“Oh, no! I’m okay!”
Seriously, this lady.
Why is she making a perfectly fine person look like a weirdo?
“Are you really, okay?”
Even if I wasn’t, I had to look like I was.
Because I couldn’t exactly reveal that this was my ninth regression and that I was exhausted from countless failed endings.
“Yes!”
Even so, her suspicious gaze lingered stubbornly.
I barely managed to turn my head to avoid her intense stare.
Looking at her, it wouldn’t be strange if this place was heaven.
Especially since she even has a servant named Parker with her.
‘Okay, this is definitely the mortal realm.’
I quickly came to a conclusion.
“Can you get up?”
“Y-yes.”
The moment she helped me up, I belatedly saw reality.
‘Crap, what is this?’
If I fail the hidden ending, do I have to be stuck here forever?
Can’t I even die when I want to now?!
Just a moment ago, I was mesmerized by her beauty, but now, the arrow of resentment naturally turned towards her.
It was then, as I was glaring at her with wild eyes.
“Your name is Sadie, wasn’t it?”
Huh? She knows my name?
Well, even though I’m just an extra, I remember her face too.
“The only daughter of Baron Cleo, right?”
“How did you.?”
“I knew it. Wait here for a moment.”
She led me to the side of the road.
Normally, a thank you would have come first, but for some reason, the words didn’t come easily now.
It was because my inner self was still confused.
I was stuck, not knowing what to do, when…
“Ah!”
A small groan escaped my lips.
“You’re scratched, here.”
Only then did my gaze turn downwards.
On my knee, visible through the torn dress, was crushed medicinal herb.
“…”
For some stubborn reason, I pressed my lips shut and endured the stinging pain.
After suffering eight times and coming back from the dead, maybe I’ve become desensitized to this level of pain.
“It’s Karky herb. It’s an excellent herb for erasing traces.”
Now that I looked, there were a few long blades of grass scattered on the ground.
There were also traces of the herb being crushed with a stone.
It was strange.
I felt truly confused.
‘What, why is she being so nice to me?’
I pondered how to accept this kindness, and soon came to a conclusion.
What I’ve learned from living so many lives is that if you just react in a textbook manner, nothing goes wrong.
“Thank you.”
“Well, anyway, it’s fortunate that it didn’t lead to a major accident.”
“…”
“I don’t know why, but don’t do anything stupid like this again.”
“Excuse me?”
“What are you asking? You were trying to die, weren’t you?”
My eyes, which had lost their direction, shook violently at her words.
What, she knew all along?
And she still helped me?
My face burned at the exposure of my weakness.
“If you’re doing something like this, it must be so hard that you’d rather die.”
“…”
“But, you’ll be gone, but your remaining family will live in pain. Of course, you wouldn’t do this if you knew that.”
Why?
Why is she saying these things?
I’m just a passing extra, nothing more, nothing less.
But I, too, reacted directly to words that I could have just ignored.
“What if there’s no family left? Then, is it okay to die?”
“I thought the Baron was still alive and well. Am I mistaken?”
“No! You’re right.”
For now, at least.
Since I’ve regressed, the events of the future haven’t happened yet.
I decided not to respond to this topic any further.
It was true that I had caused her trouble and unintentionally received help.
I wasn’t that shameless.
“Then, at least until the wound on your knee heals, think about it. Whether your choice is really the best.”
Yeah, maybe it’s not.
Maybe my current choice isn’t the best.
I don’t know how many more regressions I’ll have to go through, or whether I’ll be able to succeed in the ending. As of now, there’s nothing I can be sure of.
“I’ll think about it.”
Of course, my consideration here was about what method I should use to die next.
But I couldn’t help but be deceitful.
That’s how tired I was of this repeated life.
And there was no need to say such things to the lady who saved me.
“Anyway, the fact that your life was saved like this means there must be a reason for you to live.”
“…”
What? A reason to live?
What?
Why did I have to latch onto that one phrase?
‘Well, if I knew, I wouldn’t be like this.’
If it were the old me, I might have yelled at her for thinking she knew anything about me, or boldly ignored her.
But I couldn’t do that now.
For some reason. I had a strange feeling that I shouldn’t.
“Well, I think I’ve done all I can, so I’ll be going now.”
She turned away quickly with a simple farewell.
The man called Parker also followed behind her, guarding her.
And in the end, I, too, resigned myself and tried to go home.
“Huh?”
Then, something bumped into my toe.
It was an oval locket pendant.
Judging by the broken chain, someone must have dropped it while passing by.
I picked up the pendant without much thought.
“Hmm…”
My eyes gradually narrowed.
No matter how I looked at it, it didn’t seem ordinary.
“It’s not something a commoner would carry around.”
The pendant, with a star pattern embossed on it, was clearly an expensive item.
Without thinking, I opened the pendant and gasped softly.
‘It’s her?’
Inside the pendant was a photo of her looking quite different from now.
It seemed to be from her childhood.
Short hair that barely reached her shoulders and chubby cheeks were proof of that.
Her snow-white silver hair and green eyes were the same as they are now.
Even the ribbon in her hair was so lovely.
“Wow. She was super cute even as a kid?”
Well, that beauty couldn’t have been created overnight.
They say beauty is innate, and it’s true.
The only difference was that, unlike her current cold image, the child in the photo looked very cute.
At that sight, I grinned like a fool.
Then, I found small letters written on the opposite side of the photo.
[Imperial Calendar 87X, June 8th, Lazenne Viviana]
“Lazenne Viviana?”
It seemed to be her name.
In the game, she’s marked as Extra 1, but I think the family name was mentioned in passing.
One of my vague memories told me that the house next door was the Viviana barony.
“Found you, owner.”
The corners of my lips turned up neatly.
How can even her name be so elegant?
At this point, I found it quite funny.
Although it’s a photo from her childhood, if she carries it around like this normally.
“She must have a lot of self-love?”
I puffed out my cheeks for no reason.
Maybe the way to repay her for today’s kindness is to find this pendant for her?
But that thought was soon shattered.
“Giving it back?”
I was so surprised that I almost dropped the pendant I was holding.
She was right in front of me.
“O-oh, Lady, when did you get here?”
“As you can see, just now.”
I didn’t feel any particular presence.
I must have been too absorbed in the pendant.
I was worried about the half-open pendant, so I quickly added,
“I was just about to find the owner. I definitely didn’t have any other intentions.”
“I’m sure. There’s no way someone who was trying to die would suddenly be interested in something like this.”
“Y-yes? Why are you saying such things?”
“Sorry. I apologize if my expression was too harsh. I was just panicked when I realized the pendant was gone.”
Yeah, that’s understandable.
How many people would be calm when their belongings disappear?
Especially for someone as self-loving as her, the sense of loss must have been great.
I received a quick apology from her, so I decided not to misunderstand any further.
I nodded and handed the pendant to her.
“Oh, the chain was broken. Should I fix it for you?”
“Why would you?”
“You saved my life.”
“There’s no need.”
Tch, how cold.
“Well, if you insist.”
I shrugged lightly, meaning I wouldn’t mention it again.
Then, she nodded in response.
“Oh, we didn’t properly introduce ourselves earlier, did we? My name is Sadie Le Cleo.”
I reached out my hand first, intending to confirm her name.
“…”
“…”
There was a brief moment of silence, but she soon brushed my hand with her hand wearing black lace gloves and said,
“I’m Lazenne Viviana.”
As expected, it was the name written inside the pendant.
With this, I couldn’t help but acknowledge her overflowing self-love.
“Anyway, thank you. I’ll be going now.”
“Ah, yes!”
“I hope your wound doesn’t last long. Goodbye.”
She looked at my eyes, not my knee, and said goodbye before walking away.
Parker quickly followed behind her.
It all happened in an instant.
“…”
Watching them gradually disappear, I clenched my fist.
My brow also furrowed.
It was only for a brief moment, but the impact she left on me was greater than I thought.
The subtle atmosphere that flowed in our conversation and the elegant image she exuded.
The dignity that was formed by the combination of her character, her innate nature, and the environment she grew up in.
The scent that was already ingrained in her bones couldn’t be hidden, no matter how hard she tried.
The afterimage of her perfect ensemble was not easily erased.
My pulse pounded so hard that I felt nauseous.
“Crazy, what is that lady?”
Why is she so cool?!
Ugh, don’t act up, heart.
I tried to calm my pounding heart.
But it didn’t subside easily.
“No, seriously?”
She suddenly appeared and saved my life, and in that short time, she even crushed herbs and applied them to my wound.
Besides, her reprimand was appropriate without crossing the line, and why is she so fancy?
Looking back, even her voice was good.
There was nothing to criticize.
“Isn’t that the male lead material if anyone sees it?”
But, why!
Ugh, why is she a lady?
Why isn’t she a male lead candidate?
She’s so pretty and cool.
At that moment.
“That’s right! Why didn’t I think of this?”
My vision has been too narrow.
Maybe this is the reason for the failed endings.
There’s no rule that hidden endings only have romance.
Therefore, my determination became even stronger.
This strategy is, “Lady, I choose you!”
I dreamed of a friendship ending with a heart full of excitement.
With excitement, I registered her name as my target.
But.
[Failed to set target.]
Huh? Why is it like this?