Night had fallen.
Amidst a faint creaking sound, Allen opened his eyes.
Moonlight streamed through the window, painting the floor white.
He found himself lying on the bedroom floor.
Allen rubbed the back of his neck and sat up. At least Paul and Zenith had been thoughtful enough to lay out a mattress for him.
Allen sniffed the scent on his clothes and muttered to himself with a sigh.
"...I smell strongly of blood. I got it on me from killing the boar today... They probably put me on the floor because they were afraid I'd stain the bedsheets and they'd be hard to wash... So direct... But Brother Paul really hits hard. Was that necessary? In the end, you should be thanking me. Without me, you wouldn't have had your little 'clinic fantasy' to play out."
Creek... creak...
Allen froze. It wasn't just his own muttering in the air; there was another strange noise.
Faint whispers came from the master bedroom next door.
"Darling... I can't take it anymore..."
"Oh? We're just getting started!"
"...No..."
"...Don't..."
"...Ah..."
Allen slapped a hand over his own face.
Damn it! Why did I have to wake up at this exact moment!
Allen lay back down, but the escalating commotion next door felt like needles on his back. He forced himself to calm down, focusing his attention on the Dragon Saint Touki nucleus in his abdomen.
Next to the small, tree-shaped Healing Magic sigil, a new sigil in the shape of a flowing stream of water, glowing with a brown light, was quietly inscribed in the Detoxification Magic slot.
In the original story, there wasn't much description of Detoxification magic... no, wait, there was plenty, it was just rarely used for normal purposes. It was mostly used for an upset stomach or to cure a hangover. Detoxification magic... I think at higher levels it can remove negative statuses from oneself. A Quicksilver Sash, maybe?
I won't test it. My mana recovery is too slow. The gain isn't worth the cost.
"Darling..."
I need to think of something else to distract myself... Sylphie's hair. She hasn't cut it short yet at this point in time. That's good, I made it... She's so exquisitely carved, like a ball-jointed doll...
"Ah... I really can't take any more..."
Hmm... that's Zenith's voice.
"Use Healing and Detoxification magic, then..."
Hmm... that's Paul's voi—wait a minute! What the hell do you mean, Healing and Detoxification magic???? No, can that kind of 'negative status' really be removed by Detoxification magic??
Allen's eyes snapped open, and he shot up from the floor in a single, fluid motion.
They're an old married couple, why are they going at it like this every damn day... Wait, how old is Paul now... let's see... 24?! Then Zenith is... 22? So Zenith had a child at 17, which means she got pregnant at 16... Paul, you're not human! ...Calculated that way, they really are at an age of boundless energy... no wonder... Ugh... I can't sleep now. I'll go take a bath. The bathroom is far from their bedroom, so they probably won't hear me... no, wait, if they hear a noise, they'll probably just get more excited...
Allen shook his head and tiptoed to the door. He poked his head out to look, and his neck instantly stiffened.
In the dim hallway, Lilia was slumped against the door of Paul and Zenith's bedroom. A faint light escaped from the crack under their door, casting a straight line of light across her face. She was wearing only a shirt, her hand delved beneath her...
Allen silently pulled his head back in and covered his face in agony.
Is this a family custom?! Does everyone who comes here have to eavesdrop at the master bedroom door? Just how attractive is it? You're making even me curious!
He sighed silently and walked back to the spot on the floor where he had been sleeping. He was about to lie down again when his eyes fell on the piece of Finisher Boar hide he had skinned during the day. In the darkness, it seemed to glisten with a soft sheen.
Allen blinked, now fully awake.
Since I can't sleep anyway, I might as well go out and finish what I promised yesterday. Then I can come back for a bath first thing in the morning... If I'm lucky, I might even get something out of it...
Allen nodded, got up, and opened the window. The moonlight instantly flowed over the back of his hand like water.
Outside the window, the night in Buena Village was silent. A breeze swept in from the distance, riding the waves of grass, and caressed Allen's face.
He vaulted over the windowsill and landed silently in the yard outside, disappearing into the darkness.
---
The next morning, the chirping of birds outside the window woke Rudeus. He opened his eyes in a daze, then his gaze fixed, and he froze.
In front of his bed sat an exquisite shrine.
The shrine was very small, only about the size of Rudeus's face. The cuts were smooth, the grain of the wood was clear, and it emitted a woody fragrance with a hint of dampness, like a forest after the rain.
He blinked, then slowly turned his head to the side.
On the chair beside his bed, Allen was propping his chin up with his hand, watching him, his eyes narrowed as usual.
"Morning, Rudy."
Rudeus blinked, only now realizing that he had fainted from the poisoning yesterday. Although he had felt a bit of resentment towards Allen before passing out, seeing this shrine made that resentment instantly vanish.
"Morning, Allen."
"I promised you yesterday. I originally wanted the three of us to make this shrine together in the afternoon, but something unexpected happened... uh, it was my fault. I didn't expect your bodies couldn't handle eating so much Bartels flower seed powder at once."
Allen rubbed his somewhat tired eyes and pulled out a black leather pouch from behind him.
Rudeus's gaze couldn't help but shift from Allen's face to the pouch. He realized it was the piece of Finisher Boar hide that Allen had specifically cut off yesterday.
It's shaped like the bucket bags girls used in my past life... It even has a clasp, made from some kind of dried plant seed. He's very thoughtful, this Allen guy... but what is it for...?
As he was thinking, Allen reached out, took the shrine from Rudeus's hands, and fit it perfectly into the leather pouch.
"Here. This way, it's easier to carry and hide. If you put it under your bed, even if someone sees it, they won't just open it up to see what's inside, right?"
Rudeus's lip twitched.
Hey, don't you know people are curious? This will just make it more likely to be discovered!
But he still took the gift from Allen with both hands, his expression solemn.
Allen then stood up.
"Alright, the Master and Mistress seem... uh, tired today. They're not up yet. Lilia... isn't up either. Anyway, you can stay in bed a little longer."
The early morning sunlight was soft, casting a gentle glow on Allen's face. He let out a lazy yawn.
"I'm off. Going to take a bath. I still stink of blood from killing the boar yesterday."
Rudeus looked at his face and felt that Allen, who usually looked like a bully, didn't seem scary at all today.
"Thank you, Allen."
Allen stood up and was about to turn and leave the room when his head turned, his eyes catching the clay figurine of Roxy on Rudeus's desk.
He blinked, pointed at the figurine, and turned to look at Rudeus.
"By the way, can I have this? A Roxy made with earth magic? It's very well-made."
Rudeus's attention was entirely on the shrine. Hearing this, he looked up and glanced at where Allen was pointing.
"Sure. I've made a lot of figurines of Teacher Roxy. If you want it, you can take this one."
This Allen guy has surprisingly good taste...
Allen smiled and, without being polite, picked up the Roxy figurine and walked out the door.
Compared to one-sided giving, mutual gifts are an easier way to maintain intimacy.
*[Further gained Rudeus's favor. Childhood participation score increased.]*
*[Current Stage: Childhood. Cumulative Participation Score: 52 points.]*
*[Evaluation: 2 points is still points.]*
Allen rolled his stiff neck and looked at the dissipating system panel.
After multiple instances of system feedback, he had discovered that the most concise and effective way to increase his participation score in the Childhood period was to generate positive feedback directly through interactions with the main characters, which manifested as gaining their favor.
Is the main way to get points by deepening my 'connection' with the main characters?... I can't be completely sure. I need more samples to analyze the underlying logic of how points are acquired. When I asked the system directly before, it either played dead or was vague. Riddle-men deserve to die... Only 2 points this time, less than expected, but it's better than nothing.
He yawned again and walked down the hallway towards the bathroom.
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