Demon Slayer: I am a Demon

Chapter 81 That Ghost, It's Different (3/4)

The house, weathered by wind and rain overnight, appeared even more dilapidated.

The people inside the house were also filled with fear and helplessness.

"Sister, brother, will brother be alright?"

Hanako clutched her older sister Mizuko's clothes, answering almost in tears.

"That ghost, it won't kill my brother—"

Zhu Xiong's face turned pale, and his voice trembled.

Midouzi was also very scared and terrified, but she clenched her fists and firmly encouraged her younger brother and sister, saying, "That ghost won't hurt brother, it definitely won't."

"Takeo, Hanako, Shigeru, you must believe that your brother will be safe."

Kamado Aoi, who was holding "Shigeru," nodded at this moment: "It's alright, everything will be alright."

However, how could one feel at ease when the thought of the terrifying ghost that arrives in the dead of night came to mind?

Involuntarily, everyone's attention turned to the old man, Saburo, who seemed to be the one who understood ghosts best.

"Grandpa Sanlang, do you think my brother will be alright?"

Midouzi looked at the old man, her eyes almost pleading.

But as a hermit, a hermit who understands ghosts very well, and even whose own family was destroyed by ghosts, he knows the cruelty of ghosts deeply. How could he not know what the fate of being taken away by a ghost would be?

However, faced with Mizuko's almost pleading gaze, how could he bear to tell everyone this cruel truth?

Turning his head, Saburo whispered, "I have already reported the situation here. New swordsmen will be arriving soon. Don't worry, everyone. Once the new swordsmen arrive, they will definitely be able to rescue Tanjiro from the demons."

"Can he really be saved?"

Ni Douzi looked at Grandpa Sanlang.

Saburo fell silent. The fate of being taken away by a demon was undoubtedly to become its food, and there was no way he could ever come back.

Upon seeing this, Midouzi stumbled, tears streaming down her face at the thought that her beloved brother might be eaten by a ghost.

"elder sister----"

Hanako grabbed Nezuko's clothes: "Sister, why are you crying? Is it because of brother—"

Hanako's voice was choked with sobs at that moment.

Midouzi wiped her eyes with her hand, not daring to squat down to comfort her younger sister. She was afraid that if she squatted down, her tears would not stop. She could only pat her younger sister Hanako's head, tilt her head up, and say gently, "No, I'm not crying. The wind just blew sand into my eyes."

"Da da————"

Footsteps came from outside.

Soon, a man wearing a dark Demon Slayer Corps uniform, with sea-blue eyes, thick eyelashes, long black hair tied in a low ponytail, walked in expressionlessly.

Seeing the family's pain and sorrow, the man probably already knew everything.

Saburo saw the distinctive Demon Slayer Corps uniforms and his face lit up with joy. He rushed forward, saying, "Sir, you've finally arrived! Yesterday, this place was haunted. You have no idea how cruel that demon was. It broke into the house in an instant and then took Tanjiro away—"

The man listened expressionlessly, but his hand unconsciously tightened its grip on the hilt of his Nichirin Blade.

He had only recently passed the "Mountain of Vine Attack" test and was supposed to regroup with his team, but halfway there, news of a ghost attack suddenly came, so he rushed over.

However, he was still too late.

By the time he arrived, it was already daytime, and the victim had already been taken away by the ghost. He knew all too well the consequences of being taken away by the ghost; he was perfectly aware of just how cruel and bloodthirsty these ugly monsters were.

After Saburo finished telling the man everything, he said to everyone with a happy expression, "These are the legendary demon hunters, who protect everyone. In fact, the ones from yesterday during the day were also demon hunters."

"May I ask who this gentleman is—"

Saburo looked at the man.

"Tomioka Giyuu".

The man gave a simple reply.

"With Giyu Tomioka here, everyone will be able to be protected, and you don't need to be afraid of that demon anymore."

Saburo was very happy. Although those ghosts were terrifying, the ghost hunters were just as powerful.

"Please, sir, you must save my brother! I beg you!"

97

Ni Douzi immediately bent down, almost pleading.

Giyu Tomioka wanted to say something comforting, but all he could utter were the cold words: "Being caught by a demon for one night basically means you've been eaten by the demon, and there's no hope."

Nene Douzi, who still held a sliver of hope, immediately collapsed to the ground.

The others immediately burst into despair and wept.

"Brother, brother won't. That ghost, maybe it won't, maybe it won't eat you."

"No ghost doesn't eat people, so there's no need to have any illusions about ghosts."

"I'm going to say something comforting," said Yoshiyuki Tomioka, his face expressionless. He was thinking of saying something comforting, but the words that came out of his mouth were still cruel and heartless.

Watching his family fall into despair and grief, the expressionless Giyu Tomioka could only grip the hilt of his sword tightly.

"Sir, you must be lying to me, you must be lying to me. My brother will be alright. That ghost, maybe it's different, maybe it's different."

"I've never seen a ghost that doesn't eat people."

Yoshiyuki Tomioka, who had intended to comfort people, once again uttered cold words.

Kamado Aoi, a mother, could no longer accept the news of her husband and son dying one after another, and fainted on the spot. The children also cried sadly. Nezuko was so heartbroken that her hands and feet almost went weak, but she still forced herself to help her mother up.

However, just as Midouzi stood up, her vision became blurry, and she vaguely saw a familiar figure walking towards her in the distance.

Mi Douzi rubbed her eyes with her hand, then nervously opened them again. The familiar figure became clearer and clearer, although the person was disheveled, soaking wet, and pale.

But how can one forget such a thing?

It was her dear brother.

"Onii-chan————"

He ran forward almost at breakneck speed, ignoring the fact that his legs were weak, and then he suddenly fell to the ground.

Tanjiro, who had returned, saw his sister running towards him and falling down, and hurriedly went over to help Nezuko up.

"Onii-chan, I'm so glad you're okay! Everyone, everyone was so worried about you."

As she spoke, Mi Douzi's voice was choked with sobs, and tears streamed down her face uncontrollably. She even pinched herself hard to make sure she wasn't dreaming before bursting into loud sobs.

"Brother, brother is back."

Hanako, Takeo, and Shigeru also ran over, surrounding Tanjiro and cheering.

Having walked all night, and having fallen countless times, he smiled gently at his younger brother and sister: "Brother, brother's back. Brother's alright."

Saburo also walked over quickly, looking at Tanjiro with an incredulous expression.

"The ghost didn't eat you?"

Giyu Tomioka stepped forward and spoke, his face still expressionless.

"I told you, that ghost is different."

Midouzi was already fuming: "Brother is fine, he wasn't eaten by a ghost, don't say such discouraging things."

Giyu Tomioka glanced at Nezuko without saying a word, then looked Tanjiro up and down. If the other man hadn't actually been standing in the sunlight, he would have suspected that the other man had even turned into a demon, which was why the demon had let him go.

How could a cruel ghost let go of food that has already been put into its mouth?

But the facts are undeniable, leaving no choice but to believe them.

PS: The timeline of "Tomioka Giyu becoming a Pillar" is actually a bit confusing. In the manga, there is a scene where Tomioka Giyu and the Flame Pillar are in the same period. At that time, Shinobu had not yet become a Pillar. There is even a tendency for Giyu to become a Pillar before Rengoku Kyojuro. However, I personally feel that Rengoku Kyojuro became a Pillar first. It's just that his father was the Flame Pillar, so there was a delay because of this.

The timeline in this book is based on the author's information.