"Ah..."
He let out a long sigh, tore off the sheet, and crumpled it into a ball. The ground on his other side was already littered with discarded paper balls.
He glanced back at Hazakura. The girl had probably eaten too much; she was staring blankly at the sky and rubbing her stomach.
Seeming to notice Tetsu no Sosuke's gaze, she hesitated, then tossed a coin. When it landed, perhaps she had gotten the result she wanted... because she went right back to what she had been doing.
Tetsu no Sosuke suddenly felt that bringing her out here to enjoy the breeze with him had probably been a terrible idea.
A breeze swept in, and a butterfly fluttered down.
Tetsu no Sosuke looked up to find Kochou Kanae standing before him, smiling.
"Ah... dawn at last."
Tetsu no Sosuke felt as though he had glimpsed a ray of dawn through the gloom.
Kochou Kanae glanced at the discarded paper balls beside him and couldn't help laughing. "You need to learn to turn down that child's unreasonable demands."
"...Little... well, as a swordsmith, I really should make the impossible possible. If I can't do that, it only means I haven't trained enough."
Tetsu no Sosuke regretted it a little as soon as he finished speaking. Was it really okay to show off like that?
Even Hazakura beside him seemed unable to bear it. Who had been sighing and groaning just a moment ago? She turned her head away, perhaps unwilling to look at such a hypocritical adult.
Kochou Kanae suppressed her laughter and made herself look more serious. "The Master heard about your recovery and would like to see you."
Chapter 27: Choices
The Master's name was Ubuyashiki Kagaya.
Everything Tetsu no Sosuke knew about this man came from the anime