I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

From the moment Okita Hikaru appeared inside the Shieikan, Nagakura and the others stared at Okita Hikaru's face with astonished eyes.

Even Saito, who was usually inscrutable and rarely showed his emotions, looked at Okita Hikaru with a surprised expression.

Souji and his sister look so alike.

Just as Harada said, the brother and sister who look so alike are like twins.

The biggest difference in appearance between the siblings is probably their height and hairstyle.

Hikaru Okita, who is nearly 1.6 meters tall, is slightly taller than Souji, who is only 1.55 meters tall.

Souji wore a high ponytail, while Okita Hikaru styled her hair into the currently popular Shimada bun hairstyle.

"Haha, thank you for the compliment." Hikaru Okita raised her delicate hand, covered her mouth, and chuckled. "Being praised for resembling my...my younger brother makes me a little happy."

"elder sister……"

Souji was sitting to his left and slightly behind his sister. The two siblings, who looked so alike they were practically twins, sat side by side, creating a striking visual impact.

"Why did you and your brother-in-law come to Edo so early?"

"What? Aren't you happy to see me?"

Hikaru Okita wore a cheerful expression, and turned her head to give Souji a mischievous smile as if she wanted to tease him.

"It's not that you're not welcome..."

The chief, with his back and neck slumped, pursed his lips and reached behind his head to smooth his ponytail.

"I was a little surprised that you arrived so early. I thought you wouldn't arrive in Edo for a few more days..."

"Rintaro and I haven't had anything important to do lately, so we're quite free. That's why we came early."

After Okita Hikaru finished speaking, he shifted his gaze, looked at Souji's head, and then at Souji's feet.

"Sōji, have you grown taller?"

Okita Hikaru's words seemed to possess some kind of special magic.

As soon as Okita Hikaru finished speaking, Souji, who had been holding her waist and neck, suddenly straightened up and looked directly into her older sister's eyes with bright eyes, nodding vigorously with excitement.

"Yes! I have indeed grown taller, I've grown so much taller—"

The commander raised his right thumb and forefinger and compared them, showing a length of about 1 centimeter.

"The tea is here~~"

At this moment, Inoue entered the room carrying tea and snacks.

The rough work of serving tea and water, cleaning and laundry at Shieikan was always handled by Inoue, the "old housekeeper of Shieikan" who loved doing these tasks.

Previously, Inoue had gone back to his hometown to help his old friend reclaim land, so these tasks were taken over by Abi, Souji, and others.

After returning from the well, the old housekeeper naturally took over these odd jobs and tiring tasks again.

"Uncle Yuan." Okita Hikaru picked up the tea that Inoue had just handed him, took a small sip, and said, "Your tea is still so delicious."

"Hahaha." Inoue laughed a few times. "Hikaru, you're as eloquent as ever."

"Hehehe, Hikaru, Rintaro." At this moment, Shusuke, who was sitting directly opposite Okita Hikaru, spoke up, "It's been a long time since I've seen you two!"

Sitting to the side and behind Zhou Zhu, A Bi followed closely behind and said, "We are extremely grateful that you would be willing to attend my son's wedding."

"Master Kondo, Mrs. Kondo, it's been a long time since I've greeted you, please forgive me." Okita Hikaru put down his teacup, bowed slightly to Shusuke and Abi, and continued with a smile in a humble yet confident manner, "Kondo-kun is getting married, and as Souji's older sister, how could I not attend the banquet?"

At this point, Okita Hikaru shifted his gaze to Kondo.

"Kondo-kun, congratulations on your marriage."

"Hahaha, thank you!" Kondo, whose mind had been completely captivated by Matsui Tsune since their first meeting and who had been determined to continue the family line with this girl, smiled sheepishly, scratching the back of his head and letting out a slightly silly laugh.

"Hikaru," Shusuke called again, "How are you? How have you been lately?"

"We've been doing quite well lately."

"Hinojuku may not be as bustling as Edo, but it is quiet and simple, and not easily disturbed by the chaos of the world."

"The world is in chaos lately."

"It's foreign invasion again, and the shouts of 'Expel the barbarians' again..."

"In this kind of world, living in a quiet, undisturbed rural place is a kind of happiness."

……

Overall, the eldest sister of the Souji gives a very good impression.

She is poised and elegant, speaks eloquently, and is very polite. Talking with her is like a breath of fresh air.

But Qing Deng always felt that Okita Hikaru's every smile and frown seemed to carry a hint of the domineering aura of a "strong woman".

Compared to Hikaru Okita, her husband, Rintaro Okita, who married into the family, seemed rather insignificant.

Rintaro Okita was also a samurai who carried two swords at his waist.

But in terms of both appearance and temperament... Okita Rintaro is more like a country old farmer who has never seen much of the world than a samurai.

Okita Hikaru was mainly responsible for communicating with the people at Shieikan, while Okita Rintaro sat respectfully beside his wife the whole time, rarely speaking.

I don't know if it's just Qingdeng's imagination...

Qing Deng felt that... Souji didn't seem to be very happy that his older sister and brother-in-law had come.

Judging from the interactions between Souji and Okita Hikaru, the siblings should have a very good relationship.

When Okita praised the Chief Commander for being tall, the Chief Commander was so happy he seemed ready to jump for joy.

—Does Okita-kun really hate being pressured to get married by his sister that much...?

Recalling the story that Souji had complained to him last night about how "his older sister was always pressuring him to get married," Aoto couldn't help but think to himself.

……

……

The next two days were unusually peaceful in Qingdeng.

Although Shusuke invited Okita Hikaru and his wife to stay at the Shieikan, where there were plenty of other places to stay, Okita Hikaru politely declined, saying, "That would be too much trouble for you."

Hikaru Okita led Rintaro to stay at an inn not far from the Shieikan.

The couple would visit the testing center every day and spend most of the day there.

With his exceptional social skills, Hikaru Okita quickly became acquainted with a group of people, including Aoto.

There's not much to say about Qingdeng's life these past two days.

He was just constantly rehabilitating his body.

The sparring session with Inoue caused Aoto's muscles to vividly recall the feeling of battle.

After two days of intensive rehabilitation, Qingdeng felt that his physical condition had basically returned to its pre-injury state.

So... Qingdeng felt it was time to begin.

It's time to start practicing sword-drawing techniques!

……

……

The first year of Wanyan (1860), December 6th——

Edo, the Thousand Things Shop—

Clang.

"Meow meow meow~~"

As soon as Qingdeng pushed open the door of the Thousand Things Shop with a "bang," the big orange cat Duoduo came running towards Qingdeng with elegant cat steps, meowing.

"Ah, Qingdeng!"

Following the meow was Kinoshita Mai's joyful call, and the familiar "thump-thump-thump" of her little feet on the wooden walkway.

Good morning, Ah Wu.

Aoto gave Kinoshita Mai a warm smile as she hurried toward him.

*******

*******

Happy National Day everyone!

From October 1st to October 7th, throughout the entire National Day holiday, Qidian will be holding a double monthly pass event.

So, readers who currently have monthly passes, please be sure to vote for this book!

[The double monthly pass event only happens at the beginning of this month; it won't happen again at the end of the month!]

To celebrate National Day and also to help me get more votes, I've decided to take a day off during the seven-day holiday to spend time with friends. [Therefore, for the remaining six days, I'll try my best to update with over 6 words per day!]

Please be sure to vote for this book with your monthly ticket, considering how hard the author works!

Please vote with monthly tickets! Please vote with recommendation tickets! (Leopard crying.jpg)

Please vote with monthly tickets! Please vote with recommendation tickets! (Leopard crying.jpg)

Please vote with monthly tickets! Please vote with recommendation tickets! (Leopard crying.jpg)

By the way, the "Second Annual Character Popularity Vote" ended at midnight on October 2nd! So today is the last day of the event, so those who want to participate should hurry up!

********

The most important use of monthly passes is not the quantity, but the ranking on the monthly pass leaderboard.

The higher your ranking on the monthly ticket chart, the more exposure you will receive.

The reason the author keeps asking for votes is to help this book rank higher on this month's monthly ticket chart.

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Chapter 199 Cultivating the Sword Drawing Technique and the Demon Sword Vairocana

A bright red, cool yukata... a familiar outfit.