"Older brother Michikatsu is practicing swordsmanship."
Seeing Yoriichi interested, Mitsuba immediately explained:
"A few days ago during a meal, older brother Michikatsu told Father about his dream of becoming a samurai.
Father was very pleased, so he arranged for a subordinate to specially teach older brother Michikatsu sword techniques.
Recently, older brother Michikatsu wakes up before dawn every day to train with this teacher, his hands have become blistered many times..."
Mitsuba spoke while letting out a soft sigh.
Hearing this, a flicker of curiosity appeared for a moment in Yoriichi's previously hollow eyes.
"Mitsuba."
After hesitating for a moment, he still looked at his younger sister before him and said:
"I want to see it."
"...Eh?"
From childhood until now, this was the first time Mitsuba heard the words "I want..." from the mouth of her second older brother.
After being stunned for a moment, she hurriedly nodded and replied:
"Alright! Besides, there's still time before breakfast, so let's go together to watch older brother Michikatsu practice swordsmanship!"
Saying this, Mitsuba immediately brought Yoriichi out of the room, walking quickly toward the garden where Michikatsu was practicing swordsmanship.
But after only two steps, she seemed to suddenly realize something, abruptly stopped, and looked back.
Behind her, Yoriichi still had that confused expression, head lowered, his eyes empty.
This expression—where was there any semblance of an older brother?
Seeing this, Mitsuba let out a resigned sigh.
But soon, she smiled and stepped forward. Under Yoriichi's puzzled gaze, she suddenly reached out to both corners of his mouth and pulled them upward forcefully.
"You should smile more often, Brother Yoriichi."
"?"
Looking at her second older brother before her, whom she had forced to smile but was still full of confusion, Mitsuba smiled sweetly and said:
"If you're always gloomy, even good luck will eventually run away because of your bad mood, you know?"
Yoriichi was stunned.
Looking at this younger sister who was trying so hard to make him happy, his eyes somehow suddenly became slightly moist.
He was indeed a very happy person.
Although Father didn't love him, Mother, his older brother, and his younger sister—they all continued to sincerely care for him in their own ways...
Standing in place, watching Mitsuba who had already turned around and walked ahead, Yoriichi's gaze gradually became gentle, the corner of his mouth unconsciously rising.
They were the treasures he cherished most.
"Brother Yoriichi? Don't stand there spacing out, hurry up and follow~"
Seeing Mitsuba waving her hand to greet him at the end of the corridor, Yoriichi smiled and nodded lightly.
"Mm."
Six-year-old Tsugikuni Mitsuba was like a flower bud yet to bloom, beautiful and cheerful.
Tsugikuni Yoriichi unconsciously looked forward to when this flower bud would bloom.
Because at this moment, he still didn't know how terribly ugly this flower bud would eventually bloom...
"Wah!"
When the two siblings arrived at the garden, they happened to witness the sight of their eldest brother Michikatsu being knocked to the ground by the sword instructor's move.
Raising his head and seeing his younger brother and sister approaching, Michikatsu was first stunned, then hurriedly got up, smiling slightly embarrassedly.
"Yoriichi, Mitsuba..."
"Older brother, Brother Yoriichi said he wanted to see you practice swordsmanship, so I brought him here."
Mitsuba explained, while lightly pushing Yoriichi's back, nudging him forward.
"Oh! This is perfect!"
Seeing Yoriichi looking down at his toes, appearing somewhat hesitant, Michikatsu smiled and proactively handed the bamboo sword in his hand to Yoriichi.
"Take this opportunity, Yoriichi, would you like to try practicing too?"
Instinctively receiving this bamboo sword, Yoriichi looked at his older brother before him.
"Older brother, may I?"
"Why wouldn't you be allowed? You're my younger brother! Besides, as a man, how could you not know how to swing a sword? Come on, hurry up!"
Saying this, Michikatsu proactively stepped back beside Mitsuba, giving the field to Yoriichi.
The sword instructor across from them, also with a playful attitude toward a child, casually gave Yoriichi a few pointers on sword grip techniques and stances, then picked up his bamboo sword, signaling for Yoriichi to attack him as a try.
Yes, a playful attitude.
At this moment, the sword instructor completely disregarded the small, thin, and even somewhat hesitant boy before him.
After all, even Michikatsu, whom he considered an extraordinarily talented student, had never once truly hit him with a sword during these days of training, let alone Yoriichi, his younger brother who was holding a sword for the first time?
Just playing with a child.
Not only the sword instructor, but even Michikatsu and Mitsuba sitting nearby were thinking the same at this moment.
Michikatsu was full of smiles, already preparing in his heart to immediately comfort Yoriichi when he cried out in pain later.
Mitsuba had even stood up, preparing to return to the room to get some medicine for treating bruises.
Thus, under the gazes of several people in the garden, Yoriichi moved.
His figure flashed like lightning, suddenly rushing before the sword instructor. His wrist trembled rapidly, swinging several swords in succession at superhuman speed in an instant, hitting the instructor's neck, chest, and abdomen—three vital points in sequence!
Finally, with a sweeping strike across the calf as a finishing move, he sent the sword instructor's entire body flying, spinning and crashing to the ground!
The whole process ended in the blink of an eye. The sword instructor didn't even have time to let out a single scream before fainting on the ground, completely losing consciousness.
Just now... what happened?
Michikatsu stared blankly at Yoriichi standing with sword in hand in the garden, his face still frozen with his previous smile.
What happened?
The sword instructor whom he couldn't hit even once with all his strength, was defeated by Yoriichi who was holding a sword for the first time... in an instant?
Is this a joke?
This must be the sword instructor joking with them, right?
Yoriichi had only just held a sword for the first time, how could his younger brother who looked so frail possibly do such a thing?
Alright, enough, the joke ends here, Instructor, stop pretending to be unconscious, the ground is cold, hurry up and get up...
However, no matter how much Michikatsu wished in his heart, the sword instructor still couldn't get up.
He was truly unconscious, and truly defeated by Yoriichi.
The undeniable fact lay before their eyes.
Mitsuba beside him also opened her eyes wide, staring at this scene in disbelief.
But unlike the sword instructor who had no time to react before being knocked unconscious, and Michikatsu who couldn't see Yoriichi's movements at all, in that extremely brief moment just now, she had clearly seen Yoriichi's sword-swinging movements.
From neck to chest, from abdomen to calf—no movement was excessive, every strike hit the vital point with precision...
Why?
He had only just held a sword for the first time, why did Brother Yoriichi possess such exquisite sword technique?
That sword-swinging speed—could a human truly possess it?