I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

At that moment, everyone in the room, who had just been arguing heatedly with spittle flying and faces red and necks bulging, all changed their expressions.

In an instant, the noisy room fell silent; you could hear a pin drop.

At this moment, the people in the room vividly demonstrated what it means to have "a hundred different aspects of life".

Miyabe Teizō's face was filled with surprise and disbelief.

Katsura Kogoro's face was clouded with gloom, as if it had been splashed with ink.

The vast majority of people, however, showed expressions of fear, apprehension, and panic.

Prajna suddenly opened her eyes, straightened her top hat with one hand, grabbed the katana in her arms with the other, her lips curled up slightly, and her eyes gleamed with excitement.

Because everyone heard this shout:

"Run! The Shinsengumi are here!!"

……

……

Seeing that their whereabouts had been exposed, Kondo Isami and the others changed their expressions but did not panic.

Despite not having discussed it beforehand, Kondo Isami and Souji suddenly found themselves working together in a brilliant manner.

Kondo Isami leaped out, grabbed the female hand-protagonist by the back of her collar, dragged her down the stairs, and delivered a heavy punch that put her to sleep for a while.

In the blink of an eye, Souji held Kaga Kiyomitsu before him, wielding the sword in a kasaya stance, the tip pointing straight ahead, and charged toward the stairs, climbing the steps with a resounding "thump-thump" like a war drum!

Suddenly, a burly man appeared at the top of the stairs, blocking the chief's path.

"Who goes there?!"

He questioned loudly while pressing his hand against the knife.

Seeing the enemy appear, the commander lowered his eyelids, exhaled a breath of stale air, and suddenly accelerated!

With a soft "thud," Souji used the momentum of his charge to plunge the knife into the burly man's body.

After her knife pierced the strong man's chest, it went straight through his back, from the tip of the blade all the way to the guard. All that remained outside the strong man's chest were the commander's fist, the guard, and the hilt.

In the next instant, Souji skillfully twisted the blade, pried open the muscles clamping the blade, and smoothly pulled the sword back to his hand. Without even glancing at the burly man who had already died and lay at his feet, he dashed upstairs like lightning and headed straight for the innermost room.

After Kondo Isami knocked out the female handmaiden, he caught up with Souji in the blink of an eye.

The two of them, one in front of the other, crossed the corridor, which was dozens of meters long, in the blink of an eye.

With a sudden wave of his hand, the commander first delivered a swift kasaya slash, followed by a reverse kasaya slash, splitting the innermost room door into four pieces.

After the shattered door panel fell to the ground, their vision suddenly cleared—

The room was crowded with people, and a wave of sweltering heat hit us.

"A light blue haori... It's the Shinsengumi! It really is the Shinsengumi!"

"Why is the Shinsengumi here?!"

"Wait, I remember that little face... Damn it! The person who came is none other than 'Heavenly Sword' Okita Souji!"

Panic, fear, hatred... a variety of gazes, each with its own distinct emotion, were fixed on Kondo Isami and Souji.

Kondo Isami, undeterred, raised his head, surveyed the entire arena, and shouted loudly:

"We are the newly formed group under the command of the Garrison Commander of the Capital Region!"

As he spoke, he raised his knife, assuming a mid-section stance.

"Natural Rishin-ryu, Shinsengumi Chief, Kondo Isami!"

Souji expressionlessly shook off the remaining bloodstains on the sword, then slowly assumed the Blue Eyes stance.

"Okita Souji, captain of the first division of the Shinsengumi, of the same school of Rishin-ryu!"

Some people panicked.

Some people calmly faced the challenge!

Katsura Kogoro, Matsuda Shigesuke, and the others quietly stood up and drew their swords!

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

The brief but rapid sound of swords being drawn caused the atmosphere in the entire arena to change abruptly in that instant!

The dimly lit room suddenly filled with murderous intent.

Since things have come to this, there's no need to say more!

Whether it's Kondo Isami and Souji, or Katsura Kogoro, Matsuda Shigesuke, and others, both sides are currently focused on only one thing—their entire attention is on the enemy before them!

A series of gleaming blades gleamed against each other.

Beams of fierce, predatory gazes clashed and collided in mid-air!

There was a palpable tension that sent chills down your spine. No, it was a stinging, goosebump-inducing tension.

Just then, a firefly with a faint green glow flew in through the window, bringing a flickering light to the dim room.

Katsura Kogoro, Miyabe Teizou, Kondo Isami, Souji... Fireflies swayed and danced in mid-air, illuminating everyone's faces, and finally stopped on Souji's blade.

Just as the tension reached its peak, a beast-like roar erupted from a corner of the arena:

"Go!!"

Before the roar had even faded, several patriots rushed forward!

Almost at the same instant, Souji pushed aside the glow and stepped forward to fight!

Flashes of light pierced the air! Swords clashed!

Within this small space, the scorching heat of clashing swords filled the air!

In an instant—the patriot closest to the commander had just taken a step when only a small portion of his flesh remained connecting his upper and lower body. His head and hands drooped limply, and his legs, supporting his lifeless body, staggered forward a few steps before collapsing with a thud.

In the next instant, Souji's body flashed like the wind, appearing a meter away from the door.

Just as she dodged, another person staggered and fell to the ground before they could even scream.

In the blink of an eye, the commander-in-chief had charged into the enemy ranks, taking the lead!

Although Kondo Isami's attack was a fraction slower, it was not lagging behind his younger sister.

He swung his sword to deflect several icy blades that were slashing at him, and shouted loudly:

"Yamazaki-kun! Which one is Miyabe Teizou?!"

In an instant, Yamazaki rushed up and clung to Kondo Isami's back like a koala, his head peeking out from his right shoulder.

He quickly glanced around, then pointed to a middle-aged man standing in the corner with a knife in his hand and a somber expression.

"That's him! That's Miyabe Teizō!"

Kondo Isami's wolf-like eyes followed the direction Yamazaki Susumu pointed, staring intently at Miyabe Teizo's face, memorizing it deeply.

"Okay! Got it! Yamazaki-kun, go find Tachibana-kun on Nawate-dori!"

"understand!"

After shouting, Yamazaki jumped off Kondo Isami's back, moved with lightning speed, and in the blink of an eye, he was away from the battlefield and returned to the first floor.

At the entrance, the woman, A-Jian, was so frightened by the sudden chaos that she collapsed to the ground, while looking tremblingly at Yamazaki, who seemed to have become a different person.

"Retreat, retreat assistance...?"

"I am not Taisuke! I am Yamazaki Susumu, the vice-captain of the 9th Division of the Shinsengumi!"

Having said that, Yamazaki took off his burlap sash and removed the Sojuro headscarf from his head, a proud and confident look spreading across his face.

After being an undercover agent for so long and enduring so much repression, he can finally show his true colors!

He was not afraid to reveal his identity.

Anyway, the other person will forget what he looks like in no time.

Yamazaki and the female hand-held A-Jian passed each other by and arrived outside the shop.

After confirming the direction of the rope, he lifted the hem of his hakama, tucked it into his belt, and sprinted away at full speed! He disappeared around the street corner in the distance!

……

……

"Protect Miyabe-sensei!"

"Miyabe-sensei, Katsura-san, run!"

"What are you afraid of! There are only two opponents! Let's kill them!"

Facing enemies attacking from all directions, Kondo Isami calmly raised his blade from the lower part of the sword, and Nagasone Kotetsu shone brightly into the sky.

"Bring it on! My Kotetsu thirsts for blood!"

In that instant, his innate talent—"Lone Courage"—was activated!

Kondo Isami swung his sword like a windmill, instantly creating a whirlwind.

When he came to a stop, the people around him retreated violently as if a folding fan had been opened, some dying and others being injured.

On the other side, the commander-in-chief is even more unstoppable!

She gripped Kaga Kiyomitsu tightly, assumed the Kasumi stance for indoor combat, and suddenly leaped towards a corner of the room!

While gliding through the air, in a split second, someone was stabbed in the shoulder, instantly losing most of their fighting ability.

As she landed, she used her sword to force back the enemy in front of her with a forward slash, then with a backhand strike, she cut down the enemy behind her who was trying to sneak up on her. In an instant, the spurting blood painted a bewitching rainbow.

Blood splattered across her haori and her fair face.

Even with blood staining her face and a stench filling the air, her expression remained unchanged—expressionless, eyes like ice, all traces of her usual cheerfulness and brightness vanished! She looked like a demon!

*******

*******

The "Ikedaya Incident" has finally begun! For the sake of this chapter's quality, please be sure to vote for this book with your monthly tickets! (Crying leopard head.jpg) Requesting monthly tickets! Requesting recommendation tickets! (Leopard head crying.jpg)

PS: Historically, the first people to storm the second floor of the Ikedaya were Kondo Isami and Okita Souji. Kondo Isami's talent of "lone wolf courage" was created based on his heroic feat of defeating a superior enemy force.