Chapter 58 – Cross-Dressing, Gender-Bending (4)

As the buffs I’d prepared activated, power surged through my entire body. A stronger, more agile physique naturally brought a sense of exhilaration. Wasting a weapon on these backwoods bandits felt like a shame. I’d just beat them to a pulp.

The boss, still out of it, was nodding blankly while listening to his subordinate spew filth from his dirty mouth. His ugly face was now contorted in shock.

“N-no way! So, it didn’t matter if it was a man or a woman!”
“That’s right, Boss!”
“I’ve wasted half my life!”

What a load of crap.

“I’ll make sure the rest of your life is a waste, you filthy bastards.”

I kicked off the ground and flew at the guy standing dumbly at the front, kicking him straight on. It was satisfying to see him fly away, spewing a fountain of blood, but the unpleasant sensation in my leg was a bit unsettling. Organ rupture was a given, but did I just burst his intestines? …Well, whatever.

“Y-you bastard! Kill him! No, don’t kill him! Overpower him!”

A good beating was the only cure for these idiots who still hadn’t come to their senses. I easily dodged the attack of the guy charging at me head-on and landed a blow to his solar plexus. Then, I gifted the two guys who’d followed him with a shoulder check and a knee strike.

“E-yaaaah!”
“Didn’t you hear your boss say not to kill me?”
“S-shut up, you monster!”

After four of them went down in an instant, the guy finally seemed to snap out of it, charging at me with a huge, crude greatsword that looked like it was meant for slaughtering cattle. The whooshing sound as he swung was quite threatening, but what good was it if he couldn’t hit me? I leaned back slightly, and the blade passed right in front of my face.

As soon as the blade passed, I brushed past him and shattered his ribs with my elbow. The sickening crunch and the sensation in my elbow told me that he’d be dead soon if he didn’t get immediate treatment. Considering his shattered ribs, his internal organs, including his lungs, wouldn’t be in good shape either.

Sure enough, he was on the ground, coughing up blood and gurgling like he was about to die.

“W-what are you? Were you a knight?”
“A knight? Please. I’m a messenger of justice.”
“A messenger of justice? …Which lord’s knight are you?”
“……I don’t know, you moron. Just take your beating.”

“I, I’m sorry.”

His face was swollen, and his pronunciation was slurred. But it wasn’t over yet. I helped the boss and the guy who’d been running his mouth next to him to their feet. They couldn’t give up so easily.

“Friends, we’re not done yet. Stand up straight, Hassan!”
“I, I’m not Hassan.”
“Whatever. I’m about to give you a taste of justice, and if you can endure it, I’ll heal you and let you go. If you can’t, just say so. I’ll just bury you and be on my way.”
“I, I’ve already been hit a lot…”
“Uh-uh.”
“……I’ll endure it.”

I made them stand at attention and stood in front of them, clenching my fists.
This wasn’t because of any personal feelings, nor was it to relieve the stress I’d been under lately because of that weird Diana.

This was the hammer of justice.

“Repentance punch! Repentance punch! Repentance punch!”
“Ugh! Cough! Gack! Ack!”

I was a person with a conscience, so I didn’t use any buffs, and I even wrapped their clothes thickly around my hands before hitting them. Hmm, it felt like gloves, and the sensation wasn’t bad.

My back was a bit stiff after bestowing the blessing of repentance on the boss. Was it because I’d been running around fighting dozens of people? It was tiring. Still, I had to make sure that the guy who’d been running his mouth next to him repented…

I was catching my breath, ready to teach the sniveling lackey next to the boss, who was foaming at the mouth and collapsed, the taste of repentance, when I noticed Karsilla staring blankly at me.

The little tuft of hair on the top of her head was twitching adorably. She was fiddling with something in her hands, and what was that… Knuckles? Why was she looking at me so eagerly while playing with knuckles?

“…Karsilla.”
“Yes!”
“Do you want to try punching?”
“I want to!”

I wondered if it was a good idea to teach a kid how to punch people… But maybe it was for the best. There was no way to live peacefully in this world. If Karsilla was involved with me and traveled with me, she would eventually find herself in a dangerous situation.

I figured it wouldn’t be bad to give her the experience of punching bad guys now, so I gestured to her, and she immediately ran over. She was so excited.

“Okay. You’re going to punch this sniveling guy. Got it?”
“Yes!”
“…….”

I could see the contempt in the eyes of the bandit as he looked down at the little girl who barely reached his waist, but he was just a lackey with no foresight. Karsilla’s physical abilities were on par with mine. …Was she really suited for magic?

“The stance is like this. Try to hold it like Daddy. That’s right. It’s not about arm strength, but about twisting your body and using the power of your butt and back to punch! Got it?”

It was cute to see her punching the air so diligently, but the sound of her cutting through the air was ominous, and a drop of sweat trickled down the lackey’s forehead. He must still be unsure. He’d regret not getting hit by me after experiencing one of Karsilla’s punches.

“The battle cry is ‘Repentance Punch!’ Got it?”
“……Umm. Battle cry. Do I have to?”
“Of course! That’s the key. Okay, get in position.”
“Knuckles.”
“You want to wear knuckles? Sure.”

I stood Karsilla in front of the pale-faced lackey and put the loose knuckles on her tiny hands. She looked pretty cool in her fighting stance… Ugh, she was so cute.

“Punch!”
“Re, repentance…”

Her battle cry was weak. Karsilla’s knuckles, as she mumbled, landed right on the lackey’s…
Thwack!

“…Ouch.”
“……That feels weird.”

Oh, right. Karsilla was short, so her target was the man’s crotch. I felt a pang of sympathy watching him convulse on the ground.

“You didn’t aim for that, did you?”
“Weak spot.”
“……Weak spot?”
“Yes.”

What a scary kid. She stared blankly at her knuckles, then smiled brightly and ran to Diana. I could only stare blankly at her retreating figure. Diana, what kind of early education are you giving her?

“Hey. Are you okay?”
“Ughhhh.”

Oh dear. That’s unfortunate.
I left the seemingly hopeless lackey and approached the boss, who jumped up in surprise. He was very disciplined now. You really had to beat them to make them listen.

“I have a favor to ask.”
“Anything, sir!”
“Oh, I like that attitude.”

Since things had turned out this way, I asked for everything I needed. The idiot couldn’t memorize it properly, so I hit him on the head a few times, but some things just couldn’t be helped. So, I lined up ten people and made them memorize different things.

“You, food. You, clothes. You, accessories. You, camping supplies. You…”

I wasn’t going to go around announcing that I was disguising myself, and it would be too obvious if I only asked for the things I needed for the disguise, so I had them bring everything, whether I needed it or not. A mountain of stuff piled up.

Hmm. That’s a lot.

“You’ve worked hard. You can go now.”
“Thank you! Thank you!”
“Okay. My repentance punches have washed away your past sins, so live a good life from now on.”

I felt proud, like I’d played the role of a cleric for the first time in a while. A sense of fulfillment filled my chest, and I grinned as I waved to my kids.

“Let’s pack all this up!”
“……Yurian. Have you been… under a lot of stress lately?”
“Huh? What are you talking about? Ian, you’re the one who looks stressed.”

Why were they all making that face? Anyway, we packed up all the luggage and moved to another spot, where we were finally able to complete our disguises.

* * *

Yanson Lowe, the owner of the Lowe Trading Company, was grumbling as he sat on the driver’s seat of the rattling carriage.

“This damn carriage is always a mess. There isn’t a single day when my butt is okay. I’m so sick of this trading business. I should just quit and live a quiet life. Ugh.”
“Come on, Master Trader. If you, who built this trading company with your own hands, leave, what will happen to our Lowe Trading Company? Everything we’ve achieved is thanks to your abilities.”
“Oh, come on. How could it all be my doing? Haha.”

He always grumbled, but everyone in the trading company knew that he didn’t mean it. Mersi, the trading company employee sitting next to him, was muttering familiar words of flattery while thinking that he needed to quit this damn trading company as soon as possible.

“By the way, this imperial road is amazing. It’s incredible that such a large, well-made road has been maintained for so long… I wish there was a road like this to the remote village we’re going to.”
“You only know one thing and not two. If there were good roads everywhere, what would people like us live on? The poor transportation is what allows small merchants like us to make a living.”
“Oh, that’s right! Amazing! I’m learning something new today, Master Trader!”
“Hehehe, yes, yes. Learn a lot.”

What a load of crap, he was just showing off with common sense.
Mersi, who was grumbling inwardly, turned his gaze to the endless road. It was supposed to be a boring scene with the same scenery repeating, but the moment he saw one person, the boring scenery disappeared in an instant.

A nonchalant expression. A slender, tall figure. White skin like jade and red lips.
Mersi, who had traveled to countless cities and villages as a trading company employee, had seen many famous beauties, but he had never seen anyone as beautiful as this person.

Just looking at her made the surroundings feel brighter. He realized that the boring scenery could be so beautiful.

“Wow. She’s beautiful.”

Yanson Lowe, who was driving the carriage next to him, blinked at the exclamation that had come out of his mouth without him realizing it.

“Beautiful? Who are you talking about?”
“Th-there, over there. That woman… I never imagined there was a woman this beautiful in the world.”
“…Oh. I see. In my 50 years, I’ve never seen a lady as lovely as her.”

The eyes of the two men, as well as the trading company employees and the escorting mercenaries, were glued to the beauty. The clattering of the horses’ hooves continued, and the beauty drew closer.

“Gulp.”

Mersi, who was watching her in a daze, swallowed unconsciously, and then suddenly turned his head in surprise because of a bug that had flown past his face. And that was when he realized that the carriage had veered off course.

“O-oh! M-Master Trader! In front! In front!”
“Huh? Oh!”

The two horses pulling the carriage had naturally avoided the thick tree in front of them. It was a natural thing for any creature with eyes to do. The problem was that the two horses had kindly avoided the tree on either side, which meant that the tree was getting closer.

The master trader and Mersi screamed as they watched the tree rapidly approaching from the driver’s seat. Was this how they were going to die? To die while distracted by a woman, what an embarrassing death! …No, but still, I got to see an angel-like woman before I died, so should I call it a blessing?

A myriad of thoughts flashed through his mind, followed by the impact. Mersi gritted his teeth and braced for the impact, but strangely, the impact was weaker than he expected. No, rather than weak, it felt soft and… smelled good… Huh?

Mersi opened his eyes with a start and was shocked to see the beauty’s face right in front of him. He could only open and close his mouth, letting out a silent scream.

“Are you okay?”

A voice that was low for a woman. But even this husky voice felt alluring. Was it because he was out of his mind? Mersi nodded frantically.

He felt like his body was sinking, and when he felt a hard surface on his back, he realized that the woman had been holding him. S-she saved me? How?

Mersi, who was gaping in shock as he lay on the ground and looked up at the woman, saw the brilliant sunlight gradually beginning to shine behind her.

It was like a halo.
The bright sunlight was slowly revealing itself behind the woman with the nonchalant expression. It was hard to look at the bright light, and the woman, surrounded by deep shadows and a dazzling halo, looked down at Mersi for a moment before turning away indifferently.

‘…An angel. She’s an angel.’

Mersi regretted his past impiety and sublimated his burning faith into tears. The angel had saved him!!