The Villain Bought the Heroine

Chapter 49

Fine, I’ll admit.

Choosing Pin was influenced by emotions to some extent.

Emotions, which originally shouldn’t interfere except when setting goals initially, took over and led to actions.

*Sob…!*

A pitiful cry from Pin is heard.

It seemed like she no longer felt the need to hide when I appeared, pouring out her emotions.

Toyren Trois Pin.

A dimwit among dimwits, except for finishing last in entrance exam scores, he never stood out in the original work.

But one thing was clear, the determination he showed during the battle with Palon in the class preparation period, even if not noted in the novel, was evident.

I favor the talented.

My game board will be filled only with those exuding the brilliant radiance of diverse talents.

There’s no need to fill the space with those who don’t shine.

…So, this is an experiment.

A test mouse to challenge limits.

For Pin, talent is something that even when looked for with eyes wide open, remains invisible.

He can proudly claim it doesn’t exist.

This is a test to see how far such an individual, if given the opportunity, can grow.

Who knows, this model may succeed and be applicable to others. It’s uncertain if it can produce a massive amount of useful words.

“Hah, even thinking about it, it’s an absurd excuse.”

While not entirely lacking in potential, investing in others with that capital is more efficient, of course.

Therefore, one could dismiss raising a fin as a hobby.

Isn’t it true that in RPG games, as a character grows, the real self also grows alongside? It’s an ironic phenomenon to be aware of this fact and still engage in gaming.

“Alicia.”

“Yes, sir.”

“You reduced your stress by helping others.”

“…Is that so?”

Alicia seemed unsure of how to respond. It was a delicate situation.

“Don’t dwell on it. Forget about it.”

“Yes… understood.”

***

One day after returning to Academia.

As I was about to enter the research lab, it was unusually noisy today.

There weren’t many people who would bother me since Fin’s treatment was not yet over, so why?

With that question in mind, as I opened the door, I found the answer.

“Oh, Vargan! Please come in first, excuse me.”

A figure greeted me with an energetic voice.

Frida.

A woman who played a significant role in shaking up the stronghold of the 5th class by acquiring it unfairly.

“Okay.”

“Was it true after all?”

“Emily, I told you I was real.”

Perhaps due to their common status, Emily and Frida already seemed friendly.

As we sat down, Alicia naturally brought out a tea set.

The deep red tea was poured into the cups, emitting warmth with white steam rising.

“Wow, it’s really picturesque.”

Frida stupidly opened her mouth.

I didn’t ask what she meant by “picturesque.”

“It’s a membership application. If you write your name here, you can also become a member of the Arbol Prutal.”

“Oh, thank you.”

Taking the paper as if afraid I might snatch it away, Frida quickly skimmed through it and wrote her name.

She wrote ‘Frida’ in crooked letters.

Even if a worm were to crawl, its form would be more beautiful than this.

“Is it okay not to carefully examine the contents?”

“I can’t read difficult characters yet.”

“You’re perfectly set up to be deceived.”

“Considering that possibility, I’ve already understood and memorized the contents of the application. I just checked if there were any other characters a moment ago.”

Frida chuckled and sipped the tea Alicia had prepared in advance.

Sending a subtle gaze as if asking for praise.

“If you can’t read and write, it could be a hindrance in the future. Make sure to learn basic vocabulary soon.”

“I’ll do my best.”

“Why are you standing there staring blankly, Emily? Do you dislike Frida joining as a member?”

“What…?! Who would misunderstand if they hear that…! That’s not it…!!”

Ignoring Emily’s loud protests, Alicia reads the book she unfolded for her.

She resumed reading from where she left off last time.

As she followed the arrangement of the letters, Emily’s hand covered the book.

“Explain properly to us, as members!”

…How bothersome.

I didn’t want to hear the noisy chatter, so I quickly and concisely said,

If Frida performs her duties properly in class and helps me occasionally, I promised to put her in our research society and give her pocket money.

Why? After betraying Class 5, she can’t fit in with that group.

By the way, this was Frida’s proposal.

“No matter how much money you can make, it’s lonely to go alone.”

Frida is a woman who has honed her acting skills for survival.

Her talent as a heroine is slightly above average, and she has a strong survival instinct that can be useful.

For example, deceiving someone in class instead of me. There are tasks that can’t be entrusted to the soft-hearted folks.

Moreover, she wasn’t a major character in the existing story, but she has great charm.

Namely, she is one of the characters with the most ideological conflicts with Liam. Liam cannot accept her cunning. They clashed significantly in the second semester festival episode.

In fact, this alone is reason enough to intercept.

“Th-then… Liam too…”

“Alright, enough chatter. Let’s get to work.”

Cutting off Emily’s pointless words, I turned my attention to the pile of paper in front of me.

There’s quite a lot.

“Alicia, how many people applied?”

“A total of 121. 72 freshmen, 29 sophomores, 18 juniors, and 2 seniors.”

“Why are there fewer applicants from the juniors and seniors?”

“There are several reasons. Arbol Furtal being composed only of freshmen, the presence of negative forces in some student councils concentrated in the junior and senior years, and the fact that some are already in a research society are the main factors.”

As assumed.

Except for one.

“Did you not omit important information to suit my mood? Alicia, what you did is distortion of information. Don’t do it again.”

“…I’m sorry, my lord.”

“Because Arbol Furtal’s research society president is young, isn’t it?”

It’s what you call favoritism.

Even if they are from a noble family, they are freshmen.

They don’t want to work under those who entered the academy later than themselves.

Skill should be more important than age.

…But, it’s actually good.

Those with such rotten mindsets have automatically been filtered out, hasn’t it?

It’s a good thing for both of us, as it saved me some trouble.

“When will we review all of this…?”

Emily clicked her tongue.

“It will be done soon. Hand over to me everyone who doesn’t meet the criteria I’ve written down, except for those individuals. I will make the final judgment.”

“So, are you going to interview the selected candidates?”

“Yes.”

The topics of the research conference, personal development.

The advertisement for this must have been done properly.

The name that used to evoke hesitation, the Theology Student Union, must have disappeared.

It was reasonable for students to gather.

For someone like me who needs to attract talent, this was clearly good news.

However, accepting all of them would diminish their utility. Isn’t there a saying about choice and focus?

Looking through the documents, I first select characters who were active in novels, then pick those with less weight but talent, and those who show potential.

It’s regrettable that we can’t bring in the elites from the student council, but let’s guide them gradually through the process.

So, let’s start with this now.

“Let’s organize the documents.”

-Oh, wait a moment!

The flow was disrupted due to Frida’s intervention.

They look at me with a deep sense of confusion on their faces.

“I can’t read, can I?”

“…I won’t entrust it to you, so do some menial task.”

“Yes…”

***

The room in the dormitory where Erica resides.

She sat at the desk, thinking about Bardgan.

“That bastard…!”

Not in a positive way, but negative.

The class confrontation that completely got out of hand under his control ended in disgrace.

Normally, Erica didn’t care much about others’ opinions, but the feeling of failure for not leading the class properly tormented her.

From the moment she woke up in the morning until she fell asleep.

Thinking of her pathetic appearance under Bardgan’s influence, Erica kicked her feet in frustration.

Misunderstandings might have been cleared up, but her relationship with Difellia became awkward because of that guy. She already had hardly any close friends, and now she lost one potential friend….

No, not a friend.

Emotions shouldn’t get in the way.

Difellia is a saintly and capable person.

It’s not sad because she lost a potential friend, but because losing such talent is a sad thing.

“….”

Like a wet cat, or rather a drowned rat, Erica raised her fork and cut a piece of cake.

The neatly cut cake did not collapse or crumble. The soft texture of the cake cut by the fork quickly restored itself.

Yum.

As the piece of cake melted in Erica’s mouth, it enveloped her tongue. The harmony of sweetness and a hint of sourness was excellent.

“…….”

Originally, Erica would have exclaimed in admiration at the sweetness. But the current Erica couldn’t do that.

Laden with seasonal fruits, the luxurious cake felt as tasteless as stale whole wheat bread.

Soggy.

She chewed a small piece to be swallowed quickly for a long time. It was not savoring the taste, just mechanically moving the muscles in her mouth.

⎯Tock, tock.

A light knock-like sound was heard.

It was a window that spread darkness like sunlight. A yellow bird, seemingly magically conjured, appeared outside the window.

Erica opened the window and let the bird in. It was a familiar act. It was a means for Erica’s mother to communicate with her regularly.

The bird that entered the room circled the space a few times, then gently perched on Erica’s shoulder, leaving a flicker before disappearing with a flutter.

Clusters of yellow lights reassembled into the shape of an envelope. Upon tearing it open to check the contents, there was a letter and two theater tickets inside.

“…What’s this?”

While a letter was mundane, it was the first time she found tickets inside.

Erica placed the tickets on the desk and began reading the letter.

At first, it was a simple greeting.

Expressions of affection filled with her mother’s worry for Erica as always.

“…Wh-what?”

However.

As Erica read the letter, her expression turned to shock. Simultaneously, her reading speed increased, and her gaze moved rapidly.

Unbelievable.

Unwanted belief.

Already troubled by recent events, what could this possibly mean?

“Ugh…!”

For a moment, overwhelmed by emotions, Erica almost tore up the letter but refrained.

It was a precious letter from her mother.

Even if the content seemed absurd, it was her mother’s handwritten words.

“Sigh….”

Erica took a long breath.

A very long one.

Grasping her heavy head.

She reread the specific sentence that had troubled her the most.

“My lovely fairy Erica, spend a quiet time with Bargan on the upcoming engagement anniversary.”

If only it had been a family gathering like last year…!

Erica pressed hard on the paper to ensure no unpleasant words slipped out as she wrote her response. Pausing intermittently, she let out long sighs.

“…How do I tell Shugenharz about this.”