Keep Working Hard from Now On

"Is there? Come to think of it, should I take you out for some fun? I'm on vacation today, so I don't have anything else to do!"

"Really? What a shame. I've got a mountain of things to deal with, so I don't have time to go out with you."

Kudo Mitsunobu said without even lifting his eyelids.

"You don't sound the least bit disappointed. You're as unadorable as ever, Koushu! You've never acted like a child, even when you were little."

"I'm sorry I'm not childish enough for you!"

"But the people from the Jumonji House will be coming to clean up the battlefield soon. Are you going to keep waiting here?" Kudo Mitsunobu asked.

"Then I'll pass! I don't want to waste my rare day off on this. I'll head back and get some rest."

Fujibayashi Kyoko waved her hand in refusal. She had only come as a precaution, and since everything had been resolved perfectly, there was no need for her to stay.

Chapter 32: Keep Working Hard from Now On

After dealing with the battlefield, Kudo Mitsunobu and Jumonji Katsuto drove back to school. The campus no longer looked like a war zone. All the terrorists had been taken care of.

"I'll head back to the club's disciplinary committee and deal with the aftermath."

Jumonji Katsuto said as he parked the car.

"Sure. I'll go visit Mibu-senpai in the infirmary. Kirihara-senpai, would you like to come with me?" Kudo Mitsunobu asked, looking at Kirihara Takeaki, who seemed uneasy.

"No, I'll go another time."

Kirihara Takeaki turned down Kudo Mitsunobu's offer. He still didn't know how to face Mibu Sayaka, and wanted to wait for the right moment to see her alone and apologize.

"Is that so? Then I'll be sure to tell Mibu-senpai how you charged in, blazing with rage, for her sake."

"Hey, you!"

At that moment, a group of people who wanted to get to the bottom of things had gathered in Mibu Sayaka's treatment room.

Saegusa Mayumi, Watanabe Mari, Shiba Tatsuya, Shiba Miyuki, Leo, Chiba Erika, and their school nurse, Ono Haruka.

"Where have you been? What took you so long? I messaged you, but you didn't reply."

Kudo Mitsunobu had barely stepped through the door when Saegusa Mayumi began questioning him.

"Sorry, sorry. I had to take care of a few things. Why is everyone in Mibu-senpai's room? Did you all come to visit her?"

Mibu Sayaka had naturally noticed Kudo Mitsunobu enter. The sight reminded her of the bloody scene from earlier, and she couldn't help shrinking back.

"We've already figured it out. Mibu-senpai's memories must have been interfered with to some extent, causing her perception to become distorted."

Shiba Tatsuya spoke up.

"Mm, that's right."

"She was controlled with the Evil Eye by Shiichi, the head of the Japanese branch of Blance. I came here to tell Mibu-senpai about it."

Kudo Mitsunobu shrugged. He'd noticed the fear on Mibu Sayaka's face when she saw him, of course, but it didn't bother him.

"How do you know that?" Watanabe Mari asked with a frown.

"Didn't I say I had some things to take care of? What I did was help Jumonji-senpai deal with some of the people behind the scenes."

"When I caught Shiichi, he told me himself. So you won't be held responsible, senpai. Just focus on recovering."

"Is that so?"

Mibu Sayaka hadn't taken in Kudo Mitsunobu's words about her being cleared of blame. All she could think about was what he'd said about her being controlled by the Evil Eye.

"So all the self-reproach I've felt this past year was because I was being controlled? How ridiculous!"

Mibu Sayaka began crying again, consumed by regret. She blamed herself for being so weak that someone had been able to take advantage of her.

"Then keep working hard from now on! Hold on to that regret and frustration, and keep honing your swordsmanship!"

Watanabe Mari said, folding her arms across her chest. She felt a little guilty toward Mibu Sayaka. It wasn't her fault, but Mibu Sayaka had been targeted and used as a pawn because of something she'd said.

"Then we'll be going."

"We'll come visit again another day."

Seeing that everything had been resolved, Shiba Tatsuya saw no reason to stay any longer.

Besides, he had only come along to find out from Mibu Sayaka who was behind it all, then deal with whoever had interfered with his younger sister's high school life.

"Then I'll be going too."

"But before I leave, I want to say one thing. Earlier, you said you'd wasted a whole year. I don't think that's true."

"Even though that hateful woman said what I wanted to say, it still annoyed me."

"But if you still doubt your own abilities, I'll have a match with you sometime."

"My name is Chiba Erika. I'll test your skills myself, as a direct disciple of the Chiba Dojo."

After Chiba Erika finished speaking, she dragged Leo, who was still sitting blankly in his chair, out of the room.

Watanabe Mari, the "hateful woman," didn't seem angry. Chiba Erika had always treated her that way, and she was used to it.

Seeing the confusion on Mibu Sayaka's face, Watanabe Mari explained.

"She's right. I'm also a student of the Chiba Dojo. But I only hold the mokuroku rank, while she holds the inka rank. In swordsmanship, she's far stronger than I am."

There was one thing Watanabe Mari didn't say: Chiba Erika's true skill far surpassed the inka rank. If not for the mess within the Chiba family, Chiba Erika would probably have been awarded the Menkyo Kaiden rank long ago.

Every student at the Chiba Dojo knew this. Otherwise, Chiba Erika wouldn't have held such a high place in their hearts. It was all thanks to her talent and skill.

"Is that so?"