The conductor sighed, his face taking on that complicated mixture of resentment and helplessness peculiar to ordinary folk. "Exactly. If you know, you know!"
"That new Inspector Inoue-I don't know what's gotten into his head! He's been arresting people at random ever since he took office!" He rolled his eyes, his chest heaving, clearly furious.
"Men with a bit of muscle, people walking at night, even people who took a second look at the notices... he's slapped all sorts of terrifying charges on them and locked them up!"
"Murderers, robbers, rapists... hah!"
At this, the conductor's voice grew agitated, his face full of exasperation. "We've lived here half our lives. If there really were monsters committing all those major crimes, would the neighbors not have heard a whisper?"
"Would the papers not print a single word? Who's he trying to fool?" He waved his hand forcefully, expressing his utter disbelief.
Hearing this, Kirishima Bupai nodded in silence.
With the information from the tavern and the conductor's corroboration, the last doubts in his mind had vanished.
This was by no means the work of some incompetent official acting alone. That Lower Rank was manipulating things behind the scenes, using the authorities to remove obstacles, create chaos, and divert attention.
The aim was to send members of the Demon Slayer Corps and potential witnesses into the jaws of danger, or simply have someone else kill them.
"That paper is filthy..." Kirishima Bupai glanced in disgust at the wanted notice on the window, his voice cold. "Tear it down? I'd be afraid of dirtying my hands."
Changing the subject, he swept his gaze over the empty carriage. "Seems those rumors about trains eating people have done quite a number. A station this big, and not a soul in sight."
The helplessness on the