If the author manages to make this take a romantic turn at some point without giving readers a whiplash, they deserve a reward. Even if they pull the good old "ML acts regretful and risks his life to save MC" bullshit, it won't work without ruining MC's character. He is someone who, so far, held the same strong belief for years. He didn't change after being confronted with how awful the world is. So, this will be a tough one for the author unless they drop the ball and just hope that we go with the flow and don't complain because *romance*
If the author manages to make this take a romantic turn at some point without giving readers a whiplash, they deserve a reward. Even if they pull the good old "ML acts regretful and risks his life to save MC" bullshit, it won't work without ruining MC's character. He is someone who, so far, held the same strong belief for years. He didn't change after being confronted with how awful the world is. So, this will be a tough one for the author unless they drop the ball and just hope that we go with the flow and don't complain because *romance*