[On The Brink - Part 4]

[1 hr and 30 minutes before Wilbur met up with Hanako, Lower Moon One, and Lower Moon Four.]

Being an Upper Moon was tough. Being an Upper Moon who knew that they could kill their supposed Master, Muzan Kibutsuji, was even tougher. But combining all of that with the frail mindset that Wilbur Soot had was a recipe for disaster waiting to be slammed into an oven and overbaked.

Still, however, Wilbur understood the power he had over Muzan, and he used it to his advantage. Not many Demons could say they had control over the king that ruled them all. However, unlike all of those Demons who thought they did and failed to prove it, he, on the other hand, had both the power and the proof.

However, there was just one issue.

That stupid Biwa Demon.

Nakime was a nuisance, that much Wilbur knew. Her Blood Demon Art was strange, weak almost, but it was extremely useful for Muzan's convenience. If he was ever in any imminent danger, Nakime would be sure to send it far away.

Much to Wilburs annoyance, Nakime had done just that, but not to the city he had been in previously. No, because of course she wouldn't. Instead, she had spat him out into a forest in the middle of bum fuck nowhere.

Growling to himself, he stood up from the ground he had been plopped onto, dusting himself off as he did so. He shook his head free of any nasty insults he had planned to throw Nakime's way when he would see her again—which was most likely at the next Upper Moon meeting, but he digressed.

The forest gave off a peaceful, almost serene air that, depending on the person, would quell their anger or rage from anyone at a given distance. However, seeing as Wilbur was NOT one of those people, the calming air did not affect the British man, not even in the slightest.

"Damn that Biwa bitch, but, I suppose keeping that stupid King of ours alive for the time being would be… somewhat beneficial, even if it is only for a short period." Wilburs voice, while not the most ear grating to listen to, sounded a bit more hoarse than usual.

He cleared his throat, scanning the area around him. Nothing but trees for miles. The man let out a sigh of defeat. He'd have to walk a bit further ahead before he could spot out any sort of person. Not many people lived in the forests, and those who did were water back hunters or homeless people living off the land.

Most people who were like that tasted better, but there were times the meat off the bone was a bit… chewy. Wilbur wasn't a picky eater, but he did know a few in his ranks that were. You see, unlike a certain Demon he knew about, Wilbur believed in equal rights. And equal rights meant equal bites.

To Wilbur, it didn't matter if you were a child, an adult, a woman, a man, transgender or otherwise. If you were a human, and you could be eaten, you would be eaten. Akaza, Upper Moon Three, did not like him for eating "weaker humans," going on record to say that by doing so, he wasn't getting stronger.

Of course, Muzan knew better than that and quickly shut his argument down, but that was when he had only just joined the Upper Moons.

Speaking of which. If he remembered correctly, the forest he was in was the same spot Daki and Gyutaro were dumped when they were demoted from the Upper Moons.

It was funny, the pair weren't even demoted to Lower Moons, they were just dropped from the Moons entirely. Then again, Wilbur did completely clown on them when they fought to keep their rank. Seeing as how they bickered far too much during the fight, it was clear to Muzan that they were far too incompetent, so they were dropped off in the forest to starve.

He didn't know what their fates had been, however, if he did see them again, he would probably have to fight them, most likely so they could take their position back.

But in that time, Wilbur had gotten far stronger, so it would be less of him clowning on them, rather it turning into an entire circus performance. However, he doubted he'd run into them again. It had been three weeks, and no one had heard back from the pair, so it was safe to say either a low ranking Demon Slayer killed them, or, a hashira had finished the job.

Regardless of what had happened to them, Wilbur knew that, beyond the shadow of a doubt, they were dead. It wasn't like they could've survived anyway, bickering with one another as they always did.

Deciding that standing around wasn't going to get him anywhere, Wilbur took it upon himself to find a place of shelter. Of course, he knew that the chances of running into a place to rest his head would be nearly impossible within the wooded forest, but he had least had to try.

The snow crunched beneath his feet as he waded through it, his boots keeping his skin from getting too cold. As he walked, he could hear the sounds of birds chirping, and other animals out in about, doing whatever they were doing. He felt almost… tranquil.

The last time he had felt at peace was when Philza, his father, stabbed him in the chest with his sword. He used to look back on that memory with a painful mindset, but now, seeing as he had matured greatly within his time at that blasted train station, he saw it for what it truly was.

A necessary sacrifice.

Wilbur believed that it was that moment that changed the course of history. Sure, his memories of the L'manburg war were a bit foggy, but he remembered most of it. It didn't help that Ghostburs memories still kept getting in the way or him truly remembering everything, but he knew that it would've been impossible to ignore those.

The L'manburg war. Now that was something that Wilbur hadn't thought about in a long time. All he could remember was the ending explosion, the voices, and Tommy…

"No… don't think about it… carry on, find a place to stay, ignore it. Push past it. It's all behind you now, you don't need to think about him anymore," Wilbur snarled to himself, trudging forward, forcing himself to shut his brain off as he walked.

But as he continued through the forest, he could hear Dream's words echo throughout in his mind. "What would Tommy… say to you right now… seeing you like this…?" Wilbur bit his lower lip, clenching his hand into a fist as the words continued to play on repeat in his mind. "He'd be ashamed… to call you… a brother, Wilbur…." And with that last sentence, that last, fleeting sentence that had been bouncing around in his brain, Wilbur turned around and released a volley of Explosive Vengeance towards an unexpecting tree, completely obliterating it in seconds as the red fog quickly enveloped it and ignited in the span of a few milliseconds. Wilburs eyes were filled with hatred, but as the smoke and debris cleared, the hate in his eyes died almost instantly, leaving Wilbur alone with his thoughts.

As chunks of wood came flying down from the sky, Wilbur stood stalk still, his hand outstretched to the place where the tree once had been. He slowly lowered his arm as he began to take in deep breathes. In, and out. In, and out. In, and out. He needed to calm down. He couldn't let Dream's words get to him. That was for certain.

Dream was lying. Tommy would always accept him as a brother… right? There was no way Tommy wouldn't accept him… right?

But then, in the back of his mind, he remembered that look he gave him just as he blew up L'manburg. That look of utter betrayal. A look of someone who had seen the possibility of something the both of them worked hard to get back come to fruition, only for it to be utterly demolished in front of them by the same person they trusted.

That one, singular, painful memory made Wilbur feel a sharp pain in his chest. He grabbed at it, trying to make it stop, but all he could see was that one, singular face. That face of betrayal stuck with him, even into his death.

Would Tommy ever forgive him? What was Tommy doing right now? Was he safe? Was he… even alive? Wilbur shook his head. No, he needed to forget about him. The past was in the past, and now was the future.

If he didn't forget about Tommy, then it would only drag him down.

"No, I don't need to care about him anymore. He's not here… he's not stuck here with us. And if he is… I hope he stays far away from me," Wilbur spoke, his head lowered to look at the ground as he let go of his chest. "I don't want him to see what I've become..." And with that, Wilbur looked back to the path in front of him and continued to walk.

After another five or so minutes of walking, Wilbur could hear the sounds of talking in the near distance. Other people, perhaps? Prey, maybe? He smirked. That would take his mind off of what he had been thinking about. Besides, his stomach was rumbling, and he needed a healthy morsel to quench its never-ending hunger. What was a snack going to do to him, hm?

He followed the sounds of the muffled voices, smelling the air for any other Demons. He really, really didn't want to run into another Demon, but if he did, well, he'd show just why he was an Upper Moon. As he got closer, the voices became more distinct, one of them, an old man, but the other one, it sounded… familiar. He stopped, slinking behind a tree as he listened in to the conversation at hand.

"I told you, Sakonji. I don't like the thought of Demons devouring whole towns within the night, or hell, Demons eating people in general, but sometimes, that is just how nature works. Humanity was never destined to be the sole race of intelligent life forms on this planet. You, and many others, should've seen it coming," the familiar voice spoke as the old man, presumably, this Sakonji fellow, spoke up in retaliation.

"What about the young children who get devoured by those monsters, Technoblade! Without the Demon Slayer Corps, the Demons will run rampant!" Sakonji spoke. While the information he had said was true, there was something else about what had been said by that man.

"Techno…blade?" Wilbur whispered, tasting the name on his tongue, and immediately recognized it. So, Dream and himself weren't the only ones here after all. He had heard rumours from the other Upper Moons that a Demon marked with the title "Blood God" had shown up out of nowhere, at first, he thought it to be a new experiment that blasted King of theirs had been working on.

But now, with this context, he knew full well that it was the man he once knew to be an ally back during the L'manburg war.

"So… Technoblade, eh. Haven't heard that name in a long while," Wilbur spoke aloud, turning around and into the sight of both men. As soon as he did, he was met with the old man going straight into a battle stance.

"An Upper Moon!" Sakonji shouted, drawing his sword as he took in a deep breath. Wilbur was about to attack when suddenly.

"Put your weapon down, Sakonji. This is not the time nor place for a battle," Technoblade said, his eyes narrowing on Wilbur as the Upper Moon. "Wilbur, what do you want, did Muzan send you?" The piglin spoke, glaring at Wilbur, who, in response raised his hands into the air, the universal sign to show that he was not a threat.

Of course, Sakonji did not seem to care.

"You are seriously not considering the fact that… that thing is a subordinate of Muzan! You said it yourself, you—"

"I SAID ENOUGH!" Technoblade roared, snarling at Sakonji, who had been taken aback by the sudden shift in emotion coming from the pig demon. He backed off, taking in a deep breath as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "My… apologies, Sakonji. But when I tell you that now is not the time to fight, I mean it," Technoblade spoke, his voice calm as he pushed down on Sakonji's sword, making it touch the ground. "Now, answer me, Wilbur, were you sent here by Muzan?"

Now Wilbur was at a crossroads. It was… nice to see someone he knew, and it was also nice to see someone he knew he could trust, but the fact that he was acting… defensive, almost, was strange.

"Well, yes and no. You see, Nakime spat me out in this forest, but not because of you. No, it was because I had annoyed Muzan and he wanted me to leave, so, here I am. In all actuality, I only came here because I heard voices in the distance. So… yeah!" Wilbur explained as Sakonji sighed.

"Damn my nose being able to pick up on the truth. Otherwise, I would've called you a liar. He speaks the truth, Technoblade. I don't think we need to worry about him reporting anything back to Muzan," Sakonji said, sheathing his blade. "But don't think I'm going to take my eye off of you, Demon," Sakonji finished as Wilbur dismissed him completely.

"Whatever, you don't scare me, human. But, back to what I was going to say. Technoblade! It's been far too long, old friend!" Wilbur said, a genuine smile on his face as Technoblade smiled back.

"Same goes to you too, old friend. I had no idea you were here. Dream hasn't made any attempts to contact me, it's good to see someone else from the village still kicking, even if you are a Demon as well," Technoblade said, his eyes glaring at him, begging him to play along, and so, he did.

"I was surprised to find out you also lived, Technoblade. It's good to see you once more. I remember your transformation well… you were quite the beast, before the explosion, of course. When that man saved me from my demise, I thought I'd never see you again. Nevertheless, here we are now!" Wilbur spoke as Sakonji narrowed his eyes beneath his mask.

"Reunions aside, what do you want, Demon?" Sakonji asked though it came off more like a demand. Wilbur snarled at the former Hashira, glancing over to Technoblade, who gave a disapproving glare, though it was unclear whether or not it was to him or if it was to Sakonji.

The pig-like Demon then turned to the former Hashira, placing a hand on his shoulder, causing the man to turn his head slightly to look at him.

"Sakonji, you don't need to stress about Wilbur. Truth be told, he's not much of a threat with me around. Even if he does decide to attack," Technoblade glanced at Wilbur for a split second, a silent threat gone unspoken as he reverted his attention to the man. "He wouldn't be able to do much before I split him in two," Technoblade said, letting go of his shoulder.

"But, I am curious, now that I know you're here, I would like to know what it is you want. You could always stop back at my place. I'm sure Dream wouldn't mind if you were there," Technoblade said as Wilbur rubbed the back of his neck.

"Uh… about that…" Wilbur said, his tone exaggerating the words as Technoblade raised an eyebrow.

"What do you mean?" Technoblade said, his voice stressing a form of panic that Wilbur hadn't been expecting.

"U-Uh… well, he kinda attacked me when I turned one of those comatose siblings into a Demon to save her life… and no one else saw it like that, so…." As soon as Wilbur finished, Technoblade huffed out through his nostrils.

"So… let me get this straight. You turned one of Tanjiro and Nezuko's siblings into a Demon in an attempt to save their lives. You only did so to one of them before Dream attacked you… then what?" Technoblade questioned as Wilbur shrugged.

"Dream nearly killed me, but I fled. To be fair, we both were trying to kill one another, but that's beside the point," Wilbur dismissed, leaning back against the tree he had come out from hiding behind. "Before you ask, I have a mental connection with the kid. I think her name is Hanako. But I could be wrong, who knows. I—" Wilbur paused, narrowing his eyes.

There was something wrong. He could feel it. Sense it. Something wasn't right. His brain was screaming for him to run. And that was when it hit him. Hanako, she… was in danger. He didn't know how he knew, but he could sense her distress.

"Uh… Wilbur? Are you okay?" Technoblade asked as the British Demon shook his head.

"Somethings wrong… she's nearby. I… I need to go, we'll catch up later, uh… how about we meet up alone next time, without a third party who hates my guts, alright?"

And before Technoblade could call out to him, Wilbur ran off in the direction he sensed Hanako in.

[In Town]

As Wilbur finished the last bite of flesh he could stomach, he looked over to Hanako, who had been casually munching on a dismembered leg. The look in her eyes had been full of mixed emotions, ranging from sadness, confusion, and pain.

He didn't know why she felt that way, but it worried him. He didn't know why it worried him, but he had an idea as to why. Since she shared his blood, it wouldn't be a stretch for his brain and body to think of her as his spawn. It would make sense, despite it also not making as much sense as he'd hoped for.

"Hey, kid, you okay?" Wilbur asked, covering his mouth as he burped. Hanako looked at him, dropping the arm as she looked away.

"Am I… a monster?" She asked him, much to his confusion. Of course she was, she was a demon. She was the textbook definition of a monster. Or perhaps….

"You did what you had to do to survive. You're not a monster. Selfish? Maybe, but you're not a monster, at least in the metaphorical sense," Wilbur explained. Hanako smiled, if only for a second, before her expression dropped back to its neutral face.

"I— thanks, I guess," she paused, looking back at him as she looked down at the arm. "I knew him, you know? That man we just ate. He used to be my friend's grandfather. To think that I… I ate him. I hate it!" Hanako snarled, clenching her hand into a fist. "But… but to survive, I had to eat him… I hate that I had to, but I did…I—!"

It was unexpected, confusing, but it happened anyway. Wilbur enveloped the kid in a hug, and as soon as he did, she began to cry into his shoulder. He didn't know why, but he felt like it was… natural. "Hey, it's okay. Let it all out, I'm right here. If you need to tell me anything, I'm all ears," Wilbur whispered as Hanako hiccuped.

"*hic* Wilbur-sensei… I… I want to go home…" Hanako cried as Wilbur smiled.

He felt awful, absolutely dreadful. He thought that by turning the kid into a Demon, she'd be better off. It was only a few days ago, and back then, when she was comatose, he felt like it was the right thing to do. But now more than ever did he realize the kind of mistake he made.

He turned an innocent kid into a Demon, an innocent minor. A child, who did not need that kind of punishment. Because, in all reality, that was what it was. He had condemned a child to a miserable, unending existence.

But that didn't mean he was going to neglect this. He had to make things right.

"Okay, Hanako-chan. I might not be able to bring you home, but Lower Moon One and Lower Moon Four will be able to, alright?" Wilbur said, letting go of the little Demon. Hanako nodded, wiping the tears from her eyes, nodding.

Wilbur looked over to the doorway, pointing to it. Hanako looked over in its direction as Lower Moon One and Lower Moon Four were about to leave.

"Hanako! Let's go! The Sun's about to come up, come on!" Enmu yelled as Hanako ran out of the building, waving bye to Wilbur. Enmu nodded to the Demon in question as the British man sighed. He had to find somewhere to sleep, otherwise, somewhere preferably not anywhere near the town.

Wilbur left the building and ran beyond the border of the town. He ran through thick forests and shrubbery, only stopping when he noticed a small hut with an old man sitting at the front door. Wilbur smirked, baring his teeth as red gas filled the palm of his hand.

Time for what a British man does best. Conquer something that isn't their own.

-To Be Continued-

And thus ends this chapter on Wilbur Soot. Does Wilbur truly care about Hanako, or is that just an illusion? The next chapter will be about Dream and his perspective. Afterward, we will be moving into a couple of chapters of training for Hanako, then we'll be moving on to the next arc.

I hope you guys think this chapter was worth the near month wait. I'm sorry it took so long, but eh, life happens. See you all in the next chapter, peace.