I’ve returned to the changing room, but I’m not sure if not running away was the right decision.
Wouldn’t it have been better to just follow Mariel and leave the shop?
As I carefully examine the items each of us is holding, the source of the unease I’ve felt since a while ago is becoming clearer.
Maybe I should try to run away now, but Selian’s tight grip on my hand doesn’t allow even an attempt to escape.
“Alright, try it on quickly.”
Yuli enters the changing room first, holding all the selected outfits in her arms, and Selian follows after leading me in by the hand.
Oddly, whether intentional or accidental, Selian stands with her back to the door, blocking any chance of escape.
In the end, I’m trapped in the changing room and again stripped down to my underwear by Selian and Yuli.
Fortunately, the Master-Slave Mark is hidden beneath the panties I’ve pulled up a bit, so it’s not visible.
However, I’m apprehensive that it might show through the thin fabric or that I might expose it while changing.
“Hmm… Isn’t your underwear a bit too simple?”
“It is cute, but all of El’s underwear seems so plain, which is a little disappointing.”
“Yeah, definitely. All of El’s underwear has been like that.”
Fortunately, neither of them seemed to notice the secret hidden beneath my panties, as they stare at my underwear without reacting.
Not only do they not react, but Yuli and Selian even exchange opinions about not just the clothes but also the underwear.
It’s true that my underwear is rather plain and lacks embellishments.
My aversion to women’s clothing has lessened somewhat.
Instead, when I look at myself in the mirror from a third-person perspective, I sometimes think that I’m dressing not for myself, but according to my preferences.
But even I find it extremely challenging to casually select women’s underwear in a store.
Does this mean that women usually help each other pick out underwear?
When I think of men, I feel that if a man were standing around in his underwear, it would seem disgusting, and if someone commented on his underwear, it might provoke a punch, showing the difference between genders.
I’ll make sure to remember this and avoid making mistakes later.
Wait, how did these two know that all my underwear was so plain?
Because of the Master-Slave Mark, I try to avoid being in my underwear in front of my friends.
“Well, we don’t sell underwear here, so let’s pick one out next time.”
“Then, let’s try these on first?”
…I better be more careful not to walk past lingerie shops with these two.
“Alright, let’s start with this one?”
Yuli hands me one of the items she is holding. I quickly slip it on to at least cover my body.
With the skirt on, I no longer need to worry about the Master-Slave Mark being exposed.
The skirt I wore was a black business skirt, often worn by female office workers.
Good, it’s a well-fitting and ordinary piece of clothing.
“Next is this one.”
Selian passes me another item.
This time it’s a tank top that reveals the stomach.
…I already think I’ve ruined it.
“Alright, lift your feet. I’ll help you with them!”
Following Yuli’s guidance, I slowly lift my feet one after another to successfully put on the footwear.
It’s a type of greave and sabaton combined with the shoe.
…Why attach steel plates when there’s a perfectly good pair of stockings available?
“”
“Yuli? Did you really laugh just now?”
“Ah, no… El must’ve misheard.”
Let’s just leave it at that. I have two more hurdles to overcome.
“Alright, the next one is this.”
As Selian extends her hands toward my face, my vision darkens.
Oh. It’s sunglasses.
Not even on a summer beach, but during late autumn, these sunglasses feel quite heavy and are pretty large.
“And this is the last one…”
This time, instead of helping me put it on, she turns her head and extends her hand toward me with the last remaining item.
Whoever picked this out has a great sense of design.
Upon wearing the beautifully designed helmet, I realize the complete ensemble.
…A helmet beneath the sunglasses, sunglasses beneath the tank top, the tank top beneath the business skirt, and the business skirt above the greaves.
As the noisy sound of the armor shoes clinks, I step out of the changing room.
“Hohoho!”
I emerge to find Linne immediately falling over in laughter.
Yuli and Selian who followed me out are oddly quiet, maintaining a respectful distance from me.
Surrounded by friends who’ve stepped away from me, they begin to offer their opinions, one by one.
“Uh… Well… It’s, um… really impressive…”
Selian stumbles nervously over her words.
“Yeah, that’s true. It’s actually not too bad, right?”
While saying it’s not bad, Yuli subtly turns her face away to hide her expression.
“Ho ho ho! It’s so … heehee!”
Anne tries to hide her laugh but eventually bursts out laughing uncontrollably.
“Meow…”
Even the cat, Yawngi, curls its tail and turns away, seemingly finding it pitiful through its feline eyes.
“Hohoho! I’ll die! Ho, ho ho!”
Linne, despite being a ghost, says she’ll die while holding her stomach and crying with laughter.
“Alright, let’s check out together? We should wear this all the way back to the Academy to show off.”
As I take a step toward my friends, they silently retreat by the same distance.
Even as I approach step by step, the gap never closes; we just end up spinning around uselessly with chairs in the middle.
“Why? Aren’t we going to check out? I thought you all picked these out because each one was beautiful and stylish?”
As previously mentioned, the helmet was sleek, the sunglasses made for summer holidays, the tank top seemed fine for exercise, and the skirt appeared appropriate for formal occasions.
And the greaves, though not often used due to prioritizing mobility, could still be somewhat helpful as armor.
Meanwhile, a small ribbon headband with a flower pattern catches the eye.
True, each item was perfectly acceptable…
But only when considered individually.
I suppose it’s my fault for not foreseeing this while everyone scattered to different sections.
*
In the end, I spent a few more tens of minutes assembling a normal outfit.
I avoided the heavy armor and went for a shirt and long pants that prioritized mobility.
Over this, I added leather gauntlets, breastplate, and greaves for practicality, creating a look more suited to an adventurer rather than a hero.
But the splendid appearance of the holy sword would compensate for any missing style.
“I’m sorry, El. We really didn’t mean to…”
“We just thought these would suit you, so… somehow it turned into this atmosphere where we just put it on…”
“Are you mad? Hmm? Hmm?”
“Meow…”
As I walk silently with my mouth tightly shut, everyone cautiously approaches, struggling to utter a word.
“Hooh… Too bad we don’t have a crystal ball recording all that. That would’ve been priceless…”
Amidst this, Linne continues to laugh, prompting me to consider giving her a present.
Where did I put the leftover top-grade holy water?
“Meow…”
Yawngi, watching my every move, carefully climbs onto me, settles down on my shoulder, and quietly meows with a pitiable voice.
They might share a link in thoughts, but it seemed they couldn’t read my intent to feign neutrality and trick them.
Of course, they were the ones who started the mischief, but seeing Yawngi like this makes me feel a twinge of guilt.
“I’m not mad. Thanks to you, I got some nice clothes, didn’t I?”
As I surrender to Yawngi’s affection, I declare my surrender.
“Really? Hmm? Hmm?”
Upon hearing I’m not mad, Anne sticks close to me, looking up for assurance and giggling like usual.
Yawngi, uncomfortable with Anne’s nearness, swiftly jumps to the other shoulder.
“Really. Let’s just go back and have dinner. It’s already almost 6 p.m.”
“Yay…”
After roughly patting her head to reassure her, Anne clings to me even closer, laughing cheerfully as usual.
Yawngi, sensing my genuine intentions, rubs against my cheek again; occasionally, her scratchy tongue licks the back of my neck, making me squirm, but I didn’t want to stop her as she seemed genuinely happy.
“We should still review the outfits we saw earlier next time. They truly suited you individually.”
“Right, I’d also like to see El in formal attire.”
“Then once the Celestial Festival is over, we’ll all go out again.”
Next time, I’ll try to help choose outfits for the girls as well, not just having them pick for me.
Of course, that requires improving my own judgment in fashion.
“By the way, I chose the sunglasses because I thought they’d be fun!”
…And speaking of which, where exactly did I put the top-grade holy water?
