Chapter 268: They Were Men Anyway

At the edge of the beach, the sea breeze was pleasant.

Makomo had already taken off her shoes and rolled up her pants to wade into the shallow water.

The water covered her feet; with a slight yelp, she backed away, but then stepped forward again to test it.

It was the first time she’d ever seen the ocean.

She bent down, scooped up water with both hands, and took a sip.

"Pff!"

She immediately made a face of disgust and spat out the water in her mouth.

Way too salty.

Still, this didn’t dampen her enthusiasm. With her shoes in hand, she left a trail of footprints along the beach, chasing after the receding waves and having the time of her life.

Behind her, Marcus sat beside a campfire.

Several fish skewered on branches were roasting over the flames; the grease bubbled and dripped onto the embers.

Marcus turned the fish while watching Makomo, before speaking toward the space behind him:

"If you’re going to watch, do it openly. Doing it in secret is creepy."

Two steps behind him, Nakime knelt on the sand.

Hearing this, she immediately lowered her head, covering much of her face with her long hair.

"I was just curious..." she murmured with a little fear.

"Curious about why I’m not killing you?" Marcus tore off a piece of fish with his mouth.

"Actually, I guessed you probably wouldn’t kill me," Nakime replied, lifting her face toward Marcus’s back. "I’m curious to know why you aren’t punishing me."

Marcus stopped moving.

Punish her? Here?!

He turned to look at her.

Nakime pressed her lips together, her hands folded over her knees.

"I did something wrong, so I must be punished. Whether you cut off my head or sever my limbs, I won’t scream. It’s just that I don’t know... when you punish me, would you rather I scream in agony, or do you find the screaming annoying?"

Marcus looked at her with a grimace.

So... that was the kind of punishment she meant.

Mmm...

Turning a fine musician into a masochist obsessed with mutilation... Muzan’s work environment really is toxic—though it fit Muzan’s twisted personality perfectly.

"I’m not like Muzan," he said, shaking his head as he tossed the fish head into the fire. "I don’t make a habit of torturing my own."

Nakime tilted her head slightly, puzzled.

"Then... you won’t punish me?"

Marcus paused while eating.

"I will. Just not here, and not now."

Nakime was even more puzzled.

’Punishing me requires choosing the time and place?’

She was truly confused.

Splash!

A splash interrupted the conversation. Makomo came running barefoot from the shore, bringing the sound of water with her.

"This pervert means in bed, silly."

Suddenly, the place went quiet.

The breeze blew over the campfire, kicking up a few sparks.

Nakime fell silent.

Marcus, exasperated, yanked Makomo over and grabbed her foot to tickle her mercilessly.

"Look at the expert! The one who knows it all!"

"Hahahaha! N-No! Don’t tickle me, hahahaha! I was w-wrong! I WAS WRONG!"

Makomo writhed wildly in his arms, laughing until she was nearly out of breath.

"In bed, that’s fine."

The sudden remark left them both frozen.

Marcus and Makomo turned their heads.

Nakime remained in the same spot.

"I made a mistake, so I must receive a punishment. So... it’s fine, Marcus-sama."

Makomo’s eyes went wide, forgetting all about the tickling.

"Y-You... do you even know what you’re talking about, saying it’s fine?!"

Nakime set the biwa down on the sand.

"I do. I’m aware of the things in the outside world. Even though I couldn’t hear them or feel them, the eyes I detached from my body saw them. When a man and a woman get into bed, I know very well what things happen."

As she spoke, she took the sash of her kimono and pulled it outward. The collar of the kimono loosened.

"If this helps vent your anger, I’m willing."

As the folds of the kimono slid to either side, a portion of skin was exposed, glistening in the firelight.

And on Nakime’s imperturbable face, a faint blush appeared for the first time in history.

"Besides... actually, I’m curious too."

Gazing at that skin, Marcus started to get hard, but the very next second, a sharp sting shot through his right shoulder.

Hissing in pain, he whipped his head around. Makomo had bitten him and was glaring at him in annoyance.

Seeing this, Marcus regained his sobriety at once.

It had taken him an enormous amount of effort to calm Makomo down after what had happened hours earlier, and today she’d contributed a great deal, so no—not today!

Hurriedly, he grabbed Nakime’s hand to stop her.

"I already told you, not now. We’re out in the open—if someone else sees you..."

Scanning Marcus’s face, Nakime tilted her head, processing his words.

In the Infinity Castle, no one was allowed to touch what belonged to Muzan, and now she belonged to Marcus.

If he was keeping her from showing her body...

She nodded in realization.

"I understand—do you mean possessiveness? You don’t want anyone else to see my body because I’m your property." She folded her hands over her knees and bowed her head. "Rest assured that I’m clean and that in the future no one else will see me."

Marcus rubbed the teeth marks on his shoulder and waved his hand.

"It’s not that big a deal. It’s fine if other girls see you."

Nakime blinked.

"Understood. If any man sees me, I’ll kill him on the spot."

Marcus let out a long sigh.

This woman had seen herself as a mere tool for centuries.

Muzan’s brainwashing had gone too deep; even after switching sides, that sickly obedience and her extreme logic wouldn’t change overnight.

Strange as the situation was, Marcus felt a little satisfied. A subordinate with that kind of absolute obedience was hard to turn down.

In the midst of that peculiar atmosphere, from the gloom of the forest behind them came the crack of dry branches snapping.

"Well, well, if it isn’t the Demon Hashira. Quite the appetite, roasting fish at this hour."

Marcus was about to identify the newcomer when, beside him, Nakime—who still hadn’t finished adjusting the sash of her kimono—knitted her brows hard.

A man!

Twang!

Without a moment’s hesitation, she plucked the strings of the biwa.

At the edge of the forest, three blood-covered figures propping each other up had just pushed their way through the underbrush.

But before the firelight could illuminate them, the sand beneath their feet transformed into an enormous sliding door that opened.

"What—!"

Without letting Tengen finish, the three let out a scream and plunged straight down into the abyss.

Boom!

The door instantly closed and vanished.

On the beach, only the sea breeze and the crackle of the campfire remained.

Marcus stood frozen with his mouth open.

He stared at the spot where those three had disappeared, then turned his head toward Nakime, who held the biwa with a serene expression.

"...Who did you just toss down there?"

"I don’t know," Nakime replied in her usual distant tone, though with a faint hint of seeking approval. "They were men anyway."

Marcus covered his face with his hand.

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Throw your stones, drop them ALL! 💎

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