Heroine On Strike

The young boy’s face became more serious than ever. It seemed he was going to use both points to save the world from its crisis. Ella then remembered about the “setting” that meddles with the world or the points that require fixing, which she heard from Didi yesterday.

They were creating and maintaining the world like gods, but they were bound to complicated rules that they couldn’t do anything without points, which was his dilemma. Ella knew how thirsty they were for that point, so she wasn’t sure how her request would be interpreted.

“But you know, Didi,” said Ella.

“Huh?” questioned Didi.

“It’s my gift, so can you just use one for me?”

“Why? Is there something that’s bothering you?” Puzzled, Didi looked at Ella. He was acting like there was nothing that could bother her.

Ella couldn’t help but sigh. Didi was so confident in his mind, so she wasn’t sure if she could make him understand how she felt. It almost felt frustrating that she had to worry about him when she wanted to use her gift, but she also felt a bit guilty for wanting to use the points for her own good when they could be used to save the entire world.

She, however, was pulled into this world against her will to become a hero. Maybe she deserved a little bit of privilege, so she could fulfill her role as a hero a bit easier. Ella reminded herself of the Invited Guest buff that had turned into a huge stressor for her for the past day to justify her actions.

“I want the Invited Guest buff gone. If you can’t erase all the buffs from every guest, then just take mine away.”

Didi never even guessed Ella would hate the buff, so he stared at her with a blank expression on his face. Then, he asked, “Why?”

“What do you mean, ‘why?’”

“You don’t like buffs?”

“I hate it,” responded Ella.

“Why? Everyone loved it.”

Of course, Didi couldn’t understand. Ella let out a long sigh and shook her head. What will make him understand? She had to be direct, so she asked, “Did they like it even after learning it was a buff?”

Didi pondered over her question. How many guests found out they were loved because of the buff? In most cases, the guests were not mixed against one another like Ella, and even if it happened, there weren’t many that Didi wanted to tell them about it.

“I don’t recall meeting anyone again after telling them it was due to the buff.”

Two of them suddenly committed suicide, one only focused on work after that, and another truly enjoyed it. And there was one… Didi remembered how the behaviors of these guests changed after they learned of the buff and clicked his tongue.

‘That does seem strange.’ These guests appeared at times when there were many problems, so it was hard to pinpoint the reason that led to that change.

“Why?” asked Ella.

“I don’t know. I’m curious about myself. So, what difference does it make? Knowing the buff and not knowing about it.” Didi was sure he couldn’t understand even for a bit as he looked at Ella.

Ella almost grabbed her head, groaning, ‘Oh, my head,’ if it wasn’t for her remembering Joanne’s scary look that she would see again if she carelessly ruined her hair again. Anyway, she awoke from her thought process to persuade Didi, thanks to Joanne.

“It’s way different. When you don’t know, you just think that I’m a bit of a charmer, or maybe that the character I took over is charming. When you know that it’s because of a buff, everything suddenly feels very artificial. Even when you have someone who says he likes me, it feels like he was only made to like me because of that setting. It’s awkward and burdening.”

Ella was reminded of her awkward feelings while watching Dayson and Vylun go against each other. Didi frowned, following her grim expression. Then, she continued, “I don’t know this person, but this person already likes me and comes at me, which I can’t relate to at all. It doesn’t feel authentic, and it only makes me grow suspicious. Don’t you think it’s unfortunate for both?”

“Oh, I get it now.”