I, Yorii Tsugikuni, Must Do Something Chapter 10

Making a name for yourself in a place like the Imperial Capital isn't something you can achieve just by talking about it.

'I hope they can stay true to themselves as much as possible. If they commit great evils...'

"Has that young lady left already?"

"Since we only had one gold coin, I only booked one room for the month."

"Tatsumi and I can sleep on the floor."

Yorii Tsugikuni, returning from the counter, smiled as he looked at Sayo and the others sitting in the lobby, discussing what to eat. "But it looks like we can book a few more rooms now. Sayo is a girl, and it's not good for her to share a room with boys." Yorii Tsugikuni noticed the full bag of money next to Tatsumi.

Although most of it was copper coins, with only a small amount of silver coins and no gold coins at all, Yorii Tsugikuni estimated that it would be more than enough to support them until the Imperial Capital Guard's payday next month.

"Hehe, I'm actually okay with it."

"But Master, I just calculated, we have seven hundred copper coins and fifteen silver coins right now."

Sayo, upon hearing Yorii Tsugikuni's words, said with a smile, "And with the one gold coin you have, Master, we have nearly ten gold coins in total."

"That's definitely enough for us to last until next month's payday."

"It just so happens that Tatsumi also wants to become your disciple, Master. The three of us should hold a more formal ceremony to accept you as our master."

Before, it was because they genuinely had no money and no means, so Sayo and Ieyasu only hastily kowtowed to Yorii Tsugikuni when they became his disciples.

Now that they had reunited with Tatsumi and had some money, they naturally needed to do what they should.

Yorii Tsugikuni, as the master, might not understand or know, but as disciples, Sayo and Ieyasu had to do everything properly.

After all, Yorii Tsugikuni was genuinely teaching them secret techniques like Breathing Techniques.

For this reason alone, Yorii Tsugikuni was the most important person to Sayo and Ieyasu, besides their own parents.

"That's right, Mr. Yorii Tsugikuni!"

"I also want to become your disciple, Mr. Yorii Tsugikuni, just like Sayo and Ieyasu!"

Tatsumi looked at Yorii Tsugikuni with anticipation.

Through the brief exchange just now, and Ieyasu's introduction, Tatsumi had understood that Yorii Tsugikuni was an incredibly powerful person, and someone willing to pass on his secret techniques to his disciples.

Who wouldn't like a master like that?

Normally, becoming a disciple would involve at least five years of menial tasks before the master would teach some real skills, and even then, that was considered a very conscientious master.

More often, disciples would serve tea and water for their masters for ten years without learning anything proper.

Tatsumi, Sayo, and Ieyasu had been friends since childhood, so Tatsumi naturally didn't think Sayo and Ieyasu would deceive him. He trusted them completely.

'Grandpa was right after all.'

'Even though the world outside the village is very dangerous, there are also many opportunities.'

Tatsumi's gaze towards Yorii Tsugikuni was shining.

The only thing Tatsumi regretted was that due to their separation, he hadn't joined the Imperial Capital Guard with Yorii Tsugikuni and the others. But then again, If Tatsumi had been there, perhaps many things wouldn't have happened.

Chapter 18: The Imperial Capital Guard's Five Insurances and One Fund

"Alright, alright, I'll teach you. It's too formal for you all to do this."

Yorii Tsugikuni looked a bit helpless as Tatsumi earnestly kowtowed to him.

Yorii Tsugikuni was still not entirely accustomed to the customs of Sayo, Ieyasu, and Tatsumi. Or rather, Yorii Tsugikuni hadn't experienced the pain of seeking skills without a path.

Yorii Tsugikuni had always generously passed on the secret techniques he created to others.

"Hehe, this is all as it should be."

"Master, let's book two more rooms. I'll take one, you take one, and Tatsumi and Ieyasu can share one."

Sayo said with a giggle, looking at the somewhat flustered Yorii Tsugikuni, "We have enough money now, it's more than enough to last until next month's payday."

"Once we get our salaries from the Imperial Capital Guard next month, many things will become easier."

Sayo began to plan for the future.

The Imperial Capital Guard could be considered a well-paying, stable job. Even for the lowest-ranking members of the Imperial Capital Guard, the monthly salary reached five gold coins.

Five gold coins, even with today's inflation, was a very generous income.

With Sayo and Ieyasu's combined income, they would have a total of ten gold coins per month. Sending six gold coins back home each month would significantly alleviate the pressure on their hometown.

Although Tatsumi seemed to have a lot of money, over seven hundred copper coins were equivalent to seven gold coins. However, six hundred of them were living expenses provided by the people of Sayo and her hometown to support their journey.

The remaining hundred-plus copper coins and more than ten silver coins were the income Sayo and the others earned on their way to the Imperial Capital.

Given the strength of Tatsumi, Sayo, and Ieyasu, earning less than three gold coins in nearly a month clearly showed the appeal of the Imperial Capital Guard's five gold coin monthly salary to them.

If strength levels were divided into super-first-class, first-class, second-class, and third-class, then the strength of Tatsumi and the others definitely surpassed third-class, even being strong contenders within the second-class.

Even for someone with such strength, their monthly income was only about one gold coin. This showed just how immense the survival pressure was for Tatsumi and the others' village.

Of course, the cost of living in the capital couldn't be compared to that in the countryside.

If one gold coin was barely enough for a family of three to live on for a month in the Imperial Capital, it was far more valuable in the village where Tatsumi, Ieyasu, and Sayo came from.

One gold coin could sustain a family of five for at least three months, and if they were frugal, there might even be some left over.

Furthermore, five gold coins was merely the base salary for members of the Imperial Capital's Guard. It was common for people to bribe members of the Guard, and if they were a bit lenient, their monthly income could easily double.

For some, doubling it again on top of the initial doubling wasn't out of the question.

This was precisely what Leone had been worried about. After all, Tatsumi, Ieyasu, and Sayo came from their village and hadn't seen much of the world. They could easily be corrupted by the Imperial Capital, a place that would dye them all sorts of colors.

"Truly enviable."

"Now Sayo and Ieyasu, along with Master, can officially join the Imperial Capital's Guard."

Looking at the Imperial Capital Guard uniforms in Sayo and Ieyasu's arms, Tatsumi's face clearly showed his envy.

If possible, Tatsumi also wanted to join Sayo and Ieyasu in reporting for duty at the Imperial Capital's Guard.

At this moment, Tatsumi had very skillfully changed his address for Yorii Tsugikuni from "Mister" to "Master."

"Hahahaha, Tatsumi, it's your own fault for getting separated from us."

"But don't worry, with me, Sayo, and Master looking out for you here in the Imperial Capital, you'll definitely be fine."

"Oh right, I remember Miss Aria's family has guards."

Ieyasu looked at Tatsumi and chuckled mischievously, "Tatsumi, your strength is pretty good. You could try applying to Miss Aria's household. Perhaps you could become Miss Aria's personal bodyguard."

"Miss Aria is very beautiful, you know."

As he spoke, Ieyasu put on a look of drunken bliss in front of Tatsumi.

"Ah, really?"

Upon hearing Ieyasu's words, Tatsumi's expression showed a hint of interest.

While it was a shame and regrettable that he couldn't become a member of the Imperial Capital's Guard, becoming the personal bodyguard of a noble young lady seemed pretty good too.

Now that Sayo and Ieyasu had joined the Imperial Capital's Guard, Tatsumi wasn't planning on enlisting in the army anymore.

Besides, Tatsumi didn't want to start as a mere soldier. It would be better to apply for a noble's guard position.

Tatsumi felt that with his strength, even if he couldn't become the captain of the guard, becoming a squad leader shouldn't be too much of a problem.

Tatsumi decided that tomorrow, after Sayo, Ieyasu, and Yorii Tsugikuni reported for duty at the Imperial Capital's Guard, he would give it a try.

If all else failed, finding a decent job in the Imperial Capital wouldn't be bad either.

It was fine if the pay was less.

Anyway, with Sayo and Ieyasu around, Tatsumi didn't feel too much pressure.

"Alright, since we have plenty of money, I'll book two more rooms."

"After dinner, everyone come to my room, and we'll continue our studies."

Yorii Tsugikuni looked at Sayo and the others and smiled gently. "Once you've mastered the Breathing Techniques, everyone's strength should see a significant change."

"At that point, achieving success shouldn't be an overly difficult matter."

"Coincidentally, this morning I only briefly explained the principles of Breathing Techniques to Sayo and Ieyasu. Now that Tatsumi is here, I'll summarize it for you all later."

According to Yorii Tsugikuni's estimation.

Without completely mastering the Total Concentration: Constant state, just mastering the basic breathing rhythm and the temporary Total Concentration Breathing Technique could enhance Ieyasu and the others' strength by about 2 to 4 times.

This would make them comparable to the Pillars in the Demon Slayer Corps who had mastered the Total Concentration: Constant state.

They might be weaker in terms of skill, but their basic physical conditioning was stronger, making it a fifty-fifty match.

Among them, Yorii Tsugikuni had high hopes for Sayo. Although her innate physical condition wasn't as good as Ieyasu and Tatsumi's, Sayo's comprehension was clearly superior.

Yorii Tsugikuni believed that Sayo should be able to learn Water Breathing roughly within a week at most.

Chapter Nineteen: A Simple Dinner, A Colleague About to Be Met

"Then we'll be counting on you, Master."

Upon hearing Yorii Tsugikuni's words, Sayo and the other two bowed to him in unison. In this difficult world, they all felt incredibly fortunate to have met a master like Yorii Tsugikuni.

"I'll go buy dinner for everyone. Does Master or anyone else have anything specific they'd like to eat?"

Tatsumi patted his money pouch. Although some had been spent on renting rooms earlier, the remainder was still enough for them to not worry about food for a while.

Before going out to buy food, Tatsumi looked at Yorii Tsugikuni and the other two, projecting an air of not being short on money.

Of course.

Tatsumi was still quite frugal with money.

After all, the reason they had come out was to earn enough money to send back home.

However, they had been separated halfway, and now that they had reunited and even found a master, they naturally had to have a good meal to celebrate.

"One rice ball."

Yorii Tsugikuni saw that Sayo and Ieyasu were both waiting for him to speak first. He nodded slightly, then told Tatsumi what he wanted to eat.

Nowadays, he always preferred light meals.

"I'd like dorayaki, just one is fine."

Sayo stood beside Yorii Tsugikuni and held up a finger towards Tatsumi, who had already walked to the door.

On their way back, she had already seen someone selling dorayaki by the roadside.

This delicious pastry was something she only had a chance to taste during grand festivals back in the village.

"Tatsumi, I'll go with you."

Ieyasu stood up from the tatami mat he was sitting on. He grabbed Tatsumi's hand, swallowed, as if remembering something tasty, and turned back with a smile, waving to Sayo and Yorii Tsugikuni. "Master, Sayo, we'll be back soon."

The two quickly disappeared outside the door of the rented inn.

Thump-thump-thump…

The sound of hurried footsteps on the stairs vanished at the corner of the stairwell.

The young man was like the wind, arriving quickly and leaving just as fast.

"I'll tidy up the room for Master."

Sayo looked at the somewhat messy state of the room and frowned slightly. She began to organize Yorii Tsugikuni's room.

This time, to save money, the place they rented wasn't very good; it could even be described as simple.

Besides a bed and a small low table, there was basically nothing else in the room.

Moreover, in some hidden corners, there were still faint traces of spiderwebs.

"Let's do it together. I don't have anything else to do anyway."