Cause and Effect (1)

Lily blinked. When she opened her eyes again, the scenery before her had shifted once more. Instead of drifting fragments of memory, a foul stench and pitch-black surroundings greeted her. Scattered across the floor were monster corpses that looked to have been dead for several hours. Lily had been sent back several dozen minutes before the scroll forcibly transported her. As if to prove it, the body that appeared to be Oleg lay slumped in the distance.

"Eek—." Lily felt terror seize her. The place where that horrific tragedy had begun was right there! All the painful moments she had endured flashed through her mind. She quickly began putting distance between herself and the sewer. Simply running fast wasn't enough to ease her anxiety, so she layered speed-enhancement magic over her entire body. The corpses strewn across the floor rapidly receded into the distance. The worst tragedy had been escaped so easily, so meaninglessly.

"Huu—." Once outside the sewer, Lily let out a light sigh of relief. Then, like the mage she was, she ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠began assessing her situation.

"...What?" She had no idea how it happened, but she had returned to the past. She had obtained a miracle impossible even with modern magic. The situation was so unreal that it felt as though she had merely suffered through a long nightmare. Yet it had undeniably occurred. The terrible memories and pain etched into her mind proved that it had been real.

Before long, Lily realized this regression was caused by the Hero. After all, the scenes she had witnessed were composed entirely of the Hero's memories.

A bitter taste lingered on her tongue for a moment. "Really... I keep receiving help until the very end."

Sniff. Tears welled in her eyes. Whether the events in her mind had transferred to her body, the tears kept flowing.

"This isn't the time for that." She quickly pulled herself together to assess the situation. First, she needed to confirm exactly when she had returned. At least she had avoided causing trouble for her teammates by escaping the sewer. But calculating the time, it seemed she had still fought with the Hero.

"Of all times..." She could only clutch her head. If only she had returned a little earlier... Though a few complaints slipped out, they didn't last long. Simply returning to the past was already an enormous miracle. If it meant erasing that nightmare even once, the exact point in time didn't matter.

"I need to apologize." Lily muttered and made up her mind. She would apologize for everything that had happened. She would admit that her suspicions had been her own fault. This was something she had to do no matter when she returned.

Thus, Lily headed straight to Luke to apologize. Along the way, emotions welled up unexpectedly. Guilt weighed heavily on her. By the time she arrived, she was already sobbing like a child. He began to panic, and she began to apologize...

"Waaah... I'm sowwy..." Yulise, who had been watching from the side, had no choice but to drag her away.

And so ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠it came to this.

"Waaah..." Yulise watched Lily sobbing in front of her. A headache was already creeping in. "Good grief..." She let out a small sigh. It was strange to see such a strong-willed girl crying, but that wasn't the real problem. Another victim besides herself had already returned to the past. That meant she had endured a difficult nightmare.

'I wish it could have ended with just me...' Yulise's reason for keeping her mouth shut until now was simple. She alone was enough to bear such a horrific experience. She didn't want to speak up and watch the Hero suffer. After all, Luke's actions were meant to save all four of them. If he heard that they had already lost to the Four Heavenly Kings once, he would surely feel despair. So neither half-hearted comfort nor encouragement was needed. He probably wouldn't have believed it anyway. If the other teammates found out and it reached Luke's ears, it would only cause unnecessary trouble. She had wanted to keep it secret if possible, but...

The Demon King's army and the Four Heavenly Kings were not to be underestimated. Already, another person had returned.

"...You should apologize first." After much deliberation, Yulise spoke. Apologizing seemed like the right thing to do. Regardless, Lily had been in the wrong this time. Even if it was due to the curse. Thinking about how she had to soothe the Hero because of that argument... fatigue washed over her again.

So an apology was necessary. However, she added a condition. "But don't mention that you've returned to the past."

"Why?"

"The Hero is going through all that hardship to protect us. What do you think his reaction would be if he heard we've already lost once?"

Yulise explained why the regression had to remain a secret. He would surely be saddened. He might not even believe it. So there was no need to tell him, and so on.

"Ah... I see." Lily seemed to understand to some extent.

"...But do we really need to hide it that much?" Yet her thoughts differed. Though ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠tears still lingered in her eyes, a faint curiosity shone within them.

Yulise tilted her head. "Pardon?"

"At least in the scenes I saw, the Hero was suspicious even when receiving goodwill. No matter how kind you were, Yulise, he only felt burdened."

Yulise brushed her bangs back. It was somewhat shocking. She had known he felt burdened whenever she approached, but not to that extent. As she remained silent for a moment, Lily continued.

"Wouldn't it be better to just tell him...?"

"...No. Not yet." After brief consideration, Yulise still shook her head. It might be fine, but she couldn't yet imagine how the Hero would react upon learning the truth. So it was better to hold off for now. And right now, something else took priority.

"First, apologize to the Hero. This time, you were clearly in the wrong."

"...Okay." At those words, Lily nodded gloomily. Then she began trudging back toward the Hero once more.

And so it came to this.

Life may be unpredictable, but even change has its limits. Excessive change invites suspicion of plausibility. For example, when an incredibly strong-willed brat suddenly offers an apology or fidgets like a puppy that broke a flowerpot.

I stared at the woman standing before me. She trembled like a hamster caught in the rain. At least, it was a sight the Lily I knew would never show. If she ever looked like that, it would probably be after being captured by the Four Heavenly Kings for several weeks.

'What the...' If someone changes too abruptly, suspicion is natural. Thanks to that, I even considered something like this for a moment.

'Is this The Truman Show?' Well, too many absurd things had been happening lately. Maybe this world was just a set. As I entertained such ridiculous thoughts, Lily spoke again.

"I was wrong..." It was the umpteenth apology I had heard today. At this rate, I might develop a neurosis. I didn't know why she was acting this way, but... her apology seemed genuine. Honestly, I had been a bit angry, but receiving an apology like this seemed to ease my frustration somewhat.

However, I, as a man, was apparently not the type of broad-minded fellow who would forgive someone just because they apologized once.

"...What exactly were you wrong about?"

"...Hic." At my somewhat sharp tone, she shrank back. Yes. In short, I was sulking. After all that hardship, the response I got was only that, so in many ways, my pride was wounded. Of course, I knew it was because of the curse, but... even if my mind understood, my emotions couldn't easily move on. Because of that, I couldn't even face the Saintess properly.

"Th-that... accusing you of being part of the Demon King's army without evidence, getting angry just because our opinions didn't match, and various other things..." As I continued glaring, she began confessing. Seeing how readily her faults spilled out, it seemed she knew she was wrong. I nodded with a satisfied expression.

"Right. You know well."

"..."

"But even knowing that, you still did those things?"

"...Ugh." Hearing the apology made the pent-up frustration ease a little. But I, Hero Luke, was a petty human. Seeing this cheeky brat so cowed made me want to tease her. How often would I get to see her this intimidated? Definitely no more than three times in a lifetime! I had to tease her as much as possible while I could.

So I began scolding her in a slightly teasing manner. "Do you know how hurt I was back then... Even now, thinking about it makes me furious."

"..."

"To think you'd come apologize right after insulting me like that. Don't you think that's shameless? Huh? Huuuh??" Since opportunities where I held the upper hand were rare in my life, I might have gotten a bit excited. Thanks to that, I had overlooked something.

"...Sob." How unstable her current state was. How much courage it must have taken for her to come before me. A bowl full of water spills easily with just a light tap.

"Waaahhh—!" Her state was exactly like that. Tears poured from her eyes as if a dam had burst.

"I'm sorry, I'm really sorry for everything...! For being harsh until now. For getting annoyed and suspicious every time I saw you... all of it..."

"Uh, uh...?"

"I didn't mean to make you suffer that much... I didn't know your circumstances and kept... I'm sorry...!!"

"U-uhh?"

A wail echoed across the dark night sky. The gazes of nearby people briefly turned toward us.

"My goodness, making a child cry like that..."

"Tsk, isn't he trash?"

In an instant, I sensed the situation had taken a turn for the worse. I never expected a little scolding would lead to such loud sobbing. The tables had turned completely. I hurriedly abandoned my position of power and returned to being the underdog. After all, a woman's tears were practically a cheat key from a biological standpoint.

"L-Lily? Calm down first. Stop crying. Stop."

"Waaahhh~!"

"Don't worry. That was all a joke just now. I was already mostly over it. You don't have to feel that sorry. Well, a little bit is still left, but."

"Waaahhh—!!"

"Good grief, this is driving me crazy."

Thus, I had to spend quite a while comforting Lily. The stares from those around us were quite sharp. Thanks to the curse, I wasn't sure if my comfort was helping or backfiring. Still, as time passed, her wailing gradually subsided.

"Sob, hic..." She was still sniffling, though.

I let out a deep sigh and said to her, "Huu... Alright. Anyway, I'll accept your apology. You can go now. Thank you."

"Yeah..." She began slowly backing away. Even as she left, she kept glancing back nervously. I waved until she disappeared from sight, then returned to my remaining concerns.

"...Why on earth is she acting like that?" I never expected her to apologize. I knew the power of my curse. Even if she clearly knew she was wrong, coming to me first was unimaginable. All the curses attached to me enabled self-justification. So the sight she showed was something I couldn't even imagine.

'Yulise too... lately, there have been many strange behaviors.' If anyone's actions change ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠abruptly, one should suspect plausibility. No matter how strange the result, there is a cause that led to it. So what caused her to become so cowed? It seemed too sincere to be acting. Besides, there was no benefit to be gained from acting, and she couldn't possibly be that skilled at it.

Wanting to know the reason, I continued pondering. 'It can't be that the curse was lifted.' That unique stifling feeling from the curse was still there. That meant there was another reason surpassing the curse. As I wondered what that reason could be, a thought occurred to me, and I opened the status window. Come to think of it, there was still one skill whose purpose I didn't know.

If the cause wasn't external but within me, then one of the skills must have been at work.

As I opened the skill window, various traits and skills lined up. After defeating Oleg, I had grown a little again. My level had risen by 1, and several skills, including Indomitable and Blood Power Substitution, had leveled up once or twice. Seeing that was pleasing, but that wasn't important right now.

I scrolled again and clicked to expand one of the skills. Among them, there was only one skill I still didn't understand.

When I pressed the skill, a short mechanical sound played as it expanded. The explanation was still incomprehensible. However, the brilliant golden aura surrounding it indicated that this skill was special. Most other skills didn't have this.

"Hmm... It's the same as before." As I continued staring, still unable to figure out the issue, I tilted my head. It said it activated upon losing one's life, but I had never lost my life to begin with. There had been many dangerous situations, but none where I lost my life. Besides, having played this game so many times, there was no way I would die so easily. At least, I trusted my skills. I wanted to believe that.

'Then is the cause external...?' Or perhaps they had really acquired some insane acting skill.

"Hmm...?" As I continued pondering, I noticed a subtle difference.

"Come to think of it... the light seems strangely weaker?" The brilliantly shining golden light felt fainter than before. The light that had filled the surroundings seemed slightly diminished.

"Just my imagination...?" Curiosity arose about it, but I soon let it go. The difference wasn't that significant, and since I hadn't seen the skill in so long, my memory wasn't clear. It was probably just my imagination.

'Let's rest for a bit.' With that thought, I stopped theorizing and decided to take a short break. However, that slight dimming of the light left a lingering discomfort in my mind for a long time.