The Villain Bought the Female Lead - Ch. 107
Alicia, Liam, and Emily began receiving full-fledged training from Charlotte.
Since Charlotte had already grasped their respective levels and general tendencies, she gave each of them different missions.
During every hour the sun hung in the sky.
Alicia and Emily threw themselves into the rigorous training Charlotte assigned to them, almost as if locked away in solitary confinement. The location for their training was a personal practice ground prepared by the church.
-Charlotte… I haven’t been told what I’m supposed to do.
-You don’t need to do anything.
… what?
Charlotte gave nothing to Liam.
While she assigned grueling tasks to Alicia and Emily, which seemed almost excessive, she gave Liam no structure whatsoever.
–Liam, do whatever you want.
Charlotte made it clear that whether Liam trained or not was of no concern to her. She told him to do as he pleased.
Thinking back, Charlotte had selected Liam as her mentee just before the end-of-semester exams.
Even Liam could tell that his mental state was vastly different then, compared to now.
Because of this, Liam might have misunderstood, wondering if she had given up on him. It seemed like she was leaving him alone, finding it worthless to pay attention to someone who had already collapsed.
However, when he looked into her eyes, which were staring straight at him, it didn’t seem like that at all.
“……”
At night, when the heat of the sun had dissipated.
Liam was lost in thought, quietly watching a beam of moonlight spill into his room.
Suddenly, he realized that he had done absolutely nothing all day.
He hadn’t even eaten.
The only things he’d done were lying in bed staring at the ceiling or gazing blankly at objects in the room.
This was the first time he’d done nothing, completely still, since becoming trapped in this novel. Even the status window, which he was used to pulling up out of habit, remained unviewed today.
Without the transparent window reminding him of the game, he felt even more uncertain whether this place was reality, a virtual world, or something else entirely.
Where am I?
And who am I…?
“……”
Looking out the window bathed in moonlight, Liam felt an urge to go outside. There was no particular reason, just a desire to do so.
So, he left his room.
He could hear the creak of the hallway floor beneath his feet.
Squeak.
As he opened the old door, the soft rustle of dirt reached his ears.
The night air still held some warmth, likely a lingering trace of the sun’s heat. As he walked, he took in the faint, warm, and dry scent.
Without thinking of anything in particular.
Simply accepting everything as it was.
⎯Stop.
Liam stopped walking.
On the path with no destination, there hung a white half-moon.
And.
There was a woman basking in its blue glow.
Her white hair sparkled, reminding him of the Milky Way—a woman whose beauty seemed otherworldly.
She turned her head and met Liam’s gaze.
“Oh, Mr. Liam.”
The woman with the ethereal appearance was Alicia.
Seeing him, Alicia smiled softly and asked.
“Out for a walk?”
“No, just…”
Liam trailed off, not finishing his sentence. He had moved without any particular reason, no aim for a change of mood or a simple stroll.
“Sometimes, that’s fine too.”
“……”
Even so, results came, and the future changed.
Whether an action held meaning or not.
Whether it was big or small.
Following the exact course of history was impossible.
A calm silence, not awkward, fell between them.
Alicia turned her gaze back to the half-moon, looking up.
The moonlight reflected off her translucent skin, making her look even more radiant.
As Liam gazed at her, he found himself slowly speaking without realizing it.
“Alicia… are you happy right now?”
It was a question unbound by the mood or the flow of conversation.
He had simply asked because her gentle smile seemed so at peace.
Alicia responded seriously, even to his out-of-context question. Her soft smile bloomed brightly like a flower.
“Yes, very much so.”
“… I see.”
Liam didn’t ask what made her so happy. Even without knowing everything, he understood.
Knowing the situation she had been in and the one she was now in.
Liam could vaguely grasp what her happiness encompassed.
The fact that she could feel happiness now was, in a way, a result of Vargan’s influence.
“Alicia… just hypothetically.”
Liam began speaking of something that could happen in the future, without even knowing why he was saying it.
“What if… what if Vargan suddenly left? If he disappeared to a place where you could never find him, a place you could never reach…?”
How would you feel…?
In response to Liam’s question, Alicia asked back.
“A place where it’s impossible to follow?”
“Yes.”
Even through death or dimensional magic.
If it were about himself and Vargan, it would be different, but people from within this novel could never leave.
Alicia, unaware of this truth, pondered for a moment before answering.
“… for the first few years, I might wander aimlessly. I would probably cry endlessly whenever I stopped, lost and unable to do anything.”
She continued her imaginary scenario.
It was in her nature not to dismiss even hypothetical questions lightly.
“Then, after a few years, my emotions would likely settle. I would imagine the reason why he left and continue doing what I must, picking up the path I had momentarily stopped walking.”
Everything Master does has meaning. And he’s not someone who would allow me to stay idle.
Alicia said with determination.
“I would prepare for Master’s return, so that when he does come back, he won’t be disappointed.”
She intended to be ready for Vargan’s return. She would do her best so that he wouldn’t be disappointed when he came back.
But.
“No, Alicia.”
Liam shook his head as he listened to her words.
“He won’t come back. He can’t come back.”
Hearing this, Alicia’s expression changed, wilting like a flower soaked in a sudden rain.
In a low voice, she responded, “I see…” forming a bridge to her next words.
“Even so, nothing would change… even if I can’t go to him, even if he can’t return, that too is Master’s will. It would be sad, but I wouldn’t stop walking the path of the hero that Master opened for me.”
Her resolve was unwavering.
“Becoming a hero and saving people is both Master’s legacy and my own wish.”
“… I see.”
For the current Alicia.
Who had grown mentally strong thanks to Vargan, that was indeed possible.
Liam thought so.
“……”
After that, a quiet silence fell between them again.
“But… the first few years will probably be really tough.”
The conversation, which seemed to have ended, continued thanks to Alicia.
It was something Liam hadn’t quite considered.
It was the story of those left behind.
“You’ll have to endure stubbornly, over and over again, just to barely maintain your sanity. And to start walking properly, you’ll have to put in several times that effort.… so.”
Alicia spoke of her small hope, or rather, her desire.
It wasn’t a trivial desire for her.
“I hope that kind of future never comes.”
Even imagining it seemed difficult for Alicia. Her eyes curved sadly.
It was only after seeing that expression that Liam realized what he had said.
“Oh, I’m sorry… I said something weird.”
“No, it’s alright. It’s just a hypothetical story.”
In the midst of their conversation, they felt someone approaching from behind.
The owner of the footsteps didn’t hide themselves but walked cautiously.
When they looked, a woman with red hair was standing in an awkward posture, smiling sheepishly, as if she had been caught.
She explained that she had been curious about what the two were talking about and had walked over from outside the window.
After a brief chat with Emily, Alicia spoke as they all prepared to leave together.
“… but, Mr. Liam, there’s one thing I’d like you to remember.”
Alicia uttered the last sentence of the night.
It was a heartfelt concern for Liam, who had been stuck, unable to move forward.
“Just as Master is important to me, you, Mr. Liam, are also an important person to someone.”
Hearing Alicia’s words, Liam raised his head and looked at Emily.
When his eyes met Emily’s, she gave him a bright smile.
“… yeah. You’re right.”
And somehow.
He felt as though he had a slightly better sense of what he wanted to do and what he had to do in this world.
“Thank you, Alicia.”
***
Leaving the vicinity of Dortmund, we sailed through the sky at high speed on the airship.
“Whoa, you’re really something else.”
I was on board with Finn and the rest of Helion’s team.
Canella, the only woman on Helion’s team, gaped as she observed what I had accomplished over the past few days.
The familiar I had healed, Darkie, and the familiar Wolfie, which transformed into chains, had fused into a new familiar. It raised its head proudly and howled.
The fur that had covered Wolfie was gone, and the shadow of the wolf now protruded three-dimensionally.
The power of its abilities had more than doubled, and it could use the full range of skills both familiars originally possessed.
“I took two months to master dual fusion, but you did it in just five days.”
Canella kept praising me, saying the blood of the Schugenhartz was truly extraordinary.
Five days to achieve dual fusion….
It was within my expectations, so I didn’t feel the need to brag.
I turned my gaze to Helion, who was quietly looking out the window in the distance. I wasn’t in the mood to talk much, so I decided to pass the baton for now.
“It’s thanks to having a good teacher.”
“That’s true, but still…”
As I listened to her unnecessary banter, a sudden loud noise struck my eardrums.
It brought out my irritability.
“You’re worse than trash. You still can’t do better than that? Just die already!”
“I’m sorry…! I’ll try again, so please give me one more chance…!”
I could see the swordsman Kshanoll, ranked 23rd among heroes, and Finn clinging to him.
For the past few days, Finn had been begging and pleading with Kshanoll to teach him.
When Finn first made his request, Kshanoll had vehemently refused and cursed him out.
He even said he’d rather take a clueless child wandering around aimlessly as his disciple than teach someone like Finn.
But Finn didn’t give up.
He threw away his pride and bowed his head countless times.
Eventually, Kshanoll reluctantly agreed to watch Finn’s stance, but it wasn’t long before he started yelling and cursing at him again.
“I’ll do my best!”
Despite this, Finn remained undeterred.
Instead, his determination burned even brighter.
“You piece of shit!”
That didn’t mean the scolding or beatings became any less frequent, though.
⎯I’ve learned about a place called <Soul Forge Hall>.
A few days ago, Finn revealed information to me about Soul Forge Hall, which he had heard from Canthurman.
It was a top-secret place, so he wouldn’t tell anyone else, but he wanted to share it with me.
When he said that, I thought he might just cling to Kshanoll to ask about Soul Forge Hall’s secrets, but it seemed he had his own thoughts on the matter.
Or maybe he was trying to bond with Kshanoll through camaraderie? If that was the case, it was not a bad strategy.
Hmm.
Soul Forge Hall… it appeared in the original work, and there were heroes from there like Kshanoll, but I didn’t have detailed information about its location.
From what I knew, and what Finn revealed.
Only those with below-average talents could enter, and the difficulty of surviving there was extreme.
Only those with extraordinary mental fortitude could make it; otherwise, they died not in the usual way, but by having their minds collapsed. That was what I’d heard.
⎯Yeah
I shifted my attention back to the fused familiar, combining Darkie and Wolfie, and released the dual fusion.
The two familiars returned to their original forms.
I then reverse summoned both familiars to rest after their hard work.
Alright, dual fusion was complete.
The next priority was taming Kry.
Although Kry, the chimera familiar, had become less wary of me, it still hadn’t fully accepted me.
I would need to keep building trust and rapport without giving up.
I could see the path now.
Once I succeeded in fully taming Kry, my mastery of familiars would reach a new level.
At that point, I would be able to learn the new summoning technique Helion had yet to show me.
“It looks like we’ve arrived.”
Canella, who had been hanging around in front of me, said this as she watched Helion’s movements by the window.
Then, with a triumphant expression, she pointed a finger at me.
“The Central Church is on a completely different scale than other churches. Try not to freeze up in shock, okay?”
We had finally arrived.
At the most important place in the world.
“I’ll do my best.”
I humored Canella’s exaggerated warning and moved to see the view outside the window.
A massive white building filled the landscape.
It was a grand, towering structure, far too immense for a religious building.