Chapter 35: The sun that longs to drift

Lila, who had already prepared how to respond to the question, received no reply from Ulysses. He merely listed some training methods for swordsmen and instructed her to properly train her awakened sword intent, saying that the best way to train it was through use.

After that, Ulysses left, and Lila returned to her apartment.

The sword intent called “Rejection” had erupted in a moment of crisis, at the brink of life and death, pulling Lila back from the edge of ruin and preventing her from falling into the same fate as her previous life.

So rejection was correct, rejecting the end of death, rejecting anyone’s requests and expectations, rejecting showing her inner self to anyone.

It also meant rejecting all forms of harm. Only by continuing down this path could her life become better. Lila was absolutely certain of this.

She took a harmonica out of the cabinet, slowly brought it to her lips, and tried to play a note.

In her previous life, her family had not been well-off. She had grown up like wild grass, with no chance to learn refined arts like piano or violin, but she could play the harmonica.

Her interest came from a TV drama. The protagonist was a powerful wandering ronin who, at the beginning of the story, lost his strength due to an accident. While searching to regain his power, he would also resolve major crises wherever he went.

Every time he appeared, he would play a slightly melancholic yet lingering harmonica tune, then defeat monsters, solve problems, and recover his strength.

And at the end, after regaining his power and defeating the final monster, he would once again play the harmonica at sunset, bidding farewell to the people he had connected with.

Though the world was vast, she had no ability as a child to travel, to see more landscapes, or meet different people.

So she admired the ronin. What she saw was only a fragment of his life, perhaps he had witnessed supernova explosions or the brilliance of golden galaxies, but those were merely trivial details in his journey.

So she bought a harmonica and learned that song. But she never truly traveled, she couldn’t afford it. And when she grew up and could earn money, she was too tied down by work.

Back then, she thought she would need to endure thirty or forty years before she could finally wander the world.

But she never got the chance. Death meant no future.

The separated notes gradually connected, and the melody from her memory flowed smoothly, still that slightly melancholic, lingering tune.

Though being reincarnated was already a great blessing, Lila still felt a trace of regret. In this life, she was still bound to a stake, and that stake was Simon.

Because of the goddess’s malicious whim, she had to stay close to Simon. Even if the goddess often acted like a fool, Lila didn’t believe there wasn’t some deeper purpose.

Since she had already decided to be a villain, this was just incidental.

This world on the brink of crisis had nothing to do with her, as long as the disaster didn’t occur while she was still alive.

Still, if given the chance, she wanted to travel this magical world. It would surely be more interesting, with dazzling magic, strange landscapes, and people of different races.

But there was probably no chance.

After finishing the tune, Lila sighed and put away the harmonica.

Lately, she felt she had been too immersed in playing the role of the shopkeeper, and even the arrogance and flamboyance of the villainous noble girl had softened, like how she treated Yuli, that busty woman, or when she went to see that perverted man last time.

Maybe she should make her attitude harsher.

Standing before the mirror, Lila compared her expressions repeatedly, adjusting them—perhaps the corners of her lips should rise a little more, her gaze should be sharper.

Yes, that’s right. From now on, she would try to maintain this expression.

Just as she thought this, she heard the sound of wings cutting through the air and immediately turned her head.

“Caw, caw.”

A crow stood on the floor, calling as it hopped toward her.

“So it’s you, you stupid bird.”

She hadn’t closed the window, and it had flown in.

She originally didn’t intend to bother with it, but recalling how obedient it had been, she had only tried casually, yet it had really snatched the flowers.

The crow’s image reflected in her crimson eyes. As they looked at each other, Lila instinctively reached out her hand. The crow didn’t resist at all, letting her pet it while cawing continuously.

It came again, probably hungry, she thought.

There was still some beef left from before. She might as well give it to the bird. Though she herself hadn’t eaten much… but it didn’t matter, she could always buy more.

Watching the crow eat intently, Lila found it somewhat amusing.

The semester was already halfway through. What needed attention now was Simon’s training.

He wasn’t a genius in swordsmanship, but he was a genius in effort.

He had enough patience and perseverance. Even if part of it was due to Lila’s pressure, she knew that after being healed by the shopkeeper at night, Simon would still choose to train more.

In this world, a mage fighting a swordsman who hadn’t awakened sword intent was like an adult fighting a kindergartener.

Of course, swordsmen had solutions, most commonly enchanted weapons. After all, you couldn’t just send them to their deaths.

But enchanted weapons were extremely expensive.

So Lila planned to buy one for Simon, but the problem was how to give it to him.

It was too valuable. As a villain, she couldn’t do something so inexplicable.

So it would be better if the shopkeeper gave it, but that was still strange.

She felt a bit anxious.

Actually, even if Simon failed, it didn’t matter. If he were expelled, once they left the academy’s sphere of influence, she could completely control him.

She could oppress him without restraint and extinguish his hope for the future.

But no matter what, she just couldn’t bring herself to do it, even after telling herself countless times.

Maybe it would be better to let him reach the peak first, and then make him fall, that way his hatred toward himself would be even stronger.

That’s what she had always thought, wasn’t it?

So for now, the first thing to solve was preparing a sword—with what attributes, and what kind of enchantment.

In truth, Lila had already given up on her ideals. This seemingly orderly life was just the result of her drifting along, living one day at a time, squeezing out whatever she could, without saving much for the future.

She still wore that feather bracelet.

Sometimes, she thought, if only that day hadn’t been so short.