As a princess, these words are undoubtedly of great weight.
"You have protected the safety of everyone in the lower house. Everyone in the city and in the castle town must be very grateful to you."
——This is a bit like a princess.
Several people thought of it at the same time.
"You guys - you hold your heads too high! Your Highness, there is no need for you to be so polite to these guys!"
The guard brother frowned and scolded.
Qingji turned around and glared at him with a cold look.
The guard was startled and retreated without warning.
"It's an honor to be praised."
Zuocun was the most polite person among this group of people - even though he was praised by the shogunate, it felt a little wrong to him.
"It's an honor to be praised."
Miyamoto Musashi followed Zuomura and made the same move.
"Same below."
"I'm... too."
Fujimaru Ritsuka and Kotaro also followed suit.
"Don't be so formal, Fujimaru Ritsuka-sama, there is no difference in identity between Kiyohime and Fujimaru Ritsuka-sama!"
Qingji blushed and said, but she still made sure that there was nothing wrong with her manners.
"Okay, okay, then, Mr. Fujimaru Ritsuka, let's get down to business."
Her expression finally turned serious.
There was a little uneasiness in the seriousness.
"Everyone, you should have heard about it."
"There have been rumors circulating recently about me."
Fujimaru Ritsuka nodded and said seriously.
"I heard that. In fact, that's why we came here."
"Say...you received a letter. What's written in the letter shouldn't be anything normal."
Fujimaru Ritsuka didn't kill him. It was an assassination notice letter. After all, they didn't know the content of the letter yet.
"Well, that's right...the contents of the letter can be described as...horrible."
Qingji looked a little scared, bit her lip, and her arms trembled slightly.
"To risk so many people's lives just for a letter... This is simply..."
She turned her head slightly, her face not only filled with fear, but also unbearable.
"There is no doubt that thieves with unknown origins want to take my life. To be honest, if it is only to this extent, I will not be afraid."
"There are people in the rustic city who have experienced the Shimabara Rebellion, but Lord Mamori's elite soldiers are on high alert, as well as many retainers, but..."
Her slender fingers grasped her clothes tightly, and the expression on her face changed from uneasiness to anger.
"The blood stains on the letter... show that the thieves will never give up. Although it may not be my place to say this, Mr. Fujimaru Ritsuka..."
She looked at Fujimaru Ritsuka with a look full of hope.
"Lord Fujimaru Ritsuka, please protect the little girl Kiyohime!"
...
"This proposal is ridiculous and a bit excessive."
Yagyu Tajima Mamoru opened his eyes.
"Is there any other way to describe it other than ridiculous! You guys - no matter how much the princess likes you, you are still inferior after all!"
"It is said that there are some guys among you who are not even ronin... It would be a mistake to let you enter the city!"
The guarding warrior said coldly.
"This is a matter of life and death for the head of the family. How could you - please leave it to such a group of people!"
Yagyu Tajimamomo turned around and glanced at the guarding warrior, and the warrior suddenly stiffened.
"If it's a fear of change...if it were peacetime, there would indeed be such a worry."
Looking back, Yagyu Tajimamoru touched his chin.
"But this is not a time of peace. During the catastrophe of weird cholera, perhaps we don't care about our status and family status. Being strong in martial arts is the top priority."
"If you are worried about these guys' abilities - Ben Tajima can guarantee this."
Yagyu Taimamomo had seen the martial arts of these people.
"They showed great skill in the previous weird crusade, and made great military exploits as the princess said. There are also some elite soldiers in my army who praised them - these things cannot be doubted."
"Retainer Matsudaira, do you... have anything else to say?"
Yagyu Tajima Mamoru looked down upon the guard in front of him.
He doesn't have much ability, and his martial arts skills are also half-baked. He is probably the heir of some noble family or something.
Really off-putting.
"How, how dare you..."
Cold sweat started to flow from the forehead of the guarding warrior in an instant.
"I, I'm just a little worried about their origins, that's all..."
"Since Seihime-sama has made the choice, and with Tajima Mori-sama's guarantee, I dare not have any objections..."
There was still a sarcastic expression on his face.
Taking a deep breath, adjusting his demeanor and mood, the samurai turned to Fujimaru Ritsuka and others.
"You - you must protect Her Highness the Princess, do you understand?"
After saying that, he exited the room.
"......snort."
But Ma Mamoru also snorted coldly, and then turned to Fujimaru Ritsuka as well.
"You guys, remember to protect Her Highness the Princess."
"If something goes wrong, it won't just be a beheading."
This is indeed true.
If the protection of the princess is not done well, whipping the corpse will be considered a trivial matter, especially for a group of guys like them who have "no identity" and "unknown origins".
"So - what to do now?"
"Master."
Samura finally opened his eyes and asked Fujimaru Ritsuka.
But Ma Shou also left temporarily.
"That letter might not be so suspicious if it had only been delivered to Miss Kiyohime - but as I just said, such news is now circulating throughout the entire lower office."
"If this kind of news hadn't been proactively released by Lord Marshal, then there was only one possibility that it would have happened."
Fujimaru Ritsuka tapped the ground with her finger.
"Heroic Swordsman."
"They want to create panic with news like this."
"This method——probably one of the remaining five did it."
Fujimaru Ritsuka speculated this.
"Accurate analysis."
There was a little admiration in Zuo Cun's eyes.
Being able to make such analyzes and guesses in a limited time and with limited information is a very high level.
The most important thing is that this place is close to Edo Tenryo. It is almost impossible for such a simple and crude political struggle to occur in a place like this.
"For the next time, just wait in the city."
Fujimaru Ritsuka looked at his two mounted servants and Miyamoto Musashi.
"The other party hasn't taken the initiative to stretch out its fangs yet. We can only wait temporarily and do some simple investigations in the city."