Chapter 76: The Pillars

Along the way, Zero carried Hu Die Ren back to the Demon Slayer Corps headquarters, walking as if on flat ground, without a single jolt.

Perhaps it was the sense of security from Zero’s back and that faint body scent that fascinated Hu Die Ren.

Gradually, she fell asleep, curled against his back.

Zero did not wake her.

In her dream, Hu Die Ren saw her sister punishing Zero, and she couldn’t help but smirk.

Then, Kanae instructed Zero to bring a basin of foot-washing water, as punishment, to wash his sister’s feet.

“Hehehe~ Stinky brother-in-law, you’ve finally gotten what’s coming to you~! Served you right for bullying me!”

Zero heard the voice behind him and his eyelid twitched slightly—what the hell had she dreamed about?

They returned to the Demon Slayer Corps headquarters.

The Pillar swordsmen, including former Flame Pillar Rengoku Makomo, had gathered here.

Ikkyu Shobun was perched on a tree.

Tomioka Giyuu stood beside a small pond, keeping his distance from the others.

But Murakumo Jiro was nowhere to be seen.

“Zero, you’ve worked hard,” Kanae said as she approached Zero.

Then she woke Hu Die Ren: “Little Ren, wake up!”

Half-asleep, Hu Die Ren rubbed her eyes, even a strand of drool visible trailing from her lips onto Zero’s back.

“Stinky brother-in-law, what are you waiting for? Get my feet washed right now!”

The Pillars: !!!!!!!!

The air fell instantly silent; Hu Die Ren sensed something was wrong.

She turned her head and saw everyone staring at her with strange expressions.

Their bodies trembled slightly, as if barely holding back laughter!

Instantly, Hu Die Ren’s face turned bright red!

How to put it? Total social death…

Her hand still felt damp on Zero’s back—no need to guess, it was definitely her saliva…

She couldn’t get down, yet couldn’t stay on either.

“Little Ren, aren’t you getting down?” Zero said, his tone laced with mild teasing.

Helplessly, Hu Die Ren silently slid off Zero’s back.

Once her feet touched the ground, she dashed to Kanae’s side, head bowed low.

Not long after, members of the Hidden Division carried the unconscious Tanjiro before the group and laid him on the stony ground.

“Pillar Lords!” the Hidden Division member bowed deeply, showing respect.

Zero recognized this Hidden Division member—his name was Gotou.

Gotou then woke the unconscious Tanjiro.

“Hey, wake up! Wake up, damn it!”

“Come on, wake up already!”

“Hey!!”

“How long are you going to keep sleeping?! Wake the hell up!!”

Tanjiro jolted awake at the shouting.

He opened his eyes and looked up to see a crowd of people standing before him!

“Big Brother Zero!”

“Hey, pay attention to the atmosphere! The people standing in front of you are Pillars!”

“Pillars!?”, Tanjiro had heard of them from his trainer.

Besides, Zero himself was a Pillar, so he wasn’t overly surprised.

But seeing so many Pillars at once still shook him deeply.

Hu Die Ren: “This is the Demon Slayer Corps headquarters. You are to be judged, Tanjiro Kamado.”

Rengoku Makomo: “No need for judgment! Sheltering a demon violates the Corps’ rules! Let us handle it—any demon, decapitate!”

Uzui Tengen: “Let me splendidly chop off his head! I’ll make his blood splash splendidly everywhere! Extremely splendid!”

Hinokami Gyomei: “What a pitiful child—his very birth was a tragedy~ Amitabha!”

Mitsuri Kanroji: “Wait, really kill him? Shouldn’t we wait for the Master’s decision?”

Shinobu Muichiro: What shape is that cloud in the sky?

The group debated loudly, insisting they themselves should execute Tanjiro Kamado.

Among them, only Zero, Kanae, and Mitsuri, along with Tomioka Giyuu standing nearby, remained silent.

“Speaking of which, what about Tomioka Giyuu? He broke the rules too!” Ikkyu Shobun pointed at Tomioka Giyuu standing at a distance.

“Why isn’t he tied up? This is such a headache—how should we handle him?”

Ikkyu Shobun glared at Tomioka Giyuu’s silence and felt a surge of irritation.

Hu Die Ren: “It’s fine. More importantly, at least he came along, didn’t he? And… my brother-in-law seems to have something to say.”

“Wait until the Master arrives,” Zero said.

Though he spoke calmly, Rengoku Makomo’s emotions seemed unusually volatile.

He stared at the earrings on Tanjiro’s ears, as if recalling something.

“It… it… is you… You’re the user of the Sun Breathing, aren’t you? Aren’t you?!” Rengoku Makomo roared.

The others were puzzled—they all sensed Rengoku Makomo’s fury and confusion…

Gotou knelt halfway, trembling.

He couldn’t help it—the atmosphere here was too bizarre!

Added to that, the overwhelming aura of the Pillars left him too terrified to speak.

Seeing this, Zero waved to Gotou and said: “You may withdraw, Gotou. We’ll handle this. Don’t worry—the Pillars are here, nothing will go wrong.”

“Yes, thank you, Zero Pillar Lord!” Gotou quickly retreated, hiding in a nearby corner to await orders.

Rengoku Makomo pointed at the earrings on Tanjiro’s ears and growled: “Boy, answer me! Are you the user of the Sun Breathing? Don’t tell me you don’t know what the Sun Breathing is! I recognize those earrings!”

“Sun Breathing? I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Tanjiro said, confused.

“No, you know! You know perfectly well! The Sun Breathing… yes, it’s all written there! The Sun Breathing is the original, the first breathing technique ever created!!

All other breathing styles are derivatives of the Sun Breathing—every single one merely imitates the Sun Breathing, a poor, degraded copy! Rock, Water, Flame, Wind, Thunder, and all others—they’re all just pale imitations!!”

Everyone present, except Zero, was stunned by Rengoku Makomo’s words.

Then, furious, Rengoku Makomo turned and left without another word.

“Father!” Rengoku Makomo tried to follow, but Zero raised a hand to stop him. “Makomo, let him cool off alone. About the Sun Breathing… I’ve uncovered some results.”

Rengoku Makomo thought for a moment, then decided to obey Zero.

“Umu, thank you very much!”

The group’s attention returned to Tanjiro, lying on the ground.

Tanjiro opened his mouth to speak, but a sharp pain shot through his jaw.

Hu Die Ren pulled a small gourd filled with pain-relieving medicine from her sleeve and handed it to Zero.

Zero understood, placed the gourd before Tanjiro, and untied his ropes.

“Drink. This contains painkillers. Take a sip before you speak.”

Tanjiro didn’t care about dignity—he grabbed the gourd and gulped down the entire contents.

The pain in his jaw eased slightly, and he finally spoke: “…My sister became a demon, but she never ate a human. Never before, never now! She would never harm anyone!”

“Don’t joke around! You’re shielding her because she’s your blood! I won’t believe a single word you say!” Ikkyu Shobun declared.

For demons, he hated them with every fiber of his being—let alone a demon slayer carrying a demon.

“Amitabha! He’s possessed by a demon! Kill him now, let this poor child be freed!”

Hinokami Gyomei also refused to believe Tanjiro’s words…

“Please… please believe me! I will fight alongside my sister! As a Demon Slayer, I fight to protect others!” Tanjiro screamed with all his strength, begging them to believe in his sister.

The atmosphere grew tense again.

“Hey hey hey~ This seems to be quite an interesting situation~ Hehehe… So this is the swordsman carrying a demon? How fascinating~”

Murakumo Jiro walked up from nearby, holding a wooden box in his hand.

His face wore a grotesque grin.

“Nezuko!” Tanjiro lunged forward to seize the box, but Zero stopped him.

“Tanjiro, stand aside. I’ll handle what comes next.”

“But Nezuko…”

“Obey.”

“...Yes, Big Brother Zero.”

Tanjiro obediently stepped back and waited.

“Heh, kid, you just said you’d fight alongside your sister as a Demon Slayer to protect humans? Are you… joking with me?!!!”

Ping!

Murakumo Jiro drew his Nichirin Blade, preparing to stab it into the box.

But before he could move, the box vanished from his hands and appeared in Zero’s.

“Zero, are you also going to shelter this demon?” Nishikawa Tengen demanded.

They felt confused and angry at Zero’s actions.

At the same time, they were utterly stunned—how had Zero taken the wooden box from their hands without anyone noticing?

His speed was so fast that not a single person present had seen it!

Yet, a wave of disappointment washed over them—Zero’s strength had grown so formidable already…

It was utterly beyond reach…

“I informed the Lord of this matter long ago…” Zero paused, then continued: “Let’s wait until the Lord arrives.”

Just then, two voices echoed from inside the room: “The Lord has arrived.”

“You’re all here, my beloved swordsmen.”

“The weather is truly fine today—the sky is still blue,” Ubuyashiki Kagaya said as he stepped to the door and looked up at the heavens.

Tanjiro felt a lightness spread through his entire body at the sound of that voice.

Before he could react, Nishikawa Tengen grabbed him and shoved him to his knees beside him, pressing his head down.

When he lifted his head, he saw every Pillar in the room—except Zero—bowed low in half-kneeling reverence.

Even Nishikawa Tengen, who had been so furious moments ago, did the same!

“To see us all gathered once again for the biannual Pillar Meeting fills me with deep satisfaction.”

No sooner had he spoken than Ubuyashiki Kagaya turned his gaze to Zero and smiled: “I didn’t expect you to attend this Pillar Meeting as well. Thank you.”

In previous Pillar Meetings, Zero either could not attend because he was serving as an examiner at Fujin Mountain, or he sent Xiao Yue in his place.

Or else, he would only summon an emergency Pillar Meeting upon acquiring vital intelligence.

Zero nodded and smiled in reply: “It seems your health has recovered well. I’m truly glad for you.”

“Thank you, Zero.”

“My Lord, I have a question,” Nishikawa Tengen spoke up: “Forgive my bluntness, but before the Pillar Meeting begins, could you please explain this swordsman—Kamado Tanjiro—who travels with a demon?”

“I apologize for startling you. This matter was already reported to me by Zero years ago… and I have accepted Tanjiro and Nezuko. I hope you all can accept them too.”

These words instantly ignited outrage among several Pillars.

“Amitabha. Even at the Lord’s command, I cannot comply.”

“I firmly and splendidly oppose! I will never splendidly accept a demon-tainted member of the Demon Slayer Corps!”

“I will forget whichever side it is, immediately…”

“We cannot trust them! Absolutely not! And I hate demons most of all!”

“Umu. I deeply respect the Lord, but on this matter, I will never accept it! I oppose it fully!”

“I will follow whatever the Lord decides~”

“Only those who slay demons are true Demon Slayers! I urge you to punish Kamado Tanjiro and Tomioka Giyu!”

Ubuyashiki Kagaya raised one finger to his lips, signaling silence.

Everyone fell instantly quiet.

He then turned to his daughter, Ubuyashiki Hina: “Bring out the letter.”

“Yes.” Ubuyashiki Hina pulled a letter from her chest and said: “This is a letter from the former Water Pillar, Rengoku Saengenji. Let me read you an excerpt.”

“Please forgive Tanjiro for traveling with his demon sister. Nezuko still retains a strong will and human reason—even during periods of hunger, she has never once tried to eat a human, and has endured this for two years!”

“Also, if Nezuko ever attacks a human, then Kamado Tanjiro, Tomioka Giyu, and Rengoku Saengenji will all commit seppuku in apology.”

After the letter was read, silence fell over everyone.

Zero had not expected Rengoku Saengenji to be so resolute—he couldn’t help but feel admiration.

Tanjiro had not expected Master Rengoku and Master Tomioka to risk their lives for him and Nezuko. His heart swelled with emotion.

“Even so, what does it prove?” Nishikawa Tengen still refused to accept it: “What good is seppuku? If you want to die so badly, just die and rot already! That doesn’t guarantee anything!”

Rengoku Kyojuro added: “Nishikawa is right—once they’ve eaten a human, there’s no turning back! The dead cannot be brought back!”

Ubuyashiki Kagaya: “Yes, you’re correct—it cannot guarantee she won’t attack humans. But neither can it prove she will. After all… Nezuko has gone two full years without eating a single human. And someone has even been willing to stake their life on it.”