I Was Reincarnated as the Villain in an Eroge, but I’ll Live Honestly ~Because the Protagonist Was Useless, I Ended Up Making the Heroines Smile and Somehow Built a Harem~ - 15

Chapter 15: Noah Cheers Flora Up

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“W-Wait, Flora!?”

Flora, her eyes filled with tears, ran off. Noah hurriedly chased after her. No matter how much he ran, the distance between him and Flora showed no sign of closing.

This is bad, this is bad, this is bad!!

He could feel the blood draining from his face. Even though he shouldn’t have run that far, his heart pounded violently and his breathing grew ragged. Above all else, he absolutely could not let her run outside the mansion. That was the only thing on his mind right now.

Because this was connected to Flora’s death flag. After collapsing from overworking at Abel’s mansion, Flora had burst out of the estate in tears.

In the game, because she wasn’t looking where she was running, Flora gets hit by a carriage and dies…

He wanted to complain that killing someone in a mere dating sim was ridiculous, but that was the kind of game Quilover was. In fact, the constant sense of danger that a wrong choice could put a heroine’s life at risk was one of the reasons Quilover had become so popular. And of course, this wasn’t Abel’s mansion. So it wasn’t guaranteed the same tragedy would occur, but if there was even the slightest chance of it happening, he wanted to avoid it.

“P-Please! Flora, just stop once, that’s all I’m asking!”

Thanks to his cheat-level specs, Noah didn’t slow down, while Flora gradually began to lose speed. Little by little, little by little, the distance closed. And then…

“I-I caught up!”

He reached out and successfully grabbed Flora’s hand.

“N-Noah-sama… Why are you chasing after someone like me…?”

Flora’s mouth twisted downward as she let out a sob.

“Don’t say ‘someone like me.’ Hey… Will you come with me for a bit?”

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The two of them sat on a small staircase of only three steps that connected the garden to the mansion. A gentle breeze rustled the trees, and sunlight filtered through the leaves. Noah narrowed his eyes comfortably and spoke to Flora beside him.

“This place is really nice, right? Layla showed it to me. Sometimes we eat sweets here together.”

After that, Noah kept talking about trivial, inconsequential things, but before long, his words trailed off.

W-What do I do… I don’t have nearly enough topics to talk about…

Silence settled between them.

I was supposed to cheer Flora up with some witty, humorous conversation and casually hear her out, but…

As Noah desperately searched for something to say next, Flora spoke softly, almost as if murmuring to herself.

“…Noah-sama, you heard what they were saying earlier, didn’t you?”

“Huh? W-Well… Yeah. Sorry, I wasn’t trying to listen.”

“No… I’m sorry. I ended up showing you something embarrassing.”

Flora sniffed. No tears fell, but her eyes were wet. Without thinking, Noah tightened his grip on her hand.

“Noah-sama. I was really, truly happy that you hired me at this mansion…!”

Flora began speaking in halting fragments.

“You welcomed someone like me who showed up out of nowhere, and you even introduced us to a doctor. Thanks to you, Noah-sama, my family was saved. No matter how many words I use, it would never be enough… That’s why I wanted to work hard, but…”

She broke off there, and tears overflowed from her eyes.

“I kept prioritizing my desire to do my best, and I ended up causing trouble for others… Even though Noah-sama was worried about me all along… I really couldn’t see what was around me at all…”

As she said that, Flora lowered her head, her shoulders trembling. Little by little, dark spots formed on the ground beneath her. That was all Flora said.

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“Sniff… I’m sorry, Noah-sama, for crying like this… I should get back to work soon. I still have so much left to do.”

Sniffling, Flora spoke to Noah and tried to stand up. Noah hurriedly stopped her.

“Hey, Flora. Could you let me talk too, just for a little bit?”

At that moment, Flora’s eyes widened, and she pressed her lips tightly together. Then, as if bracing herself, she gave him a small nod.

“Ah—no, no. It’s not about firing you or anything like that.”

“I-I understand… Then what is it?”

Not knowing what Noah was about to say, Flora tilted her head to the side.

“U-Um…”

His eyes darted around as Noah awkwardly met Flora’s gaze. Aware that his cheeks were turning red, he held back his voice from cracking and spoke.

“I-I know Flora…. I know the Flora who wants to be useful to me, who wants Layla to have it easier, who thinks about others…”

“Yo-You’re praising me too much…”

She shook her head, and seeing that made Noah want her to understand herself better.

Well, I’m not smooth like the Abel from the game, and I can’t save Flora in some cool, dramatic way. Even so…

He took pride in the fact that he had been the one watching her work earnestly since she came to this mansion. And because of that, there was something he knew. He let out a breath, calmed himself, and spoke carefully so he wouldn’t rush his words.

“About the job Flora forgot…That was originally Canaria’s responsibility, right?”

“Y-Yes…”

Flora’s eyes widened, clearly not expecting him to know. The maids had been dividing up the work that sick Canaria couldn’t do, but one task had slipped through the cracks. Flora had quietly taken on that errand without telling anyone.

“Thank you, Flora. I was really glad you noticed. Just between us, Canaria said she’s grateful too. She said she was glad it was Flora who she introduced to me.”

At Noah’s words, Flora suddenly lifted her face. At last, their eyes met.

“I was also happy that you worked so hard for me and Layla. Layla looked really happy too. She said she loves the time she gets to spend with me.”

Over the past few days, Noah had been watching to make sure Flora wouldn’t collapse, and that was how he noticed certain things. At first, Noah had mistakenly thought Flora was simply a very serious woman. But…

“I know that Flora is an incredibly kind person. So please, please give yourself lots of praise.”

Keeping her lips tightly pressed together, Flora clenched her hands on her lap. Tears looked ready to spill from her moist eyes.

“The reason I’m talking to you like this right now is because I like you, Flora, and my evaluation of you won’t change so easily.”

Noah said gently, narrowing his eyes.

“Even if you couldn’t see everything around you, I think your true kindness naturally shows through.”

Flora didn’t respond. As he paused there, a soft rustling sound filled the air. Light spilled through the gaps in the trees, gently illuminating Flora.

“So next time, just try again.”

I wonder if what I want to say is getting through. I hope it is…

When he looked up at the sky, it was a clear blue without a single cloud. He hoped she would show him that smile again, the kind of smile that could blow away all the clouds, just like this sky.

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