『Lilith has reached level 23!』

『Lilith has reached level 24!』

『Lilith has reached level 25!』

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

The battle Ethan, Karaham, and I fought somehow ended in victory for the three of us.

On the surface, it might have seemed like the battle was easily won, but it was truly a fight for our lives. Dodging that agile bear’s attacks while stacking spells and countering its lightning strike at the perfect moment was no easy feat.

If I had swung my spells even a fraction too fast or too slow, I would have been the one hit and paralyzed by the lightning instead of the Roaring Crescent Bear. Had that happened, Ethan and Karaham would’ve had to fight an already difficult opponent while carrying dead weight.

‘That's why I wanted to play it safe….’

But there was no choice but to abandon the safer approach. Fortunately, my level was decently high, and my luck stat wasn’t low either.

Still, as someone who likes certainty, I would prefer to avoid such battles. Unlike in games where I could reload a save or revive in a nearby town, in this world, I only had one life.

After dragging the body of the Roaring Crescent Bear back to the witch's village from the western forest altar, the first ones to join us were Agnes and the two others (Prince Antonio and Sir Colt) who had been stationed at the eastern lake.

In truth, Agnes and the others had been excluded from the hero’s plan from the start. Agnes’s fire magic was deemed too unpredictable and dangerous in the Witch’s Forest.

As for Antonio, he was too weak, so he was excluded. Sir Colt, on the other hand, was a variable that didn’t appear in the original story, and he was there to protect Antonio in case of an emergency.

In other words, it was like exiling Agnes and Colt to the eastern lake just to protect the powerless royal, Antonio. Yet, ironically, the most injured person among the three when we reunited was none other than Prince Antonio.

“P-Prince Antonio?!”

“…Are you alright?”

“Ah, you all made it back... and judging by the size of your prey, it seems you had quite the fight….”

Despite his words, Antonio was the most injured among us. It was surprising, especially since we had considered the lake to be the safest area. I couldn’t help but be shocked by his condition.

After hearing the details, I learned that Agnes’s group had also been in battle around the same time as us. They had faced a three-headed Hydra that emerged from the lake.

“I’m sorry. It was due to my incompetence that the prince was injured! I’ll take full responsibility for this with my life…!”

“Sir Colt! You can’t be so rash!”

“…I-It’s alright… I wasn’t that seriously injured… It was partly my fault for being careless….”

“…….”

Sir Colt, as a royal knight, felt responsible, while Agnes, for some reason, looked deeply troubled and couldn’t say anything. I didn’t ask for more details, as it felt like prying. Instead, I simply used my powers as a Saintess to keep Prince Antonio’s injuries from worsening.

Luckily, we had Serista, the true Saintess, with us in the forest. She immediately used her holy powers to heal Antonio’s wounds upon our return.

“T-This should do it, Prince Antonio….”

“…Yes, thank you.”

“I recommend resting for at least three days… I managed to seal the wounds with holy power, but it’ll take time for them to fully heal….”

“I understand.”

“Thank you, Serista, and I’m sorry for the trouble my reckless brother has caused. I know you must be exhausted from the battle.”

“N-No…! If I run out of holy power, a single desperate prayer will replenish it…! Princess, on the other hand, you were fighting in the most dangerous area with the hero just moments ago, and compared to that, my abilities aren’t that great….”

“It doesn’t matter who contributed more to the battle. Seraphin is only expressing gratitude for the trouble she caused you, Serista. Regardless, you did well.”

“T-Thank you… Hero….”

Even Seraphin, the highest-ranking person here, called that guy by name without hesitation. The hero, who caused so many misunderstandings, had the nerve to say he wouldn’t do anything in this world that would warrant responsibility. How ridiculous.

Seeing Seraphin flinch slightly the moment he called her name only confirmed that the future he imagined wouldn’t come to pass.

Between Seraphin, Silenna on one side, and Serista on the other, this hero was receiving adoring gazes from all the main heroines. It made me wonder if the real problem wouldn’t come after he defeated the Demon King.

‘One day, I’ll need to warn him. If he’s going to return to his world, he should at least give these three a heads-up before he leaves.’

If he disappeared without a word, a small war could break out between the Empire, the Holy Kingdom, and the Elves—each suspecting the others of hiding the hero.

“Y-You’ll need to keep the splint on for three days… It’ll take time for the broken bone to mend….”

“…I have to stay like this?”

“Y-Yes… It will be uncomfortable, but….”

“Hm…”

Prince Antonio looked troubled as he pondered the inconvenience of not being able to use his right arm for three days. His right arm, which was his dominant hand, no less. It was clear that managing basic tasks like eating and going to the bathroom would be difficult. And his bodyguard, Sir Colt, was a woman, which made things even more awkward.

“…Still, trading one arm for survival is a small price to pay. Besides, the monster was successfully defeated, so it turned out alright in the end. Sir Colt, you don’t need to worry so much. It was my recklessness that led to this, and I’ll bear the consequences.”

“I’m deeply sorry, Prince Antonio. In that case, I will take full responsibility for attending to your needs while your arm is injured.”

“Hm, would you? I was concerned about that, but if you’ll take care of it, I’d be grateful….”

Even though there wasn’t a male knight around, it seemed that Sir Colt was ready to take on the role of tending to Antonio’s needs. However…

“…I’ll do it.”

Agnes's unexpected declaration interrupted Antonio’s words.

“…Lady Agnes?”

“…I’ll be the one to look after you for the next three days.”

The atmosphere fell silent as the red-haired magician’s sudden statement caught everyone off guard.

No one had expected such words from Agnes, so naturally, all eyes were on her. The first to break the silence was Antonio himself.

“…You don’t have to feel responsible for my injury, Lady Agnes. It was due to my lack of skill….”

“Quiet. I said I’ll do it. Or do you have a problem with me?”

“N-No… Of course not, but…”

“Then don’t assign the task to someone else. I’m responsible for your injury, so I’ll take care of it. And it’s only for three days, anyway.”

“Ah, yes… I-I’ll leave it to you then, Lady Agnes….”

“…….”

Agnes, with a somewhat troubled expression, insisted on taking responsibility for Antonio’s care, and Antonio, though hesitant, nodded in agreement.

It wasn’t hard to guess that something had transpired between the two.

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

After the commotion following Agnes’s declaration to care for Antonio, we all sat down for a meal to restore our strength after the battle.

There were generally two types of meals in the Witch’s Forest: traditional vegetarian dishes made from vegetables and spices that grew in the forest, and meat dishes using monsters hunted within the forest.

Since we had hunted both Moonlight Wolves and a Roaring Crescent Bear that day, it was naturally a feast of meat.

‘This feels like a Korean barbecue party.’

Of course, the meat we were grilling now tasted more like hamstring or round cuts rather than pork belly. Wild monster meat tends to be lean like that.

But it didn’t matter. Grilling meat always created a good mood. After all, meat is always the right choice.

‘If only we had some grilled kimchi… or even some ssamjang….’

Once the thought crossed my mind, I was suddenly overwhelmed with the craving for Korean food. It had been so many years since I’d had a proper Korean meal.

It had been about seven years since I regained the memories of my previous life, so I hadn’t had Korean food for that long.

…Well, it couldn’t be helped. Even thinking about eating Korean food in this world felt like a luxury.

As I settled for dipping the grilled meat in salt, imagining it was in sesame oil with salt, a familiar-looking dish was suddenly placed on the table in front of me and Ethan.

“Doesn’t this feel like a Korean barbecue party with all this grilled meat?”

“……”

People really do think alike. Maybe it’s because we’re both Korean.