Chapter 110: Small Change – 3

Chapter 110: Small Change – 3

“…Sorry, I got a bit emotional for a moment.”

“It’s okay. So, I’m hired as your assistant, right?”

“……”

My past life and my life in this world.

My mind, experiences, and everything originated from my past life, but……

Now, it seems the time has come to let go of that past life.

In this world, I am clearly living a different life.

I am achieving dreams I couldn’t in my past life, and unlike my previous life, I haven’t cut ties with the relationships that have come my way.

On the contrary, I am changing their destinies and endings.

Of course, thanks to opportunities and crises that might be help or coercion from the system, I’m now even involved in the fate of the world itself.

‘It’s a bit far from ‘daily life,’ but this isn’t bad either.’

Although incidents and accidents are ceaseless, I’m not isolated in a hospital room watching the world go by,

But rather, I’m living and breathing in this world myself, writing my own narrative and the world’s narrative.

…Perhaps, this is what I truly wanted, even more than a peaceful daily life.

To not be isolated from the world, but to constantly live my own life.

‘Now… I should live as Lucia. Not as my past self.’

Therefore, I decided to accept it a little more.

My life as ‘Lucia,’ my life as a person existing in this world.

And only then could I finally smile brightly at Lily.

“Yes. Of course, you’re hired.”

It was a small change that came to my house, and to me.

***

“Alright, then… with tasks piling up. Shall we get to work?”

“…Boss-nim? Before that, how about we go grocery shopping? It looks like there’s nothing to eat today?”

“Huh? Oh……”

…Indeed, it was only natural since I hadn’t stocked anything in our house’s pantry.

To make excuses, I’d been caught up in all sorts of tasks and Branch Points, constantly collapsing or falling asleep from exhaustion, leaving no time to eat……

“Bosss-nimmmm! Quickly! Groceries need to be bought fast to be fresh, you know.”

“……Were you always this energetic?”

“It’s just that Boss-nim is particularly dazed today!”

“That’s… hard to argue with.”

Unfortunately, my excuses never came to an end.

Because before I could even think about it, Lily had already dragged me outside.

…But, come to think of it, I must look like hell, right…?

*You’re quite quick to notice. We already took care of it when you met Lily. It’s not a very pleasant sight for a child to see.*

‘Right, thanks a lot. …But, do I even have money?’

*Hmm… you have enough to live on for a while, though? The Ducal family showered you with money, after all.*

Fortunately, the system seemed to have taken care of the things I was worried about.

…Indeed, if Lily had seen me covered in blood and grime, her reaction would definitely not have been like that.

*Oh, and about that ‘daily life’ you want? You’ll be able to enjoy it for a while now.*

‘…What the hell is that……’

*We have a conscience, so after giving you all these potion-related things, we wouldn’t make you do work in a completely different field, you know?

It means that for a while, quests related to potion crafting and store management will be coming one after another, right?*

‘……Something feels off.’

*You had a good store, but you lost the opportunity to run it due to Branch Points… it’s such a waste, isn’t it? We’re giving you a proper chance, so be grateful, okay?*

…It’s definitely true, but I don’t know why I feel so uneasy when the system says it.

……No, is it normal to feel uneasy because the system is even bringing up quests?

I’ve never seen a quest from that damn thing that left my body and mind at peace.

“Lily?”

“Yes, Boss-nim?”

“Since we’re buying things anyway, let’s get some stuff that’s good for fatigue relief.”

“……Just get more sleep. Don’t overdo it.”

“Still. You never know, right?”

……It was a little later that Lily praised this decision as having foresight, again and again.

***

The walk to the market was uneventful.

It was surprisingly peaceful, and I didn’t meet anyone, surprisingly.

Therefore, all I did was listen to Lily’s chatter, or occasionally talk about places that held various memories.

For example……

“…Ah, I remember. I met Christie here for the first time.”

“That Knight Captain unnie?”

“She was the Defense Captain back then, right? And I was something other than a citizen. Should I say I had a so-called ‘illegal status’?”

“Really? That doesn’t really suit Boss-nim……”

“Even then, I proved the value of my potions well.”

“……Unnie said you seduced her with your looks, though…”

“……”

When Christie’s office appeared on the way, I also talked about the first time I met Christie.

……Of course, it seemed Christie had planted some strange information in Lily’s head.

“Oh, and see that bridge? That’s the first bridge I crossed in the capital when I first came here to sell potions.

I still remember shivering terribly because it was so cold back then.”

“That’s kind of fascinating. Boss-nim shivering from the cold… Well, the heating in your house is excessively strong, though.”

“…It’s excessive?”

“At first, when I came in, I was so hot I thought you had set the heating wrong.”

When the bridge I had crossed when I first fell into this world and started making and selling potions appeared, stories about my first arrival in this world naturally came out.

……Thinking about it now, those potions back then were all garbage.

They were crazy potions with a string of side effects, and some even had flaws in their usage.

“See that spot? That’s where I first sold potions?”

“…Didn’t you just barely manage to sell them at the entrance because you couldn’t even properly get into the market?”

“……Should I cut your assistant’s pay a bit from now on?”

“…I’m sorry!”

When I saw the small spot at the market entrance where I first sold potions, stories about that first time naturally came out.

…In the process, I think I got hit with some facts for a moment, but anyway.

Besides that, I kept telling stories related to these places, naturally recounting the stories of my life in this world.

Of course, some of the Branch Point details were slightly embellished… but seeing Lily’s eyes sparkle as she listened throughout my narration, it didn’t seem boring to her.

……Looking back, it feels like I’ve walked a very long journey.

From first falling into this world, crafting potions, and adapting, to major events like meeting Elena and Christie’s first Branch Point.

If the me who had just fallen into this world merely wanted to be free and live a normal life like others… what about now?

‘Not much has changed, but…… perhaps the small change is that there are others in that daily life now?’

If only I existed in my world before… now there’s Christie, Lily, Melini, the Saintess, and perhaps even Ria.

Quite a few people have entered my world now.

Beyond simply living comfortably alone, I felt a desire to live happily with them.

I wished that I and these people could be happy together.

Perhaps my continuous execution of Branch Points and meddling with the destinies of the world and its main characters… might also be because of this.

A small change where a few others entered my world, which was once only mine.

That seems to be the biggest difference between when I first fell into this world and now.

…And another difference, of course, would be the change in my relationship with the system.

Who would have known that Ria, who initially pulled a ‘clock out’ and messed with me, would become so loyal?

*I’m sorry to burst your bubble when things are wrapping up nicely… but there’s still a long way to go, you know?*

‘…Yeah. You really burst my bubble.’

*Well, you still like me, right?*

‘……Is there no way to delete the mind-reading function from this damn system?’

*Why don’t you try researching a potion like that sometime?*

……Sometimes situations like this happen because of it, but oh well.

As Ria said, I still can’t hate it.

***

“Hmm… this, and this, and this too, please.”

“Oh my~ You know your stuff!”

“……Excuse me, Lily? Do we need this much?”

Inside the market, it was precisely a repetition of that conversation.

…It seemed cooking required more ingredients than I thought.

……It seemed simply grilling or boiling the core ingredients wasn’t the way to go after all.

“Phew! This should be enough!”

“…Yeah. It looks very sufficient.”

Lily’s expression, with food ingredients and spices piled up next to her, almost as tall as herself, looked quite refreshed.

…Of course, my wallet wasn’t particularly refreshed.

It was the first time in my life I’d spent so much money on food.

“Look forward to it! I’ll put some real effort into dinner tonight!”

“…Shouldn’t you put effort into carrying all this?”

“Oh……”

Only then did Lily’s expression darken in real-time as she looked again at the pile of ingredients next to her, as big as herself.

…Hmm, that’s quite cute. I think I understand why Christie sometimes looked at me with that expression.

“It’s okay. I can carry it.”

“Yes? But Boss-nim, you clearly……”

“I’m sorry, but I’m someone who formally handles a greatsword, you know?”

Of course, I learned it roughly from Christie for 10 minutes, but anyway, I know how to handle it.

The system also officially recognized it as a skill, so I know how to handle it.

And that amount of luggage is easily carried by my strength anyway.

……This incredible superhuman strength of my body, which I never understand.

And Lily, who bought so many groceries, is also amazing,

And I, experiencing something like this for the first time in my life, also feel amazing.

“Alright, shall we go? I’m looking forward to dinner tonight?”

“Of course. As they say, you have to eat well before you start working in earnest!”

Well, still…… it doesn’t seem bad.

These small changes.

My changes, happening and achieved in this world.