Hmm hmm hmm~ hmm mmm—
Erina hummed a song in the kitchen while preparing lunch.
At the kitchen door, Hisako, Alice, and Nakiri Senzaemon stood there, watching Erina through the door gap from where she couldn't see them.
"Erina-sama has unknowingly become like this..."
Hisako covered her mouth, her expression somewhat subtle.
She felt this wasn't like Erina, but she was also happy that Erina was smiling while cooking—so her emotions were quite complex.
On the contrary, when Alice and Nakiri Senzaemon saw Erina like this, smiles unconsciously appeared on their faces.
"How long has it been since we've seen Erina like this..."
Nakiri Senzaemon was somewhat moved.
Unconsciously, the image of young Erina smiling while holding a cookbook, calling "Grandpa" while asking him about its contents floated before his eyes. Immersed in memories, his eyes became somewhat moist.
Noticing this situation, Senzaemon simply closed his eyes and tried to maintain his composure.
—I'm really getting old, becoming sentimental and nostalgic about the past...
Alice also lowered her voice at this moment, speaking in a gentle tone completely unlike her usual self, following up on Nakiri Senzaemon's words.
"Yes, Grandpa... Since I went to Northern Europe when I was little, this is the first time I've seen Erina like this since then..."
"Although initially I had somewhat complex feelings about Mutou Judai, this outsider who suddenly appeared in our family, now... I'm starting to think that if Erina... no, Erina should be with him."
"None of us could make Erina smile again, but he did—should we marvel at the power of love now~"
Hearing Alice say this, Nakiri Senzaemon snorted lightly and didn't say anything, which amounted to tacit agreement.
He valued his daughter and granddaughter very much.
He had never had thoughts about arranged marriages.
He even felt it didn't matter if Mutou Judai didn't marry into the family—but as the next head of the Nakiri family, Erina's surname couldn't change to Mutou Erina with Mutou Judai.
As for their children, they could take Mutou Judai's surname. After all, there was still Alice on the Nakiri side—if worst came to worst, they could have Alice's father, that boy Munae, have another child while he was still young!
Wait.
In just one moment of distraction, I'm already thinking about what their children should be named!
Indeed.
—I'm really getting old.
While Nakiri Senzaemon was feeling sentimental, Erina finished cooking and began plating. Alice quickly pulled Nakiri Senzaemon to hide, with Hisako following behind them.
Then they saw Erina carrying the finished dish toward the training ground. After Erina walked away, the three of them peeked out again.
"Erina still seems somewhat clumsy when it comes to emotions..."
Alice watched Erina's gradually distant figure, holding her chin with one hand, and spoke slowly.
"So since Mutou Judai is staying at our house during this time, we need to find ways to create opportunities for them."
Hearing Alice say this, Hisako pondered for a moment, then her expression became determined as she nodded very seriously.
"If it can help Erina-sama!"
Nakiri Senzaemon sighed.
"You young ones can make all the fuss you want."
Saying this, after walking some distance, he stopped and turned back to Alice and Hisako:
"I'll speak to the family members. If you need help, go find them. They'll definitely cooperate with you."
Leaving these words, Nakiri Senzaemon left.
Alice looked at Hisako with a proud expression, then under Hisako's gaze, she slowly raised her finger.
"In that case—the Erina Assist Squad is hereby established!"
Hisako blinked at Alice like this.
Then under Alice's gaze, she tentatively tried to match Alice's enthusiasm.
"Oh—oh... oh!?"
Totsuki had a training ground.
Since Totsuki also had fighters, preparing a training ground for representative fighters was perfectly normal.
After Mutou Judai made arrangements with the Yukinoshita family at the port city, then met with uncle Karo Yoshinari and old man Kajiki Ryota, he returned to Totsuki.
After all, he had promised Erina—if Nakiri Azami returned, he would face it together with Erina.
And the Kengan match with Tiger was in a few days, so Mutou Judai would be staying at Totsuki during this time.
"Phew—"
In the training ground, Mutou Judai exhaled.
He had returned from the port city this morning. The talk with Yukinoshita Heishin about Toyo Electric was yesterday's business.
That meant—
He had now merged Jack Hanma's template to 70%!
When Erina told him about Kengan matters, his template was only merged to 30%—and now four days had passed, with the Kengan match against Tiger Wakatsuki Takeshi in three days.
—By then, Mutou Judai would just finish merging Jack Hanma's template to 100%!
Of course, as Jack Hanma's template merged, Mutou Judai had another sign-in.
But this sign-in reward was basically a freebie—it was the same ability defect remedy pill as yesterday, giving him another one!
If it was truly a random item, with countless possibilities, yet two consecutive days randomly gave him the same thing!
He didn't know whether to call this good luck or bad luck.
Did the heavens think he needed two of these pills?
What a joke!
But complaints aside, Mutou Judai wasn't particularly bothered by this.
Similarly, regarding further merging of Jack Hanma's template, he just felt it briefly. Actually, he still didn't give up on using curses in the Kengan match.
But the difference from before was that after merging more of Jack Hanma's attributes and experience, he probably wouldn't use curses against opponents that were too weak.
—Because it was troublesome.
Against those who could fight a bit, he'd still use them.
After all...
Mutou Judai's previous life had already made him fully experience the hardship of effort—and although in this life, from awakening memories until now, he had never established new life goals...
No, he couldn't say he was establishing new life goals.
He should say that when he desperately pursued that one advancement path in this country's society in his previous life, his so-called life goals might not have been real life goals either.
At that time, he was simply working hard to pursue that opportunity, but was that opportunity his life goal?
Probably not...
Mutou Judai was just such a person without life goals.
He didn't have them in his previous life, didn't even realize he didn't have them. In this life, he realized it but hadn't found any.
In those first few days after awakening memories, he was constantly thinking about 'how exactly should I live.'
In his previous life, he thought he knew how to live interestingly and fulfillingly.
But actually, after dismantling the false effort, he began not knowing what to do.
So...
Thinking of this, Mutou Judai looked at the punching bag in front of him and showed a very happy, very natural smile.
Since that's the case... then in this life, besides living easily and interestingly, he seemed to have nothing else to do~
If using curses was easier, then use curses.
If he really felt it would be interesting to fight an opponent, then fighting once was fine too!
He had no obsessions, nothing he particularly wanted to achieve. As for effort...
If he had to say, he only had one direction for effort now.
—That was Erina.
"Since the upcoming Kengan match involves Erina, then I'll put in some effort."
Mutou Judai looked at the punching bag about five to six meters away from him and exhaled.
"I've long learned Soru... and because I received Soru, my legs were also strengthened, making them a bit stronger than my arms..."
"Since I can use Soru, among the Six Powers, I could probably research Rankyaku too, and maybe... I might even be able to achieve Geppo~"