Chapter 3: Wait, System, Are You Serious?!

The person who arrived was Roxy.

After hurriedly responding to her warning, Allen couldn't help but recall the original story.

Without a doubt, her appearance here at this time, carrying a suitcase, meant she had just parted ways with Rudeus's family and left Buena Village to continue her journey as an adventurer.

He had missed it.

But at the same time, it felt like he hadn't.

So, the question arose.

The mission given to him by the "Mushoku Tensei Transmigration Guide System" was to participate in the major events of Rudeus's growth stages, leaving a mark in the eyes of the main and supporting characters, and earning participation points.

Was there an opportunity here?

According to Allen's plan, getting close to Roxy would surely yield a lot of points—after all, Roxy was an incredibly important character in the original story.

In Rudeus's growth trajectory, the conflict with the Human God was the main storyline, and Roxy was the cause of the Human God's appearance.

After the Great Teleportation Incident, Roxy helped Rudeus search for his family. During this process, the two grew closer, and it was precisely because of their union that their child, Lara, became the key figure in sealing the Human God in the future. The Great Teleportation altered the course of fate, and the Human God, through future sight, saw his own demise, leading him to interfere with Rudeus's life, thus setting the main story in motion.

Now, with the opportunity right in front of him, Allen hesitated.

As someone who had read the original story, his greatest advantage was his pseudo-future sight, with the system being secondary.

In other words, he shouldn't let his personal preferences for the original characters interfere too much with the plot. It would be best to participate in major events as a relatively strong background character.

If he caused too much of a disturbance... the Dragon God, who roamed through the cycles of reincarnation, might not even listen to his explanations and simply kill him on the spot. Based on the system's current growth attributes, facing the Dragon God was still a distant future.

Future sight was more important... Using this, he could avoid encountering the Dragon God too early...

Roxy, noticing Allen's increasingly intense gaze, fidgeted uncomfortably, tugging at the blue hair in front of her forehead. She averted her eyes to the blood-stained grass nearby, wanting to say something to break the tension.

At that moment, clouds of dust suddenly materialized in the air, blocking Allen's view of Roxy.

He blinked in confusion.

'Huh? Why is the system popping up now? My swordsmanship hasn't suddenly improved to the point of needing an update...'

Then, lines of bold, underlined, and red text appeared in the air, causing Allen's expression to stiffen.

[Mushoku Tensei Transmigration Guide Immediate Mission Issued.]

[First Encounter with Roxy.]

[Mission Background: The host has once again missed the event of Roxy teaching Rudeus during his childhood. Roxy has already been separated from Rudeus for two days. This chance encounter is the host's last opportunity to make up for it.]

[Mission Description: Within one hour, gain Roxy's favor. Within four days, gain Rudeus's favor.]

[Mission Reward: Healing Magic Slot—Unlock (2/4).]

[Healing Magic Slot: Four magic slots will be engraved on the host's Dragon Saint Aura Core, corresponding to four types of healing magic: Healing Magic, Detoxification Magic, Barrier Magic, and Divine Strike Magic.]

[The host can obtain magic patterns through physical contact. Requirement: The target must have used one of the four types of magic within the last minute. After contact, the system will copy and solidify the target's magic fluctuations into the slot, forming a magic pattern. Once activated, the magic pattern will continuously apply the corresponding magic effect to the host's body until the host's mana is depleted. Note: Magic patterns only affect the host's body and cannot be applied to external objects.]

[Mission Start.]

[Roxy: Countdown: 0:59:59. Upon completion, the Healing Magic Slot will be unlocked.]

[Rudeus: Countdown: 95:59:58. Upon completion, the Detoxification Magic Slot will be unlocked.]

What? Buddy? Favor???

Huh?

Is this system serious? Roxy's favor is one thing, but Rudeus's favor? What's that about? And you're hiding 2/4? It's obvious the other two heroines are missing!

As Allen's expression shifted like a kaleidoscope, Roxy finally couldn't hold back and attempted to ease the awkwardness. She scratched her cheek and spoke in a somewhat embarrassed tone.

"Um... I was traveling at night and saw a fire in the forest, so I came over... I happened to see monsters attacking a human... I instinctively used magic, but it seems you could handle them on your own... I guess I overstepped... I almost hit you..."

Her stuttering, adorable voice, clearly not used to dealing with people, snapped Allen out of his daze.

The system panel had already dissipated, allowing him to see Roxy clearly again.

In the light of the campfire, the "Goddess" (a Mushoku Tensei meme—Rudeus referred to Roxy as a goddess) fidgeted nervously. Her black thigh-high socks had slipped slightly, revealing faint red marks on her pale skin. Her cheeks were also flushed, and her eyes darted around, avoiding direct eye contact with Allen.

At this moment, the surging aura in Allen's body subsided. He felt a warmth in his nose, and soon, blood began to flow. (Just to clarify, it wasn't because he was looking at her legs.)

He absentmindedly touched his nose, glanced at Roxy's two blue braids, and after what felt like a long hesitation but was actually just a moment...

He feigned fainting, collapsing straight to the ground.

Of course, it was just an act.

As for the nosebleed...

—The "Twenty Slashes" technique of the North God Style's practical school was a rapid draw-slash technique that relied entirely on physical strength and proficiency. In his current state, Allen couldn't fully sustain five consecutive slashes in a short time. His body wasn't fully developed yet, and the rapid surge of aura had caused his capillaries to rupture.

This was also why his North God Style level wasn't high—he couldn't sustain the use of practical techniques in prolonged battles. As for the eccentric techniques of the school, he hadn't mastered many of them yet.

It wasn't that he couldn't, but rather that he didn't want to.

There were some techniques he could pull off, like the Asura Kingdom's throne battle, where the Northern King covered himself in mirrors. But unless absolutely necessary, he really didn't want to turn himself into a disco ball.

Logically, with just a capillary rupture, Allen didn't actually need to "faint."

But... the mission was given, the countdown was ticking, and the opportunity was right in front of him.

So, no hesitation.

—In the short term, the easiest and most effective way to gain Roxy's favor was to faint:

By leveraging the Franklin Effect/Social Effect.

The most direct way to win the favor of a stranger you've just met isn't to help them, but to ask for their help.

First, this gives the other person a sense of importance, making them feel valued.

Second, as the other person helps you, their subconscious desire to not waste their effort will make them pay more attention to you in future interactions, increasing their favorability toward you.

This manifests as: "You ask me how my relationship with him/her is? Well, let's see... since I helped him/her before, I guess we're on good terms~"

And now was the perfect time to apply the Franklin Effect. Allen's fainting was a reasonable and natural way to create the precondition of "asking for help."

Moreover, Roxy's water ball had almost accidentally hit Allen, so she already felt a bit guilty toward him.

It was clear.

—Now! At this moment! This was the perfect, limited-time opportunity to ask for help without being rejected!

With a thud, Allen collapsed.

'Franklin Effect, do your thing!... Blue Mommy... help your child! (A Mushoku Tensei fan meme—casual readers, don't get the wrong idea!) You're the one true goddess of Mushoku Tensei, chant a spell and let Roxy teach this loyal believer how to rise again!'

Allen closed his eyes and silently prayed for the goddess's blessing. Sure enough, he soon heard Roxy's flustered murmurs and the sound of her pacing back and forth.

"He... fainted? Did my water ball hit him after all?... Wh-what do I do??"

Allen: Use healing magic!!

"Should I... run away?"

Allen: Huh???

"Wait... Roxy, don't panic. Stay calm, stay calm."

A cold hand touched Allen's lips.

"He's... still breathing. It's an external injury. With my healing magic, I can still save him!"

Allen: ...I'm saved, thank you.

He secretly sighed in relief. However, Roxy's series of panicked reactions reminded him of the scene in the novel where she accidentally struck Rudeus's horse with a lightning spell and then freaked out.

It felt so real—more real than the anime or the novel. The usually cold-faced Blue Mommy seemed so serious, but her awkward, flustered side was undeniably cute.

Hmm...

Though the thought of her trying to flee after "killing" him was also very in-character.

Typical adventurer behavior.

Roxy's slightly hurried voice rang out.

"Oh, merciful goddess, mother of all! Please heal this person's wounds and restore him to health! Healing Magic!"

Allen had been waiting for this. As soon as the incantation finished, he immediately opened his eyes and sat up like a fish leaping out of water!

Quick as lightning!

He swiftly grabbed Roxy's hand, causing her to widen her eyes in shock, embarrassment, confusion, and relief all at once. With a serious and sincere expression, he spoke.

Allen: "Thank you! Goddess."

Roxy: Σ(°ロ°)!!

As soon as he finished speaking, the system panel appeared like smoke before his eyes.

[Successfully gained Roxy's favor. Time taken: 2 minutes and 47 seconds.]

[Evaluation: Fast, impressive, truly a natural-born charmer.]

[Healing Magic Slot unlocked.]

[Detected that the host is in physical contact with Roxy. Scanning for healing magic used by Roxy within the last minute...]

[Scan complete. Magic pattern engraved—Intermediate Healing Magic.]

Allen blinked, feeling somewhat moved as he stared at the blue-haired, legal loli in front of him, who was now wearing a horrified and flustered expression.

For a moment, he couldn't tell if the sudden favorability was due to the Franklin Effect or simply because he had complimented her.

But one thing was certain:

This was the "Goddess."

Generous, fair-skinned, beautiful, and adorable.

The goddess's cheeks flushed as she pulled her hand away from Allen's, brushing the hair from her forehead and averting her gaze once more.

"...Calling me a goddess is too much... It was just a basic intermediate healing spell..."

And she was easy to please.

Allen looked at Roxy, who was sitting cross-legged right in front of him. Her half-lidded eyes, seemingly due to lack of sleep, gave her a cold expression, but her flustered demeanor, mixed with a hint of joy from being called a goddess, completely contradicted her usual demeanor.

The gap moe was real.

Tsk, Rudeus, your 34-year-old, eroge-experienced, NEET otaku taste in women...

Truly reliable.