Chapter 90: Mochi’s Secret

"Oh? You’re not? And yet you can communicate with that slime?" The shopkeeper looked genuinely surprised. "I don’t mean any offense, but you’ve got a natural talent for being a tamer. Why not develop that talent?"

That was true. Qiu Nuoya could not deny that he was somewhat interested in trying his hand at being a tamer too.

"Shopkeeper, I’m afraid you can’t make decisions for him like that. He has an exceptionally rare talent as a mage, so I won’t let him give that up."

"Is that so? The kid’s overflowing with talent, isn’t he? I’m a little jealous." The shopkeeper looked slightly disappointed.

Well, thanks to the whims of the gods, Qiu Nuoya’s abilities had been arranged so that he could excel at practically anything he tried.

It was certainly something to be grateful for, but having too many options could be troublesome in its own way.

"Still, even if you’re a mage, I imagine monsters that want to follow you will keep coming your way. When that happens, just remember your old pal’s shop." With that, the shopkeeper gently patted Qiu Nuoya on the head.

This shopkeeper is such a nice guy!

He was completely different from the equipment shop owner who had tried to swindle Qiu Nuoya and Warren before.

"Thank you, Shopkeeper! Oh, I noticed this shop also sells food for familiars. Do you have any snacks that would be suitable for Mochi?"

"Hm? Slimes are pretty indiscriminate eaters, so they’ll eat just about anything. But I do have some of our shop’s original familiar treats. Want to give them a try?"

The shopkeeper took a packet of treats from the shelf. They looked rather similar to the dry kibble sold for dogs and cats.

When Qiu Nuoya gave one to Mochi, the jelly like substance inside Mochi’s body began bubbling excitedly.

[ Nuoya! This is super delicious!! ]

"You like it?"

[ Yeah! Give me more! ]

Qiu Nuoya bought several packets of the crunchy treats for Mochi. He could not help feeling that he had fallen straight into the shopkeeper’s trap, but seeing how happy Mochi was made Qiu Nuoya happy too.

After leaving the item shop for familiars, Qiu Nuoya and Mochi continued looking around the other shops inside the castle.

Mochi seemed to absolutely adore the crown he had bought. He repeatedly stretched and shrank as though showing off his crown to everyone around him as he sitting proudly on top of Qiu Nuoya’s head

People passing by still laughed when they saw him, but Qiu Nuoya was already used to it and no longer cared.

"Still, Mochi, that really suits you. But why did you want that one so badly?"

[ Because it was mine in the first place. ]

"Hm? Really?"

[ Yeah! At first, I thought it just looked similar, but I was wrong! It’s mine! ]

Huh?

Qiu Nuoya did not really understand what Mochi meant.

The crown shaped ring had been a secondhand item that was practically being given away. If it had once belonged to Mochi, when exactly could that have been?

[ A long, long time ago, I lost it. I treasured it so much, and I was really, really sad. ]

"How long ago was that? And how old are you, anyway, Mochi?"

[ Hmm? I don’t know! ]

Mochi gave him a clear and decisive answer, leaving Qiu Nuoya with an awkward smile.

Well, that figures.

Mochi did not seem to think about very many things in much detail, after all. Because Mochi’s behavior and speech were so childish, Qiu Nuoya had simply assumed that he was a newly born slime.

However, Mochi was clearly different from ordinary slimes in several ways. Perhaps it would not even be strange if he had actually been alive for several hundred years.

Qiu Nuoya placed Mochi on his palm and secretly used his Appraisal skill on him. The moment Qiu Nuoya saw the appraisal results displayed before him, he was left speechless.

[ Mochi, Qiu Nuoya’s tamed monster, a fragment of the oldest slime. Currently a Big Slime, but capable of evolving into a King Slime. ♡ ]

Wait a minute. What does "the oldest slime" mean!?

And what did "a fragment" even mean?

None of this made any sense!

Come to think of it, Qiu Nuoya had never actually used Appraisal skill on Mochi before.

Was Mochi actually some kind of elite among slimes!?

Qiu Nuoya had always thought there was something unusual about Mochi, but this was far beyond what he had expected!

"Nuoya, is something wrong?"

"Hm? No, it’s nothing!"

Because Qiu Nuoya had looked up while Appraisal skill was still active, another status window appeared beside Viktor as well.

The information written there was the same as before. But...

Hm?

The color inside the heart symbol looked slightly different.

Mochi’s heart was a vivid crimson. Qiu Nuoya vaguely remembered that when he had seen Viktor’s and Warren’s before, the hearts inside their status windows had been pale pink.

However, the heart beside Viktor’s name had changed. It was now a deep reddish purple, almost like Mochi’s crimson heart with a hint of blue mixed into it.

What? What is this?

Did the color actually mean something?

"Nuoya?"

When Viktor called his name again, Qiu Nuoya hurriedly closed the Appraisal window.

Why did it feel like he had just seen something he really shouldn’t have?

Both Mochi’s status and Viktor’s were troubling him.

Qiu Nuoya had absolutely no idea what the change in Viktor’s heart color meant, so he forced himself to remain calm and put on a smile.

"I’m fine. I might just be a little tired. Haha."

He still had no idea what it meant, but perhaps he should investigate the meaning of the heart symbol as soon as possible.

Something about the heart made Qiu Nuoya suspect that it might be related to affection or favorability. But if it really did represent someone’s feelings toward him, secretly looking at it felt incredibly wrong.

And then there was that color!

If Mochi’s deep crimson heart means his affection toward Qiu Nuoya is maxed out, then what was that color beside Viktor’s name supposed to mean!?