I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

"Mr. Tachibana!" Harada leaned on his spear with his right hand, put his left hand on his hip, raised his chin, puffed out his chest, and looked smug. "We've successfully captured this man in the suit!"

Lying on the ground in front of Harada is the young man in a suit and tie who was sitting opposite the bearded man in the confectionery shop earlier, now pale-faced.

Aoto questioned Saito and the others in detail and quickly learned the whole process of how the three of them captured the man in the suit.

This man in the suit not only didn't know any martial arts, but his physical strength was visibly poor. His steps were unsteady, and when his feet swayed... it was more like he was floating than running.

Such a guy, who neither knows martial arts nor has much physical strength, naturally could not escape the clutches of Saito and his group of young and strong martial artists.

The man in the suit didn't even get out of the street before he was subdued on the ground with the combined efforts of Saito and his two companions.

Saito and his team not only caught the man in the suit, but also learned his identity through the identification of a passerby.

"Huh? Isn't that Mr. Hanada?"—A woman dressed in a kimono exclaimed in surprise from the crowd after Saito and his men subdued the men in suits.

Someone actually recognized this man in the suit... Of course, Saito and his team couldn't ignore such important information.

Therefore, Saito and his team immediately located the woman who had made the exclamation among the onlookers and questioned her in detail.

The person in charge of questioning this woman... was Saito.

From another perspective, the taciturn Saito was very well-suited for the role of "interrogator".

Because he was very economical with words, Saito never beat around the bush when asking questions; he always got straight to the point. If a question could be answered in five words, he would never use six.

For example, when questioning the woman, Saito went straight to the point and asked directly:

"Do you know this person?"

Furthermore, Saito's face, which rarely showed any emotion or expression, was quite imposing and could bring a strong psychological pressure to the person being questioned.

Thanks to Saito's efficient questioning, which wasted no time or effort, they quickly obtained a wealth of information about the man in the suit from the woman.

The man in the suit is named "Hanada Shichiro" and is a Lanfang doctor who lives in this settlement.

The so-called "Lanfang doctor" refers to a doctor who uses Western medical techniques.

Hanada Shichiro went to sea six years ago to study Western medicine. He returned two years ago after completing his studies. Because his medical skills were quite advanced, and the medical techniques he used were familiar to Westerners, he was very popular among the Westerners in the Edo settlement.

Since his main clients are Westerners living in the Edo settlement, Hanada Shichiro now resides there to make it easier for him to treat his regular clients.

After asking the woman until they had nothing more to ask, Saito and his team thanked her for her cooperation in their investigation.

Then she turned around and began to interrogate the man in the suit... who was Hanada Shichiro.

Hanada Shichiro remained defiant in the face of Saito and his team's interrogation.

He insisted that he was an innocent civilian, and that the reason he ran away when he saw Qing Deng and the others in the pastry shop was because he was frightened by the gleaming knives in Qing Deng and Yongcang's hands, and thought that the "radical anti-foreign faction" had rushed in to kill "traitors".

As for the bearded man who sat at the same table with him and opposite him at the time, Hanada Shichiro said, "I once treated this man. I happened to run into him at that confectionery shop, so I invited him to come and have some confectionery with me. I only know that his name is Takakura Heigoro, and nothing else!"

No matter how Saito and his men interrogated or threatened him, Hanada Shichiro remained unmoved, insisting that he was innocent.

To Hanada Shichiro's insistence on being an innocent bystander, Aoto had only one attitude: Say what you want! I'll take you back to the magistrate's office first!

The streets of the settlement were never a suitable place for questioning.

Once they are brought back to the magistrate's office, there will be plenty of time to investigate the relationship between Hanada Shichiro and the bearded man who is suspected to be a member of the Exile Group.

All the suspects that could be caught have been caught, and Qing Deng and his group have no reason to stay in their place of residence any longer.

Anthony and his family helped Qingdeng and his friends a lot today.

Now that they're leaving their place of residence, it's neither reasonable nor ethical for them to leave without even saying goodbye to Anthony and the others.

Aoto found a large cloak to cover his blood-stained clothes, and after Saito and the others, who needed to escort Hanada Shichiro and the others and were unable to leave, went ahead, he returned alone to Anthony's mansion...

……

……

Outside Anthony's mansion, Anthony, Elodie, and Leroy, who were standing side by side in front of him, succinctly summarized their "capture operation" that had just taken place.

"...In short, that's how it is. We caught a few suspicious individuals without any problems, so we're heading back to the magistrate's office now."

When Qingdeng came to say goodbye, Elodie was still in class.

After learning from Leroy that Qingden and the others were leaving the settlement, Elodie quickly asked her tutor Gerald for 20 minutes' leave, and then went with Anthony and Leroy to say goodbye to Qingden.

“Mr. Angoulême, thank you so much for your help today.”

Although he had already said "thank you" to Anthony and the others many times today, Qing Deng still felt annoyed and once again presented a gift of thanks to the old man, the young girl, and the maid in front of him.

"Mr. Ju, there's no need to be so polite. Compared to the life-saving grace you once gave us, this little favor is nothing."

Qingdeng repeatedly said "thank you," and the smiling Anthony also repeatedly said "you're welcome."

After thanking Anthony, Qing Deng turned to thank Leroy.

Leroy brewed them black tea today... Although Saito and the others missed the chance to drink Leroy's black tea because Saito and the others discovered the bearded man entering the confectionery shop at the same time Leroy brewed the black tea, they still had to show their appreciation for his hard work.

The "old" and the "maid" in this trio of "one old, one young and one maid" had already thanked and said goodbye... Qing Deng turned his gaze to Elodie, who was now standing behind Anthony.

Elodie had been quite quiet since earlier, not saying much, and just stood behind Anthony the whole time.

After Qingdeng looked over, Elodie, feeling his gaze, tilted her head up to meet his eyes. Then, as if she couldn't calm down, she blinked her big eyes hard, and her folded hands, placed in front of her navel, secretly clenched the fabric of her robe around her stomach...

Seeing Elodie's obviously strange appearance, Qingdeng couldn't help but raise an eyebrow in confusion.

Just then, Elodie took a deep breath and then gave Qingdeng a proper smile that showed the demeanor of a "little adult".

"Mr. Orange, what a pity."

"I was thinking of continuing to play with you, Mr. Tachibana, after today's class."

"Looks like... I'll have to wait until next time."

The confusion that had arisen in my mind about why Elodie was acting strangely vanished instantly.

Elodie's words just now suddenly reminded Qingdeng of what Leroy had said to him about half an hour earlier—

(Mr. Orange, thank you so much for playing with Miss earlier.)

……

(The young lady... has been very lonely since she moved to Edo.)

……

(Today, after a long time, I wielded a sword with someone... Miss must be very happy.)

……

Qing Deng carefully examined Elodie's face. Although it was well concealed, a faint sense of loneliness could still be seen in her brows and the depths of her eyes.

She had finally found people to play with, but now they were leaving, leaving only her, her grandfather, and the maid in the spacious mansion... Although she didn't know if it was accurate, Qing Deng guessed that this was probably how Elodie felt right now.

Qingdeng instantly understood why Elodie looked different now. His cheeks relaxed, his mouth relaxed, and his gaze and expression softened as his facial muscles relaxed.

"...I'm sorry, Miss Ungray. I can't play with you anymore today."

Qingdeng didn't engage in any lengthy discussions with this humble, polite, and endearing young girl.

After briefly apologizing to Elodie for having to leave his place of residence, Qingdeng crouched down, making himself half a head shorter than Elodie, who was only 142cm tall.

"Although it's hard to say when... I'll play with you again when I have the chance or time to come here next time."

"At that time, let me see more of the techniques in rapier."

Qingdeng's tone was not impassioned... and his voice was calm.

Strangely, after hearing this, Elodie felt a peculiar sense of relief.

The lingering loneliness in her eyes largely disappeared as the strange sense of peace that arose in her heart dispelled it.

She smiled.

Although Elodie had been smiling the whole time, the smile she was showing now was completely different from the one she had shown just now.

More natural? More intimate?

It's hard to describe with specific adjectives.

If Qing Deng were to describe Elodie's smile in his own words...

This was a shy smile with a childlike innocence unique to girls her age... Qing Deng felt there couldn't be a more accurate assessment than this.

"Then you should try to come in the morning or evening!" Elodie said with a half-joking grin. "These are the only times I don't have to attend classes!"

Qingdeng burst into laughter.

"Yes! I will try my best."

……

……

After escorting Hanada Shichiro and the archers led by the "bearded middle-aged man" back to the magistrate's office, and then handling a series of complex but necessary tasks such as handing over suspects and reporting on today's arrest operation, the sun had already sunk below the horizon.

Qingdeng has done everything he could.

Now all we can do is wait for the professional interrogation team—the jailers—to extract information from these people.

After a long and tiring day, Aoto and the others returned to the Shieikan under the stars and moon, and spent the rest of the day comfortably as usual.

After dinner, we did some night training, and then went to Chihiro's place to take a bath with Saito, Nagakura, and Harada...

However—just as Aoto washed away most of his fatigue with the hot water from the bathtub at Chihiro-ya and returned to Shiei-kan with a wooden basin containing his dirty clothes, soap, and other items… something happened that disrupted Aoto's "comfortable normalcy."

As soon as the huge shadow of the Shiwei Hall appeared in Qingdeng's field of vision, he saw a familiar figure standing at the gate of the Shiwei Hall in the distance.

It was Chiba Jutaro, who had a pretty good relationship with Aoto.

Chiba Jutaro, standing anxiously outside the gate of the Shieikan, was talking to Kondo and Okita, who were standing face to face with him.

Kondo and Okita's expressions were extremely solemn.

Kondo's serious expression was not surprising... but Okita's serious expression made Aoto feel a sinking feeling in his heart.

The cheerful and optimistic Okita, who was always happy, suddenly showed such an expression... Aoto vaguely guessed that something terrible must have happened, and an ominous premonition arose in his heart.

Qing Deng hugged the bathtub tightly and led Saito and the others to quicken their pace slightly.

"Ah, Tachibana-kun!" Okita was the first to spot Aoto and the others returning. He waved vigorously at them, "You've come back just in time!"

"You're back just in time..." Hearing Okita's words, Aoto's ominous premonition intensified.

Before Qing Deng could ask "What's wrong?", he heard Chiba Jutaro, whose face was slightly pale, quickly say: