Three days had passed since the Level 5 Cheat Roulette, and I had spent them doing nothing but living my usual life. Or rather, I had no choice but to live as usual.
Three days ago, I had been teleported to that familiar conference room while I slept. Once the roulette ended, I was returned to my room and woke up in the morning. Or at least, that’s how it should have been. But honestly, the morning felt so normal that I almost believed it had all been a dream.
…In fact, there were parts I wished had been a dream. If that really happened, it would mean the two goddesses had been watching me constantly and might even be watching me right now. The thought was unpleasant, and it made me feel like I might start putting on airs for no reason.
In any case, there were two things I needed to do from here on, check my Status and check my Woodworking skill.
…However, there was a problem. I found that I could no longer speak naturally with my parents.
The two goddesses had given me all sorts of information, but they had also given me some very unnecessary details. The aforementioned “24-hour live streaming of me” and… my parents’ intimate moments.
I couldn’t help but feel displeased with Deis-san, who had explained in detail the process of my conception. Now, I was too embarrassed to look my parents in the eye. …It was like the feeling a child might have after accidentally witnessing their parents’ nighttime activities.
Well, between “accidentally seeing my parents’ nighttime activities” and “having them described in detail by a total stranger”, I honestly don’t know which is worse.
In any case, that total stranger is, to put it mildly, insane. And the fact that she has the gall to say “I’m also a parent” makes her definitively insane.
So for now, I just wanted some time to cool my head. In my current state, I couldn’t even look my parents in the eye without stammering.
During that time, I thought I might as well try out the Woodworking skill, so I decided to borrow a knife and some wood from my father. I figured that much conversation would be safe enough.
So, hiding my embarrassment as best I could, I asked my father.
『F-Father. I… I have a req… request.』
『What’s the matter, Alec? You’re acting a little strange.』
『It’s… nothing. I just wanted to borro… borrow a knife and some wood.』
『You’re really acting strange. A knife and some wood? I don’t know what you’re planning, but no.』
『W-Why!?』
『Because it’s dangerous.』
『…………』
—Too reasonable to argue against. Well, of course, knives are dangerous for a six-year-old. Any normal parent wouldn’t hand one over. Also, I’m stammering way too much…
—Because of that, I spent the past three days in a haze of frustration.
And finally, with my feelings settled today, I decided to ask Father where I could check my 『Status』.
「Father, Father. I have a request today.」
「Hm?」
Finding Father leisurely drinking tea in the living room, I rushed in.
「What’s the matter, Alec? So formal? Actually, you seem normal today. I was worried since you’d been acting strangely these past few days.」
So I had been making him worry. With how suspiciously I’d been acting, my kind father must have been quite concerned.
「I’m fine now. About my request…」
「Hm? What is it? Ah, no knives, alright? You can have one when you’re a little older.」
「It’s not that. Um… I want to check my… Status?」
When it came time to ask, I found myself unsure how to phrase it.
And in the end, I just said it plainly. Would 『Status』 even make sense to him?
Ah, if there’s a skill like 『Appraisal』, maybe I should have said, 『I want you to appraise me』. Well, too late now.
「Status, huh… Hmm…」
「Father?」
He seemed to be thinking about something. It didn’t feel like he was unfamiliar with the word 『Status』. So what exactly was troubling him?
I really do seem to give him a lot to think about…
「…Hmm. You see, Alec, I didn’t want to narrow your potential.」
「Potential?」
「Yes. We elves are given long lives. Because of that, I believe we have limitless potential. If you have the will, you can do anything at all. That’s what I believe.」
Somehow, Father’s words sounded like they were supposed to be profound, but when he said, 『If you have the will, you can do anything』, it made me think of some wrestler or politician, so it didn’t quite hit me the way it should have.
「What I’m worried about is… that by seeing your Status, Alec, you might end up cutting off other potential for yourself.」
「Hm? What do you mean?」
「Skills are incredibly powerful, you know. The difference in ability between someone who has one and someone who doesn’t can be like night and day. So people use them, rely on them. But that also means… it might take away the chance to learn other skills.」
「…………」
「Since you’re an elf, Alec, you should have the 『Bow』 skill. Let’s say you also have the 『Water Magic』 skill. Because you have 『Bow』, you might never try using a sword or spear. And because you have 『Water Magic』, you might never try to learn 『Earth Magic』 or 『Wind Magic』. …That’s the kind of thing I’ve been worried about.」
Huh… so that’s what Father had been thinking.
I had thought my parents were pretty hands-off, but maybe it was because they had an educational philosophy like this. Honestly, I’d even wondered why, despite being an elf, I hadn’t been taught archery or anything about the so-called “elf mindset”.
I see now. My parents probably gave me freedom out of consideration. Rather than giving me instructions, they wanted me to see, touch, and learn many different things for myself.
Amazing. My father is kind, handsome, thoughtful, he’s perfect!
「I see… Oh! So the reason you use a sword instead of a bow, Father, is because you wanted to learn many different things and that’s what you ended up mastering, right?!」
「Eh? No, that’s… just because when I checked my Status, I had the 『Sword』 skill…」
「…………」
Somehow, the flow of this conversation just took a disappointing turn…
Well, uh, I guess that slightly airheaded side of his is part of his charm too…
—Afterward, we discussed it with Mother, and in the end, I decided to have my Status checked through 『Appraisal』.
After all, Father said he started using a sword because of 『Appraisal』, so… well, I guess it’s only natural I’d go that route too…
Next chapter: The Forest and the World Tree
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