Because he looks simple and honest, just like an ordinary farmer, and he does housework every day and enjoys it, so outsiders always mistakenly think that he is an ordinary servant of the Trial Guard Hall, and never think that this person is a Trial Guard Hall

His seniors, even Kondo Isamu and Hijikata Toshizo, all respected him.

Under the dedicated maintenance of Abi, Jiubei and Inoue Genzaburo, the sanitary condition of the test hall has always been commendable.

But now... the floor of the corridor is covered with a layer of light dust like snow foam, and clear footprints will be revealed if you step on it.

Kondo Shusuke smiled awkwardly.

"Abi took the others to Hino to join the chief's sister. I can't manage such a big house by myself. Please forgive me."

"Ma'am, have they left Edo?"

"Yes, it took me a lot of effort to get them to leave Edo obediently. Now I am the only one left in the huge trial defense hall."

The two of them came to the living room while talking.

Kondo Shusuke covered Elodie with a cushion, made hot tea, and served a plate of wagashi - the old man's tea making skills were not to be complimented, and the taste of the tea was lackluster.

However, Elodie drank it with gusto.

During the days when she stayed with the Eighth Prince, she could only eat hard dry food and drink cold water that made her teeth chatter.

To be honest, it wasn't until she drank the hot tea that she finally felt like she was "leaving the battlefield."

Somehow, she suddenly felt a sore nose and had an urge to cry.

Fear, horror, grievance...these negative emotions that she had buried deep in her heart in order to go into battle to kill the enemy broke through the defenses in her heart and surged out.

In order to cover up her confused expression, she used tea as a guise, holding the tea cup with both hands and covering her face with the cup body.

However, once these emotions arise, it is difficult to suppress them.

After a while, a faint whimpering sound of "Woooo..." came from behind the teacup she held up in front of her face.

Kondo Shusuke pretended not to hear anything, with a calm smile on his face that seemed to see through everything.

The old man said nothing or did nothing, just quietly waiting for the girl to regain her composure.

One tries hard to cover it up, the other doesn't expose it.

The old man and the young man maintained a subtle tacit understanding, and the atmosphere at the scene was harmonious.

About twenty minutes later, Elodie twitched her nose vigorously and gradually calmed down.

After a while, she recovered as before, and immediately pretended that nothing happened, while drinking tea and eating snacks, she briefly and concisely stated her recent experiences.

After Kondo Shusuke listened quietly, he also recounted his recent experiences one by one.

From when he made up his mind to stay and join the war, to when he encountered strong opposition from his wife Abi, the couple started a fierce argument, and finally when he won, he successfully persuaded Abi and others to leave Edo, and he stayed alone in the trial defense hall.

After hearing this, Elodie couldn't help but asked:

"Mr. Kondo, do you really... want to stay?"

As she spoke, she involuntarily raised her gaze and carefully looked at Kondo Shusuke's old body.

It's not that she looks down on the other party.

To be able to become the third generation head of the natural Rishin-ryu clan, one must have a few skills.

It's just... "Ah! My waist hurts so much!" - She still vividly remembers the scenes of Kondo Shusuke shouting and rubbing his waist and eyes vigorously.

Kondo Shusuke is a very standard old man and cannot be compared with a god like Boss Kiryu.

As we age, our body functions decline sharply.

The sequelae left over from hard training in martial arts when I was young are concentrated. I usually feel sore here or there.

Such a physical condition... To put it bluntly, Elodie was worried that he would get out of the way before killing a few enemies.

Kondo Shusuke saw through Elodie's thoughts and chuckled a few times:

"Hohohoho~~ Elodie, I understand your concerns."

"I am getting old and my physical condition is not as good as before."

"The moves that I could easily master when I was young can't be used now."

"Don't say it's about making great achievements. It's a blessing not to hold others back."

"But even so, I still want to go to the battlefield."

"No matter what, I will always be a swordsman."

"Before I die, I want to be a 'swordsman who can equal a thousand swordsmen with one horse' again."

"Besides...in addition to my teenage madness, I have other considerations."

As he changed the subject, a sparkling light burst out from his eyes.

"When I was young, my father once told me: Everyone cherishes their lives."

“‘Preserve yourself and try to live’ is human nature, and there is no way to disobey it.”

"However, there is often a moment when a person can risk life or death without any hesitation!"

Speaking of this, he seemed to have remembered something, and after a pause he continued:

"Elodie, I don't know if you understand. It is said that our natural Rishin-ryu has an inextricable relationship with the 'Eternal Sword Master' Ogata Ittousai."

Elodie was stunned—this was the first time she had heard of this.

"No, I've never heard of that."

Kondo Shusuke smiled slightly.

"That's it, then I'll tell you briefly."

"It is said that 70 years ago, Kondo Uchizosuke, the founder of our natural Rishin-ryu style, and Ogata Ittousai were good friends."

"It is said that it was thanks to Ogata Ittousai's careful guidance that Kondo Uchizosuke, the founder of the family, was able to perfect the Natural Rishin-ryu."

"In other words, Ogata Ittousai contributed a lot to the birth of Natural Rishin-ryu."

"He can be regarded as the ancestor of our natural Rishin-ryu."

"Although this is just a story passed down from generation to generation within our family, and it is difficult to tell whether it is true or false, but influenced by this, like most swordsmen, I admire Ogata Ittousai very much and regard him as the person I want to pursue throughout my life."

“‘Kill the tyrant with one for a hundred’, ‘capture Nijo Castle’, ‘destroy the legendary ninja village’… I keep all the deeds of Ogata Ittousai in my heart.”

"Ever since I was young, whenever I look back on Ogata Ittousai's deeds, I can't help but wonder: Is the reason why Ogata Ittousai is so brave and has been involved in dangerous situations many times because he has met many people who are worthy of him without hesitation?

What about 'moment'?"

"Now that I am old, I met Mr. Tachibana, who is also the proud son of heaven, so I thought again: Mr. Tachibana risked his own life to face powerful enemies, whether it was the Yi group, the Qingshui clan, or the current Changshu clan, Fa Zhu

The party cannot make him take a step back. Is it because he has encountered many 'moments'?"

"To be honest, when I think about this, I can't help but feel a little jealous,"

"It's so cunning. Why do you always encounter such 'moments', but I never encounter them?"

"What is this kind of 'moment' that makes people move forward bravely and risk everything?"

"As long as I experience these 'moments', my personality and strength will undergo new transformations?"

"I'd love to know the answers to these questions."

"I want to see this 'moment' with my own eyes and experience this 'moment' with my own eyes."

"What a pity... It's a pity that even today, even with my hair on my temples turning gray, I still haven't encountered this 'moment', so I can't find the answers to these questions."

Speaking of this, he looked regretful.

"I am very sure that if you indulge in a stable life, eating, drinking and having fun every day, you will never encounter this 'moment'."

"In a rapidly changing, fierce battlefield that I have never set foot on before, I might be able to get what I want - this thought urges me to pick up the sword again."

"When I think about it carefully, I'm really ashamed... In order to pursue the martial arts in my mind, I did such a willful act, which even made my wife cry with worry."

"However, after crying, Abi said nothing more, and she no longer persuaded me to leave Edo with them."

"Although she is very talkative and doesn't speak very nicely, and is always obsessed with trivial matters, she will always fully support me at important moments."

"This was the case when we spent all our property to build this trial hall."

"Now I am leaving quietly with my whole family, so that I can go to the battlefield without any worries, and the same is true."

Having said this, he paused briefly, then rubbed his chin and let out his trademark laugh:

"Hoohohoho~~ I accidentally said a lot of embarrassing things."

"Okay, let's not talk about me for now."

"Elodie, what about you?"

"Are you going to stay and fight too?"

Hearing this, Elodie replied without thinking:

"It's natural!"

"The reason why I came to Edo is, firstly, to send Hijikata Tozo for medical treatment, and secondly, to fight to the end with the traitor army!"
To be continued...