Chapter 39: Live On

The next day.

Before dawn, Zero got up early and prepared to leave Mount Sagiri.

Tanjiro also handed a handwritten letter he wrote last night to Zero, asking him to help pass it to his family.

"Big Brother Zero, I'll trouble you."

"No problem, you also have to work hard. I will also think of a way to help you solve Nezuko's matter."

"Yes, thank you Big Brother Zero."

"Mr. Urokodaki, thank you for your hospitality yesterday, the dinner was delicious." Zero said to Sakonji Urokodaki beside Tanjiro.

"If you have time, you can come and see. In addition, say hello to Giyu Tomioka for the old man."

"Okay, then goodbye!"

Looking at Zero's gradually departing back, Tanjiro waved his hand, thinking in his heart that he must become stronger.

Sakonji Urokodaki: Wish you success in your martial arts.

Arriving at the foot of Mount Sagiri, he took off the cloak and hood he was wearing, took out his motorcycle, and just as he was about to return to the area under his jurisdiction, Zero received a mission notification from the Kasugai Crow Yuki.

"Master, in the snowy mountains to the northeast, an evil demon eating people incident occurred, and several villagers have already been killed."

"Is that so... Okay, I know."

Riding the motorcycle, just as he was about to head to the location the Kasugai Crow Yuki mentioned, he suddenly thought of something.

He hurriedly took off the cloak and hood he was wearing and put it into the 【Nano Space】, took out a black windbreaker and changed into it, and then rode the motorcycle to continue forward.

At the same time, Giyu Tomioka was also the same, accelerating his pace to the snowy mountains.

Last night, after he solved an evil demon incident that was gnawing on a woman, he also received a notification from his Kasugai Crow.

"Caw! Order! Order! Order Demon Slayer swordsman! Rush to the snowy mountains in the north! Caw!"

"Several hunters have been eaten! Eaten by a "demon"! Caw! Eliminate the evil demon! Eliminate the evil demon!"

Northern Post Station.

It was all white here, with snow flying everywhere.

There were few people on the street, and many hunters holding hunting rifles were in groups of several people, seemingly discussing something.

And in a pharmacy not far from the post station, a woman wearing a kimono and a butterfly haori was sitting at the door, talking to the pharmacy owner's wife.

She was the Insect Hashira of the Demon Slayer Corps—Shinobu Kocho.

"Man-eating bear? We also call it "No-Cave Bear" here! It is said that it ate many hunters."

"No wonder... I said why the atmosphere of the post station was so tense."

"This guest, listen to my advice, you'd better go back." The pharmacy owner's wife looked at the woman in front of her, couldn't bear to let her be harmed, and persuaded her to leave here quickly.

"Thank you for your kindness, but it's a rare holiday, and there are many medicinal herbs that need to be purchased that cannot be left to others... and... because of work, I am very interested in the bear gall of the man-eating bear! If there is any, please be sure to sell it to me!" Shinobu Kocho said with a smile, but this smile looked very belly-black.

Seeing this smile, the pharmacy owner's wife felt a bit sweaty.

Just as the two were talking, an argument came from outside the pharmacy door.

It was a woman holding a dog arguing with several male hunters.

"You went into the mountain alone again!!"

"Not alone! There is also Taro!"

"Taro is a dog! Leave the hatred to the adults!"......

Looking at the woman who was arguing with several hunters at the door, Shinobu Kocho was a bit curious and asked the pharmacy owner's wife: "What's going on here?"

Seeing this, the pharmacy owner's wife also gave Shinobu Kocho an answer: "Are you asking about that woman? Her name is Yae, and she is also a hunter, Yozou's daughter. Some time ago, she was attacked by a bear, and she watched her father and partners being eaten by the bear..."

"Since then, except for returning to the village for supplies, she has been looking for that bear in the snowy mountains the rest of the time... It's really heartbreaking to watch..."

Yae argued with the hunters to no avail and left angrily, pulling Taro.

Seeing this, Shinobu Kocho stood up and came to the pharmacy door, but was a bit surprised. She saw an old acquaintance—Giyu Tomioka.

Yae was still angry, and before she had gone far, the barrel of the hunting rifle she was carrying on her back was grabbed by someone, and her eyes suddenly became cold.

"Hey... don't touch other people's hunting rifles!" She took a small step back with her right leg and launched an elbow strike at the person behind her, but it was easily blocked!

Slap!

Seeing her elbow strike blocked, Yae turned her head in a daze to look at the person behind her, and the dog named Taro beside her feet bared its teeth at Giyu Tomioka.

"Who is it?" Seeing the person behind her, Yae didn't recognize him.

"You are Yae, right? I am Giyu Tomioka of the Demon Slayer Corps. Tell me the detailed situation when you were attacked by a "demon"."

When Giyu Tomioka said the word demon, the several hunters on the side were also dazed, not understanding what he was talking about.

"Demon? You must be mistaken! It was a bear that attacked them. What on earth is this guy talking about?"

"Pfft..." Shinobu Kocho, who was at the pharmacy door, saw Giyu Tomioka still like this, her body was trembling, and she almost couldn't help laughing.

The pharmacy owner's wife was also dazed, not knowing why.

"Excuse me... are you... a policeman?" A hunter asked Giyu Tomioka.

"No, I am from the Demon Slayer Corps."

"Demon Slayer Corps? Is it a government official?"

"No, it's a private organization."

And just at this time, one of the hunters noticed a sword tucked around Giyu Tomioka's waist and asked: "Then... what is the sword on your waist?"

"..." Giyu Tomioka thought they wanted him to take out the sword, so he took the sword around his waist, then half-knelt down and placed it on the ground.

"That's not what I meant..." The hunter was speechless, feeling that talking to him was like talking to a cow, playing the lute to a cow.

"I am Giyu Tomioka of the Demon Slayer Corps!"

The hunter couldn't bear it anymore and decided to report to the official directly to solve it.

Another hunter noticed Giyu Tomioka and his attire and shouted: "Ah! I remember! Look at the half-patterned haori he is wearing! Half a year ago, when a family selling charcoal on the opposite Yunxue Mountain was killed, the suspicious person seen nearby was wearing such clothes!"

"Ah?! No wonder he looks so suspicious!"

"It is said that the family selling charcoal met a noble person and was picked up, so they are all still alive, otherwise they would definitely have been killed!"

Giyu Tomioka: (? `′?)

"Don't move!" The hunter pointed a hunting rifle at Giyu Tomioka, who was half-kneeling on the ground, and shouted.

"Quick, find a rope and tie him up!"

Afterwards, several other hunters took ropes and tied Giyu Tomioka tightly.

Shinobu Kocho also walked out of the pharmacy at this moment. She came up behind Giyu Tomioka, poked his back with her finger, and said, "To—mi—oka-san... Tomioka-san... What a coincidence, meeting in a place like this. Seeing that you're still so tongue-tied, I can rest easy. Hahaha!"

Giyu Tomioka turned his head and saw it was Shinobu Kocho, and immediately recalled the incident at Zero's estate at the Demon Slayer Corps headquarters last time.

"Kocho."

"Mr. Tomioka, if you don't mind, let me explain to everyone?" Shinobu Kocho asked, holding a long-strip package in her arms.

"No problem, I can solve it myself."

Shinobu Kocho was speechless, looking at Giyu Tomioka who was tied tightly by the hunters, and said: "Tsk tsk tsk... Mr. Tomioka, you should try hard to learn how to communicate with others. You are hated by everyone because of this!"

"I... I am not hated!" Giyu Tomioka immediately retorted.

Whoosh!! Kuchi!!!

A motorcycle drove from a distance and stayed beside Giyu Tomioka, Shinobu Kocho, and several hunters.

After several hours of rushing, he finally arrived at the snowy mountains here, and Zero had seen the two of them from afar long ago, not understanding what they were doing.

"Giyu, Shinobu, what are you doing? What are you doing?"

"Zero, why did you come too?" Shinobu Kocho asked.

"I received a notification about people being killed here, so I came over to investigate, and by the way, solve this matter."

The hunters had never seen such a strange car, plus Zero's appearance, everyone felt a bit surprised.

"What kind of car is this? It can run without a horse?!"

"This gentleman, may I ask if you are... a policeman?" One of the hunters asked. He originally thought it was a girl, but saw he had an Adam's apple, plus the voice he just spoke, only then did he know he was a man.

Plus the hunter saw a gun hanging on Zero's leg, so he guessed he should be a policeman, because only policemen would be equipped with sophisticated firearms.

Zero wanted to say no, but seeing Giyu Tomioka tied up by the hunters, he inferred that he must have said the wrong thing again and was misunderstood.

"Giyu, you are still so clumsy..." Zero complained in his heart, so he went with the flow and said: "Yes, I came to investigate the matter here. I heard that people were killed here, so can you tell me the situation?"

The hunters looked at each other, not knowing where to start, only Yae was a bit impatient at this time and shouted: "You three, I don't know what you are doing? If there is nothing else..."

Before the words were finished, Yae felt that something was wrong with her body and fell down.

"Yae!"

Shinobu Kocho also reacted at this time and caught her.

She found that her face was a bit wrong, and her body temperature was also a bit high, obviously having a fever.

"She has a fever, we must find a place for her to rest. Mr. Tomioka, Zero, come over and help me..."

"Mm."

"Okay."

Afterwards, Giyu Tomioka, under the shocked eyes of the hunters, easily broke the rope and helped Shinobu Kocho bring Yae into the pharmacy to see a doctor.

Zero rode his motorcycle to a corner, pretended to put it away, but actually took the opportunity to put it into the 【Nano Space】 when others were not paying attention.

Outside the door, a little girl of only six or seven years old was playing with a puppy, and inside the house, voices came:

【'Let you teach her how to use a gun?! Is that what Yae said?'】

【'I have already reprimanded her, this is no joke! I have never heard of a girl being a hunter!'】

【'Brother Yo, don't be so harsh, that child must be very lonely at home alone, right? There are no children of similar age nearby. She just wants to accompany you more... you should be more considerate...'】

After listening to his friend's words, the man thought about it and walked out of the house. The little girl held the puppy and looked at her father walking towards her, feeling a bit nervous.

【'If you don't learn well, stop immediately!'】

Hearing this, the little girl was overjoyed.

This little girl was Yae.

A few years later, little Yae gradually grew up and also became a hunter.

But one day when she returned home, she found that her house had been destroyed, and the burning flames were spreading through the whole house. Inside the house, there were severed limbs everywhere, and the walls and floors were stained with blood, and the thick smell of blood permeated the house.

【'This... what on earth... happened? Brother Yoshimura and Uncle Kanji...'】

【'Father...'】 Yae saw not far away, her father's corpse being gnawed by a monster, and that monster was a giant bear...

"Is it a dream?" After Yae woke up, she found that what had just happened was just a dream. She wanted to get up and heard the words coming to her ears: "You're awake!"

Turning her head, she saw a beautiful woman pressing her forehead tightly against her forehead...

"Er!...... Wahhhhh!!!"

Yae was so frightened that she crawled out of the quilt, picked up the gun, hid in the corner of the door, and shouted: "What... what did you do to me?"

"Er hahaha... You look like you're fine now, that's great! That, please don't shoot, can you put the gun away?"

"This... where is this?" Yae looked at the scene around her, feeling a bit familiar, but also a bit strange. This was not where she lived.

"This is a pharmacy, little girl. You have slept for a whole half day. It seems you are quite exhausted! I heard that hunters often stay in the mountains for several days to hunt! But with your current situation, it is impossible to take revenge! Drink this medicine first, it can make you recover some energy!"

Saying that, Shinobu Kocho brought over a cup of medicine that had been prepared on the table and handed it to Yae.

Yae took the cup, and bubbles kept coming out of the cup, and she could even see purple liquid constantly rolling...

"That... what did

"Please don't ask, just drink it..."

Duang~

Before Shinobu Kocho could finish her sentence, Zero gave her a hand-chop directly to the head, interrupting the conversation, and said, "Shinobu, be serious!"

He turned his head toward Yae and said, "Don't worry, little girl, this medicine was carefully prepared by Shinobu. There is no problem."

"Really..." Yae was somewhat skeptical, but she still drank the medicine.

Shinobu Kocho rubbed her head, her gaze fixed firmly on Zero. A grudge not repaid is not a Shinobu Kocho grudge...

"Zero, you just wait. When we get back, I'll have my sister deal with you, hmph hmph!" Shinobu Kocho thought to herself, feeling devious.

Giyu Tomioka sat at the doorway holding his tea, looking at the dog named Taro in front of him, wanting to reach out and pet it.

"Grrr...!!!" Taro let out a warning, seemingly telling Giyu Tomioka not to touch him.

Giyu Tomioka thought it was just being friendly and reached his hand out directly, but then...

"Woof!" Taro bit Giyu Tomioka's hand and shook his head rapidly.

"Taro, stop it!" Yae shouted.

Shinobu Kocho, off to the side, was unimpressed and just said slowly, "Don't worry, Giyu Tomioka is just that kind of person!"

Zero, meanwhile, helplessly covered his face with one hand, wondering if there was something wrong with Giyu Tomioka. Could he not even express pain when being bitten?

Seeing this, Zero stopped worrying about it and said directly to Yae, "Let's get back to the point, Miss Yae. Regarding your mother, we are very sorry... If possible, please tell us some of what you know!"

"Yes, Miss Yae. According to the intelligence we have gathered, the thing that attacked Miss Yae might be a 'demon'!" Shinobu Kocho chimed in.

"Zero, Butterfly, this is my mission, let me explain it." Giyu Tomioka called out from the doorway.

Zero/Shinobu Kocho: "? □? You have the nerve to say that! Do you know you're being attacked right now?!"

Taro was biting down on Giyu Tomioka's head with his large dog mouth, refusing to let go, with his front paws resting on Giyu Tomioka's shoulders, even hanging there and swaying from side to side.

Giyu Tomioka just felt that it must be playing with him, not attacking him, so he said, "It's not attacking me, it's just playing with me!"

Zero/Shinobu Kocho: "..."

"Alright, enough, Mr. Tomioka, please step back!"

Giyu Tomioka: (??) Depressed...

Taro: (Bite you to death... bite you to death...)

After some conversation, Yae still insisted that the thing that attacked her family was a bear.

But Zero could tell that she seemed to be hiding something; the bear was just an excuse.

I am afraid there is another hidden story behind this.

Yae's gaze inadvertently met Zero's, but she felt a bit afraid and dared not continue looking, so she could only turn her head away to look elsewhere.

"I see. If it is confirmed to be a bear... then it is not the target we are looking for..." Shinobu Kocho said without hesitation, as if she had accepted Yae's explanation.

"Satisfied now? But I have a question too. The demons you speak of... what exactly are they? And who are you people?" After all, Yae had been a hunter for many years, and she had always felt that these two people and the one at the door were not simple.

Therefore, she still maintained some vigilance even now.

Zero: "You guys talk, I'm going to help Tomioka."

He then stood up and walked to the door, figuring that if this continued, let alone whether Giyu Tomioka would end up bleeding, what if he got rabies from Taro's bite...

Then Giyu Tomioka would probably be done for... though that's unlikely...

"Tsk tsk tsk..."

Hearing this, Taro let go of Giyu Tomioka's head, looked at Zero, and tilted his head.

Zero came before Taro, reached out to pet his head, and started petting the dog.

"Woof~ woof~" Taro seemed to really like this feeling, panting happily with his tongue out and wagging his tail.

Then he lay on the ground and exposed his belly, indicating he wanted to be petted there too! He was like a completely different dog from just a moment ago.

A person might not be a true person, but a dog might be a true dog.

Seeing this, Giyu Tomioka also wanted to come forward to pet Taro's belly, but to his surprise, Taro immediately bared his teeth and let out a "grrr" warning sound again.

Feeling a bit hurt inside, Giyu Tomioka could only silently return to his original position and continue drinking tea...

Inside the house, Shinobu Kocho was answering the question Yae had just asked.

"Demons are monsters that eat human flesh and drink human blood! They have intelligence and can cleverly hide themselves. They possess astonishing vitality; even if they lose an arm or a leg, or are even disemboweled, they can regenerate immediately!"

"They only fear sunlight and special blades called Nichirin Swords. Furthermore, one must use these blades to cut off a demon's head, otherwise, everything is in vain!"

"The organization formed by these demon hunters who master the techniques to kill demons and slay them in the shadows is the Demon Slayer Corps!"

Yae listened to Shinobu Kocho's explanation and introduction, fell into a brief contemplation, and asked, "Demon Slayer Corps... does that mean you just kill demons whenever you see them?"

Shinobu Kocho: "Don't make us sound like executioners; we only kill evil demons! As for evil demons, I will not show mercy! If there were an evil demon that had never eaten a single person and chose to starve to death, I would take care of it in the way my sister did, letting it die in the gentlest way possible!"

Outside the door, Zero, who was petting the dog, heard Shinobu Kocho's words and sighed slightly inside. If she knew about Nezuko, perhaps she really might do that.

After all, Shinobu Kocho's personality is different from Kanae Kocho's. If it were Kanae Kocho, she might choose to see if the ideal of demons and humans coexisting could be realized.

But that is truly excessively gentle and would only harm Kanae Kocho herself, and as for Shinobu Kocho... Zero also made a bold speculation in his heart: if Kanae Kocho were to die, given Shinobu Kocho's personality of loving her sister so much, she might live as Kanae did... doing things basically according to her sister's ways... probably...

Giyu Tomioka also listened to the conversation inside while drinking tea, saying nothing.

The pharmacy owner's wife on the side felt a bit embarrassed: this person doesn't say a single word...

Immediately after, Shinobu Kocho continued, "But it seems we were mistaken this time. If you like, the three of us can also help you hunt the bear..."

"No need. I am a hunter, I will take my own revenge! I've caused you trouble." Yae stopped Shinobu Kocho from continuing, packed her things, put on her clothes, and prepared to set off into the big mountains again.

"Taro, let's go."

Hearing Yae call him, Taro licked Zero's hand, climbed to his feet, and left reluctantly.

However, Giyu Tomioka stood up at this moment, came before Yae, and blocked her path: "It's better not to go out at night."

Yae: "There are no demons here at all! Is there something wrong with me, as a hunter, going to hunt a bear?!"

Giyu Tomioka: "If it's truly for revenge, why go into the mountains alone? Are you hiding something?"

Having her inner thoughts exposed, Yae retorted with some irritability, "So annoying! Get out of my way!!"

"............ At the very least, I have never seen a demon turn back into a human."

With that one sentence, Yae fell silent, then bypassed Giyu Tomioka and left the pharmacy.

With a heavy heart, she walked alone on the snow-covered street, leading Taro toward the big forest.

What Yae did not notice was that in the air behind her, a drone was following her.

This was something Zero had taken out of the 【Nano Space】 just in case, following her without Yae noticing.

Inside the pharmacy, Shinobu Kocho took off her butterfly haori and kimono in the room and changed into her Demon Slayer Corps uniform.

Giyu Tomioka sat at the door waiting, while Zero used his 【Analysis Glasses】 to control the drone to check on Yae's current situation.

"Mr. Tomioka, Zero, do you know about 'Cave-less Bears'?" Shinobu Kocho asked Giyu Tomioka at the door while changing her clothes inside.

Giyu Tomioka: "Cave-less Bears?"

Zero: "Cave-less bears are bears that cannot find a den and cannot hibernate. Pitiful beasts that are homeless, have no one to rely on, and wander alone in the big mountains during winter."

Clatter!

The house door was pulled open, and Shinobu Kocho had already changed her clothes and walked out, holding the Nichirin Sword wrapped in long cloth.

"Zero is right. If things go on like this, she will not find salvation."

"Let's go, Giyu, Shinobu. It's time to set off. I hope that this time, we can make that little girl Yae face reality!"

Yae arrived at her former home, which was already in ruins. She took something out of the ruins; it was a somewhat tattered piece of cloth, still stained with a trace of blood.

She put the cloth fragment in front of Taro and said, "Taro, did you memorize it? You have to find this scent! Although it's very cold now, I can only rely on you!"

Woof!

Taro sniffed the cloth fragment, then began to search in the big mountains.

Heavy snow was falling, and the cold wind blew.

Yae put her hands in front of her mouth and breathed out hot air, following behind Taro.

In her mind, she couldn't help but recall what her father had said when they were hunting together when she was a child.

"Bears are treasures from head to toe; bear meat, bear skin, bear gall, bear fat... this is the bounty of the big forest!"...

"Yae, our lives as hunters are given by the big mountains. Since we have taken a life, we should live on even more!"

Woof! Woof! Woof!!

Taro seemed to have found something and barked loudly not far away, interrupting Yae's thoughts.

"Taro?!" Hearing the barking, Yae took down the hunting rifle from her back and quickened her pace!

Bang!

Suddenly, a gunshot rang out, and Taro also let out a miserable cry; in the end, even the cry disappeared!

"Gunshot? Where did it come from?! Could there be others?!" Yae couldn't understand and quickened her pace.

When she arrived at a small hillside, she saw a "person" not far away... to be precise, a demon.

That demon was called Yōzō, the one Yae's father had turned into...

At this moment, he was gnawing on a dog's leg, which was clearly a part of Taro's body.

"At the very least, I have never seen a demon turn back into a human!"

The words Giyu Tomioka had said to her before she left surfaced in her mind.

"Really... turned into a demon! Father..."

Past events flashed through her mind like a revolving lantern...

The so-called "Cave-less Bear" was just a lie Yae had made up; she had hoped very much that she had seen wrong back then.

Back then, she had wanted to ask her father why he had to do this?! Why did he have to turn into a demon?!

"I'm sorry, Taro... only after seeing you being eaten did I make up my mind! Although I don't know who fired the shot just now? But leave the rest to me!"

She raised her gun, took two deep breaths, aimed at the demon's head, and pulled the trigger!

Click!

Bang!

Splat!

The demon in the distance was instantly shot in the head, blood sprayed out, and it fell onto the snow!

Yae thought it was over, but the demon did not die as she had imagined.

The demon's head was regenerating rapidly while crawling toward Yae at an extremely fast speed.

She raised the hunting rifle in her hand again, loaded it, and aimed!

Why did you turn into a demon?

Why did you eat everyone?

Why?! Why on earth is this?!

Why...

Roar!

The second shot was never fired, and the demon lunged over at this moment, pinning Yae to the ground!

Seeing this, Yae held the hunting rifle horizontally in front of her, wedging it into the demon's mouth to prevent it from attacking, but at the same time, she herself was unable to move!

The demon's teeth bit into the bolt and chamber of the gun, and a large amount of blood seeped out of its mouth, staining it.

Seeing her father turned into this state, Yae's heart was extremely painful, and tears gushed out.

"Father... why... at that time... didn't you eat me too..."

"Ya... e... e..." The demon called out Yae's name indistinctly in its mouth. Yae was stunned for a moment, and her strength to resist weakened significantly...

Step! Step! Step!

Footsteps on the snow came from not far away, followed by a sword slash that swept across, cutting off one of the demon's arms!

"Ahhh!!!" The demon screamed in pain and dodged to the side.

The people who arrived were Giyu Tomioka and Shinobu Kocho. As for Zero, he had separated from Giyu Tomioka and Shinobu Kocho just a moment ago, seemingly to do something.

Shinobu Kocho: "What a coincidence! Miss Yae!"

Yae: "!!!"

"Butterfly, take care of her, I'll handle this!" Giyu Tomioka said, still expressionless.

"Mr. Tomioka, why don't you let me do it? I just happen to want to test the new poison I developed; it can make him die without any pain!"

"No need!" Giyu Tomioka raised the Nichirin Sword in his hand and was about to act, but was stopped by Yae: "Wait... wait a minute!"

"Why wait? You should know very well that he has long been an inhuman monster! He is a demon! Yae, face reality! He is no longer your father now!"

After saying this, Giyu Tomioka rushed forward with his sword, and the demon also finished regenerating at this moment.

A flesh axe grew out of its arm using Blood Demon Art, and it swung it over rapidly.

Facing the rotating flesh axe, Giyu Tomioka did not dodge at all and blocked it with his sword.

Unexpectedly, this was just a feint by the demon. The moment Giyu Tomioka blocked the flesh axe, the demon attacked again, a sharp bone spur growing out of its elbow, aiming to kill Giyu Tomioka by striking his neck.

Giyu Tomioka's eyes began to turn sharp, and he unleashed a sword technique.

Water Breathing, Fourth Form: Striking Tide!

Like a multi-stage attack of a tide, he swung the Nichirin Sword in his hand from bottom to top, sending out a diagonal slash that cut off the demon's arm and shoulder, then took a small step, his figure flashing behind the demon, and directly cut off its neck!

As the demon's head, separated from its body, fell in mid-air, it saw its daughter and recalled past events.

It said a sentence to Yae not far away, which was heard by Giyu Tomioka.

"It's over... finally over..." Yae saw her father, who had turned into a demon, being slain and disappearing from this world.

She took off her boots, picked up her hunting rifle, placed the barrel under her chin, hooked the trigger with her toe, and prepared to commit suicide.

She was still muttering the words "finally I can be free"!

"Butterfly!" Giyu Tomioka shouted. Shinobu Kocho reacted at this instant, but it was clearly too late.

Click!

The trigger of the hunting rifle was pulled by her toe, but it did not fire as she had imagined.

Shinobu Kocho also tackled Yae to the ground at this moment.

"Hehe... hehe... why...? Why at this very moment... I have always maintained it well... let me die... hehe..." Yae could not accept this fact.

"Miss Yae..."

"Leave me alone! Father turned into a man-eating demon! Taro and everyone are gone... I've lost everyone! Everything is gone!... You people will never understand!! Leave me, someone like me, alone!"

Giyu Tomioka walked over from afar and just said one thing to Yae: "There is a message... it should be for you... 'Live on'!"

Yae: "... Hehe... what are you talking about... I don't believe such nonsense..."

Giyu Tomioka: "Believe it or not, it has nothing to do with me! Butterfly, let's go!"

Before leaving, Shinobu Kocho said a word to Yae: "Miss Yae, please, you must be strong!"

As soon as the words fell, the sound of a dog barking came from not far away.

Woof! Woof!!

It turned out to be Taro; he was not dead, but he had lost a front paw, and the wound had been treated and bandaged by someone.

Yae: "Taro..."

Woof!

Taro ran over on three legs, limping, and threw himself into Yae's arms.

Yae was somewhat surprised; she didn't understand what was going on.

"Could it be..." Her gaze turned toward the direction from before, and a young man with white hair wearing a black trench coat walked over; it was Zero.

"You saved Taro, right? And that gunshot was fired by you, right?" Yae asked.

Zero just nodded and turned to leave.

"Miss Yae, live on!"

Watching the three people gradually leave, Yae hugged Taro and could no longer hold back her tears, crying loudly.

Taro felt his owner's sad emotions, stretched out his tongue, and licked Yae's face, as if comforting her.

It turned out that after Zero separated from Giyu and Shinobu Kocho, he was helping Taro treat his wounds.

Previously, Taro had had a front leg bitten off by the evil demon. Zero controlled the drone to switch high-explosive bullets to paralysis bullets, hitting the evil demon and causing it to fall into a temporary state of paralysis.

And he himself took the opportunity to save Taro while it wasn't paying attention. Although Taro lost a leg, at least his life was saved.

But he did not kill that evil demon; leaving it alive was just to let Yae face reality and not continue to escape.

Zero didn't understand why he would do this either; perhaps it was because some things had changed him...

The events that followed were the things where Yae shot the evil demon in the head...

Yae cried for a while, and her emotions stabilized.

She picked up the hunting rifle to see why it had malfunctioned just now, only to discover that a large amount of blood had coagulated on the bolt, which had prevented the hunting rifle from firing.

"So... it was Father's blood that had coagulated on it..."

"There is a message left..."

"It should be for you..."

"Since we have taken a life... is it..."

"Miss Yae, please, you must be strong!"

"Miss Yae, live on!"

"Thank you, Mr. Tomioka, Miss Butterfly, Mr. Zero... and thank you too... Father..."

The sun rose in the east, illuminating the entire big forest.

Yae felt the warmth of the sun, her hair disheveled, tears still remaining at the corners of her eyes.

She found a better spot and built a wooden monument for her father.

At this moment, she already understood what she needed to do.

She put the hunting rifle on her back, held the injured Taro in her arms, and said, "Taro, let's go back! Otherwise, others will worry!"

"Woof, woof!" Taro wagged his tail, stuck out his tongue, and was also very happy.

She took one last look at her father's wooden monument and turned to leave. Under the shining sun, her figure was stretched out quite long...

Zero and his group left the big forest and returned to the post station.

They found an inn, each chose a room, and began to rest.

Giyu Tomioka lay on the tatami, looking at the ceiling, and the words his trainer Sakonji Urokodaki had said to him when he was a child surfaced in his mind:

"Do not waver, Giyu."

"Water Breathing is a defensive technique that can deal with all attacks! When you want to reach the pinnacle, you must have the determination to maintain your breathing from beginning to end..."

"If you want to become the strongest swordsman in the Demon Slayer Corps, if you want to become a Pillar of the Demon Slayer Corps, you must maintain this heart!"

"Like the surface of water, remain calm and unruffled!"

Night fell.

Before setting off, the three of them came to a restaurant, preparing to eat some food.

"Huhu~ ham... Mr. Tomioka, you've changed!" Shinobu Kocho said to Giyu Tomioka while eating noodles.

"I also think you've changed, Giyu..." Zero chimed in as well.

Giyu Tomioka was somewhat confused, not understanding why the two of them would say that.

Giyu Tomioka: "Changed? How have I changed?"

Shinobu Kocho: "Hmm... I can't quite say. Before, I always thought you were a person cold to the bone... That sentence you said to Miss Yae... that was your own unique way of showing concern, right... I have truly learned something! Hahaha!"

Zero: "I think it's more than that... the way he speaks is better than before, isn't it? It must be because of that incident with Tanjiro, right, Giyu?"

These words made Giyu Tomioka recall meeting Tanjiro and his family, as well as Nezuko, who had turned into a demon.

"Nezuko is different! She won't eat people!"

That young boy... his family had fallen victim to the evil demon!

The family had survived because of Zero's timely rescue, but the younger sister had turned into a demon!

Giyu Tomioka was even reflecting on whether his judgment at the time was correct?

"No matter what happens, my heart will not waver. We are the eleven strongest swordsmen! True to our name, we are the 'Pillars' who specialize in killing evil demons!"

"It is precisely because there are things on our shoulders that need to be supported that the Pillars are Pillars!"

Shinobu Kocho was left confused by these words; she couldn't believe such words would come out of Giyu Tomioka's mouth!

Zero's thoughts could also be said to be similar to Giyu Tomioka's. If one were to compare the Pillars of the Demon Slayer Corps with the Twelve Kizuki, it would be:

【The Pillars are the pillars that hold up the sky!】

【The Moons are strings that are replaced once they snap!】

And there was a reason for his own codename, Zero.

Zero did not remember his name or his past, but he always remembered the meaning of the codename Zero.

After he officially became a Time-Space Patroller, the Initial Zero began to step down, handing the position of Zero to him.

The Initial Zero had once told Zero: Zero represents starting from zero; the past will become history, and the present is the beginning of a new history! All things in the world start from zero!

Since Zero drifted from the time-space tunnel to this other world, it meant that his life in this other world would be starting from zero!

(Rem: Stare~)

(Author: Ahem... sorry, crossed over into another world!)

"Customer, your udon noodles are ready! Please enjoy." The boss placed a bowl of prepared udon noodles in front of Zero. After Zero thanked him, he began to eat.

"So no matter what happens, I will not waver!" Giyu Tomioka said firmly.

"Customer, your salmon daikon is ready! Please enjoy!" The boss placed a bowl of salmon daikon in front of Giyu Tomioka. Seeing the salmon daikon, Giyu Tomioka could not suppress his love for it and began to waver.

The words he had just said were like a slap in the face.

Zero/Shinobu Kocho: "So much for not wavering...?"

Munch munch!

Salmon daikon was Giyu Tomioka's favorite. Seeing such a delicacy, he revealed that strange smile and began to eat it in large mouthfuls, disregarding his image, which shocked the boss, Zero, and Shinobu Kocho!

Zero: ⊙﹏⊙∥

Shinobu Kocho: ∑(?? д?? lll)

Giyu Tomioka: "What's wrong?"

Shinobu Kocho: "Nothing, it's just the first time I've seen Mr. Tomioka's smile... it's a bit..."

Zero: "Um... when you eat, could you please not look in our direction... ple... please..."

Boss:? (?'?'??)?

【Giyu Tomioka: I am not hated!】

Giyu Tomioka: I am not hated at all