I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

"What is it?" Jinno, who was leaning against the wall and resting with his eyes closed, opened his eyes a crack and glanced at the one-armed samurai beside him.

"Our spies who went to gather intelligence on the narrow roads between the two countries have returned—our plan was a great success."

"Those fools from the Tianzhong Party have stupidly walked into the 'big net' that the magistrate had set up on the narrow road between the two countries. They have now all been caught in one fell swoop by the magistrate's officers."

As the one-armed samurai finished speaking, Jinno's eyes widened further.

“…Heh.” Kamino sneered, then changed to a mocking tone, “The plan…is progressing much more smoothly than we imagined.”

"The officers of the magistrate's office really worked hard, helping us get rid of a nasty enemy."

"Mr. Kamino. Shouldn't we... be able to start our operation soon?" The one-armed samurai stuck out his tongue and licked the corner of his mouth.

“…Hmm.” After a moment of contemplation, Kanno nodded slightly. “Pass down the order—the operation shall officially begin.”

The one-armed warrior chuckled, replied with a flippant "Yes, sir," and quickly retreated, disappearing into the darkness.

……

……

Edo, Hokuban-sho, a certain room—

"Haaaaaah..." Usui's mouth was wide open, big enough to fit an apple.

"Usui." Atsukawa, the magistrate of Nanbansho-cho, glanced at Usui beside him. "Do you want to go take a nap now?"

"Haha..." Hou Chuan chuckled dryly, raising his hand to rub his enormous belly. "As people get older, their bodies really do gradually become less and less capable..."

"I don't need to rest or anything like that. I'm not that tired yet."

After saying that, Bo Jing took out a Western-style pocket watch from his pocket.

This Western-style pocket watch was a gift from Usui's eldest son a few months ago.

At first, it took some getting used to, but after using it for a while, Susui gradually discovered how convenient this Western clock was. As long as you opened the case, you could know what time it was, and you no longer had to guess the time by looking at the sky.

Bo Jing skillfully swung open the pocket watch case, revealing that the hour and minute hands inside formed a large obtuse angle—the time was exactly 11:30 p.m.

"Why is it so late and there's still no news..." Bo Jing sighed as he put the pocket watch back into his pocket.

“If things can stay quiet like this and no news comes, that would be a good thing.” Atsushi smiled slightly. “It means Edo can get through the night peacefully.”

Usui and Atsukawa, the two current "mayors" of Edo, are personally overseeing the "temporary headquarters" Hokuban-sho tonight, giving full command to all officials involved in tonight's major operation.

After enduring more than two hours of fruitless toil at the Northern Frontier... Usui and Atsukawa inevitably began to feel tired.

Suddenly, just as Bo Jing was putting his pocket watch back into his pocket, an official hurriedly pushed open the door and rushed to Bo Jing and Hou Chuan.

"Master Hsui! Master Atsukawa!"

"The Extermination Group has indeed appeared on the road to Ryogoku Hiroshima!"

"The officials of the Nanfan Bureau bravely took the lead and confronted the 'Extermination Group' that appeared."

"All the thieves have now been captured!"

Usui and Atsukawa were stunned for a moment, then stood up simultaneously with excited expressions and perfect understanding.

"Have all the thieves who appeared on the road between the two countries been caught?" Atsushi Kawa barely suppressed his excitement.

"Yes!" The official nodded vigorously, and then began to give a detailed report on how the officials from the Southern Barbarian Bureau had "returned three times" and captured all the members of the anti-barbarian group who had flooded the streets of the two countries.

After listening attentively to the official's report, Hou Chuan, his cheeks flushed with excitement, slapped his thigh and exclaimed, "Well done! All the hard work today has finally paid off!"

Although it was the Nanban-sho (Southern Frontier Office) who dealt a heavy blow to the anti-foreign forces and made great contributions, Usui was also very happy to hear the good news.

If this terrorist organization, which could cause trouble again at any time, can be eliminated as soon as possible, it would be a great benefit to the Nanban-Shoku, which are responsible for maintaining the security of Edo.

Usui and Atsukawa were overjoyed by the good news... However, the official who came to report the victory to them suddenly changed the subject:

"However... some officials from the Nanfan garrison who had been there three times jointly reported that the captured thieves were somewhat strange."

Usui and Atsushi's expressions froze instantly.

"Strange?" Hou Chuan frowned at the official.

“All the thieves who were caught claimed that they had nothing to do with the Extermination Group and that they were members of the Tianzhong Party.”

"Ten, Tenchu ​​Party...?" With a look of doubt in his eyes, Usui chewed on this extremely unfamiliar title a few times before turning his head to look at Atsukawa beside him.

The Tianzhong Party... Neither Usui nor Atsushi had ever heard of it.

"Did those people... lie about not being part of the Exile Group so that they could receive lighter punishments later?" Atsushi asked hesitantly.

The Extermination Group is a "severe target" that the Magistrate's Office has been vigorously promoting in recent days, so Atsukawa's speculation is not without reason.

It is indeed possible that those people wanted to reduce their crimes, so they lied and claimed that they were not members of the Exile Group, and made up an organization name for themselves.

"...Let's bring these captured thieves back to the magistrate's office as soon as possible," Usui said in a deep voice. "Once they're all back, we can interrogate them slowly and see what they've really done."

"Hmm..." Hou Chuan nodded, "That's the only way..."

Before Hou Chuan could finish speaking—

"Master Hsui——! Lord Atsukawa——!"

Outside the room, a roar that sounded like a scream could be heard.

An official, his face contorted with terror, stumbled open the door and rushed inside.

Bo Jing originally wanted to reprimand the official and tell him to calm down and stop making a rash noise, but after seeing the unusual fear on the man's face, Bo Jing felt uneasy and swallowed the words of reprimand that were about to come out.

"What's wrong?" Hou Chuan asked the official first.

"Lord Usui, Lord Atsukawa! Something terrible has happened! Fires have broken out in Nishiyama-cho, Tsukimachi, and Ben-cho! Fires have broken out in Nishiyama-cho, Tsukimachi, and Ben-cho! Fires have broken out in Nishiyama-cho, Tsukimachi, and Ben-cho!"

The official, in a voice that grew louder and louder, relayed the brief but weighty message—a message so profound it seemed capable of creating a crater in the ground—three times in succession.

It was as if they had been subjected to a "time-stopping" spell... Usui and Atsushi's eyes widened like saucers, frozen in place.

Not moving at all...

Or rather...forgot that their bodies are capable of movement...

……

……

Mars is flying around.

Scattered cherry blossom petals, accompanied by sparks, fall into the night sky.

In places like Fumachi in Edo, streaks of crimson firelight illuminated the dark night and awakened the sleeping citizens of Edo.

"Huh? Why is it so bright... Ah! Fire! Fire!"

"Fire! Get to an open area!"

"Quickly! Call the fire brigade to put out the fire!"

……

During Japan's Edo period, there was a common sense rule: if you saw a fire in a castle town, and the fire was the kind that couldn't be extinguished with just a few buckets of water... then you shouldn't think about anything else: run away!

If you don't escape quickly, you might not have time to escape at all.

More and more townspeople were awakened by these sudden fires and fled the burning buildings in terror.

Because everyone was in a hurry to escape, almost no one noticed that there were several furtive figures around each fire site.

Without exception, these furtive figures were all samurai with swords at their waists.

They all raised their heads with smug expressions, gazing at the ever-growing flames and firelight on the fireground as if admiring their own masterpieces of art...

……

……

At this moment, Qing Deng was in a town called "Key Town".

Of the more than a thousand castles and towns in Edo, this Key Town was one of the most ordinary and unremarkable.

There are no famous shops or special industries here, nor are there any notable celebrities living here.

But tonight... or more precisely, just now, this normally unremarkable town suddenly became "eye-catching".

Because it caught fire.

The fire came suddenly and swiftly.

When Aoto led Saito and the others to inspect the town of Key Town, he suddenly noticed a flashing orange-red light at the far left of his field of vision.

When you shift your gaze, those streaks of orange-red light have already coalesced into concrete flames, ravaging the surrounding buildings...

Due to its dense population and buildings, Edo has always been a city prone to fires, with an average of hundreds of fires of varying sizes occurring every year. As a result, the townspeople of Edo have developed extensive experience and skills in how to avoid fires.

Upon discovering the fire, the townspeople of Kencho screamed and frantically fled with their families and valuables to places far away from the fire.

The sudden fire left Nagakura and Harada stunned.

"Mr. Tachibana!" Toudou stammered, asking Aoto urgently, "What... what should we do now?"

Qingdeng was also startled by the sudden fire, but he quickly regained his composure after only a moment of shock.

Fires were not uncommon in Edo, a time when hundreds of fires could occur every year, especially now that the weather was warming up and fires were most likely to break out.

But Qingdeng felt that the timing of the fire was just too coincidental!

Why did the fire break out at this crucial moment tonight?

Qingdeng pursed his lips and quickly made a decision after only a moment's thought.

"Does anyone know where the nearest town fire station is?" Qing Deng asked his subordinates quickly.

Nagakura, Saito, and Todo looked at each other.

"I! I know!" Harada raised his hand high. "I used to wash dishes at a noodle shop here for a while! I know where the nearest town fire station is!"

Washing dishes?

Harada's past experience washing dishes piqued Aoto's interest, but now was not the time for idle chatter. Suppressing his curiosity, he quickly said to Harada:

"Alright! Harada, go find the nearest fire extinguisher right now and tell them to come and put out the fire as soon as possible! Go quickly!"

"Understood! I'll be right back!" Harada casually slung his spear over his back and ran towards the street corner, his figure quickly blending into the night.

No time to see Harada off—Aoto cast a sharp glance at Nagakura and the others.