70. The Pride of a Sekirei

"Hey? Don't you have better things to do than follow me around, like spending time with your women?" Walking down the street, Karasuba glanced at Sora and Nanami trailing behind her, a sly smile on her face.

"Tch, as if you're not one of my women!"

"Anyway, there's nothing going on at Izumo Inn, so I figured I'd tag along with you."

Shrugging, Sora replied nonchalantly.

"Suit yourself. But if you get in the way of my work, I'll kill you!" Though her tone was threatening, Karasuba couldn't help but feel a strange sensation in her heart.

It was something she had never felt before, and it was odd.

It felt like… a hint of joy.

Shaking her head, Karasuba quickly dismissed the strange feeling. All she needed to care about was fighting and killing. Everything else was unnecessary!

Though he noticed Karasuba's slight unease, Sora didn't dwell on it. He simply smirked and continued following her with Nanami in tow.

Karasuba's job was to eliminate Sekirei and Ashikabi who violated the rules. However, after the previous incidents, most Ashikabi had learned to stay hidden, making it difficult to find them.

"Huh? Karasuba, we've got work to do!" Suddenly spotting two figures in the distance, Sora's eyes lit up as he called out to Karasuba.

They had been searching for hours, and Sora was starting to get bored. Finally, someone had shown up!

"No. 84, Yashima, Ashikabi Tanigawa Junichi. Not a target." After glancing at the two figures, Karasuba calmly informed Sora.

"You've been following me all this time just to get me to help you collect more Sekirei, haven't you?" Seeing the disappointment on Sora's face, Karasuba smirked, her tone laced with disdain.

"Uh… haha, no way! I just wanted to help you finish your job so you can go home and rest!"

Feeling slightly embarrassed, Sora denied it outright, even though that was indeed part of the reason he had been following her.

"Hmph!" Snorting, Karasuba turned her head away, though for some reason, she felt a pang of irritation.

As the two were talking, the two figures approached them.

Leading the way was a young man in his twenties, dressed in a dark blue casual outfit with his hands in his pockets, his nose held high as if he owned the world.

Behind him was a Sekirei girl wearing a blue-and-white dress.

The girl had short orange hair and a long blue ribbon tied around her forehead, her attire simple and unadorned.

Covered in dirt and looking utterly exhausted, she dragged a massive hammer behind her, clearly having just come out of a battle.

She was so tired that she could barely walk straight.

"Ugh, all you do is fight!"

"You're so useless. You almost got yourself killed."

The young man continued to berate the girl as they walked, clearly dissatisfied with her. The girl, however, simply kept her head down and followed silently, not daring to argue.

Frowning, Sora couldn't help but feel a surge of disgust toward the young man.

The guy acted like he was the king of the world, and anyone would find that annoying.

Moreover, his Sekirei was clearly struggling to even walk, yet instead of showing concern, he was hurling insults at her!

Though he was deeply irritated, Sora had long outgrown the phase of acting on impulse. Since the young man hadn't violated any rules, he was still part of the Sekirei Plan, and Sora wouldn't act recklessly.

Stepping aside to let the arrogant young man pass, Sora Tsui thought to himself that he'd deal with this annoying guy when they met on the battlefield.

However, just then—

Thud! A dull sound.

As they passed by Sora and the others, the Sekirei girl couldn't hold on any longer and collapsed to the ground.

"Hey, are you okay?" Bending down, Sora reached out to help the girl up.

Seeing the girl in such a pitiful state, Sora felt a surge of anger, but he quickly calmed himself down.

However, while Sora managed to keep his cool, someone else was about to lose theirs.

Thud! A foot landed on Sora's face.

Well, it seemed like the entire world had gone silent in that moment.

He… had just been stepped on?

Good! Very good!! Excellent!!!

With Sora's current strength, dodging the foot would have been easy, but he was so shocked that he hadn't reacted in time.

Nanami, seeing someone dare to step on her master, was furious and ready to attack, but Karasuba stopped her.

Karasuba was waiting to see how this would play out and didn't want the girl to ruin the fun.

Moreover, seeing Sora being humiliated by an ordinary person gave Karasuba a strange sense of satisfaction, and the earlier irritation in her heart completely vanished.

Her crimson tongue licked her lips as she watched with a sly smile, eagerly anticipating what would happen next.

"Don't touch my woman!"

The young man's voice was filled with malice, as if he had just stepped on an ant rather than a person.

"It's all your fault, you useless piece of trash! Damn it, you bitch!" Grabbing the girl's hair, the young man slapped her across the face.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, Junichi-san." The girl didn't dare to resist, only apologizing repeatedly, as if everything was her fault.

"Tch, you're worthless!" Losing interest in the submissive girl, the young man, known as Junichi, spat on the ground and stood up.

"Hey, kid, is bullying your Sekirei fun?"

At this point, Sora slowly stood up, ignoring the dirt on his face. He wore a gentle smile, as if the person who had just been stepped on wasn't him at all.

"Huh? Kid, who the hell are you?" The young man looked at Sora with disdain. Ever since he had acquired this obedient and powerful tool, Tanigawa had treated everyone with contempt.

"It's okay, whatever he does to me is fine."

"I'm sorry, please don't worry about me…"

At this moment, the Sekirei girl, Yashima, stood up again. She didn't show any resentment toward Tanigawa's actions, only apologizing to Sora.

She was a Sekirei, and she had her own pride. She would remain loyal to her Ashikabi, dedicating everything to him. No matter what her Ashikabi did to her, she wouldn't mind.

"Hehehe, that's how it is! Kid, do you still have any objections?"

With a smug, sinister laugh, Tanigawa pressed his forehead against Sora's, his face filled with arrogance.

To be honest, looking at this face, Sora really wanted to tear it apart. And he had the strength to do it. With just a slight exertion of force, this guy named Tanigawa Junichi would immediately turn into a pile of minced meat!

But Sora didn't do it.

Because there was someone more suited for this job than him!

Thud! With a smile, Sora kicked the arrogant guy, sending him flying.

"Ah! You bastard, you dare kick me? Yashima, kill him for me!"

Afraid of accidentally killing the guy, Sora had used only a tiny bit of force. Tanigawa, who had just gotten up, was furious!

Damn it, ever since he got his Sekirei, he had only been the one bullying others. Being bullied by someone else? This was a first!

His eyes bloodshot, people like him always thought it was their right to step on others, as if others were born to be stepped on. Now that Sora had kicked him, he felt it was an unforgivable insult, a life-and-death grudge!

For such a clown, Sora just sneered and didn't even bother to respond!

"Hey, little Sekirei, you know what? While it's good to be loyal to your Ashikabi, being loyal to someone who doesn't deserve it is just stupid!"

"Well, whatever. I'll help you break your contract with him now. Once that's done, you'll probably get angry…"

Lifting the girl's chin, Sora forcibly winged Yashima!