I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

Leaving the arrow inside the body can also help to "block the wound and prevent blood from flowing out".

However, it wouldn't be good to leave the arrows in one's body untreated.

The Japanese bow is the largest bow in the world, so correspondingly, the arrows for the Japanese bow are also very long.

Hanging from his body are several wooden poles nearly a meter long, which sway back and forth with the slightest movement... Just imagining it is enough to make one feel extremely cumbersome.

Therefore, after escaping from Phoenix House Yataro's residence, in order to facilitate movement and prevent further injury, Nishino and my grandson broke all the arrows off their bodies, leaving only the arrowheads inside and a small section of the shaft outside.

Although his chainmail and clothing obscured his wounds, Nishino could clearly sense that his condition was extremely serious… If he didn't receive treatment soon, he might truly be going to die at the shrine.

After examining his own injuries, Nishino glanced sideways at his grandson beside him.

"Instead of worrying about me... you should worry about yourself instead..."

Although Nishino's physical condition is poor, compared to my grandson, he is actually considered "relatively healthy".

My grandson's injuries were more severe than Nishino's.

Nishino had only one fatal wound, which was an arrow wound to his abdomen.

Just that alone was enough to make him feel like he was dying.

In contrast, my grandson had two fatal wounds.

Two arrows struck his abdomen... Nishino couldn't even imagine the excruciating pain that must have been.

My grandson's physical abilities are already inferior to Nishino's. Therefore, simply using the word "terrible" to describe my grandson's current physical condition seems too mild and inappropriate.

Let's leave aside his complexion and mental state for now.

The way he walked alone made Nishino break out in a cold sweat.

At this moment, my grandson didn't seem to be walking; he seemed to be floating.

His steps were unsteady, his lower body swayed, and he walked silently... He looked like a ghost that might float into the sky at any moment.

"Hahaha...I'm not bad either..."

My grandson twitched the corners of his mouth, revealing a faint smile.

"I felt pretty bad just now... but now... I feel a little better..."

Upon hearing this, Nishino's eyes widened.

"Hey you……"

While seriously injured, I suddenly felt much better... This is definitely not a good thing...

Nishino wanted to say something, but as he was about to speak, he hesitated for some reason.

After hesitating for a while, he swallowed the words he was about to say and changed his words to:

"...My grandson."

"Ok?"

"You're really amazing."

"how you said that?"

"Even though he looked like he was about to die, he could still laugh out loud as if nothing had happened."

"Hahaha...Didn't I already say? As a patriot of the Great Salt Party, I was already mentally prepared for injury or even sacrifice..."

At that moment, Phoenix House Yataro, who was walking ahead of Nishino and my grandson, secretly turned his head and sized them up.

Phoenix House Yataro was as fat as a pig, and Nishino didn't have the strength to keep dragging him along.

Therefore, he held a knife to Phoenix House Yataro's neck and demanded that he walk ahead of him and my grandson.

"If you dare to call for help or run away, I'll cut your head off"—when Nishino said this, Phoenix House Yataro trembled with fear and nodded hastily in agreement.

Nishino noticed the gaze that Phoenix House Yataro was casting at him, and he immediately straightened his face and said coldly:

"Hey, don't move... If you dare to move again, I'll send you to the underworld right now."

As he said this, Nishino placed the bamboo stick in his hand close to Phoenix House Yataro's neck.

The sharp blade barely grazed the skin before immediately leaving a shallow cut.

Phoenix House Yataro's obese body trembled three times.

"Ah, hahaha... I... I wouldn't run away!"

He straightened his head and turned his gaze back to the front while flashing a fawning smile.

Looking at the obviously restless "fat pig" in front of him, Nishino thought for a moment, then with a "ripping" sound, tore off a strip of cloth from his shirt and used it to tightly bind his right palm and the bamboo in his palm together.

Although I still have the strength now, I don't know if I will still have the strength to wield a knife after a while.

Therefore, it is necessary to take precautions.

After escaping from the archers' encirclement, Nishino and my grandson had no time to worry about Haibina and the others, and could only hurriedly leave with Phoenix House Yataro.

Because of the urgency of the situation, the two did not have time to familiarize themselves with the route. They would go wherever there was a hidden and complicated road that was suitable for shaking off their pursuers.

Therefore, Nishino was not quite sure where he was.

He turned his head to look behind him, and after confirming that there were no hurried footsteps behind him, he breathed a sigh of relief.

Just then, he caught a glimpse of a teahouse not far away out of the corner of his eye.

"Huh? Where am I...?"

Nishino felt that this teahouse seemed familiar.

He raised his eyes, scanned the surrounding street scene, and looked surprised.

"Huh? This is... Taika Town?"

Taika-cho—one of the temple and shrine sites in Edo.

During the Edo period, in order to better govern the people and to divide the power of officials, the shogunate artificially divided all the cities under its jurisdiction into three types of land that were not subordinate to each other: "samurai land" where samurai lived, "townspeople land" where commoners lived, and "temple land" where shrines and temples were enshrined.

Townspeople's lands were managed by the Magistrate's Office, while temple and shrine lands were managed by the Temple and Shrine Magistrate.

The magistrate's office cannot interfere in the management of temple and shrine lands, and the temple and shrine magistrates also cannot interfere in the management of townspeople's lands.

For this reason, Nishino, who came from the "three times" of the magistrate's office, did not often go to the temples and shrines of Edo.

Fortunately, he happened to be very familiar with the area.

Because one of the current temple and shrine officials, Sakai Kingo, lives nearby.

Previously, for social occasions, Nishino often went to Sakai Kingo's house for several rounds of drinks, led by his superior, Usui Tadajiro, who was also the one in charge of the Hokuban.

The temple and shrine magistrate, the administrative magistrate, and the town magistrate of Edo were collectively known as the "Three Magistrates." Their daily work often required each other to provide convenience, so they frequently exchanged favors and benefits.

Usui and Sakai Kingo had a good relationship. Whenever they had free time, they would often get together, chat, drink, listen to waka poems, and do some refined things.

"My grandson, just hang in there a little longer, you'll be there soon..."

Nishino wanted to encourage my grandson.

But before he could finish speaking...

"Cough, cough! Cough cough! Cough cough cough cough cough cough!"

Suddenly, my grandson started coughing violently.

The loudness and rapid frequency of the sound startled Nishino.

He instinctively reached out his right hand and held onto the earthen wall beside him.

The instant his palm touched the wall, his right arm bone seemed to shatter completely, sliding limply down as he continued to fall forward.

"Hey!"

At the critical moment, Nishino caught my grandson.

The instant his palm touched his grandson's body, Nishino felt his palm was sticky... his palm was covered with fresh blood and dried, viscous plasma.

Upon seeing this, Nishino's facial features gradually stiffened.

Just half an hour ago, my grandson was full of energy and could chat and laugh with him. But just because of two arrows, he has become this dying man... This stark contrast made Nishino feel a sense of unreality, as if he were dreaming.

After coughing a dozen more times and vomiting up a lot of blood and some fragments of internal organs, my grandson slowly raised his head and smiled slightly at Nishino—a calm smile as always.

"Nishino-kun...excuse me...could you...help me up a little?"

"……I see."

Nishino reached out his left hand and supported my grandson's torso.

The two continued on their way, leaving long shadows and deep bloodstains on the ground under the moonlight.

A heavy atmosphere gradually built up between the two.

Suddenly, as if unable to bear the atmosphere any longer, Nishino spoke expressionlessly:

"My grandson, things have come to this, you..."

Nishino's voice abruptly and against his will was interrupted.

For some reason, his words caught in his throat, and an elusive color kept emerging from the depths of his heart.

Nishino took a deep breath, suppressing his myriad emotions, and spoke again to continue the conversation.

Is there anything else you'd like to say?

My grandson only lowered his eyebrows for a moment as if he was embarrassed, then smiled gently, as if he were acknowledging everything Nishino had said.

From that moment on, Nishino inexplicably felt that the sounds around him were very distant, as if only this space centered on him and his grandson had been cut off from the world.

In this incredibly peaceful world, Nishino uttered his first words with a self-deprecating laugh.

"Aha...haha...hahahaha..."

He was clearly laughing, but it sounded like he was begging for help from someone.

"Looking back... it's already... 8 years... time flies so fast..."

Nishino remained silent, listening attentively.

My grandson raised his head, his gaze rising as if looking at the sky or a world further away.

"Eight years ago... before I was known as 'Fire Dragon'... I investigated a case..."