64 – Friends? No right—

[Brad’s Perspective]

As we travel the highway toward the capital, we encounter people fleeing. Many have escaped with just the clothes on their backs, carrying only the bare minimum. The refugees block our path, making it nearly impossible to proceed.

“What do we do!? We can’t get back like this!”

Inside the stalled carriage, Lily clutched her head with both hands, letting out a despairing cry. Freesia peered out the window, anxiously checking for the injured.

Despite the royal crest on our carriage, the panicked escapees did not even notice it.

At this rate, we can’t even check on the situation in the capital. If I were truly Brad, I’d probably draw my sword and cut through my own people to move forward.

What should I do…?

Wait!

Cut through… That’s it.

“Don’t panic. If there’s no path, we’ll make one.”

I leapt out of the carriage and headed into the forest beside the highway.

“Brad, what’re you doing?”

“Just watch.”

Megumi poked her head out the window, looking at me curiously. I’m trying to look cool in front of my little sister, but honestly, I’m not confident.

I kicked the base of a tree, aiming to knock it down. If I kicked with all my strength, the tree should break…

To gauge the tree’s hardness, I tapped it lightly with my toes. Just a gentle tap.

CRASH!!

“Huh?”

With just a tap, the tree was uprooted and flew off with incredible force, disappearing who-knows-where.

“As expected of Brad-sama!”

“No way!?”

“Buff Brad, absolute legend!”

Freesia, Lily, and Megumi each voice their reactions in their own way.

“It’s all Freesia’s fault that I ended up with this body.”

I made an excuse to keep Megumi from figuring out my identity, but it sounds like I’m blaming Freesia. Well, it’s not entirely wrong…

This is fun!

As I kicked tree after tree, they flew off like bullets from a machine gun.

“Whoops, maybe a bit too fast?”

I was running while kicking, but the horses were struggling to keep up, panting heavily.

Then it hit me.

Do I even need to ride the carriage? Wouldn’t it be faster to just run on my own? No, no, that wouldn’t shield me from the rain or wind, and I might catch a cold.

People think meatheads don’t get sick, but lifters pour all their recovery into muscles, so their immune systems are actually weak, making them prone to colds.

While I’m mulling over trivial thoughts, I spot the capital’s outer walls in the distance. Then, a group appears wearing navy blazers with loosened ties and unbuttoned collars.

The moment I see guys in the same school uniform as Megumi, I suddenly don’t want to let her go to school. Not that we even know if we can go back…

Tattoos peeked out from their open shirts.

High schoolers would usually hide stuff like that. Man, kids these days…

As I gaped at a guy with perfectly styled cornrows, he shoved his hands in his pockets and glared at me.

“You think that’s an attack? Huh? If throwing trees could win, that’d be easy, wouldn’t it?”

“You thought that was an attack? It’s sad to see a creature with not just a bad brain, but bad eyes too…”

“For a lowly native, you sure talk big, huh, punk!!!”

Is he mixing “primitive” and “native” or something?

I am a native now, but I was a modern person once. His comment implying this world’s culture and civilization are inferior irks me. The delinquent-looking high schooler waves at the carriage behind me.

“Megumi-chan!! Why’re you in a place like that? Come with me! We’ll enslave the folks and live it up!”

To this ape-like guy’s advances, Megumi…

“Who’re you?”

She tilted her head.

What, just a mob character? If she’d introduced a guy like that as her boyfriend, I’d be so devastated I’d jump in front of a train… Oh, wait, I’ve already been pushed.

“Megumi-chan, it’s me, Takahashi! Check out how cool I am as a warrior. I’ll kill this native in no time and save you, Megumi-chan.”

He’s making it sound bad. This Takahashi guy talks like I kidnapped Megumi.

Kidnapped? I’d say protected.

To keep her safe from scum like you. That’s the duty—no, the mission, the destiny—of someone who was Megumi’s brother in a past life.

“Brad, he’s not my friend, so you can get rid of him if he’s in the way~”

“Hahaha! No need to tell me. I’ll toss any trash that blocks my path into the manure pit.”

“You brainwashed Megumi-chan somehow, huh!? Don’t underestimate me, you native!!”

Takahashi drew the two-handed sword strapped to his back and charged at me. But my body moves on instinct, catching his slash between my fingers like plucking a feather.

“No way!? My cheat-powered attack got blocked with two fingers!? That’s impossible!!”

“Kukuku, how’s my Crab Clamp Cancer Scissors?”

I gripped the blade of his two-handed sword, Zweihander, between my index and middle fingers.

“It… It won’t budge!!”

Takahashi desperately pulled, straining his arms, shoulders, and torso, but the sword didn’t move an inch.

I’m constantly amazed by Megumi’s unfathomable abilities, and I was briefly worried that this Takahashi guy might be impressive too. But he’s nothing special, and I’m almost disappointed.

“You don’t even deserve to speak to Megumi.”

I spat the words at the fly buzzing around my former little sister, making sure Megumi didn’t hear……