Overlord: The Multiverse-Chapter 225: Pretend Family

"What are you doing?" Tanjiro asked, his gaze flickering briefly toward Rui's "sister," who still knelt, cradling her wounded face. "Aren't you two... allies?"

Rui's eyes flashed with a mocking light as he looked at Tanjiro. "Allies?" he repeated, his tone dripping with disdain. "You misunderstand."

He motioned toward his "sister" with a flick of his fingers, barely acknowledging her presence. "They're not allies. They're... family. My family. And they obey me. There's no room for weakness or disobedience."

Tanjiro's expression softened with empathy as he looked at Rui's "sister," catching the faint fear in her eyes. His heart clenched at the way she flinched under Rui's controlling gaze.

"But family isn't just about obedience or control. It's about caring for each other, supporting each other, not forcing them to be something they're not."

Rui's face twisted with anger. "You know nothing about what true family means!" he snapped, his voice a mix of fury and something darker, a pain he buried under his cruel facade. "Family is created through strength, through power. If you can't understand that, then you don't deserve to lecture me."

Tanjiro held his ground, his grip tightening on his sword. "I may not understand everything about you, Rui," he said calmly, "but forcing your 'family' to obey you through fear... that isn't family. This is counterfeit."

"You..." Rui was about say something, then suddenly one demon slayer emerged from the forest.

"Hey! Look at that, a demon just about the right size. Even I can take down a kid demon like this one....." The slayer couldn't even finish as he turned into chucks of meat by Rui's web.

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"Hey! What did you just said?" The atmosphere suddenly turned heavy as Rui turned to Tanjiro.

Rui's gaze flickered, his eyes narrowing as he looked back at Tanjiro. "You... what did you say?" His voice was low, but it carried a deadly edge as the atmosphere around him grew thick with menace.

Just as he was about to speak further, the underbrush rustled, and a Demon Slayer emerged, his face etched with a cocky grin. "Hey! Look at that, a demon just the right size. Even I can take down a kid demon like this one..."

The slayer's words were cut off abruptly as Rui's threads whipped out with deadly precision, slicing through the air. In the blink of an eye, the Demon Slayer was reduced to a grisly spray of flesh and blood, his body falling in pieces at Rui's feet.

Rui didn't flinch; his attention was entirely on Tanjiro. "What did you say about my family?" he repeated, his voice now a lethal whisper.

Tanjiro's heart pounded, but his resolve held firm. "Your family... isn't real, Rui. It's a counterfeit. Family isn't about control and fear. Forcing people to act like family doesn't make them family." His grip on his sword tightened as he steadied his stance.

Rui's expression twisted in rage, his eyes narrowing as the tension between them built like a coiled spring. "Enough! I'll show you the strength of my family. Sister!" he barked, turning his head slightly.

The girl flinched but nodded, stepping back into the shadows. Rui's cold eyes glinted as he issued his command. "Finish off the others. Leave this one to me."

She nodded quickly and disappeared into the trees, her silhouette vanishing as she moved to fulfill his order. The distant sounds of other Demon Slayers' shouts and the faint rustling of webs surrounded them, a reminder that time was slipping away.

Rui raised his hands, his threads whipping out in a deadly, elegant arc, each one shimmering in the pale moonlight. "You won't be able to defeat me," he sneered, his voice chilling. "You don't understand true strength."

Tanjiro took a deep breath, steadying himself. His grip on his sword was firm, and his mind sharpened as he focused on the coming assault. "If I can just get close enough..." he murmured to himself, his eyes fixed on Rui.

Rui moved first, his threads lashing out with lethal accuracy, each one aimed to slice through flesh and bone with ease. Tanjiro barely managed to evade them, ducking and weaving with incredible agility as he closed the distance between them, his breath was even and focused. He swung his blade, aiming for Rui's torso, but Rui leaped back with a graceful, almost taunting motion.

"You're fast," Rui admitted, his tone unimpressed. "But speed alone won't save you." He flicked his fingers, and the threads around him tightened, forming an intricate web in the air between them, trapping Tanjiro in a deadly snare.

Tanjiro felt the bite of a thread against his shoulder, sharp as a razor, and winced as blood began to seep through his haori. Gritting his teeth, he continued to press forward, his sword flashing as he cut through the webbing around him. "I won't give up," he muttered, his voice strained but determined.

Rui's expression remained cold as he watched Tanjiro struggle against the web. "You're wasting your time. These threads are stronger than anything you've faced. Surrender, and I might make your death painless."

But Tanjiro didn't listen. He took a deep breath, remembering his training, and moved with newfound resolve. He managed to get close enough to strike, swinging his sword in a powerful arc aimed at Rui's neck.

Rui reacted in an instant, his threads snapping up to block the blow. Sparks flew as Tanjiro's sword met Rui's webbing, but the threads held strong, deflecting his attack. With a vicious smirk, Rui retaliated, his threads coiling around Tanjiro's sword arm, pinning him in place.

"You're pathetic," Rui sneered, tightening his grip. "You speak of family and bonds, yet you lack the strength to back it up. This is the end for you."

Tanjiro struggled, feeling the threads dig into his skin as Rui's grip tightened further. His vision blurred from the pain, and his strength began to wane. For a moment, doubt crept into his mind, the despair of defeat looming over him. But then, a memory flashed—a distant, faded memory of his father, moving in a gentle, flowing dance by the fire, a technique he had once shown Tanjiro long ago.

Hinokami Kagura... the Dance of the Sun.

~~~

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