After traveling at sea for half an hour, the ferry successfully docked.
The passengers disembarked one after another, but one person remained seated quietly at both the bow and stern. Even after all the other passengers had left, neither of them moved.
The Muscular Boat Owner called out, "We're here. This is Hachijo Island. Time to get off."
Only then did Kurozawa rise upon hearing the Muscular Boat Owner's call.
However, he still did not disembark. He merely folded his arms and looked at the Muscular Boat Owner with a faint, inscrutable smile.
"If you don't get off now, I'm taking the boat back. There are passengers waiting over there."
Feeling somewhat uncomfortable under Kurozawa's gaze, the Muscular Boat Owner gave a stiff smile.
Kurozawa smiled as well.
"We're not in a hurry. If I remembered correctly, you just said, 'What would I gain by lying to you?'"
"And in my experience, anyone who ends with that line is lying through their teeth."
"Talk. What's going on with Hachijo Island? What do you know?"
Pressed step by step by Kurozawa, the Muscular Boat Owner took a step back. Then, as if Kurozawa had struck a sore spot, he fired off words like a barrage. "I told you, it's true! Everyone who got into trouble on Hachijo Island was just careless while playing in the sea. There's no hidden reason! What would I gain by lying to you? Would some hidden truth affect my business? What a joke, that's impossible."
He spoke rapidly, and rather than explaining himself to Kurozawa, it seemed more like he was trying to justify himself.
At that moment, Shinjuro Rengoku also stood and walked over to Kurozawa's side.
Yet he said nothing, merely watching Kurozawa with great interest.
"You said so much all at once because you know you've done something wrong and are trying to comfort yourself."
"No, I don't know anything. Don't block me either, I'm leaving." The Muscular Boat Owner clenched his teeth and stubbornly refused to talk.
Since both Shinjuro Rengoku and Kurozawa carried swords and wore haori, he assumed they were together.
Kurozawa suddenly stepped forward, his expression turning fierce as his Nichirin Blade rang from its sheath.
The cold blade rested directly against the Muscular Boat Owner's neck. Its icy touch raised a layer of goosebumps across his skin.
Kurozawa said frostily, "I came specifically to deal with this matter. Tell me what you know!"
"Otherwise, I don't mind adding another dead soul beneath my blade!"
With the sword at his throat, beads of cold sweat formed on the Muscular Boat Owner's forehead. He forced out a smile and reached out to grasp the back of the Nichirin Blade, but no matter how hard he pulled, he could not move it.
"Don't joke around. There are people watching everywhere, hahaha. Put the sword down, put it down. Be careful. It won't be good if someone really gets hurt."
There were quite a few people on Hachijo Island's shore. Many had been drawn by Kurozawa's commotion, stretching their necks and staring without blinking to watch the show.
"You think I'm joking?"
Kurozawa's face darkened, and his wrist moved.
The sharp Nichirin Blade immediately sliced through the man's skin, staining itself with a thread of crimson blood. At the same time, feeling the sting at his neck and seeing the sharp, indifferent eyes of the person before him, the Muscular Boat Owner went rigid and no longer dared to move.
"I-I'll talk."
"Actually... I can't be completely sure, but every person who disappeared vanished after visiting the local great family, the Iguro Family."
That's more like it. They had to make kind, innocent me play the villain and use violence to interrogate them before they would tell the truth.
Kurozawa satisfactorily sheathed his Nichirin Blade, then gave it a light flick. The blood on it splattered into the sea and was swept away by an incoming wave.
The Muscular Boat Owner let out a sigh of relief and raised a hand to touch the small wound on his neck, his face still filled with lingering fear. Then Kurozawa looked at him again. "You'd better not have concealed anything or lied to me. I'm a petty man who never forgives grudges. I'll definitely come settle the score with you afterward."
Kind and magnanimous Kurozawa lied against his conscience once again, feeling deeply guilty within.
His teeth chattering, the Muscular Boat Owner stammered, "Of course not, of course not. It was only my guess. I didn't want to say anything because I was afraid it would affect business. After all, I have an eighty-year-old—"
Kurozawa raised a hand and cut him off.
"You had your reasons for refusing to tell the truth, but I don't care about them. I don't care how many people you might have indirectly gotten killed. I only care whether your words are true."
"Now, while I'm still in a good mood, get lost!"
Without looking back, Kurozawa stepped off the boat.
What met his eyes were the fearful gazes of the travelers. They all looked at him as though he were some villain, and even the beautiful scenery of Hachijo Island's coast, along with its lush, verdant island plants, seemed to have dimmed.
"Swordsman, have you forgotten the rules of the Demon Slayer Corps?"
The Demon Slayer Corps had many rules, one of which explicitly forbade such violent conduct as Kurozawa's.
Behind him, a distinctive voice like raging flames sounded out. Shinjuro Rengoku had also disembarked and called out to Kurozawa.
Kurozawa turned around and gave a slight bow before replying neither humbly nor arrogantly, "Flame Pillar, rules are dead. I only want to complete the mission as quickly as possible."
The other man was a Demon Slayer Pillar, and deserved the respect due to him. Every swordsman who devoted his life to slaying demons and keeping watch through the night, placing his own life behind them, deserved respect.
But Kurozawa still stood by his own beliefs.
Shinjuro Rengoku was silent for several breaths, then suddenly laughed and patted Kurozawa on the shoulder. "You're right. Since the Hachijo Island mission was assigned to you, I won't interfere."
"However, three fairly skilled swordsmen have already disappeared here, so this is still somewhat dangerous for you. I'll wait by the shore. Come find me within three days once you've completed the mission. If you encounter trouble you can't resolve, you can come here as well."
"If I don't see you in three days, I'll personally deal with Hachijo Island's hidden danger."
Shinjuro Rengoku had been a Pillar for more than twenty years and possessed keen instincts. At this point, he could almost confirm that a demon was causing trouble on Hachijo Island.
He had originally been carrying out a Demon Slaying Mission nearby. After completing it, he passed through Hachijo Island, heard about what had happened here, and came voluntarily. Now that he knew Kurozawa was the mission's executor, he decided to watch for the time being.
Kurozawa nodded. He then parted ways with Shinjuro Rengoku and left Hachijo Island's shore.
Kurozawa walked slowly along a road artificially paved with pebbles. Travelers passed by him, while many distinctive little shops lined both sides of the road, selling interesting local trinkets.
As he approached a shop selling conch-shell ornaments, Kurozawa revealed a sincere smile.
The shop owner was a round-faced little girl with twin buns, only eight or nine years old. She was probably watching the shop temporarily for her family. Captivated by Kurozawa's smile, she stared at him blankly and intently.
"Little sister, can big brother ask you something?"
"Do you know the Iguro Family?"
The little girl wiped drool from the corner of her mouth, then adorably furrowed her brow. After thinking seriously for a moment, she said, "I do, I know! Follow this road, turn right at the third intersection, and you'll reach the Iguro sisters' home."
The Iguro sisters? Kurozawa keenly noticed the strange form of address.
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