The Romance Fantasy Novel MC is Only Into Me – Chapter 17

0.

 

“Karma.”

 

Lancel wondered at what his sister intended with this “karma” when she created the game. What on earth was the meaning behind such a godforsaken thing in this game system? Why was the sight of an innocent person suddenly stolen? 

 

‘… Did she even think things through? she probably just put it in.’

 

Lancel was certain of it.

 

He believed that his sister’s approach to creating the game was to just cram in whatever she wanted first and then worry about the consequences later. Whenever Lancel questioned something that sounded concerning, his sister would often respond with something along the lines of “Was something like that even in the game?” She often seemed genuinely unaware of what she’d added.

 

Of course, Lancel had never really thought about this concept of karma. Even during his playthroughs when he was testing the game, Lancel only glanced at it in passing, instinctively knowing that accumulating it was bad.

 

After all, he’d never done anything that would cause it to accumulate in the first place.

 

But Marigold had.

 

She had actually done it in their past iteration.

 

She had accumulated a terrifying number of two hundred karma points, a feat others struggled to achieve, and paid the price by losing her sight completely in this life.

 

“Life’s a real bitch, Marigold.” 

 

Lancel let out a deep sigh as he began searching for her. The master of the Thieves’ Guild, a notorious figure within the empire, came to see him.

 

“So, you’re asking me to find a blind girl named Marigold?”

 

“She’s definitely somewhere in the capital. I’ll pay you the deposit upfront.”

 

“As expected, you are bold as ever, Young Master. We’ll catch her within three days and deliver her to you nicely packaged.”

 

“Just find out where she is.”

 

“Ah, yes.”

 

Contrary to their initial confidence, the Thieves’ Guild failed to locate Marigold. Their excuse was that they couldn’t find her no matter how hard they searched.

 

Lancel felt uneasy, his anxiety growing. 

 

‘Could she have met another tragic end somewhere?’

 

Restless, he went out and wandered through the marketplace.

 

“Please, just one penny!”

 

There he encountered a 15-year-old Marigold.

 

1.

 

“Just one copper coin, please! A single copper coin… Huh?”

 

A light, metallic clink stopped Marigold in her tracks.

 

After fumbling around on the ground for a moment, she grasped a round, metallic object in her hand and bowed her head low.

 

“May the gods bless you!”

 

“……”

 

Lancel massaged his throbbing temples.

 

He wasn’t mistaken.

 

It was Marigold.

 

Though her face was hidden beneath the deep hood of the Salvation Church—a religious organization commonly known as the “Salvationists”—the blind beggar, feeling at the gleaming golden object in her hand and trying to gauge its value, was unmistakably her.

 

Yes.

 

It was definitely Marigold.

 

“A silver coin…? No, there’s no way you would give me something so valuable. But this pattern, I’ve never seen this design before. What is it? Pina, could this actually be a silver coin?”

 

Lancel quietly watched Marigold’s reaction. Before long, she let out a scream so loud it echoed through the entire alley.

 

“G-g-g-gold… gold…!”

 

“Gold coins. That’s right, they’re gold coins.”

 

“Y-yes?”

 

Lancel approached Marigold, who was fumbling nervously.

 

“Imperial gold coins. Is this your first time holding it?”

 

“G-gold coins? Such a large sum… even for us… it’s a bit… Of course, we’d be incredibly grateful if you gave them to us, and we desperately need them, but…!”

 

‘Us?’

 

Lancel glanced again at the emblem embroidered onto Marigold’s hood.

 

The Salvation Church. A relatively small and impoverished religious group.

 

He’d assumed her clothes were just castoffs, but perhaps that wasn’t the case.

 

“Think of it as charity. I want to receive some ‘blessings’ from your god, too.”

 

Marigold stared blankly, momentarily speechless.

 

“Do I… do I know you?”

 

“No, I’ve never seen you before.”

 

Lancel crouched to meet Marigold’s eye level as she sat on the ground. Her once vibrant emerald eyes were now a cloudy silver.

 

“When did you lose your sight?”

 

“Huh? Why would you suddenly ask that…?”

 

“Do you want those gold coins?”

 

“Ten! Since I was 10-years-old.”

 

Ten years old.

 

That was the game’s starting point.

 

Now at 15-years-old, Marigold had been blind for exactly five years.

 

‘This game is a goddamn mess.’

 

Lancel struggled to suppress the anger bubbling inside him.

 

“I asked because I was curious. I’ll be leaving now.”

 

“Just a minute!”

 

A small hand darted out and quickly gripped the hem of Lancel’s cloak.

 

“Please tell me your name. I’ve never received such a large sum of money before, so… I’ll pray! I’ll pray for you!”

 

“Pray?”

 

“Yes!”

 

Marigold’s face lit up.

 

“I pray twice a day. Usually, I ask for my sight to be restored, but this time, I’ll specifically pray for you, my benefactor. How does that sound?”

 

Lancel smiled at her earnest attempt to offer something grand.

 

“Lancel.”

 

The clamor of the bustling street could be heard from afar.

 

In an alleyway slightly removed from the lamplit street, a rat scurried between the stone walls near a foul-smelling sewer.

 

Marigold, a blind member of the Salvation Church with her white cloth spread before her, faced Lancel.

 

“Lancel Dante. That is my name.”

 

“Lancel Dante……yes.”

 

Lancel could see Marigold’s expression change as if she were recalling something.

 

Now that he thought about it, Lancel remembered that she too retained fragments of memories from their previous lives.

 

Perhaps his name sounded vaguely familiar to her as well.

 

“Lancel Dante, I will pray for you. Thank you for bestowing this precious gold coin upon me. I am grateful for this divinely ordained encounter.”

 

The gold coin glittered like some sacred relic in her palm, as she clasped her hands together in prayer. 

 

Lancel turned away before taking one last look at her.

 

‘I need to figure out how to deal with that damn karma score.’

 

Every time he saw Marigold, now a blind girl, Lancel’s anger flared. He didn’t know why. He simply couldn’t stand it.

 

2.

 

———

[Fallen Noblewoman Simulation]

 

Schedule for the second week of June:

 

Monday – Beg on the streets.

Tuesday – Cleaning and laundry in the temple.

Wednesday – Beg on the streets.

Thursday – Beg on the streets.

Friday – Beg on the streets.

Saturday – Recite prayers at the temple.

Sunday – Seek regular patrons.

 

※Begging is tough, but it helps the temple.

———

 

For nearly a week, Lancel had been observing Marigold from a close distance. 

 

“Gain divine grace with a single copper coin. Forgo one meal and receive the favor of the gods.”

 

In a busy public area, Marigold sat at the same time each day, dressed in the same clothes, continuing her begging.

 

“What do you think?”

 

“She wouldn’t even notice if someone snatched her.”

 

Lancel glanced sideways. The master of the Thieves’ Guild, startled, quickly changed his words.

 

“That’s just a figure of speech among the common folk, Sir Lancel. It’s quite frightening.”

 

“I heard the Thieves’ Guild has many criminals who specialize in kidnapping.”

 

“Oh dear, it’s troublesome to equate us with such ruffians. After all, if she has no parents, it’s hard to demand a ransom…”

 

Lancel tuned out the man’s endless excuses.

 

Lancel had assigned several guards to protect Marigold. He didn’t want to witness her meeting another untimely end.

 

“Be saved with a single copper coin.”

 

Karma. How could he possibly remove it?

 

Over the past few months, Lancel had been observing Marigold, but he hadn’t seen a single sign of her karma diminishing. All he saw was her endless begging.

 

‘Should I give her some money?’

 

“I don’t usually question the intentions of my clients, but why would you request such a thing…?”

 

“Just do as I say.”

 

“Understood!”

 

The Thieves’ Guild swiftly carried out the commission as Lancel had requested.

 

“Receive a blessing for just one copper coin! One copper coin… Huh?”

 

Marigold’s expression shifted as she sensed something was amiss. Suddenly, copper and silver coins began raining down around her.

 

“T-thank you! No, you should receive a prayer first! Ah, thank you again! Huh? Silver coins? What is this? If it’s a silver coin, you absolutely must receive a prayer!”

 

Marigold frantically scrambled to pick up the scattered coins.

 

“Get out of the way! This is my spot!”

 

“Ah!”

 

A beggar, appearing from nowhere, shoved Marigold aside. Lancel’s gaze turned icy.

 

“Deal with him.”

 

“Yes, Sir.”

“W-who are you? Why are you doing this… Aahh!”

 

Two men who had been loitering nearby swiftly approached and chased the beggar far away.

 

Marigold remained alone, her face blank with confusion, unsure of what had just happened.

 

.

.

.

 

============

—Marigold senses she has a talent for fundraising.

============

 

‘Huh?’

 

Lancel began to sense something was amiss. Marigold, who had always sat begging as usual, was gradually starting to change as time passed.

 

“Ahem.”

 

After steadying her breath, Marigold pulled out something heavy. It was a stringed instrument with three strings.

 

“May the grace of salvation come! Light and grace, ah, light and grace, ah!”

 

Lancel covered his face with his hands. ‘What in the world is this?’

 

“Receive grace for just one copper coin! Ah, light and grace!”

 

At first, it was something that Marigold did alone.

 

Later, several others dressed similarly joined her, harmonizing their voices.

 

“Ahh! Light!”

 

“Ohh, The day of light has come!”

 

They played music unlike anything anyone had ever heard, yet it was enough to capture the public’s attention.

Eventually, people traveled from afar just to witness the spectacle.

 

‘Are they a band of jesters?’

 

By the time Lancel regained his senses, the Salvation Church within the capital had become masters of begging.

 

Ten years passed like that.

 

.

.

.

 

[Playtime: 10 years, 0 days]

 

—Marigold turned 25.

—No marriage partner.

—No achievements.

 

[Normal Ending 85: Marigold the Street Celebrity]

 

—The ending has been added to the “Album of Memories.”

—Album opening.

 

.

.

.

 

One coin.

 

One prayer.

 

One coin.

 

One song.

 

Today, Marigold sets out into the streets once more to find the person who appeared in her dream.

 

[Normal Ending 85: Marigold the Street Celebrity – FIN.]

 

—Would you like to restart the game?

 

.

.

.

 

“No, this isn’t it.”

 

Lancel had resolved to watch for a while, but he hadn’t expected things to turn out like this.

 

At this rate, Marigold was nothing more than just a slightly more capable beggar.

 

============

—Permanent Damage: Marigold has lost sight in both eyes.

 

※Marigold has 200 Karma points.

※Until the karma levels are resolved, this permanent damage will occur in every playthrough.

============

 

‘I just want her karma points to drop.’

 

How could he completely eliminate her karma and never see that damned notification again?

 

Lancel found the answer closer than he thought.

 

When Lancel visited the Salvation Church under the guise of becoming a regular patron, a clergyman from the order personally offered to guide him.

 

“The doctrine of the Salvation Church is to spread this religion as widely as possible. We build temples in every corner of the continent, collect vast donations, and amass wealth and prosperity.”

 

“…I never realized the Salvation Church was so worldly. With such an approach, aren’t your followers more like merchants than believers?”

 

“The Salvation Church doesn’t save people with empty faith. Gold and silver, barley and honey, wheat and olives, oil and milk—these alone are the blessings of the gods, and we believe they are what truly save humanity.”

 

‘Damn it.

 

I always thought Marigold’s obsession with money seemed out of character. So these bastards were the reason.

 

Now I understand why they’re so insignificant.’

 

The Salvation Church was certainly practical, but people don’t want a religion like that. They expect something more sublime and grand.

 

It became clear that this place wasn’t suited for Marigold. Lancel resolved to get Marigold out of this pseudo-heretical cult at the first opportunity.

 

“Thus, when temples of the Salvation Church spread to every corner of this vast land, only then will we be freed from the karma bestowed upon us by God.”

 

Karma.

 

It was the first time Lancel was hearing that word spoken by another person.