We're approaching the climax of Volume 3, with only two more chapters to go before we get into Volume 4 if we're not counting this chapter. But before we actually get into the chapter, I would like to give a huge thanks to Doc43Souls for being my beta reader for the last five chapters of this story, and a handful for another fanfic I write. I greatly appreciate the work you do, so keep it up!

Anyway, with that being said, these next few chapters are going to mostly focus on the stuff outside of U.A. shenanigans that will be going on with Bakugo and Kyoka. Besides, while they are focus characters they aren't the main character. That, and we've already set up the stuff for Volume 4—that being the stuff with them—so it's high time we finish up what I set up at the beginning of this volume. This is going to be fun~!

Now, before we start the chapter, as always…

WARNING! THIS STORY CONTAINS SCENES/MENTIONS/IMPLICATIONS OF THE FOLLOWING: CANNIBALISM, EXTREME GORE, BULLYING, ABUSE, BRUTAL DEATH, HUMAN EXPERIMENTATION, AND HEAVY BLOODSHED.

IF ANY OF THESE THINGS BOTHER YOU, TURN BACK NOW!

IF THE WARNING DOES NOT APPLY TO YOU…

THIS STORY IS A FAN-BASED FICTION

I OWN NEITHER MY HERO ACADEMIA NOR DEMON SLAYER/KIMETSU NO YAIBA

ALL I OWN ARE MY OCS

Now, onto the chapter!

[Beta Read by Doc43Souls]

[Vol 3 – 6: The Price Of Peace – Part 3]

A fist clashed against a wooden desk, wood splintering as golden yellow eyes glared at the floor with intense fury. How could this have happened?! MCPD, one of the police forces that he had bought out, had been completely eviscerated! There were reportedly no survivors, and everyone in the building had been torn apart and picked clean. According to the news, it was as if a tornado of violence and depravity had torn through the building, leaving nothing but semi-rotting corpses and piles of bones.

The idea of someone eating another person made Kai Chisaki's stomach churn. It was the height of uncleanliness. So many germs, so many diseases, and so much disgusting blood covering every inch of the building. It made him shudder in disgust.

But, beyond that, it threw yet another wrench in his plans. It was clear that whoever had taken Eri was more than just some random intervening nobody. In fact, this kind of behaviour reeked of The Hero Cannibal. The only issue was that it wasn't their M.O. meaning that it was most likely a copycat. So his fear of that possibility was unwarranted.

Currently, he had gathered all of the Eight Bullets into his office to conduct a meeting about what to do going forward. Speaking of his office, it was a rather large room, that much was expected. It had a desk and chair, which was where he sat. The desk was neat and tidy, with stacks of papers off to the right, with a feather pen to the left. There was a basket labelled "reports" which was also full.

As for the room itself, two double doors were acting as the entrance. Both doors were made out of dark oak and had golden door handles. The two doors were omnidirectional, meaning they would swing open and slam closed, as well as do the reverse. There were also several paintings decorating the walls, most of which being of birds in trees and of flowers—all of them having been painted by Chronostasis.

The office was full at the moment, as it would be for this occasion. Every member of the Eight Bullets was scattered about the room. Some were sitting on wooden chairs, others were standing with their arms behind their backs, and those that weren't doing either of those were leaning against the walls.

"This is… quite vexing," one of the Eight Bullets, Hekiji Tengai muttered, his left hand stroking underneath his brown plague doctor mask. The man wore a black yukata, with a pair of wooden geta on his feet. It was a rather traditional outfit, one that the blond-haired man had preferred over modern outfits. "What do you suppose we do, oyabun?"

Overhaul frowned, eyes closed as he thought about recent events. Two weeks ago, Eri was in his clutches. Everything was running smoothly, and The Quirk Erasing Drug was close to perfection. All he would need is a few more months until it was complete. But then, the little brat escaped, and it got worse when The Boogyman, aka All For One, possibly had her in his clutches.

Again, it was only a chance for this to be the case. He had been hoping that to be true, but on the off chance that it wasn't, he would have to make do with the blood he had. Granted, that blood was quite a lot, around several gallons, but he would have to find some way to replicate it without Eri as time went on.

However, that was if she was with All For One. If she wasn't, then he was going to do everything in his power to get her back. For the time being, he needed to lay and wait to see if any of his workers had found her, and wait until they reported back to him.

"At the moment…" Kai began, overlooking his Eight Bullets with narrowed and patient eyes. "We wait until we hear from those who we still have scattered about the major cities. If, in a week, we hear nothing back from them, we will expand our search."

"I don't like all of this waiting around and doin' nothing, oyabun…. It's making me anxious," a large man with long, flowing red hair spoke up, his arms crossing over his chest. His mask was ripped at the neck, covering his entire face. It had a metal jaw that hinged like a real mouth—something that annoyed Kai, but he let it slide because otherwise, he would never hear the end of it—while the rest of the mask was a suffocating black. It had white mesh eyeholes with yellow plating around them, making the mask look more intimidating.

The rest of his outfit consisted of a ripped white t-shirt, and a pair of dark pants with a light blue tunic hanging down just below his ankles, all held together by two dark brown belts. It was completed by a pair of black military boots with soles meant for climbing mountains. Around his arms were metal braces that acted as extremely large brass knuckles.

"I am very aware of that, Rappa," Kai rumbled as the man huffed.

"Then why don't we start breaking faces? It can't be that hard, yeah?" Rappa started, craning his neck to the side. "The runt can't have gone that far, right?" Rappa stated. Before Kai could interject, the man continued.

"Don't get me wrong, even I want nothing to do with All For One. But, all of this caution is being used on the chance that we're dealing with All For One. For all we know, some runt with a shapeshifting Quirk is playing hero, and if that's the case, they have to still be in Musutafu, which was where Eri was last seen, yeah?" Rappa pointed out, as Kai reclined in his chair, fingers steepled as the Yakuza Boss lowered his head with a demeaning glare.

"Yes. She was, and need I remind you it was those who I put you in charge of that lost her. You of all people have no place to speak, Rappa," Kai spat as Rappa seemingly narrowed his eyes under his mask if the scrunching of the fabric was anything to indicate.

"Yeah, I know that. That's why I'm being pushy. I want to rewrite my wrongs," Rappa grumbled. "I already slashed my stomach for the failure, and I didn't die. That means I get to make up for it, as you said I would," Rappa's voice gained a dangerous edge as he took a step forward, his hulking form towering over Kai. "Which is exactly why it pisses me off that we're sitting here and doing jack shit."

"Rappa," Chronostasis growled. "Know your place. You dare speak to Overhaul like that?"

"Says his boyfriend," Rappa spat back, making Chronostasis flinch. "Shut yer mouth, does it look like I'm talking to you? I'm talking to the oyabun, not you." As the words left his mouth, Rappa turned his attention back to Kai, who was practically seething in his chair.

"'Sit around and wait' you say, and look at what that's accomplished? A fat lotta nothing. If this was All For One, do you really think that he wouldn't have come out of hiding yet? Are we all forgetting what the brat's Quirk is? Oh yeah, It's Rewind. If the rumours of his extensive injuries brought to him at the hands of All Might are true, do you really think he wouldn't capitalize on his new prize? He would've flattened us after gettin' his body back to a better condition than what it supposedly is in, yeah?"

The more Rappa spoke, the more he leaned into Kai's face, and the more Kai's glare became dangerous, and his face contorted into a furious sneer underneath his mask. "So, tell me, oyabun, what do you think would've happened if this really was All For One we were dealing with."

"Rappa, you are treading on dangerous territory. If you value your life, you'll shut up. If you don't—"

"Then you'll Overhaul me and never put me back together, yeah?" Rappa interrupted Kai, the edge in his voice increased as Rappa reclined back to his full height. "Okay then. Well, let me remind you what happened the last time you tried that. Last I checked, the only reason you beat me was cause your stupid fuck buddy slowed me down. I was beating your ass the last time we fought."

There was a dreadful tension building up in the air as the two stared each other down. Kai was reminded of that horrible fight by the intense glare that Rappa was no doubt sending his way underneath that mask. He could still feel the phantom pains of broken bones and torn ligaments. Rappa was definitely a terrifying individual, but with his Quirk, with Overhaul, even he would bow to him.

"I believe that is enough, Rappa," Hekiji spoke up, catching the man's attention. "Leave oyabun alone," the forcefield user continued as a thin yellow wall appeared between Rappa and Kai. "Back away, Rappa. Know your place."

Rappa huffed, turning his back on Overhaul before storming out of the office. When he left, Hekiji sighed, deactivating the forcefield before he looked back at Kai and spoke. "Although, I'll give the brute credit where credit is due. He does bring up a good point. All For One would have already made his move by now. That safely erases him from the picture."

"If that is the case, then we will take further action. But until I get definitive proof, then I want to tread carefully. The last thing I want to do is expose an opening for All For One or any of his lackies to abuse," Kai replied as Hekiji nodded, humming before he bowed.

"Then that is all for me," Hekiji stated as Kai overlooked the rest of the Eight Bullets.

"Is there anything else anyone wants to say?" Kai asked, earning a bout of silence with some minor fidgeting from a few of the others. Kai nodded, standing up with narrowed eyes. "Then this is what we will do. One week. That is all I will wait for. Until I gain some notable information from one of the scouts, then—"

Before Kai could finish, someone barged into the office, panting and out of breath. It was one of the scouts. They were a middle-aged man wearing a full white facemask, along with a black muscle shirt and black jeans. They were fairly unremarkable as appearances go, but they were important to the Yakuza nevertheless.

"Excuse you. Why are you interrupting this meeting? This better be important," Kai growled as the scout cleared his throat, looking up at Kai with a confident gaze.

"Many apologies, oyabun. But this is important. Really, important," the man paused, regaining his breath as he stood up straight, posture reflecting someone who had completed a very important task and was filled with confidence, so much so it masked the apparent tiredness lurking within their eyes. "We found her. We found Eri. I would have tried to take her, but she was with The Shapeshifter who appears to be some random kid, and was talking to several other adults, all of whom were convinced that Eri was his."

Kai's eyes widened. Now that… that was some good news! Beyond that, actually. That was excellent news! Eri was found, and not only was she found, but they also found the person who had taken her. Granted, it wasn't like that did anything for them because they could change their shape at will, but at the very least it confirmed that the chances of All For One being behind this whole thing were slimmer.

However… there was one small detail that irked him more than anything, and that was that this whole time they were being duped by some child. Some teenage brat who dared to steal away Eri from them?! This whole time… his men and his police were being slaughtered and ravaged by some kid?! How in the bloody HELL was that even possible!?

The Shie Hissaikai was one of the most powerful criminal organizations in the whole of Japan, and some brat was running circles around them with his secret weapon! When he got his hands on that brat, he was going to teach him a lesson. One that he would never soon forget.

But, until then, he had to worry about where Eri was being kept. "Where was she? Where was she hiding?" Kai demanded, a hint of urgency in his voice as the scout straightened himself out more, putting his hands at his sides as he continued.

"According to the other scouts I was with, she frequents Takomata Daycare, which is located in Musutafu City, a few blocks away from Musutafu Private Middle School, and sandwiched between two 12-story tall housing apartments. She goes there daily from the hours of 7:30 AM to 5:30 PM and gets picked up by The Shapeshifter always at 6:00 PM," the scout explained as Kai raised an eyebrow.

Now this was interesting if not a little infuriating. This scout had so much information, and not only that but pinpoint and detailed information. It begged the question of why he had, most likely, been withholding it. Perhaps he had a reason. Most of the scouts did, and while he was a little worked up from his confrontation with Rappa, he could still think rationally.

"You seem to have a lot of information on this place. I assume you were making sure to confirm this information before giving it to me?" Kai questioned as the scout nodded.

"We were making sure that it wasn't a coincidence and also making sure that he wasn't switching up places every day, so we waited a few days to get this information to you, mostly to confirm that we had everything right," the scout replied as Kai chewed the inside of his cheek.

"Thank you," Chronostasis spoke up, making Kai glance in his direction. "Now, please leave. The same goes for the rest of you, this meeting is dismissed. Overhaul has a lot on his mind, and the last thing he needs is a distraction," the white-haired man stated. Kai was going to object, but everyone else had already begun to leave. When they did, and when the door closed, Kai turned to Chronostasis with a frown underneath the black mesh mask he was wearing.

"Why did you do that, Chrono? I was fine," Kai said as Chronostasis took off his mask, and removed his hood. His expression glowed with "Are you serious" written all over his face. It was the same look that he would give Kai when he snapped at someone for no justifiable reason, and it made Kai sigh. "Alright, so maybe I wasn't. But you didn't have to call off the meeting."

"You were seconds away from killing someone. I could see it in your eyes. Rappa provoked you and it took everything for you to not make him a splatter on the wall," Chrono stated, arms crossed across his chest as his frown deepened. "Firstly, you need to attend Anger Management again for the third time this week, and secondly, you need to get some more sleep. You're running off of what? 2, maybe 3 hours of sleep?"

"Chrono, I—"

"Enough, Kai," Hari interrupted, sighing as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "Look, I'm the brains behind the operation, you manage the finances and make sure everyone is listening to orders. So, allow me to do my job and look out for you. Both as your business partner and, more importantly, as someone who cares about you."

Kai, for his part, relented. For as much as he wanted to disagree with Hari, the man was right. He had felt that he was getting more than a little aggravated, and with his mission being upended because of a loose window pane and Eri's surprising upper-body strength—seriously, he kept her malnourished for a reason, how the hell did she have enough strength to climb out of a window—the girl was far away from the main base in Esuha and in the hands of some brat.

"That brat is going to pay for what he's doing…" Kai snarled, clenching his hand into a fist. Hari placed a hand on his shoulder and nodded silently.

Kai meant that. The brat was going to pay for so much as laying his dirty, bacteria-covered hands-on Eri. He was going to make sure that boy paid for not only crossing him but crossing the Yakuza. Once Eri was back in his hands, he would hunt down that boy till he either killed himself or Kai killed him.

That was more than adequate for the stress that brat put on Kai, for the damage done to his operation.

He was going to get Eri back, even if it was the last thing he did.

xxXXxxXXxx

"Eri, dinner's ready!" Izuku called out as he finished putting the small pile of mashed potatoes on Eri's plate. Originally, Izuku had planned on making rice with Eri's chopped-up steak, peas, and carrots, but Eri had insisted on having potatoes. He didn't know why Eri had, but Izuku chalked it up to the fact that she wanted to have potatoes.

Besides, she had had rice for the whole week, and she had been a good girl, so giving her something she wanted wasn't too big of a deal. That, and it wasn't as if potatoes were bad for her. They were high in both potassium and vitamin C, which was something that Eri was lacking.

The poor girl was lacking in a lot of vitamins, not only that but she was malnourished to the point where when Izuku first found her, she had mostly skin and bones.

According to Ochako, for the few days that she had Eri in her care, Eri was against eating too much, and that made sense. Her little stomach probably couldn't have handled it. Especially how little she had been eating already if she had been being fed at all.

Now, though? Now, Eri had more skin on her bones. She was still thin, but she wasn't sickly thin. When she was first dropped off at the daycare looking like skin and bones, the worker there asked why she had been. Izuku had explained that she was a homeless kid that he had taken home to care for, which got the daycare worker off of his back.

Everyone in the community was invested in her health, and by the community, he meant his Demons and the daycare that she was going to. In fact, Izuku had been pretty clueless about what to feed Eri for a little bit. The Daycare attendant had been the one to give him a list of things she should eat to get her back to a proper weight, something that he had thanked her profusely for.

Yes, he was a Demon. Yes, he ate humans. And Yes, he was extremely smart. But that didn't mean he knew everything. Not only that, but he had been so used to eating humans that he had forgotten what proper portion sizes were.

With a little help from one of the other parents at the Daycare, a woman by the name of Shino Sosaki, who was actually the aunt of one of the kids there, had told him what amount of food would be best for little Eri. And, as it turned out, having her eat in small portions rather than full portions worked better than he had anticipated. Not only that, but the food she was eating was rich with the vitamins she needed.

Once he had the chance, he would thank those two profusely for their help. He felt… odd for thanking lowly humans, but… he had to remember that just because he was a Demon, that didn't suddenly make every human inferior. They were important, and he had to remember that. His mother didn't raise a prejudiced child, and she would have taken great offence to his slip-ups in worldview.

Turning around, Izuku was about to call Eri's name out again, only to find her sitting at the coffee table. She had already pulled out her pillow to kneel on and she already had her fork in her hand. She was wearing a cute pink shirt with a rainbow plastered across the front, as well as a pair of knee-length blue and red shorts.

Eri had selected that outfit of herself, and she quite liked it. Much like Natsumi, Eri didn't much care for girly things. She wasn't a big fan of overly girly stuff. If only she had the same energetic outlook that Natsumi had, he would've been able to call her Natsumi's long-lost sister.

Beyond that, Izuku had been getting Eri used to sitting traditionally around a table, as it was proper and respectful. Chairs were convenient, but they were for relaxing and watching the television, not eating a proper meal. That, and unless it was at a school, most people didn't sit on benches or chairs to eat, and he didn't want Eri to get used to that.

Bringing Eri her food, Izuku placed it in front of the girl, before going back into the kitchen. Prior to picking up Eri and going shopping for human food, he had followed up on a few of his leads on a couple of degenerate heroes who were extorting money from orphanages and threatening the local families of a neighbourhood to pay for their protection.

Needless to say, the two tag-team heroes Watchhog, whose Quirk was a hedgehog mutant Quirk that gave him superspeed, and Dr. Mecha, whose Quirk was transforming parts of their bodies into weapons and shields, were packed up rather quickly. He had also brought a few black trash bags to carry their chopped-up remains in, which he was keeping in his freezer.

Opening the freezer, Izuku opened up the bag labelled "Dr. Mecha" and pulled out a rather sizable portion of the man's thigh. It was big, it was filling, and more importantly, it would curb his hunger. He had to keep track of that while Eri was living with him. The last thing he wanted to was go feral again and lose someone he cared about.

Upon re-tying up the bag and closing the freezer, Izuku walked back into the living room with the leg in hand and sat across the table from Eri, taking a bite out of the leg as Eri looked on with a raised eyebrow. She had cleaned the plate of the potatoes, and had already picked away at the peas and carrots. The girl ate fast, which was good, but the way she was eyeing his food had him a little worried.

"Eri, is there something wrong?" Izuku asked, blood staining his teeth as the little girl shook her head from whatever trance she had been in.

"Um… Mr. Izuku… why do you eat raw things?" Eri asked, her question innocent in nature as Izuku frowned.

"Well, Eri, as you know I am a Demon, and Demons can't stomach cooked and or human food. So we resort to eating other people. I specifically target bad people. Evil, nasty, rotten people. At least, when I can help it," Izuku said, his stomach churning at the thought of his mother's destroyed and torn-apart body.

"Demons… eat bad people?" Eri asked, her voice containing a small tinge of hope. Izuku caught onto it immediately and raised a finger to correct her.

"I said I eat bad people. I also try to enforce this onto the other Demons I create, but it doesn't work most of the time. Their hunger can get the better of them. Frankly, for them, all I care about is them getting stronger. So long as they aren't eating children or actively hunting innocent people, I don't care how they get their food," Izuku corrected as Eri looked down at her food, then stabbed one of the steak bits on her plate, popped it into her mouth, before swallowing.

Izuku noticed that the grip on her fork had tightened, and he couldn't tell if Eri was angry or if she was getting upset.

Eri was a quiet child, and never really spoke out much unless she was terrified of something. She only talked when spoken to, and so it was hard to tell what she was thinking most of the time. He was about to ask why she was seemingly aggravated before Eri spoke up.

"Can you eat the bad man?"

Izuku nearly choked on air as he coughed, having to cover his hand so he didn't get blood all over Eri's food, which would have probably happened otherwise. It had come completely out of left field, so much so that it shocked Izuku. Once his little coughing fit was done, he grunted, looking back at Eri.

"I'm sorry, can I do what?" Izuku asked as Eri shrunk in on herself, looking away with a tinge of fear in her eyes.

"I-I'm sorry… I shouldn't have said that. I—"

"No, no, no stop," Izuku interrupted, putting down the piece of meat he was eating, placing his hands on his knees as he had one of his whips gently force Eri to look at him. This specific whip had no sharp edge, as he had created it to be that way, that way he didn't turn the risk of cutting her. "Now hold on there just a minute Eri. I want you to repeat to me what you just said."

"T-That I'm sorry…?" Eri asked, her voice timid as Izuku sighed.

"No, Eri. I mean what you said before that," Izuku corrected as Eri sheepishly glanced at the ground.

"C-Can you… eat the bad man?" Eri asked, her voice still timid, as Izuku frowned.

The bad man. Who was the bad man? Whoever it was, it was clearly linked to whatever trauma she had been dealing with. There were no ifs as to when he would make sure this person suffered, due to the fact that it was definitely the case that it was this "bad man's" fault that Eri had suffered, there was just one problem with her request. "I would, had I an idea of who and where this "bad man" is," Izuku replied as Eri, still tense, nodded.

"I… I know. Um… I don't know where the bad man is…. Sorry," Eri muttered as Izuku reached out and ruffled Eri's hair. The blue-haired girl shrunk into herself, tears threatening to poke out from her eyes as Izuku retracted his hand before he rose the girl's head to look into his eyes. Grabbing a napkin from his pocket, he dapped at the corners of her eyes and smiled.

"Eri, you do not need to cry. You shouldn't feel upset, it's not like you have upset me. You're just a child. I don't expect you to drill everything into your head," Izuku said, drawing back his hand as he stood up, tall and looming but motioning for Eri to stand up as well. "Follow me, Eri. There is something that has been… on my mind lately."

Without much resistance, Eri followed Izuku into the kitchen. When he stopped, he motioned for her to stay still. He hadn't said anything to her about what he saw at the Daycare, but he couldn't have helped but notice that they had been being watched by a few people who tried and failed, to look inconspicuous. As such, he had a feeling that whoever had previously had Eri in their position was more than just your average gang leader.

Izuku was more than aware of that he couldn't always be in Eri's immediate proximity to protect her. That was a given due to his double life as both The Hero Cannibal and Ordinary Teenager. He had to keep both identities active, and with a small child, it was more than difficult to juggle everything. So, he had to do something.

Knowing this, and knowing that they were being watched, Izuku had to come up with a backup plan. He had to make sure Eri was safe. And so, he knew that, eventually, he would have to turn Eri into a Demon for her own protection. In order to do that, he would need to be the one to turn her. Or, more specifically, she needed to come into contact with his blood.

The only way he would be able to do that is if he injected his blood into her. However, that would require his presence. And because of that aforementioned issue of him not being able to be around Eri 24/7, he had come up with an idea.

Opening up a drawer closest to the fridge, he pulled out a little bag. This bag was a bag of epidermic needles. As soon as Eri saw them, she took a step back. Izuku raised an eyebrow. She was scared of needles? That… was an issue. Izuku raised a reassuring hand, though that did nothing to ease her. "Do not worry, Eri. I am not using them on you. But, I want you to pay close attention."

Eri, still scared, relaxed if only slightly as Izuku pulled out one of the needles that he acquired. Now, how did he get the needles? Well, he simply purchased some online. It was strangely scary how readily available medical needles were. These specific needles were both injector and extractor needles, dual-use, meaning they could be used twice before the needle head broke.

Jabbing himself in the neck with the needle, he drew out a full vial of blood. It was a lot of it, but that was the point. It was more than enough for her to transform into a Demon and a strong one at that. After he drew his blood, he wiped down the needle head and put a cap on it. He walked up to Eri, opened her right hand, and placed the needle filled with his blood in it.

Eri looked at the needle, then back at Izuku, back to the needle, then right back to Izuku. "W-What… what is this?"

"My blood," Izuku replied, a curt smile on his face. Getting down on a knee, he looked Eri dead in her eyes as he wrapped one of his hands around hers, before speaking. "I can't be around you 24/7. You know this, and it's why I take you to that daycare." Izuku paused, breathing in sharply before exhaling. "I've begun to notice that we are being watched. Most likely by this "bad man" you mentioned. So, just in case, should you ever find yourself in danger, I want you to inject yourself with that blood."

Eri's eyes widened, before looking at the needle. Seeing this, Izuku continued. "It will hurt. It will hurt a lot. You will experience excruciating pain. The transformation is a very painful one, so I have been told. That is why it is a last resort. You may go unconscious from the pain, and when you wake up, you will be different. But, you will also be strong. You will be able to defend yourself. And no one, not even that "bad man" will ever be able to hurt you again."

As Izuku explained, Eri's grip on the needle increased. It was clear she was happy about the development, and whatever fear she had about that particular needle was gone. That was good. But the look of excitement in her eyes was a little… unnerving. "Eri… becoming a Demon will take away your humanity…." Izuku said as Eri looked up at him.

"What does that mean?" Eri asked as Izuku inhaled sharply, looking away. He didn't want to confront this, but… it was better if he did. It was better if she knew before anything horrible could happen. Softly exhaling, he looked back at Eri and let go of her hand, before placing both of his hands on her shoulders.

"You have friends, yes? Human friends? At the daycare?" Izuku asked as Eri fidgeted, nodding.

"Y-yeah… I-Izumi-kun. He's a little mean, but he's also really nice," Eri replied as Izuku raised an eyebrow. Another Izumi, huh? It was most likely a family name, but still, it was a little funny. He was getting distracted. He needed to get back on track.

"I see. Well, as a Demon, you will have an unstoppable urge to kill and eat him. To kill and eat any human you come across. I can handle that pressure because I am as old as I am. But for someone like you? A child? The change will do irreversible damage. To put it simply, you'll look like Eri, sound like Eri, and act like Eri… but you won't be Eri. You'll be a monster. That's why it's a last resort. Something to do when there is nothing that can be done, and when I can't be there to help you."

Eri nodded slowly. Izuku hoped she understood what he was saying because otherwise, things could get a little complicated. He didn't want Eri to lose her chance at a normal childhood. He wanted Eri to experience life to its fullest. Something he could never do. But if it came down to it, if something happened that made it unavoidable, then it would have to be done.

And on that day, should it ever come, he hoped that those who caused Eri's transformation into a Demon knew exactly what kind of pain they would be unleashing onto the world.

Letting go of her shoulders, Izuku stood up and walked out of the kitchen. "Come now, let's finish dinner and then I'll put something on the TV. What would you like to watch today?" As Izuku's question was spoken, Eri perked up with a smile, sliding the covered needle into her shorts pocket and running after Izuku.

"Oh! I want to watch Anpanman!"

Izuku couldn't help but snicker at her joy. He was going to protect that smile of hers. No matter what, for as long as he could, Eri's smile would live rent-free in his heart. He was going to make sure that smile was preserved for as long as it could be.

Izuku would never let any harm come to Eri. Once he found out more about the "bad man" he was going to make him pay for so much as even laying a finger on Eri. He would take great pleasure in skinning the man from head to toe and making him watch as he and his Demons ate him alive.

"Yes… that is more than adequate punishment for scum such as he. This "bad man" will pay for his crimes against Eri. He will never soon forget the pain and trauma that he has put upon such a pure vessel of joy. He will pay."

-To Be Continued-

This chapter was more of a build-up to what's to come in the next two chapters. But, if it wasn't obvious, the seeds for an immediate conflict have been planted, and the results of this conflict are going to be insane. I hope you are all excited to see what will happen. Till next time, everyone, have a great day! Peace!