HI3: I Don't Want to Be a Valkyrie

"Cellinia, weren't you sent to fetch Rozaliya and Liliya for dinner? Why are you standing here dumbfounded?"

The girl with long ears who materialized before Cellinia had pondered his thoughts—Who was she, and why did she appear in the room shared by Rozaliya and Liliya? Where have the two heroes gone? Is what this bunny said true...?

Skyfire approached Cellinia and gently shook him back to reality.

"Skyfire... The heroes aren't in their room," he mumbled.

The heroes aren't in their room? Skyfire's curiosity piqued. "Where could they have gone?"

"I saw Rozaliya's older sister appear..." Cellinia began recounting the events leading up to her arrival.

The girl had ears similar to Amiya's, claiming to be Rozaliya's sister... Skyfire processed this information, her mind whirring.

"Are you worried something might've happened to Rozaliya and Liliya?"

"I doubt it! They're heroes, after all. Besides, based on what you've told me, that long-eared girl seems incredibly powerful, yet she showed no malice and seemed truthful."

"That's a relief... Let's wait for Rozaliya and Liliya to return, then."

-

"Phew... that was close," Yae Sakura sighed in relief as she left the tavern. Holding Higokumaru, the little fox, she walked along the street. Seeing no one following them from behind, she couldn't help but feel a sense of relief.

Considering Yae Sakura's strength, probably only a few beings in this world could keep up with her. At least Cellinia and the others surely couldn't.

"Big Sister, look at all these creatures like us! They've got animal ears and tails too!" Higokumaru stood on Yae Sakura's shoulder, observing the humans and demi-humans passing by. Curiosity bubbled up inside her, especially when she spotted other demi-humans.

There are so many similar beings here, living peacefully alongside humans. This world is truly mind-boggling.

"They're not your kind, sweetheart. In this world, they're called 'demi-humans'... a race of intelligent beings. Not monsters or Honkai Beasts," Yae Sakura explained to Higokumaru as they strolled slowly.

"Wow, Big Sister, you're so smart! You know everything," Higokumaru marveled, her admiration clear.

"All right, let's head to the dungeon now! I've already pinpointed its location, so we can go straight there."

Just as Yae Sakura was about to take Higokumaru to a secluded spot, planning to fly them both to the dungeon...

Higokumaru suddenly pointed at a stall up ahead. "Big Sister, it's fried tofu! This world actually has fried tofu. Big Sister, I want to eat fried tofu."

Upon seeing the fried tofu, Higokumaru became incredibly excited, incessantly shaking Yae Sakura.

"Uh... alright! Alright!"

Yae Sakura, hearing this, looked at the fried tofu up ahead and had no choice but to walk over. It wasn't like they were in a hurry for this brief moment.

Then she bought a large portion, found a place to sit down, and let Higokumaru dig in.

Yae Sakura sat across from Higokumaru, watching her eat with great relish. Unable to resist the sight, Yae Sakura's appetite was also stirred.

She bought her own portion and began to eat as well.

However, after taking just a few casual bites, Yae Sakura stopped moving. Although the taste was decent enough, it felt rather ordinary.

She couldn't understand why Japanese fox spirits had such a penchant for fried tofu.

"Big Sister, aren't you going to finish your tofu? It's really delicious, you know! Of course... the fried tofu Big Sister makes is the absolute best," Higokumaru said, puzzled. She had devoured her enormous portion, leaving Yae Sakura's barely touched plate untouched.

"Eat up, don't waste it!" Yae Sakura said as she passed the remainder of her food directly to Higokumaru.

"Mm-hmm, then I won't be rude about it."

Though slightly cold, Higokumaru didn't mind at all, nor did she care that Yae Sakura had eaten from it before.

She began to devour it immediately.

Watching Higokumaru relish the food greedily, this little fox... seemed rather content with just fried tofu, easy to please indeed.

-

Once Higokumaru had devoured all the fried tofu, Yae Sakura led her to an isolated corner.

There, she transformed Higokumaru into a two-meter-tall form and mounted her.

"Let's go! Higokumaru, follow my instructions."

Yae Sakura, perched on Higokumaru's back, gently patted her.

"Yes," Higokumaru responded.

Flames of blue fox fire ignited on her four paws. With a single powerful leap, they soared into the sky...

-

In less than ten minutes, we arrived at our destination.

I had Higokumaru land in an isolated corner, then took the young, beast-eared version of her to the entrance of the underground dungeon.

The entrance to the Demon Lord's dungeon wasn't some cave or anything like that, but rather several colored light screens, reminiscent of spatial gates.

As Yae Sakura and Higokumaru approached the entrance, they discovered numerous other adventurers. Some were already entering and exiting, while others were still searching for suitable teammates.

This made Yae Sakura feel somewhat like she was in a game, standing outside a dungeon instance waiting to join others.

"This Demi-human miss, our team is still missing a swordsman. Would you like to join us? We do have an experienced adventurer in our group."

As Yae Sakura was preparing her supplies, getting ready to enter the dungeon, an adventurer carrying a long spear approached with an invitation.

"Sorry, I'm not interested," Yae Sakura casually declined.

Under normal circumstances, Yae Sakura might have considered accompanying them for fun. She could even be a hero during dangerous moments, showing off her skills and enjoying the admiration of others.

However, with the speed-run quest on hand, Yae Sakura couldn't afford to waste time socializing.

Every single second was precious.

She already had a good understanding of the dungeons and didn't need any guidance.

"Are you sure you don't want to join? Venturing into the dungeon alone or in pairs can be extremely dangerous. You should know that many adventurers have died recently. Especially those so-called lone wolves." Seeing Yae Sakura's refusal, the adventurer didn't immediately give up but continued to persuade her.

In truth, it wasn't that their team specifically lacked a swordsman; this world had a surplus of them. The real reason behind the adventurer's interest was... the beauty standing before him.

"I said, I'm not interested." Yae Sakura once again firmly rejected the offer.

"Uh... alright, but I hope you don't regret this." The adventurer, a bit miffed at Yae Sakura's dismissive tone, grumbled under his breath before turning to leave.

"Idiot..." Yae Sakura silently swore.

As she watched the departing figure, Yae Sakura turned to Higokumaru, a small fox-like creature beside her. "Shall I teach him a lesson?"

"No need, just the scum of the earth."

Why would a Herrscher stoop to picking on a mere ant?