Volume 5 Chapter 13-2 Pygmalion
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
First, I tried summoning Ms. Lime, but it didn’t work. It seems summoning in another dimension isn’t possible. I was awkwardly stumped, but Schulz seemed interested.
We returned to the entrance using a teleportation gate.
Outside, the horses were happily eating lush wall barley under the bright sun. The flow of time seemed normal, like in Uno’s dungeon.
I summoned Ms. Lime again and introduced her to Schulz.
”Why summon a slime? I’ve caught mimic slimes that imitate humans. They’re interesting creatures, but fakes aren’t my thing.”
”No, the goal isn’t to imitate.”
I want to make a plaster mold using slime. I’d prefer silicone rubber if I had it, but they don’t sell it in the royal capital. I tested using Ms. Lime as a substitute.
Mr. Shirakaba was fully wrapped in Ms. Lime, and I used him to make the mold. Pouring the plaster from my magic bag finished a nude statue.
Schulz only cares about the appearance of human women, so I thought a statue would be fine.
I pre-mixed water with the plaster before putting it in the magic bag. Since what’s in the magic bag stops time, it’s very convenient now. I re-stored leftover plaster before it hardened. This way, I can reuse it many times and avoid waste.
Schulz watched my work with childlike wonder, his eyes sparkling. Just watching the plaster mold process was fascinating. When it hardened, I asked Ms. Lime to step away. A complex shape makes mold removal hard, but slime makes it easy—a cheat.
”Wow, that’s amazing!”
Schulz exclaimed excitedly.
”It’s so cool! This is even more stylish than the real thing.”
Ms. Lime is excellent. The finished plaster statue has no seams at all, and every strand of hair is perfectly captured.
Schulz’s eyes sparkled, and he wagged his tail like a puppy, looking cute.
A pure white plaster statue looks very artistic on its own. Just displaying it feels definitely better than a realistic living doll.
”That’s a clever idea. I admit I’ve slightly changed my opinion of humans. I want that too. I must get slime and its hardening white water now.”
Alright, it seems my first attempt succeeded. If I make them think collecting statues is more fun than actual women, perhaps kidnappings will stop.
I could provide the material and manufacturing tech for the statues and ask for the life essence in eggs as my pay.
No more women sacrificed, Schulz would be happy, and I would get the eggs. It’s a perfect plan that benefits everyone.
”Can I make the same type of doll? I want lots of them!!”
As expected of Schulz, he’s already noticed the advantage of making duplicates. That makes it easier. I’ll craft another identical plaster statue and put it beside the first.
”Whoa, whoa, whoa!!!”
Schulz happily circled the statues, excited. He seems to love collecting them. There are collectors like that, right?
Now, the real work begins. I spread putty-like plaster on the first sculpture and carved it with a chisel. Just knowing the duplication method is risky; he might kidnap girls to make originals. If I could make everything myself from scratch, I wouldn’t need to bother with that.
”What are you doing? You just made it!”
”Human women are beautiful but never perfect. I’m creating an ideal female form.”
I’m confident in my sculpting skills. I’ve had raw talent for arts and crafting since long ago.
In middle school, a son of a well-known sculptor in my grade was jealous. He broke my work out of envy. It’s just as well—if he took it home, he’d throw it away. I happily forgave him. His jealousy made me a little proud.
I ended up with a strange friendship with that artist’s son. He lived in a mansion, was handsome, and was much better than me at both studying and sports. But it seemed he truly wanted my ability. It’s an odd thing.
Even after being summoned to another world, my ability remained extravagantly focused on one point. Having a raw dexterity of 18 seems quite a rare ability value. It’s like finding a genius once in a decade.
Plus, my Crafting skill is maxed out. I cheated to raise the proficiency in Uno’s dungeon. Skills are just skills, but having super-high-performance tools is handy. Compared to combat cheat skills, it’s low-key, but I like it.
I can smoothly carve the freshly hardened soft plaster without any deviation, thanks to my Crafting skill. Just the act of precisely carving is so fascinating it numbs my soul. Only someone who gets it would understand this thrill.
Schulz has already created an ideal female figure with great success, but I’ll make some slight modifications to the parts that concern me. As long as it suits Schulz’s taste, Mr. Shirakaba has terrifying potential. It’s a shame the shape of the breasts is slightly distorted because I wrapped a cloth tightly around the chest to disguise it. I should start by focusing on fixing that area.
I managed to carve out the twin hills better than I thought. The curves are too ideal, making it a bit like a mannequin, but that’s fine too. However, when looking at the whole, that part stands out too much. The other parts, modeled after a living person, are too lifelike.
In this case, I need to work on the other parts to eliminate the sense of dissonance. I might as well make the whole thing more doll-like. Maybe I should try finishing it like an anime figure. I’ve heard that kind of thing is highly appreciated for its artistry overseas. It’s an abstract form of sculpture in a way. I wish I had observed more detailed girl figures when I was in Japan.
I wasn’t uninterested in subculture goods; sometimes I wanted to find a well-made doll at the store. But well-made ones were usually expensive, and I didn’t want to deal with my mother and sister’s comments if I displayed a girl’s doll in my room.
I carefully scoop plaster and repeat the process of shaping it. To make a cute, deformed beautiful girl figure, I might need a sense beyond my Crafting skill. Sharpening that sense requires either patient experience or natural talent. Either way, there seems to be a wall I cannot reach now.
It’s interesting because it’s difficult. But I give up on approaching the figures I saw in Japan. I realized that was someone else’s sense. I will make a statue deformed in my own way, with my own sense. The moe level may drop, but it’s enjoyable to create what I like.
I notice Schulz sitting cross-legged, intently watching my work. His eyes are incredibly pure and beautiful. I feel happy just watching Mr. Zenom’s blacksmithing, so I feel a sort of sympathy for Schulz.
Scoop and shape, scoop and shape—I trial and error my way to the image I want. I repeatedly get closer to and farther from my ideal, like a moth circling a flame. But it’s not unpleasant; it’s a feeling of my heart becoming transparent and clear.
I want Schulz to know the ecstasy of creating an image with my hands, not just in my head. It doesn’t matter if he lacks skill aptitude or is a dilettante; as long as the creator enjoys it, the completion level of the work doesn’t matter. If Schulz has extraordinary worries pent up inside, I feel like something amazing could be created if he gives them form.
* * *
”This is… the ideal image of a woman.”
Schulz gazed at my completed work, utterly entranced. Though it no longer resembled the original much, it was still recognizably Mr. Shirakaba. I was quite satisfied with it, though I knew I could do even better. After three days of nonstop work, a pleasant fatigue washed over me.
”Sorry, I’ve reached my limit. Let me sleep,” I said.
”Ah, yes, I’ll guide you to your bedroom right away.”
I was led to a fluffy bed and immediately fell into a deep, satisfying sleep, my mind at peace after a job well done.
Please bookmark this series and rate ☆☆☆☆☆ on here!
Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
Leave a Reply