kscans

Chapter 363 - A Change of Clothes

After receiving a lecture that I had entirely brought upon myself, the very natural progression of 'well then, let's go check out this 'Clan Room'' was interrupted by an incoming message.

'It's done. Come.' A summons that left no room for refusal.

In that case, we might as well take our time later—were Sora's words. After being seen off by my partner, who headed off for another day of spirited training, I made my way to the event that had been scheduled just the day before.

And so, a few minutes after showing up at her atelier...

"—Can I take a picture?"

"What are you going to do with a picture of this?"

As if savoring some emotion, Nia was silently losing her mind behind a poor poker face. I shot back a retort to her comment.

For the record, I usually have my privacy settings on, so unauthorized photoshoots are prevented. The GMs watching from on high are one thing, but as long as I don't say 'yes', other players can't take pictures or videos of me.

So I don't have to worry about my picture being taken for some unknown purpose... but man, she's staring at me so intently, she doesn't even need a camera. Is she trying to burn this into her retinas?

"I was thinking, after I calmed down, you know?"

"Uh-huh. Uh-huh?"

"Isn't it insane to have the person you like wear not just your favorite clothes... but clothes you made yourself? Like, should I be paying for this privilege or something???"

"What in the world are you talking about?"

I'll just ignore the hard-to-retort-to word that she casually slipped in there for now.

I pushed back Nia, who was approaching me while spouting nonsense. The only thing I could do was offer a strained smile to cover it up.

Please, give me a break—wearing new clothes is already weirdly embarrassing enough as it is.

"Haaaah... I can't, I'm a genius...! This is the best...!"

"Why is the creator having a solo appreciation session...? If you don't cut it out, I'm going to run for it, you hear me...?!"

Everything about her was over the top. Seeing Nia collapse onto the sofa, clutching her head, only amplified my embarrassment.

But I had to grit my teeth through the shame and say at least one thing.

"Well, uh, you know...—As always, it's an impressive piece of work."

"Of course it is!"

Belatedly, I offered a comment that could barely be called a review, and Nia shot up, her eyes sparkling, responding with the same high tension.

Calm down. I was about to add, 'with one exception'.

Anyway... I desperately want to escape this situation, but if I do, I have no idea how much of a 'tab' I'll rack up.

It certainly won't be settled with just one date. I have no choice but to endure...!

"[El-Gran Stasia: Azure Sky, Six-Petaled Snowflake]—I know I'm the one who made it, but this is a bit of a masterpiece! I'm confident I've surpassed the material's potential!"

"I-I get it, you're too close. Calm down, you're too close."

Her movements seemed to defy the limits of her stats. I caught Nia's forehead with my palm as she approached with unprecedented agility, and engaged in a pushing match with the rampaging blue-haired girl for the sake of my personal space.

Her horsepower, however, seemed unchanged, as the pressure from her hand was the usual 'extremely weak'.

El-Gran Stasia—my new battle attire, bearing the poetic name for snow.

As Nia had said, it was a 'remake', so the overall white and blue structure hadn't changed much. A half-parka on top, loose-fitting bottoms, both three-quarter length. The feel was exactly the same, and it already fit my body perfectly.

The immediately noticeable changes were the shape of the hood and the sash at my back—...Let's put the former aside for a moment and talk about the latter.

On the previous [El-Gran Series], the sash was a simple decoration, but after the remake, it has been transformed to a size that covers half of my right leg.

It's still part of the clothing but treated as an effect, so it has that wonderful feature of not feeling like it's there and not getting tangled in my legs.

A complex, arcane geometric pattern reminiscent of a magic circle has been embroidered with an exquisite balance that avoids looking cluttered. It's simply cool.

To me, it feels a little pretentious, which makes me a bit restless... but I'll trust Nia's sense. And I'll hope the fantasy atmosphere of this world will tone it down a bit.

—And now, for the hood, which I have a few things to say about... what is this mysterious shape?

"Can I ask something?"

"Ask away!"

"Alright, excuse me then—what are these 'ears'?"

"Those are ears!"

"I know that! I'm asking why there are ears attached to it!"

The hood of the El-Gran, which had previously been a simple design apart from its baggy size, has now undergone a dramatic before-and-after transformation...

"Ah, hey, stop, don't...!"

Before I could stop her, the tailor threw it over my head, looking utterly pleased with herself.

"—And it's cute! How about that, admit defeat!"

"Yeah, I'm... completely defeated, from the bottom of my heart...!"

Even if I trust her, perhaps I trusted this high-tension monster a little too unconditionally. Seriously, who would have predicted this—an eighteen-year-old man, who would have thought the day would come when he would be wearing a bunny-ear hoodie...!

"...Nia, excuse my rudeness, but I must ask."

"Nope."

"Wait, you can't be serious...!"

While it's not a design that screams cuteness with a rounded feel, it's a shape that anyone would likely recognize the motif of at a glance.

Given the Acrobat's deep connection with 'rabbits', it should be next to impossible not to make the connection.

"No way, no how, I'm absolutely not changing it. I knew you'd be reluctant, but I pushed forward with the conviction that it would look good on you, so just relax!"

"I can't relax!"

"Why not! It's fine, it's just a design element! It looks good on guys too, it's a fantasy world so it suits you, it suits you, just wear the hood up forever!"

"You've never talked this fast before...!"

"Oh, can I take a picture while you're like that?"

"Absolutely not!"

Damn it...! There are so many points to praise, like the added decorations on the sleeves and collar, that my complaints about the one problem she threw in just won't stop...!

Just when I thought the divine outfit had been brushed up to reach new heights, what in the world is this trap—oh, I see, it's because she's completely dropped any pretense of holding back with me in so many ways...!?

"You... you just ruthlessly threw your own tastes at me, didn't you!?"

"What's wrong with that! I wasn't even going to charge you!"

"I'll pay! I'll pay double the regular price, so just give me a version without your personal taste—"

"Oh, just be quiet! It's about performance over appearance!"

"That's something you'd one hundred percent get mad about if someone said it to you!!?"

And so, the back-and-forth, with neither side giving an inch, continued for some time...

Unflinching, she pushed her own desires, and as for who emerged the victor—well, that goes without saying.

Seriously, girls are too strong.