to rush. At least put on your Demon Slayer Corps uniform first."
……
The Demon Slayer Corps' uniform is black, with the top style being roughly the same as a student's uniform. It has a white "滅" (destroy) character on the back, and the buttons are decorated with wisteria flower patterns.
The pants are Japanese-style noku for easy movement, and they also have long straps that are used to wrap around the calves to improve explosive power and protect the calves from injury.
The shoes are specially made straw sandals with an extra strap at the heel to prevent them from falling off while moving.
Although they look like ordinary uniforms meant to enhance team cohesion, they are actually made of special materials.
It is not easily wetted or burned, has excellent ventilation, and possesses a certain degree of elasticity.
Although it's a formal style, you won't feel restricted when wearing it.
Moreover, due to the special nature of the materials and the unique weaving techniques similar to those used in bulletproof vests, the fabric produced is extremely durable.