I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

In addition to his skin and ears, Qing Deng's nose was also being severely irritated.

The scent was somewhat like the fragrance of mint, which kept wafting into Qingdeng's nostrils.

Where is this fragrance coming from? The answer is obvious...

Tenshōin seemed to be explaining something very serious, but Seidō couldn't hear it clearly, even though Tenshōin was right next to him... No, that's not right. The distance couldn't be described as "near"; the two of them were practically touching.

The voice of Tenshōin seemed to come from a distant place. It was indistinct and ethereal.

Qingdeng was able to end this embarrassing situation.

He turned his head to the side, glancing behind him out of the corner of his eye.

Tianzhangyuan looked solemn and his eyes were focused.

His entire body seemed to be covered with the label of "seriousness," and this extremely strong seriousness caused an aura of awe-inspiring and inviolable majesty to emanate from his body.

There was absolutely no chance to interrupt... It was truly because Tenshōin's expression was so solemn that there was no opportunity to speak up and remind her! Really! It wasn't for any other strange reason!

Qingdeng said this to himself with certainty.

"...Anyway, that's it. Okay, Tachibana-kun, try it again yourself... Hmm? Tachibana-kun?"

After finishing her explanation, Tenshōin raised her beautiful face and looked at Aoden, who seemed to be daydreaming, with a puzzled expression.

Just as she was about to ask "What's wrong?", she finally realized how awkward her posture and distance with Qing Deng were.

Instantly, Tenshoin's entire face turned bright red. His cheeks flushed a rosy blush.

"I'm so sorry. My old problem has flared up again..."

Tenshoin hurriedly released Qingdeng from his arms, took seven steps back in one breath, and instantly increased the distance between himself and Qingdeng.

Immediately afterwards, as if remembering something, Tenshōin said to Aoto with a look of annoyance:

"Tachibana-kun, didn't I already tell you? When my old habit flares up again, you need to remind me in time!"

Unable to refute... completely unable to retort, Qingdeng turned his face away in embarrassment, not daring to look at Tianzhangyuan.

"I'm sorry... because you were talking so earnestly and attentively, I couldn't find a moment to speak..."

The atmosphere around me has changed.

Silence descended between Qingdeng and Tianzhangyuan.

Tenshōin did not launch any further reprimand against Seidō.

Her face flushed, and like Qingdeng, she turned her head to the side, her gaze fixed on the empty snowfield not far away.

This scene reminded Qing Deng of the day more than three months ago, when he first learned to use the bow under the tutelage of Tianzhangyuan.

At that time, Qing Deng discovered this problem with Tian Zhang Yuan for the first time.

The atmosphere was just as awkward then as it is now...

As Tenshōin Yukichi said, this is an old problem of Tenshōin's.

This princess of the Satsuma Domain, who comes from a prestigious family, is perhaps influenced by her family tradition. Once she decides to do something seriously, she becomes exceptionally focused, meticulous, and unwavering.

This should have been a good thing... but the problem is: Tenshōin often gets too focused.

So focused that you forget your surroundings; so focused that you ignore your own behavior and words.

Archery was Tenshōin's favorite martial art—she said it herself.

When passing on his favorite martial art to Qing Deng, Tenshōin frequently entered a state of "forgetting himself and the world" out of his affection for archery and his responsibility to Qing Deng.

Tenshōin happens to be the kind of "action-oriented" person who prefers to take action rather than talk.

Compared to lecturing dry knowledge, Tenshōin preferred to demonstrate things personally and teach Aoden how to draw the bow and how to aim.

And so—this scene just now came to be.

Unable to extricate herself from her teaching work, Tenshōin unconsciously moved her hands and feet, pressing her delicate body against Qingdō's without her realizing it, in order to help Qingdō understand the techniques of using a bow more quickly.

Back when this embarrassing situation first occurred, Tenshōin told Seidō: "If you see me behaving so inappropriately again, remember to remind me."

At the same time, Tenshōin repeatedly assured Aoden that she would pay more attention in the future and would never let a similar situation happen again.

As a result, Tenshōin was left empty-handed.

Almost every time they practiced archery, Tenshōin would uncontrollably have overly intimate physical contact with Aoto.

After attending "archery lessons" for more than three months, Qing Deng not only learned how to use a bow, but also remembered Tenshōin's body temperature and scent.

Even now, the moment Qingdeng sees the bow and arrow, he immediately thinks of Tenshōin's pretty face, then of Tenshōin's "personal guidance" to him, and then of that alluring temperature and scent—Qingdeng's imagination can leap so far in this area, all thanks to Tenshōin's old habit.

At this moment, Tenshōin displays the mature side of a 24-year-old adult woman.

"Cough cough..."

She coughed lightly twice.

Two light coughs broke the silence.

As the quiet atmosphere was broken, the awkwardness that had been between the two of them dissipated considerably.

"Alright, let's continue practicing archery."

Tianzhangyuan put on a stern face, his expression solemn, and pretended that nothing had happened.

Qingdeng also took the opportunity to back down. He took several deep breaths.

The innate talent "Emperor's Art" is activated.

Quickly composing himself and adjusting his expression, he and Tenshōin tacitly chose not to mention the little accident that had just occurred, an incident that had happened countless times before...

—I really started liking archery because it's good for my physical and mental health...

The self-suggestive mutterings echoed once again deep within Qingdeng's heart...

……

……

After that, the archery class proceeded as normal.

After several pointers from Tianzhangyuan, Qingdeng finally gradually figured out the tricks of the "long-range shooting method," and his hit rate improved dramatically, jumping from "zero hits out of five shots" to "three hits out of ten shots."

Qingdeng's ability to draw inferences from one instance and understand ten things from one instance naturally made it unnecessary for Tianzhangyuan to provide him with "personal guidance".

Despite consciously ignoring it, Qingdeng genuinely felt a sense of regret and loneliness...

Nothing more unexpected happened—and so more than an hour passed—

"Alright, let's call it a day for today's practice, Tachibana-kun. Here, have some tea and snacks."

Tenshōin knelt in a pavilion next to the archery range, which was used as a resting place. Beside him were two teacups and a plate of mochi, which he didn't know where they came from.

Is black tea acceptable?

"Ah, sure. I don't have any dietary restrictions when it comes to tea."

After drawing the bow for more than an hour, Qingdeng was exhausted, both physically and mentally.

Since he was also a little hungry, Qingdeng didn't stand on ceremony. He put the bow back on the bow rack and sat down next to Tenshōin with an air of nonchalance.

"Ju-kun, you really are an extraordinary martial arts prodigy."

"Ok?"

Qingdeng, who was drinking red tea, raised a puzzled look at Tianzhangyuan.

"Why are you suddenly bringing this up?" Qingdeng asked with his eyes.

"I thought you only had exceptional talent in swordsmanship, but I never imagined you also had such amazing talent in archery."

Tensho-in's face showed a look of emotion.

"In less than four months, you have reached the level that I barely achieved after four years of hard work. If this continues, it won't be long before I have nothing left to teach you."

Faced with Tenshōin's sudden praise, Aoden smiled politely and said a few words of humility.

"Oh, right..."

Qing Deng's face froze for a moment, and after hesitating for a while, he asked Tian Zhang Yuan:

"Speaking of this... Your Highness Tenshōin, I have a question I've wanted to ask you for a long time."

Qingdeng asked with his eyes: May I ask?

"Ok?"

Tenshōin replied with an expression: Go ahead and ask.

Why do you want to teach me archery yourself? With your abilities, you could easily find many people to do it for you, couldn't you?"

"Ah, well... the reason is actually quite simple."

Tenshōin put down his teacup, turned his upper body to face Aoto, and smiled warmly.

"Because I like you! I want to spend as much time alone with you as possible!"

*******

*******

Damn censorship! I had to hold back while writing this chapter! I dared not write too much about how Qingdeng and Tianzhangyuan actually got together; it was too heartbreaking! (Heartbroken Leopard.jpg)

The groundwork has been laid pretty much, and we're almost ready to get into the main plot of Volume 2 (yes, Volume 100 is almost a million words long, but we still haven't gotten to the "soaring to the heavens" main theme. All the previous events, whether it's the fireworks festival or the fight against the bandits, are just setups for the main plot to come).

The following events are going to be very interesting, so stay tuned!

Chapter 324 Tianzhangyuan's kiss on Qingdeng, Qingdeng's first kiss is stolen?

Qing Deng had found it very strange when Tenshōin claimed he would personally teach him archery.

Logically speaking, for a big shot like Tenshōin, finding an archery teacher who has both outstanding personal skills and is willing to carefully teach Seidō would be a simple matter of moving a finger and speaking a word.

The main task of the Ōgōdai-sho was to assist the shogun in managing the Ōoku, which was the shogun's harem.

This job isn't so busy that it's overwhelming, but it's not so leisurely that you have plenty of time to play or do various side jobs either.

In short, this question has puzzled Qingdeng for a long time.

Qingdeng had been looking for an opportunity to ask Tenshōin a proper question, but the right moment to ask had been delayed until now.