bayedsolid Chapter 202 Raise your head with pride
Chapter 202 Raise your head with pride
As expected and reasonable, the room fell into a brief silence.
Tanjiro and Kyojuro both remained sitting there, as did Rinko. The sunlight was still shining on the ground, and even from a distance Rinko could feel the heat gradually approaching.
They might be thinking about what question to ask next, or wondering if the answer has any deeper meaning, or wondering if what he said is true. Humans are always more complicated than ghosts, Lin Guang thought, whether it is personality, behavior style, or brain. They always think a lot, and their thoughts are very troublesome, and Lin Guang often can't guess them.
Although most of the time it was difficult for him to guess what the ghost was thinking, Lin Guang felt that it was partly because his brain was not smart enough, not because the ghost had too many things in mind.
So what was he thinking about? Lin Guang pondered, speculated, and pondered, one chess piece after another falling on the chessboard in his heart. He was playing chess with himself, on the invisible chessboard, in his mind, to kill such free time.
He waited silently, waiting for Kyojuro or Tanjiro to continue speaking, to give an answer, or to switch to the next topic so that he could end such meaningless thinking.
"Muzan Kibutsuji, has he really found out about Nezuko?"
Tanjiro's voice saved Rinko, and the boy blinked, looking at the approaching sunlight, and moved back slightly.
As expected, when Nezuko was mentioned, Tanjiro would be more restless, and Rinko felt a pang of dissatisfaction in his heart.
----
Tanjiro didn't know what Rinko was thinking during the brief silence. He only knew that there were endless speculations in his head. He wanted to ask so many questions that he didn't know where to start, and he was not sure what to ask correctly. Would Rinko have a grudge against them because of their questions? Would they be able to obtain effective information? Mr. Rengoku came with an important task, and the lord gave him a chance to come with Mr. Rengoku against all odds. If he only focused on himself, it seemed inappropriate. He should consider more people, but it seemed difficult for him to really show such great malice towards Rinko.
There was a gentle friction sound, and after asking, Rinkou slowly moved backwards. Tanjiro then noticed that the angle of the sun had changed slightly. It was insignificant for humans, but it was dangerous enough for Rinkou who was already very close to them.
It seems that only at this time will Tanjiro have a clearer understanding that Rinko is a ghost, different from Nezuko and other ghosts, but still not a human ghost.
"Yes, I see. The first oni who could overcome sunlight hasn't appeared in hundreds of years, and there might not be another one in the future. Hantengou was praised for it."
The boy raised his head, his tone soft and gentle, no clear message could be heard. What appeared in his sight was the boy's smile, gentle and kind, not much different from what he remembered.
The tip of his nose twitched, and what he detected was a huge sadness, clear and distinct. The smile on his face could not hide such emotions at all.
For a moment, Tanjiro felt a sudden discomfort in his heart, which seemed to be some kind of guilty emotion, even though he clearly knew that he had done nothing wrong. Those upper-rank demons who appeared in the Swordsmith Village should be killed. They ate too many people, killed too many people, and hurt too many people in the Swordsmith Village. Killing such demons was completely the right thing to do, and it was not a fault that would burden him.
But he still clearly felt the self-blame, because Hantengu did die in his hands, and judging from the tone and the current situation, Tanjiro could realize that Hantengu was also one of Rinkou's so-called "friends".
Maybe it's true. Before it was Upper Rank Three, then Upper Rank Six, and there was also Yuhu who appeared in front of them and was killed by Tokito. So it seems reasonable that Upper Rank Five has a good relationship with Rinko.
"He was my friend. He used to be. After all, he's dead now."
One sentence after another, the traces of punctuation were too clear, and no emotion could be heard from the stuttering sentences, which made Tanjiro unable to judge the boy's emotions from the sound, but at least the smell still clearly enveloped him, like a fine and dense rain, weaving into a huge net, wrapping him in it, and breathing felt like there was a layer of mist between them.
"Kora, Ji Nu, Ai Jue, Cola, Zonbokuten, Hantengu, we're all friends. Now that the old man is dead, it means Tanjiro should have met everyone. I think this must have caused you quite a bit of trouble, but it's all over now... sort of a draw, I guess. It's still a bit of a shame, though, since we can't play together anymore."
This was simply a torture to his heart. Tanjiro sat there, just sitting there, but for the first time he knew what it meant to be sitting on pins and needles, what it meant to have thorns on his back, and what it meant to have a fishbone stuck in his throat. He couldn't say a word, couldn't make a movement, and even didn't dare to look up at Rinko. He knew he had done nothing wrong, but in front of Rinko, he seemed to be under tremendous psychological pressure.
"It's a ghost after all! If it hurts someone, it needs to be killed! That's what everyone does! Ghosts eat people, and those ghosts who eat people will be killed by those who survive! To prevent more misfortunes! This is our duty! I'm sorry you lost your friend, but we're also losing our companions all the time, so I'm sorry I can't comfort you because of this!"
Kyojuro's voice was like a ringing bell, clear and loud, with the temperature and energy of fire. The sound echoed in the empty house, and his broad palm slapped Tanjiro's back with heavy force.
"So hold your head up! Kamado-kun! You didn't do anything wrong! We didn't do anything to wrong Rinkou! We were just doing our duty!"
This was undoubtedly an encouragement. His back was burning with pain from being slapped hard, and it seemed that the injuries on his body were also affected by the pain. But it was not the case. In the blink of an eye, Tanjiro realized that the dull pain of heaviness did not come from the wound, but from the heart. It was the throbbing of being recognized, trusted and encouraged, and the feeling of being pulled up when he fell.
"I'm sorry! I shouldn't have been so depressed about something like this right now. I'm so sorry!"
He has clearly always fulfilled the responsibilities of the eldest son and has always called himself the older brother, but now he shows such an unreliable look in front of his 'younger brother', which is really shameful!
"No! You don't have to apologize for this! Having such talent and ability is commendable! Being able to understand other people's thoughts and being willing to think from their perspective is great! Just don't blame yourself too much for it, don't take all the responsibility on yourself, and don't let it make you feel depressed! Young man Kamado! Hold your head up with pride!"