Demon Slayer: I am a Demon.

The man gave a simple reply.

"With Lord Giyu Tomioka here, he will definitely be able to protect everyone, and you no longer need to be afraid of that demon."

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!"

Nezuko immediately bowed, 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."

Nezuko, 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."

"Ghosts don't eat people, so there's no need to have any illusions about them."

"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 also almost too heartbroken to move, but she still forced herself to help her mother up.

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

Nezuko rubbed her eyes with her hand, then nervously opened them again. The familiar figure became clearer, though disheveled, soaking wet, and pale-faced.

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 Nezuko running towards him and falling down. He quickly went over and helped her up.

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

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

"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, saying, "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.”

Nezuko was already fuming: "My brother is fine, he wasn't eaten by a demon, 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's already in its mouth?

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

…………

PS: The timeline of Giyu Tomioka becoming a 'Pillar' is actually a bit confusing. In the manga, there is a scene where Giyu Tomioka 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 Kyojuro Rengoku. However, I personally feel that Kyojuro Rengoku 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.

Chapter 82 Daring Not to Gamble (4/4)

Giyu Tomioka never harbored any illusions about demons. How could those demons, who feed on humans, possibly give up a delicious meal they had already obtained?

But the facts were undeniable, making it somewhat hard for Giyu Tomioka to believe.

"Why did that ghost let you go?"

Giyu Tomioka walked over and looked at Tanjiro, asking him a question.

Upon hearing this, Tanjiro's face turned pale, because his guidance had led to the death of a swordsman who was protecting humanity.

Tanjiro found it hard to accept this fact whenever he thought about it.

He indirectly caused the death of a hero who protected humanity.

As for why the ghost spared him, he wasn't quite sure; it was the first time he had ever seen a ghost.

"Sir, please don't ask my brother anymore."

Nezuko sensed her brother's emotions and couldn't help but interrupt.

"Can you find that ghost?"

Giyu Tomioka was not willing to let it go and continued to question him.

Tanjiro's eyes darted away, and he lowered his head further.

"Take me to that ghost."

At that moment, Giyu Tomioka immediately sensed something was wrong and almost instantly stepped forward, grabbing Tanjiro's arm.

"Don't make things difficult for my brother anymore."

Nezuko stepped forward and tried to push Giyu Tomioka away, but she couldn't move him at all.

Giyu Tomioka kept staring at Tanjiro: "Take me to that demon. Only by slaying that demon can we prevent more people from being harmed by it."

"Take me to find that ghost."

Tanjiro's body trembled slightly. He raised his head to look at Giyu Tomioka, then lowered it again: "Can you guarantee that you will completely kill that demon?"

Upon hearing this, Giyu Tomioka frowned, his five fingers instantly gripping the hilt of his sword tightly.

At this moment, he couldn't help but think of Sabito. He and Sabito had made a promise to walk the path of demon slayers together and fight to protect humanity. However, during the 'Fujikasayama' test, he did nothing but pass the test. Sabito, who was trying to protect others, failed to leave Fujikasayama. He did not fulfill the promise he made.

"I can't guarantee it, but I will do my best, even if it costs me my life."

Tanjiro trembled, remembering what the demon had said before it left. He looked at his mother and sister, then silently lowered his head: "I have no way to find that demon. How could I possibly find that demon?"

"You're lying."

Tomioka Giyu stared at Tanjiro.

"No."

Tanjiro kept his head down and didn't look into Giyu Tomioka's eyes.

"So what exactly happened to you yesterday...?"

Giyu Tomioka stepped forward, trying to stare into Tanjiro's eyes.

"enough."

Nezuko suddenly found strength from somewhere and shoved Giyu Tomioka away: "Sir, you are a swordsman who slays demons, right? You are a swordsman who protects humans, right? Why don't you go find demons instead of making things difficult for my brother? Why are you bullying my brother? My brother doesn't know anything, so why are you forcing him like this? You know what kind of cruel experience it is to be caught by a demon, so why are you making my brother relive that cruelty?"

“You should be using your sword to fight those vicious ghosts, not to force us like a coward.”

Giyu Tomioka silently gripped the hilt of his Nichirin Blade, his expression somewhat dejected. He was a coward; otherwise, how could he have passed the 'Fujisakeyama' test? If he hadn't been unable to offer Sabito any help, how could Sabito have died?

Nezuko also felt that she might have been a bit too harsh, but seeing her brother being pressured like that just now, she really couldn't hold back.

"Sir, I apologize. I was very rude. But my family has just gone through a lot and I couldn't control my emotions."

Nezuko immediately bowed and apologized.

"No, you're right, I am indeed a coward."

Giyu Tomioka lowered his head: "I once... I once cowardly lay on the ground, thinking that by begging so desperately, the demon would take pity on me and let my sister go. But my sister was still eaten, and I, cowardly, could only hide, hiding and trembling."

“Countless times I’ve said things like I’d rather die myself. Sabito slapped me hard and told me that if I said those discouraging things again, he’d break off all ties with me. At that time, I vowed to pull myself together and become like Sabito. But in the end, I couldn’t help Sabito at all, and he died alone from exhaustion. All of this is because of me…”

Giyu Tomioka clutched his head in anguish.

Nezuko was stunned. She hadn't expected her words to have such a blow to Giyu Tomioka, and she was at a loss for words.

"My lord... I... I didn't mean that."

The explanation was almost frantic.

However, after saying only a few words, Giyu Tomioka stood up again, his expression becoming even more blank. He pressed his hand tightly on the hilt of his Nichirin Blade: "My weakness killed my sister, my incompetence killed Sabito. I was cowardly before, only hoping that the strong would be lenient."

"But the strong show no mercy to the weak, and I shouldn't either..."

"The power of life and death should not be placed in the hands of others, especially the weak who hold such power. The weak have no power and no choice."

"My lord, I...I didn't..."

Nezuko's anxious explanation.

Giyu Tomioka didn't look at Nezuko, but at Tanjiro, who was still looking down: "I don't know what you went through yesterday, and I won't ask you anymore, but what I want to tell you is, don't have any expectations of demons."

Tanjiro clenched his fists involuntarily.

"Do not put the power of life and death in the hands of others."

Giyu Tomioka gripped the hilt of his sword, gritting his teeth.

Tanjiro unconsciously squatted down, thinking of the terrifying scene of the demon breaking into his house, and his trembling, fearful family members. His fists clenched involuntarily.

"It's different if I've never seen a ghost. Perhaps there really are different kinds of ghosts, but can you really entrust everything you care about to someone else when faced with such a terrifying creature? Are you really willing to be a weakling?"

Tanjiro, who was squatting on the ground, clenched his fists. He looked up at Giyu Tomioka, then lowered his head again: "My lord, I will not hand over the power of life and death to someone else, but as a weakling, I dare not gamble."

"My lord, please stop asking me. I know nothing."

After saying that, Tanjiro took difficult steps to help his unconscious mother up, then turned back to his sister: "Nezuko, tidy up the house, we're moving out, we're not living here anymore."

"move place?"