While observing Roxy, Allen simultaneously split his focus inward, examining the Dragon Saint Touki Core in his abdomen.
In his "inner vision," wisps of smoke drifted from the wrinkled surface of the core, revealing a small, intricate magic crest etched onto one side.
It was shaped like a tiny tree, glowing with a faint, nebulous blue light.
Intuition flooded his mind: if he willed it right now, Intermediate Healing would activate instantly.
A Healing Magic Crest... it only works on myself, no external projection. So, activating it is like slapping a self-healing buff on my body? Pseudo-immortality? Does this negate the physical recoil of the North God Style Combat Variant?
Wait, it consumes my own mana... damn. I don't know how long my current mana capacity can sustain Intermediate Healing. I got careless. Actually, Elementary Healing would have been better for me right now—less mana cost. My mana regeneration is abysmal thanks to the Orsted curse, and the cooldown is probably long too.
I wonder if the Dragon Saint Touki's "reduced conversion cost" buff stacks with the Healing Crest? Touki is just mana in another form, so it should work... but using it might drain the Touki itself? I don't have much Dragon Saint Touki to begin with. If activating the crest eats into my Touki reserves, my defense and speed will drop.
I should test it later to see if—
A pair of small hands waved in front of his face, snapping Allen back to reality.
Right. Not the time for theorycrafting.
Allen looked at Roxy.
Because he had spent yesterday trekking through the mountains, his mind had been preoccupied with rehearsing what he would say when he finally met Rudeus and Roxy. Naturally, he had dreamed about them last night. But in the dream, they were just their 2D anime avatars—lacking substance.
Now, the real Roxy Migurdia was right in front of him.
The sense of reality was overwhelming.
He focused on her face.
In his vision, the blue-haired, deadpan loli became distinct:
Unlike the soft, round "middle schooler" face from the anime in his past life, the real Roxy looked young, but her features were too exquisite to be merely "undeveloped."
Her lips were thin but looked incredibly soft. Her nose was small and narrow, seemingly sculpted with natural contouring, the tip slightly upturned. Her half-lidded eyes matched the color of her hair.
The wind stirred the campfire, and the high-lights in her pupils flickered like moonlight on a deep blue lake.
Rippling within that lake was five parts panic, five parts concern.
"Y-you... why aren't you saying anything? Do you have internal injuries? Are you feeling unwell?"
Allen blinked and shook his head, his thoughts racing.
3D Roxy was better than 2D Roxy.
Feast. For. The. Eyes.
Unwell?
Unwell ×! Too well √!
Seeing Allen stare at her, Roxy subconsciously touched her face.
"You don't look injured... so why are you staring? Is there something on my face?"
His brain still comparing the 2D and 3D versions of her, Allen answered without a filter.
"No, your face is fine. Actually, it's more than fine. It's much more realistic and exquisite than the one I dreamed about last night. It looks good from every angle..."
The words hung in the air.
The fire licked at the wood.
The forest silence suddenly felt very loud.
Allen waited for a response, but none came. He blinked, and only then did his brain catch up with his mouth.
He looked into Roxy's deep blue eyes, which were currently blank with shock. His own expression went slack.
Roxy's hand, still touching her cheek, froze. Her trademark sleepy eyes slowly widened under his gaze, the lake within them trembling.
They stared at each other in silence.
Crack. A burning log snapped. The wind blew past them.
Carrying nonexistent smoke.
[6.]
Bold. Red. Underlined.
[Maintain this state. Keep going. Win Rudeus's goodwill.]
[Rudeus: Countdown: 91:54:02]
Allen felt numb. To be precise, he had started zoning out the moment he realized he was accidentally flirting with a "stranger." The System adding fuel to the fire with that single digit just made him feel stupider.
That... that counts as a pick-up line?
Actually, yes.
The world of Mushoku Tensei didn't have "Tier 0" players in the dating game. The culture was backward, possessing a kind of medieval, clumsy aesthetic.
Flirtatious banter between men and women here was often blunter and simpler than cheesy earth pick-up lines, but it was remarkably effective.
Such direct praise was basically indistinguishable from hitting on her.
Roxy stared at Allen for a good long while before blinking dazedly. She puffed out one cheek and looked away, her eyes landing on the corpse of the Terminator Boar.
The boar's severed head stared back at Allen with angry scarlet eyes, breathless, as if judging him for being shameless.
She took a deep breath, forced her face into a stern expression, and looked back at Allen.
He was currently plucking a few strands of his own hair, checking carefully to see if they had turned yellow.
To Roxy, this seemingly frustrated gesture made him look more like a child his age.
'Is he annoyed because he didn't get the reaction he expected?... Up close, his face is still childish. He's definitely young, just tall. It's not that I'm short. T_T But his swordsmanship... is master class.'
'A genius boy? Why do I keep meeting geniuses these last two years? First Rudeus, now this kid. And they act so mature, saying things to tease girls... glib-tongued... He said he dreamed of me? How? He's never met me before.'
'Maybe he thinks I'm his age, so he's trying to flatter me.'
Roxy took off her mage's hat, adopting her "teacher" persona.
"Flattery won't work like that... Don't let my height fool you. Actually... I'm old enough to be your mother. Saying sweet things to tease a 'little girl' won't work on me."
Allen looked at his hair—still brown, thank god—then shifted his gaze to the ahoge twitching on top of Roxy's head.
"Flattery? Uh... okay, Blue Mo—!"
Roxy's mouth dropped open as Allen slapped a hand over his own mouth mid-slip. Then, flushing with embarrassment and anger, she deliberately put on a gloomy, menacing face.
"The reason I don't grow is because I'm a Demon..."
As she spoke, she grabbed a lock of her hair and held it up to the firelight. Under the orange glow, the tips of her blue hair shimmered with a faint green tint. She leaned in close to Allen, narrowing her eyes.
"See this? Green hair... I'm a member of the infamous Superd race. If you call me 'Mother' ironically to mock me for looking like a kid again, I'll get angry. And I'll eat you."
Allen lowered his hand and blinked. He looked at the blue-haired loli face inches from his own.
Her eyes were serious. Her eyelashes trembled slightly in the firelight.
"Then..."
"Eat me. Right now."
Roxy froze.
The next instant, the words barely out of his mouth, Allen coated his finger in a wisp of Touki. He flicked his finger against the air right in front of Roxy's forehead.
Thwack. The wind pressure parted her bangs, sending the blue strands flying to reveal a smooth, pale forehead.
While Roxy sat there with a dazed expression, Allen reached out and poked her forehead—specifically the spot where a Superd's red "mana sensing eye" would be.
"God isn't allowed to lie."
"Demon race, blue hair, small stature. You're a Migurdian, not a Superd."