Description: Who spoils Mateo the hardest in Nazuna Miki's Japanese fantasy Unrewarded Villager A? A spoiler-heavy ranking of Lawrence, Hecate, Noir and Blanc, the emperor, and even a competitive cat—judged by what they actually do.
This isn't just a power fantasy. It's an arms race of affection.
In the Japanese web novel Hōwarenakatta Murabito A (the long-titled story about an unrewarded villager reborn as a nobleman's treasured grandson), Mateo gets absurd magical abilities. That sounds familiar. The stranger twist is that everyone around him keeps finding more extravagant ways to adore him. His grandfather provides a privileged life. An emperor joins the bidding war. Spirits and religious leaders enter. Then demons show up with a truly alarming gift idea.
The surprise that breaks the scale is Hecate. A high priestess who is 317 years old receives a name from Mateo and regains the appearance of a girl of roughly ten. That is a magical transformation, not an invitation to treat a childlike appearance romantically. This tier list ranks extreme preferential treatment, not romance or moral worth.
The tiers: what would each character put on the table?
| Tier | Character or group | How far it goes |
|---|---|---|
| EX | Lawrence; Hecate; Noir & Blanc | Family wealth and a town; an entire religious network; a proposal to control rulers' souls |
| SSS | Emperor Ishtar; earth spirit Onodrim; the mermaid queen | Imperial favor, the natural world, and devotion from the sea |
| SS | Eva and Ophelia; Eclipse | Competitive gifts and extraordinary loyalty |
| S | Melinda | Helps turn grandpa's doting into a civic project |
| Wild card | A garden cat | Somehow starts a gift-giving contest with a dragon |
Lawrence wins the family category. In web chapter 226, he puts one-third of his fortune into an investment connected to a revitalized mining town. He believes the deal makes business sense; the money isn't simply a cash gift to Mateo. But he also looks forward to having enough wealth to outspend the emperor when spoiling his grandson. Melinda suggests a name for the town: Paradise of Mateo. Most grandparents print a name on a mug. Lawrence wants it on a map. Read chapter 226.
Hecate wins for institutional devotion. In chapter 51, Mateo names the elderly high priestess; she is transformed into a young-looking girl. Chapter 69 confirms the age of 317. Her gratitude becomes practical infrastructure: the publisher's synopsis of volume 3 describes her building a grand library and a system to deliver the followers' knowledge to Mateo. Asked for information? Why not build an entire information network? Chapters 51 and 69; publisher, volume 3.
Noir and Blanc win the 'please do not unwrap' category. Noir originally approaches Mateo with an ulterior motive involving his soul, as the publisher explains in volume 5. In chapter 209, the demons propose remaking the souls of powerful rulers so those people obey Mateo absolutely. It is a proposal, not an accomplished conquest. Their idea of showing gratitude has somehow skipped flowers and gone straight to mass subjugation. Chapter 209; publisher, volume 5.
A cat enters the bidding war—and the dragon brings tuna
Chapter 229 is the perfect miniature version of the whole series. A stray visitor is fed fruit and returns with a mouse, then a pigeon. Eva the dragon and Ophelia try to outdo it. Eva flies off and returns with a tuna. The cat raises the stakes again with a snake. Mateo recognizes the pattern: this is exactly how grandpa and the emperor compete. The scale of the gift changes; the impulse is identical. Chapter 229.
Final verdict
For continuous, unmistakable affection, Lawrence takes the overall crown. Hecate wins for reverence. Noir and Blanc are the most frighteningly excessive. The genius of the joke is that Mateo's magical power isn't the only thing escalating: family love becomes finance, faith becomes infrastructure, and a cat's thank-you gift becomes a dragon's seafood delivery. This world is hosting a permanent Who Can Spoil Mateo More? Championship.
Source scope: Original Japanese web-novel contents (246 available episodes; latest entry dated May 17, 2024) and the linked first-hand chapters and publisher summaries, checked October 14, 2026. This is a focused, evidence-based character comparison, not a claim to have read every line of all 246 chapters. The English story title above is descriptive, not an asserted official licensed title.
