My dear wife, I still love you more.

"I don't think so. Besides, if we're talking about being withdrawn, compared to me, it's Hachiman Hikigaya in our class who you should be paying more attention to, Mr. Hiratsuka. That guy has had absolutely no friends since he entered school, and he's almost never spoken to anyone else. Although I think he's kind of enjoying that solitude, if we're talking about being withdrawn, it's definitely him." Hasegawa used Hachiman Hikigaya as a shield.

"Hmm? Hachiman Hikigaya. That guy, ah, that guy really gives me a headache. Those dead fish eyes, it's strange if anyone goes near him. His personality is terrible to begin with, and then there are those dead fish eyes. Seriously, why do all the troublesome students end up in my class?" Shizuka Hiratsuka looked troubled and distressed.

Hasegawa shrugged, feeling a little smug, and successfully changed the subject.

"Hey, Hasegawa. Since you don't have many friends, why don't you go and meet that guy Hachiman? It'll be good to make a new friend." Hiratsuka Shizuka simply dumped the two people he found troublesome together.

In this way, two problems were solved at once. Hiratsuka Shizuka suddenly felt a little smug, thinking that she was really too smart.

"Sorry, I'm allergic to dead fish eyes," Hasegawa said directly.

"Huh? Allergic to dead fish eyes? Why don't you just say you're allergic to fish?"

"It's because I eat so much fish that I feel uncomfortable every time I see a fish's eyes. That's why I'm allergic to dead fish eyes," Hasegawa said calmly.

"...You bastard, I really want to beat you up." Hiratsuka Shizuki felt a pain in her chest.

“Hiratsuka-sensei, you really don’t need to worry. Everyone has their own choices, and everyone has their own way of life. Perhaps you think our way of life isn’t very good, but for us, it’s the most suitable and enjoyable way of life.” Hasegawa straightened his expression.

"You might find it enjoyable now, but what about later? What if you enter the workforce? You'll realize how harsh reality is then. How will you survive in society if you don't even have basic interpersonal relationships?" Hiratsuka Shizuka rolled her eyes, speaking with a tone of exasperation.

"I'm sorry, Professor Hiratsuka, but I need to correct you. Even if I enter the workforce and don't have many connections, I will still be able to live a good life. There's absolutely no need to worry about that."

"You—okay, I forgot you're a bestselling light novel author, your earning power is definitely not weak. Damn it, are you deliberately targeting me?" Hiratsuka Shizuka gritted her teeth, clenched her fists, wishing she could beat Hasegawa up.

"Hiratsuka-sensei, calm down. I was just stating the facts, not targeting you. I was just describing my own situation normally," Hasegawa quickly said, waving his hand.

"Tch, now you can get lost. And don't come looking for me unless it's absolutely necessary. Otherwise, you'll cause some rumors or something." Hiratsuka Shizuka curled her lip and waved her hand impatiently, telling Hasegawa to get lost.

“I didn’t mean to come to see you, Hiratsuka-sensei. You’re the one who called me here.”

"roll!"

"Ok!"

When Hasegawa walked out of the office, he saw a pair of familiar dead fish eyes—Hachiman Hikigaya.

Hachiman Hikigaya seemed to have just arrived at the office door, but Hasegawa noticed that his gaze was slightly strange.

Hasegawa paused for a moment, then smiled at him.

Although it seemed like Hachiman Hikigaya had just arrived, Hasegawa had a feeling that he might have been there for a while, and might even have overheard his conversation with Shizuka Hiratsuka.

Hasegawa felt a little embarrassed when he thought about what he had just said about being allergic to dead fish eyes, and at the same time he understood why Hachiman Hikigaya was looking at him strangely.

Hasegawa smiled at Hachiman Hikigaya, who quickly twitched the corners of his mouth, trying to return the same smile. However, his laughter was dry and stiff, and he looked better without smiling at all.

Hasegawa found Hachiman Hikigaya's expression rather amusing.

Chapter Seventy-Six: Sword Master and Sword Saint

"Your swordsmanship remains as good as ever. It seems you haven't been affected at all." Saeko Busujima looked at Hasegawa with an appreciative expression.

"What kind of impact are you referring to?"

"It's just school bullying, all that so-called passive-aggressive behavior. What a bunch of immature kids." Saeko Busujima brandished her wooden sword again and charged towards Hasegawa.

"Is it childish? Indeed, they are very childish." Hasegawa also charged towards Saeko Busujima.

clap clap clap-

"To be honest, I was a little worried about your situation, but now it's unnecessary." Saeko Busujima's wooden sword flashed like lightning as it slashed towards Hasegawa's neck.

"Snap!" Hasegawa blocked Saeko Busujima's attack, then spun his wooden sword and slashed at Saeko Busujima's hand holding the hilt.

"After all, I've always been isolated. Not to mention in junior high, even after entering high school, only a handful of people would talk to me. I'm already used to it. Their passive-aggressive behavior doesn't affect me at all. On the contrary, it makes them deliberately maintain this attitude. In the end, it's them who feel uncomfortable."

"Outstanding people are often lonely."

"That's right, so I've always enjoyed this solitude."

The two talked and fought at the same time. During their fight, Hasegawa and Saeko Busujima didn't hold back at all, attacking each other with almost all their might.

Every move was vicious; if you weren't careful, a single blow would leave you severely injured, if not dead. Yet, even in the midst of this battle, the two were able to converse calmly, their breathing remaining perfectly steady.

Hasegawa's progress in kendo has been incredibly rapid in a short period of time. Astonishingly fast.

Of course, it wasn't just Hasegawa who made progress; Saeko Busujima's kendo also improved, and at a considerable pace.

Unlike Hasegawa, Saeko Busujima began practicing kendo at a young age. She had already built a solid foundation, but as her strength increased, she rarely had the opportunity to fight freely. In fact, it could be said that her kendo skills were practically useless.

So gradually, Saeko Busujima's kendo reached a bottleneck, unable to break through or improve.

Now that Hasegawa can fight her head-on, Saeko Busujima's talent has been unleashed, and her swordsmanship skills are constantly improving.

However, Saeko Busujima's success was the culmination of over ten years of swordsmanship training, while Hasegawa's was due to the existence of the system, which was like a cheat code.

Suddenly, Saeko Busujima's wooden sword stopped just above Hasegawa's head, centimeters away from striking him. Meanwhile, Hasegawa's own wooden sword rested at Saeko Busujima's throat; a mere fraction of a second more and it would touch her throat.

Both were just a hair's breadth away from striking each other's vitals. This demonstrates the ferocity of their attacks. Similarly, it reveals the incredible precision with which they controlled themselves, stopping just a fraction of a second off target.

Their swordsmanship, even in ancient times, would be considered that of great sword masters or even supreme sword masters.

"Phew!" He sheathed the wooden sword and exhaled a long breath.

"Hasegawa-kun, your progress is truly astounding. If you can persevere in your swordsmanship training, I think you might even become the only sword saint in the modern era," Saeko Busujima said with admiration.

"You're amazing, Saeko Busujima! I'm sure you can become a Sword Saint too," Hasegawa complimented Saeko Busujima. Well, actually, it wasn't really a compliment, because Saeko Busujima truly possessed exceptional talent in swordsmanship.

Hasegawa never doubted that as long as Saeko Busujima didn't give up on swordsmanship, sooner or later she would become the next generation's female sword saint.

Of course, becoming a Sword Saint is not an easy thing, even though Saeko Busujima is already very strong. She would need at least another twenty or thirty years of experience to reach that level.

"A Sword Saint? I don't have much confidence in that. But if Hasegawa-kun becomes a Sword Saint and can guide me, I might be able to succeed. I just hope that Hasegawa-kun won't be stingy with his guidance then." Saeko Busujima looked at Hasegawa with a somewhat fervent gaze.

He was so talented that he could become a sword saint. Saeko Busujima even thought that with Hasegawa's talent, he might not have to wait too long to become a sword saint.

Saeko Busujima was really smitten with such an outstanding guy.

Hasegawa smiled at the burning gaze in Saeko Busujima's eyes, unconcerned. He figured that Saeko Busujima's reaction was probably because she was particularly fond of swordsmanship, and this was a natural reaction to seeing someone who had the potential to become a sword saint.

Alternatively, Saeko Busujima might be hoping that after she becomes a sword saint, she will in turn guide and help Saeko become a sword saint.

"Don't worry, Saeko Busujima. If I'm lucky enough to become a Sword Saint, I'll definitely help you, Saeko Busujima." Hasegawa said what he thought Saeko Busujima wanted to hear most.

"Then thank you in advance, Hasegawa-senpai." Saeko Busujima smiled, her smile radiant.

After finishing today's kendo training, I worked up a good sweat. After washing it off, I felt completely relaxed, even refreshed. It was this feeling that was most captivating.

I checked the attributes of my swordsmanship skill.

Hasegawa did a quick calculation and realized that perhaps he really wouldn't have to wait too long to break through to the fifth level. And the fifth level of kendo was probably the level of a sword saint that Saeko Busujima had mentioned.

Seeing this, Hasegawa smiled. He was also very much looking forward to seeing what changes or enhancements the swordsmanship skill would bring him after it reached level five.

After saying goodbye to Saeko Busujima, Hasegawa met Yui Yuigahama, who also came from the Light Music Club.

Upon seeing Hasegawa, Yui Yuigahama smiled brightly and said, "Hasegawa, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."

"I just came out of the kendo club too. Alright, let's go."

"Okay!" Yui Yuigahama happily followed Hasegawa.

At this time every day, Yui Yuigahama feels that this is one of the happiest times of the day. In fact, Yui Yuigahama's happiest time of day is probably on her way to and from school, and when Hasegawa gives her private lessons.

Chapter Seventy-Seven: There are five of the Four Heavenly Kings

"Hasegawa, I've discovered that the music knowledge you taught me before is absolutely amazing!" Yui Yuigahama said excitedly.

"Really?"

“Yes. There are people in the Light Music Club who have been attending tutoring classes outside. And they’ve been attending these classes for a long time, but it seems like they don’t know as much as I do.” Yui Yuigahama nodded happily, her eyes filled with admiration as she looked at Hasegawa.

"Hmm, maybe it's because Yuihama, you have such a high talent for music."

"Talent? I don't think I have any special talent. I just think Hasegawa, you're amazing. You've managed to master so much knowledge. I think even the tutors outside are definitely not as good as you, Hasegawa." Yui Yuigahama thought Hasegawa was simply an all-around superman, capable of everything and exceptionally good at everything.

"I've only taught myself a little about music; how can I compare to those professionals?" Hasegawa humbly shook his head.

"Anyway, in my opinion, Hasegawa, you are the best." Yui Yuigahama emphasized earnestly.

Hasegawa smiled and didn't say anything more. After all, realistically speaking, Hasegawa, with his system, was indeed far superior to anyone else.

Hasegawa and Yui had already left the school while they were talking. However, they hadn't gone far when Hasegawa noticed several people walking towards them.

These people have rather peculiar hairstyles. Their heads aren't very big to begin with, and they've dyed their hair all messy. A small head topped with such messy hair—it's hard to describe it with just the word "ugly."

"Kenichi Hasegawa?" A boy with a hairstyle that stood up like Sun Wukong held his head high, practically pointing his nose at Hasegawa. Hasegawa even wondered if this guy could see clearly walking like that. Wasn't he afraid of falling?

"Looks like they came specifically to find me?" Hasegawa took the backpack off his shoulder and looked at the strange-looking group of guys. Although they were dressed in a mess, they were actually not very old, probably only seventeen or eighteen years old, and the oldest was no more than twenty.

Yui Yuigahama was a little scared, her body trembling slightly as she hid behind Hasegawa, as if she could only feel safe this way because she was so frightened. But in reality, hidden behind Hasegawa, where no one else could see, Yui Yuigahama had already quietly taken out her phone and dialed 110.

"Hey kid, let me tell you, if you're from the countryside, you should act like one. Just stay in school and behave yourself, instead of causing trouble everywhere—"

"Tobe Sho, is that him? He's the one who sent you here. Where is he? He should be around here. After all, if it's about revenge, it's more satisfying to see your enemy get beaten up. So that guy should be around here. Call him out." Hasegawa glanced at the group and already understood what was going on.

"Huh? Hubu Xiang? What are you talking about? I don't understand what you're saying. Who is Hubu Xiang?" The faces of these punk teenagers changed, and they quickly denied it.

"Hehe. As for me, although I am indeed a poor boy from the countryside, I have always been very quiet at school. I have never done anything outrageous. The only time was because of Tobe Sho. So, I find it hard to imagine who else would send someone to teach me a lesson besides Tobe Sho. So, it's obvious." Hasegawa said casually, glancing around.

"Who cares what you think? Maybe it's because someone dislikes you. You're just from the countryside, yet you have such a cute girlfriend. That's why someone dislikes you and sent us to teach you a lesson." This group of punks were quite clever; upon seeing Yui Yuigahama, they immediately came up with a reason.

Although no one would believe such a reason, at least they didn't reveal Tobe Sho's identity.

"I'm telling you, have you ever actually done anything bad?" Hasegawa couldn't help but shake his head.

"Huh? What did you say?"

"You bastard, let me tell you, we're the really bad kind."

"That's right, in our school, we are the four kings who dominate."

"Wait, brother, there are five of us."

"Uh, five? There are five of the Four Heavenly Kings, isn't that normal?"

"..."

Listening to the conversation of these goofballs, Hasegawa couldn't help but laugh. These guys were hilarious. And judging from what they said, they were still students. Probably all they could do was bully the honest students at school.

"You guys, don't you know that when you want to teach someone a lesson, you don't need to say anything, just go up and beat them up? You actually tried to explain to me that you didn't know Tobe Sho." Hasegawa scratched his head. He had originally planned to give these guys who were causing him trouble a good beating. But now, he suddenly felt that if he attacked them, it would be a bit like bullying them. The difference in their intelligence was just too great.

"You, you bastard, do we need you to teach us what to do?"