The person who appeared… was Roxy.
After acknowledging her urgent warning, Allen couldn't help but recall the plot of the original novel.
There was no doubt—her being here at this moment, carrying that suitcase, meant she had just parted ways with Rudeus and his family and was now resuming her adventuring journey.
He'd missed it.
But also… hadn't.
Barely caught it. Maybe.
Which raised an important question.
The Cross-World Travel Guide had given Allen a clear requirement: participate in the major events across each of Rudeus's growth stages and leave a mark in the eyes of both main and supporting characters to earn a score.
Was this an opportunity?
Allen figured that getting close to Roxy would be a goldmine of points—as mentioned before, Roxy played an extremely important role in the original storyline.
In Rudeus's arc, his confrontation with the Hitogami was the main plot. Roxy was the key that set the entire sequence in motion.
After the Great Displacement, Roxy helped Rudeus search for his family. Along the way, their bond deepened and eventually led to the birth of Lara—a child who, in the future, would be instrumental in sealing the Hitogami. That displacement twisted causality, allowing Hitogami to see his fate through future sight, which then prompted him to interfere with Rudeus's life—thus beginning the main story.
So here it was—his chance.
And yet… Allen hesitated.
Having read the whole novel, his greatest advantage wasn't the system—it was his pseudo-future-sight. The system came second.
Which meant he shouldn't let his personal fondness for canon characters interfere too much with the plot. Ideally, he should insert himself into major events as a powerful but unintrusive side character.
If he changed too much… if the Dragon God wandering the reincarnation cycle noticed, Allen might not even get a chance to explain before being one-shot on the spot. With his current system growth, he was still nowhere near ready to face Orsted.
Future-sight was what mattered most—it would help him avoid meeting Orsted too early.
Meanwhile, Roxy, watching Allen's increasingly serious expression, nervously shifted her legs, pulling at her blue bangs and staring off toward the blood-stained grass. She looked like she wanted to say something.
And just then—
Smoke-like text began materializing out of thin air, cutting off Allen's view of Roxy.
He blinked in confusion.
'Huh? Why's the system popping up now? I haven't improved my swordsmanship enough to trigger a level update…'
Lines of bold, red-underlined text condensed in the air. Allen's face stiffened immediately.
[Mushoku Tensei Cross-World Travel Guide – Instant Quest Issued]
[First Encounter with Roxy]
Quest Background: Host has missed the "Roxy tutors Rudeus" event during the childhood stage. Roxy has now been separated from Rudeus for two days. This is the host's only remaining chance to make up for it.
Quest Objective: Gain Roxy's affection within one hour. Gain Rudeus's affection within four days.
Quest Reward:Healing Magic Slot — Unlock Progress (2/4)
Healing Magic Slot: The host's Ryūsei Tōki (Dragon Saint Aura) core contains four embedded grooves corresponding to healing-based spells:
Healing Magic
Antidote Magic
Barrier Magic
Divine Strike Magic
The host can acquire a magic sigil via physical contact with a caster who has used one of these spells within the last minute. The system copies and etches the spell's magical wave pattern into a slot. Once activated, the sigil can continuously apply the corresponding magic to the host's body only, until mana runs out.
Quest Start
Roxy: Countdown — 0:59:59 (Unlocks Healing Magic Slot upon success)
Rudeus: Countdown — 95:59:58 (Unlocks Antidote Magic Slot upon success)
Wait. Hold on.
Affection?!
HUH??
Is this system for real? Roxy's affection… fine, sure. But Rudeus's affection too? What is that?! And what's with hiding the other two slots behind this fake 2/4 progress bar? You think I can't tell the last two are the other heroines?! Are you kidding me??
Watching Allen's face cycle through a series of expressions like a drama mask, Roxy finally couldn't take the silence anymore. She rubbed her cheek shyly and spoke up:
"Um… I was traveling at night, and when I saw the firelight in the forest, I came to check. I saw a monster attacking a person, so I instinctively cast a spell. I didn't expect you to be able to handle it yourself… I guess I acted rashly and almost hit you too."
Her stammering voice was adorable in its awkwardness, snapping Allen out of his daze.
The system panel dissipated. He could finally see her clearly again.
Bathed in firelight, the "God" (as Rudeus calls her in-universe) shifted uncomfortably. The black socks on her calves had slipped slightly, revealing pale skin marked with faint red pressure lines. Her cheeks were pink, her gaze drifting as she nervously looked anywhere but at Allen.
At that moment, the Ryūsei Tōki flooding his body began to subside, and Allen suddenly felt his nose heat up—blood began to drip.
(Not because of the legs, by the way.)
He absentmindedly touched beneath his nose, glanced at Roxy's long, sky-blue twin braids, and, after seeming to hesitate for a long time (when really it was just a second)...
He rolled his eyes and collapsed backward.
Yes, he faked fainting.
As for the nosebleed…
——The Nijūzan technique from the Hokushin-ryū (North God Style) relies purely on physical conditioning and technique mastery to deliver multiple lightning-fast iai slashes. Allen's body wasn't fully developed yet; his stamina and aura control couldn't sustain five consecutive strikes. The surge of aura had burst capillaries.
This was also why his North God Style rank was still low—he couldn't sustain high-level combat skills. As for the Trickster School variations... well, they were too ridiculous, and he hadn't learned many.
Could he have stayed conscious despite the blood loss? Sure.
But… the quest had started. The countdown had begun. And this was a golden opportunity handed to him on a silver platter.
So no hesitation.
——If you want to gain Roxy's affection fast, fainting was the best way:
Using the Franklin Effect / Social Psychology.
Gaining favor from a stranger isn't best achieved by helping them—it's by asking them to help you.
It gives the helper a sense of importance.
Subconsciously, they'll continue investing in the relationship to justify the effort they've already put in.
This becomes: "You asked me for help? That means we're pretty close!"
And right now was the perfect Franklin Effect window. Allen fainting naturally created the "please help me" premise.
Roxy already felt guilty for almost hitting him with her Water Ball.
Clearly—
Now was the moment!
The one time she wouldn't refuse to help!
Thud! Allen dropped.
"Let the Franklin Effect work its magic! Blue Mama… help your child!
(A fan joke among Mushoku fans—no weird reader misunderstandings, please)
You're the one true God of Mushoku! Cast your blessing and raise your loyal follower!"
Allen silently prayed, eyes shut.
Sure enough, moments later he heard Roxy's panicked footsteps and muttered worries near his ears.
"Fainted?! Did the Water Ball hit him after all?! Wha-what do I do?!"
Allen: Use healing magic!!
"Should I… run?!"
Allen: WHAT?!
"W-wait! Calm down, Roxy, calm down!"
A cool hand touched his lips.
"There's still breath—only surface wounds. A healing spell should work! My level should be enough!"
Allen: …Thanks, God.
He let out a breath of relief. Her flustered, jittery reaction reminded him of that scene in the novel where Roxy panicked after zapping Rudeus's horse with Raijin no Kumo (Thunderstorm Cloud), a Seikyu-tier water spell.
Seeing it in real life made it feel so much more vivid than the novel or anime. Normally so serious, the cold-faced Blue Mama was cutely panicked and endearingly awkward.
Although… the part where she almost ditched his body and fled was also kind of realistic.
Guess that's the adventurer in her.
Then came her nervous chanting:
"Oh merciful Mother Goddess, please heal this child's wounds and restore him to health! Healing Magic!"
Allen had been waiting. The moment the spell finished, he sprang up like a reanimated fish!
He instantly reached out and grabbed Roxy's hand. Her expression exploded into a complex mix of shock, shyness, panic, and relief.
With full sincerity, Allen declared:
"Thank you, God."
Roxy: Σ(°ロ°)!!
And right then—his system panel reappeared.
[Successfully Gained Roxy's Affection | Time Elapsed: 2 minutes 47 seconds]
[Evaluation: Speedrun Champion. Bold. Golden-haired energy.]
[Healing Magic Slot Unlocked]
[Detected Physical Contact with Roxy. Retrieving spell cast within the last minute…]
[Spell Detected. Sigil Engraved — Intermediate Healing Magic]
Allen blinked, slightly emotional, staring at the shocked and panicking blue-haired legal loli in front of him.
He wasn't sure whether this sense of warmth came from the Franklin Effect…
Or just from genuinely calling her a god.
But one thing was absolutely certain:
She was a god.
Kind, pale-skinned, beautiful, and cute.
The "god" blushed, pulled her hand free from Allen's grasp, brushed her bangs, and looked away.
"…Calling me a god? That's just an ordinary intermediate healing spell… way too much praise…"
And so easy to please.
Allen looked at the girl seated beside him in a duck-squat, her half-lidded, sleepy expression clashing with the faint happiness on her face from being called a god.
Gap moe.
Tch. Rudeus… a 34-year-old, eroge-hardened NEET from Japan with a deep kink folder.
Never lied.
(End of Chapter)
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