Chapter 13: One-sided Gratitude

"Oh, Lloyd, I just finished baking some cookies."

"Oh, great. They won't taste as good if they cool down."

"They're really nothing special."

When I returned to Lilina's house, she had prepared new tea and cookies that smelled like good butter.

They were colorful, likely made with some kind of fruit, and looked adorable.

I sat down and immediately took a bite of the still-warm cookie.

"Wow, these are the cookies from that time!"

The sweet and tangy flavor of the berries perfectly complemented the refreshing tea.

I never thought I'd be eating something made by the heroine from an anime I watched.

"You're exaggerating. Huh? 'That time'?"

Lilina smiled bashfully at my words and tilted her head.

Well, there's no way she could understand what I meant by 'that time.'

"Oh, right. Drink this."

While enjoying the crispy texture and taste of the cookies, I took out a boxed potion from my bag.

"Uh, what's this?"

"It's a potion. I got it from the pharmacy; they said it should heal any internal injuries if you drink it."

Since the shopkeeper had brought it from the back of the store, it had to be something good.

It should help her recover quickly from yesterday's wounds.

"...Can I ask you something?"

"Hm? What's up?"

"Why are you doing so much for me?"

When I looked up, Lilina was staring at me with her brows furrowed.

Her confused expression made me pause from drinking my tea.

"I've never seen a potion in a wooden box before. It must be really expensive, right?"

As she stared at me seriously, I averted my gaze.

If I admitted it was expensive, she wouldn't want to drink it out of concern.

With that in mind, I looked back at her.

"Well, maybe it wasn't that expensive."

"...What happened to the necklace?"

"I, uh, lost it."

Lilina gave me a pointed look upon hearing my words.

Crap, she totally caught on.

After a moment of silence, Lilina lowered her head.

"Just saving my life is already a debt I cannot repay, but I can't accept such an expensive gift for no reason... I have nothing to give you in return."

She shook her head slightly as she spoke.

Indeed, upon reflection, it's abnormal to do so much for someone you just met.

Actions of a saint who seeks no return only fit a story's protagonist.

Such behavior doesn't suit Lloyd, who's despised by the entire town.

I folded my arms and pondered for a moment before letting out a resigned sigh.

"Would it be okay if I had a reason?"

Lilina looked up at me.

Her wide eyes prompted me to sigh again before continuing.

"Once, I went through some tough times and hit my limit. I even thought about ending my life."

While working at a black company, excessive overtime and harassment from my boss had taken a toll on my mental health.

Living a life where all I did was work, eat, and sleep, I was losing my will to live.

"But at that time, it was people like you, Lilina, who kept me going."

I had come across a late-night anime, which turned out to be this world, "The Strongest Support Mage, Whom Everyone Won't Let Live a Slow Life."

I had watched it to cope, seeing the villainous boss in the antagonist and imagining myself as the protagonist surrounded by cute heroines. This anime had helped me survive the harsh reality.

Without this anime, I might have lost my mind and ended my life.

That's how much anime meant to me.

If the heroines from that anime were in danger, I would help them without expecting anything in return.

I've been helped so much, it's only natural to want to repay the favor.

More than that, I want to repay it.

"What I'm doing now is repaying that debt. So, please accept it."

I placed the boxed potion in front of Lilina, who looked at me with a bewildered expression.

"But I'm not that girl."

"Heh, I guess you're right."

"Huh? Did I say something strange?"

As I chuckled, Lilina tilted her head in confusion.

Yeah, that's a normal reaction.

Lilina was just a character traveling with the protagonist in the anime.

But hearing that someone drew strength from identifying with her and her companions might just confuse her.

Moreover, at this point, Lilina isn't aware she'll be traveling with the protagonist.

I'm the strange one here, and Lilina is right.

"It seems that girl didn't think much of it. She never expected any repayment. So, I'm treating you well instead. It would help me if you went along with my self-satisfaction."

"But..."

Even after all that, Lilina hesitated to take the potion.

Well, it's understandable to be bewildered by all this.

Actually, weren't those words more like something a villain would say?

Did I just make her more wary of me?

Should I try speaking more like the villain Lloyd?

With that in mind, I cleared my throat softly and furrowed my brows.

"Let me tell you, you have no right to refuse. We used a lot of potions yesterday. You need to make a full recovery; otherwise, it would be a waste of the potions we used yesterday. If you can't repay me for yesterday's potions, just accept this quietly."

When I looked at Lilina after saying that, she blinked in surprise.

"...Heh, that doesn't really suit you, does it?"

Lilina let out a small laugh as she said that.

I laughed along with her and continued speaking.

"I know, I'm not the type to be kind to people."

The guild receptionist, the pawnshop owner, and the pharmacist all found it creepy when I spoke politely to them.

Lloyd wouldn't be the type to repay a debt of kindness, either.

"No, I didn't mean it like that."

Lilina said this with a natural and gentle smile directed at me.

It was the kind of expression she would direct at the protagonist, Kane, in the story, and I was momentarily at a loss for words, surprised.

That’s not the kind of expression she should be directing at the villain Lloyd.

"Lloyd-sama, I gratefully accept the potion. I promise to repay this debt with my life."

"With your life? That’s an exaggeration."

Seeing Lilina bow deeply, I let out a laugh along with those words.

Huh? That line sounds familiar somehow.

...Is it just my imagination?

As I watched Lilina, who was slightly blushing, I felt a bit of happiness, thinking I had managed to repay her a little.

Previous chapter | TOC | Next chapter