Translator: Shizukuku

Editor: Lilia

Read at Watashi Wa Sugoi Desu!

Chapter 128 – Vidello-san’s soul

“Fake bodies…”

[ Well, you know. That body of yours looks like a lump of magic essence, no matter how you look at it. It doesn’t look like a proper, flesh-and-blood body at all. I thought it would be nice since it seems like you can remake it right away if it breaks. If I had a fake body, I’d go to town for a drink, right now. How do you make them? ]

“I don’t think anyone around here knows. I don’t know either.”

[ Is that so? That’s too bad. But maybe you need a specific kind of soul for the fake body. Your soul, young pharmacist, is different from normal souls I’ve seen. There’s been a lot of people lately going around with fake bodies that have strange souls. It’s as if the upper limit of their existence has been removed. ]

I wondered if removing the upper limit meant being able to move more freely than in reality, gaining strength, or something like that.

If you kept raising your status, you could be more reckless than in reality, so when you put it that way, it wasn’t inaccurate to say that the upper limit was removed.

“How much can you see, Stone Statue-san? Can you see the soul?”

[ Ah, I can see. I have good eyesight, you know. A person’s colors and their soul, I can see it all. But with those fake bodies, sometimes the soul and body blur together. It bothers me. I was wondering if it’s a trend to change bodies now. ]

“It’s really not a trend, it’s just… there’s a lot of foreigners around lately.”

[ Oh, I see. It’s not a trend, huh? I was thinking of trying out something trendy for a change. Standing around here, there’s not much else to do, so I’m bored. My only hobby is observing humans. Occasionally, beings resembling our kind come around, but their souls belong to the human race. I was kind of happy thinking maybe we were famous enough to be part of a trend. ]

Ah… famous, so sorry, but not really. I couldn’t say that.

I couldn’t deny it because he was so happy.

[ I remember the souls of interesting people well. Like the sage’s brother, for example. And that handsome guy over there, he’s interesting too, so I remember him. ]

“Me, interesting?”

Vidello-san cocked his head at the statue’s words.

When I looked at Vidello-san, wondering what he had done that was so interesting, he shook his hands and head simultaneously, as if he had something disturbing to hide.

“I don’t know what Mac is expecting, but I just come here once in a while to pick up relics. I’m not doing anything interesting, okay?”

When Vidello-san said this, the stone statue burst out laughing. With his moving hand, he held his stomach and laughed loudly with a heavy bass sound.

The statue looked so happy and expressive, even though it was supposed to be a wolf’s face.

A wolf with an expressive face, how adorable.

[ No, no, listen, young pharmacist, this guy didn’t do anything interesting here, okay? I’m always bored, so I welcome anything interesting. But that’s not it. It’s the color of his soul that really stands out. So when Mister Good-looking comes to visit again, I instantly recognize him. ]

“My soul stands out?” 

[ It stands out because it’s golden, you know. I never thought there could be a golden soul, but as I was standing there absentmindedly, a golden soul popped up out of nowhere. Thinking about it kept me interested for days. I’ve been waiting for it to come back. ]

A golden soul! So Vidello-san wasn’t just a handsome guy with a cool personality, he also had a shiny soul. As expected of Vidello-san.

But Vidello-san didn’t look very flattered. Actually, he seemed a little puzzled by the explanation.

“Don’t other people have colors like that?”

[ The souls of those with real bodies are usually a subdued color, like a mixture of many different colors. Those individuals are nearing the upper limit of their soul capacity. But those with fake bodies still have room to grow, and that’s why they have such flashy colors. Our young pharmacist here has a beautiful blue-colored soul. The color of a very clear sky. Since it hasn’t mixed with many colors yet, there’s room for growth. But the one shining brightest is still Mister Good-looking over here. It’s baffling to think that despite having a real body, his soul shines like gold. It’s like… despite his body being real, his soul feels closer to those that inhabit the fake bodies. ]

“A soul similar to ours…”

“A soul similar to Mac…”

As I repeated the words of the stone statue, Vidello-san also murmured them at about the same time.

I looked up and met Vidello-san’s eyes.

Vidello-san embraced me and buried his face in my hair.

“If I had the same soul as Mac… maybe we could be together, never apart, in the same time and place…”

The whispered words made my heart skip a beat. So Vidello-san thought about that too.

He harbored the same hopes that I had dreamed about and dismissed so many times.

A rush of happiness surged within me.

If only we could be together forever, there was nothing else that could make me so happy.

“I love you, Vidello-san.”

The feelings that spilled out were heard not only by Vidello-san, but also by the stone statue.

[ What’s this? Are you two an item? ]

The stone statue’s face grinned knowingly.

We found ourselves talking for quite a while, and the stone statue’s hands gradually began to petrify as he grew thirsty for alcohol.

His ears were also becoming stony, and he looked disappointed, as if he knew what was happening.

“Could you bring even more alcohol next time? That was really fun. It’s been 15 years since I’ve talked to someone. I’ll be counting on you again.”

“Got it. I’ll bring as much as I can carry.”

[ Indeed, Mister Good-looking understands what I mean. Ideally, it would be nice if everyone who comes could bring alcohol. But I won’t ask for such luxury. Besides, I’m a stone, and if you touch me carelessly, you’ll be cursed. It’s not fun to be cursed by me. ]

“Right. I’ll gradually spread the word.”

[ Thanks, Mis-ter Good… looking— ]

At last even his mouth petrified, and only his eyes were glancing down at us.

When his mouth hardened, he couldn’t speak. It must be tough. We should drop by for a drink every once in a while.

As I leaned in close to Vidello-san and looked up at him, the stone statue’s eyes were smiling. The whole thing petrified as it was.

Oh, at first it had a stern face, but now it’s turned into a smiling statue. It’s kind of charming.

“Vidello-san, maybe we can put up a sign here. Something like, [ Will talk if you pour alcohol on it. You’ll be cursed if you touch it, so be careful when pouring. ] People might read it and bring alcohol next time.

“Yeah, that sounds good. After all, nobody would bother reading accessories in the ancient magical language.”

I wondered if he could see us talking together like this.

With that thought in mind, Vidello-san and I waved to the stone statue and left.

“Mac, can I stop by your workshop after this…?”

Vidello-san asked me as we walked side by side through the cave.

I didn’t expect Vidello-san to ask me to…!

There’s no way I’m turning that down! Alright, if that’s decided, let’s hurry back!

I vigorously nodded, took Vidello-san’s hand, and used a magic circle to transfer us to the entrance of the cave. I lost about a quarter of my MP by moving from the deepest part of the cave to the entrance, but it was worth it.

As I was about to take an MP potion out of my inventory, I suddenly came across the gift from Regalo-san, which I had left in a corner of my inventory.

“Come to think of it, this reduces MP consumption by half, doesn’t it…?”

I wondered if I could use it for a magic circle.

I took out the square piece of beautifully crocheted lace and attempted to wrap it around my arm, but failed. It was a little difficult with just one hand. Seeing my struggle, Vidello-san took the doily from me and wrapped it around my arm.

“Thank you. Can I try using this to teleport us to my workshop? Even if it fails, it’ll only deplete my magic power.”

“Yeah, just don’t do anything reckless.”

“I won’t.”

Once again, I held hands with Vidello-san and began drawing characters in the air.

As expected, the MP consumption for each character was significantly lower. With this, I thought I might be able to teleport to the workshop. It was a two-hour journey one way.

While being mindful of my MP, which, despite the magic item, was still dropping quickly, I finished drawing the last character, and my vision suddenly blurred.

Then, I found myself and Vidello-san standing in a familiar room.

Wow, it worked! I did it! This was the first time I’d jumped such a distance, especially with another person. And I did it safely, too!

“You’re amazing, Mac…”

When Vidello-san said that, I couldn’t help but grin.

I didn’t think I’d make it either. My remaining MP was laughably low, but it was fine.

At any rate, I pulled out another MP Potion and gulped it down. Okay, I recovered a lot.

Now, let’s get to it!

As I embraced Vidello-san, he chuckled a little and kissed my hair.