Making a name for oneself in a place like the Imperial Capital was not something that could be done with mere words.
I hope they can hold on to their true selves as much as possible. If they commit some great evil...
"Has that young lady already left?"
"Since we only had one gold coin, I only rented one room for the month."
"When the time comes, I can sleep on the floor with Ieyasu."
Yorii Tsugikuni returned from the counter and smiled at Sayo and the others, who were sitting in the lobby discussing what to eat. "But looking at things now, we should be able to rent a few more rooms. Sayo is a girl, so it wouldn't be good for her to stay with the boys."
Yorii Tsugikuni saw the bulging bag of money beside Tatsumi.
Although most of it was copper coins, with only a small number of silver coins and not a single gold coin, Yorii Tsugikuni estimated that it would definitely be enough to last until the Imperial Guard paid their wages next month.
"Hehe, I'm actually fine."
"But Master, I calculated it just now. We have seven hundred copper coins and fifteen silver coins."
After hearing Yorii Tsugikuni's words, Sayo smiled. "Adding the one gold coin Master has, we have nearly ten gold coins."
"That is absolutely enough to last until we collect our wages next month."
"Since Tatsumi also wants to become your disciple, Master, the three of us should make up for it with a more formal apprenticeship ceremony."
Previously, they truly had no money and no means to do so, so when Sayo and Ieyasu became Yorii Tsugikuni's disciples, they had merely kowtowed to him in a rather hasty manner.
Now that they had reunited with Tatsumi and had some money on hand, they naturally needed to do everything that should be done.
Yorii Tsugikuni, as their master, might not understand or know about such things, but as disciples, Sayo and Ieyasu had to make sure everything was done properly.
After all, Yorii Tsugikuni was genuinely teaching them the secret art of Breathing Techniques.
On that point alone, Yorii Tsugikuni was the most important person in Sayo and Ieyasu's lives aside from their biological parents.
"That's right, Mr. Yorii Tsugikuni!"
"I want to become Mr. Yorii Tsugikuni's disciple too, just like Sayo and Ieyasu!"
Tatsumi looked at Yorii Tsugikuni with an eager expression.
Through their brief exchange just now and Ieyasu's introduction, Tatsumi had already realized that Yorii Tsugikuni was an incredibly powerful person, and one willing to teach his secret arts to his disciples.
Who wouldn't want a master like that?
Normally, one had to spend at least five years doing chores before a master would teach even a little of their true skills. Even that counted as an exceptionally conscientious master.
There were even more people who served their masters tea and water for over ten years without learning anything worthwhile.
Tatsumi, Sayo, and Ieyasu had been childhood friends, so naturally he did not believe that Sayo and Ieyasu would deceive him. Tatsumi trusted them completely.
Grandpa was right after all.
Although the world beyond the village is extremely dangerous, it also holds many opportunities.
Tatsumi's eyes sparkled as he looked at Yorii Tsugikuni.
The only thing Tatsumi regretted was that because they had gotten separated, he had not joined the Imperial Guard with Yorii Tsugikuni and the others. But then again—
If Tatsumi had been there, there would not have been so many complications.
Imperial Guard Benefits and Pension
"Alright, alright. I'll teach you."
"You're being far too formal about this."
Watching Tatsumi solemnly kowtow to him, Yorii Tsugikuni looked somewhat helpless.
Yorii Tsugikuni was still not quite accustomed to the customs of Sayo, Ieyasu, and Tatsumi. Or rather, he had never experienced the anguish of seeking a craft yet having no way to learn it.
Yorii Tsugikuni had always been exceptionally generous in teaching the secret arts he created to others.
"Hehe, this is what we should do."
"Master, let's rent two more rooms. I'll take one, you take one, and Tatsumi and Ieyasu can share one."
Sayo looked at Yorii Tsugikuni, who seemed at a loss, and said with a giggle, "We have enough money now. It will be more than enough to last until we collect our wages next month."
"Once we get our Imperial Guard wages next month, things will become much easier."
Sayo began planning for the future.
The Imperial Guard could be said to be a well-paying, secure job. Even ordinary rank-and-file members of the Imperial Guard received five gold coins a month.
Even with prices as inflated as they were now, five gold coins was still an extremely generous income.
By then, Sayo and Ieyasu's income combined would amount to a full ten gold coins. Sending six gold coins home every month would greatly ease the pressure on their hometown.
Although Tatsumi seemed to have quite a lot of money on him, with over seven hundred copper coins worth seven gold coins, six hundred of those coins had been given to Sayo and the others by the people in their hometown as travel expenses for them to make their way in the world.
The remaining hundred-odd copper coins and more than ten silver coins were what Sayo and the others had earned on their journey to the Imperial Capital.
Given the abilities of Tatsumi, Sayo, and Ieyasu, they had earned less than three gold coins in nearly a month. That showed just how tempting the Imperial Guard's monthly wage of five gold coins was to them.
If strength were divided into top-tier, first-rate, second-rate, and third-rate levels, Tatsumi and the others were definitely beyond third-rate. They were even fairly formidable among second-rate fighters.
Yet people with such strength earned only about one gold coin per month. That alone showed just how immense the pressure of survival was in Tatsumi and the others' village.
Of course, the cost of living in the capital could not be compared to that in the countryside.
If one gold coin in the Imperial Capital was only enough to cover a family of three's ordinary expenses for a month, then it was worth far more in Tatsumi, Ieyasu, and Sayo's village.
One gold coin was enough to support a family of five for at least three months, with a little left over if they were frugal.
Moreover, five gold coins was merely the base salary for Imperial Guard members. People often bribed members of the Imperial Guard, and if they relaxed their standards just a little, their monthly income could easily double.
Those who went further could double it again on top of that.
That was what Leone had worried about before. Tatsumi, Ieyasu, and Sayo came from a village and had not seen much of the world, so it would be easy for the Imperial Capital, that great dye vat, to color them every shade imaginable.
"How enviable."
"Now Sayo, Ieyasu, and Master can report for duty with the Imperial Guard."
As Tatsumi looked at the Imperial Guard uniforms in Sayo and Ieyasu's arms, envy was written all over his face.
If he could, Tatsumi also wanted to report for duty with Sayo and Ieyasu at the Imperial Guard.
By now, Tatsumi had become quite adept at changing how he addressed Yorii Tsugikuni from "sir" to "Master."
"Hahahaha, Tatsumi, who told you to get separated from us?"
"But it's fine. From now on, with Sayo, Master, and me looking out for you in the Imperial Capital, you'll be fine."
"Oh, right. I remember Miss Aria's family has guards."
Ieyasu grinned mischievously at Tatsumi. "Tatsumi, you're pretty strong. You could apply to work as a guard for Miss Aria's family. Maybe you could even become Miss Aria's personal guard."
"Miss Aria is very beautiful, you know."
As he spoke, Ieyasu put on an intoxicated expression in front of Tatsumi.
"Ah, really?"
Hearing Ieyasu's words, Tatsumi looked intrigued.
It was a pity that he could not become a member of the Imperial Guard, but becoming a noble young lady's personal guard sounded pretty good too.
Now that Sayo and Ieyasu had joined the Imperial Guard, Tatsumi no longer intended to enlist in the army.
Besides, Tatsumi did not want to start out as an ordinary soldier. He might as well apply to become a noble's guard.
Tatsumi felt that with his abilities, even if he could not become the captain of a guard unit, becoming a squad leader should not be too difficult.
Tatsumi decided that tomorrow, after Sayo, Ieyasu, and Yorii Tsugikuni went to report for duty with the Imperial Guard, he would give it a try.
If that did not work out, finding an ordinary job in the Imperial Capital would not be bad either.
It was fine if he earned a little less.
With Sayo and Ieyasu around, Tatsumi was not under much pressure himself.
"Alright. Since we're fairly well-off now, I'll rent two more rooms."
"After dinner, everyone come to my room. We'll continue studying."
Yorii Tsugikuni smiled softly at Sayo and the others. "Once you become fairly proficient with the Breathing Techniques, your strength should improve considerably."
"When that happens, making a name for yourselves should no longer be too difficult."
"Also, this morning I only gave Sayo and Ieyasu a simple explanation of the principles behind Breathing Techniques. Now that Tatsumi is here, I'll summarize it for all of you later."
By Yorii Tsugikuni's estimate—
Without fully mastering Total Concentration: Constant, merely mastering the basic breathing rhythm and temporary Total Concentration Breathing would probably increase Ieyasu and the others' strength by roughly two to four times.
That would make them roughly comparable to the Hashira of the Demon Slayer Corps who had mastered Total Concentration in the Palm.
Their technique would be weaker, but their base physical abilities would be stronger. It would be an even match.
Of the three, Yorii Tsugikuni thought most highly of Sayo. Although her innate overall physical abilities were inferior to those of Ieyasu and Tatsumi, Sayo was clearly more gifted in comprehension.
Yorii Tsugikuni felt that within a week at most, Sayo should be able to roughly learn Water Breathing.
A Simple Dinner, a Colleague About to Be Met
"Then we'll be relying on you, Master."
Upon hearing Yorii Tsugikuni's words, all three of them bowed to him in unison. In this difficult world, they all felt incredibly fortunate to have encountered a master like Yorii Tsugikuni.
"Then I'll go buy dinner for everyone. Is there anything in particular that Master or the rest of you want to eat?"
Tatsumi touched his money pouch. Although renting the rooms had cost them some money, what remained was still enough to ensure that they would not need to worry about food for some time.
Before heading out to buy food, Tatsumi looked at Yorii Tsugikuni and the other two with the air of someone unconcerned about money.
Of course.
Tatsumi was still rather frugal when it came to money.
After all, they had set out this time to earn enough money to send back to their hometown.
But they had gotten separated on the road and only managed to reunite with difficulty. They had also gained a master, so naturally they had to enjoy 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.
These days, he always preferred light food.
"I want dorayaki. One will be enough."
Standing beside Yorii Tsugikuni, Sayo raised one finger toward Tatsumi, who had already reached the door.
On their way back, she had already noticed a vendor selling dorayaki by the roadside.
Back in the village, they only had the chance to taste such delicious pastries during major festivals.
"Tatsumi, I'll go with you."
Ieyasu rose from the tatami mat where he had been sitting cross-legged. He grabbed Tatsumi's hand and swallowed, seemingly recalling something delicious. Turning back, he waved at Sayo and Yorii Tsugikuni with a smile. "Master, Sayo, we'll be back soon."
The two of them quickly disappeared beyond the entrance of the inn they had rented.
Thud, thud, thud...
The hurried sound of footsteps descending the stairs vanished around the stairway corner.
Young men were like the wind—quick to come, quick to go.
"Let me tidy Master's room."
Sayo looked at the somewhat messy room and frowned slightly before beginning to organize Yorii Tsugikuni's room.
To save money, the place they had rented this time was not particularly good. It could even be described as shabby.
Aside from a bed and a small low table, the room contained almost nothing else.
There were even faint traces of spiderwebs in some hidden corners.
"Let's do it together. I don't have anything else to do anyway."
Before you continue