A Story of a Cannon Fodder who Firmly Believed He was the Protagonist

Chapter 019 - Maria and Lilia [A]

Tsukii's Warning: Depiction of cruelty ahead. You have been warned.

Arthur: "Huh, what are you doing, Fay?"

Fay: "Arthur, huh."

On a certain day, there was neither mission nor training. As Arthur was walking through the royal capital, she found Fay's figure in the general store. A handmade red muffler presented by Yururu was wrapped around his neck.　

He held onto two flower hair ornaments.　

Arthur: "Are they hair accessories for women?"　

Fay: "...I guess so."

Arthur: "If it's for Fay to wear, I think black suits you."

Fay: "Fool. It's not for me. It's for Maria."

Arthur: "Ah, so it's like that. She is the person from the orphanage, isn't she?"

Fay: "Aah, it seems her birthday is coming soon. I will repay my debt properly. I chose to buy these for that purpose."

Arthur: "You bought a red hair accessory and a blue one?"

Fay: "...Somehow, I feel that I have to present Maria with two types of hair ornaments for some reason."

Arthur: "I see."

Fay: "I already bought what I need, so I'm going."

Arthur: "I see... See you later."

Fay bought two hair accessories and left the place without replying to Arthur. The winter was getting colder, but Arthur felt it was colder because Fay was no longer there.　

■◆

There was a girl in a certain village. Although the village she came from was no more, it certainly existed.　

Her name was Lilia. She was an ordinary girl who was blessed with beauty and loved flowers. Her father was never there, and by the time she could remember things, her mother was her only parent.　

She was a beautiful blond woman with a gentle face and was loved in the village. Lilia loved both her village and her mother, and they were all important existences to her.　

However, everything was destroyed when she was eight years old.　

Bandits came to her village and everything changed.　

Her mother hid Lilia in the corner of her house. Then her mother was raped and killed by the bandits as she watched.　

It was a tragic sight. Lilia wanted to tell them to stop. But she couldn't do so. She couldn't raise her voice due to fear.　

Her mother had asked her to not leave her hiding spot regardless of what happened, so she couldn't break her promise with her.　

A fire was set, burning her village. The offensive odor of burning corpses spread, and so did the burning stench of blood.

The bandits were gone and Lilia was left alone. Everything she once had was now gone. Then a male paladin appeared.　

Although the paladin smiled, the girl's instinct told her the paladin in front of her was a person who stepped away from the righteous path, and fear struck her.　

Man: "Huh, those bandits actually had leftovers... I guess I might as well keep her."　

That paladin was colluding with the bandits. In exchange for letting them go, he would take a portion of their pillage. He instructed them to attack villages and settlements with poor security.