Chapter 574 The last story of the executioner Yidaozhai - opening! 【6800】
Don't pray!
——Final volume·Preface
*******
*******
About a month after the 10,000 shogunate army was defeated——
Ezo Land, Red Moon Fortress, Kunoa's Clinic——
"A rare visitor came today."
Cunoya raised her eyebrows and looked up and down at Chanup, who was now sitting face to face with Ogata and Atachi's husband and wife, with a bit of surprise.
"It doesn't count as a rare visitor," Chanup said in a helpless tone, "Didn't I come to visit Ogata-kun a few days ago?"
"Really?" Cunoya shrugged, "Then it seems that I remembered it wrong. I don't have any objection to you coming to visit Ogata-kun, as long as you don't mess up my clinic or make it dirty.
"
After saying that, Kunoa picked up her pipe and walked out of the clinic quickly, leaving enough space for Ogata, Amachi, and Chanupu.
After watching Kunoa leave, Chanup immediately turned his attention to Ogata and Atachi.
"Ogata-kun, Miss Atachi, how are your bodies recovering now?"
Ogata smiled, raised his right hand and patted his left shoulder: "Thanks to you, my wife and I have almost recovered as before. Mr. Chanup, what about you? How is your injury?"
"My injury was not particularly serious to begin with, but now I have recovered about half of it."
"I heard that you have been busy with the reconstruction work of the fortress recently." Ogata continued, "Don't delay the recovery of your injuries just to be busy with your affairs."
"Don't worry about this." Chanup smiled bitterly and shook his head. "My daughter has been supervising me. Once she finds out that I don't rest on time, she will make noises at me..."
When Chanup was about to say something more, he suddenly raised his eyebrows, then turned to look at the door of the clinic: "Ogata-kun, someone seems to be visiting you again."
Ogata and Chanup heard footsteps outside the clinic at almost the same time, so they looked towards the door together with Chanup.
As soon as their eyes turned to the door, they saw Kunoya, who had just walked out of the clinic, leading a tall man back.
"Ogata-kun." Kunoya smiled helplessly, "This red-haired man is here to see you again."
"Ogata-kun, I'm here to see you again, oh! There are a lot of people today! Even the boss of this fortress is here!"
The tall man brought in by Cunoya was none other than Skulucci.
If there is anyone who comes to visit Ogata most frequently, it is undoubtedly Scrooge.
Scrooge would come to Ogata to chat almost every day. After going back and forth, even Cunoya gradually became familiar with this red-haired young man.
After bringing Skulucci in, Kunoa quickly returned to the outside of the clinic. As for Skulucci, he sat down next to Chanup in a carefree manner.
"Mr. Scrooge," Chanup said, "you came just in time. I originally planned to see you and your subordinates after visiting Ogata-kun today."
"Oh? Really?" Skulucci grinned, "Thanks for your concern. My subordinates and I are recovering very well now. The doctor named Kunoa's medical skills are really great.
"
Scrooge turned his head and looked at the door of the clinic. Unfortunately, due to the angle, he could not see Cunoya, who was smoking not far outside the clinic and not participating in the conversation between Ogata and the others.
.
Kunoya is also mainly responsible for the treatment of Skulucci and his party.
Under the treatment of Cunoya's superb medical skills, Skulucci and his party recovered very well.
After praising Kunoa's medical treatment, Skulucci moved his eyes away from the door and moved to Chanup.
"Mr. Chanup, now think about it carefully - this is the first time that you and I have come to visit Ogata-kun at the same time."
"I come to visit Ogata-kun basically every day, but it seems that I miss you every time."
"Yes." Chanup looked helpless, "I didn't have time to come over and visit Ogata-kun today."
"But because I have something urgent to tell Ogata-kun, and I haven't seen Ogata-kun in some days, I just squeezed out the time."
"Emergency?" Ogata cast a confused look at Chanup.
"Ogata-kun." Chanupu looked at Ogata, "I came to see you today. In addition to visiting you, I actually have another purpose - to tell you some good news for Mr. Lin."
"Mr. Lin?" Ogata's eyes flashed with surprise, "I would like to hear the details."
The Mr. Lin in Chanup's mouth naturally refers to Lin Ziping.
Lin Ziping was undoubtedly one of the biggest contributors to the "Red Moon Fortress Attack and Defense" more than a month ago.
This great hero had also been in bed recuperating from his injuries during this period - on the last day of the offensive and defensive battle, while defending the inner city wall with Chanup and others, he was accidentally shot by two stray arrows.
One shot hit his side waist, and one shot hit his right thigh. Fortunately, neither of them hurt his vitals.
In the past month or so, Ogata has also visited the place where Lin Ziping lived several times due to a leg injury and was confined to bed.
It would definitely be impossible for Ogata not to be curious about what Chanupu just said, "He has a piece of good news for Mr. Lin."
"Mr. Lin has helped us Heye Zhe a lot. Without Mr. Lin's command, we may not be able to survive until the day when you bring Mr. Skulucci and others to help."
Chanup said slowly.
"So as early as when Mr. Lin helped us, we unanimously determined that Mr. Lin is our friend. Therefore, we will never detain Mr. Lin again."
"And Mr. Lin asked me to tell you: the reason why he can survive until the day he regains his freedom is all thanks to Ogata-kun."
"In order to repay your kindness, Mr. Lin said that he is willing to take you to the village that may have clues to the pair of doctors you are looking for after his body recovers."
"By the way - Mr. Lin can barely get out of bed today. In a few days, he should be able to return to his original state."
After hearing what Chanup said, Ogata was startled for a moment. After coming back to his senses, he asked with joy:
"Mr. Lin, did he really say that?"
Chanup smiled and nodded.
As if a heavy burden had been lifted from his heart, Ogata took a deep breath, and then said in a slightly self-deprecating tone: "It was an extremely difficult journey to find those doctors..."
When they first met Lin Ziping, Lin Ziping told Ogata and others a piece of information that the couple was extremely concerned about - Lin Ziping once met an eccentric Kazuto doctor in a certain village.
In a place like Ezo, it is extremely rare for a Kazuto to live in an Ainu village, and this Kazuto happens to be a doctor - which makes it even more rare.
After learning this information from Lin Ziping, Ogata reached a deal with Lin Ziping: Ogata managed to restore Lin Ziping's freedom, and then Lin Ziping took them to the village he mentioned to find Kazuto.
doctor.
The process of allowing Lin Ziping to regain his freedom was not without ups and downs, but fortunately - despite the ups and downs, he succeeded in the end.
"Mr. Lin, will it take some time for him to recover..." Ogata muttered, "Then it seems that my wife and I will have to stay here for a while longer."
"It doesn't matter if you stay here longer." Chanup said with a smile, "You are the heroes who saved us. We welcome you to stay here for a while longer and let us entertain you well."
"Mr. Scrooge, so are you. You and your subordinates are more than welcome to stay with us for a longer period of time."
"Mr. Chanup, thank you for your kindness." Skulucci smiled politely at Chanup, "But unfortunately - my subordinates and I will not be able to stay with you for a long time. After a while, we will
We have to leave."
"Are you and your men leaving?" Chanup looked shocked.
Ogata and Atachi looked at Scrooge with a hint of surprise in their eyes.
"If we stay out for too long, my superiors will worry about us."
When he said, "The superiors will be worried about us," Skulu used a strange and strange tone to emphasize his tone.
"In order to prevent my superiors from worrying too much about us, we can't stay with you for too long."
"Now my injuries and those of my subordinates are basically in good condition. The remaining people who have not recovered have recovered to the point where they can barely ride a horse, so I decided that it is almost time to leave."
"That's it..." Chanup's eyes flashed with visible regret, "What a pity... I thought I would entertain you more..."
After sighing softly, Chanup took a deep breath.
"Then - before you leave, if you have any requests, just ask us." Chanup said sternly to Skulucci, "We will do our best to do anything we can.
Done.”
"Hahahaha." Scrooge laughed heartily, "Thank you. But we don't have anything we want anymore."
"but--"
Skulucci's conversation suddenly changed.
"Although I don't have anything I want, I have always had a question. This question has been in my heart for a long time, but I have never found the opportunity to ask you. And now it is rare that only a few of us are here. It is time to ask this question.
It’s a good time to ask a question, Mr. Chanup, I wonder if you would be willing to answer my question.”
"Questions? Please ask. Whatever I can answer, I will tell you everything." Chanup put on a serious look on his face that he was all ears.
"You don't need to be so serious." Scrooge smiled helplessly, "It's just a small question."
Scrooge cleared his throat:
"Mr. Chanup, I have always been curious: Where did your muskets come from?"
Chanup's expression changed slightly.
After hearing Skuluch's question, Ogata and Atachi looked at each other in a tacit understanding, and then looked at Chanup, waiting for Chanup's answer.
As for why Chanupu and the others have so many advanced flintlock rifles—Ogata and the others have always been curious.
During this time, they also asked some people this question, such as Kunoya, Aisuma and others, but they all said "not sure".
Now that Scrooge has asked Chanup a question that they have always been curious about, Ogata and Atachi are also willing to hear what the answer is.
"Of course." Skulucci added at this time, "Mr. Chanup, if you find this question difficult to answer, you don't have to answer it. I won't force you. I'm just curious about this question."
Chanup shook his head: "This is not something that cannot be known. If you want to know, I can answer it."
"These muskets of our Heye Zhe were all purchased from a Japanese merchant named 'Kinoshita' in 2007... no, it should be almost 3 years ago."
"Kinoshita?" Hearing this last name, Ogata frowned because he couldn't help but think of two of his acquaintances.
"That Kinoshita is a... very weird businessman." Chanup continued, "Three years ago, when he passed by with his caravan not far from our Heyezhe, he sent someone to negotiate with us.
, said: They are short of food and are willing to exchange a batch of muskets, a large amount of gunpowder and projectiles, and teach us how to use muskets and how to preserve gunpowder and projectiles in exchange for some food from us."
"In exchange for food?" Skulucci's eyes widened. "So many muskets are worth a lot of money. How much food did they take from you in exchange?"
"Not much," Chanup said, "just enough food for No. 50 people for 20 days."
"It's just this little food? Then isn't it like losing all your money?" Scrooge frowned tightly.
Although he is not a professional businessman, he also understands how much nearly a hundred flintlock guns, plus a large amount of gunpowder and projectiles, cost - even if he exchanges all the grain stored in Heye Zhe, he may not be able to get it.
.
What's more, in addition to delivering these dead objects, that "Kinoshita" was also willing to teach Chanup and the others how to use muskets and how to preserve gunpowder and projectiles.
"Yeah. That's why I said that Kinoshita is quite weird." Chanup sighed softly, "At first, I was skeptical about this transaction that was obviously a loss for Kinoshita and the others."
"But then I gradually discovered that they were serious about this deal."
"I have traveled in the Kazuto Land, so I also know what a powerful weapon the musket is."
"Although I don't know why that Kinoshita made such a costly transaction, I finally decided to give it a go and make a deal with him."
"After the transaction, that Kinoshita left with his people. Since then, I have never seen him again."
"...Mr. Chanup." Ogata, who had been silent just now, suddenly said in a cold voice, "What does Kinoshita look like? Have you seen it?"
"I have only met Na Kinoshita a few times," Chanup said. "He is a very young young man, probably about the same age as you, Ogata-kun."
"She has a pretty face and looks very polite."
"He wears a very beautiful sword with a purple handle on his waist."
After seeing that the Kinoshita in Chanup's mouth was not consistent with the two Kinoshita in his own impression, Ogata's originally frowning brow slowly relaxed, but the confusion on his face did not dissipate - for
Ogata was also puzzled by Kinoshita's behavior of making such a bloody transaction.
…
…
Edo, a remote house, in the courtyard——
"Mamiya! I'm on!" Makimura raised the wooden Odachi in his palm high and assumed a high-ranking posture.
"Mamiya-senpai, please give me your advice." Shimada, who gripped the wooden sword tightly, assumed a regular mid-section posture.
As for Asai - he didn't say much, he just silently grabbed the knife and prepared it.
If the points where Makimura, Shimada and Asai are standing are connected with a line, they can form a standard equilateral triangle.
And in the middle of this equilateral triangle stood Mamiya, who was slowly tying up the sleeves on both sides with cuff bands.
After tying up the sleeves on both sides at a leisurely pace, Mamiya picked up the wooden knife placed at his feet and said, "Come here."
As soon as Mamiya finished speaking, Makimura was the first to let out a loud kiai, and rushed towards Mamiya with his sword.
He aimed at Mamiya's head and made three powerful and heavy blows, but Mamiya dodged them with light steps.
Just as Mamiya dodged Makimura's slashing attack, Asai and Shimada's swords came with the wind.
Both of them had very tricky slashing angles, but their slashing angles were still powerless against Mamiya.
I saw Mamiya swinging two extremely fast swords. He obviously only had one sword, but because of the high-speed swing, he had the effect of "Mamiya holding two swords". Asai and Shimada's swords were almost at the same time.
Mamiya's blade struck and blocked.
After blocking Shimada's sword, Mamiya quickly adjusted the blade and aimed it at Shimada's left shoulder.
"Ahhh!" Shimada, who was in pain, subconsciously took a few steps back and then fell to the ground.
After finishing Shimada with one blow, Mamiya's feet slid on the ground, and he dodged to Asai's side at a speed that Asai could hardly react. Then, just like he had just knocked down Shimada with one blow, Mamiya also slashed at Asai's shoulder, killing him.
Asai fell to the ground.
Makimura, who could only fight alone next, showed no intention of retreating or surrendering. He bravely stepped forward, preparing to attack Mamiya again.
And he only had time to move forward.
He had just taken a step forward when he saw Mamiya coming to him.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
A dull tapping sound sounded.
Mamiya aimed at Makimura's muscular upper body and slashed him three times, with two slashes on Makimura's left shoulder and one slash on his right shoulder.
"Well..." Makimura endured the pain and took three steps back to put more distance between himself and Mamiya.
"Are you coming again?" Mamiya asked Makimura.
"No need..." Makimura let out a long sigh, "I have died three times just now, and the outcome has been decided."
"Mamiya-senpai is so strong..." Shimada covered the spot where he was hit by the knife and stood up with a wry smile, "The three of us came together, but we still couldn't even touch a corner of Mamiya-senpai's clothes...
"
In response to Shimada's compliment, Mamiya just smiled, then raised his hand to support his glasses that had slipped slightly on the bridge of his nose: "Let's take a rest. We have competed a lot just now, and I am a little tired.
It’s also time to take a break.”
"Mamiya's biggest weakness is indeed his lack of physical strength." After mocking Mamiya in a half-joking tone, Makimura took the lead and strode to the eaves not far away, and then sat down on the steps under the eaves.
Go up, and Mamiya and the other three followed closely behind, sitting side by side with Makimura.
"We have been here in Edo for a long time..." Makimura raised his eyes and looked at a big tree in front of him with delicate green leaves growing out. "Before you know it, winter will be over."
After bidding farewell to Ogata and Omachi and leaving Edo, the Calabash House group moved to a new home—to a luxurious house in Edo that Rin rented using her personal network. Continue in this luxurious house
Recuperate with peace of mind.
Except for Makimura who has a special physique of "quick recovery from injuries", Lin and the others are ordinary people, unlike Ogata who has extremely abnormal recovery power due to his "vitality".
Except for Genichi and Mamiya, who were basically uninjured, everyone else was injured, and the injuries of Lin and Asai were not serious.
In the past few months, Lin and the others have been living in seclusion in this house, quietly recuperating.
About a month ago, everyone in the Calabash House finally recovered and began their physical "rehabilitation."
And their "rehabilitation" is quite simple and crude - just fighting each other.
The house Lin rented was a mansion with a spacious courtyard, and Lin and the others fought with each other in the courtyard.
"I'm a little tired of staying in Edo..." Asai interjected, "Although Edo has many interesting, beautiful, and delicious places, I have been a little tired of it after staying here for several months...
"
"We should be able to leave soon," Makimura said. "After all, our injuries have healed, and there is no reason to stay in Edo anymore."
Shimada: "Are we going back to Owari later?"
"I don't know." Makimura shrugged, "But if nothing else happens, we should go back to our base camp next. After all, we haven't been back for a long time."
"Speaking of Owari..." Asai suddenly muttered, "Have you heard about that incident? The 'disappearance incident' seems to be quite popular right now."
"'Disappearance'?" Makimura asked, "What did it come from?"
Not only Makimura, but also Mamiya and Shimada also cast doubtful glances at Asai.
"I heard this from several samurai at the next table when I went to a nearby izakaya with Mr. Genichi to drink late last night." Asai said slowly, "It is said that this large area from Owari to Osaka
,'disappearances' occurred frequently during this period."
"From the descriptions of those warriors, this 'disappearance' is quite bizarre. It seems that at least hundreds of people have suddenly disappeared without a trace."
"And among the hundreds of missing people, there are men and women, old and young. The characteristics of the missing people are not regular at all. And among the missing people, there are also some samurai."
"Hundreds of people...?" Makimura slowly frowned, "It can't be a coincidence that so many people are missing. There must be some powerful group that is abducting these people. Has the shogunate intervened to investigate this matter?
"
Asai shrugged: "I don't know about that."
Shimada seemed to be completely intrigued by this "disappearance". He turned his head and looked at Makimura: "Senior Makimura, do you think there is some big group kidnapping those people?"
Makimura used to make a living by solving crimes in Kyoto, so Shimada subconsciously wanted to ask Makimura, who should have some experience in this field, his opinion on this matter.
"Of course." Makimura said sternly, "I never believe in the 'hidden gods'. Things like being abducted by gods and Buddhas are pure nonsense."
"Hundreds of people are missing - apart from being abducted, I can't think of any other possibility."
"From what Asai just described, there are frequent disappearances in the large area from Owari to Osaka."
"From Owari to Osaka - this range is not small. It covers the entire Kansai region."
"The ability to abduct people from all over the huge Kansai region shows that the power of this 'abducting group' is not small."
"But there's one thing I don't quite understand."
After Makimura pondered for a moment, he continued:
"Asai just said: The missing persons include men and women, old and young. I don't understand this."
"When I was a police officer in Kyoto, I also handled several 'human trafficking cases'."
"The abducted objects are basically children and young girls."
"Abducting men and old people...this is quite rare. What are you doing by kidnapping men and old people?"
"'Disappearance incident'..." Mamiya, who had been silent since just now, suddenly said, "Even Owari is among the victims... The world is really not peaceful."
At this moment, a female voice that was very familiar to Mamiya and others suddenly came from behind everyone.
"Katsurokuro, it turns out you are here. I finally found you."
Shimada turned around following the sound, with a surprised look on his face, "Lord, do you want to see me for something?"
The owner of this female voice that was extremely familiar to Mamiya and others was naturally Lin.
"Yes. It's true that I have something to see you for, but it's not something important."
Lin said as she continued to walk slowly towards Shimada.
"I have just received the news - the temple's Ginmimono transfer service: Shimada Soichiro returned to Edo a few days ago."
After hearing the name "Shimada Soichiro" from Lin's mouth, Shimada's expression froze.
"Katsurokuro." Lin's tone softened, "You must have been away from home for a long time. It's time to go see your family."
*******
*******
Final volume - serialization begins!
In order to celebrate the serialization of the final volume, I also tried my best to write a large chapter of nearly 7,000 words.
In order to celebrate the serialization of the final volume together, everyone please vote monthly! This book is currently ranked 13th in the monthly voting list in the light novel area. If possible, I would like to break into the top 10 QAQ.