I Finished Saving the World, But Then I Picked Up a Girl With Amnesia - Chapter 2

If I enter the forest, I might be able to escape.

The girl was painfully aware of how naive that thought had been. She was unfamiliar with riding horses, and her pursuers outnumbered her. There was no way she could outrun them in the open wilderness.

She could feel the breathing of the horse beneath her growing rougher, slowly but surely.

“I’m sorry… I’m so sorry… But please, just a little more, hang in there.”

At her faint words, the stallion that had carried her this far snorted as if to say, “Leave it to me.” But that didn’t change the fact that its limits were near.

As her speed began to drop, she found herself flanked on both sides. Of the three pursuers, one drew a bow, while the other two unsheathed their swords. The way they readied their weapons made it clear—they weren’t trying to capture her anymore. They were intent on taking her life.

Her hands trembled as they gripped the reins.

Her lips moved on their own, uttering words:

“I… I don’t want to die.”

She wasn’t saying it to the ones trying to kill her.

She hadn’t expected an answer from the start. She just couldn’t keep the words inside.

“I understand.”

That’s why the sudden reply felt like an illusion.

The next moment, the man directly behind her who had been aiming his bow was blown away.

“Huh?”

The dumbfounded voice wasn’t hers, but one of her pursuers’.

It was only natural. Suddenly, the companion who had been riding alongside them had vanished from his horse, leaving only the animal behind. Anyone would be shocked.

The second masked pursuer tried to say something, perhaps to make sense of the situation, but he never managed to speak. Before he could open his mouth, a fist slammed into his face.

As he tumbled from his horse, the third and final pursuer could only gape in astonishment. It was only then that he realized that someone—or something—was attacking them.

There was a person standing on a horse.

Wearing a plain, unadorned shirt in dull colors and simple, practical linen trousers, the figure didn’t look like a knight or a mage. They looked like a villager, at best. But seeing the strange movements that had toppled his companions and the sheer physical strength that made it possible, the last pursuer’s sense of caution skyrocketed.

Without even asking, “Who are you?” he raised his sword.

He swung it down with all his might, aiming to sever the person’s head in a single strike.

His response was perfect. Every action was correct.

And yet, his silver sword was shattered in two, and he spun through the air, landing the same way as his comrades.

“Eh…?”

Finally, the girl’s voice escaped her lips.

“Are you alright?”

The gentle voice reassured her, and the tension that had been holding her consciousness together suddenly snapped.

—

I picked up a girl. Now, what should I do?

“She’s so pretty!”

“Yeah, she’s such a beautiful lady!”

Indeed, she was cute. From the kids’ perspective, she might seem like a beautiful older sister, but her youthful features leaned more towards “cute” than “beautiful.”

Her chest, however, was surprisingly ample. Not an outrageous size, but… well, a very good one.

But more than anything, her striking, flame-like red hair stood out. Though her long hair, which reached down her back, was dirtied from her frantic escape, it still radiated an elegant, fiery beauty.

“Mm…”

Oh, she’s waking up.

Her eyes are the same color as her hair. Such a rare sight.

“Huh? Where… am I?”

“Onee-chan, you’re awake!”

“Good morning, Onee-chan!”

“Uh, um…?”

“Onee-chan, Hero-sama saved you!”

As the kids eagerly surrounded her, her confused gaze turned to me. Her scarlet eyes were truly stunning.

“I took care of your pursuers. You’re safe now.”

“So, you’re the one who saved me…?”

“That’s one way to put it.”

“Th-Thank you so much!”

“Don’t mention it. No need to be so formal. Here, have some water.”

“Ah, okay.”

“Take this too—a towel. Can you wipe your face?”

“Y-Yes!”

She drank the water and wiped her face, and it seemed like she had finally calmed down. Letting out a soft sigh, a bit of color returned to her cheeks.

“Sorry to ask this right after you’ve woken up, but can you tell me why those dangerous people were chasing you? Even if I take you to the Knights’ Outpost, I should probably know the situation first.”

“Well… I don’t remember anything.”

Huh?

“When you say you don’t remember anything, you mean…?”

“Yes. I don’t know where this is, what day or year it is, or even who I am. I can’t remember any of it.”

I almost blurted out, “Are you serious?” but managed to hold it in.

“So, does that mean you don’t even know why you were being chased?”

“I-I’m sorry. When I came to, I was already captured… I somehow managed to steal a horse and escape. I think those men were chasing me because I ran away.”

Oh, great.

It seems I’ve somehow picked up a girl with even more baggage than I imagined.

She lowered her gaze for a moment, but then suddenly looked up as if she remembered something.

“Ah, but wait! I do remember one thing—my name! I at least remember my own name!”

Ah, I see. That’s… troublesome.

She only remembers her name.

That’s… the worst possible scenario.

“My name is ‘　　　　.’”

But I can’t hear it.

“No, Onee-chan!”

“Hero-sama can’t hear your name!”

“Huh?”

This is… the absolute worst.

“Hero-sama can’t hear other people’s names or say his own!”

“He’s cursed like that!”

As the kids explained, the girl’s expression froze.

“You… can’t hear names?”

“Yeah, it’s just like they said. I can’t hear people’s names, and I can’t say my own.”

Yeah. That’s the situation.

As the kids said, I’m under a curse that prevents me from recognizing names. I was hit with it as a parting gift from the Demon King when I defeated him.

It’s so strong that I can only refer to even my closest companions by their roles.

That’s why, even though I’ve known these kids for a while and we’re close, I can’t say their names. And I don’t even remember or can say my own name anymore.

The girl’s face turned pale with shock.

It was only natural. Thrown into the wide world alone, her name was the one thing she could hold onto. And of all people, she was saved by a man who couldn’t even hear it.

“…So yeah, I can’t know your name or my own.”

I confessed pitifully.

Even so, I couldn’t just leave the girl sitting there, hunched over with a troubled expression.

To help her stand, I extended my hand.

“For now, just call me ‘Hero.’”

A girl with no memories except her own name.

A hero cursed by the Demon King, unable to hear or say names.

Her name is the only clue we have.

…Yeah.

This is definitely a dead-end, isn’t it?