Loran opened his gift system.
There were not many things he could take out right now.
The Meteorite Staff and Rock Sling sorcery he had obtained from Caelid were key combat items and could not be gifted.
The [Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone] was far too valuable, and to a girl on the verge of mental collapse, it would be completely meaningless.
As for the miscellaneous items Gostoc had dropped—some jerky and a rusty dagger—giving those to her would only make it feel even more like an insult.
After thinking it over, there were only two things he could use as gifts.
One was the [Faded Lilac] that had been lying in his inventory since the beginning.
The other was something he had picked up from the corpse of a perfumer while looting the Street of Sages Ruins in Caelid.
[Item Name: Perfume Bottle]
A flower?
Or the bottle?
Loran’s gaze moved back and forth between the descriptions of the two items.
The description of the lilac said that it “carried a forgotten memory,” and that “perhaps, to certain nostalgic people, it still held a small and insignificant value.”
This item pointed toward the past.
Toward memory.
And Roderika was currently trapped deep in the painful memories of her companions’ deaths. Giving her this might very well make her think of the past and worsen her condition.
As for the perfume bottle...
It could only be this.
He walked forward.
Instead of directly stuffing the perfume bottle into Roderika’s hands, he crouched down not far from her.
“Try perfuming.”
The girl’s shoulders trembled slightly, but she did not raise her head.
“Perfumers use spices to create Uplifting Aromatics that can raise people’s spirits, or Ironjar Aromatics that make the body as hard as steel.”
As he spoke, he gently nudged the glass bottle with one finger.
“They can also create perfumes meant for battle. For example, Spark Aromatic. With just a tiny spark, it can ignite and explode with considerable force. The materials needed for these are all very ordinary—moss from caves, wildflowers by the roadside, things you can find almost anywhere.”
“Just like... ordinary people can also rely on their own strength to overcome difficulties that seem impossible to defeat.”
“I can’t...”
The girl’s voice grew lighter and lighter, coming from within the crook of her arms.
“I... I only cause trouble for everyone... I’m useless...”
Loran fell silent for a moment.
He did not know whether this patchwork nonsense of his, with barely any logic to it, was actually useful.
But he saw the affection value above Roderika’s head jump from [0] to [+20].
That let him feel slightly relieved.
“This girl...”
Blacksmith Hewg, who had been silent all this time, suddenly spoke.
“You have the gift for spirit tuning,” Hewg said. “The color of your eyes... is proof.”
Roderika slowly raised her head and looked at the blacksmith in confusion.
“Spirit tuning...?”
“Yes. Strengthening the power of souls dwelling within ashes, and guiding them. It is an ancient and rare craft. You have the talent for it.”
Kiro, who had been watching from the side, suddenly had her eyes light up.
She seemed to have remembered something and was just about to say it.
But Roderika shook her head.
“Thank you, Master Hewg.”
Her voice was still soft, but it no longer trembled.
“Thank you for your kindness. But...”
“...I think... I want to become a perfumer.”
After saying that, she turned her head and looked at Loran gratefully.
[Roderika’s Affection toward Loran: +20 → +40]
[Status: Found Direction / Grateful / Recovering]
At the same time, a new prompt appeared in Loran’s system interface.
[Detected: You have successfully changed the career path of an important NPC. The worldline has undergone a minor shift.]
[New Title Acquired: Guide of Hearts]
[Effect: When interacting with targets in a “lost” or “confused” state, your persuasion success rate increases. When gifting “career-related” items, affection gains receive an additional bonus.]
[Note: Sometimes, an unintentional word or an incidental gift may light up someone’s entire world.]
This title finally did not come with the same malicious humor and uncertainty as the previous two.
It provided a measurable positive bonus.
But Loran could not feel happy.
Just like that, a spirit tuner had been led astray by him and changed careers into a perfumer.
Although Roderika’s condition seemed much better now, did this mean that this world’s function for upgrading spirit ashes had now been shut down?
Would the “dog squad” in his possession forever remain beginner-level cannon fodder, with no possibility of growth?
For the sake of an uncertain future, he had lost a stable method of improving combat power.
This deal could hardly be called worthwhile.
He sighed.
At this point, there was no use dwelling on it.
Loran simply gave the [Traveling Perfumer Set] he had picked up in Caelid to Roderika as well.
“Since you’ve decided,” he said, “you’ll need a proper outfit.”
When Loran dragged Kiro, who still wanted to renew her bond with Fia and steal one last “goodbye hug,” toward the exit of Roundtable Hold, Roderika chased after them.
“...Please wait!”
The two of them turned back.
The girl had already changed into a brand-new outfit.
“I want to go with you.”
Roderika looked at Loran, her eyes more determined than ever before.
“What?”
Kiro was the first to shout.
“Go with us? Are you kidding me? We’re going on an adventure, not a picnic! What’s a crybaby who can’t even beat a random roadside soldier going to do by following us? Be dead weight?”
Roderika’s face paled from those words, and she instinctively took half a step back.
But she did not lower her head like before.
Instead, she gathered her courage and met Kiro’s gaze.
“I... I won’t cry anymore.”
Her voice was not loud, but it was clear.
“I won’t cause trouble for everyone. I can... I can make Uplifting Aromatics for you. Maybe... maybe I can help in other ways too.”
“Keep dreaming!”
Kiro cut her off mercilessly.
“We—”
“Fine.”
Loran spoke.
Kiro stared at him in shock, as if she could not believe her ears.
Loran ignored her.
He simply looked at Roderika.
In his vision, that familiar panel was changing.
[Name: Roderika]
[Identity: Perfumer Apprentice]
[Affection: +60 toward Loran]
[Status: Determined / Requesting to Travel Together / Dependent]
Sixty points.
A number that had caused no reaction at all with Irina now triggered the mechanism that made Loran’s scalp go numb in Roderika’s case.
A pink lace-trimmed choice box silently floated above Roderika’s little red hood.
[Option 1: Agree to Travel Together]
[Accept Roderika as a member of the party.]
[Effect: Roderika’s Affection +10. She officially joins the party. The worldline undergoes a moderate shift.]
[Option 2: Refuse to Travel Together]
[Persuade Roderika to stay behind on the grounds that it is too dangerous.]
[Effect: Roderika’s Affection -30. Her mental state has a certain chance of regressing.]
[Option 3: Confession]
[Effect: ???]