Chapter 324

As the chief of the club who had been immersed in the way of the sword for many years, he knew better than anyone what those light and casual movements meant.

Cherry blossoms fall without law or constancy.

It is already difficult to hit them precisely with the blade, let alone hitting them with the tip of the sword.

This requires excellent eyesight, prediction, and instantaneous micro-adjustments.

And Natsume Chikage... he had just "tapped" five falling cherry blossoms with different trajectories in a casual moment, and stacked them at "one point"?!

What this required was no longer just technique, but a kind of near-intuitive trajectory prediction and force control refined to the extreme!

Shanshan Ying-shu's mind went blank, with only Natsume Chikage's effortless "taps and stabs" replaying, slowing down, and being analyzed over and over.

Shock and disbelief were mixed together, leaving him unable to recover for a long time.

Until Natsume Chikage's group walked ahead and their figures grew distant, he still stood in place, his gaze dull, his thoughts still lingering on that stunning moment.

However, the three girls following Natsume Chikage knew nothing about sword techniques.

In their eyes, Natsume Chikage's actions just now were nothing more than a child excited about getting a new toy, playing around with the air and cherry blossoms after obtaining the wooden sword collection he liked.

Sister Xiyuan Si Xiyuanji Qilai finally could not suppress the worry in her heart; she trotted forward two steps, extended her slender finger, and poked Natsume Chikage's left shoulder lightly.

When he turned his head, she tilted up her pretty face, her brows slightly furrowed, and asked earnestly:

"Natsume-kun... regarding that baseball match with Senior Near-guard, do you... really think you have a chance of winning?"

Snow Village Lingyin and Classmate Classmate Tengyuan Kui's gazes also focused over immediately, holding their breath as they waited for his answer.

Natsume Chikage met their worried gazes, nodded slightly, and his tone was calm.

"Mm, a little."

"You really do?"

Snow Village Lingyin's cold voice was full of doubt, and her eyebrows rose even higher.

If it were before equipping the 'Decayed Wooden Sword' and obtaining that mysterious "1000% improvement in sword-way enlightenment," Natsume Chikage would indeed have had no confidence.

But now, with every additional realization from a "swing," that sense of control increased by a point, and his confidence grew along with it.

The situation was naturally completely different.

"I really do," Natsume Chikage affirmed again, with a rare certainty in his eyes.

Classmate Classmate Tengyuan Kui widened her eyes and asked in surprise:

"Really?"

"Could it be that you are actually hiding your true strength, and you secretly practiced baseball for a long time before, which is why you are so confident?"

"Did you say that just now to fool Senior Near-guard?"

If that were the case, Natsume-kun could be considered quite cunning, Snow Village Lingyin blinked and thought to herself.

A hint of surprised anticipation also appeared on Sister Xiyuan Si Xiyuanji Qilai's face:

"Natsume-kun, could it be that it's really like what Aoi-chan said, you are actually..."

Before she could finish her sentence, Natsume Chikage shook his head and interrupted her.

A somewhat helpless, honest smile appeared on his face.

"No, you could say that from childhood to now, I've almost never touched it."

"..."

The air instantly froze.

Snow Village Lingyin's pretty face darkened at a speed visible to the naked eye, and she squeezed a few words through her teeth:

"I, just, knew, it!"

Classmate Classmate Tengyuan Kui was even more furious; she put her hands on her hips and complained loudly:

"Natsume-kun!"

"Just now when you solved the 'Seven Mysteries,' I genuinely felt you were super smart and super amazing!"

"But now, after this, I only feel that you are a complete and utter big—stupid—idiot—!!"

Sister Xiyuan Si Xiyuanji Qilai also puffed out her cheeks and nodded heavily, her voice filled with helplessness and annoyance:

"Mm-hmm, I think so too!"

Natsume Chikage looked at the three of them united in a common front, sharing the same hatred for the enemy, and felt somewhat between laughter and tears.

But he could not explain the existence of the "Decayed Wooden Sword" and "special equipment" to them.

Misunderstandings and worries could not be explained clearly at this moment.

But it didn't matter.

After one month, when the match ended and everything settled, the results would naturally explain everything.

Around seven o'clock in the evening.

Inside the "Star Light" coffee shop, bright and warm lights enveloped every corner.

Soothing jazz music flowed through the air, but it was almost drowned out by the noise of the full house.

The shop was almost packed.

By the bar and in the booths, there were mostly young faces.

What was even more eye-catching was that there was a not-so-short line at the shop entrance, mostly customers waiting for takeout.

The staff shuttled back and forth, walking in a hurry, with fine beads of sweat on their foreheads.

The shop manager, Yamamoto Koji, operated the coffee machine skillfully while wiping sweat with a towel, his mood complex.

Business being booming was naturally a good thing, and his income was rising accordingly.

But this customer traffic... why was it getting more exaggerated day by day?

"Excuse me, does Natsume Chikage work here?"

"Ah! Look, that's Natsume-kun in the back, right? The photos on Twitter didn't lie, he's really so handsome!"

"He looks even better in person than on the live stream of the shogi match..."

"Why is he making coffee in the back? What a pity, they should let him take orders at the front desk!"

Listening to these deliberately lowered but constantly audible female discussions, Yamamoto Koji actually saw things as clearly as a mirror in his heart.

He actually knew where the root of this "prosperity" lay.

It was just that in a corner deep in his heart, he was still stubbornly refusing to admit this "cruel" reality.

Put Natsume Chikage at the front desk?

He shook his head wildly.

That scene was too beautiful to imagine—he feared these girls would immediately turn into "nail houses," refusing to leave even after getting their coffee, just to chat a few more times. By then, the shop would probably be packed to the point of being impassable; would they still be able to do proper business?

Stealing a moment of leisure, he couldn't help but glance at his own reflection in the reflective glass cabinet door.

He touched his chin and muttered with a somewhat unpleasant feeling in his heart: I'm clearly not any worse than Natsume-kun, so why doesn't anyone look for me?

Just then, a high school girl wearing a private school uniform with a capable temperament finally moved into the shop with the line.

She was a female shogi player—Asahina Akatsuki.

She had come specifically this time because she saw the news on Twitter that "Natsume Chikage is working part-time at a coffee shop in Shibuya."

Thinking they both lived in Shibuya and were both shogi players, she stopped by on her way, wanting to find an opportunity to chat with him.

However, as soon as she entered the shop, she was stunned.

The customers sitting in the shop... why were seven or eight out of ten female?

And many of them looked quite young?

Late at night, when did the girls in Shibuya all collectively fall in love with drinking coffee?

"Next customer, what would you like to order?"

It was finally her turn to order, and Classmate Classmate Tengyuan Kui behind the bar raised a professional, energetic smile.

Because the "Star Light" coffee shop was quite large, there was a significant distance between the work area and the front desk.

At this moment, Natsume Chikage was focused on making coffee in the back and did not notice the situation at the front desk.

Asahina Akatsuki looked at Classmate Classmate Tengyuan Kui, pointed to Natsume Chikage's busy figure in the back, and said politely:

"Excuse me, could you please help me call Natsume-kun? I have something I'd like to chat with him about."

The smile on Classmate Classmate Tengyuan Kui's face instantly became somewhat stiff, but her voice remained sweet:

"Sorry, employee Natsume is very busy with work right now and cannot receive visitors for the time being."

"If you have something, you can contact him after he gets off work."

Asahina Akatsuki had waited in a long line to get in; if she had to wait until he got off work, she didn't know how long it would take.