I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

Having said that, Tenshōin carefully examined Sanako from head to toe, and remarked with admiration:

"Your beauty is truly legendary."

"You flatter me."

Sanako, who was already used to being praised, responded neither humbly nor arrogantly.

At first glance, the atmosphere between Sanako and Tenshōin appears peaceful.

In reality, however, an elusive and invisible undercurrent has been quietly surging around them.

Because it was so well concealed, neither Sanako nor Souji noticed that Tenshōin's beautiful eyes were flashing with an intriguing light...

……

……

—Chiba Sanako…isn’t she Moriharu’s lover…?

As Aoto's friend and superior, Tenshōin once heard Aoto talk about his love life during a casual conversation.

It was at that time that Tenshōin first learned that the seemingly upright Seiden was actually quite lecherous in private...

He not only liked two girls at the same time, but also fantasized about marrying both of them as his legal wives.

One of the girls was none other than Chiba Sanako, the woman who haunted the dreams of countless Edo men, a woman they could never have.

What Tenshōin didn't know was that Aoto's love interest had already increased from two to three, and he had even developed a close relationship with the extra one that was practically like that of a husband and wife. If Tenshōin knew about this, one wonders what her expression would be.

Closer to home.

Tenshō-inmoto had no interest in Sanako whatsoever.

It wasn't until Aoto confessed his special feelings for Sanako that the name Chiba Sanako left a deep impression on her.

Today marks the first time Tenshōin has met Sanako.

After glancing at Sanako's pretty face a few more times, Tenshōin thought to himself:

—No wonder Sheng Qing likes her… She does have a pretty face that is pleasing to the eye, and a beautiful body that can make men infatuated.

There's a good reason why she was called 'the most beautiful woman in Edo'.

At that moment, for some reason, a strange sense of competition welled up in Tenshōin's heart...

—Chiba Sanako is indeed very charming... but she's just so-so.

Tenshōin subtly curled his lip.

—In terms of looks and figure, she's at best on par with me...

While thinking this, Tenshōin unconsciously glanced at Sanako's puffy chest, which was perched high on her cotton-padded coat and kendo uniform.

This was the first time Tenshōin had encountered a woman there whose size could compare to hers...

……

……

Next, Sanako and Tenshōin exchanged polite words.

Tenshōin called Sanako over simply to get a closer look at what the woman Aoto liked looked like.

Now that the project has been completed, Tenshōin has naturally lost interest in continuing to chat with Sanako.

Before long, Tenshōin uttered a formulaic, polite phrase often used to conclude a conversation.

Following Tenshōin's lead, Sanako ended the conversation.

After a brief farewell, Sanako and Souji retraced their steps and left the shrine.

However, at that moment, Souji, who had only walked a few steps away, suddenly stopped and turned back.

"Miss Yu Du, may I ask you something?"

Tenshoin looked up at the chief commander.

"Of course, please ask."

"Yes, we are looking for a man."

The commander raised his hand high and measured a height of 1.75 meters.

"He is very tall, almost six feet tall, very handsome, and has a strong physique. He speaks with an Edo accent, and he doesn't shave his head; he only wears his hair in a topknot. Have you ever seen a man with these features?"

Tenshōin raised an eyebrow, then tilted his head back as if deep in thought.

"Six feet tall...that's really tall...hmm..."

After a moment, she shook her head and said without batting an eye:

"No, I've never seen a man with those characteristics."

"I see..."

A hint of sadness flashed in the Chief's eyes, but she quickly composed herself and thanked Tenshōin with a smile.

"I'm sorry to bother you, thank you for your cooperation!"

Looking at the chief's radiant smile, Tenshōin belatedly thought to himself:

—What a handsome young man… Could he be Okita Souji, who is so close to Moriharu?

Before Tenshōin could verify his identity with Souji, Souji quickly took two steps and returned to Sanako's side.

Seeing this, Tenshō-in thought to himself:

—Never mind…it doesn’t matter what kind of person he is, I probably won’t have a chance to see him again anyway…

Two tall ponytails, one long and one short, swayed in the wind.

Tenshōin stood still, silently watching Sanako and Souji's departing figures.

Only after the two women had completely disappeared from her sight did she murmur in a voice only she could hear:

"Luckily, Sheng Qing isn't here right now..."

……

……

At this very moment—

Edo, somewhere near the Tsukimiya Shrine—

"Hey...hey..."

Yae secretly nudged Saege next to her with her elbow.

"what?"

Sha Zhong asked impatiently.

The junior seemed to be in a bad mood.

Yae lowered her voice and whispered.

Should we say something to comfort him?

Having said that, Yae raised her gaze and stared at Aoto, who was walking ahead of them.

Even without looking, Yae could clearly sense that Aoto's current expression... wasn't very pleasant...

"...Yae, I advise you not to do that."

Sashige sighed.

"Mr. Tachibana's mind must be in a lot of turmoil right now, let him calm down."

"Well……"

Yae seemed to want to say something more.

But after hesitating for a moment, she silently closed her lips, fell silent, and said no more.

The two sisters thought they were speaking very softly, but in reality, every word they uttered was clearly heard by Qingdeng, who possessed the "sensory of the wind."

The two sisters' concern for him touched Qing Deng deeply.

But they made a mistake—although Qing Deng's expression did look very sour, it wasn't because he was in a bad mood.

To be honest, Qingdeng isn't in a bad mood right now, but rather... his mood is very complicated...

After leaving Kikuchi Chisui's dilapidated house, a strange feeling, whose name and details were unknown, lingered in Aoto's heart.

Qing Deng had never experienced this kind of emotion before.

How should I describe it...?

It doesn't seem like confusion.

It didn't seem like a tragedy either.

It's a bit heavy.

But it was also a bit exciting.

An emotion that is difficult to describe with specific adjectives.

Qingdeng tries to find out the real name of this emotion.

But whenever he calmed down and carefully felt this emotion, it was like trying to catch the moon's reflection in water—just when he thought he was about to catch the moon, he ended up only grabbing a handful of water.

"call……"

Qingdeng looked up at the sky and let out a long breath.

Even though he hadn't done anything physically demanding today, Qingdeng just felt inexplicably tired...

Before he knew it, the stone steps of the Moon Palace Shrine came into Qing Deng's view.

Feeling extremely exhausted, Qingdeng hung his head and climbed the steps.

Just as Qingdeng's gaze and consciousness were focused on the steps beneath his feet, two footsteps reached his ears from above...

Two familiar footsteps.

Calm and elegant, or bouncy and energetic... two completely different ways of walking.