Allen made a grimace. The skill 'Pseudo-Undying Body' only lasted 6 minutes, but its cooldown was nearly 800 days. Given that a year in the world of Mushoku Tensei was about 300 days, that meant over two years of wait time.
If the healing magic level increased later and could even heal missing limbs, the corresponding mana consumption would only grow, and the skill duration would have to be shortened further.
"Barbarian ultimate?" Allen fully suspected the system was messing with him.
Last night's [6] was ironclad proof.
[How could this be?]
[The Healing Magic Rune Slot is given by the system to help the host recover after battle. Continuous fighting is only expected in life-or-death situations. Given how peaceful the world of Mushoku Tensei is, where would you have near-death battles every day?]
[Besides, think about it—if this rune could be used freely, and one day you obtained an imperial- or divine-level healing rune, wouldn't that basically make you immortal like the demon race? Add in Olsted's Dragon Saint Qi's defense when it levels up, and you won't be Allen anymore—you'll be a cockroach. Just stop playing and beat the game already. No one could threaten you.]
Allen spat on the ground, covering the suddenly intrusive system text with his saliva.
"High-level magic above imperial grade uses massive amounts of mana and lengthy chanting, so it's basically useless in real combat, right? I haven't seen anyone use divine healing magic in the main story—who would I even shake hands with to embed a rune?"
"You have time to explain runes to me, but why not tell me how to increase Dragon Saint Qi capacity?"
"You know the current state of the embryonic core—it can only squeeze out a few strands of Dragon Saint Qi to dilute my innate Qi and improve quality."
[...Contact Olst...]
The text suddenly became chaotic for a moment, then as if trying to materialize, it immediately dispersed in mid-air.
Allen raised an eyebrow, eyes full of surprise.
"System?"
No further text appeared.
Allen stood still for a moment, frowning, murmuring to himself:
"Ever since I contacted Rochi, the system has been strangely hyperactive, popping up to interact with me now and then... something that never happened before. And now it's suddenly disappeared just as mysteriously."
"If it's really the phone's fault, then it's like losing signal."
"But every time my swordsmanship rank updates, or my score refreshes, it's all on time—never had a no-signal issue before."
"Strange."
"Is it the world rejecting me? A limit on the cheat? Or bad phone signal? Or memory full?"
"Not enough info to decide. But the answer to the earlier question is here—contacting Olsted. Dragon Saint Qi originates from the Dragon God Style, so it can be inferred I have to learn Dragon God Style from Olsted."
"It's too early to go see the Dragon Boss now—better to develop some more first. If he opens his heart too soon, I'm too weak to even kowtow and qualify as a subordinate."
"As for the Healing Magic Rune's continuous 'Pseudo-Undying Body' limit: 6 minutes 36 seconds, with an 800-day cooldown to recover mana. Judging from PvP experience in this world, life-or-death usually happens within a few moves."
"In other words, using one minute every 120 days, or 30 seconds every 60 days as a 'true man by the second' is a reasonable distribution—assuming full effort in a desperate fight."
"In normal fights, using breathing room or taunts for intermittent recovery is enough for both mana cost and healing effect."
"And it can even be used to fake weakness, creating an information gap tactically—deliberately exposing flaws to set traps with North God Style or Water God Style."
"Overall, it's a pretty good upgrade-style cheat. Looks like I'm not meant to be an invincible protagonist."
Allen stopped his murmuring.
A pause. Silence.
The system's dust still did not appear.
He raised an eyebrow and cautiously asked again.
"System?"
No response.
Allen squinted, then looked up at the sky.
"…"
"Well then, next, I'll meet Paul and convince him to take me in. To get involved in the Mushoku incident, blending into Paul's family like Rochi is the best choice."
"I need to find a way to earn Rudius's favor. That should help break the poison rune. Although not as useful as the Healing Magic Rune, more skills can't hurt."
Clang! The sword was sheathed.
He continued on his way.
——
The sun was setting over Buena Village.
The evening glow dyed the white walls of the knight lord's manor—the Greyrat family's estate—a deep crimson.
Just like Lillia's face.
Her red hair was neatly tied back, with bangs pressed softly against her cheeks, giving her a gentle appearance.
She wore a well-fitted black-and-white maid's uniform and stood behind the second-floor window sill, quietly watching the courtyard below through her glasses.
Following her gaze, beneath the setting sun, three figures stood in the unusually spacious rural yard—not far away.
The graceful blonde lady and the tall, robust lord stood with their backs to Lillia, scolding a child who kept his head down silently.
It looked like a harmonious scene.
If one ignored the fact that the lord was using his body to shield something, while his hand continuously wandered under the lady's white skirt behind her back.
"The lord and lady have a good relationship, full of passion every night. Heard it all clearly."
Thinking this, Lillia instinctively touched her own back and lowered her eyes.
In the courtyard:
"Rudi, we clearly agreed last night to spar this afternoon so I could check your self-taught progress. Why did you run off and only just come back now?"
Rudius hung his head, eyes awkwardly fixed on the grass, scratching his cheek with a crooked mouth.
"Well, I went to scout terrain and investigate plants... and accidentally got distracted. Haha, cough cough."
Paul narrowed his eyes and tightened his grip on Rudius's shoulder. Beside him, Senys's temple veins twitched slightly. She had come over to mediate, but with Rudi still there, she forced a smile to keep calm, the blush on her face growing hotter.
The soothing words she had prepared earlier completely slipped her mind.
Paul grunted and spoke.
"Rudi, be honest."
Upon hearing that, Rudius quickly straightened up, clutched the plant dictionary under his arm, bowed deeply, and answered seriously:
"Although I really did scout terrain and study plants, I admit I thought that being late meant I didn't have to spar with Father. Sorry!"
Paul smiled and nodded, then turned to Senys and winked.
"Well, wife, go make dinner. Rudi and I have a manly promise to fulfill—cough! Cough cough cough!!"
Senys reached out and patted the crumpled white house dress behind her, giving Paul a half-smile, half-smirk as she elbowed him playfully.
Then she crouched down and spoke gently to Rudi, who was staring at her skirt with the clear, innocent eyes of a child.
"If you don't want to practice swordsmanship with your father next time, that's fine—but you have to tell me in advance. You didn't come back all afternoon today, and you really worried your mother."
"What? Rudi is more than willing to practice swordsmanship!"
"Honey, you clearly have no idea what's going on!"
Rudi watched the four hands in front of him intertwine and twist, his parents bickering on the surface but really flirting beneath it all. He made a crooked, speechless face.
Hey—old couple with their passionate bickering, be careful how you set an example!
After a while, the flirting ended. Once Senys walked away, Paul tore his gaze from his wife's hips and leaned down close to Rudi's ear.
"Hey, be honest—did you go around lifting girls' skirts?"
Don't judge by yourself, Lord Paul!
Though he wore a childish grin on his 34-year-old NEET face, in his heart, Rudi was shouting angrily.
That was the feeling of a snake crawling on his skin.
What was this sensation? It was a gaze—someone was watching him, and it was the kind of scrutinizing look he hated most from his previous life.
His instincts urged him to ignore Paul's teasing and turn his head toward the courtyard gate not far to his side.
There stood a male middle schooler with terrifyingly long eyebrows and a sturdy build, staring at him.
No—it wasn't terrifying exactly. He just had a pair of sharp, inverted V-shaped brows that gave off a too keen and piercing vibe. His messy hair was tied back loosely, and his whole aura radiated a sharp edge.
But Rudi usually wasn't good at dealing with people who carried that kind of presence.
Instinctively, he was reminded of the group of bullies who had tormented him at school.
The bully was stroking his chin, watching him with amusement.
Their eyes met.
The bully raised an eyebrow, as if he had just spotted something interesting, a playful smirk curling at the corner of his mouth.