Female Swordsman Training Dojo

As Harunobu stared at Sadako Ootake's flawless acting, he felt a little insecure; but that didn't stop him from maintaining his cold expression and asking, "Your son's soul was suddenly shattered just now, and it just so happens that I arrived here... It's hard to imagine that it has nothing to do with you."

Sadako Otake's changing expressions vividly portray the demeanor of an old woman who is dissatisfied yet fearful of authority: "Sir, this man is not my son; and if he were, wouldn't I have even less motivation to destroy his soul? Or do I, this old woman, look like the kind of cold-blooded, ruthless demon who would even destroy the soul of her own child?"

Logically speaking, Harunobu and his group, who were preparing to use the evil spell of soul-searching on Daigoro and bullying the elderly, seemed more like cruel, ruthless, and cold-blooded monsters.

Seeing the change in Harunobu's expression, Daibu Sadako suddenly added, "Furthermore, although I don't know which Jonin from Shiranui this fox spirit lady is, can you really prove that this man's soul was shattered here just by her empty words?"

Indeed, the soul is something that ordinary people cannot see. Even spellcasters need to use magic and rituals to see and influence it; the same goes for monsters. Unless they are spirit-type monsters themselves, most monsters can only see the soul at most, but cannot interfere with it at will.

Fox spirits are clearly not spiritual beings.

With her considerable magical skill and solid, extensive theoretical knowledge, Daibu Sadako felt that her two sentences were truly brilliant. The rhythm of the conversation was instantly reversed, and no matter how Taira Harunobu responded, he would inevitably fall into her trap.

Haha, the little guy is still too inexperienced.

Harunobu admitted that what Ōtake Sadako said seemed to make a lot of sense, but he naturally believed Shiranui Ran more. So he couldn't be bothered to argue with Ōtake Sadako here; he simply grabbed the hilt of his sword and looked down at the short old woman: "Ōtake Miyaji, have you ever heard of the Tongxin Society?"

The undisguised, chilling malice instantly shattered the smugness of Sadako Otake, shattering her composure. She instinctively swallowed, trying to hide her fear: "Section Chief Hira, I..."

Harunobu's undisguised killing intent made it hard for Daitake Sadako to breathe. She hadn't expected Harunobu to be so bloodthirsty; could this guy have been led astray by his thoughts and turned into a bloodless, tearless, and self-indulgent demon?

In fact, Harunobu just felt that without Goro Oobu, Sadako Oobu seemed to be a good alternative.

However, he quickly suppressed this thought. After all, first the souls of those lowly clergymen self-destructed, and then the soul of Ootake Goro mysteriously shattered. If he were to kill Ootake Sadako now, who knew if her soul would also explode on the spot?

I should have let Lan wear that Soul Bead.

Just as Harunobu was feeling regretful, Ootake Sadako gritted her teeth and said, "Section Chief Hira, if you are referring to the Tongxin Society, I have some clues; some foreigners who called themselves Knights of the Round Table seemed to be looking for the Tongxin Society as well."

Sadako Ōtake couldn't bear Harunobu's murderous intent any longer and had no choice but to forcibly change the subject. She'd already planned to shift the blame elsewhere and then reap the benefits. Now it was just a little earlier than expected, so there shouldn't be any problems, right?

Chapter 385: Impeachment

While Harunobu was abusing his power to torment the old widow, Princess Mitsuki in Tokyo was diligently handling government affairs. The side effects of the Ueno bombing, which wiped out a large number of corrupt officials in the empire, were finally showing. No matter how much effort was put into promoting capable lower-ranking officials, the shortage of manpower could not be made up for in the short term.

Not to mention the resentful noble families and clans who were still causing trouble, trying to rebuild their family glory; not to mention Princess Misuru, even Emperor Taisho himself was so busy that he could only sleep a few hours a day. And the ninjas in Shiranui were even more busy, barely having time to breathe. It was only because most of them were yokai that they would have collapsed long ago.

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died.

However, the results were also gratifying. At least now the parliament was no longer dominated by those feudal lords and nobles; and there was a significant increase in fresh blood among the lower-level officials, which pleased Emperor Taisho. Although his daughter's continued aloofness made him somewhat embarrassed, considering the recent events, he felt that her attitude was quite normal.

That brat Ping Qingxin really doesn't know how to restrain himself at all.

Despite his many flaws, Emperor Taisho was undeniably a rare and pure-hearted emperor, a true god of war. To this day, apart from his wife, he has had no romantic relationships, which is why he has always held a certain disdain for Taira no Harunobu.

This person is good in every way, so why is he so lecherous?

Amidst this favorable situation, Emperor Taisho also began to worry as a father. However, he couldn't do anything about it alone; he couldn't simply go back on his word and cancel the marriage. Even disregarding his daughter's own objections, the samurai revolt it would provoke was something the current government couldn't handle.

It's all the fault of the Tongxin Society!

His Majesty the Emperor, having grumbled for what seemed like the umpteenth time, tossed aside the document concerning the Bureau of Yin and Yang and picked up another telegram; after a short while, he chuckled after reading only the beginning of it.

"That's definitely that kid's style... Misuru, what do you think?"

Taisho called out to his daughter behind the opposite table and waved the document in his hand. Misuru put down her pen, helplessly rubbed her brows which had unconsciously furrowed, and found the corresponding telegram from the pile of documents.

The heading indicated that the telegram originated from the governor of Osaka Prefecture. Although the governor himself had tragically perished in the Ueno bombing, his deputy had temporarily assumed the duties. Therefore, urgent documents from Osaka were still able to be transmitted smoothly to Tokyo, preventing Tokyo from losing control of Osaka Prefecture.

As for the contents of this urgently delivered document… it is, of course, an accusation against a certain person. It contains allegations that Taira no Harunobu abused his power by abducting and sexually assaulting local women; he assaulted the mayor of Osaka who tried to stop him, ultimately beheading him and then sexually assaulting his wife and daughters; a local shrine monk, witnessing his evil deeds, attempted to persuade him to refrain from committing further killings, but was brutally murdered by him; his actions are utterly lawless, and it is hoped that His Majesty the Emperor and members of the House of Representatives will investigate and hold him accountable.

Which parts of it do you think are true?

Seeing his daughter crumple up the telegram and throw it down, Emperor Taisho couldn't help but laugh.

Princess Misuru gave Emperor Taisho an unexpected answer: "I think it's probably true. It would be strange if that guy didn't kill someone, given his personality."

Emperor Taisho continued, unwilling to give up, "Isn't it strange that he doesn't seek out women? Even if he prefers to solve problems with violence, does he have to resort to open and aboveboard killing?"

Misuru glanced at Taisho, who was clearly deliberately stirring up trouble, and said indifferently, "That guy is lazy and picky. He wouldn't bother to find any excuses to kill someone he could just kill. As for women, the ones he brought with him were far better than ordinary women. Given his picky nature, unless a woman climbed into his bed herself, he would just sleep with those fat women until he dies."

The real Princess Taiping, who owned an airport at a young age, said this.

Although Emperor Taisho believed Princess Misuru's words, he still stubbornly said, "What if there are women who climb into his bed every day? With his status, appearance and power, there must be plenty of women who want to climb into his bed."

"So, Your Majesty," Misuru-hime began to show impatience, "how many women do you think want to get into your bed? And how many of them can actually break through Mother's blockade?"

"Nonsense! What do you mean by your mother's blockade? It was your father, me, who kept to myself!" Emperor Taisho emphasized the unambiguous facts, then continued, "Besides, how can the women around Taira no Harunobu compare to your mother? If your mother were like that, they would have killed each other long ago..."

"mom."

The simple syllable from Princess Misuru made Emperor Taisho jump up suddenly, looking nervously behind him—unsurprisingly, there was no one there.

"Mitsuru, this joke isn't funny..." Emperor Taisho looked at his daughter helplessly, his expression full of resignation. While it was a good thing that his eldest daughter was intelligent and quick-witted, it wasn't so funny when she used that intelligence on her parents.

Misuru-hime had already buried herself back in the pile of documents, and simply said calmly, "You and Mother made a promise yesterday to watch the sunset together tonight, and according to Mother's habits, she should already be bringing over the chicken soup she personally cooked—"

Emperor Taisho immediately sat up straight, straightened his clothes which had been messed up by his previous rude sitting posture, and then opened the paper sliding door with his chest out and head held high, walking towards his wife's bedroom.

Thank goodness, if they had seen us, we would have been in trouble tonight.

As for the impeachment of Taira no Harunobu? Regardless of how much of it is true or false, even if it were all true, so what? What the feudal lords did, can't my Emperor's subordinates do? Not to mention that the details of the Osaka incident are detailed, and the Emperor had already received Shiranui Ran's report; compared to this confidant among confidants, the credibility of the acting governor of Osaka Prefecture is completely negligible.

Having finally gotten rid of her troublesome father, Misuru finished reviewing the memorial in her hand, took out the now dark glass bead from her bosom, and gently shook it.

Several distorted faces gradually emerged from the darkness, and upon seeing Misuru-hime, they immediately became obsequious, murmuring flattering words, seeking only liberation; Misuru-hime ignored these tedious things and whispered a name: "Fujiwara no Mitsuyori".

The distorted human faces vanished with wails, replaced by Fujiwara Mitsuyori's old face, which occupied the entire surface of the glass bead; the smooth glass made his face look somewhat comical, but at least he maintained a basic calm, with only a pair of old eyes revealing a longing for freedom.

However, Misuru-hime pretended not to see it: "Who do you think would be a good choice for the next yin-yang head?"

As she spoke, Misuru-hime raised the glass bead a little higher, so that Fujiwara no Mitsuyori could see it all at a glance.

Fujiwara Mitsuyori quickly replied: "Except for Tsuchimikado Kitsuneaki, everyone else is about the same."

"Why? Tsuchimikado Kitsune's strength seems to be slightly better," Misuru-hime asked.

Fujiwara Mitsuyori's answer was also very direct: "Because he is a selfish, greedy, and ungrateful wretch!"

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Author's note: Update progress increased by 21! Please vote! Please vote!

Chapter 386: The Succubus

"That guy is a selfish, ungrateful wretch!"

At the Tsuchimikado residence, Tsuchimikado Komei slammed his fist on the table, his face flushed red. The three-tailed fox Kuzuha, lying nearby, was already used to it; after all, more than half a month had passed since Tsuchimikado Komei had tried to trick his daughter into returning, yet there had been no progress whatsoever.

Letters never get a reply; sending people to the door is impossible now, they might even lose some parts, including their heads; as for the plan to force himself on Tsuchimikado Haru while he's out... that's simply impossible.

Yes, Tsuchimikado Haru goes out every other day for her job as a guerrilla fighter; but as mentioned before, this doesn't mean Tsuchimikado Haru is alone; on the contrary, it makes it even more difficult for Tsuchimikado Komei to attack her.

The popularity of the Bracers far exceeded Tsuchimikado Kitsune's expectations; almost every place where the people of the Aozora-kan appeared immediately attracted eager attention. As a result, the ambushing Onmyoji dared not use their spells recklessly, for fear of affecting the common people—the lowly commoners were insignificant, but if it affected their own future, it would be troublesome.

They are not like Ping Qingxin; they don't have a princess to help them distort the truth.

Hiraharu Shinto only dares to kill people in secret!

As for using fake missions to lure Tsuchimikado Haru into being alone... Tsuchimikado Komei also tried it, but it didn't work.

Haru Tsuchimikado isn't stupid; once he understood Tsuchimikado Kitsune's intentions, he basically had no chance of survival.

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She goes alone; even when she goes out to do missions, she either goes with Amu Hojo or Nako Tachibana, and she also brings along other disciples of the Aozorakan.

Although Tsuchimikado Kitsune had his ways of dealing with them, it would take a considerable amount of time, and if it dragged on for too long, the reinforcements from the Aozora-kan would arrive much faster than the Tsuchimikado family.

What disgusted Tsuchimikado Kitsune even more was that the people of the Aozorakan were never ruthless and never cared about the issue of murder and the law—as evidenced by the recent Yakuza corpses all over Tokyo—so Tsuchimikado Kitsune had to worry about one possibility: his daughter was rescued, but the Tsuchimikado family's fighting force was wiped out.

Even if they managed to bring the person back, it wouldn't matter—a marriage between the weak and the strong isn't called a political alliance, it's called a peace treaty. And how many peace treaties end well? He, Tsuchimikado Kitsune, has at least read history books, you know.

Therefore, he needs a way to capture Tsuchimikado Haru without directly confronting Aozorakan.

Unless a fight breaks out on the spot, those women from the Aozora Pavilion wouldn't just storm his house and kill someone in public for no reason, would they? If they were really so disregardful of their reputation, why would they become guerrilla fighters? It's all for fame and money!

Even if they did manage to attack, so what? He couldn't break the barrier of the Azure Sky Pavilion, so how could these women possibly break the great barrier of the Tsuchimikado family? They're just a bunch of barbarians who only know how to wield swords!

Tsuchimikado Kitsune was increasingly convinced of the brilliance of his plan, with everything arranged perfectly. Now, only one question remained—how to capture that rebellious daughter!

Things seemed to have come full circle, and Tsuchimikado Komei's brow, which had been furrowed for some time, furrowed even more deeply. At that moment, a wisp of black mist slowly drifted into the quiet room and flowed into Tsuchimikado Komei's brain.

Just as it was about to touch Tsuchimikado Kitsune, the three-tailed fox Kuzunoha leaped over, its suddenly enlarged body catching the rapidly changing black mist and pinning it to the ground.

"Ah~"

A seductive moan rang out, and the black mist that had been pounced on by the three-tailed fox instantly transformed into a scantily clad, alluring succubus. Her slender fingers, seemingly resisting yet welcoming, supported the three-tailed fox's furry belly, while her frighteningly long red nails lightly traced the fox's pink skin, leaving faint marks.

"Hey buddy, there's no need to be in such a rush, is there? Even though she really likes your type, we haven't finished our business yet~"

The demoness, pinned down by Ge Ye, spoke these words, but her soft, seductive voice, her alluring and seductive tone, and the ten fingers already probing towards Ge Ye's lower abdomen clearly conveyed a different meaning. However, Ge Ye, as if seeing a ghost, quickly twisted away from the demoness's ten fingers, even drooping her erect ears.

"Heavenly Demoness—"

"How rude of me, you've already called her a succubus!"

A slender, heart-shaped tail wrapped around Kuzunoha's left hind leg. The succubus, which had suddenly appeared, chuckled and licked her alluring, red lips. With just this simple action, Kuzunoha felt her fifth limbs stirring restlessly, and even her heartbeat and breathing quickened noticeably.

While it was partly due to his proximity to the demoness, the fact that even such a brief contact could disturb his mind showed that these foreign monsters were indeed not to be underestimated.

The succubus's full lips curved into a playful arc, her alluring eyes gazing at the furry fox before her. Her innate racial aesthetic sense allowed her to genuinely appreciate this beautiful creature. Although white foxes did exist in England, like the humans of that land, they were all too rough—though that was fine too—but this more refined type was more to her liking.

Hmm, where should we start playing next...?

Before the succubus could decide, Tsuchimikado Kitsune, who had summoned several other shikigami, had already formed hand seals and shouted, "Show!"

Kuzuha, who had been completely entangled by the succubus both mentally and physically, suddenly disappeared and reappeared beside Tsuchimikado Kitsune, returning to his normal standby state.

"Oh, not bad at all."

The succubus tugged at the tattered rags she was wearing, as if nothing had happened, and gave Tsuchimikado Kitsune a flirtatious wink: "Nice to meet you, Mr. Tsuchimikado Kitsune, how about a little fling?"

Tsuchimikado Kitsune, his face ashen, stared at the succubus before him, his hands clenched into a magic seal: "You monster! Honestly confess who ordered you to attack me, and I might spare your life!"

As if echoing Tsuchimikado Kitsune's words, the two yokai behind him took a step forward, creating a synchronized loud noise that made the succubus pout her rosy lips.

The two shikigami summoned by Tsuchimikado Komei were a clay doll made entirely of stone and a demon-transformed armored figure filled with murderous resentment. Both were yokai that were completely immune to charm attacks, making them natural counters to the succubus in front of them.

Regardless, while Tsuchimikado Komei may lack skills or have issues in other areas, his mastery of magic is undeniable. He certainly possesses the ability to exorcise demons and monsters; otherwise, he wouldn't have been chosen as the elder of the Tsuchimikado family.

The succubus flicked her tail regretfully, lamenting her lunch, dinner, and tomorrow's breakfast; then, under the tense, disgusted, yet somewhat expectant gaze of Tsuchimikado Komei, she spoke: "You know perfectly well what I mean, Lord Tsuchimikado; who else could be coming to you in this way at this time but an enemy of the Aozora-kan?"

Tsuchimikado Kitsune watched the succubus in silence, without uttering a word; but at times like this, silence was the best form of indulgence.

The succubus glanced at the three-tailed fox who had shrunk to one side, then licked her lips with her extremely long tongue: "Lord Tsuchimikado, let's get straight to the point; I can help you rescue your daughter who is imprisoned by the Azure Sky Mansion, but in return, I need you to provide us with some small... assistance after you become the Yin-Yang Head~"

Tsuchimikado Komei squinted, scrutinizing the depraved body before him: "What's your plan?"

“A simple, but effective plan…” The succubus suddenly spread her small, delicate wings and flew to Tsuchimikado Kitsune, reaching out to protect his head. “So, you agree?”

Tsuchimikado Kitsune's eyes gleamed with a pale pink light as he greedily rubbed against the succubus's protrusion: "Then it'll depend on your skills, succubus."

"I think I still have a little free time... Oh~" The succubus giggled and climbed onto Tsuchimikado Kitsune, beginning to eat.

Chapter 387: A Strange Curse (3K4)

It was another beautiful, sunny day. Hanazawa Nana lay on the corridor, gazing at the ever-changing clouds, and lazily yawned. Saten Yoko, who had just finished her extra training and was on her way back to change, saw her and disdainfully kicked the lazybones: "Get up! Go back to sleep! Don't get in the way!"

"What's wrong? The teacher's college isn't here..." Hanazawa Nana said lazily, and under Saten Yoko's constant shoving, she reluctantly used her plump buttocks as a fulcrum to turn her body ninety degrees.

"Is this alright now? Oh, Xiaochun! Going out to work again?"

Dressed neatly and carrying a thick book, Tsuchimikado Haru was passing by when he heard Hanazawa Nana's greeting. He turned around and said, "Yeah, I have a mission. The client said he's been cursed. I'll go see what's going on."

Although the number of people at the Aozorakan has gradually increased, the outer disciples are only responsible for tasks like finding cats, dogs, and wallets, and bullying ordinary Yakuza. When it comes to large violent groups, or things involving monsters and magic, it still takes the hands-on disciples like Tsuchimikado Haru to handle it.

Especially magic. Among the disciples of Aozorakan, only two and a half know magic now—Tsuchimikado Haru and Tachibana Yuzu, plus the half-baked Nekomi.

So, whenever magical problems arise, it's either Tachibana Yuzu or Tsuchimikado Haru who handles them; fortunately, such requests are rare, and if all else fails, they can ask a nearby spellcaster for help. Given the current strength of the Bracers, this kind of...

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Things are quite simple, after all, the guerrillas will pay.

There are even spellcaster members in the Bracer Guild outside of Asakusa.

However, in Asakusa, considering the teacher's college's wishes, they don't recruit people outside of Aozorakan, which is a pity because there are no spellcasters to support them... Hmm, maybe we can talk to the teacher's college and let those former 'international students' become part-time staff?

Haru Tsuchimikado wanted to minimize going out; her foolish father's ideas were so obvious, it was really bothering her. However, the teacher's college arrangements were more important; anyway, with Nako-neechan going with everyone, she wasn't worried about anything going wrong.