“Ah… hello?”
I couldn’t hide the surprise in my greeting.
Edwin didn’t seem to mind. He simply gave a small nod and looked down at me in silence for a while.
…I suddenly felt pressured, like I had to confess something.
“Um…”
“About…”
Just as I finally managed to speak before the awkward silence suffocated me, Edwin spoke at the same time.
The timing couldn’t have been worse.
The atmosphere, already awkward, instantly became ten times more uncomfortable.
“You go first.”
“No, it’s okay. Please, Your Grace.”
“…Very well.”
After a brief pause, he seemed to realize he was standing much higher than I was. He slowly sat down beside me.
Then, with something that sounded almost like a sigh, he asked,
“Was it you?”
“Huh? W-What was?”
“The servants’ faces.”
So he knew.
Did that mean he’d noticed all along that there was something strange about the servants?
When I quietly nodded, his next question came immediately.
“How did you do it?”
“Ah… well…”
How was I supposed to explain this?
It was basically because I’d completed quests, their affection had increased, and this happened.
But I had no idea how to explain that to Edwin.
He remained stubbornly silent, as if willing to wait until I was ready to answer.
Fortunately, he didn’t seem angry.
Well, there wasn’t much reason for him to be. It was a good thing that the servants’ faces had returned to normal.
‘…He looks uneasy.’
Unlike everyone else, Edwin had always had a face.
Which meant I could actually read his subtle expressions and reactions.
And right now, his eyes were clouded, as though he wasn’t entirely at ease.
After hesitating for a while, I finally decided to explain it as honestly as I could.
“Well… I actually have a rather unusual ability.”
“An unusual… ability?”
“It’s kind of… a restoration power. I can only use it once I’ve become close enough to someone, so it’s not something I can use whenever I want.”
Well, at least I’d managed to avoid mentioning the system.
Since it hadn’t displayed any warning messages, I took that as confirmation that my explanation was acceptable.
“…It’s certainly an unusual ability.”
“Haha… yeah. I just never really had a chance to tell you until now.”
An uncomfortable silence lingered between us.
Then came his next question.
“Why did you use that ability?”
It was completely unexpected.
I thought he’d ask where the ability came from, or how I’d restored their missing faces.
Besides, I’d assumed he’d be happy once he learned there was nothing wrong with what I’d done.
“What? Um… why? Is there a problem?”
“I’m simply curious why you chose to use such an ability on mere servants. Come to think of it, the appearance of a sacred creature like the pegasus wasn’t exactly ordinary either. Miss Windsor, you…”
The curiosity in his eyes quickly faded.
After stopping himself midway, Edwin shook his head and slightly changed his question.
“No… never mind. I simply wish to know your reason.”
“Well…”
Even if restoring their faces hadn’t happened automatically through raising affection—even if I’d had to search for each servant one by one and restore them myself—
I still would’ve done it.
Because…
“I see them every day.”
More importantly, I’d become close enough to people like the head maid and the head chef to chat casually with them.
Not being able to see their expressions had honestly felt uncomfortable.
So I’d naturally assumed Edwin felt the same.
“Is that all?”
He sounded somewhat unconvinced.
“Yeah… I think so? They help me every day. If there’s something I can do for them, then of course I should.”
“But the servants don’t even seem aware of what you’ve done. Did anyone thank you?”
“No… but…”
“Then wasn’t it unnecessary?”
“…Unnecessary?”
“They don’t even know it happened. And you didn’t receive so much as a word of thanks.”
“Hmm…”
I didn’t really understand.
Honestly, did it matter?
Listening to someone thank me for every single act of kindness would probably be tiring and embarrassing.
Sure, it’s nice to be appreciated.
But not everything has to be that complicated.
Back in Monter Village, I’d intentionally gotten involved, so I’d ended up attracting more attention than I’d expected.
But in the first place, I’d never liked being the center of attention.
Sometimes, doing good was simply enough.
“It doesn’t matter to me. Wanting to be kind and wanting to repay kindness—that’s something I do because I want to.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean… if the person receiving my kindness is happy, then of course that makes me happy too. But I think that when we do something for someone else, we’re ultimately doing it for ourselves as well.”
“…Please explain.”
Ah.
Maybe that was too abstract.
“But think about volunteering. Of course it’s nice when the people you’re helping are happy. But in the end, you’re also doing it because it makes you feel fulfilled. In that sense, you’re volunteering for your own sake. And even outside of volunteering… don’t most of the things people do ultimately have themselves as the reason?”
Like holding a glass door open for the person behind you.
Or picking up a piece of litter from the ground.
I’d done little things like that before—not because I wanted people to thank me, but because I wanted to feel like I’d lived that day well.
Sometimes people thanked me.
Sometimes they didn’t.
But fundamentally, I’d always been doing those things for myself.
‘…I guess that’s hard to understand if you don’t think that way.’
Just as I worried I’d rambled too much and glanced nervously at Edwin…
A message suddenly appeared before my eyes.
[Edwin (1/2, Alignment: Good)’s Affection has been unlocked.]
Huh?
Right now?
The affection meter unlocking at such a completely unexpected moment left me speechless.
Meanwhile, Edwin seemed to have finished organizing his thoughts.
Looking at me calmly, he said,
“You’re rather unusual, Miss Windsor.”
“…Me?”
Why did this feel familiar?
I could’ve sworn the head maid had once said something similar.
“Most people think relationships are built on mutual exchange. After everything you’ve done for the servants, I never expected you to say something like that.”
Everything I’d done…?
So that’s how Edwin had interpreted all my efforts to clear quests.
I smiled awkwardly before asking,
“Do I seem that strange?”
“It’s different from my own way of thinking. But I can’t say I don’t understand it. It’s simply… an idea I’ve never considered before.”
There was something oddly thoughtful about his words.
But I could immediately tell there was no ill intent behind them.
[Affection +1 (1/50)]
Well…
Both Evil Edwin and Good Edwin really did unlock their affection at the most unexpected moments.
Of course, that didn’t mean Edwin’s attitude suddenly changed dramatically.
He behaved like an entirely normal person.
(Usually in games like this, once affection unlocked, the love interest immediately started shamelessly flirting.)
“Come to think of it, it seems your trip to the village went well.”
“Ah, yes! Thankfully I got back early. I was worried everyone would be concerned if I was late…”
Oh, right!
Remembering something I’d completely forgotten, I quickly changed the subject.
“Actually, I also asked about the Golden Carrot you mentioned before. Mr. Scrooge said it’s almost impossible to get unless you have something valuable enough to trade.”
Edwin was silent for a moment, as if considering it, before slowly nodding.
“That makes sense. Golden Carrots are extremely expensive to cultivate. They’re usually grown in small quantities by wealthy collectors rather than ordinary farmers. Considering the sort of people who own them, they’re more likely to want something other than money in exchange.”
“Mmm… I see.”
Only then did I understand why Mr. Scrooge had answered that way.
But there was still a problem.
“I don’t have anything valuable enough to trade. What should I do?”
“Why do you think that?”
“Huh?”
“I believe you possess quite a number of things that others would find interesting.”
Huh?
Me? I had something like that?
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