diff --git a/core/encoding/ini/ini.odin b/core/encoding/ini/ini.odin
index 8010e4e75..8cfdf8c59 100644
--- a/core/encoding/ini/ini.odin
+++ b/core/encoding/ini/ini.odin
@@ -89,6 +89,8 @@ load_map_from_string :: proc(src: string, allocator: runtime.Allocator, options
 			}
 			if allocated {
 				return v, nil
+			} else {
+				return strings.clone(v), nil
 			}
 		}
 		return strings.clone(val)