Chapter 184: Starting Off by Picking Up a Fox-Eared Girl?
Flames.
A raging inferno.
Scorching blood stained the earth crimson.
The devastated village was engulfed and consumed by the blaze, leaping flames soaring skyward with enough intensity to dispel the darkness of night!
It looked as if it had been ravaged by war... no, more accurately, it was a grand massacre, with not a single soul left alive in the entire village.
Mahiro: "..."
"Was this plundered by the Fourth Cataclysm?"
Witnessing the horrific scene before him, Mahiro's lips twitched involuntarily.
"Where have I been dumped this time? The first year of Holy Terra? Or the Lands Between?"
Could it be that in this world, he'd get to see some giant guy sitting motionless on a golden throne, and the rebellious son Horus who raised his sword against him?
Or perhaps, he'd be lucky enough to meet a tsundere witch who gifts bells and pets?
Oh right, he didn't have Torrent, nor had he encountered the little wooden doll, so never mind.
But he soon realized his wild speculations were mistaken.
Because the corpses lying on the ground weren't human.
Though they had human appearances, they sported a pair of fluffy ears on their heads and a tail on their rear ends.
So it was a village of kemonomimi girls.....
Neither the Imperium of Terra nor the Lands Between seemed to have such beings.
But who could be so ruthless as to not even spare kemonomimi girls?
"A... Ba..."
"Oh? There's actually a survivor?"
Mahiro heard a faint, weak call from nearby—the voice was tender and frail, as if on the verge of fading away at any moment.
Drawing closer, he saw a white-haired fox-eared loli girl collapsed in a pool of blood.
Blades had torn through her clothing, leaving countless cruel, vicious wounds on her jade-like smooth back, now a mangled mess of flesh and blood.
The blood seeping from her injuries dyed the powdery snow on the ground a deep crimson.
The silvery-white fur on her tail, which should have been fluffy, was now matted with congealed blood.
"Tsk tsk tsk, what a pitiful sight..."
Mahiro crouched down and gently poked the kemonomimi loli's cheek with his finger.
"Oi~ still alive?"
Not bad, quite springy.
"...…Gettan..."
The girl weakly, painfully whispered this name with the last of her strength.
Even at death's door, with one foot already in the underworld, she still couldn't forget someone named Gettan or something...…
Just how much did you love this person?
Ah well, never mind. Who'd have thought he'd have to do a good deed to accumulate otherworldly merit right after crossing over? Good grief, I'm such a once-in-eight-lifetimes great guy.
While boasting to himself, Mahiro pulled out "Nightmare" and aimed it at the girl.
"Regeneration, activate."
As Psionic Light surged, the wounds on the girl's body rapidly healed as if time were flowing backward.
The injuries were cured.
But she showed no signs of waking up.
"Probably due to the extreme mental exhaustion from the catastrophe she endured."
That was the response from analyzing the information body.
"Ah, whatever, what's one night of waiting?"
Mahiro casually gathered a fire, the crackling of burning wood echoing across the silent snowy field. The warm glow of the flames illuminated his face as he casually fashioned a blanket and draped it over the girl.
"Sleep peacefully."
He stroked the girl's smooth silver hair and pinched her twitching ears, feeling the texture was quite pleasant.
...
The next morning.
"Mm..."
With a faint whimper, the girl gradually woke from her sleep, discovering she was lying face down on the snow.
The frozen bloodstains splattered on the ground and the acrid smell of charcoal flooding her nostrils constantly reminded her that everything that happened last night was real.
Yet strangely.
When she reached back to touch, she found the wounds on her back had completely healed without leaving a single scar. Even her clothes were restored to their original state, and moreover, a blanket was draped over her.
"That's right—Gettan!"
The girl jolted awake, scrambling to get up from the ground to search for her sworn enemy.
Gettan had killed her mother to join the cult. That person... was absolutely unforgivable!
However, she found no trace of Gettan. Instead, she saw a young man sitting beside her.
With exquisitely handsome features, she swore this was the most beautiful person she had seen in her fourteen years of life.
He seemed to have been watching over her all night.
Could it be that he was the one who healed her wounds and thoughtfully covered her with a blanket?
As she pondered this, she noticed him turning his head and smiling at her.
"Hey, you're awake. You seem to be in good spirits."
His smile felt warm, like the winter sun.
Her innocent, budding heart seemed captured in that instant!
"What's wrong? Didn't sleep well?"
"Ah, no, it's not that..."
Seeing his hand reaching toward her, the girl's fluffy ears shot straight up, and she instinctively took two steps back to avoid his touch.
A faint blush spread across her delicate, slightly chubby face.
"Th-thank you for saving my life. This humble girl will never forget your great kindness..."
The girl bowed respectfully to the young man.
But Mahiro rubbed his chin in confusion. "Never forget? Shouldn't the usual procedure be offering yourself in marriage? Did I do something wrong?"
"Eh?! O-o-offer myself in marriage?!"
The girl was shocked, making an exaggerated expression.
Mahiro waved his hand and laughed. "Hahaha, don't mind me. I was just joking."
The girl remained silent, her face red, though her occasional glances in his direction left her thoughts unclear.
"Oh, by the way, I still don't know your name. What is it?"
Hearing his request for an introduction, the girl suppressed her emotions, straightened her clothes, and bowed slightly with grace.
"Honored benefactor, this humble girl is named Yukime, fourteen years old. May I ask your esteemed name?"
"My name is Yotsuba Mahiro, eighteen years old. I've lost track of exactly how many months."
After all, his journeys between worlds were growing longer each time—who knew how old he really was now?
Still, Mahiro couldn't help but curiously examine this self-proclaimed Yukime, a fox-eared lolita.
She didn't seem like it...
Is this really fourteen years old?
If he didn't speak up, he would have thought this fox-eared girl was only around ten years old.
Moreover, the name Yukime...
"Is something wrong, benefactor? Did I say something incorrect?"
"Wrong? Indeed it's wrong, terribly wrong! Normally, those called Yukime should all be buxom, mature older sisters with ample curves! How did it end up like this here??"
"...?"
Yukime clearly didn't understand his meaning. What could be wrong with her name?
"Don't mind me, that was just my nonsense. Pay it no heed."
Yukime: "..."
But this humble girl is truly concerned...
"By the way, I heard you constantly calling the name Gettan last night. Who is he to you? To be so important that you'd call for him even while unconscious."
This was what he was most curious about—it was this curiosity that made him watch over this beast-eared girl all night.
"....Ah..."
"Yes, yes, that's exactly the tone."
He nodded in affirmation, but Yukime fell silent.
From beneath her silver bangs, her gaze overflowed with hatred. She gritted her silver teeth tightly, the hand clutching her folding fan trembling slightly.
The bell on her pendant jingled softly.
After a long silence, Yukime whispered in a voice filled with hatred and anger: "He is my mortal enemy..."
"Oh? Do tell."
There's gossip to be heard!
Seeing Yukime's deeply resentful expression, Mahiro immediately became interested, pricking up his ears to listen carefully, almost as if he were about to produce a watermelon to eat while seated.
Lost in her tale of mortal vengeance, Yukime naturally didn't notice this, quietly recounting her past to Mahiro.
It turned out this village was called the Fox Spirit Village, with the Great Wolf Village next door—both were small tribes located in remote areas.
To survive in the cracks between larger tribes, the Fox Spirit Village planned to form an alliance through marriage with the Great Wolf Village.
The marriage partners were Yukime, who had just reached marriageable age, and the slightly older young master of the Great Wolf tribe—the swordsman Gettan.
But unexpectedly.
Before the alliance could be formed, two nearby major tribes suddenly conflicted and started a war. How could small tribes like theirs resist the war?
Naturally, they were swept into the war and became sacrificial pawns.
But what Yukime never expected was that Gettan, blindly pursuing power, to gain the cult's protection and obtain forbidden power, actually cruelly killed her mother!
To avenge her mother, she attacked Gettan, but how could the wisdom-focused fox spirit tribe hope to match the martial arts-prizing young master of the Great Wolf tribe?
Moreover, unlike her mother's three tails, she only had a single tail.
Thus, she was killed by Gettan.
Hence the scene Mahiro witnessed upon his arrival.
How tragic.
First her tribespeople were killed, then she suffered betrayal by her fiancé and lost her mother, finally she herself couldn't escape being murdered.
If this were a web novel, this would definitely qualify as protagonist treatment...
Wait, if that's the case, does that make me the protagonist's cheat ability, or perhaps playing the wise old mentor role?
Thinking this, Mahiro accompanied Yukime back to the village as she sought to recover her mother's remains.
Along the way, apart from the corpses of major clan members who had died for unknown reasons, almost all the remaining remains were those of villagers.
Familiar faces one after another, their expressions forever frozen in this moment, made Yukime feel suffocated.
Just yesterday, the villagers had gathered to bless her marriage, but now...
Suppressing the grief in her heart, Yukime found her mother among the scattered corpses.
Her body had long been chilled by the ice and snow, with a clearly visible knife mark on her neck.
She had died from a slit throat.
Her mother's expression was one of shock, eyes wide open, and her three beautiful fox tails—which she had always loved the most—were scorched black.
"Mother...!"
Yukime could no longer bear the sorrow. She immediately knelt in the snow, before her mother, and wept bitterly.
Warm tears melted the snow, spreading stains on the muddy ground.
But they could no longer bring back her mother's warmth or heartbeat.
Hatred!
So much hatred!
...Gettan!!!
Kneeling in the snow, the girl engraved the image and appearance of her beloved mother, along with the tragic scene of her homeland, into her mind.
Then she bit her lip hard.
Even as a trace of crimson spilled from the corner of her mouth, she did not let go.
She would have her revenge!
With everything cruelly taken from her, all that remained was her enemy!
But she had no money, no power—she was just a 14-year-old girl with no one to rely on. From now on, even surviving would be extremely difficult.
How could she possibly seek revenge...?
Suddenly, Yukime thought of something.
She abruptly stood up, lifted her head, and with red-rimmed eyes, looked at Mahiro. Her cherry lips, stained with blood, slowly parted as she spoke:
"Benefactor, you must be very powerful, right?"
"More or less."
Although he didn't know which world this was, with his strength, even if he were in A Certain Magical Index, in Little Garden, or even in the Lands Between or the Warhammer world—as long as he didn't encounter those top-tier monstrous beings, protecting himself wouldn't be a problem.
"Then, Benefactor, could you teach me, grant me power, and help me take revenge?!"
"What can you offer in return?" He looked at the resilient girl before him with interest.
He hadn't expected this girl to set her sights on him.
But it didn't matter. As long as the price was right, what harm was there in helping this pitiful girl?
For some reason, Mahiro felt he might have a bit of a merchant's talent?
Well, the unscrupulous kind.
"Anything!" Yukime said with unwavering determination.
"As long as it catches your eye, Benefactor, this humble girl can offer it to you—even myself! As long as you agree!"
As she spoke, she removed the haori draped over her shoulders.
Then, slowly, she untied her garment.
In this freezing, snowy environment, Yukime resolutely shed her kimono, fully exposing her body to the cold air.
Even as she shivered from the cold, even as her fair skin turned red from the chill, she made no move to pick up her clothes and put them back on.
She stood there, her gaze fixed intently on Mahiro.
Though she had never encountered top-tier powerhouses, Mahiro's harmless demeanor and his calmness when witnessing the massacre of the village allowed her to be certain of one thing—
This benefactor who saved her must be incredibly strong!
At the very least, stronger than Gettan!
Therefore, no matter what, she had to seize this opportunity before her!
If she missed it, there might not be a next time!
"Put these on. It's freezing out here—you might get sick. I'm not in the mood to take care of an invalid."
Mahiro picked up the clothes from the ground, shook off the loose snow clinging to them, and tossed them directly onto Yukime's head.
Yukime took the clothes from her head and held them to her chest.
Initially, upon hearing his words, she thought she had been rejected. Her eyelids drooped slightly, her gaze dimmed, and even her perked-up fox ears slowly sagged.
But when she heard the last part, an unusual light instantly sparkled in her eyes!
"Benefactor... May this humble one interpret this as your agreement?"
"Mhm. Starting today, you are my servant. You'll do whatever I say, with no room for resistance. Understood?"
"Yes, this humble one will remember it well!"
"Then what are you waiting for? Put on the clothes already!"
"Eh!"
"And your form of address?"
"This humble one understands—Master!"
Yukime's tail wagged happily behind her, her inner joy and excitement barely containable.
And so, a human and a fox girl embarked on their journey together.
From the stories Yukime shared and the bizarre technological development of this world, Mahiro had no clear idea where he was.
It even felt somewhat eerie.
Judging by the scenery along the way, this world possessed magic, but its application seemed crude and rudimentary.
There was no trace of elegance to it.
It was almost like watching barbarians swinging clubs around.
Not only that, but he was also astonished by this world's technological progress.
After all, what kind of Western fantasy otherworld would have an industrial era?!
They even had trains!
And unlike in The Irregular at Magic High School, though technology and magic coexisted here, they were completely separate, never merging.
Instead, they ran like two parallel lines with no intersection.
Was that even right?
However, an incident that followed soon allowed him to finally understand where he was...
"Hey, kid, which noble family's young master are you? Sneaking into our hideout in the middle of the night? Haha, that beastkin next to you looks pretty fine. Why not hand her over to us for some fun? Maybe we'll even leave your corpse intact!"
"Tch, such cliché lines from small fries. Can't you come up with something fresher?"
Mahiro sighed softly.
Before him stood several grimy-looking bandits armed with weapons, surrounding him and Yukime.
A quick glance estimated nearly twenty of them—quite a large group for mere bandits.
"It seems we've accidentally stumbled into a bandit nest."
He had originally brought Yukime into the forest for training, much like how he had trained Mine before, but he never expected to run into these people among the forest ruins.
But it was just as well—they could serve as practice targets.
"Hey, you brat! What are you muttering about over there?!"
"Yukime, play with them a little."
"I understand, Master."
Seeing the silver-haired fox girl who had been following beside him step forward voluntarily, the bandits felt a surge of heat in their hearts, their eyes constantly scanning Yukime's body.
Though they had played with many women, they had never encountered a beastkin before!
"Hehe, come here, play with me. Maybe I'll even let your master go..."
"Filth! Do not touch me!"
Swish!
With a flick of Yukime's folding fan, countless wind blades instantly shot toward the owner of the outstretched hand.
"Damn, this woman is...?!"
The bandit who had just been planning to harass Yukime immediately turned pale, but before he could even finish his sentence, he was torn to shreds by the wind blades.
Bandit fragments scattered all over the ground.
The others were so frightened they swallowed hard and retreated several steps in terror.
Those who understand this scene are unwanted by heaven, rejected by hell.