Sword Spirits are a bunch of beasts.
I’ll say it again.
They are a bunch of beasts.
I no longer want to dig into why it was clearly me storming over to them that day, full of rage and demanding an explanation, yet in the end, the one who got punished was me.
Considering that the Magic Circuit inside my body did improve somewhat afterward, uh, maybe I should just let this insubordination slide.
After all, I was… the one who benefited the most, right?
Sorry, I’m a magician without any scruples (confession).
But the immediate priority isn’t to blame these swords who cleverly escaped my accountability this way, but to quickly cover up the traces on myself and dress properly before heading out.
—I still have to attend a meeting at the Time Government, family.
The short swords are extremely considerate; Maeda and Hirano helped prepare the somewhat formal outfit I needed to wear, ironing every crease flat.
Midare tidied my hair and used makeup to conceal some of the more obvious marks visible on me.
“They really went too far!” Midare complained like this.
I nodded hard in agreement: “Yeah, yeah! Way too far!”
“If it were me, I definitely wouldn’t have treated Aruki so roughly!”
“Yeah, yeah, I knew Midare was the best… huh?”
Wait a minute! This isn’t right!
Midare, what are you saying?!
Before setting off to the Time Government, I ran into Ichigo Hitofuri in the corridor.
I stopped him and recounted everything that had just happened.
“Ichigo, you need to properly educate little Midare!” I frowned, very worried, “Boys need to learn how to protect themselves!”
Since I started talking, Ichigo’s brows only furrowed deeper; as soon as I finished, he immediately nodded seriously.
“I’ll go back and give Midare a good talking-to,” Ichigo said, showing a bit of a headache on his face.
I get it, I get it. The Awataguchi family is huge, filled with children needing care. Logically, Onimaru should shoulder all the responsibility, but he’s a taciturn and slow fellow, so in the end, Ichigo Hitofuri takes on everything as the older brother…
“Midare really was out of line,” Ichigo continued, still troubled by “his younger brother not listening at all.” “How could he talk to you like that? So reckless.”
“Anyway, leave this to me. You don’t need to worry.” Ichigo assured me. “I won’t let Midare bother you again.”
I felt something about Ichigo’s words was off.
But no matter how much I pondered, I couldn’t pinpoint exactly what was subtly bothering me.
So on the entire journey to the Time Government, I kept mulling over this question.
Today, Zouza accompanied me as my attendant to the Time Government.
Haha, yes, I just love doing this kind of thing—whenever I have to negotiate with the government, I bring a few difficult swords with me.
After all, it’s not me who ends up with a headache 🙂
Zouza noticed my distracted state all along and simply stopped, smirking as he looked at me.
“What’s going on with you today? What are you thinking about the whole way?”
His slender white fingers reached out to brush aside the stray strands of hair falling by my ear, tucking them neatly behind.
Damn.
Bro, you smell amazing.
I’m sure the expression on my face right now is an awful, lustful one because Zouza’s gaze gradually turned into one of disdain, full of disapproval as he looked at me.
Good thing I have a thick skin; otherwise, under such a gaze, I’d want to crawl into a hole.
“What are you thinking about this time, all sorts of nonsense?” Zouza pinched the tip of my nose lightly but firmly. I let out a small “Oof,” but it finally pulled me back from that tempting beauty.
Faced with this accusation, I clenched my fists and firmly denied it: “Zouza, that’s slander! Barefaced slander!”
Still, I told him about the confusion I’d been feeling.
Zouza’s expression didn’t look very good.
His eyes, for a brief moment, held a dangerous glint.
“Short swords… really can’t be underestimated.”
But when his gaze landed on me, the dangerous aura dissipated, replaced by a kind of frustration at someone hopeless, mixed with a subtle relief.
“Don’t mind it,” Zouza said, using his height advantage to reach out and ruffle my hair roughly. “Didn’t Ichigo say he would handle this? Then you don’t have to worry anymore.”
That does seem to make sense.
Then I’ll just leave it be!
Little Ming’s grandmother lived to 100 years old because she never meddled in affairs that weren’t hers to mind.
Zouza watched as the Saniwa was easily distracted by a few words, no longer fixated on this matter, and the dark shadows in his eyes faded.
Except for this particularly emotionally slow master of theirs, anyone else would easily see the hidden meaning behind Midare’s words.
Look, didn’t Ichigo Hitofuri quickly realize this too, and set out to deal with the short swords of the Awataguchi family?
Their master had gotten one thing wrong.
In this entire Honmaru, the only true “child” was herself.
Even the youngest sword had already spent three hundred years in this world.
Once the heart clears, the world feels vast.
After figuring this out, I suddenly felt the sky bluer, the water clearer, and even the Time Government’s office building looked much more pleasant.
“May Lord! You’re here!” Kitsune no Suke, who had been anxiously waiting at the Time Government’s entrance for who knows how long, immediately brightened upon seeing me and hurried over, trotting around my legs.
I bent down to pet it. “Lead the way for me.”
Next, there’s still a tough battle to fight.
This Honmaru Coordinate Leak Incident involves 183 Honmarus and nearly ten thousand swords.
The Time Government can choose to hush it up publicly, which I understand; but internally, they must provide an explanation.
It’s precisely for this reason that I stand here now.
Old friends are gone.
And I am the only one who can seek justice for them.
“Zouza, let’s go.”
The sakura-pink-haired Uchigatana followed at a distance of one step behind me, her hand gently resting on the hilt at her waist upon hearing my words.
“Yes, Master.”
“Zouza Samonji will surely present everything you desire, all accounted for at your feet.”