As a commoner, Keizo obtaining a dojo and such a large plot of land through sheer luck had naturally stirred envy and resentment in many. The most powerful among his detractors was the neighboring swordsmanship dojo. As a well-known armed group in the area, its students were influential and arrogant. They had coveted the land of the Soryu Dojo for a long time, always scheming to take it.
This morning, a dozen students armed with wooden swords, or bokken, arrived at the dojo's gate. With Keizo away, the Librarian, as the only other adult male present, stepped out to meet them. Hakuji insisted he could help, so the Librarian allowed him to come along.
"So, you're the freeloader who's been staying at the Soryu Dojo?" one of the students, clearly the leader, sneered, glancing dismissively at the Librarian.
"Freeloader is hardly the word. I simply have a patient here," the Librarian replied calmly.
His words were met with a moment of stunned silence, followed by roaring laughter from the dozen students.
"A doctor? Are you saying that Keizo is afraid of a doctor?" The leader clutched his stomach, laughing so hard that tears welled in his eyes. He recalled his master mentioning that Keizo, the head of the Soryu Dojo, was an incredibly formidable master of unarmed combat. The memory of seeing Keizo on the street that day, about to challenge the Librarian but ultimately backing down, now seemed utterly hilarious.
And now, the Librarian himself admitted to being a doctor. Didn't that mean the powerful figure they had been worrying about was nothing but a paper tiger? How strong could a dojo master who was scared of a doctor possibly be?
A cold smile spread across the leader's face. He rolled his shoulders, hefted his bokken, and charged. Raising the wooden sword high, he brought it down in a vicious arc aimed at the Librarian's shoulder. His mind was already filled with fantasies of striking down the Librarian and then defeating Keizo.
However, reality is often cruel.
The wooden sword never reached its target. Instead, it was met by a fist that shattered it on impact. This single punch shattered not only his wooden sword but also his hope. And, of course, his jaw and teeth.
The Librarian sent the man flying with a casual punch, his expression completely unfazed. The leader crashed to the ground, clutching his jaw and letting out whimpering sounds. His jaw was dislocated, most of his teeth were shattered and embedded in his gums, and the bone itself was fractured. The combined agony made him wish for a swift death.
The Librarian took a step forward, about to drive them away, when his brow suddenly twitched. "Hakuji!"
Hakuji, who had been watching from the sidelines, immediately responded. "Yes!"
"Go to Koyuki's room right now. Find the intruder and drag him here."
"Right!" Without questioning why the Librarian was suddenly sending him to Koyuki's room, Hakuji trusted him implicitly. He leaped into action, sprinting towards Koyuki's room.
Hearing the Librarian send Hakuji away, the expressions of the dozen students changed. They didn't know how this doctor knew about their plan, but one thing was certain: their attempt to create a distraction had failed.
They exchanged glances, and two of them grabbed their wailing leader. The group turned to flee. However, they had barely run a few meters before they froze in place. It felt as if a mountain was pressing down on their shoulders, their feet rooted to the ground. An invisible pressure enveloped them, making it impossible to take another step.
Tap... tap... tap...
Footsteps sounded from behind them.
"Tell me who snuck into the dojo, and I will let you leave," the Librarian's voice said. To their ears, it sounded like the whisper of a devil. A chill ran down their spines, their faces turned ashen, and their legs trembled uncontrollably. Only now did they realize what kind of monster this self-proclaimed doctor truly was.
Thump.
A hand rested on one man's shoulder, and the Librarian's face appeared next to his. "Speak."
That single word was enough to break him. The man's eyes rolled back, white foam frothed at his mouth, and he fainted from sheer terror.
Sighing in frustration, the Librarian turned to interrogate another student. From him, he finally learned the true purpose of their "protest."
It turned out that the son of the swordsmanship dojo's master, a young man named Imura, had long been infatuated with Koyuki. However, due to his terrible behavior, Keizo had forbidden him from seeing her, and Koyuki herself had absolutely no interest in him. Imura had initially planned to bide his time, hoping to change their negative impression of him. But on the night of the fireworks festival, he had seen the intimacy between Hakuji and Koyuki and had flown into a rage.
To create an opportunity to get Koyuki alone, he had conspired with his lackeys to stage this disturbance. While they created a diversion at the front gate, Imura would sneak into the Soryu Dojo and abduct Koyuki by force.
Clearly, the plan had failed. To the Librarian's senses, Imura's "stealthy" infiltration was as subtle as a charging bull.
Sure enough, it wasn't long before Hakuji emerged from the dojo. In his hand, he was dragging a man who had been beaten to a pulp, now only capable of making incoherent noises. This had to be Imura.
Hakuji tossed Imura aside and ran over, his face etched with anxiety. Although he had stopped Imura in time, preventing the abduction, the shock of the intrusion and the struggle had caused Koyuki's asthma to flare up again.
The Librarian pointed a thumb at the still-frozen students behind him. "I'll go check on her. These guys are all yours."
The students' faces fell. "Hey, you promised! You said if we talked, you'd let us go!"
Glancing back at them, the Librarian's voice turned cold. "I said I would let you leave. Hakuji isn't me."
The students stared in disbelief. So, they were going to get beaten either way.
A grin spread across Hakuji's face. He cracked his neck, producing a series of sharp clicks. "Leave them to me, Mr. Librarian. I'll show them exactly how patients are made." Hakuji's face was alight with excitement; he was looking for an outlet for the anger he felt over Koyuki being frightened. He didn't even realize it himself, but Koyuki had already become an indispensable part of his life.
With a small smile, the Librarian walked back into the dojo. Moments later, the sounds of flesh meeting flesh and human wails filled the air. When a calmer Koyuki later asked what was happening outside, the Librarian just smiled mysteriously and said nothing. Koyuki tilted her head, listening closely. That angry shouting voice sounded awfully familiar.
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