In the early morning, before the sun had even risen, as soon as I got up, I quickly washed my face and washed my hair again, which I had washed the night before.
On normal days, drying my long hair can be such a hassle that there’s no reason to wash it twice—once at night and again in the morning—but today was a little special.
“If I want to avoid being late for the preparation time, I’ll have to settle for something quick like bread for breakfast.”
“Haha, it would be entertaining to have the opening ceremony with a bulging belly from eating breakfast.”
I couldn’t tell if Anne’s comment was serious or a joke. What’s more, she was even pretending to poke my belly with her fingers.
But to Anne’s apology, the body perfected by TS magic was not fragile enough to be ruined by just breakfast.
Though becoming female might have some effect on my appetite, even taking that into account, there’s absolutely no sign of gaining weight compared to how much I eat.
“Come on, sit down here. It’s not good to keep your hair wet, it’s bad for your scalp.”
While I was busy drying my hair with a towel at the shower room entrance, Selian tapped on the cushion of the chair in front of her and called me over.
Following her words, I sat on the chair, and Selian began drying my hair for me.
Selian’s fingers, slightly spread out, were gently combing through my hair in place of a brush.
Even though there’s no sensation in the hair itself, every time Selian combed through my hair, I could feel her soft tugging on my scalp, which felt a little ticklish.
Her careful hand movements were smoothing out any tangles in my hair while gently untangling them, ensuring no part of my hair was pulled.
The warm but not hot wind made drying my long hair take longer than usual, feeling as though it would never end.
Just by glancing around, I saw Yuli busily polishing the gauntlets, breastplate, and greaves as if they were her own.
Linne was helping Yuli beside her, leaving Anne to sit idle. She brought another chair over next to me and sat down with a thud, then began twirling the ends of my wet hair with her fingers.
“Hmm… my hair always feels rough, but El’s hair is so shiny.”
Anne, while twirling the strands of my hair with her right index finger, was absentmindedly touching her red hair with the other hand.
Although Anne’s hair lacks the shine and softness of mine, even compared to others, it’s still remarkable that her hair, which is only washed with shampoo, can be so soft.
Moreover, if someone made such a comment in front of the girls, not even the great Anne would escape unscathed.
With the help of TS magic, my hair can achieve this level of smoothness, but Anne’s ability to maintain relatively soft hair using only shampoo is astonishing.
“That happens because you don’t dry your hair properly after washing it. Why don’t you wash your hair while you wait? I’ll finish drying El’s hair first, then I’ll do yours too. Your hair quality is good, so proper drying and brushing will be sufficient.”
“Really? I’ll be back in a flash!”
With a bright smile, Anne jumped up at Selian’s words.
“Ouch!”
“Oops, sorry! Are you okay? Please tell me… none of it fell out?”
Despite everything, my hair was still tangled around Anne’s fingers. As she moved her hand suddenly, it tugged on my hair.
When I raised my hand to my tingling scalp with a small cry, Anne noticed her mistake and apologized with a sheepish look.
I could feel my eyes welling up as I massaged the painful area, but fortunately, it didn’t seem like any clumps of hair fell out. It appeared only a few strands had come loose, at most.
“You can’t just rinse your hair with shampoo alone! Make sure to properly use conditioner and nourishing agents!”
“Okay, got it!”
Even though Selian was stern, Anne happily entered the shower area with a smile.
Surprisingly obedient to Selian’s advice, it took Anne quite a while to come out, dripping the water she had carelessly wrung out onto the floor.
Still, the timing was perfect—Anne emerged just as my hair was fully dried, soft, and voluminous.
When I had dried my hair earlier, my hair had been sticking out in odd tufts, but my hair after Selian’s meticulous care was noticeably different from what I usually managed.
“All done, Anne? Come over here, please?”
As I got up from my seat, Selian immediately offered the same chair to Anne, just as she had done for me.
With her wet hair flying behind her, Anne sprang lightly onto the chair.
“Hehe… so I’ll leave it to you!”
At Anne’s cute request, Selian smiled quietly and began drying her hair.
Just like with me, Selian used her fingers as a comb.
As I watched the two of them, I chuckled softly, then casually tossed the towel I had used to dry my hair onto the floor to clean up Anne’s wet trail.
Stepping on the discarded towel with my foot to dry the floor, I glanced over at Anne who was grinning happily and Selian whose maternal smile was evident, when I was called by Yuli from a nearby corner, where she was diligently oiling the armor.
“Since you’re done over there, why don’t you start wearing the armor early?”
“But I still need to eat breakfast. It’s uncomfortable to wear armor this early. Can’t Yuli just let me know when the time comes?”
“Since you’re planning to eat hastily with just some bread anyway. Stop complaining—people eat while wearing far more uncomfortable armor. Come on, hurry up. Everything’s already prepared.”
Without a chance to argue, I obediently walked over to Yuli, who began putting my armor on piece by piece.
It wasn’t a full suit of armor, but only the essentials to protect the heart, covering the chest area, along with gauntlets to protect the hands and feet, along with greaves.
Yuli’s careful inspection ensured there was no loose-fitting area.
“Fwew—!”
The gauntlets and greaves fit snugly without issue, but the chest piece seemed to leave a small gap, where Yuli’s fingers slipped in and tickled my side.
“Just bear with it for a bit, it’ll only take a moment to adjust.”
If the armor were entirely solid steel, the size couldn’t have been adjusted, but the design prioritizing mobility over defense allowed for individual customization within certain limits.
Contrary to her promise of swift work, her unfamiliarity with the process had Yuli’s fingers fumbling inside the chest piece for longer than expected.
“Ah—!”
Not only was my side ticklish, but my back and various other sensitive areas—heightened by my newfound femininity—caused me to suppress moans through gritted teeth as Yuli’s hands inadvertently brushed against me.
“Umm…. Haa… isn’t it… done yet…? Eeek!”
To make matters worse, as her hands moved through the narrow gap between my clothing and the armor, her touch caused the undergarment covering my chest to shift slightly.
Yuli was so focused that she fortuitously didn’t hear my odd moans, nor my unanswered questions.
“It’s tough so…just let me… heeek!”
And then Yuli’s hand grazed over me, unexpectedly causing a short cry to burst from my lips—a reaction to an unanticipated sensation over an already ticklish situation.
“…Yuli?”
At the sound of my cry, Selian turned her head toward us.
“Hehe… sorry, but El was holding back while watching Selian dry your hair, so it was really difficult.”
“Though that’s one way to look at it, I suppose there’s nothing much I can say…”
Why in the world was Yuli so focused on putting my armor on? And she was so patient?
“Are you okay, El? Are you hurt anywhere?”
Amid all this, the one truly concerned about me was Anne, as expected.
Though half of Anne’s concern was likely due to mischief she had caused on previous occasions.
“No, I’m not hurt… umm… it was just a sudden tingling sensation that startled me.”
“Is that so? Must be from the armor being too tight and cutting off circulation. That happens sometimes.”
The sensation one feels when blood flow is reestablished after being cut off in a limb.
It was rather electrifying but slightly sharper—like a current coursing through my entire body.
Perhaps being closer to the heart intensified the sensation?
Thud Thud.
“Alright! All done. There shouldn’t be any loose-fitting areas that make you uncomfortable.”
While I was deep in thought, Yuli had apparently finished the adjustments and lightly tapped the chest plate to signal me.
The armor was indeed robust, and her light tap didn’t produce any sensation.
“Wow, it’s already this late.”
However, we had spent more time than usual drying the hair and putting on the armor, leaving the time dangerously close to the assembly time.
“Here, have a sandwich. I didn’t want to just give you plain bread, so I prepared it like last time. Eat it on the way.”
Yuli, after checking the time, handed me a sandwich as well.
“Well, I’ll go ahead. Be sure to come and watch since I’ve practiced a lot!”
Leaving behind the replies of my friends from behind, I headed out of the dormitory toward the street where the opening ceremony was being held.
