Spare Me, Great Lord!

Standing at the yard gate, Lu Shu put on a sophisticated look and eyed the crowd of students gathering in front of his dojo. In fact, he did have a great master’s mien when he wanted to.

What was a great master’s mien? Absolute confidence, of course.

When someone wanted to pick a fight with the dojo, a great master would dismiss him with ease because he knew he was unbeatable.

Now, the same went for Lu Shu. Anything could be the essence of swordplay if he insisted so, because no high school students could defeat him.

In only an hour, there were already dozens of students sitting in the hall with their legs crossed. They were ecstatic to have lessons with Sakurai Yaeko…

Although honestly Lu Shu did not want to draw a percentage from his earnings to be given to Sakurai, it was a long-term strategy.

Sakurai Yaeko walked to Lu Shu and made a bow. “I suppose there are no more students for today. Shall we begin our lessons now?”

Right, thought Lu Shu, it was unrealistic to expect every Nishinokyo high school student to come due to the fees. But he was surprised to see a handful of girls in the group.

Seriously? Japanese girls are into THAT?!

“Alright. Sakurai, you’ll be the teacher for today. You can practice what you have learned through guiding others as well,” Lu Shu said, acting as if it was totally sensible. Then he returned to the backyard for a rest.

Those students did not mind at all. After all, they had come for Sakurai Yaeko. They would be more than happy if she could teach them herself!

But Sakurai was on the brink of frustration. So it turned out that you simply wanted to keep me busy?!

“From Sakurai Yaeko’s distress, +666!”

At the moment, the front hall was filled with laughter. Lu Shu liked this kind of teaching mode, because everyone was happy about it, except Sakurai Yaeko.

Bunndai smiled, covering her mouth. “You are so interesting. I can see that young lady likes you, yet you are making things difficult for her. Actually the Kiriharas had never hosted so many students concurrently before. It reminds me of those old days. So boisterous.”

“She has approached me with hidden agendas. She is a Class C, yet pretends to be an ordinary student. Besides, she came right after Kirihara Yousuke’s parents’ passing. It can’t be so coincidental,” Lu Shu said. He did not think it was necessary to keep it a secret from Bunndai, since they were on the same team.

Bunndai did not seem surprised. “Things like this are actually quite normal, though I haven’t noticed anything unusual about her. Be careful, though.”

A question suddenly struck Lu Shu, and he thought aloud, “If I’m exposed, you will surely be in trouble. Has the Heavenly Network prepared any backup plan for you?”

Bunndai made a deep bow. “Thank you for your concern. My current identity is not the only one I have. I will retreat safely before danger arrives. You don’t have to worry too much about me.”

Thus, if Lu Shu’s mission failed, Bunndai would start a new life with another identity.

In fact, she felt happy and touched by Lu Shu’s concern. No one would be willing to team up with a cold-blooded reptile anyway.

In the meantime, Chiba stopped in front of the lively dojo.

Down about her studies, she decided to go for a walk, though she could not explain why she had ended up outside Kirihara’s house. Mixed feelings welled up in her heart at the sight of the dojo. No wonder Kiriharakun had rejected her invitation to a movie, it was because he was busy with reviving his family’s martial arts business.

Immediately her depression from the rejection was swept away. You are the best, Kiriharakun! She thought.

In the next instant, however, the poster caught her attention. “Sakurai Yaeko’s swordplay”!

She took a long moment to straighten out her thoughts. Had Sakurai Yaeko been practicing swordplay with Kiriharakun all along?

The phrasing of the poster was indeed misleading. It seemed to suggest that all of Sakurai’s sword skills were learned from the Kiriharas.

Chiba felt a sharp prick in her heart. Distress crossed her face as she realized that Kiriharakun’s refusal to watch Sakurai’s sword match was not because of a lack of interest. Furthermore, Sakurai’s confession was not a pure coincidence either.

Could it be that she had developed admiration for Kiriharakun during their long-term practice? It was highly likely.

Chiba was pretty too, but her body could not be compared to Sakurai Yaeko’s at all. As a matter of fact, many Japanese girls were not blessed with an attractive body shape from birth. But Sakurai was an exception.

Thinking of that, Chiba’s heart was plunged into gloom again.

She turned and continued to walk forward. Then, she heard something landing on the ground in the lane next to the Kiriharas’ yard. Out of curiosity, she looked in that direction, only to see Lu Shu walking out after just having climbed over the wall.

“Kiriharakun?!” Chiba gasped in shock, and shot another look at the dojo. “I thought you were teaching inside!”

Lu Shu was stunned too, not expecting to see Chiba there. “Err… Why are you here?”

Nervous, Chiba immediately pulled an excuse. “I’m going to buy groceries and happened to walk past here.”

“Oh.” Lu Shu gave a nod and decided to leave, with no intention to justify his suspicious actions…

Before he walked far, he turned and whispered. “Don’t tell anyone that I climbed out. It’s a secret!”

Chiba nodded, but did not extend any invitation to Lu Shu again. She needed time to muster her courage after the rejection.

Yet, she felt uplifted, as Kiriharakun did not spend most of his time with Sakurai Yaeko, and now the two of them even shared a secret.