Immediately after capturing the boy, Genki carried everyone as far away as he could. Becoming increasingly winded as he neared the forest’s exit, he began to lose focus and zone out. Reality came crashing in as he accidentally tripped on a tree stump. He slammed face-first into a tree, getting splinters all over his face. Luckily he had instinctively closed his eyes as three shards stuck outside his eyelids. Panting, Genki tossed everyone down, except for Fumiko, who he placed gently on the ground. 

In the distance, excited howls sounded throughout the forest, stirring Fumiko from her earlier daze. Now, however, she couldn’t help but stare intently at the sleeping Haruto, unable to forget the feeling of his aura. 

Genki seeing his sister lost in thought, went about knocking down trees with his axe, and starting a fire. 

After half an hour, Kentaro finally woke up from his “sleep.” Confusion was written on his face. He had no idea where he was, but seeing Haruto, who matched the descriptions given by Requis, a big grin came into existence. He didn’t know how they did it, but he commended his two siblings, “Great. This is exactly how Requis described him. The battle must have been tough. Sorry for missing it. I must have blacked out after my attack. Let’s tie him up and head back.” 

Kentaro felt well-rested. The moment he stood, he felt a weird pressure in his pants. Looking down, he saw a giant bulge. “Eh?” Awkwardly Kentaro sat back down and tried to hide the bulge. Upon moving it around, he sensed something cold going down his leg. Putting his hand inside his pants, he pulled out a gold coin. Then another and another. After a while, a giant pile was sitting beside him.

Genki ignored the quizzical looks of Kentaro, instead ranting about the audacity of the boy, “That’s right. This twerp dared to scare Oneechan. Luckily I was there. With one swing of my axe, he fell. Haha, still, let’s tie him up, just in case. I mean, I’m not scared or anything. I just don’t want Oneechan to be scared again.” Genki dashed to tie Haruto up. Passing by his big sis, he noticed a shadow approaching him. Perhaps it was a hug for his brave disposition. 

Fumiko bashed the lying Genki in the face sending him through a tree, yet her eyes never once looked his way. 

Her attention was lasered in on the sleeping Haruto. Watching him, she noticed tears beginning to fall down his face. For some reason, her heart was aggrieved by the sight. Perhaps it was a curiosity about what could make someone strong as him cry. Or perhaps she had empathy towards this boy. She couldn’t tell in the cave, but he really did have a unique appearance. As someone who was also ridiculed for looks, she could only imagine the hell he suffered. If she knew the only people who went through hell were those unfortunate enough to bring up his appearance, perhaps her empathy would turn into respect or admiration.

Whichever may be the case, for now, she felt an attraction. Bringing her face extremely close to Haruto’s, she began wiping the tears from his eyes. Once they were all gone, she tried to wake him. She shook his arm, then poked his stomach. Yet neither worked. Finally, she started tickling him, which always seemed to work on her father.

Some signs of movement became apparent as Haruto began to show a small smile from being tickled. Subconsciously his hands tried to knock away the tickling fiend. 

Seeing this, Fumiko began to tickle a bit harder, causing Haruto to stir even more. Finally, his eyes began to shut hard, then snapped open as he could no longer take being tickled. 

In contrast to the laughing coming out of his mouth, Haruto had a depressed feeling swirling within him. Only killing the perverted old man can improve my mood, though only by a little bit. Perhaps Thomas will give me some good ass-kissing. It's about time he woke me up. Opening his eyes, he found a giant woman forcibly tickling him, causing him to jerk back instinctively. She is way too close. What happened to personal space? Should I punch her in the name of equality? I mean, if it was the old man from before, I would surely punch no questions asked. Before that, where the bloody hell is Thomas? 

The giant woman was tall enough that three stacked up Harutos only barely came up to her shoulders. She had fiery red hair that reached past her shoulders. This coupled well with her dark brown eyes which were speckled with tinges of red that mesmerized those who stared. Though her muscles were giant, thicker than Haruto’s waist they mixed well with her charm. She exuded an overbearing presence that was backed up by her powerful body.

Seeing that Haruto was awake, Fumiko stopped tickling him and blushed profusely without saying a single word. It was only now that she noticed how close they were. She was so used to being around family the concept of personal space was forgotten entirely.

Haruto was bewildered and wondered if he should run away. But there was a problem. Who was he? He was Haruto, better known as the personal plaything of Sadistsama. If he were to be on the backfoot in this situation, who knew what unfortunate events would plague him. Against his normally antisocial judgment, he decided to interact. Clearing his throat, he asked, “why were you tickling me?”

Fumiko blushed even harder, and her face became an unsightly red as she tried to think of an appropriate response. 

Genki, who had finished spitting out splinters of wood, saw Haruto was awake. At first, he was hesitant but seeing how red his sister’s face was. How could he possibly allow her to be bullied? While Fumiko’s brain was restarting, he grabbed Haruto to teach him a lesson for scaring his sister. 

This time his face was not smashed in by a hammer, and he raised Haruto high in the air, shaking him roughly. In a domineering voice, Genki grunted, “You made my sis scared. Now I’m going to make you hurt.”

“Combat Detected. Activating HUD.” “Name:???. Class: Barbarian. Level: Incalculable Basic comprehension activated. Recalculating. Danger rating: Yellowish Orange. Da faq is yellowish-orange? Is this thing still broken? No, earlier it showed yellow-orange. Perhaps it means one step from orange. I wonder if advanced comprehension is better. No matter that tinge of piss makes you beneath, even Thomas.

Haruto stared down at the giant idiot. Of the three gathered the idiot was the shortest and built the widest. His muscles were almost too pronounced as if he were compensating for something, though Haruto was still a child in comparison. Appearance-wise he was similar to Fumiko, with fiery red hair that extended to his neck. His dark brown eyes lacked the mesmerizing effect of Fumiko, instead instilling fear into his enemies.

With merely a flick to the head, Genki rolled around in pain. 

Oh, marvelous an idiot and a girl my two worst enemies. Looking away from the downed Genki, Haruto inquired about the current situation, “Now tell me, who are you and why am I in the middle of the forest.”

Kentaro, who was still fishing for gold from his underpants, stopped for a second. He answered in a friendly tone, “I am Kentaro. That fellow on the ground is my little brother Genki. And the one redder than a tomato is my little sister Fumiko. Master Requis sent us here to capture you and defeat you in battle.”

Hearing the tone and concise answer, Haruto popped a squat next to the fire. Ahh, we have one sane individual amongst them. In an equally friendly manner, Haruto raised his confusion, “I don’t know who this master Requis is, but if you don’t mind, I’d prefer not to fight.”

Kentaro smiled at Haruto and admitted, “I would prefer the same thing. Unfortunately, us battling and you admitting defeat is the only way he will accept us as disciples.”

Haruto tilted his head in thought. He pondered, “Is it possible for you to just say you defeated me, and we part ways here? I mean, I could write down that I accept defeat.” You think I will battle you when sadist-sama lurks in the background. I’ve read a wuxia before. I know how this plays out. I’ll beat your ass fair and square. Then you’ll lie to your master, who ends up being some OP cultivator. He’ll arrive, humiliate me, torture me, then reduce me to ashes.

Kentaro was surprised to hear this offer believing that the boy praised by Requis would be thirsty for battle. Caught off guard, he stumbled, “Oh well, I guess that would work as well.” Kentaro pulled out some paper and a pencil. All the better, the less trouble, the better.

“Great.” Haruto took it and wrote I, Haruto, admit defeat in battle to these three. With the death flag handled, Haruto became more relaxed. In passing, he asked, “One more thing, did you happen to see someone else in the cave?”

Kentaro took back the paper, still in disbelief that the quest was ending so quickly. Hearing the question, he raised his shoulders, “No, we only found you, I think. You will have to ask Fumiko or Genki. I was unconscious at that time.”

Haruto first looked at Fumiko, who was still bright red and had yet to utter a word, then towards Genki, who was rolling on the ground. Hah, with a sigh, Haruto shook his head, “Nevermind, I’ll go back and look for myself.” Haruto stood up and began to walk away. 

Right as he was about to start running, a hand latched onto his leg. He looked back to find Fumiko holding it. The touch of a female and the reignition of death flags made Haruto freeze up on the spot. Sadist-sama, please have mercy.

Fumiko’s face finally began to lose its red tint. She whispered to the frozen Haruto, “Wait before you leave. What is your name?”

“Haruto.” Though if the gods are willing, you will never have the opportunity to say it. Saying his name Haruto tried to move his leg away, but Fumiko appeared to have an iron grip. Becoming worried, Haruto begged, “Could you let go? I have to get back to my home.” Oi Sadist-sama, is this some sick, cruel ploy? How did you find out my weakness so fast? All this interacting and talking is killing me. My heart is beating quicker than the normal sluggish tempo I adore.

“Why were you crying?” Fumiko stared intently at Haruto, awaiting an answer to satisfy her heart.

Jesus, lady, you just gonna hit me with such a heavy hitter question? My list of times talking to a girl irl is too low for a proper response to such a complex question. Haruto touched his face but felt no tears, so he tried to play it off. “What do you mean I wasn’t crying. Now please, I really must go.” 

Fumiko instantly called Haruto’s bluff, “I wiped away your tears, your face is dry, but your heart is still crying.” Fumiko dragged Haruto back to the fire and sat extremely close to him.

Not only do you hit me with such a question, but you also admit to touching me while sleeping. What am I supposed to say to that? Being called out, Haruto could only look at the fire as if trying to lose himself in it. 

No one said a word for a few minutes. It was completely silent except for the sound of the fire burning and Genki rolling on the ground in pain.

I guess getting it off my chest wouldn't be bad… Haruto let out a long sigh and continued looking at the fire but raised a question that was plaguing his mind, “What does it mean to be a true man?”

Genki, who was rolling on the ground, stopped and answered, “Of course, to be a true man, you must be able to protect your family. A true man is someone with the strength to protect his family” He flexed his oversized muscles to prove his point. 

Kentaro also answered, “A true man holds firm in his beliefs. He works hard to show his character through actions, not words. It is not his physical strength but his will that defines him.”

Fumiko answered last, “A true man lives life free. He cries when he is sad, laughs when he is happy. Above all else, he follows his heart. Regardless of what other people say or think.”

Haruto sniffled, “I always thought I had those values. I thought I had pride in my way of life. I thought I followed my heart. I thought I protected my family. But in the end, I could never live up to those ideals. Hell, when it mattered the most, I fell beyond short. My life in its entirety is one of failure, and my legacy will be one of a failed man. It appears death was the only way I could understand that. Even in this new world, my old life haunts me, and I’m sure I will make the same mistakes over and over again.” 

Fumiko stared into Haruto's sad eyes wanting to console him, but she had no words to say that would cheer him up.

Kentaro felt a connection with Haruto. He, too, once thought he never could become a true man. He still struggled with this feeling even today, so he shared with Haruto his mindset. “I don’t know what went wrong in your life, but the way I see it, as long as you’re alive, you have not failed. Right now, you may not see yourself as a true man, but as long as you never stop pushing forward, there will always be hope. I have failed my family many times, but I know they love me even when I make them mad. Haruto, the fact you are sad is the perfect indicator that you still have a chance. Your heart is already pushing you towards it. You just have to follow it.” 

Genki nodded his head, resolutely, “that’s right. I have lost track of the number of times Kentaro has let me down, but I still love my big brother. Though you may be small, your strength is there. You only have to work on your muscles. One day when your muscles are half the size of mine, you will be able to protect your family.”

Haruto shook his head, “No, I have lost my chance at redemption. My little brother will forever remember me as a failure. It is not his anger that hurts me. It is his apathy. My mother’s incessant nagging reminded me she loved me, day in and day out. My father forcibly dragging me to play baseball, showed he cared. But, Aito did not feel anger, sadness, or happiness when near me. He felt nothing. He saw me as a stranger in the home, nothing more, nothing less, and it is by my own design that had led to it. I would give anything in the world just to go back and change my path, but I can no longer return.”

Kentaro and Fumiko were unsure what Haruto meant by never being able to return. Kentaro believed Haruto was disowned and thus was a wanderer. But Fumiko felt something more significant had happened to him. 

Kentaro smiled at Haruto, “Well, regardless, you won’t find any meaning remaining in that cave. How about you return with us and study under master Requis. I’m sure he has more understanding than us three and could help you out.”

“That’s right,” Fumiko shot a beautiful smile that even refreshed Haruto a bit. She encouraged, “Come with us. That cave will only make you more depressed. Haruto, it must be fate that we have met, come back to town with us.”

Haruto thought it over and decided why the hell not. It appears escaping this death flag is impossible. “I will come. I’m interested to see who this master Requis is. I haven’t met many people here. But I really need to go back to the cave for my uh friend.”

Genki slapped Haruto on the back, “Why didn’t you say so, brat. Let’s get him and head into town. I’m starvin.” 

Haruto rubbed his aching back but suddenly, his eyes narrowed towards an uncanny darkness growing in the distance from within a pained howl that strangely tugged on Haruto’s heart could be heard. Haruto hissed, “Thomas, you undead freak. It seems we won’t have to go back.” Haruto’s Shogun Aura began to giddily rampage around, expectantly waiting to crush Thomas into a fine dust. 

Feeling such a bloodthirsty aura, the three siblings now understood that Haruto was no ordinary boy.