Defiled Hero Chapter 041
Defiled Hero

Miniskirt Cat-Eared Girl

Two days have pa.s.sed since we left Broken. I ran without using the carriage.

The reason is, I run faster than the carriage. At least three times as fast. Because there's the issue of stamina, I can only run for about 24 hours, but can cover a considerable distance.

The destination is the capital, past a hill as I proceed through the dense forest.

Even if I take my time, I should arrive sometime today.

「*Hawawa,* I'm hungry oniichan.」 (Fiere)

Fiere clung to my back.

「It's about midday, shall we have a short break?」 (Izayoi)

Coming to a stop in the forest, the bored Fiere got down and started running around.

「*Hawawa hawawa hawawa.*」 (Fiere)

She's said nothing but hawawa, but seems to be quite happy.
(TN: I still have no idea what it's supposed to mean. Seriously.)

As I heard a rustling sound, a shadow could be seen.

Something came out of the bush.

「*Hawawawawawawawa—*」 (Fiere)

Fiere fell on her b.u.t.t in surprise, and was frozen there making *hawahawa* noises. A large spider came out. It's about B-rank I think.

There's no reason to pay any particular attention to it.

Recognizing Fiere as prey, it moved quickly and was just about to attack her. Gripping the hilt of my sword with my right hand, I prepared to pull it out.

At that moment, I felt another presence.

It's approaching very fast. The footsteps seem to be from a human. The moment before the spider attacked Fiere, the shrill sound of metal colliding at high speed could be heard.

This is, the sound of a katana being drawn.

It flew like the wind through the gap between Fiere and the spider. Slicing through the spider, bodily fluids could be seen spilling out. It's not a mortal wound, however.

「I will protect you.,」 (???)

Knee-high boots and a miniskirt. Cat ears on her head. About 10 years old.

With a calm and cool countenance, the young girl's long coat fluttered about.

Preparing her katana, they faced each other.

She came to help, I see.

「Is that so. Then protect us. —Hey, Fiere, come here. Let's eat lunch.」 (Izayoi)

「Okay!」 (Fiere)

「Eh?」 (???)

Releasing the sword hilt, I sat on the ground. I pulled out store-bought food from warehouse Astrea.

「*Mou,* It suddenly came out so I suddenly went *hawawa.*」 (Fiere)

The young katana-wielding miniskirt-clad cat-eared girl stared at us dumbfounded. For some reason, she seemed to be watching us eat.

Ignoring the spider, she continued to stare at us.

We looked at each other quietly for a while.

「...You trust me enough to allow you to eat in peace. Alright. I will protect you!」 (???)

She seemed happy for an instant, then prepared her katana. Not wasting any time, she began to overwhelm the spider with her refined, flowing swordplay.

Shaking the spider's body fluids off of the katana, she silently returned it to its scabbard.

Movement, swordplay, speed. There's probably n.o.body better at using a katana than her.

Seeing the young girl's movement gave me deja vu.

I've not just seen it. I've memorized those moves. Though the movements are different because of the katana, they're essentially the same.

「—What in the world are you planning!? Exposing a small girl to something dangerous!」 (???)

She walked over quickly, and lifted me up by grabbing my collar forcefully.

「...It's fine because you helped her. Feel free to complain if someone got hurt.」 (Izayoi)

「That's not the issue! The two of you going out alone is dangerous you know! Did you not run into monsters on the way here?」 (???)

While extremely angry, she kept b.u.mping into me with her flat body. Should I be worried?

「Relax. We're unharmed.」 (Izayoi)

「It's dangerous even if you haven't been hurt! ...You're quite toned.」 (???)

She stripped off my clothes and stared at my body directly.

「I'm quite toned as you can see, so it's fine.」 (Izayoi)

「Even if you are in shape it's no good!」 (???)

「Then what should I do?」 (Izayoi)

「Don't separate from me.」 (???)

「Huh?」 (Izayoi)

「I said! I'll protect you until we get to a safe place!」 (???)

「What are you even saying.」 (Izayoi)

「Listen to me! We can't stay in this dangerous place. Let's get to the capital by sunset.」 (???)

The girl forcibly pulled my arm.

Although she might be doing it in good faith, it's annoying. I was running earlier while carrying Fiere, and I'm eating now.

「Don't rush. Let's eat for now.」 (Izayoi)

「To be eating in this situation is— *munch.*」 (???)

I shoved a sandwich into her mouth.

「Eating... *munch*... right now... *munch.*」 (???)

「Eat, leave, or speak, pick one.」 (Izayoi)

「*Munch munch... munch.*」 (???)

「So you're going to eat?」 (Izayoi)

She plopped herself down on the ground.

「Isn't this freshly made? Why?」 (???)

「I have a warehouse, that's why.」 (Izayoi)

「Amazing... *munch.*」 (???)

She seems to be eating in earnest.



「Now! Let us go quickly.」 (???)

The cat-eared girl announced so with an angry expression.

I wonder if she's angry by default.

She's grabbing my hand too. The soft hand isn't what you would expect from an experienced sword user.

She started to pull my hand and began to run. It couldn't be helped so I put Fiere on my back and began to follow her.

Her angry expression didn't change as we ran, but her ears stood at attention.

That would have been a good sign if it was Tear, but I wonder what it means for this girl.

「Hey, who are you?」 (Izayoi)

「I still haven't introduced myself I guess. I'm Tsuyuha. Swordmaster Zenesys-sama's second disciple. The successor of the hero.」 (??? → Tsuyuha)

「The hero's... successor?」 (Izayoi)