Chapter 15:
Festivals Are Fun
“THANK YOU SO MUCH! Thanks to you, the shop and the village are safe!”
The next day, Moichi and the other villagers stood in front of the store to give us words of thanks. I just couldn’t accept them.
“Yeah, but…” I glanced over at the place where the Fire God idol had been. The flames that had been burning in the shape of a giant humanoid had completely lost their form on account of me punching the figure. The villagers had worked so hard to prepare the Fire God for the festival today, and I’d destroyed it. Even though there was no other way I could’ve defeated that spirit, I still felt bad about it. In an instant, I’d annihilated everything they’d built.
“Nah, don’t worry about the idol,” said Moichi.
“The Fire God helped you in the fight, didn’t it? I think the Fire God helped us villagers too. Not a single one of us holds a grudge. We’re grateful to you, from the bottom of our hearts.”
“Moichi…sorry.” I felt both grateful and apologetic toward these folks, for all of their big, gracious smiles.
Then something happened.
“Ahem.” The cute, theatrical coughing came from Filia, and it grabbed our attention. “Have you forgotten about me? The transcendentally beautiful elf, Filia?” She patted her chest lightly, and continued speaking proudly. “Now that I’ve rested and my magical energy has returned, I think that we can return the idol to its prior state. If we all work together, that is.”
“Are you serious?”
“Quite serious. Because I am amazing,” said Filia, casually.
Well, Filia was pretty exceptional at all matters arcane. She’d learned a wide range of magic outside of combat utility, so it didn’t surprise me that she could do something like this. As the villagers buzzed with excitement over this sudden development, Filia raised her right hand high.
“Do you want to make a Fire God idol?!” she asked.
“Y-yeah!” shouted the villagers.
“Will you trust in the instructions that I give you, so that we can do just that?!”
“Yeah!”
“Then it’s settled! Let’s all work together to remake the Fire God!”
“Yeaaah!”
After hyping up the villagers, Filia turned to me and smiled. “We’ll definitely put it back to normal—no, we’ll make it even better than before. Now, Yuri, will you stop being so hard on yourself?”
“Did you…read my mind?” Maybe she’d used her Clairvoyance to see how responsible I felt for it.
She shook her head from side to side. “No, not at all. I could tell from looking at your face. I am your partner, Yuri.”
“Uh…Filia?”
“Yes?”
“Thanks.”
“Eh he he. Yuri, we haven’t even gotten started!” said Filia, with a teasing smile. She then began to give instructions on how to rebuild the idol.
Maybe it was her charisma, but Filia was able to bring people together and keep the work proceeding smoothly. Ashley, who was proficient with fire magic, helped out. And Loli Loli, who the villagers now loved like a grandchild, entertained the old folks by talking to them. Since I didn’t have any magical energy, I couldn’t help with making the Fire God, so I handled the heavy lifting.
Each one of us did what we could, and the idol was completed before noon.
“Oh, it’s amazing…”
“I never imagined we’d be able to do it!”
“Thank you, Filia, this is all thanks to you!”
“You’re really quite something, Filia!”
The villagers all offered words of praise to Filia, commenting on how even though we had only spent a few hours on it, the quality of this idol was every bit as good as the original.
“Oh, no, you’re all overreacting,” said Filia, all modest, waving her hands in front of her chest. I walked up to her. “Ah, Yuri.”
“Now I’ll thank you, Filia. Thanks to you, I can participate in the festival without feeling awkward. And that’s all because of you.”
“Eh he he! I suppose it is, mm!”
“I’ll get you a good starter dumbbell as thanks.”
“That’s the wrong choice, Yuri!”
The wrong choice? Oh, I should’ve known a starter wouldn’t be enough. I took out a way bigger dumbbell and held it out in front of her. “In that case, as a special occasion, I’ll give you my favorite dumbbell, the one I use most often. If you swallow it, you can train your stomach and your body at the same time.”
“I’d say you had a screw loose, Yuri, but I don’t think you’ve ever had screws.”
“’Course I don’t have any screws. I’m a human being!”
“Yes, that’s exactly the answer I’d expect.”
In the end, Filia didn’t accept the dumbbell. Hm, maybe there was something wrong with it? But I couldn’t think of any particular reason why that might be. Afterward, I consulted with Loli Loli and Ashley. The two of them shrugged at the exact same time after they heard my story.
“Even I am utterly stunned by you, Yuri…you need to get a grip, understand?”
“That bad?”
“Listen, Yuri. A gift should be something the recipient wants.”
“I see. Thanks, you two. This has been educational.” I carved what they told me into my mind. In the name of gentle muscle men everywhere, I wasn’t going to make a mistake the next time!