I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

Although her face was obscured by a mask that only revealed her eyes, Qing Deng could clearly sense that Sanako's expression remained calm throughout.

He showed no signs of anxiety or impatience despite his poor throwing skills and dismal "results".

Whether it's drawing an arrow, aiming, throwing it, or taking a short rest... every movement of Sanako is so elegant and captivating.

The so-called "temperament" is truly a very mysterious thing.

The same set of movements can produce different feelings in different people.

Sanako is the kind of person who, even when squatting on the street eating stinky tofu, can exude an aura of "a goddess eating precious pearls and jade."

Even with her face covered by a mask, Sanako's elegant and compelling aura was still undeniable.

As if influenced by Sanako's elegant aura, the flow of time around them seemed to slow down from the moment Sanako threw her first arrow.

Sanako became the undisputed "origin" of this space.

Qing Deng, the bald boss, and almost all the onlookers and players around them unconsciously focused their attention on Sanako, admiring her pleasing demeanor and behavior.

Sanako was completely unaware of these changes in the outside world—her entire focus was on the arrows in her hand and the game before her.

Before she knew it, Sanako had only one arrow left in her hand.

Even though it was only her last chance, Sanako still didn't show any negative emotions.

Rather, it's more accurate to say that... her fighting spirit seems even higher.

A faint, imposing aura emanated from her beautiful eyes, which were visible beyond the mask.

She weighed the last arrow in her hand, then raised it and aimed the arrowhead at the white lucky cat on the top shelf once more.

Sanako's goal has always been the same: the white lucky cat on the top shelf.

Every arrow she threw was aimed at this adorable lucky cat.

At that moment, Qing Deng suddenly thought: Could it be... that Sanako doesn't want to play this game, but wants that lucky cat?

Just as Qing Deng was pondering this in his heart, Sanako's right arm drew a beautiful arc—the arrow that left her arm instantly sliced ​​through everyone's vision horizontally.

Perhaps Sanako finally grasped the knack of throwing, or it could just be pure luck.

The last arrow... finally struck the white lucky cat!

"congratulations!"

The bald boss vigorously swung the bell in his hand while beaming and loudly proclaiming to Sanako:

"You hit that lucky cat! Now it's yours!"

Sanako didn't seem to have anticipated her success.

She stared blankly for a moment, then, a beat too slow, instinctively brought her two small, clenched fists to the bear, excitedly shouting:

"It's a success!"

After shouting, Sanako realized that she had inadvertently done something very undignified.

A look of embarrassment crossed her face. Her eyes darted around hastily as she hurriedly loosened her fists from in front of the bear, cleared her throat, and pretended nothing had happened.

"Here you go! Take it!"

The bald boss took the white lucky cat down from the shelf and handed it to Sanako with both hands.

"Sir Samurai, young lady, would you like to continue playing?"

"No." Sanako shook her head without hesitation.

Qing Deng brought Sanako to this booth so that she could let go of her inhibitions and fully enjoy tonight's grand celebration. Now that his goal had been achieved, he shook his head and said, "I won't either."

"Oh! If you want to play again later, please be sure to come and support my business!"

After saying this with a professional smile, the bald boss glanced at Qing Deng with a meaningful look, then sideways...

……

……

Aoto and Sanako left the bald boss's stall one after the other.

Sanako, holding the white lucky cat in her hands, lowered her head to look at the "cat" while gently stroking the "cat's" eyes, nose, and mouth with her delicate, slender fingers.

Sanako seems to really like this lucky cat.

A childlike smile surfaced in his eyes, which were deeply hidden by the mask.

Aoto crossed his arms and looked at Sanako, who was still staring at the lucky cat, with the gaze of someone admiring a work of art.

At this moment, Aoto had a feeling of "having a completely new understanding of Sanako".

Sanako has always presented herself as elegant, poised, well-educated, and the perfect embodiment of the term "Yamato Nadeshiko" (ideal Japanese woman).

Aoto was already used to Sanako like this.

Therefore, whether it was Sanako's happy shout just now or her now gleefully staring at a lucky cat, it brought a unique... touch to Aoto.

This was the first time he had seen Sanako show such a... childlike side.

While I found it surprising, I also found it quite interesting.

The lines on Qing Deng's face unconsciously relaxed slowly, and the relaxed lines turned into a faint smile.

……

……

Thanks to the "arrow-throwing game" just now, Sanako has relaxed a lot.

Although still somewhat reserved, they no longer felt strongly opposed to playing at every game stall or eating and drinking at every food stall.

As the two headed toward the fireworks display site, the Two Nations Bridge, they ate, drank, and played along the way.

After a leisurely stroll, we arrived at this most famous bridge in Edo, just as the fireworks were about to begin—in about 5 minutes, colorful fireworks would illuminate the entire night sky.

However... at this moment, a problem arose in front of Qing Deng and Sanako: they looked around but could not find a good place to watch the fireworks.

People everywhere...

Compared to last night, the number of people was much higher tonight.

It's difficult to find even a spot close to the Ryogoku Bridge, let alone a good viewpoint.

Fortunately, just when Qingdeng was at his wit's end, he suddenly noticed that not far to his right, there was an open-air tea stall that hadn't been there the night before.

There are currently two empty seats left on one of the benches at that open-air tea stall.

"Miss Sanako, come with me."

Qing Deng waved to Sanako as he hurried toward the open-air tea stall and plopped down in front of the two empty seats.

Sanako, who arrived a step later, sat down to Aoto's left.

Because there wasn't much space on the bench, the two had to sit very close together, skin to skin.

Although it didn't feel too crowded... the physical heat that was constantly being transferred to each other's bodies caused the expressions on their faces to become uncontrollably strange.

"Gentlemen, what would you like to drink?"

At this moment, the tea stall attendant—a little girl who looked to be just over 10 years old—greeted the two of them with a beaming smile.

"Hmm... I'll just have a cup of green tea," Qing Deng said.

“Me too,” Sanako said. “A cup of green tea will do.”

"Alright! Two cups of green tea, is that right? I'll bring them to you right away!"

After telling the little man what kind of tea he wanted, Qingdeng turned his gaze back to the front.

The open-air tea stall where he and Sanako were located was in a pretty good spot, right across from the east entrance of the Ryogoku Bridge. They could look up and see the clear night sky, and sit and drink tea while watching the fireworks.

Looking around, one sees a large, bustling crowd.

A dense crowd filled Qingdeng's field of vision.

Last night, because Aoto helped Ootsuki Minoru out of a predicament, which caused a lot of delay, the fireworks display was about to begin when Aoto and Kinoshita Mai rushed to Ryogokubashi.

Because I was in a hurry to find a spot, I didn't have time to take a closer look at the bridge and the huge crowd of people around it.

Right now, it's just the right time to make up for last night's regret.

The bridge, which is usually known for its wide width and can accommodate more than ten adults walking side by side, became incredibly narrow at this moment.

All you can see are people. This is what they mean by "a sea of ​​people."

The flow of people resembled a river that had been blocked and was flowing extremely slowly.

If there was a gap ahead, they would squeeze in to fill it. They squeezed in, side by side, crawling, waiting... inching forward inch by inch. If just one more person were to squeeze in, the river would burst its banks.

Besides the ground level, the river under the bridge is also very lively.

Exquisite painted boats are scattered across the surface of the Sumida River.

Enjoy a leisurely boat ride on the cool river while watching fireworks without the hassle of crowds. If you wish, you can even invite geishas who sell their art but not their bodies, or those who sell both, onto the boat... Naturally, those who can afford such services are invariably wealthy and powerful.

Even Qingdeng, who now has the title of "King of Benevolence," does not have the financial resources or social status to become a member of the "army of boatmen."

The time spent waiting for the tea to be served and for the fireworks to appear was incredibly boring.

To pass the time, Qing Deng casually asked Sanako:

"Miss Sanako, do you usually come to attend the fireworks festival?"

“I used to come here almost every year when I was little,” Sanako replied casually. “But after my coming-of-age ceremony, I basically stopped coming.”

"Huh? Why?"

There's no particular reason.

Sanako took a deep breath.

"I'm just getting tired of it..."

"The fireworks display is the same every year."

"A large number of vendors set up stalls around the bridge between the two countries."

"Set off fireworks when the time comes."

"Although Kenya has always been committed to innovation and tries to create newer fireworks every year, perhaps it's because people's mindset gradually changes as they get older."