The Cost of Pride~ Kokushibo x F! Reader (Completed)

The Pitiful Demon

As soon as you departed from Michikatsu, you stared into his eyes as you bitterly smiled at your former lover, who, in response, glimpsed away from you so he wouldn't have to see your pathetic appearance. "I'm sorry, Michikatsu." Those three words were all you could muster to express your sympathies to the man you loved. With no response, Michikatsu rushed to you, merely rendering an opportunity to evade and counter his attack when his blade hewed diverse strands of your hair.

"[breahing style, first form: name of style]!"

You screamed at the top of your lungs before thrusting an ascending slash to cut Michikatsu's arm, but it was no use since he was a demon. Within seconds, he restored his arm immediately without difficulty. Now it was his turn to fight. He swung his sword rapidly into two crescent slashes, in which a storm of smaller crescents scattered throughout the field.

This technique managed to cause massive destruction to the area, but you didn't care at all. Despite having many cuts on your cheek, the two of you charged towards each other as your blades clashed. If only things had turned out differently for you. Neither of you hesitated as this was a battle between life and death of two lovers on opposite sides.

One was the enemy, and the other was a fellow woman who tried desperately not to cut down her lover's neck to decapitate him. "If you want revenge so badly, struck me down." As the battle progressed, you continued to get injured, but you didn't care at all. You fought through your wounds, attempting to kill your lover.

Michikatsu was stronger than you as a human, but since he was a demon now, his strength was beyond compare to your strength. You didn't know how long you'd been fighting for, but you dropped to your knees as you held your stomach. There were many bruises and cuts all over your body when there were no injuries on Michikatsu's skin.

"What made you become a demon, Michikatsu?"

For a moment, there was silence as he didn't dare answer your question. When he realized there was no malice within your sorrowful expression, he knew he could never forgive himself for fighting you and making you suffer because of his choice. "I was afraid of dying because I had the demon slayer mark. That was not the only reason. I wanted to be the one to protect you. If you grow old, I want to watch over you and make sure you live a happy life. I did not want to leave you alone if I passed away at the age of twenty-five."

Since he told you his reasonings, you knew what you had to do. He was your lover and a part of the Demon Slayers Corps, so there was one way to atone for Michikatsu's betrayal. You had to commit seppuku to restore your atonement for Michikatsu's atonement and atone for your sin of loving him. That was a significant regulation for samurai to reclaim honor for themselves and their families.

As a samurai practice, seppuku was used voluntarily by samurai to die with honor. Rather than falling into the hands of their enemies, it was a form of capital punishment for samurai who had committed serious offenses or performed because they had brought shame to themselves. As you used your sword to help yourself up from the ground, you looked up at Michikatsu with a sad smile as tears rolled down your cheeks.

"Michikatsu Tsugikuni, I will share your atonement for your betrayal to the Demon Slayer Corps and burden your sin through seppuku. Forgive me."

As soon as those words left your lips, Michikatsu's eyes widen in shock at what you were about to do.

"MORIKO!"