episode_0163

『Lilith has reached level 13!』

『Lilith has reached level 14!』

『Lilith has reached level 15!』

『Lilith has reached level 16!』

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

Two days had passed since Lilith miraculously resurrected after sinking beneath the lake.

Naturally, the date that was planned for that day was canceled. It wasn’t a situation where one could think about continuing a date in the midst of deciding whether to hold a funeral or not.

The last scene I saw two days ago still lingered in my mind.

The chaotic scene of many people calling out my name.

“Lilith! Lilith…!”

“I’m glad you’re safe, Lilith. But you still need to rest, so hurry to the church for treatment…”

“Oh, until you’re completely stable, I’ll take care of your treatment! No, it’s not like the hero told me to do that!”

“…Are you really okay?”

Of course, it was understandable that everyone reacted that way, considering I had almost died and miraculously survived.

Especially Ethan, who wouldn’t let go of me as if he was afraid I would disappear. It was clear how much he had been worried.

Fortunately, in the game world of the “Luminor Academy,” as long as you have your life, you can be healed with divine power.

Currently, I was continuing my treatment in Aurelia Church’s private room for stability.

-Drrrrrr.

“How are you feeling today, Lilith?”

“I’m doing well. Thanks to the care of the saint, I feel much better.”

“I’m glad you’re improving… I really thought you were in danger at one point…”

Today, as usual, Cerista cautiously opened the door to the church’s infirmary and entered.

She had been the most familiar face in the past two days. It seemed she had been assigned to take care of my treatment after I had a close call with death.

Listening to her make a few mistakes here and there, it was easy to deduce that entrusting my treatment to Cerista was part of the hero’s strategy.

“Entrusting Lilith to Cerista for healing… is it all part of the strategy?”

Although I hesitated to say such words out loud, Lilith’s performance in the game had been quite impressive.

And looking at the recent trends in the hero’s actions, it seemed he was aiming for a conventional strategy of including Lilith in the party as a supporter and sub-tanker.

If he truly aimed for a stable clear, he would naturally want to bring Lilith to the final battle.

“Not a good sign.”

I had said this many times before, but I had no intention of joining the hero’s party to defeat the Demon King.

It was a natural instinct for humans not to want to venture into dangerous places unnecessarily.

Moreover, considering the event of the hero taking Lilith as a companion, it made me even more cautious.

The thought of Ethan, Lilith’s owner, having his throat cut and taken away like loot was something I never wanted to witness.

Although Ethan had changed a lot and it was now clear that the hero was a possessor, the story wouldn’t twist to that extent.

Still, it seemed better to return to normal life rather than indebting myself further to Cerista.

Skipping more classes would make it difficult to catch up on missed progress, and above all, I had to participate in student council duties.

“I think I can return to the academy as early as tomorrow, Saint.”

“Ha, but maybe it’s better to take a little more rest for stability…. It’s not a joke, my heart really stopped beating. If the hero hadn’t performed CPR, it could have been really dangerous…. There doesn’t seem to be any side effects for now, but….”

“…Are you talking about CPR?”

“Yes, yes…. You remember well….?”

It wasn’t that I remembered well, it was just knowledge from my past life. I roughly understood the situation where the hero used CPR to revive me.

The story of my heart stopping and starting again was truly terrifying in many ways.

Even when I faced off against Galgoreumni in the church and was scared, this time it meant that I had suffered an injury that not even the church could heal.

If it hadn’t been for the Gethma approaching nearby, I might not have been a person of this world.

…I never expected to receive CPR from that hero.

“I’ve never been touched by anyone other than Edan.”

Even though I was in a state of unconsciousness, it felt strange to have another man touch my chest.

Of course, Edan couldn’t possibly know how to perform CPR. It was an unavoidable choice, even though he had never learned CPR from the hero in that situation.

He didn’t directly touch my chest, just performed chest compressions, so it wasn’t something to be concerned about as a medical procedure.

Still, I couldn’t help but be conscious of being touched by another man in front of Edan.

“…And it seemed like he even performed artificial respiration.”

I vaguely remembered my lips touching someone else’s, so it was probably true.

Due to the sudden glare in my eyes, I couldn’t see who it was, but Edan obviously knew how to perform artificial respiration.

Even though he did it to save a person’s life, Edan unintentionally had to witness someone he cared about being touched by someone else and their lips touching.

I didn’t do anything wrong, but I felt sorry for no reason.

If I were Edan, I would have felt uncomfortable.

“I’d rather Edan be the one to do it.”

Since my chest was usually touched anyway, it wouldn’t have mattered if it was his hand or not.

A kiss… no, artificial respiration would have been better with someone familiar.

I also felt sorry for not giving a proper answer to his confession.

Above all, if I ever had to kiss someone, I would have preferred it to be Edan.

“Oh, no. What am I thinking?”

“Um? Are you feeling a bit warm in the room?”

“Oh, no…. It’s not that….”

Suddenly, a tingling sensation on my face arose from a embarrassing thought.

Lately, whenever I thought about Edan, I always felt this way. It was silly to be conscious of such trivial things.

In fact, I had already thought that I might receive a confession from him someday.

My perception of Edan hadn’t changed because of that.

Like when he showed signs of being a Sword Expert and blocked the Kraken’s final attack.

Or when we fell into the lake together and he somehow managed to pull me to safety.

Just thinking about those things made me naturally conscious of him.

Well, honestly, even if it’s man to man, it’s inevitable to feel excited, right?

Someone who has saved your life twice, how can you not feel grateful to them? If there is such a person, they must be shameless.

And well, they say it’s the bystander effect, right? The human heart naturally beats faster in times of crisis, and it tends to feel the emotion of love towards someone nearby.

Thinking of Edan who saved my life, it’s natural for my heart to flutter, a combination of the bystander effect and conditional reflex.

…Of course, it’s not like I don’t feel grateful to Edan. I received such an unimaginable favor from him this time.

If he were to ask for something in return for saving my life…honestly, I don’t think I could refuse.

Touching my heart is a given, and if he were to suggest going on another date, I would have to agree.

Moreover, if he were to ask to date me in return for saving my life…I might find it hard to refuse.

No, more than that, if he were to ask for something beyond that, I might have to consider it seriously….

-Knock, knock.

“Lilith, how are you feeling?”

“E-Edan?!”

Startled by Edan’s voice coming from outside the hospital room, I blurted out in surprise.

Immediately, I asked Cerista, who was by my side, to explain the situation.

“What’s going on…? As far as I know, visitors aren’t allowed yet….”

“Oh, I’m sorry. I forgot to mention. When we checked your condition yesterday and it seemed stable, I informed only Edan and Princess Seraphine about your condition. If it’s one person at a time, you should be able to have visitors….”

“Why are you telling me this now?!”

“Oh, I’m sorry…! I was going to finish checking your condition and then tell you, but I forgot….”

What should I do? How should I face Edan right now?

First, I need to freshen up…. No, I need to tidy up my hair first….

“Lilith, can I come in?”

“J-Just a moment, Edan!”

After coming to my senses belatedly, I removed the sleep from my eyes and tidied my hair with my fingers.

I quickly straightened the bed and the clothes I was wearing with clean magic, and then….

“H-Head dress!”

“What?”

“Could you please hand me the head dress over there?”

“This one…?”

“Yes, that one!”

After receiving the head dress from Cerista, which was hanging on the clothes rack in the hospital room, I put it on my head.

…I guess I look presentable enough.

“You can come in, Edan.”

-Swish.

After checking my appearance in the mirror as ‘Exclusive Maid Lilith,’ I called Edan, who was waiting outside the door.

As soon as I finished speaking, Edan entered the half-open door of the hospital room.

Seeing Edan’s face after almost three days, my heart suddenly started beating loudly.

“Lilith, how are you feeling?”

-Thump.

“…Lilith?”

“Oh, um…my, my body…?”

-Thump, thump.

“Are you still not feeling well? Even with the care of the Saintess….”

“Oh, no, it’s just….”

-Thump, thump, thump.

Bystander effect, bystander effect….

It’s all because of the bystander effect….