Some swordsmen tried to comfort him, but he rudely drove them away.
Not far away, the Scribe leaned against a tree, his face expressionless.
He knew that saying anything at this point would be useless.
Simply explaining will only make the other party feel that you are making excuses.
As for why the gunpowder suddenly started burning, he had a rough idea.
"To destroy the evidence."
Taking photos of yourself as a killing swordsman is very convincing, but it has a fatal flaw.
That is, these swordsmen are not complete.
They were all devoured by brain food, becoming empty shells with only a facade.
If the Scribe had the Demon Slayer Corps examine the body afterward, the suspicious points would be easily discovered.
The thought of a swordsman losing his brain is enough to make people's imaginations run wild, let alone a group of people.
At that time, the Scribe would explain briefly and people would know that he was wronged.
However, after the gunpowder explosion, the situation was completely different.
All the bodies were affected by the explosion, making it difficult to piece together a complete corpse.
Even just discovering that it is a human corpse, let alone finding out which part is missing, is already quite an achievement.
In this way, the Scribe lost the evidence to prove his innocence.
There's no way to defend myself!
"Heh, what a clever scheme."
With a cold smile, Scribe knew that this must have been the work of that so-called Brain Food Number 005.
As for Gyokko, if he had any brains, he wouldn't have been killed by Muiichiro in the original story.
The Scribe clearly sensed that this ghost, named "Brain Eater," was different from most of the ghosts he had encountered before.
They dislike using force and prefer to use stratagems.
If you can put someone in despair, that's what they want to see most.
"I will report this matter truthfully to my Master."
The voice rang out, and turning his head, the Scribe saw that it was the male swordsman.
He had calmed down a bit by now, but his violently heaving chest and the tears in his eyes revealed his turbulent inner state.
"They were controlled; their brains were eaten by a Brain Eater Demon '."
The swordsman gave a cold laugh and remained silent.
Judging from his expression, he clearly did not believe the reason given by the Scribe.
He flicked his sleeve and wiped away the tears on his face.
"Let's go and find the survivors in the village."
Upon hearing this, the surviving swordsman silently stood up and walked towards the village.
As people move around, they subconsciously avoid the area where the Scribe is.
In a short period of time, the Scribe went from being an object of their admiration to a murderer they loathed and despised.
Meanwhile, Kanroji Mitsuri, who had rescued the village chief Tetsukawara Tessen, was leading a group of people through the village.
"Are you sure there's no problem, Lord Kanroji?"
A swordsmith carrying a long spear stepped forward quickly and spoke to Kanroji, who was walking at the front.
"Aren't we afraid of attracting those ghosts to attack us by just walking around like this?"
"It's alright. If a ghost really attacks, I will protect everyone."
Patting her chest, Mitsuri said earnestly.
"Besides, I already checked this road when I came here, and there was no trace of any ghostly activity."
After she rescued the village chief and his group from a group of Muscle Goldfish, the sounds of fighting ceased.
The explosion that had just occurred had caught her attention, but it was in the distant forest.
Even if there are still battles that haven't ended, they shouldn't have spread here.
Besides, it's almost dawn.
According to the habits of ghosts, if they don't leave soon, they will die from contact with the sun.
After walking for a while, several familiar figures suddenly appeared at the front of the group.
"Huh? Are those Tanjiro and the others?!"
With a look of surprise, Kanroji Mitsuri raised her hands and shouted.
"Are you all alright? Are you injured?"
"Is that Mitsuri Kanroji?"
Upon hearing her voice, Tanjiro and his group all looked over, a hint of joy appearing on their faces.
After they reunited, Mitsuri immediately inquired about the others.
"Have reinforcements arrived? Where are they? I can't see them."
"They're gone."
Tanjiro shook his head and explained.
"Not long ago, a female team member said she had discovered something strange, so they all left."
Tanjiro was a little confused, since the Scribe had clearly said not to let them move around freely.
But the female swordsman's words and expression were very serious, and the leading male swordsman couldn't argue with her, so he had no choice but to lead his men to go and see for themselves.
Before leaving, he said he would be back soon.
But to this day, not a single person has returned.
The location where the explosion just occurred happened to be in the same direction that these people were exploring.
With a little thought, Tanjiro began to imagine some unpleasant things.
"Everyone, please come back safely."
As time went by, most of the sun came out.
Feeling the warmth showered upon them, everyone was finally able to rest.
Many people collapsed on the spot, looking extremely exhausted.
In just one night, they experienced so much.
Demons invade, Upper Rank demons appear, Demon Slayer die, and the village is destroyed.
The Demon Slayer Corps' reserve forces suffered a severe blow.
After a while, Muiichiro, supported by Tetsuana Mori and Kotetsu, returned to the village.
"Muiichiro, are you alright?!"
Seeing Muiichiro in wounds, Tanjiro and the others quickly asked if he was alright.
Sitting under some ruins, Uichirou saw his injured younger brother and wanted to go to him, but in the end he didn't stand up.
Sensing his brother's meaning, Muiichiro responded with a nonchalant look.
Only then did Uichirou feel relieved.
After looking at the crowd, Muiichiro suddenly asked.
Where is the Mister Scribe?
"Didn't he go to help you?"
"He went to hunt down Upper Moon Five, Gyokko."
Frowning, Muiichiro sensed that something was amiss.
Apart from the previous explosion, they didn't hear any other loud noises.
If it was caused by the battle between the Scribe and the Gyokko, it should be over by now.
Even if the Scribe made a mistake and Gyokko escaped, he should still be in the village by now.
Just as a group of people were wondering what was going on, another team of Demon Slayer suddenly appeared.
"You are..."
"We are the second team to come and provide support."
The leading male swordsman managed a weak smile after spotting Tanjiro and the others.
"Unfortunately, before even seeing the enemy, most of them fell into the trap and were killed."
After comforting the other man, Tanjiro asked the male swordsman if he had seen the Scribe.
"I saw him."
"Really? Where is he?"
"We witnessed him slaughtering his colleagues in the forest."
As soon as he finished speaking, everyone's face showed an expression of disbelief.
Chapter 501 Parting Ways
Impossible, absolutely impossible!
Not only Tanjiro, Nezuko and the others' first reaction upon hearing this was that the swordsman had misread it.
"I also hope I'm mistaken, but..."
With his head bowed, the male swordsman's face was filled with pain.
Clear tears streamed down, leaving a trail on her smoke-blackened face.
"But it really was the Mister Scribe made it!"
The other swordsmen also gritted their teeth and clenched their fists, looking as if they didn't want to remember.
"But..."
Just as Tanjiro was about to say something, he noticed a figure walking towards him from the direction of the rising sun.
"Scribe, sir..."
Upon approaching, Tanjiro realized that the person was none other than the Scribe.
"You don't..."
Before he could finish speaking, Tanjiro's expression suddenly changed.
He smelled a bloody odor, which came from the Scribe.
That wasn't the smell of ghost blood, but the blood of a human being, a living human being just like him!
Moreover, its concentration is definitely not the kind of small dose that gets splashed on your body.
The Scribe personally killed more than ten Demon Slayer!
His pupils trembled incessantly; at that moment, Tanjiro even wondered if there was something wrong with his nose.
How could my respected Scribe do such a thing?
Ignoring his injuries, he strode forward and asked loudly.
"Mister Scribe, did you really kill the Demon Slayer?"
"You mean the first batch of support troops?"
"Yes."