I don't want to be a heroic spirit

Kurashiki Kōto closed his eyes and chuckled.

"I don't know who Izo is, but..."

When he opened his eyes again, the eyes behind the sunglasses suddenly lit up with a fierce light like a beast, and the ferocious smile on his face gradually widened.

"You have a very good eye, unknown swordsman!"

Chapter 84: Too Strong to Have Any Friends (6/31)

"You have a very good eye, unknown swordsman!"

Kurashiki Kōto laughed loudly, and a large sword appeared in his hand, which looked like it was made of the bones of some kind of snake.

"As for me, I love fighting with swordsmen and defeating them. Take out your spirit suit."

Kurashiki Kōto's magical power began to boil, and the ever-increasing momentum made it difficult to approach.

"With such a great look, you wouldn't do something that would be looked down upon, would you?"

After he took out his spiritual outfit, most of the customers in the store had left.

In the battles between sword cutters, ordinary people may pay with their lives even if they just watch.

Ayase Ayase and his followers all showed fear because of his fierce aura. However, in his eyes, Souji Okita, who was the smallest in stature, was able to look at them without fear.

He saw neither fear nor excitement in those eyes.

It's like facing a calm sea. No matter what you throw into the sea, it will not provoke any reaction.

He did not feel humiliated or despised by the indifference and calmness in the other person's eyes. On the contrary, the blood flowing in his body seemed to be burning.

Seeing Okita Souji open his mouth to answer him, Ayatsuji Ayase's eyes trembled slightly.

What she saw gradually overlapped with the scene in her mind.

Two years ago, it seemed like a similar scene, Kurashiki Kōto challenged her father, Ayatsuji Kaito.

Because he did not stop his father, he is still in a coma until now, and even the kendo hall at home has been occupied, leaving him with no home to return to.

She regretted it every day and night.

If she had been braver and more resolute at that time, she would have stopped her father and not allowed him to compete with Kurashiki Kōto.

Could everything be different?

"do not want!"

Ayase Ayatsuji suddenly flipped over the broken table, came to Souji Okita and grabbed her clothes.

"You are no match for him, please... don't go..."

Okita Souji was shocked.

Just because, Ayatsuji Ayase cried in front of her.

"Please... don't leave me alone again..."

Is this sentence directed to Okita Souji... or to the father who abandoned him?

"Are you trying to hinder me, Ayatsuji?"

Kurashiki Kōto suddenly became unhappy.

It’s like you have been hungry for three days, and now a delicious dish is on the table, but before you even start eating, someone comes and wants to take it away.

The irritable Kurashiki Kōren didn't know what "suffering in silence" meant, so he raised the bone sword in his hand and chopped it down heavily.

But in the next moment...

"Ding!"

Kurashiki Kōto was shocked because his sword didn't swing successfully.

I saw that a black scabbard was stuck on the hilt of his bone sword, and all the power that his arm poured into the bone sword was offset by the scabbard.

The one holding the scabbard was none other than Okita Souji, who had been sitting in his seat from beginning to end.

It has to be said that Okita Souji's move shocked everyone, including Kurashiki Kōto and his followers.

Even Ayase Ayase opened her mouth so wide that Okita Souji wanted to try to stuff an egg in it.

But... now is not the time to stuff eggs in.

"I won't leave you like this."

Without even glancing at Kurashiki Kōto and the others, Okita Souji placed one hand on Ayatsuji Ayase's face and gently wiped away her tears with his thumb.

On her cheeks, where Okita Souji's hand had touched them, there was a warm feeling, and Ayatsuji Ayase felt as if even her head was about to burn.

"So, trust me for once."

Those eyes, as pure as amber and as charming as the sea of ​​stars, were now clearly reflecting Ayatsuji Ayase's face.

"I will come back, and at the same time... I will take back what you lost."

"So, please trust me, Senior."

Ahhh, what should I do?

Looking at a pair of eyes like that, I can't even say no.

Why are you so willful? Why can't you just listen to your senior?

You should already know...what kind of despair and pain I have suffered over the years.

If you know that, then why do you...

Why... do you have to say such cool words in front of me?

Ayase Ayatsuji pulled Okita Souji's clothes with increasingly greater force, and her fingers turned white from the excessive force.

"With you like this... I have no choice but to trust you hopelessly..."

The words tinged with tears reached Okita Souji's ears, causing the corners of her mouth to slowly rise into a gentle arc.

"Keeping promises is one of my few strengths."

Gently pulling down the hand that was pulling at her, Okita Souji stood up and looked at Kurashiki Kōto, who was much taller than her, without fear.

"Besides, since he challenged me as a swordsman, then as a swordsman, I can only respond with the sword in my hand!"

"...Ha! There has to be a limit to fun!"

Kurashiki Kōto didn't hide the excitement in his eyes and asked Okita Souji: "Hey! Swordsman, what's your name!"

"Okita Souji."

"Kurashiki Kurato."

The two introduced themselves to each other, and Ayatsuji Ayase and Kurashiki Kurato's followers also retreated.

Just when everyone thought the two were about to start fighting here...

"It may be a bit of a letdown, but do you really want to fight me here?"

Although Okita Souji was holding the unsheathed Kikuichimonji, he looked around and asked, "Can we move to another place?"

"Huh? Do you still care about breaking things?"

"After all, breaking things costs a lot of money, but that's not what I care about most." Okita Souji tilted his head and frowned. "The main thing is that our school rules are very strict. If you use your superpowers and spiritual equipment outside, the worst case scenario is expulsion."

"What does that have to do with me?"

"Is it really none of your business?" Okita Souji glanced at Kurashiki Kōto and smiled slightly. "You...don't you want to fight me once on a stage like the Seven Stars Sword Dance Festival?"

Okita Souji's words made Kurashiki Kōto's eyes move.

"Also, if I'm expelled from school, I'll probably be taken abroad by my family, and you might not see me for a long time."

"Even so, you still want to fight me here? Do you think... fighting me once is enough?"

The tense atmosphere came to a halt.

Ayatsuji Ayase and the followers widened their eyes in disbelief.

Kurashiki Kōto's fighting spirit... was actually suppressed?!

"Hmph! I don't know if you're strong enough yet." Kurashiki Kōto put down the bone sword on his shoulder and smacked his lips. "If you want to fight me a few more times, you have to be strong enough."

"Then you can rest assured."

Souji Okita's eyebrows slightly curved, revealing a very lazy smile.

"Ms. Okita, I am...super strong."

As if he felt that the description of "super strong" was too monotonous, Okita Souji rolled his eyes and added another sentence.

"The kind that's so strong that he has no friends."

Chapter 85 The Killing Sword and the Guardian Sword

According to the laws promulgated by the state, swordsmen who have not obtained the qualifications of a magic knight are not allowed to use spiritual equipment or use supernatural powers without authorization.

Just like in Academy City, although there are many people with special abilities, their use of their abilities is restricted, otherwise social order will be disrupted.

Now Okita Souji is just a student knight. Even if he takes out his spiritual equipment without permission in the academy, he will be punished, not to mention outside the academy, where he may even be expelled.

However, there are exceptions.

"If they are inside a gym and have the permission of the gym owner, then the student knight can use the spiritual equipment to fight."

The original owner of Ayatsuji Ittoryu Dojo was Ayatsuji Ayase's father, Mr. Ayatsuji Kaito.

However, two years ago, Kurashiki Kōto came to challenge Ayatsuji Kaito. The two sides only competed in swordsmanship. Kurashiki Kōto not only defeated Ayatsuji Kaito, but also seriously injured him. He has been unconscious in the hospital ward and has not woken up yet.

Because Ayatsuji Kaito lost the game, Ayatsuji Ittoryu Gym was lost to Kurashiki Kurato, so Kurashiki Kurato is the current owner of the gym.

As long as they are inside the gym, the fight between the two is legal.

What I didn't expect was that Kurashiki Kōto actually agreed to this request.

"If the food that's coming up is delicious enough, it's okay to wait a little longer."

This is what the Kurashiki Kura said at the time.

"Besides... I've already been waiting for two whole years. What does this little while mean?"

Currently, Okita Souji and his companions are walking on a small path in the mountains.

That dojo had become the base of Kurashiki Kurato and his men, and Ayatsuji Ayase was the daughter of the original owner of the dojo, so naturally she knew the way.

In the end, only Okita Souji was here for the first time.

Ayatsuji Ayase insisted on coming along.

Although she could no longer persuade Okita Souji to give up the battle with Kurashiki Kōto, she still wanted to be a witness to this battle.

Souji Okita and Ayase Ayatsuji were walking together and noticed that the other was in a low mood.

"What's wrong, senior?"

"Huh? Nothing, I just..."

Hearing Okita Souji's caring question, Ayatsuji Ayase shook her head to indicate that she was fine, and then said.

"It's just... walking on this road again, I feel a little emotional."

That’s right, after all, it was the way she used to go home.

Moreover, when she was kicked out of her own gym and became homeless and had no one to rely on... Senior Ayase also took this path.

Okita Souji doesn't think he's the kind of person who likes to meddle in other people's affairs, nor is he a righteous partner.

She only focuses on what she can grasp in front of her.

So, she wouldn't say things like "If only I could come earlier" or "If only I could try harder."

The past is past, but the future has not yet arrived.

We can't change the past, but we can make the future worth looking forward to.

The mountain road was difficult to walk on, but it was not a difficult task for the people present who were all swordsmen.

Soon, the scene became clear for several people.