Demon Slayer: I am a Demon.

"Yeah, even the boss hasn't seen the ghost's face. Who knows what it looks like?"

Another swordsman muttered.

I've been searching the area for the past few months and have killed three evil spirits. I have a feeling that one of those three is the very evil spirit I'm looking for.

"will not."

Hiroshi Furukawa's eyes were resolute. He had seen the ghost's back, and he would never forget that ghost's back that night.

The swordsmen remained silent, their faces showing even deeper weariness.

These past few months have been non-stop, with in-depth investigations in the surrounding area. They painstakingly searched for clues and finally found three evil spirits hiding in the villages and towns. However, every time they finally managed to kill one, the leader always said it wasn't the one they were tracking.

Seeing the exhaustion in everyone's eyes, Hiroshi Furukawa knew that continuing the search like this would be meaningless in tracking down the demon. However, he was still somewhat unwilling to give up. He raised his head and looked at the distant mountains: "If we don't find it after this last anomaly investigation, we'll go back and hand over the mission. Everyone... is too tired."

"Then... let's do it."

One of the swordsmen was somewhat reluctant.

This time, the clue came from a few months ago when some bored person, whose origins are unknown, kept asking a charcoal seller named "Zaomen" for his home address at night. Although asking at night was a bit strange, it didn't seem like the behavior of an evil spirit.

If it were an evil spirit, how could it not satisfy its appetite when it broke into a house in the middle of the night? If this strange person were truly a ghost, how could it not have ever committed a single act of 'hunting humans' while wandering through so many villages and towns?

Besides, why would a ghost bother asking about these things?

But the eldest brother said that the strange man had been asking around in several villages and towns recently, and he was always with a child with him. This was very similar to the ghost from before. That ghost had also been with a child when he left the city, which is why the eldest brother had overlooked him and was able to escape in the end.

However, these explanations failed to convince everyone.

After all, given the ghosts' craving for human flesh and blood, how could they not eat such readily available food once it was taken out of the city?

That child is probably already food for the evil spirits.

Their investigation and interviews revealed that the strange man seemed to treat the child very well, and investigations in several villages and towns showed that the child was still alive and showed no signs of being eaten.

"The mountains ahead should be where the Kamado family lives."

A swordsman looked at the distant mountains and spoke.

"Yes, but the Kamado family lives deep in the mountains. Should we head there tonight?"

Another swordsman asked, looking somewhat weary.

"Forget it, if we get there quickly, it'll probably be past midnight. Let's find a place to rest first. I remember there's a 'hermit' nearby?"

Hiroshi Furukawa began to speak.

"Yes, there is a 'hermit' named Saburo living here. Many years ago, Saburo was walking at night with his family when they were attacked by a demon. Only Saburo escaped. Then our Demon Slayer Corps arrived, killed the demon, and helped the demon avenge itself. As a result, Saburo joined our 'hermit' and became an outer member."

Another swordsman spoke up, then pointed to the mountain range ahead: "Sanlang lives at the foot of the mountain."

"Okay, let's go over there and rest there tonight. We'll also ask about the Kamado family."

…………

Upon learning that the Demon Slayer Corps swordsmen had arrived, Saburo, a 'hermit', immediately greeted them and arranged for them to rest for the night.

Makomo bent down and slipped into the room. Upon seeing the burning stove, she immediately moved lightly around it.

"The snow today was really heavy, and it was really cold. I'm almost freezing to death."

Makomo spoke while warming herself.

The warmth of the stove made Makomo exhale softly, and her beautiful eyes, hidden behind the mask, narrowed into crescent moons.

"Yes, the snow this year is unusually heavy."

Saburo the Hermit handed Makomo a cup of hot tea, then picked up a cup to pour one for Hiroshi Furukawa as well: “We never had this much snow in previous years. But with this much snow, we’d probably sell a lot more charcoal.”

"Thank you for your trouble, Grandpa Sanlang."

Hiroshi Furukawa stood up, took the teacup, and the others sat down around the stove.

"The main reason we came here this time is to ask Grandpa Sanlang some questions."

After Saburo sat down, Hiroshi Furukawa also spoke.

"Excuse me."

"It's like this, I wonder if there's a person named Kamado Tanjuro living deep in these mountains?"

"some."

Saburo couldn't help but look at 'Hiroshi Furukawa' with a look of doubt in his eyes: 'The Kamado family is related to my family. Is there something you need?'

"Here's the thing, we want to know what's going on with this family, and whether they've done anything unusual lately."

Saburo was a little puzzled, but didn't think much of it: "The Kamado family has always lived deep in the mountains here, making a living by selling charcoal for generations. The current head of the family is Kamado Tanjuro, and his wife is Kamado Aoi. They have several children, including Tanjiro, Nezuko, Takeo, and Shigeru..."

Hiroshi Furukawa listened attentively, but didn't pick up on anything special: "So, has anything happened at this house recently?"

"Ugh!"

Hearing this, Saburo sighed slightly: "Starting from the year before last, Tanjuro suddenly fell ill for some reason, and his health has been getting worse and worse. We consulted several doctors, but they couldn't find anything wrong with him. They just said that his body temperature was a little high, but other than that, there was nothing abnormal about his body. In fact, he looked better than the average person, but his health just kept getting worse and worse."

"Such a thing is possible?"

Makomo, holding her teacup with both hands, looked up curiously upon hearing this.

"Yes, Tanjuro used to be a very strong and capable man. He killed a bear that caused a fatality in the mountains with a single axe."

"Kill a bear with one axe blow?"

Makomo was utterly shocked; even ordinary Demon Slayer Corps swordsmen couldn't achieve such a feat.

Was Tanjuro a martial artist before?

Hiroshi Furukawa couldn't help but speak up. Some of the warriors of the old era were also very capable, and some were even stronger than the "Pillars" of the Demon Slayer Corps. However, the strength of these warriors mainly lay in dealing with people. They might be very good at killing people, but they were far inferior in slaying demons.

With the gradual emergence of firearms, these old-fashioned samurai are now in decline.

“If it were someone else, I might not know, but I know Tanjuro very well. He has never left this deep mountain, nor has he ever been exposed to swordsmanship. He is not a martial artist.”

Saburo shook his head, his eyes filled with pity: "Their whole family depends on Tanjuro alone. If he can't hold on, I really can't imagine how they will survive. Even the eldest, Tanjiro, is still so young. How can he shoulder the responsibility of the whole family? Are they going to rely on Lady Aoi alone?"

Chapter 64 Terrifying Humans and Undying Ghosts (1/5)

In a small cabin deep in the mountains, candlelight flickered, and the room was filled with the smell of medicine. The emaciated 'Kamado Tanjuro' lay on the bed, his breathing weak and almost inaudible.

Beside her lay a gentle woman, exhausted and fast asleep.

"call……"

A sudden exhale rang out, and 'Kamado Tanjuro', who had been keeping his eyes closed, suddenly opened them. His eyes, which had been gradually weakening, became unusually bright at this moment, and his body, which had been so weak that he could hardly stand up, suddenly regained a lot of strength.

The sudden improvement in his health did not bring any joy to 'Kamado Tanjuro'. Instead, his eyes drooped even lower, and his thin, almost skin-to-face frame was filled with sorrow.

"I...I'm going to die."

Suddenly, I knew everything. Perhaps my mind was too clear, because everything in the world was so clear at that moment. When each snowflake landed, how much mist was produced by my wife's breath in an instant, the ants hiding in the doors and windows—everything was almost clearly displayed in my mind.

Tanjuro Kamado felt that this was the last gasp of his life.

He struggled to his feet and carefully stood up. He looked quietly at his wife, Kamado Aoi, who was lying on the bed beside him. In his last moments, he wanted to say a final goodbye to his wife, but he stopped just as he was about to reach out to her shoulder.

Full of reluctance, guilt, and fear, it all turned into deep helplessness.

Ultimately, he didn't want to convey the pain of his impending death to his wife, even if it meant finding out a day later... it would be better!

He got up, reluctant to look at his wife one last time, and quietly went to the next room. He saw his sleeping son, Takeo, Shigeru, Rokuta, and Tanjiro, and looked at his sleeping daughters, Nezuko and Hanako, and gently covered them with the blankets they had kicked off.

"I want to spend more time with my wife, and I want to see my children grow up!"

Looking at his beloved son and daughter, Kamado Tanjuro's eyes were filled with reluctance. However, feeling the life force draining from his body, he knew...

Time will not wait for him, nor will it linger for him even for a moment.

No matter how reluctant or unwilling he is, everything will gradually drift away in his resentment.

Gently, she came to Tanjiro's side and looked at her sleeping son with a face full of exhaustion.

Tanjuro Kamado knew that during his illness, his eldest son had silently shouldered the burden of the family.

"He...is still so young..."

She wanted to cry, but held back her grief and reached out to gently pat her son's cheek.

Tanjiro was startled awake and saw his father suddenly standing in front of him. His eyes were filled with shock, but even more so with ecstasy. At that moment, Tanjiro almost wanted to wake up the whole family to share the joy, to tell his mother, his sister, and... everyone.

"Shh!"

Tanjuro Kamado put his fingertips to his lips, but looking at his son's surprised eyes, he felt increasingly guilty and reluctant.

But no matter how reluctant or guilty I am, I still have to give an explanation for everything.

This is the responsibility and burden that the "stove family" will have to shoulder, not only for this family, but also for what they will protect for generations to come.

Tanjiro, who was about to open his mouth, immediately closed it at his father's signal.

"Put your clothes on and come with me."

Tanjuro Kamado sighed softly.

Tanjiro nodded heavily, quickly dressed, carefully avoided his younger brother, and followed his father out of the room.

The snow outside was heavy, with goose-feather-like snowflakes fluttering down, and a thick layer of snow had already accumulated on the ground.

With such heavy snow and such cold weather, it would have been a good time to sell charcoal. If my father had been healthy in the past, the family would probably have made a lot of money. But he was too young and not strong enough. He worked for a long time but didn't make much charcoal. He was not as good at business as my father and didn't make much money.

"However, my father is better now, everything will be alright, and life will get better and better."

Tanjiro looked at his father walking ahead, feeling joy in his heart.

"Follow me."

Sensing his son's gaze behind him, 'Kamado Tanjuro' trembled slightly, but quickly regained his composure.

Tanjiro wanted to remind his father that he was feeling better and should take care of his health, but he had no choice but to obey his father's orders for now, planning to remind him again later.

Soon, 'Tanjuro Kamado' stepped into the deep snow.

Tanjiro followed closely behind, his foot sinking slightly into the snow as he took difficult steps. Watching his father walk faster and faster, Tanjiro couldn't hide his shock. The snow that Tanjiro was sinking into was completely unmarked by his father.

Although I was shocked, I was more immersed in the joy of my father’s improvement and didn’t pay much attention to these things. What puzzled me more was why my father had called me out in the middle of the night.

Tanjiro followed quickly with difficult steps, but his father's pace quickened. He had been so ill that he could barely stand up before, but now he could walk so fast.