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~ - 20-21

Chapter 20: Flora’s Story (The Conclusion)

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー

As I stood frozen after being spoken ill of behind my back, Noah-sama beckoned to me with a calm, gentle smile still on his face. Then he guided me to a quiet, comfortable place. As I listened to Noah-sama talk about trivial things, the words slipped out of me before I knew it.

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

I knew I had to close my mouth, but I couldn’t stop talking. The more I spoke, the more my heart hurt, and before I realized it, my vision had blurred. Then, as I somehow managed to stop my tears and tried to return to work, Noah-sama spoke warm words to me… Words I knew I would never forget.

“I mean, maybe you messed up a little, but I know that Flora is an incredibly kind person. So please, please give yourself lots of praise, okay?”

Why would he say something like that to someone as pathetic as me, who kept failing? I knew it was selfish of me, but it made me incredibly happy.

“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.”

After hearing Noah-sama’s words, I realized why I had blurted out something that sounded like an excuse. I didn’t want the person I loved to be disappointed in me. It was really that simple.

“Even if you couldn’t see everything around you, I think your true kindness naturally shows through.  So just do your best again next time.”

And even someone like me was being called kind by Noah-sama. That made me so happy and so relieved that my feelings started overflowing. So after asking for a little time to calm down, I hugged Noah-sama tightly and let him share his energy with me.

Even I, the big sister type, am allowed to lean on someone once in a while, right?

No… Maybe I just wanted to lean on Noah-sama.

Noah-sama, I don’t think I’ve ever told you this, but I grew up constantly being told by my parents, “You’re the big sister.” Maybe that’s why… Whenever something happened, I always felt like I had to be the one to handle it somehow.

Even when I decided to go work in the city, I now think that maybe I should have consulted the neighbors first. But when I think about the fact that I met Noah-sama, that choice wasn’t wrong either. And when I hugged Noah-sama, your face turned bright red, didn’t it? It was seriously adorable! In my personal ranking of “cute boys,” you won by a landslide!

That was why I ended up saying it.

“Hey, Noah-sama. Won’t you let me take care of you after all?”

“W-why are you suddenly saying that…… I mean, if you’re feeling better, could you maybe move back just a little…… You know, um…… It’s kind of pressing against me……”

As he said that, Noah-sama glanced at my chest, quickly looked away, then glanced back again—over and over. I didn’t know why. If it had been Abel-sama, I would have felt nothing but disgust. But when it was Noah-sama, my heart just kept fluttering.

So I teased him a little and said, “Noah-sama, you really are at that age too, aren’t you?” His reaction was adorable too… Right. That was why I really wanted to give those cheeks a kiss. 

But don’t worry, I held back this time… Really, I did.

After that, I promised Noah-sama that I would help him prepare for the knight qualification exam. He had told me he wasn’t sure if he was doing well on his own. I was in a similar position myself, after all. But the real problem started after that.

I was holding myself back—really, truly holding myself back—from kissing Noah-sama on the cheek. But you see, Noah-sama was a genius at being cute, so it was impossible.

I leaned in close to his ear and spoke softly.

“If you ever need night companionship, please call for me right away. If it’s you, Noah-sama, I don’t mind at all.”

“Huh!?”

I was so happy to see Noah-sama’s heart race because of my words that I went ahead and kissed his cheek. Honestly, I wanted to hug him right then and there, shower him with kisses, and spoil him endlessly but for now, I held back.

Still, my warm feelings must have reached him at least a little, right?

I told Noah-sama, “Excuse me,” and returned to my work. After all, I still needed Layla-senpai to review my workload, and I also had to apologize to the people who had covered my duties for me. The sunlight was dazzling, but I couldn’t afford to hang my head.

Pushed forward by the pounding in my chest, I broke into a full sprint.

“Alright! Let’s do our best for Noah-sama!”

Do your best…  Do your best, me.

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー

Chapter 21: Noah Goes Out with Flora

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー

“Ehehe~ Noah-sama. I’m really looking forward to this~”

The one showing a beaming, overflowing smile at the mansion’s entrance was Flora.

Faced with her, Noah replied in a quiet, mumbled voice while looking down.

“Y-yeah… Right.”

Today, Noah and Flora were going out shopping in town together. Originally, Flora had planned to go by herself, but Noah happened to have things he wanted to buy as well, so they decided to go together.

“I’ve seriously been looking forward to today so much I couldn’t stand it!”

With her eyes drooping in a lovestruck grin, Flora took Noah’s hand. Noah’s shoulder twitched in surprise, and perhaps pleased by his reaction, Flora’s smile deepened even more.

“U-um, Flora-s-san…?”

Noah let out a wavering voice at Flora’s enthusiasm.

“Hm? What is it, Noah-sama? Ah, could it be… You’re embarrassed because we’re holding hands?”

Teasing him in a mischievous tone, Flora made Noah freeze up completely.

“Oh my, Noah-sama, you’ve turned bright red! Are you embarrassed? How cute~! There, there… Ah, and since it’s just the two of us today, you can call me ‘Onee-chan,’ you know!”

“S-shut up… I’m not calling you that…”

He said it in such a lifeless voice that it almost made her laugh.

Is this what Flora’s real personality is like? In the original story she was a sub-heroine, so she didn’t get that much spotlight. I knew she was a bit of a bro-con, but I had no idea she’d dote on someone this much…

She was trying to spoil him rotten.

Originally, it was supposed to be like… We’d have our hearts pierced by Flora’s endearing cuteness as she agonized over the difference in status between her and Abel… So how did it end up like this?

Noah felt an overwhelming urge to press a hand to his forehead.

“Is something wrong, Noah-sama?”

“Ah, sorry. It’s nothing.”

Well, it’ll probably work out… Maybe.

Even though he vaguely understood it was hopeless, Noah forced himself to that conclusion and decided to ignore a problem that had no answer no matter how much he thought about it.

“Is that so…? If something does happen, please tell me, okay? There are lots of stalls at the market, so while I’m shopping, you could walk around and eat something. That might cheer you up.”

“That does sound nice… Then, since we’re already here, why don’t you come around with me too, Flora?”

“Huh, is that okay?”

“Of course. Stuff like this is better when you do it together. You’ll stand out in a maid outfit anyway, so go change.”

“Ehehe, thank you very much! I’ll get ready right away, so please wait just a little!”

And with that, the two headed for town… Completely unaware that Abel was searching for Flora there.

※※※

“Everything at these shops looks so delicious… Just the smell alone is making me hungry.”

At the moment, Noah and Flora were walking around the marketplace. They were wandering about in circles, combining the trip with grocery shopping.

“Hey there, you two siblings~ Why don’t you take a look at my goods?”

A voice called out to Noah and Flora.

“Ah, Noah-sama. That shopkeeper is calling us. Shall we take a quick look?”

“Huh? She said siblings, so that’s not us, right?”

“But look.”

Following Flora’s gaze, there was a female merchant, and their eyes met.

“Yeah, yeah, you there!~ The cute blonde young lady and the white-haired brother.”

Smiling brightly and beckoning them over, the merchant made Noah and Flora glance at each other.

“What should we do?”

“If you don’t mind, shall we go take a look? There are lots of rare foreign goods lined up.”

“I see. Then let’s check it out.”

Having decided that, Noah and Flora headed to the stall, and the female merchant smiled broadly.

“Thanks for coming, you two. Out shopping together as brother and sister today?”

“No, that’s not—”

Noah tried to deny it, but Flora replied faster than he could.

“Yes, that’s right! I came shopping today with my cute, adorable little brother!”

“………………”

While Flora bounced around with a sparkling expression, Noah stood frozen, utterly speechless. Seeing the two of them, the female merchant blinked in surprise.

“Hm? What’s wrong? That little brother of yours looks completely stiff.”

“Noah gets embarrassed easily.”

Flora answered with a wry smile, then whispered excitedly, “Ah! I called him by his name.”

“I see, I see. Well then, once you see my goods, even a shy one like him will get excited all at once.”

Saying that with confidence, the female merchant presented two identical bracelets. They were white-based bracelets, decorated with several small gemstones about the size of a pinky nail. Their simple design looked like it would go well with many outfits.

“Waaah, what a cute bracelet!”

As Flora’s face lit up brightly, the female merchant replied happily.

“Right? It’s a foreign item, you see~ The artisan uses some interesting techniques. Miss, could you bend down a little?”

“Yes, of course.”

Saying that, the female merchant pulled on the bracelet and began tying Flora’s hair with it, then showed her reflection using a hand mirror.

“What do you think? Interesting, isn’t it? It can be used as both a hair accessory and a bracelet. The little brother can wear it as a bracelet, and the young lady as a hair accessory. You can even have matching ones!~ Don’t you think that’s nice?”

“It’s wonderful! H-how much is it!? Please, let me buy it!”

With Flora’s eyes sparkling brightly, the female merchant’s lips curled into a satisfied grin.

“Alrighty, thank you very much.”

It does look like a really nice item, but isn’t it expensive…?

Just as Noah suspected, when the price was told to her, Flora’s shoulders slumped in defeat.

“U-ugh… I wanted to have matching ones with Noah-sama…”

Murmuring sadly, Flora tried to take off the hair accessory. Watching her, Noah let out a small smile.

“Flora, you don’t have to take it off.”

“Huh? What do you mean by—”

“Excuse me, then I’ll take two of these… Ah, do you have one more of the same kind?”

The female merchant blinked in surprise at Noah’s words, but as a professional, she quickly recovered her composure.

“Of course I do. Thank you for buying three~ Much appreciated.”

With the unexpected purchase, the female merchant looked positively delighted.

“Please do come again. I’ll prepare more items you two will like.”

“Yes, we will. Thank you very much. Come on, if we stay here we’ll get in the way of other customers. Let’s move along.”

At Noah’s voice, Flora seemed to snap back to reality and let out a flustered reply.

“Huh!? Ah—y-yes, understood!”

As she followed behind Noah, Flora hesitantly spoke up.

“U-um, Noah-sama… Was that really okay? Something so expensive…”

“It’s fine. You work hard at my mansion every day, after all. Think of it as thanks… Or, well, as a way for me to say that I’m looking forward to working with you from now on too… Yeah. Thanks for everything, as always.”

At Noah’s words, Flora’s mouth curved into a small pout.

“If we’re talking about thanking someone, it should be me who should thank you… You always help me when things are hard…You even saved my family… Noah-sama, I’m the one who should be thanking you, truly, truly! I’ll keep doing my best so you can always smile!”

With a happy smile and a hint of tears at the corners of her eyes, Flora spoke.

“Oh, that reminds me! Noah-sama, please wait here for a moment! I get paid too, you know! I’ll buy us some food at a nearby stall, so please wait just a little!”

“H-hey, no, that’s not—”

Before Noah could stop her, Flora ran off.

※※※

A short while later, the incident occurred. Flora’s shout echoed through the bustling marketplace. As Noah hurried toward the sound…

“Huh… Isn’t that Abel over there…?”

In Noah’s line of sight stood Abel—the protagonist of this game—facing off against Flora.

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー