Ch.44Chapter 44 – There Was Another Ability I Didn’t Know About?

“After confirming your arrival in this world, I prepared an ability for you. That ability is what you currently possess—’the ability to fix everything.’ I believe you’re well aware of this.”

I was still blankly staring at Epitrina’s face.

She was explaining the ability I possessed, which was something I already knew.

However, what I was most curious about right now was the other ability residing within my soul.

I was extremely curious about what this other ability in my soul could be.

“Then what exactly is this other ability residing in my soul?”

“The other ability given to you is ‘the ability to gain favor from others.'”

“The ability to gain favor…?”

The name of the ability that came from Epitrina’s lips.

It was apparently the ability to gain favor from others.

From the description alone, it seemed like an ability specialized in gaining favor from others.

But what connection could there possibly be between this ability to fix everything and the ability to gain favor from others?

I couldn’t understand how these two abilities could create any synergy that led to the current situation.

The only person who knew everything about this was Epitrina.

I looked at her, staring intently into her eyes.

“Sigh. Yes. I suppose there are many things you don’t understand, so you’re demanding an explanation from me? I understand what you want, so would you please stop staring at me so intensely?”

As I continued to stare into her eyes, Epitrina’s face turned slightly red, showing an embarrassed reaction.

I stopped staring at her eyes since I had gotten what I wanted from her.

“Alright. Then I’ll start explaining in earnest. It might be a long story, but I’d appreciate it if you’d listen until the end.”

“I understand, so please explain quickly. I want to know what’s happening to me.”

Seeing my firm determination, Epitrina fell into thought for a moment before finally opening her mouth to explain what had happened to me.

“After you died in an unfortunate accident in your world, I gave you the opportunity to live again in the world I oversee. And in that process, I gave you one ability as a gift.”

“That’s the ‘power to fix everything’—the ‘repair’ ability—that I currently possess and know how to use.”

“That’s right. But there was something I overlooked during your reincarnation process.”

“What?”

I was startled by Epitrina’s words. Wait, there was something she overlooked during my reincarnation?

“Don’t be surprised and just keep listening.”

“Ah, yes.”

I closed my mouth at Epitrina’s words and continued to listen to her explanation.

“Good. I have a lot to explain, so I’d appreciate it if you could save your questions until after I’ve finished. Let me continue. You’ll remember that you died after getting caught up in a summoning ritual when a goddess overseeing another world was selecting a hero. Correct?”

I nodded at Epitrina’s words. How could I forget that?

“I mentioned before that the Chief Deity intervened in your reincarnation process, right?”

This was something she had told me when we first met.

She said that the Chief Deity had taken pity on me and given me a chance to live a new life.

“I only found out about this later while investigating what happened to you, but the Chief Deity bestowed a special ability upon your soul.”

From the fact that this being called the Chief Deity had bestowed a special ability on my soul, I could realize one thing.

“So, that ability is…?”

Epitrina nodded in response to my question.

Hmm, so the ability given to me by this Chief Deity was the ‘ability to gain favor from others.’

But what kind of synergy effect could it have caused to create the current situation?

I looked at Epitrina, waiting for her to speak.

“The ability you received to gain favor from others doesn’t discriminate between people and objects.”

“Eh?”

What does that mean? What does it mean to gain favor indiscriminately from both people and objects?

“You probably know about the bread you used your ability to fix. The people who ate it began to obsess over the bread to an unusual degree, right?”

It seemed Epitrina was well aware of the bread incident that had occurred on the surface.

She even knew that I had used my ability to make that bread.

“I’m not saying that was wrong, so don’t be afraid. Anyway, after that incident, you met Bergen Steiler, the chancellor of the Gelebrio Empire, and then Regina Blasteria, the principal of Glesius Academy. Oh, and before that, you also met Marcus Bleas, the head of the Bleas Trading Company.”

I knew exactly who these people were. They were all individuals I had become entangled with since I started using my ability.

“What they have in common is that they’re people who have received help from your ability and have no intention of misusing it. Doesn’t it seem strange how unusually kind people are to you?”

Only then did I realize what was wrong from Epitrina’s words.

“And Reina Eldinar. Even the precious daughter of the Eldinar ducal family changed her attitude after receiving help from your ability. Although she tormented you by grabbing and shaking your body, why would she suddenly become so polite to someone who had struck her head?”

“You’re right. Why is that?”

“It’s because the two abilities residing in your soul worked together.”

Epitrina summoned a blackboard in the air and began writing down some formula.

“Now, look here. When person A helps person B, the favor gained is usually between 0.5 and 1. And when you use your ability to help someone, the favor gained is about 3 to 4. That’s about 3 to 4 times what an ordinary person would gain.”

I focused on Epitrina’s explanation while looking at the formula she was writing on the blackboard.

“Of course, this level of favor is natural since you’re resolving their predicaments. But here’s where your other ability comes into play.”

Epitrina added a new formula to the original one, and the calculated value began to change.

The favor rating of 3-4 written on the blackboard changed to 12-16.

It had changed to gain favor at a rate four times higher than before.

“Because of your ability to gain favor, you can earn much higher favor than others even when performing the same actions. But what’s important to note is that this ability to gain favor from others doesn’t activate immediately.”

“So, does the ability to gain favor work over time?”

“That’s right. It takes effect within 1-2 hours at the latest, and as quickly as 5-10 minutes at the earliest.”

Thinking about Epitrina’s explanation, I realized that Reina’s behavior had changed after about 5 minutes.

The time she disappeared and came back was about 5 minutes.

“So, all of this happened because of the ability to gain favor?”

“That’s right. Because of the favor you gained from them, they try not to earn your dislike or negative evaluation, and in that process, they’ll even lie if necessary.”

“So, did the Principal and the Chancellor lie?”

“Those two didn’t lie, so don’t worry.”

I breathed a sigh of relief at Epitrina’s words.

I would have been quite disappointed if I couldn’t continue enjoying the benefits I was receiving.

“Then who lied?”

“Reina Eldinar. She made excuses to justify her behavior by mentioning a ‘curse’ to you.”

“Hmm.”

I thought something seemed off.

It’s unlikely that I would repeatedly get involved with cursed people.

“So Reina wasn’t cursed?”

“That’s right.”

“Then why did she do that? It seems like she could have just told the truth.”

“Partly because of her aristocratic pride that makes her reluctant to admit the truth, and as I said earlier, she deliberately lied to avoid earning your dislike.”

In the end, Reina was just another aristocrat.

But thanks to her, I was able to avoid the persistent questions from students about the bread.

Just for helping me avoid that annoyance, I’m willing to forgive Reina.

Otherwise, I would have been harassed by students for days on end.

“Sigh. I would have forgiven her if she had just told the truth.”

“So, will you be friends with her again?”

“No. Unless she reveals everything and approaches me sincerely, wouldn’t it be better to just maintain a distant relationship in this situation?”

That way, Reina will continuously reflect on her mistake and eventually realize what she did wrong.

I can forgive her anytime if she realizes her mistake and sincerely asks for forgiveness.

If I don’t forgive her, I might feel better, but I could also make an enemy of the Eldinar family.

Remember, to live a long and peaceful life, one should avoid making enemies as much as possible.

“Anyway, thank you. Thanks to you, Epitrina, I can return with a much lighter feeling.”

“I’m glad I could help.”

As I was about to say goodbye to Epitrina and leave, I almost forgot the most important thing.

I needed to find a way to avoid or eliminate the side effects of this other ability given to me.

“Ah, I almost forgot the most important thing. So, how can I avoid the side effects of this favor-gaining ability as much as possible? Is there a way to eliminate it?”

“If the favor-gaining ability were one I had given you, I could take it back, but unfortunately, that ability was bestowed by the Chief Deity, so it’s outside my jurisdiction. Instead, I can make it so that the side effects of the favor-gaining ability appear as little as possible.”

With that, she placed her hand above my head, and I could feel a warm energy flowing from her hand into my body.

“From now on, as long as you don’t hit people’s heads with a hammer, the side effects of the favor-gaining ability won’t activate. Really, unless it’s a life-threatening situation, please refrain from hitting people’s heads with hammers. Understood?”

I nodded at Epitrina’s words.

“Then I’ll see you later. I hope we can be a little closer by then.”

She bid me farewell and disappeared.

I couldn’t quite hear her last words, but they probably weren’t bad.

And so, I was able to leave the prayer room with a refreshed feeling.