Chapter 42
Hearing Origami also agree, and thinking of Tohka—who was never one to be difficult— Kotori decided not to insist any further.
She glanced at Ye Yu again, still wanting to test this man for the sake of her best friend.
"Have you ever studied swordsmanship?"
Of course Ye Yu had never formally studied swordsmanship.
In the apocalypse, he did have a few swordsmanship experts among his subordinates. But with so many abilities to develop, he never had the time to bother with something like that.
Still, when Kotori asked, Ye Yu only had one answer.
"Of course I have. I'm known as a swordsmanship genius once in a century!"
The moment these words left his mouth, even Origami gave him a second look.
Kurumi stared at Ye Yu in complete confusion.
How was her lover suddenly bragging like this? Did he forget how he used to get bullied? If he really was a once-in-a-century swordsmanship genius, how could he have been bullied?
But as Ye Yu's girlfriend, she naturally wouldn't tear down her own man.
"A once-in-a-century swordsmanship genius? Really? Then spar with me—let me see what this 'genius' is made of!"
Tohka's grandfather was a nationally renowned swordsmanship master, so all four girls had trained in swordsmanship since childhood. Among them, Tohka was the strongest, followed by Kotori.
Kurumi was just about to stop it when she saw Ye Yu nod with a smile.
"Sure. Since I'm joining you all, I should show off a little, right?"
Ye Yu hadn't known about this before, but now that he did—he was definitely participating.
Staying in a club with four beautiful girls? This was simply too enjoyable!
And if he didn't join, someone else would. If a guy joined and spent every day with them… Ye Yu felt he really couldn't accept that.
Every goddess he had his eye on—he had strong possessiveness over them.
"Interesting. Let me change first!"
With that, Kotori turned and walked out.
Origami glanced at Ye Yu and Kurumi, then followed Kotori out.
Seeing her friends leave, Kurumi's big eyes turned to Ye Yu.
"You're a swordsmanship genius?"
Ye Yu nodded with a smile and intimately wrapped his arm around Kurumi.
"What? Don't I look the part?"
"I'm not joking. Don't underestimate Kotori just because she looks soft and weak. She was a top-four finalist in the national youth kendo tournament. Don't let yourself get… mmph…"
Before long, Kotori returned wearing pure white practice attire.
The originally girl-next-door Kotori now looked valiant and heroic!
Ye Yu had also changed back into casual clothes.
Then, wearing protective gear, the two stepped onto the sparring platform.
Kotori sized Ye Yu up, her brows slightly furrowed.
In her eyes, Ye Yu looked far too amateurish right now.
His bow was in the wrong posture. He had none of the aura of a kendo master. His whole body radiated laziness.
This guy… he's not bluffing, is he?
If that was the case, she really couldn't feel at ease leaving Kurumi with such an unreliable person.
"No need to hold back. I want to see if you're capable of protecting Kurumi!"
Kotori declared firmly.
Under Origami's command, the spar officially began.
Ye Yu held the shinai in a picture-perfect stance, looking at Kotori with a lazy gaze.
He had already confirmed Kurumi wasn't a Spirit.
If he could now confirm Kotori wasn't one either, he could boldly assume these four were all ordinary humans.
In that case, he could use some very… unconventional methods to win their hearts.
Seeing Ye Yu seemingly spacing out, Kotori felt a surge of irritation at being ignored.
"You bastard—I'll teach you a proper lesson!"
With that, Kotori advanced quickly.
Her wooden sword slashed toward Ye Yu.
But to Ye Yu, this speed was barely faster than a snail.
He lightly raised his shinai.
It stuck to Kotori's blade like a magnet.
Kotori was slightly stunned. She had competed in many tournaments and had never seen anything so strange!
But she reacted quickly, her footwork flawless.
She adjusted direction at high speed and unleashed two more strikes from extremely tricky angles.
The first aimed at Ye Yu's head, the second at his shoulder.
Yet strangely, both attacks were blocked by Ye Yu in the exact same way.
"So strong!"
Origami remained expressionless, but a flash of surprise passed through her eyes.
Kurumi's beautiful eyes sparkled with delight.
She hadn't expected her lover to actually be skilled in kendo.
Meanwhile, Kotori's face was starting to look ugly.
She attacked Ye Yu even faster, swinging her sword in a frenzy.
But without exception, every strike was met and stopped by Ye Yu in the same effortless manner.
"You bastard—are you toying with me?!"
The moment Kotori's angry words left her mouth, she suddenly felt a jolt in her heart.
Looking at Ye Yu holding the shinai in front of her, an overwhelming chill rose in her body. An extreme fear emerged in her mind.
What is this…?
In that instant, she felt as though the Ye Yu before her was an ancient ferocious beast.
The killing intent radiating from him made it difficult for her to even hold her shinai.
Clatter…
The wooden sword slipped from her grasp. Kotori collapsed to the floor.
Then that oppressive aura suddenly vanished. She began gasping for air.
Ye Yu's lips curved upward.
Really just an ordinary person?
He hadn't used any abilities just now—only his immense mental power from the apocalypse, condensed into pure killing intent.
If Kotori were a Spirit, she would only feel slightly uncomfortable.
But if she was an ordinary human, she would feel overwhelming terror.
Kotori's reaction proved she was indeed an ordinary person.
Of course, there was one other possibility— Kotori sensed the aura and deliberately acted terrified to deceive Ye Yu.
But Ye Yu didn't believe that.
Seeing Kotori sitting collapsed on the floor, Origami and Kurumi hurriedly ran over.
Together they helped Kotori remove her protective gear.
"Kotori, what happened to you?"
"Let's go to the hospital!"
Ye Yu also took off his helmet, looking at Kotori with a seemingly concerned expression.
"Are you okay? Does anything hurt?"
Kotori, still panting, looked at Ye Yu with some confusion.
What just happened…?
Was it an illusion?
"I'm fine… maybe I just didn't rest well…"
Then she spoke softly to Ye Yu.
"Welcome to the club."
Ye Yu's lips curved into a smile.
"Looking forward to working with you all."
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