The moment Steven stepped back into his room, the smile on his face froze.
It wasn't because something unexpected had happened—no, it was because he had absentmindedly taken a bite of the black bread the village chief had given him.
And nearly broke his teeth in the process.
Calling this thing a brick would be an insult to bricks.
In all his years, the only bread he'd heard of being this hard was the infamous French baguette—often joked about as a military weapon. But now, he had finally encountered something that put even that legend to shame.
Taking out his Sharpness V Netherite Sword, Steven sliced off a small corner of the bread and finally understood just how poor this village really was.
Looking at the cut surface, it was clear—this wasn't just the classic case of mixing wheat flour with bran. This thing was basically a block of sawdust with a sprinkle of bran for flavor.
It was hard to imagine that the villagers survived on something like this day after day.
He popped the small piece into his mouth, carefully chewing.
Aside from the fact that it scratched the inside of his mouth, the taste wasn't too awful.
At least it was better than the rotten flesh he'd eaten before.
Steven had a strict rule—never waste food. It was a personal habit and a form of respect for resources.
However, that didn't mean he planned to finish the rest of it.
Perhaps the villagers outside would appreciate a free meal instead.
Of course, he would never feed this stuff to Gladiia.
Bullying a fool brings bad karma.
Just as Steven was thinking about her, the very same girl—who had been lying quietly in bed—suddenly sat upright.
Their gazes met.
For a moment, Steven thought she had remembered something.
But seeing her dull, unfocused eyes, he quickly ruled out that possibility.
Then what was she—?
Before he could finish his thought, Gladiia suddenly spit out a mouthful of blood.
Caught off guard, Steven felt the warm liquid splatter all over his face and clothes.
He looked down at his now blood-soaked outfit and sighed in resignation.
Well, there goes this set of clothes. Officially retired.
But he was far more concerned about the girl herself.
With that pale complexion—now looking even more deathly due to the blood loss—she didn't seem to be in a good state at all.
Could it be an internal injury from when he accidentally slammed into her earlier?
No, that didn't make sense.
He distinctly remembered hitting her head, not her chest or abdomen.
Which meant…
She was already injured before that encounter.
That would explain why those weakling monsters had dared to chase her in the first place.
Of course, he couldn't be sure whether his actions had worsened her condition.
Steven reached up to wipe the blood from his face—only to pause in surprise.
For some reason, the blood absorbed into his skin instantly, as if it were some kind of fast-absorbing lotion.
At least his status bar didn't show any weird debuffs.
So, whatever.
Supporting the girl—who, upon waking, had stretched out her hands toward him like a child longing for a father's embrace—Steven quickly assessed her condition.
And it was not looking great.
"Alright, since you called me 'Dad' once, I'll let this slide."
"You're lucky you ran into me."
After rummaging through his inventory for a moment, Steven finally pulled out something that might actually help.
He flashed a grin at the girl.
"Dad?"
Gladiia, now seemingly reduced to a childlike state, weakly grasped Steven's arm and called out to him in a soft, feeble voice. She looked just like a sick little girl.
"Yes, yes, Dad's here. Be good and open your mouth for the medicine."
Accepting his newfound "father" role with a sigh, Steven retrieved a glowing golden apple from his inventory. He spoke to the girl in a coaxing tone, as if soothing a child, while she curled up in his embrace.
If he weren't personally responsible for her condition, Steven wouldn't have taken out something this precious so easily.
A golden apple was basically half a life. Even though this one wasn't enchanted, its base value was still high enough that he usually hesitated to eat them himself.
The amnesiac girl stared at Steven, then at the shimmering golden apple in his hand. Her crimson eyes blinked in confusion.
"Alright, I overestimated your current level of comprehension."
Steven shook his head, then gently pressed the apple against her soft, pink lips—plump like a delicate jelly. He exaggeratedly mimicked a biting motion to demonstrate what she needed to do.
After watching him, Gladiia finally understood and parted her lips slightly, allowing her pearly teeth to press against the apple's smooth surface.
Crack!
A crisp sound echoed as she instinctively recoiled, clutching her mouth. Though her gaze still carried that inexplicable closeness and trust toward Steven, there was now an unmistakable trace of grievance in her eyes—like a child who had just been tricked.
Meanwhile, Steven stared at the golden apple in his hand, now adorned with a small, delicate bite mark.
For a moment, he was speechless.
—So this thing really is made of pure gold?
Why did this world have to be so accurate in this particular detail?
As the realization hit him, Steven suddenly recalled just how many of these apples he had eaten over time. Easily in the thousands.
'If I ever drop dead one day, it's definitely gonna be from heavy metal poisoning…'
But right now, he had a far more pressing issue.
The girl in his arms was on the verge of collapse. He had the means to heal her, yet she physically couldn't consume the medicine.
Steven seriously doubted that forcing her to eat the golden apple whole would work. Even if the effects kicked in, she'd probably lose half her life just trying to swallow it.
After all, in ancient times, swallowing gold was a well-known method of suicide.
"Sigh… looks like there's only one way left."
Letting out a resigned sigh, Steven gently lifted Gladiia's delicate chin.
Her small face, framed by soft silver locks, was a masterpiece of perfection.
The more he looked at her, the more breathtaking she seemed.
"From a certain perspective, I'm actually the one making a profit here, huh? But just to be clear—I'm only doing this to save you. This is purely for medical purposes. So if you ever regain your memory, I hope you'll be reasonable about this."
Muttering words that Gladiia was in no condition to understand, Steven took a bite of the golden apple.
Chewing swiftly, he felt a rush of warmth flood his mouth, turning into a surging heat that spread through his body.
Before the healing energy dissipated completely, he bent down—his lips pressing firmly against hers.
Through this intimate connection, he passed the remnants of the golden apple's power into her body.
Well… if my first kiss is with a beautiful girl like this, I guess it's not too much of a loss.