The Villain Purchased the Heroine

"Again, the concentration is too weak."

"Yes, understood!"

"Again, the flow is unstable."

"Y-yes… understood!"

"Again."

"…Yes!"

Alicia was gasping for breath without answering. Really, this brat. I take my precious time to teach her how to coat a sword with aura, and this is what I get!

"Um… Young Master. I'm sorry, but… I can't produce any more mana."

"Nonsense. I've told you multiple times, your talent is not this limited. If it were this limited, I wouldn't have gone out of my way to bring you out of that backwater."

"Thanks for the compliment…"

"I'm not saying that to make you feel good. I'm just stating facts."

Alicia, about to collapse at any moment, barely held herself up against a giant iron sword, her body feeling like lead. Her breath was ragged, and her clothes were soaked with sweat.

"…I will try again."

"Alright."

Alicia gathered the strength from her shaking legs and pushed against the dirt floor, maintaining her balance. The marks of her struggle were left on the ground.

Once more, she drew all the mana within her towards the blade. A layer of blue mana formed over the sharp edge of the sword.

"Good, make that concentration thicker and thinner."

"Y-yes! Thicker… and thinner…."

Alicia squinted her eyes in concentration, and as if in response to her efforts, the shape of the mana within the sword transformed quite nicely.

"I… I did it, Young Master!"

Alicia let out a joyful gasp. The concentration of the mana and its thinness were quite impressive.

"Well done. Although you've spent months controlling mana, it's impressive you've learned to coat it in just a few days. Truly, a genius I can acknowledge."

"Thank you, Young Master!"

The exhaustion from just moments ago had vanished, and her response was full of vitality. It might just be a trick of the light, but compared to the first time I saw Alicia, her complexion looks much better. Has she been eating well-nourished food?

"Congratulations."

"Thank you, Teacher Bram, it's all thanks to you and the Young Master."

A stoic Bram congratulates her, while Alicia bows politely in gratitude. If you look closely, even the normally emotionless Bram has a tiny smile creeping onto his face. It's so small that you'd miss it if you weren't paying attention, but it's definitely his smile.

A small smile blooms on Bram's typically expressionless face, so subtle that you have to look closely to notice it, but it's undoubtedly his smile.

After savoring a moment of joy, Alicia turns to look at me, appearing hesitant and sheepish.

"…Young Master, may I ask a favor?"

"Hmm? Sure, as long as it's not too troublesome, go ahead."

Alicia asking for a favor is quite the rarity. Given how quickly she's achieving results, it wouldn't hurt to reward her a bit.

"Um… Young Master, didn't you say the three of you would be going somewhere while I trained here?"

"Yeah, that's what I said."

"That means my training ended earlier than planned, so I should be able to join you, right?"

So what you're saying is, you want me to take you along instead of leaving you here.

"Ah, about that…"

I say to Alicia, who looks as if she's biting her lips in tension.

*

Paula's lips are puffed out like a duck's. Since the last time I tried to do something, she's been like this. Absurd.

"What an immature thing to do."

"Huh? What did you just say?"

"I said if you don't return that beak of yours to normal, I'll cut it off with Bram's sword."

It's already the fifth day since we arrived in Rubid Village. Leaving just Alicia behind, Paula, Bram, and I move around the outskirts of this annoyingly small village.

The reason for this relates to the three significant matters that brought us here. All three are of such timing that we can't afford to waste even a day.

Fortunately, Alicia's emergence of powers has progressed quicker than expected, so we're not running into any delays transitioning to the next story.

"...."

Paula, with her mouth shut, gazes at the sky. Something like petals falls gracefully toward the ground.

"Snow… it's snowing!"

Paula tilts her head all the way back. The weight of her gloom appears to lighten a bit. The clouds cover the sun, forming a thick layer that sprinkles down white ash.

The flakes are large and numerous. By the time we achieve our goal and come out, they might pile up to our ankles.

The snow flower that touches her hand can't withstand her body heat and immediately melts. Paula sighs deeply, stiffening her resolve—it seems she's made a decision.

With a tone as high as usual, she asks:

"Young Master, is there really a secret dungeon here?"

A secret dungeon.

A dungeon that is literally hidden.

"Yes, indeed. And it's in a very appetizing form."

"Appertizing form means… it's either weakened or has a way to bypass its defenses? So that's why you're attempting it with a small group, huh?"

It's not even an attempt, Paula. We just need to go in and grab the relic from a dungeon that's already collapsing. The word "challenge" sounds too grand for it.

"Well, we won't know for sure until we go, but if it's true, that's incredible. You've certainly gained quite the intel."

"From up high, everything is clearly visible."

In truth, this dungeon is not originally connected to Vargan. Rather, it would be more accurate to say it's an unwelcome place for him.

It would be more accurate to say that this is an unpleasant place for me.

According to the original development, the protagonist of the novel, Liam. That guy has a handy item he obtained. For me, who was deeply immersed in the novel, Vargan, it is a relic that brings no good memories at all.

"We're almost there. Once we pass this area… Ah, there's the entrance!"

"Huh? Where… Oh! There's a lake! Can you see it, Bram? It's an enormous lake!"

"Yes, it's a lake."

"Is that all? You could be more excited, you know? …Then again, being quiet is part of your charm, Bram."

"..."

The vast, refreshing lake sparkles under the sunlight, to the point where it could be mistaken for the sea. The trees planted around look like toothpicks beside the gigantic lake.

We've arrived.

At this moment, that guy is still trying to cling to life in there.

By the time Liam acquired it, too much time had already passed, and that guy had died, so the relic couldn't unleash its full power. Even so, it troubled me considerably with its output. If that guy were still alive, how much power would it have?

I can't help but think of that naïve protagonist.

Liam, it's not you, the protagonist, who arrived here first. It happens to be the villain in your story, Vargan.

Isn't it amusing?

Everything is deviating significantly from the story you know. This, too, is one of those deviations.

What if the pet you planned to grow and turn into a weapon ends up biting you instead, with someone else as its master?

What kind of face would you show?

"I can't wait to see it."

Just picturing that fool's expression twisting makes a smile creep onto my lips.

*

"Oh dear… Thank you, lovely young lady. Thanks to you, things have become much easier."

The village chief, having hunched over for a long time, stretches his stiff back and puts on a smug face. Moving around busily for the first time in ages makes his back pain worse.

In the old warehouse of the village chief's house, filled with dust, all sorts of miscellaneous items are crammed in here.

"But… is it really okay for you to help us like this? Shouldn't you be doing something else?"

"You don't need to worry. My young master told me I could do as I please while he was out."

"Ahh, then I've taken away your break, haven't I? I'm sorry…"

"It's okay, I wanted to help."

Alicia easing the village chief's worries with a bright smile made him pause for a moment in gratitude before he suddenly grabbed Alicia's delicate hand with his wrinkled fingers.

"Our granddaughter… is of marriageable age, you know… If someone like you were to come in as my daughter-in-law, I'd have no other wishes."

"Uh…?"

"Could you create an opportunity for me to speak with your master?"

Alicia, unable to pull her hand away, gaped in surprise at his sudden and unexpected remarks, worried that pushing him away might injure his feelings.

"What do you think…? Is that alright?"

Even so, she found herself in a situation where she had to express her intentions. Answering ambiguously here would actually be quite rude.

It would be rather rude to answer that.

Alicia straightened her wandering gaze.

"Thank you for your kind words, but I'll have to decline. I'm sorry."

"Even though my grandson is just a country lad who knows nothing about the world, he's hardworking and great at farming. I take pride in saying he has a good character… So, what do you say?"

The village chief's tone grew urgent. He was somewhat flustered by her unexpectedly sharp refusal.

"Ah, that's not why…"

The chief slowly eased his grip, sensing her firm resolve. Alicia gently pulled away from his hand.

"I have a lot to do ahead of me. I truly appreciate the generous offer, but I cannot accept it."

Seeing Alicia with her hands clasped modestly, the chief let out a sound of exasperation but didn't press any further. A faint smile lingered on his lips.

"She's truly a shame to lose the more I look at her. That young master is a lucky man. Ah, I won't make any more unreasonable requests, but could you come over here for a moment? This is fate, so I want to give you something."

The chief stepped back with a dejected smile, then continued, moving to exit the warehouse. Alicia followed closely behind him.

"One of the prideful possessions of our village is fresh cheese made from freshly squeezed milk. I really want you to taste it, so this way—"

—Cough!

The chief spoke no more. To be precise, he couldn't.

"…huh?"

A sound escaped Alicia's mouth as she failed to comprehend the sudden change. Her body stiffened, and her mind began to process.

Moments ago, the chief vanished as he stepped over the threshold toward the exit. …Vanished? What disappeared? What was gone?

With a sickening noise, something burst from his body.

That something, resembling a large thorn, was stuck to the wall of the wooden warehouse.

Thud. The headless body couldn't maintain its balance and collapsed. A dark liquid gushed from the tree-ringed hole. Splash. Everything around became stained in its color.

Alicia's breathing grew erratic. It wasn't that she had exhausted all her mana or stamina, yet her body felt increasingly heavy, as if crushed under something weighty.

The memories—a tangled mass of red threads—began to crawl back into her body, reclaiming control.

She knows.

This isn't the first time she's faced such a situation.

Alicia knows.

What this crimson blood pouring out signifies.

[Crack?]

Beyond the threshold, that red creature, appearing as if it had been waiting, is certainly not something new for her. Those amber eyes—the same.

Is this a dream?

A memory she desperately doesn't want to relive. A cursed nightmare. The curse of that day.

Is it an extension of the agony that had bound her? The continuation of that painful series of events?

Still, she prays fervently.

Please, let this be just another nightmare like usual.