We agreed to be in a band for life, what the heck is Dragon Raja?

"This year, a new student in the British foundation program has the Word of Judgment, which surprised everyone."

"'Holy Judgment'?"

Angers was also taken aback.

It was actually this Word of Power.

He suddenly recalled some unpleasant memories from the past, and then he also thought of a mixed-race leader who was also in North America.

"Is she from some ancient dragon-slaying family in England?"

Angers asked with concern.

He was born and raised in England, and it was during his studies at Cambridge that he met a friend who would change his life.

He was very familiar with the mixed-race forces in Britain, after all, the first Lionheart Society originated in Britain. Perhaps this year, one of the members of a collateral branch of the family discovered by chance that he was actually a mixed-race person and chose to study in the preparatory class of Kassel College after being discovered.

"No."

Professor Davis shook his head.

“She comes from Japan. If her ancestors were really a dragon-slaying family, then it could only be the Snake-Headed Eight Family.”

Japan, the Hebi-hachi family...

Hearing this, the professors present were somewhat surprised.

"From Japan, I didn't expect that they weren't exchange students sent by the Snake Clan."

"Speaking of which, in recent years there have been more and more mixed-race people from Japan who are not even from the Snake-Headed Eight Families."

"For example, there's Aki Shuto, who just graduated this year, and Maki Shiina, who has already enrolled. Neither of them has any connection with the Snake-Headed Eight Family. I didn't expect another one to come along now."

"It's probably a branch that separated from the Snake Clan a few years ago. Many of the students we recruit now are like that. Some of their ancestors were mixed-race, and then for many generations they were ordinary people. However, in his generation, the mixed-race genes suddenly reappeared."

The professors shared their opinions.

As Professor Davis listened to the surrounding conversation, he suddenly remembered a student who had been his mentor in the past and was also from Japan.

His name is 'Toyokawa Kiyoyuki'.

At that time, Kiyotaka Toyokawa was one of the most prominent figures at Kassel College, but he became depressed after an accident that was classified as top secret.

When Kiyoshi Toyokawa graduated and left the school and the executive department, Professor Davis heard him say that he had chosen to return to Japan.

But after all these years, Toyokawa Kiyoko has long since disappeared without a trace.

"Ugh."

She sighed, composed herself, and focused her attention back on the meeting room.

Japan... the Eight Hebi Family... preparatory class...

At the same time, thinking about the recent state of the Japanese branch, Angers smiled slightly and said:

"Professor Davis, as the interviewer for this new student, please introduce her to us."

"I haven't had a chance to look at the information Norma sent me yet, but if she really is from Japan and has no connection with the Snake-Headed Eight Family, she could be very helpful to the academy's future plans."

“Yes, Principal Angers.” Professor Davis nodded.

"The thing is like this..."

She started by talking about the background check and then went on to describe Chihaya Aine's performance during the interview.

She then changed the subject, beginning to recount a fourth-generation species resurgence incident that the British Executive Office was investigating at the time, and then extended from there to the moment when Chihaya Aine ignited the Word of Power.

"Originally, Cardiff High School planned to transfer her to the preparatory class after her second year of enrollment, but because she had already come into contact with events related to the resurgence of the dragons, it was moved up."

Ang nodded slightly.

“Good decision.”

"It would be a waste of time to put such a talented student through another year of observation. This is just right."

“In recent years, the number of exchange students sent by the Snake Clan to Kassel College has been declining year by year. Although the decline is not too great, it reflects the current attitude of the Japanese branch towards us.”

"The current head of the Snake Clan, Tachibana Masamune, is on the surface a moderate—he has been working for many years to eliminate the internal conflicts of the eight clans and try to revive the clans in terms of economy and military strength."

"But in our eyes, he is an absolute ambitious man."

“From the end of World War II to the present, there have been more and more mixed-race people in the Hebi-Hachi family who were not originally among the eight major families. Their ancestors can often be traced back to the Hebi-Hachi family. This situation is due to the social custom of taking the husband's surname after the Meiji Restoration. They cannot help but pay attention to this.”

"Tachibana Masamune had long been aware of this problem, which is why he decided to unify the mixed-race branches throughout Japan after resolving the internal problems of the eight great families."

Angers said calmly:

"He thought he had done it well enough, but we could still find clues in many details."

"Moreover, I have reason to suspect that unifying the family branches is only part of his plan."

There must be many more untold schemes behind his actions, all of which he has concealed by using the Snake Clan as a shield.

At this point, the atmosphere in the entire conference room fell somewhat silent.

Everyone present knows that the Japanese branch has become increasingly unruly in recent years.

In the past, they were willing to put on a show, but as the strength of the Snake Clan gradually recovered, they became increasingly perfunctory in these superficial efforts.

"If I remember correctly, Cardiff High School's training model is for special agents."

Angers looked at Davis.

"Yes."

Professor Davis said,

"Judgment is a powerful word, and this one is very suitable for training as a special agent. Enrolling her in the preparatory class at Cardiff High School will lay a good foundation for her future studies at Kassel College."

“Okay,” Angers said thoughtfully.

“Students in the preparatory class also have corresponding practical tasks every year...and Japan happens to have the Snake-Headed Eight Families.”

"I'm thinking of a plan right now, but it's too early to discuss it further. Let's see how the training goes first."

All the professors present looked very serious, except for the vice-principal who yawned seemingly nonchalantly.

Angers didn't care about this and handed over the narrative of the meeting back to Professor Davis.

The meeting concluded after she recounted some other details about the admissions process.

The vice-principal was the first to rush out of the meeting room, and it was unclear what urgent matter he had. The other professors also left the meeting room one by one, leaving only Angers alone in his seat, his gaze seemingly fixed on nowhere.

"Holy Judgment..."

…………

…………

the other side,

Tokyo.

After Toyokawa Shoko resolved the inner demons caused by that rainy night, Crychic's practice returned to normal.

Although not as frequent as preparing for band performances in the past, it still maintains a frequency of at least 3 to 4 times per week.

Shoko Toyokawa has also completed the composition for "The Song of Wanting to Become Human".

She did it in a separate room.

Nan Yunyu felt that composing music was like writing a novel; you couldn't write it if someone else was watching, and you couldn't write it if there was a sudden, startling noise... So while Toyokawa Shoko was composing, he didn't even practice the footwork, for fear of affecting her creation.

"Xiao Xiang composes music so fast..."

Nan Yun Yu Yue thought to herself.

Although the lyrics of this song are just Gao Songdeng's thoughts written in her diary, it is actually very difficult to turn such simple words into a song.

However, in the past, Shoko Toyokawa had only seen the lyrics for a short time before she quickly played the melody of the first version of the song in the old Furukawa Garden, based on her understanding of the lyrics.

The day after Crychic's first band reunion, she enriched it into a band version in just about two hours.

"Is this the complete version of 'The Song of Wanting to Be Human'?"

Nangumo Ugetsu was the first person besides Toyokawa Shoko to see the sheet music.

The melody of this song is much richer than the version he remembered.

Although the overall theme remained unchanged, Toyokawa Shoko's feelings were already quite different.

After recognizing her own lineage, she developed a new understanding of 'becoming human,' which enabled her to create the current version of 'The Song of Wanting to Be Human.'

"The overall melody of this song is a little simpler than that of 'Spring Shadow'... It should be able to be rehearsed soon."

Nan Yun Yuyue estimated the rehearsal progress over the past few days.

Final exams are just around the corner. Aside from him and Toyokawa Shoko, who are practicing kendo, everyone else is still preparing for their finals.

Although academic pressure in Japan is not high, this exam is still very important for Takamatsu Akari and Shiina Tatsuki, who are preparing to transfer to a high school.

This was one of the reasons why the band's practice frequency was slowed down.

However, even without slowing down the training frequency, there are less than two weeks left until summer vacation, so the overall duration won't be too long.

"Spring Shadow, Song of Wanting to Become Human... So, Crychic already has two original songs."

"Is Gao Songdeng still preparing lyrics for his new song...?"

Nan Yun Yuyue thought about it and decided it was best not to urge her.

Shouldn't forming a band be a source of joy? If you feel pressured by deadlines, then it's not worth it.

During non-Crychic rehearsal time, Nagumo Ugetsu and Toyokawa Shoko would go to the church to hone their kendo skills under the tutelage of Uesugi Kotsu.

With daily practice, both of them have made rapid progress in their kendo skills.

In addition to basic footwork, Uesugi Koshi taught the two many new techniques:

"The core of swordsmanship lies in only three points: killing intent, rhythm, and power."

Nangumo Ugetsu still clearly remembers the actions he demonstrated to himself and Toyokawa Shoko in the church basement.

It was just a slow, deliberate swing of the sword, yet the Japanese longsword exuded a sword intent that seemed ready to shoot out.

"The will to kill requires the tempering of emotions and real combat experience, and you still need years of accumulation to achieve that."

"The rhythm of the battle is also of paramount importance. If you can drag your opponent into your battle rhythm, the outcome of the battle will be self-evident."

"And force... to put it simply, is how much strength you need to expend to kill someone."

"Endurance, reality and illusion, falling petals and plucking leaves or the sky collapsing and the earth splitting... the intricacies of this are no less than those of killing intent and rhythm."

"Practice the movements I teach you, and ask me anytime if you don't understand anything."

Through repeated practice, Nangumo Ugetsu's kendo skills improved, and he finally broke through LV1, advancing to the next stage.

【LV2(16/1000)】

Other than that,

On weekdays, Nanon Ugetsu goes to school in Tsuki no Mori as usual.

He accompanied Wakaba Mutsu to water the cucumbers, read novels during class, and went to a live house to rehearse or practice kendo in the evening, depending on the schedule.

It's worth mentioning that the books in his drawer have also been updated. They've now been replaced with Jun'ichirō Tanizaki's "The Makioka Sisters" and Yukio Mishima's "The Temple of the Golden Pavilion," which he reads during class time as usual.

Time flows slowly along the path of daily life.

Before we knew it, summer vacation was just around the corner.

And so it came to the eve of... Toyokawa Shoko's impending confrontation with her grandfather, Toyokawa Sadaharu.

Chapter 171 Return to the Old Furukawa Garden, Resonance, Uesugi Echizen Arrives

Return to the old Koga Garden to question my grandfather, Toyokawa Sadaharu.

This was originally Toyokawa Shoko's thought after she overcame her inner demons that day.

But for various reasons, she paused for a few more days, but she never forgot about it.

In addition, under Uesugi Kotsu's tutelage, her kendo skills have improved by leaps and bounds, far surpassing what they were before.

Despite the limited time, in terms of combat power, coupled with the physical attributes of an A-level hybrid, Toyokawa Shoko is no longer the girl who would only panic when she saw Deadpool on the overpass.

Of course... with her current combat strength, she is still far behind those who have truly experienced bloodshed, but this is already her first step into the world of hybrids.