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

The first day of summer vacation,

in the afternoon,

After today's band practice, Ugetsu Nagumo and Shoko Toyokawa returned to the church's basement.

Since there are no classes in the afternoon now, the two of them have started their training two hours earlier.

"That way we won't have to eat dinner so late."

Nan Yun Yu Yue Xin Dao.

Previously, the two would practice until very late, and by the time they finished dinner and washed up, it was often already quite late.

Now the time has been moved to the afternoon every day, which is just right.

After relocking the door with the key Uesugi had given him, the two walked easily to the locker where Uesugi kept his swords.

Although Uesugi Kotsu had promised that the two of them would only be able to choose any sword if their swordsmanship reached a level he acknowledged.

However, in their daily practice, they had already chosen the sword they were most familiar with, and basically used the same ancient sword every time they practiced kendo.

"This knife is still the most comfortable to use."

Nan Yun Yuyue picked up the long sword with a dark blue hilt scroll wrapped around its handle and looked at the patterns on it.

This sword was the ancient sword he chose when he first came to practice kendo. Whether it was its sharpness or the feel of wielding it, Nan Yun Yuyue felt it was the best choice.

"This sword doesn't have a name on it, and even Master Uesugi doesn't know what it was originally called."

He looked down at the blade of the long sword:

"The blade has a feeling of water solidifying on it, so let's call it 'Condensed Ripples'."

'凝' refers to the luster of the blade, and '涟' means ripples on the surface of water.

Nan Yun Yuyue was very satisfied with this title.

Just then, Uesugi Kotsuya walked in through the iron gate with the 'St. Peter's Cross'. He had just finished his service for the day and was taking this opportunity to teach the two of them kendo.

Seeing that the two were ready, he nodded in satisfaction and said:

"Let me check the results of your practice at home these past few days."

“The three basic moves of the sword style I taught you last time—the ‘Hokushin Itto-ryu’—as well as ‘Kasumi Slash’, each of you take turns demonstrating them to me.”

"Yuyue, you go first."

Nan Yun Yuyue stepped forward and said respectfully:

"Master, I'm starting."

As soon as he finished speaking, he took a step forward and slashed the blade cleanly, making a low "whoosh" sound in the air.

Uesugi Kotsugu's brow twitched.

This move was executed flawlessly. The rise of the blade, the slash, and the finishing move were all done in one smooth motion. The rhythm had shed the awkwardness of a novice and instead displayed the sharpness of a seasoned veteran.

The next moment, Nan Yun Yuyue turned her body and swept out with 'Ning Lian'.

The blade whistled past, creating a slight gust of air.

Finally, there's one of the core techniques of the Hokushin Itto-ryu style—'Kasumi Slash'.

He suddenly lowered his body, extended his long sword forward, and stomped his feet repeatedly.

With a 'whoosh', his figure seemed to be elongated by the wind, the blade flashing through the air like clouds suddenly dispersing in the sky.

After completing the entire set of moves, Nagumo Ugetsu slowly sheathed her sword and looked calmly at Uesugi Kotsu.

"As expected, it has improved compared to the past."

He secretly thought.

As his knowledge of swordsmanship continued to accumulate, he felt that his learning speed was getting faster and faster. He was able to learn about 80% of the essence of a move like 'Kasumi Slash' in just a few days.

Uesugi Kotsushi's pupils contracted slightly, and a sense of shock rose in his heart.

In just a few days, he has mastered the 'Mist Slash' so skillfully!

"Not bad." Uesugi Kotsushi nodded. "Your swordsmanship is already half-finished."

"Xiangzi, come here, let me see your work."

Shoko Toyokawa stepped forward, slightly nervous.

The swordsmanship level that Nan Yun Youyue had just displayed surprised her. She had not expected Nan Yun Youyue to improve so quickly.

He had only been taught the 'Mist Slash' technique not long ago, yet he had already reached such a level.

Toyokawa Shoko took a deep breath and began the demonstration.

Pull-out strike, uppercut slash, thrust.

Swish!Swish!Swish!

Finally, it's Kasumi Slash!

Although her control wasn't as refined as Nan Yun Yuyue's, she still performed quite well.

“My two students… are indeed very talented in swordsmanship.”

"Especially Nan Yun Yu Yue, could it be that only by practicing swordsmanship at this age can the advantages of the bloodline be truly brought into play for the inheritors of the 'Royal Blood'?"

Uesugi Kotsushi's heart was filled with turmoil.

He opened his mouth and said:

"You two are progressing much faster than I expected."

"I was originally planning to have you guys further solidify the moves you learned before and slow down the practice progress... but now it seems that it was completely unnecessary."

"Let me continue teaching you new styles of kendo."

Uesugi Kotsu casually pulled out an old sword from his collection and turned to look at the two of them.

"Okuyama Nen-ryu, Nianshuzao-ryu, Kagami-Akechi-ryu, Ryoten Kakusei-ryu, Shinto Mu-Nen-ryu..."

"There are many Kendo masters in Japan, and the techniques they left behind are vast and numerous. There is still much for you to learn."

He recited a series of renowned sword styles, gently stroking the blade of his longsword.

Uesugi Kotetsu thought to himself:

"I'd like to see where your limits are."

At that time, all the Japanese kendo masters had taught him the essence of their respective schools, and he had to study many of the techniques for a long time before he could understand them.

With this in mind, he began today's kendo lesson.

"Today...we will learn the 'Mirror Heart Awakening Style,' which belongs to the Ittō-ryū school."

……

Nan Yun Yuyue was completely immersed in the way of swordsmanship, and had no idea how much time had passed.

By the time he realized it, four hours had already passed.

Kendo LV2 (660/1000)

"The sword style that Master Uesugi taught today is indeed a bit more difficult than the Hokushin Itto-ryu."

Nangumo Ugetsu recalled the feeling of swinging her sword during her practice.

"However, the more difficult these sword techniques are, the better it is for me."

"By learning them... your skill bar experience will also increase faster than before."

"Moreover, Uesugi Kotsushi is clearly increasing the intensity of his teaching. If that's the case, my kendo level might be much stronger than I imagined in twenty days."

Chapter 183 Erii Comes to Crychic's Joint Performance (Part 1)

The happiest time during summer vacation is actually the period of anticipation for its arrival.

On the contrary, when summer vacation actually arrives, one suddenly feels that the holiday life that was originally anticipated lacks some interest.

Nan Yun Yuyue felt that her summer vacation was exceptionally fulfilling.

Generally, he would arrive at the rehearsal room of Live House RiNG at 9:30 am sharp, together with Shoko Toyokawa, to rehearse with the members of Crychic.

Shoko Toyokawa has already composed the music for "The Starry Night," and after igniting her bloodline, her musical skills have reached a new level compared to the past.

Under his guidance, the band's director, Crychic quickly completed rehearsals for the new song and booked a band performance a few days later.

"I never expected that Crychic's second band performance would actually earn them some performance fees."

Nanon Ugetsu was somewhat surprised.

Generally speaking, ordinary bands in Japan don't earn much money participating in band medley performances; they may even have to pay out of pocket.

After all, band performances are mostly held in small venues such as live houses, and the performance model of live houses in Japan is often based on 'paid performances'.

Bands typically need to guarantee the sale of a certain number of tickets to the venue in exchange for performance slots of varying times, which is a significant expense for them.

In addition, the band will need to pay an additional rental fee if they need to rent equipment.

In general, most bands can't even cover their initial costs, so many are just dabbling in band activities, participating in a band showcase and then disbanding.

However... fortunately, Japan has now entered the 'big band era,' and in order to attract customers and discover promising new bands, almost all live music venues have launched corresponding promotional policies.

For example, if you rent the rehearsal room of this live house for a certain number of hours, you can get a reduced or even no participation fee when you apply for your first band performance.

The reason why crychic didn't charge a fee when they first booked a band performance was precisely because of this.

"It's highly likely that the popularity of the official Crychic account operated by Nagasaki Motoyo is quite good. It's considered one of the top new bands in each batch of band performances. Even now, fans are still asking if the date for the second band performance has been confirmed, which is why there's a certain percentage of the profits."

"Although these dividends are not much, they can cover the consumption of drinks at Yuze Cafe."

"The band's stability has improved significantly."

Nan Yun Yu Yue thought to herself.

He opened his phone and scrolled to the latest updates from the official Crychic account.

Compared to the occasional training videos that Nagasaki Motoyo occasionally uploads, the announcement about the next band performance is generating significantly more buzz.

The number of likes on the post far exceeded previous ones, almost matching the number of likes on the post that had just finished playing "Spring Shadow".

[Crychic Performance Preview!!!]

The date for our second band performance has been confirmed: next Saturday at 19:00 PM at Live House RiNG.

In addition to "Spring Shadows," we have also prepared two new songs for this performance, and we look forward to seeing you all!

"The song 'Want to Be Human' had already been rehearsed for quite some time."

"Although the melody for 'The Starry Night' was only recently composed, the rehearsal process is progressing faster than expected, and we'll be able to finish rehearsals just before the band's joint performance."

"Including 'Spring Shadow,' this time Crychic will be able to perform a total of three original tracks."

"With time and effort, we'll be able to put on a solo concert eventually."

Nan Yun Yuyue slowly scrolled through the replies below the post.

Finally!

[Are there two new songs this time? I hope they're as good as "Spring Shadow"]

[Keep it up, my favorite new band! Please don't break up like the others I followed before!]

[I saw a female student from my own school (laughs)]

……

"I didn't expect there to be alumni from Tsuki no Mori among them."

Nan Yun Yuyue was somewhat surprised.

However, he then realized that the main clientele of Live House RiNG came from the three major girls' schools in the vicinity.

The Butterfly Band of Tsuki no Mori, Poppin' Party of Hanasakigawa Girls' Academy, Afterglow of Haneoka Girls' Academy... basically every major school has its own famous band.

These early bands, to some extent, contributed to the rise of the 'big band era'. For example, when Crychic was first formed, it was influenced by The Butterfly Band to some extent.

It's not surprising that some of these girls who love bands are interested in Crychic.

Aside from matters related to the band, the most important thing left is daily kendo practice.