The Kitsune's Cursed Hero

Chapter 18

Y/n's POV

The next day, after celebrating Filo's accession to Filolial princess, Fitoria used her magic to teleport us to a hero that was close to the border. "Thank you so much for the ride, Fitoria. We appreciate it." Big sis said, bowing slightly to Fitoria.

"And thanks for the new wagon you gave us as well." Melty said. I looked over seeing Filo admiring the wagon that Fitoria gave her. "Yeah. Filo seems to really enjoy pulling them." Big sis said. Fitoria looked nervous about something as she looked at Filo as well. Filo noticed us looking at her before she got down from the wagon and raised her arms. "No take backs! It's all mine, okay!" Filo said protectively. She transformed into her filolial form as she looked at us. "She gave it to all of us, Filo." Big brother corrected. Melty and big sis laughed about Filo's reaction and big brother's response. "Hey Fitoria, is there a hero nearby?" Big brother asked. She looked at big brother before nodding. "Very close, in fact." Fitoria added.

"Oh, boy... Are we ready to deal with them?" I asked. Big brother shrugged to answer my question. "Shield hero, kitsune hero. Please take good care of her and don't forget, you made me a promise." Fitoria said. Big sis started getting the wagon hooked up to Filo so she could pull it as Melty climbed into the wagon. "I know. We'll do what we can." Big brother said. We started heading down the road towards the border, waving at Fitoria as we left her behind. "She seemed worried about something." I commented. Big sis looked at me before looking back at where Fitoria was. "It looked that way, didn't it?" Big sis added. We continued down the road as Filo hummed happily. Melty was smiling as she looked at Filo. "It's great that we were given a new wagon." I commented.

"Yeah, it's a nice one too." Melty added. The trip was a quiet one as we traveled through a small wooded area before coming to a stop on a cliff and looking down at the border checkpoint. "If we could just get past that wall, we'd be on the other side of the border." Big sis said, looking at a map. I was watching the wall, seeing the outlines of guards walking along the top of the wall. "Is there another way around?" Melty asked.

"We could take a detour, but if we do, it'll cost us a few more days on the road." Big sis explained. I sighed, thinking that it would be better to take the detour. "Yes, but Fitoria said there was a hero not too far from here, didn't she? It might make sense for us to take that detour, anyway." Melty suggested. I looked at big brother who was clearly thinking about the options we had. "Master Naofumi, what do you think?" Big sis asked. I walked over to him before patting his head and getting him to look at me. "We made a promise." I said. Big brother nodded before patting my head. "Let's head straight for the checkpoint. If it's Itsuki or Ren, we might be able to persuade them." Big brother said.

"They were willing to hear us out a little when we last ran into them." I added.

"Okay, but what do we do if that doesn't work?" Melty asked. I looked back at the checkpoint, thinking of what I'd have to do to help get us past it. "We'll just have to force our way through, then." Big brother answered. 

"Alright then." Melty said, agreeing with big brother. I looked back at her, confused by how willing she was to go along with that plan. "What's wrong?" Melty asked.

"Well, I figured you'd try to stop me from doing something to make our reputation even worse." Big brother said. Melty's expression changed as she looked upset at big brother's comment. "There are people out there like Idol who are willing to summon monsters just so then can torment innocent people. This isn't the time to be worried about your reputation," Melty said. I smiled before walking over and patting her head. "You've grown up some." I said, smiling at her. Melty looked at me, confused, before looking away. "What are you talking about? I have not." Melty asked. I continued to smile before big brother stood up looking at us. "She makes a good point. Get ready, we're leaving." Big brother said. We all climbed back into the wagon and started making our way to the checkpoint. When we were getting close to it, the sound of a horn rang out through the air. "Guess they know we're coming." I said, climbing into the front seat.