After Crushing the Final Boss, I Got Infinite Mana and Returned to Earth ～With Cheat-Level Power, I’ll Rule Both the Game World and the Real World～ - Chapter 09: I Won’t Forgive Anyone Who Harms My Family

Chapter 09: I Won’t Forgive Anyone Who Harms My Family

“Seriously!! The moment the exam ended, why didn’t you come pick me up right away, you idiot!! I thought you’d abandoned me!!”

“Sorry, I completely forgot.”

After finishing my first day at the magic academy, I suddenly remembered I’d left Diabel in the familiar holding room. I hurried to fetch him and brought him back home to Japan.

The instant I stepped through the door, Aoi and Saori greeted me.

Coming home to family waiting for me—that kind of happiness was beyond words.

“Welcome back, Onii-chan!!”

“I’m home.”

“Tonight’s your favorite, Minato-kun—karaage!! It’s almost done frying, so just hang tight!!”

From the kitchen came a mouthwatering aroma that made my stomach growl.

Yes. Karaage. Victory was mine.

I waited, heart pounding in anticipation for the golden fried chicken to be ready.

But then—an unexpected crisis struck.

“Onii-chan, we’ve got a disaster!! We’re out of mayonnaise!!”

“…Do we really need it?”

“Of course!! Karaage isn’t complete without mayonnaise!! Sure, lemon might be your thing, Onii-chan, but you just don’t get it!!”

Right, I’d almost forgotten—my little sister was a hardcore mayo addict.

For the record, Saori was team sauce, while my late father had always sworn by salt and pepper.

A family where everyone had their own karaage topping preference… that had to be pretty rare, right?

“Ugh, if I go to the supermarket now, will I even make it in time…?”

“They should sell it at the convenience store, right?”

“That’s it!! I’ll run over right now!!”

“It’s already pitch black outside. It’s dangerous to go alone.”

“Ah, Onii-chan!! I’ll buy you pudding, so come with me!!”

“…Fine.”

And so, Aoi and I headed off to the convenience store together.

Naturally, Diabel stayed home. No way I could risk people in this world spotting him—instant chaos.

Not that he’d have come along anyway… he was way too glued to the late-night anime Aoi had recorded to even care.

We walked down the quiet nighttime street, and out of nowhere Aoi let out a giggle.

“Fufu.”

“What’s so funny all of a sudden?”

“Nothing, really. Just… before you died, Onii-chan, sometimes we’d sneak out at night and buy cup noodles at the convenience store like this, remember?”

Reminiscing like that, we arrived at the store before I even realized it.

Time really flew.

Aoi grabbed mayonnaise and pudding—and while she was at it, tossed a few snacks into the basket.

When we stepped back outside, a group of guys had gathered by the entrance. They definitely hadn’t been there when we walked in.

“Hey, hey, you! High schooler, right? You’re super cute!!”

“Why don’t you hang out with us for a bit?”

“Don’t worry, we won’t do anything!!”

“P-Please stop, you’re bothering me…”

Looked like three guys were hitting on a lone girl.

Best to ignore that kind of scene.

Even if I stepped in, there’d be no reward for it. And honestly, I wasn’t the kind of nice guy who’d go out of his way to save some random stranger whose face I didn’t even know.

But—there was someone here who didn’t hesitate.

Aoi.

“Hey!! She’s clearly not interested, so cut it out already!!”

“Hah? Who do you think you’re talking to, acting all high and mighty—wait, damn, you’re super cute!!”

“Yeah, forget her, come hang out with us instead!!”

The moment one of them reached out for her—

Aoi grabbed his wrist and, with almost no effort, flipped him straight over her shoulder.

The guy crashed down on the hard asphalt, landing butt-first. Groaning in pain, he sat there too stunned to even process what had just happened.

“Wha—huh!?”

“W-What the hell was that just now!?”

The guys were left in total confusion.

Even putting aside my bias as her brother, Aoi was a genius. And on top of that, a relentless hard worker.

In sports like soccer, basketball, and volleyball, she’d put up results in less than a month after starting. In karate, judo, kendo—even mixed martial arts—she had a knack for winning her very first tournaments.

On top of that, she was always ranked number one in school exams.

And yet, despite being such a prodigy, she never skipped her hobbies—devouring light novels and binge-watching anime. Sometimes I honestly wondered if she was even human.

…That said, she had two major flaws. One was her habit of blurting out whatever popped into her head without thinking. The other was her dangerously low internet literacy that made her want to post literally everything online.

If not for those two fatal flaws, she’d probably be living the perfect school life by now—adored by both boys and girls alike.

And unlike me, she actually had the kindness to step in and help people without hesitation.

Fixing her sharp gaze on the thugs, Aoi declared:

“Want to keep going? I’m stronger than all of you put together.”

“Gh—h-hey, let’s get out of here!!”

“Y-Yeah!!”

“W-Wait!! Don’t leave me behind!!”

The three of them bolted like frightened rabbits, tails tucked between their legs.

As Aoi watched them scatter, she turned to the girl they’d been harassing and spoke with a gentle smile.

“Are you okay? …Wait—Uesaka-san!?”

“Eh—Suzuki-san!?”

Turns out the girl being harassed was actually someone Aoi knew.

From what I overheard, she was her classmate.

Her hair was dyed half white and half black, giving her a flashy gal vibe that looked way too mature for a middle schooler.

Wait—hold on.

Are middle schoolers even allowed to dye their hair?

Could it be she’s… a delinquent?

As her brother, I knew I shouldn’t meddle too much in Aoi’s friendships—but still, I couldn’t help feeling a little worried.

The moment Uesaka saw Aoi, her face turned bright red and she clearly panicked.

Her eyes darted around nervously… until they landed on me.

And just like that, the light in her eyes went out.

“H-Hey, Suzuki-san. That guy with you… is he, maybe, your boyfriend?”

“Eh!? No, no, no!! He’s my Onii-chan!!”

“Your brother? But… didn’t you say your brother passed away last month…?”

“Ah—uh, well!! Not my Onii-chan, exactly… more like Onii-chan’s friend, kind of…”

“So basically, just some random guy?”

Uesaka shot me a glare and muttered under her breath.

“Suzuki-san was heartbroken after losing her brother. If you’re trying to take advantage of that, I won’t forgive you.”

“…Understood.”

So in the end, despite her intimidating look, she turned out to be a kind, protective girl who cared deeply about her friends.

A good reminder not to judge people by appearances.

After chatting with Aoi a little longer, Uesaka waved goodbye with a, “See you at school tomorrow,” before heading off.

“Aoi, make sure you treasure friends like that, alright?”

“I already do, y’know? But Uesaka-san sometimes gives me these scary looks… maybe she actually hates me?”

“That wasn’t hate exactly… well, it’d be rude of me to spell it out.”

“Eh, what!? What do you mean!?”

We made it back home and sat down to enjoy the freshly fried karaage.

“Mmm!! Karaage’s not complete without mayonnaise!!”

“Sauce tastes way better.”

“Lemon’s the best—simple and refreshing.”

“For me, it’s ketchup. The tang balances out the oiliness and brings out the true flavor of the meat.”

And right then—

Our guard dog, Shiva, let out a low growl and started barking loudly in the yard.

“Hm? That’s strange. Shiva almost never barks that much.”

“…I’ll go check. Maybe he’s just upset the food wasn’t enough.”

“Oh, then I’ll leave it to you, Minato-kun.”

I stepped out the front door and quietly listened in on the voices of intruders lurking in our yard.

“R-Really gonna do this?”

“Can’t just let her get away with disrespecting us!! Even if they’re tough, scare ’em with a knife and they’ll freak out. I’ll make her pay—gonna rape that bitch.”

“B-But if we get caught, it won’t just be an arrest…”

“Relax, relax. My old man’s a yakuza exec with cops in his pocket. If things blow up, he’ll get it squashed.”

“S-Still, even so…”

“Gaah, this damn dog’s noisy. Maybe we should kill the dog first?”

“N-No, come on—don’t do that. I had a dog when I was a kid. I promised never to hurt one.”

“Shut up, you’re such a whiner!! Fine—then you go home!! And if you snitch to the cops, we’ll off you too!!”

Yep—it was them. The same three guys who’d tried hitting on Uesaka at the convenience store and gotten handled by Aoi. Two of them were carrying knives, and their talk was getting uglier by the second.

Breaking into someone’s yard with knives and bragging about hurting my sister… I could hardly believe it. Hard to imagine they’d been raised in a law-abiding country.

“Hey, you lot.”

“““!?!?”””

“If you turn around and leave right now, I won’t do anything. Go home.”

“Pfft—hahaha.”

When I said that quietly, the two with knives just sneered and laughed.

“Hey, hey. Can’t you see his knife?”

“Shut up and behave. Make a fuss and I’ll kill you first.”

“…Too bad for you.”

I chanted a spell, then used a teleportation magic to send the two knife-wielding guys far away.

Left in the yard was only the one who’d refused to hurt Shiva.

He went pale when the other two vanished, staring at me with terrified eyes.

“What are you going to do? If you change your ways and stop causing trouble, I’ll let you go.”

“I-I-I’m leaving!! I’ll turn over a new leaf and live right!!”

“Good to hear. And whatever happened here stays between us. If you tell anyone—well, you know what that means.”

“Eek—I-I’m sorry!!”

He scrambled away on his stomach and ran like crazy. He probably thought I wasn’t human.

Good. That meant he’d never dare mess with us again.

Even if he did, as long as he didn’t target Aoi or Saori, I didn’t much care.

After watching him flee, I went to where I’d teleported the other two and made sure they were still out of the picture.

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[Afterword]

A Random Tidbit

After that, the dog-loving guy sometimes felt like someone was watching him and ended up with a touch of insomnia—but he got a steady job, looked after his parents, and lived a peaceful life. Later on, the book he wrote, There Are Gods You Shouldn’t Mess With, became a bestseller. Happy ending all around.

If you thought, “Aoi was just way too strong in every possible way,” toss those ★s!

And if you found yourself thinking, “Everyone arguing over karaage toppings was wholesome,” “Uesaka’s totally crushing on Aoi, right?” or “No mercy, lol,” —then please leave your thoughts, bookmark, give a ★rating, or write a review!