I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

The chief's drinking behavior has always been so bad it's unbearable to watch. Once he's drunk, he'll do all sorts of bizarre and inexplicable things.

The absurd things that Souji did while drunk included, but were not limited to:

They mistook Qingdeng's thigh for a big radish and started munching on it.

He mistook Aoto's clothes for konpeito and smacked his lips.

—Thinking about it... how could the Commander-in-Chief, in a sober state, do something so outrageous...?

As Qing Deng pondered this to himself, he slowly sat back down next to the commander.

The mind that had been shaken by the "sneak attack" from the commander gradually calmed down.

At this moment, Souji also lowered her cute, white, and tender little feet back to the edge of the corridor, and began to sway back and forth again.

"Miss Okita, why are you out in the yard all alone in the middle of the night instead of sleeping soundly in your warm bed?"

Qing Deng asked the same question he had just asked, but had not received a positive response from the commander-in-chief.

This time, the commander finally answered truthfully.

"I didn't want to sleep... so I came here to get some fresh air."

"Don't want to sleep? Why? Can't you sleep?"

"No... I'm not having trouble sleeping..."

The commander hiccuped again.

Her hiccups this time were quite forceful.

A strand of hair behind her ear was shaken off, falling down her temples and slightly opening the collar of her kimono.

For a moment, the bright spring sunshine was faintly visible.

The commander's clothes were in a disheveled state.

Judging from her appearance, she was in a hurry to get out of the room, but her hands and feet were affected by the alcohol and were not very obedient to her, resulting in her clothes and belt not being properly covered.

It was only now that Qing Deng suddenly realized: the commander hadn't tied the bear harness.

Her breasts, though not as large as those of Kinoshita Mai, Sanako, and Tenshōin, were still much larger than those of most women in the country, stretching her loose dress into a rather sizable small mountain.

"Um... Ms. Okita, your clothes..."

While gently reminding him, Qing Deng quickly turned his gaze away from Souji to avoid seeing anything he shouldn't.

"Oh... my clothes are open... no wonder I've felt a chill in my chest and stomach since earlier..."

The commander chuckled a few times.

She appeared to be much more drunk than she looked.

Although Souji is a carefree and unconventional girl, she still possesses at least a basic sense of shame.

Normally, if her clothes were blown open by the wind, she wouldn't have time to giggle like that. She would have turned to the side immediately, looking embarrassed and frantically covering her clothes up again.

rustling... rustling...

The sound of clothes rubbing together reached my ears.

Listening to this series of subtle sounds, Qingdeng felt inexplicably nervous.

A moment later, the sound of fabric rubbing together stopped.

After confirming that Souji had indeed dressed properly, Qing Deng silently turned his gaze back to Souji's delicate body.

Looking at Souji's profile, Qing Deng's expression slowly and uncontrollably turned strange.

(Xiao Si has a very good impression of you... to put it simply, he likes you very, very much.)

Suddenly, the words that Okita Hikaru had said to him not long ago came to Yu Qingdeng's mind.

Thanks to the all-night conversation between Okita Hikaru and Aoto on the night before Okita left Edo, Aoto can't help but recall the wonderful "revelations" that Okita Hikaru told him whenever he sees Souji's face.

Aoto is not a clay or wooden sculpture. If he could remain calm and composed after hearing Okita Hikaru's "revelations," and maintain a tranquil and far-sighted mindset in front of Souji, that would be rather abnormal.

Previously, Qing Deng didn't even dare to look directly at Souji, but now, with the passage of time, his "symptoms" have improved a lot, and he is gradually able to interact with Souji in a natural manner as before.

However, at certain times and in certain situations... like now, Qing Deng still finds himself feeling awkward and out of place in front of the Souji.

At this moment, Souji's voice, which was still full of energy even when he was drunk, pulled Aoto's attention away from his chaotic thoughts.

"The wind is so strong!"

A moist, cool wind blew in from the distant mountains.

The Director-General's shoulder-length hair swayed in the wind.

She pressed it with her snow-white fingers, her face beaming with a childlike, mischievous smile.

"Hey, look! My hair's been blown so high!"

Looking at Souji bathed in the wind and night, Aoto had a strange thought for no reason.

—Miss Okita...she's quite the delicate beauty...

Although it sounds strange, Aoto did indeed have a strange feeling at that moment, as if he were meeting Souji for the first time.

The chief is the person with the best relationship with Aoto among everyone in the entire Shieikan.

The two were always inseparable. It was hard to say when Qing Deng was outside, but inside the Shiwei Hall, a petite figure with a ponytail always gracefully swaying high was always by his side.

Kondo and others have complained to Souji and Aoto more than once: "You two are practically glued together."

Qing Deng met Souji the day after he was transported to this world.

Therefore, roughly speaking, his friendship with the commander-in-chief has lasted for nearly a year.

Throughout the year he spent with Souji, Aoto always regarded Souji as his good brother—this did not change even after he discovered Souji's true gender; he simply switched his perspective from "good brother" to "good sister."

Perhaps it was due to this filter that Qing Deng unconsciously overlooked Souji's beauty when he was with her.

In terms of looks alone, although Souji cannot compare to Sanako, the "most beautiful woman in Edo," nor Tenshōin, the "most beautiful widow in Edo," she is still a beautiful girl who can be compared to Kinoshita Mai and is a beauty that makes all the women in Edo... no, more than 90% of the world look up to her.

Souji possesses a beauty quite different from that of Sanako and Motoshita Mai.

If Sanako is a refined lady from a wealthy family, and Kinoshita Mai is a charming girl from a modest family... then Souji is a warm and lively girl next door.

Each has its own beauty and charm.

Immersed in appreciating the beauty of Souji, Aoto was completely unaware that his eyes were fixed on Souji's pretty face.

"Tachibana-kun? Tachibana-kun?"

"Hmm? What's wrong?"

Startled by the souji's gentle voice, Qing Deng quickly responded.

"What's wrong? Why did you suddenly space out? Is there something on my face?"

As he asked the question, the commander raised his hand and vigorously rubbed his face a few times.

"No no."

Qing Deng chuckled.

"The Deceiver" and "The Emperor's Art" activated!

Qingdeng, with a natural expression and a serious tone, said in a half-joking manner:

"I rarely see you with your hair down, so I thought it was a rare sight and couldn't help but take a few more glances at you."

"Hee hee~"

Upon hearing Qing Deng's words, Souji revealed a cheerful, goofy expression and reached out to touch the black hair draped over his shoulders.

"I rarely wear my hair down, so what do you think? Do you think I look good with my hair down?"

As soon as the commander finished speaking, Qing Deng immediately replied:

"Yes, it's very beautiful."

Upon hearing this, Qing Deng paused for a moment—because his lips and tongue had just slipped out of his brain's control.

Before the brain even began to think, the lips and tongue moved on their own, automatically uttering the compliment to Souji.

Souji's smile grew even brighter and more radiant, with a hint of sweetness in it.

"Thank you! I'm so happy to hear that!"

After saying that, the commander straightened his body slightly, put his arms back on the floor on both sides of his body, raised his head, and looked up at the night sky.

"Kid Orange, it's rare to see you here, so come and enjoy the breeze with me."

"What's the point of this freezing wind?" Qingdeng thought to himself.

However, he still sat down on the veranda as the chieftain wished, and moved closer to the chieftain.

Given Souji's current state of mental instability and his tendency to do surprising things, Aoto was really worried about leaving Souji alone here.

He dared not go back to his room to sleep until he was sure the commander was safe.

"Miss Okita, you said you don't not want to sleep because you can't sleep, so what is the reason that you would rather stay in the yard in the cold wind than go back to bed?"

Qing Deng cleared his throat and brought the topic back to the main point.

The commander lowered his eyelids thoughtfully:

"Once I close my eyes and go to sleep, when I open them again, it will definitely be the next morning or noon, right? I... I don't want today to end like this..."

"Don't you want today to end?"

Qing Deng raised an eyebrow and asked the commander with his eyes and expression: What does this mean?

Souji habitually reached behind his head, wanting to stroke her ponytail.

But because she hadn't tied her hair up tonight, she could only "make do" by touching her naturally loose black hair.

"Tonight... is the happiest, most joyful, and most festive New Year's Eve I've ever had in my life."

“In the past, on New Year’s Eve, at most only my sister, brother-in-law, Kondo, Mr. Hijikata, Uncle Gen, my master, and Aunt Abi were with me.”

"Although it was also very fun and lively, it still can't compare to tonight."

At this point, the commander paused for a moment.

After a moment, she smiled sweetly: