In the courtyard, Shinjuro stood still, holding two newly delivered pots of sake, not immediately getting drunk.
If his wife had learned the Breathing Technique from a young age, perhaps she wouldn't have died of illness, like this... No! Then she might have been killed by a demon, or even died earlier!
But... what if she was lucky and became a Hashira? That's not impossible. At that time... No, no, what am I thinking?!
Forget it, I still don't know if those two little ones can learn the Breathing Technique, why think so much!
"Gulp, gulp!"
Shinjuro ultimately chose to numb himself with alcohol, but he didn't even notice that he had a hint of different expectation for Ryan.
Outside the door, Ryan stared at the tattered book in his hand, on which six large characters were written: "Flame Breathing Explanation."
"Heh, is this a good thing or a bad thing?"
At this moment, his mood was complex. On one hand, the inheritance of Flame Breathing was obtained, and Kanao could also learn it, which was a relatively perfect outcome. On the other hand, his trainer was irresponsible, and without hands-on guidance, he couldn't guarantee that he could master it through self-study.
As usual, it's better to prepare for both eventualities.
One preparation is to get good wine and ask for guidance, and the other is to use skill points.
"Brother, what's wrong?"
Kanao looked at her brother Ryan's strange expression and asked softly, tugging at his sleeve.
"Nothing. From today onwards, we will no longer practice Flame Blade Swordsmanship, but instead practice the Breathing Technique. Come, follow me."
In a hidden corner of the martial arts hall, the two of them seriously read "Flame Breathing Explanation" together. As they read...
"What the heck? I understand breathing with the abdomen, but what in the world is making blood boil through breathing?"
As if seeking affirmation, Ryan looked to the side, and Kanao looked back at him blankly.
Sure enough, this girl is also unreliable. But what do we do if neither of us understands? There's no one else to ask. Do we have to buy wine and ask that decadent man from the start? Both of those wines are very expensive.
Seeing Ryan fall into trouble, Kanao flipped through the beginning of the book again, still clueless.
What to do if she can't help her brother? The little girl looked at her brother's face, and a faint smile soon appeared on her blank face.
Easy! First, make her brother happy. She has a lot of experience with this.
"Brother, it's time to eat."
How about changing to another one... Oh right, it's time to eat. Business is important!
Ryan patted his face and stood up.
After agonizing for a long time, isn't it just buying wine to ask for guidance? What's there to hesitate about? At most, I'll just lose a bit of face! As long as I don't care about my face, won't it be fine? Also, regarding good wine, see if the hall master has any connections to get it cheaper.
Seeing him return to his usual confident demeanor, Kanao's lips curled up even more.
The two put away their books and happily walked towards the dining hall.
"Yo, isn't that the Ryan siblings? Why didn't they come to the training hall today?"
"Didn't you hear what Senior Brother said? From now on, those two will undergo secret training to prepare for challenging other martial arts halls."
"Huh? There are only a few martial arts halls nearby, and we're all so familiar, are we still going to challenge them?"
"Idiot, of course, we're going out to challenge other halls!"
"That's so cool? I want to too..."
"Good afternoon, two Senior Brothers, what are you talking about?"
Ryan greeted the acquaintances.
"Haha, nothing. Oh, by the way, Junior Brother Ryan, let me tell you, another junior brother came to the martial arts hall yesterday. He looks really distinctive, a good candidate for fighting at first glance!"
"...Ahaha, really?"
He gave a polite smile, ready to end this boring topic. Eating was more important.
"Yes, black sword-like eyebrows, but with red and yellow hair, and he has quite an imposing aura when he swings his wooden sword."
"Oh, oh, that's indeed..."
He's never seen anything like it. Who cares what he looks like... Wait! Why does this description sound so much like someone? Isn't this a characteristic of the Rengoku Family? Could it be...
Thinking of a possibility, Ryan chatted a few more words. After inquiring about the junior brother's location, he pulled Kanao and walked towards a certain spot in the dining hall.
Then he saw a lonely, young figure, seemingly very uncomfortable with the surrounding environment.
Good gracious! That uncle really brought his son over. By the way, is this Kyojuro or Senjuro?
"Hello, excuse me, I'm Ryan, and this is my younger sister Kanao. Are you from the Rengoku Family?"
"Ah! Yes... yes, seniors, hello. I am Rengoku Senjuro. Please... Eh! You are my father's..."
"Shh! Some things are not suitable to discuss here. Let's eat together first."
"Mmm!"
Then they ate for nearly an hour. Looking at the stack of plates next to Ryan, Senjuro was greatly shocked.
"I'm full. Let's go, let's find a place to talk."
Senjuro followed blankly, looking as dazed as Kanao.
Ryan simply led the two of them to his room. After closing the door, he pulled out "Flame Breathing Explanation."
Upon seeing the book, Senjuro instantly guessed the whole story. Thinking of his alcoholic father, he bowed deeply.
"I am truly very sorry. My father should have personally..."
"No, no, no! We are now fellow disciples, so there's no need to be so polite."
Ryan supported his shoulders and did not respond to Shinjuro's irresponsibility, not even saying "I don't mind." Subconsciously, he was tacitly agreeing.
Senjuro felt the warm hands, feeling both grateful and guilty.
"Senior is truly so understanding. I apologize to you for my father's actions."
Ryan: What's going on? I haven't even started my persuasion yet, this child is too easy to fool!
"I understand the seniors' intentions..."
"Just call us Senior Brother and Senior Sister."
"Okay, Senior Brother, Senior Sister. That, I'm really sorry, but I only know a little about Flame Breathing. I probably can't help much."
As he spoke, his expression grew even more guilty.
Ryan: You're not even as old as me, what are you feeling guilty about?
Kanao: Why does this little junior brother call me Senior Sister? Didn't he join first?
"It's okay, just honestly tell us everything you know... Ah, no, just tell us as much as you know. It's mainly about explaining some technical terms. We're half-understanding, half-not."
"No problem, I can answer all of that."
Senjuro was rarely confident. Although his talent wasn't great, precisely because of this, he read more texts on Breathing Technique than his brother, just to make up for some of the gap.
"That's great! How about we start now?"
Ryan's eyes lit up. It was truly a case of 'mountains and rivers doubt no road, willows dark and flowers bright another village'! This way, he wouldn't have to find that decadent man. The money for those ten pots of fine wine was very expensive, worth several meals of medicinal cuisine. If possible, he still didn't want to slow down his skill point accumulation progress.
"No problem, what don't you understand?"
Knowing that he could help, Senjuro's guilt lessened considerably.
"Then let's start from the second line of the first page."
"..."