How to get on the protagonist’s flower path

What’s this?

I was surprised by Dumdum’s unexpected request, but I smiled calmly and accepted it.

I’m not a character who can refuse a conversation.

Despite being the one who asked to talk, Dumdum stayed silent until he found a bench and even after sitting down.

“……What do you want to say?”

Finally, unable to wait any longer, I asked first, and Dumdum fidgeted with his words, lowering his head.

“Sorry, I was just choosing my words carefully.”

“It’s fine! You’re being thoughtful, Siwoo!”

When I smiled brightly, Dumdum’s expression twisted oddly. What’s that about?

Then finally, Dumdum opened his mouth.

“Is something wrong?”

“Hmm? What do you mean? Are you asking if something bad happened? Lately, everything’s been good! I’ve been recognized by my friends, and my magic power has increased!”

Could it be that he sensed something?

I tried to keep the conversation going with a casual smile.

“Besides, this is a secret, but actually, I’ve been making a lot of money?”

“……That’s not it,”

Dumdum paused, looking at me as I spoke.

“Never mind. If you don’t want to say, I won’t push.”

He opened a can he was holding and took a sip of his drink. Then he calmly continued.

“Instead, I want to tell you a story. I want to talk about someone I know well.”

Suddenly? I was perplexed but nodded quietly.

“It’s the story of a fallen hero.”

I absentmindedly glanced at the old sword Dumdum always carried on his back and then turned my gaze forward again.

……Could it be that story?

“That person was an outstanding leader. That’s why people entrusted him with the most important tasks.”

I know it.

This is a story from the days when people were attacking the tower.

The leader of the international raid team, ‘Savior.’ It’s the story of ‘Park Siyeon.’

“The hero accomplished his mission. I can’t say there were no mistakes. But the hero worked hard, and people honored him for his efforts.”

It’s a story about a broken person, writhing in guilt after the brilliant glory shattered.

“But one day, a fact that turned the world upside down was revealed.”

As the tower turned from treasure to a monstrosity, becoming a battlefield that devoured lives, the international raid team, Savior, faced people’s accusations.

“The important tasks that the hero had undertaken were actually harming both his companions and the world.”

“People quickly changed their attitude and blamed the hero’s party. The hero felt guilty. And he suffered from that guilt for the rest of his life.”

It’s common. Whenever a big problem arises, the public always needs a scapegoat.

“But that person always showed a smiling face when looking at his grandson.”

Dumdum’s eyes sank deeply, as if reminiscing about something.

“But the grandson knew. He always understood that his grandmother was hiding deep sadness.”

He took a breath, then closed his eyes tightly as he spoke.

“……That person is my grandmother.”

The blue eyes turned to me.

“I’ve seen someone who wants to cry but can’t for too long. So I know well what kind of face a person who hides their tears makes.”

Feeling like I would spill everything into those kind, deep blue eyes, I simply kept my mouth shut.

Dumdum’s gaze turned back to the front.

“But you… you’re wearing the face of someone who holds back tears and smiles, just like my grandmother, and that worries me.”

Dumdum paused, seeming to choose his words carefully, then slowly continued.

“……No matter how hard you try, there will always be uncontrollable factors.”

The empty can in his hand was crumpled from the pressure he was applying.

“So… even if something unexpected happens to you, I hope you don’t blame yourself too much.”

Then Dumdum met my gaze.

“……Sometimes it’s okay to ask friends for help.”

He quickly turned his head away. But I caught sight of his ears, which had turned bright red.

“……Siwoo.”

I silently turned my gaze to the meta system window in front of me.

150 points. My points had increased in the meantime.

Yeah. I was just too anxious over a mere 10 points.

Only then did I feel like my vision cleared, allowing me to reflect on my actions.

The orphanage has always been my top priority. So I preserved the money for the orphanage. For a mere 10 points, I bought the future of the orphanage.

So at that moment, I did my best.

Thinking that way made me feel a bit more at ease.

Well, I was clinging too much to what had already passed. I just need to be more careful and put in more effort moving forward.

“Thank you.”

Seeing my smiling face, Dumdum also smiled gently. He looked pretty cool.

His character is on a whole different level from that scamming jerk.

I lamented the stark difference in character between the two protagonists as I threw the empty can into the trash. Then, trying to be playful, I said on purpose.

“Did you want to talk to me because you were worried? How sweet, our Siwoo!”

At my words, Dumdum’s ears turned slightly redder.

“Just… it’s nothing special.”

“Such shining sensitivity! Great character!”

“Ugh…”

I burst into laughter, complimenting Dumdum for a while. Then I said to him.

“Thank you. If you ever have worries, feel free to tell me. We’re friends after all.”

At my words, Dumdum hesitated for a moment before silently nodding.

“Shall we go then?”

“Yeah, the others must be waiting!”

As we matched our excuses for why we were late to tell the remaining two, we headed back to the training room.

And when we arrived at the training room, it wasn’t the kind of situation we were expecting.

An astonishing guest had arrived.

The guest in the training room was none other than,

“Nyahhaha~ Annyeong!”

Choi Sujeong.

She was probably still disgusted with the scammer because of how she was used during the last dungeon raid, so what was she doing here?

However, for some reason, the scammer looked utterly ragged.

……What in the world is going on?

As I stared at the scammer in confusion, Nayuri hugged me tightly.

“You don’t have to worry about that trash of a human, Nayeon!”

“Yeah, I just gave him a bit of a scolding~.”

……Oh, right. I recalled that I had made a vague promise to Choi Sujeong that I would teach the scammer a lesson with Nayuri.

So they really came to carry it out, huh?

The scammer waved his hand weakly toward us. It looked like a plea for help.

I lamented the unfortunate reality that, due to my concept, I had to help that guy, and I approached him.

On the other hand, Choi Sujeong looked incredibly refreshed, as if she had thoroughly beaten the scammer to her satisfaction.

As she brightly smiled and tried to join our training, I gladly accepted her. Networking with important and capable figures like Choi Sujeong is incredibly beneficial.

The battered scammer seemed like he was going to skip training, but somehow managed to get up and follow us, drinking a precious potion along the way.

And just like that, another day passed.

***

I returned to the dorm and opened the meta system window.

I needed to check the parts I hadn’t looked at in detail before and the comments from the reactions.

However, as I…