I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

Since we have so much extra free time every day, we can't waste it.

Kyubei's room was next to Aoto's room, and Aoto could faintly hear faint snoring coming from Kyubei's room.

So as not to wake Kyubei, Aoto carefully tidied up his bedding, then dressed, picked up his sword, and walked toward their courtyard.

Their 60-ping (approximately 33 square meters) abandoned vacant land was perfect for using as a sword-practice area.

Thanks to his talent of "night vision," which allows him to see in the dark, Qing Deng doesn't have to worry about bumping into anything even without turning on a light.

Upon reaching the center of the courtyard, Qing Deng drew his sword and began practicing the most basic swordsmanship move: Su Zhen.

After swinging his sword forward for the first time, Qing Deng was surprised to find that "Sleeping God" could actually be combined with "Sword Prodigy"!

His excellent physical condition made his sword practice more efficient!

With an excited smile returning to his lips, Qing Deng raised the knife in his hand with even greater fighting spirit.

……

……

The next morning, Qing Deng alternated between "practicing swordsmanship" and "exercising" until dawn. After eating breakfast cooked by Jiubei, he picked up the bento box prepared by Jiubei and set off for work.

Kyubei has always woken up earlier than Aoto.

This morning, Kyubei was quite surprised to see that Qingdeng had gotten up even earlier than him.

The sleep quality boost brought by the "God of Sleep" was ridiculously strong. Qingdeng practiced swordsmanship and trained his body from 2 a.m. until dawn, and still felt quite energetic.

As Qingdeng walked along his familiar route to work and entered the Beifan Institute, he immediately sensed a completely different atmosphere in the surrounding air.

Whether they were from other departments, or ordinary errand boys, everyone cast strange glances at Qingdeng upon seeing him.

Workplace gossip is something that will inevitably exist in any era.

"That good-for-nothing Deng has suddenly become amazing," "Yesterday's case in Mokuyanagi-cho was solved by Tachibana Aoto in less than an hour"... These rumors had already begun to circulate rapidly within the Magistrate's Office yesterday.

Some people are completely indifferent to the sudden changes in Qingdeng, but the vast majority are extremely curious.

Inside the Northern Barbarian Quarter, most of the people who brushed past Qingdeng looked at him as if he were some kind of exotic species.

Having anticipated that he would inevitably attract attention, Qing Deng, who had prepared himself mentally, remained calm in the face of the strange looks he received from the crowd.

Just as Aoto was about to arrive at Arima's office, Inoya and Ushiyama's voices came from behind him.

“橘君！橘君！”

Looking back, Inugaya was running towards him excitedly.

Ushiyama, who usually rarely shows any emotion, was unusually excited as he walked alongside Inugami.

"Tachibana-kun! I heard about what happened to you yesterday from Arima-sama!" Approaching Aoto, Inoya patted him hard on the shoulder and laughed, "I have immense respect for you! I never imagined you'd undergo such a transformation!"

"If it weren't for Lord Arima saying it himself, I wouldn't have believed that you could utter such passionate words as 'Realizing the weight of my responsibilities, I have decided to put away all my laxity'!"

Niu Shan then joined in praising Qing Deng.

Faced with the praise from these two seniors, Qing Deng could only put on a humble smile that contained a hint of embarrassment.

In order to reasonably explain why he was no longer so dull-witted, Qingdeng concocted a noble persona for himself: "suddenly realized his mistakes and repented."

Hearing the people around him praising him with the persona he had fabricated... Qing Deng couldn't help but feel a little ashamed and guilty.

……

……

After reporting to Arima's office with Inoya and Ushiyama, Aoto went to his assigned territory to inspect each of his own units, just like yesterday.

Today was quite peaceful compared to yesterday.

Unlike yesterday, there was no sudden emergency.

The morning was spent in peace and tranquility.

The sky was overcast in the morning, but after noon, the thick, dark clouds that had been pressing down on the sky and earth finally began to disperse, and beams of warm winter sun shone on Qingdeng.

At this moment, Qingdeng was walking on a narrow path, his eyes half-closed, deliberately slowing his pace to enjoy the gentle caress of the warm sun.

The warm sun in winter, the gentle breeze in spring, the rain and dew in summer, and the moonlight in autumn—four things that must be savored in every season.

Since his transmigration, Qingdeng has been rushing around every day, with almost no chance to relax.

Who knows when another emergency might suddenly occur that would leave no time for rest? Therefore, Qingdeng cherishes the time he can leisurely patrol various parts of his jurisdiction.

Just as Qingdeng was about to leave the path he was on, he suddenly saw a somewhat familiar figure appear in front of him.

Looking closely—not far ahead of him, a young woman in a bright red kimono was carrying something, taking small, quick steps, and walking out of the path in the same direction as Qing Deng.

—Huh? Isn't this... that guy who works at the Senjiya?

Looking at the young girl in front of him, Qing Deng pondered and recalled for a while before finally remembering why the figure looked somewhat familiar—it was Kinoshita Mai, the girl he had met the other day at the job agency, Senjiya.

The child's extremely shy personality, which made him seem like he was chanting a spell, left a deep impression on Qing Deng.

I actually ran into someone I know...

Qing Deng raised an eyebrow.

He found himself running into people he knew every time he went on patrol.

I ran into Okita at the teahouse yesterday.

I bumped into Kinoshita Mai on this path today.

—Well…should we go say hello to her…?

Although I only met Kinoshita Mai once, I still consider myself to know her.

Just as Qing Deng was considering whether he should go up and greet the child, he suddenly saw Kinoshita Mai, who was walking ahead, suddenly stop.

Unaware of what was going on, Qingdeng also stopped instinctively.

What's wrong with her—this question had just popped into Qing Deng's mind when he saw Kinoshita Mai, who had suddenly stopped, slowly raise her small head and look at the top of the earthen wall beside her.

Qing Deng followed Kinoshita Mai's gaze and turned his eyes, and then a bright orange color came into view.

It turned out to be a large orange cat sitting on top of the earthen wall.

The petite Kinoshita Mai stood at the base of the wall, tilting her head back and staring expressionlessly at the large orange cat.

The large orange cat seemed to notice Kinoshita Mai's gaze, turning its head to meet her eyes.

—Oh, so they were watching cats.

Qing Deng smiled gently.

The other day, Mr. Kiryu helped him a lot. Without Mr. Kiryu's help, he might still be struggling with which kendo dojo to join.

Since Mr. Kiryu had helped him before, he couldn't be too cold to this young girl who worked at the Senjiya.

Qingdeng decided to go over and say hello to her.

Having made up his mind, Qing Deng raised his right leg, preparing to walk towards Kinoshita Mai.

But just as he lifted his right leg—

Kinoshita Mai: ╰(*°▽°*)╯ “Meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow~~~~!”

Qingden: (°ー°〃) “………………”

Qingdeng remained frozen in place, his right leg raised.

Chapter 41 Ms. Kinoshita's Great Failure

The orange tabby cat, which had been staring at Kinoshita Mai, half-closed its eyes, wagged its tail, and yawned loudly after hearing Kinoshita Mai's "meow."

Seeing that the orange cat seemed to have responded to her "meow," Kinoshita Mai showed a happy expression.

Kinoshita Mai: (/≧▽≦)/ "Meow meow meow! Meow meow meow meow meow~~!"

She meowed in a melodious tone, as if trying to talk to the orange cat.

Big Orange's head drooped slightly.

Seeing that Kinoshita Mai seemed to want to talk to it, it let out a low growl.

Then he gave Kinoshita Mai a look that said, "Damn it, you're an idiot..."

Kinoshita Mai was not only unconcerned about the orange cat's indifference, but she became even more enthusiastic.

Kinoshita Mai: ヾ(≧▽≦*)o "Meow meow! Meow meow meow meow~~!"

Big Orange: "..." (Damn it, idiot.jpg)

Kinoshita Mai: φ(≧ω≦*) "Little kitty~ come here, come here~"

Kinoshita Mai, who had finally spoken the language that humans should be able to use, waved to the large orange tree on the top of the wall.

Big Orange: "..." (Damn it, idiot.jpg)

……

Watching Kinoshita dance, which looked completely different from the day before, now seemed to be performed by just two people, Aoto felt a lump in his throat...

—It seems I saw something I shouldn't have seen…

Qing Deng silently withdrew his foot, which he had just raised to step towards Kinoshita Mai...

—What should I do...? Should I pretend I didn't see anything and leave here quickly...?

Aoto instinctively felt that if Kinoshita Mai found out that he had witnessed her performance art-like act the whole time, it would be very bad.

Qingdeng was now standing directly beneath a snow-covered branch.

As Qingdeng was contemplating whether to retreat immediately, the branches above him began to bend over, unable to bear the weight of the snow.

A small handful of snow, pulled by gravity, slowly... slid into the back of Qingdeng's collar.

"Alas……!"

Caught off guard by the sudden clump of snow falling into the back of his collar, Qing Deng let out a low cry of surprise.

The Qingdeng's call was not very loud.

But the sound was more than enough to reach Kinoshita Mai's ears...