Chapter 9

But it was already too late.

Even if it was a whisper, Theodore—an awakened individual—must have heard everything.

I firmly clamped Ronny’s mouth shut and raised my head.

‘Huh?’

Theodore seemed oddly fine?

He seemed to be lost in thought for a moment because of Ronny’s words.

But he definitely didn’t look newly hurt or despairing.

‘Why? At this point in the timeline, he should still be bound by the Wither family.’

There was no way he didn’t hear it… right?

Then is it because Ronny is young? He just wasn’t moved by it?

As I was carefully gauging Theodore’s reaction, our eyes suddenly met.

And then a thought flashed through my mind.

‘Maybe being called a bastard isn’t the trigger…’

Being ignored was something he was used to. He must have heard the word “bastard” countless times.

But in the original story, from chapter 1, there was a scene where he was frustrated at the academy.

Then maybe what broke him wasn’t the inferiority of being a bastard, but the fact that he was still his ‘incompetent self’ despite having awakened?

‘What is this, a protagonist psychology test?’

Hitting the protagonist’s reverse scale sure is hard.

Still, it was a relief.

That Theodore wasn’t hurt by Ronny’s words.

Of course, regardless of his reaction, I had to apologize to him. Because of this damn little brother of mine.

“I’m really sorry, Theodore…”

“Hm? Ah, no. It’s true, after all.”

That answer makes me feel worse, kid.

As the person who diligently read his miserable backstory, my conscience pricked at me.

With my conscience stinging, I decided to take Ronny and leave.

“We’ll be going now. Finish your practice.”

“Yeah. See you next time.”

Ronny seemed drained too—he just glared without resisting. So I glared back at him the same way.

I was about to hoist this immature little brother up and leave the training hall when—

“Um, Lucy!”

Theodore’s voice stopped me. I halted mid-step and spun around.

Theodore was smiling faintly, just like last time.

“I’m fine, really.”

So don’t scold your brother too much.

I couldn’t even answer and just stared blankly at him.

The protagonist, Theodore Wither, was…

‘Way too kind!’

I know being kind is part of the protagonist’s setting in this novel, but you don’t have to be THIS kind, you idiot!

Until now, I thought a protagonist should naturally be kind, but seeing Theodore act like such a pushover made my stomach churn.

So this is why the other readers said they couldn’t stand the pushover protagonist.

In the end, I just nodded and fled the training hall as if running away. Even after that, I ran aimlessly for a while before snapping back to my senses because of Ronny squirming at my side.

Oh right, I released the hand covering Ronny’s mouth.

“Puhah! I thought I was going to suffocate to death!”

Oh my, you almost died from suffocation?

I thought I was going to die of guilt, you brat!

I was about to scold Ronny, who was acting like he’d been the one suffering, but held it in. It definitely wasn’t because I liked the kid.

‘Because he told me not to scold him too much.’

You really survived thanks to the protagonist.

Feeling the peak of my patience, I plopped Ronny down on the ground.

“Ugh, put me down gently!”

…But shouldn’t this kid actually get scolded?

In the end, Ronny got his other ear yanked too.

Only Ronny’s screams echoed through the quiet academy.

* * *

“Young master—!”

When I went to the academy’s main gate to send Ronny back, a man who appeared to be a servant rushed frantically toward Ronny.

He grabbed Ronny and checked him all over, then let out a sigh of relief and spoke.

“How can you move around on your own like that! Every time you do this, young master, I really go crazy…”

“See, I told you we should go quickly!”

“That’s why I said to wait until I finished packing!”

But Ronny snorted and turned his head away. The servant clutched his forehead as if it ached.

Looking at that, he clearly just left without saying anything. At this point, it wasn’t even surprising anymore.

When I subtly pushed Ronny forward, the servant finally noticed me and hurriedly bowed.

“I apologize for the late greeting, Lady Lucy!”

Yes, yes, it’s fine.

I casually raised my hand to accept his greeting and gave him a look to take this kid away quickly. The servant, catching my signal immediately, nodded with a determined look.

Then he hoisted Ronny up in one swift motion.

“Hey, you!”

“N-Now, it’s time for the young master to return. Please stay well, my lady!”

He gave me a polite bow and then disappeared with Ronny tucked under his arm.

“Put me down! I’ll walk on my own feet!”

“I can’t allow that because the young master might run off somewhere again.”

“Is this insulting me, do you know that?”

“Yes yes, young master. Let’s go home, take a bath, and rest comfortably. Isn’t that nice?”

“Agh, so annoying!”

The sound of their conversation grew further and further away.

Only when I could no longer hear it did the tension drain from my body.

‘All this trouble over one little brat…’

I shook my head and returned to the dormitory. It really had been a hectic day.

And the next day.

I received a letter.

[To Lucy Saint.

I’m going back now. Since meeting you again would be a hassle, I’m just leaving a letter.]

Honestly, who’s the one being a hassle here?

Still, it was better than him making a fuss about coming to see me again, so I decided to let it slide. I kept reading.

[I’ll awaken soon and get admitted too, so just focus on attending the academy properly. Don’t get yourself kicked out. And don’t waste your affection on that bastard of the Wither family!

—From Ronny Saint, who will awaken before long]

That was the end of the short letter.

He really was a cheeky brat to the very end.

How did a kid like this pop out from parents like Lucy’s?

Still, it was a letter, so I roughly tucked it into the drawer.

I planned to show it to him personally if Ronny grew up and failed to awaken. Let’s call it collecting blackmail material.

‘Anyway, I keep worrying about it…’

I was thinking of Theodore Wither—the protagonist.

Ever since yesterday, his pushover-like image kept bothering me.

I wondered if he was even eating properly.

In the original, Theodore did receive living expenses from the Wither family, but he used even that minimally. Because he thought it wasn’t his.

andu****
Author-nim… please at least feed the kid…
Why does a incident always happen at mealtime;;

bOng****
The protagonist here has nothing but a status window. No money, no connections, no food.

2Esu****
You have food, at least.
This comment has been blurred due to operational policy.

Because that comment became the top comment, the comment section was flooded with similar content for a while.

He’s probably eating the lunchbox service or something he applied for during vacation right now. I’d applied too because it was a hassle, but even I went out to buy at least one meal.

“I should buy him something to eat after all.”

He was going to have his self-esteem hit rock bottom for a while after entering the academy anyway, so I should at least feed him properly.

I headed to the grand training hall.

Somehow, I felt he’d be there again today.

* * *

“The chicken skewers here are really good, right?”

“Oh, want to try this too?”

“What are you saying. You eat it, I’ll buy another one.”

I pushed back the skewer offered to me and paid for another one. Lucy’s parents had sent allowance along with the letter, so my wallet was quite comfortable.

Thanks to that, under the pretext of apologizing for Ronny’s behavior, I was treating the protagonist to all sorts of food.

‘Theodore, I want to apologize for yesterday with my brother.’

‘If it’s about that, I’m really fine—’

‘I am! I’m not fine, so!’*

And just like that, I dragged him out of the academy. This wasn’t just to feed him.

Training alone doesn’t dramatically improve your skills. It can even risk a slump.

Meeting people and getting some fresh air is good for your mental health!

“Should we check out over there too?!”

“W-Wait a moment, Lucy…!”

…I-It’s not because I got bored of playing alone.

Well, maybe a little, but anyway, no.

Regardless, being out in the streets with someone else made me excited too.

Thanks to that, I wandered into alleys I’d never been to and explored every corner.

“Huff, huff…”

And a few hours later.

Theodore was exhausted.

‘Oh no.’

I’d momentarily forgotten—Theodore’s stamina was F.

Meaning, he was a very frail friend by awakened standards.

I spotted Theodore gasping for breath and stopped walking. At this rate, feeding him well would be pointless.

Feeling sheepish, I deliberately looked around.

Then, something in an antique shop caught my eye.

Sealed Archmage’s Artifact (S)
: Item information cannot be confirmed. Would you like to unseal it?
(Click!)

What?