Chapter 21

That girl was by no means exceptional.

She wasn’t bright, her body was frail, and her timid nature made it impossible for her to stand up to others. Though her face might’ve been cute if you looked closely, her unsociable, selfish attitude meant she was never popular.

From a young age, she was well aware of her flaws. She accepted a life within her means, helping with her parents’ work at home while scraping by.

Her lack of marriage prospects was a concern, but her family wasn’t struggling financially. In fact, they had enough to spare, so she was never rushed into an unwanted marriage.

Yes—her family was wealthy. Because her brother, now an adventurer, sent them large sums of money every month.

Unlike his sister, her brother could be called extraordinary. Gifted in swordsmanship, diligent in his training, yet never arrogant. A renowned adventurer who commanded respect.

But the girl, having grown up with him, knew the truth. His body had once been just as weak, and he was far from a genius. His looks were only slightly above average—nothing to suggest he’d been born with any advantage over her.

The difference was simple: he worked tirelessly. While she idled away her childhood, he swung his sword ceaselessly.

An ordinary girl, and a master swordsman.

To her, her brother was her superior in every way. Born with the same potential, he had honed his skill with the blade and earned admiration. Meanwhile, she couldn’t even secure a marriage proposal, making only meager earnings from odd jobs.

She envied him. She resented him.

So her attitude toward him was far from commendable. She complained constantly, hurling insults if he retorted. She stole from his wallet when short on money, and in worse moments, even broke into his safe to take everything.

Yet despite being such a hopeless sister, she was still loved by him.

"Hey! I keep telling you not to take my money without asking!"

"...Hmph."

"Fine, I get it. I’ll take time off and visit home soon. But seriously, it’s a problem if you keep stealing my cash just because you’re lonely!"

"I’m not lonely. Not even a little."

Her brother knew her too well. That she was an extreme loner, acting out just to get his attention. That if he returned home, the money she stole would still be untouched.

Her feelings for him were as strong as her jealousy. She adored her kind-hearted brother, who accepted and doted on someone like her.

"If you want your money back, you should come home and get it yourself."
"Ugh… My armor payment’s due tomorrow, damn it!"

This was simply her way of clinging to him—excessive, but understood. So her brother laughed and forgave her.

...Yes. He was truly an exceptional man. A man of great character.

And then, his death was announced via a single sheet of paper from the guild. When she inquired, the receptionist confirmed it—his death had been verified by another adventurer.

That adventurer’s name was Rex.

---

"My brother always said something."

"...Oh? And what was that?"

"That there was still one person he couldn’t defeat."

The girl stared straight at the Sword Saint, her eyes burning with unmistakable hostility.

"My brother is dead. The man who should’ve been the world’s strongest swordsman—really, truly dead."

Rex narrowed his eyes slightly, meeting her words head-on.

"If that’s possible… if there’s someone who could defeat him… then the only one in this world who could’ve done it is you, Rex! That’s what he always said!"

"Well… yeah. Can’t think of any other swordsman who’d stand a chance against him."

"Which means—you’re the one who killed him!"

Her grip tightened. A blade of roaring crimson flames flickered violently in the breeze.

Trembling, she raised her sword high and screamed the name of the man who murdered her brother.

"So I’ll kill you, Rex!!"

"I see. So that’s your reasoning…"

"I’ll never forgive you… for taking him from me! The only one who was ever kind to someone like me!"

────Before her words even finished, she lunged at Rex with a battle cry—only to be pitifully kicked away, tumbling across the ground.

"Fine by me. But you’d better be ready. If you’re declaring you’ll kill me, then don’t complain when you’re the one who ends up dead."

"I’ll complain anyway!"

"...Selfish brat."

Her face smeared with dirt, the girl forced herself up. With her frail, untrained arms, she lifted the heavy blade once more.

"Just die already! I’ll burn your body to ashes with my blazing sword!"

"Pretty sure beginner-level fire magic won’t even scratch my armor, but… eh, whatever."

Again, she charged.

The only reason she raised her sword so high was her complete lack of strength. Without borrowing gravity’s aid, she couldn’t deliver a decisive strike.

"At least calm down first—!!"

"ULTIMATE TECHNIQUE! RISING ETERNAL FAVORITEEEE!!"

Of course, her feeble slash never stood a chance against a swordsman who had ascended to sainthood. After shouting some inexplicable move name, she was kicked squarely in the side, sent flying with a spray of blood, her body bending like a broken doll before slamming into a rock and losing consciousness.

"Ah. Oops. Maybe I overdid it?"

"Hey, Rex! That was a seriously nasty hit just now!"

"I mean, if she’s his sister, she should at least know how to break her fall—"

"Idiot, she’s a total amateur! Couldn’t you tell?!"

Rex paled slightly. He’d genuinely assumed she’d know basic defense.

But the girl was a complete novice. Sure, she might’ve heard a thing or two about swordsmanship from her brother—but she’d never once practiced it.

"...Yep. Out cold. And her bones are broken, so we’ll need to heal her properly."

"Ugh, what do we do? I kicked her expecting she’d at least know how to land, but she’s seriously just a civilian?"

"Rex, you’re the worst. I’m spreading the word everywhere—‘Sword Saint kicks defenseless girl at full power.’"

"Please, I’m begging you, don’t."

And so, the feeble swordsgirl’s revenge came to an abrupt end. Leaving an unconscious woman on the roadside was unthinkable, so Rex and his party reluctantly carried her with them for half a day.

The swordswoman sighed as she gently carried the girl on her back, while the Sword Saint endured relentless jeers from his companions.

---

"……Hah!"

"Oh, you're awake."

About half a day had passed since Natal collapsed. My hopeless little sister, who had been drooling on my shoulder while dead asleep, finally woke up as the sky turned crimson. Maybe she was hungry.

"Eh, wh-what? Me? I… lost?"

"Come on, you—there’s no way someone who’s never even held a sword could win against a Sword Saint."

"Oh, little sis, you’re awake? Sorry ’bout earlier, went a bit too hard on ya."

"You hurt anywhere? Rex kinda messed up holdin’ back, so you took a pretty nasty hit, y’know."

I was starting to get tired, so this was a relief. I lowered my now-awake sister from my back.

"……Rex!! You bastard—I’ll avenge my brother—!"

"Hey, stop. Calm down, Natal."

"Ah, little sis? I’ve got somethin’ important to say. If you’re gonna freak out, at least hear me out first."

……As expected, my sister’s an idiot. Even after getting instantly wrecked earlier, the moment she sees Rex, she charges in like a wild boar. At this point, she’s barely any different from an animal. Why couldn’t she have been born with an intelligent personality like mine?

As if lecturing her, Rex scratched his cheek and dodged Natal’s reckless charge.

"One thing? What the hell are you gonna say?!"

"Your brother might still be alive. Captured by the enemy, or somethin’."

"Huh?"

At Rex’s words, Natal’s eyes wavered, and she froze. Yep, that’s right. Your big bro’s alive. Not captured by the enemy or anything, though.

"But… my brother died…"

"Yeah, I’m the one who reported that to the guild. But circumstances changed… There’s a chance he’s still kickin’. Wanna hear more, little sis?"

"So… you didn’t kill him?"

"……Course not. He’s my one and only best friend. No matter what happens, there’s no way I’d kill him."

Liar. During that sparring match, you threw out slashes that would’ve killed me if they landed. Then again, maybe you just trusted my ability to deflect them?

"Tell me! No—please, just tell me! What… happened to my brother?!"

"Yeah."

And so, Rex began his tale. How, in the cave where I supposedly died, he met a mysterious, beautiful swordswoman named Flatche and learned that they were reviving corpses. And how there was no way the demons would just leave behind the corpse of someone as handsome and insanely strong as me, so sooner or later, he’d have to face my reanimated corpse as an enemy—and that he was chasing the Demon King’s army to reclaim it.

Oh, so that’s why. Rex being so proactive about Demon King’s army quests and searching for my corpse is partly because of that, huh.

Well… too bad my corpse was cremated in Saikoro Volcano! Along with Jalliba!

"So I… picked a fight with someone important to my brother…? No way…"

"Ah, don’t sweat it. I’ve got adventurers picking fights with me all the time—not worth gettin’ worked up over."

"I-I’m sorry. I misunderstood…"

"Rex making a younger girl he bullied apologize… Hmm, I could probably sell this info for a good price."

"Knock it off, Flatche."

No way. I’m still pissed about my sister getting wrecked earlier.

Still, Natal’s… Natal. As much as she’s my sister, she’s way too gullible. You shouldn’t believe someone’s words without proof, you know…

This time, it just so happened that Rex was a decent guy and his story was true, but if he’d been some malicious scammer, who knows what could’ve happened to her?

What the hell’s Mom doing, letting Natal travel alone like this? She’s too dim and naive—perfect prey for bad people. I need to wrap this up quick and send her back home.

"Rex… you’re looking for my brother, right?"

"Yeah."

"……Then… take me with you! I’m coming too!"

…And yet, the girl in question clearly has no intention of going back.

Natal, an adventurer? That’s obviously a no-go. C’mon, Rex, shut her down hard.

"Whoa there, little sis. Adventurin’ is dangerous—you could die any day. If somethin’ happened to you, I’d never be able to face him again."

"I’ll be fine. I’ll… I’ll get stronger!"

"Sorry, but adventuring ain’t some easy job where I can babysit you. I don’t got time to wait around for you to get stronger."

"I’ll handle chores. You can leave me behind in dangerous places, I don’t care. I just… I want to be by your side, where I’ll hear about my brother first!"

Rex was handling this like an adult, but Natal wasn’t backing down an inch.

Even if she says she’ll handle chores… Natal doesn’t even do housework normally. The best you can manage is butchering vegetables into a sad mess and calling it 'salad.'

"I see. So you’re not becoming an adventurer—you’re becoming a maid, is that it?"

"A maid?"

……Oi, Rex, why do you sound so into this?

"Hmm… Up till now, we've had Karin handle chores on the side, but hiring someone dedicated to housework might not be a bad idea. What do you all think?"

"Hoh. So ya really plannin’ on takin’ her along, Rex?"

"If I dump her, she might just join another adventurer party and cause trouble. She’s my best friend’s little sister—keepin’ her somewhere safe where I can keep an eye on her ain’t the worst idea."

"……She doesn’t exactly look like she can handle housework, though."

"I-I can do it!"

Stop it, Rex, get a grip. If you make Natal a maid, it wouldn’t be surprising if the hideout exploded mid-cleaning.

"Rex, you should reconsider. Just look at those dull, lifeless eyes of hers."

"So you’re adding another girl to the party, huh…"

And honestly, Mei’s kinda scary right now.

"I don’t mind doin’ chores part-time since I’m gettin’ paid, but… eh, it’s up to Rex."

"Hmm, seems like nobody’s really on board. But y’know… havin’ a maid greet me at home was always one of my dreams."

"Ew, creepy."

Rex, you’re disgusting. The fact that you’re even considering making Natal a maid is proof of that.

Maids are supposed to be cool and composed—that’s the standard. Clumsy maid types might be cute in stories, but in reality, they’d just stress you out until you go bald. And Natal is definitely the latter.

"……Lord Rex. If you wanted that, you could’ve just told me."

"Nah, Mei, you’re combat personnel. You’re our party’s biggest firepower."

"I can still use magic even in a maid outfit!"

"If I showed up to a job with a black mage in a maid dress, I’d be undeniably labeled a pervert."

"Relax, Rex. You are a pervert."

And so, despite everyone’s reservations, Rex bulldozed ahead with the idea. With Natal’s own enthusiastic insistence, our hideout gained a tiny new maid.

……Don’t come crying to me when this backfires.

"Why’s the skirt so ridiculously short…? Sniff…"

"Rex is a hopeless degenerate, after all."

And thus, the frilly maid outfit Rex prepared turned out to be a shameless, fetishistic design that laid bare his tastes for all to see.

I’m a guy too, but I’ll say it outright: Men are idiots.