“Mmm… how I help you today, sweetie?” asked the woman with a hand oched hip, the gentle words esg painted and puckered lips.

  Daisuke’s expression remained unged, a testament to his posure Stat and his respectful aowledgment of the transgender unity.

  “Hi. I’m looking to buy some gear.”

  “Well, honey,” she blinked her thickly shed eyelids, the sheen and luster of her hair outshining any girl Daisuke had seen before. “You’ve e to the right pce.”

  With a nod, Daisuke browsed the equipment on dispy. “I’m on a bit of a budget though. I’m looking for something funal but not too expensive.”

  The woman’s eyes lit up with excitement as she pulled a measuring tool from her back pocket with a flourish, like it was a on. “Fabulous and stylish! Got it!”

  “Wait—what?”

  Before Daisuke could protest, the woman inning him around like a top and taking his measurements in a blur of movement. Zephyr spilled out from underh his shirt like cookie dough, pletely disoriented.

  “Oh my~” the woman beamed like a child, lifting the pupper as if it were a fluffy marshmallow. “Who’s this little cutie?!”

  “B-Blergh,” Daisuke struggled to prevent himself frurgitating the valuable food he had just ed, which would have been equivalent to squandering a few copper s.

  Before he could still the mutinous grumble of his stomach, the spirited woman was already shoving him into a ging room and taking a seat outside, legs crossed. Meanwhile, Zephyr was happily gnawing on his bone.

  The curtain of the ging room shifted and out shuffled Daisuke, a bulky suit of armor. “Don’t think… these are good for mobility,” he muttered while struggling to remain banced.

  The store owner chuckled and shook her head. “Perhaps not the best choice for you.”

  “Rawrwu~”

  Daisuke donned a fmboyant aremely revealing outfit. He g himself in the mirror, his eyes dreary. “Pretty sure I would get arrested for i exposure in this one,” he quipped, earning a hearty ugh from the owner.

  Now Daisuke emerged wearing the store’s fi ensemble fit for a Duke. It was a masterpiece of craftsmanship, but he couldn’t help but sigh. “I’d probably have to start auing off my ans to afford this one,” he joked, a wry smile pying on his lips.

  The store rinned awkwardly. “And I’m pretty sure you hose to survive.”

  “Kyuu~”

  “Well, we do have more practical options,” she offered. “Let’s find something that suits both your style and your budget.”

  Daisuke sighed noisily. “That was my request from the very start.”

  The woman stuck her to mischievously.

  PAJIK!

  A blood vessel bulged at Daisuke’s temple.

  ***

  “Budget-friendly and stylish—ahem, I mean funal. I’ve got just the thing!” assured the store owner as she led Daisuke to a rack of clothing. “Let’s start with these pants. They’re sturdy, fortable, and only two gold fifty silver!”

  Daisuke nodded when he came back from the ging room. “I like these.”

  “A marvelous choice!” she agreed, her hands gesturing in approval. “Now, let’s sider your upper body.” She presented him with a long-sleeve shirt with partial metal pting at the front. “This one’s a steal at just three gold fifty silver and offers excellent prote.”

  Daisuke looked himself over. “This is as funal as I afford, so I’ll take it.”

  The woman smiled warmly. “And finally, for the finishing touch, these boots!” She presented him with a robust leather pair. “They’re only one gold and should serve you well for quite some time.”

  Daisuke put them on and walked around, his eyes on his toes. “Not bad. I’ll go with these too.”

  The owner cpped her hands, her smile radiant. “Excellent choices! Yoing to look fabulous—uh, I mean, perfectly equipped for your adventures. If you ever need mear or fashion advice, you know where to find me!” she excimed with a twinkle in her eye.

  “Thank you.”

  “Of course, anytime,” she replied in a velvety tone, looking him over with i. Then she blushed.

  DING!

  [Intimacy level with Vivienne has increased by 50%.]

  Daisuke ged, pokerfaced.

  RING-RING!

  Swiftly paying his bill in full, he exited the store like a man gone mad from thirst, and then he sighed. Zephyr peered down from atop his head as Daisuke regarded the se of his character s.

  “And just when Wallet-kun finally fattened up with some money, we’re back to being pain.”

  “Ahruu,” Zephyr whined, sharing his grievance.

  “Let’s head back to the guild and collect the reward for the quest. It should be enough for dinner and a room, at least. I’m tired. My future self worry about tomorrow.”

  Before Daisuke turo leave, his gaze wandered across the street and nded on the window dispy of a nearby store. There, led among an array of items, he spotted a plush bear with a radiant smile, its soft features being to him with an irresistible charm.

  ***

  “I’d like to turn this quest in,” said Daisuke rather bluntly as a means of greeting, sliding a piece of part across the ter.

  “Oh, Haxks,” the female clerk at the Adventurers’ Guild responded sweetly as she looked him over.

  The first time she id eyes on him, he seemed battered and bruised, his clothes in tatters. However, there was a noticeable ge in his appearanow—though his attire still sisted s, hiddeh them were rippling muscles and rose-beige skin.

  The sight of his well-defined abs and biceps peeking out brought a flush to her cheeks. She couldn’t fathom how he had undergone such a dramatic transformation in such a short period of time, but she found herself rather intrigued—

  “Is something wrong?”

  “Eh? Wrong? N-No… everything’s fine,” she stammered, waving her hands frantically. “I was actually just about to call you.”

  “…Call?”

  The woman raised her index finger, and then pced her free hand on a strange device behind the ter. “Haxks Starfrost,” she uttered crisply, almost as if a t, and then—

  DING!

  [The Adventurers’ Guild requests an audience.]

  Daisuke frowhis is…

  Retrieving the guild card from his iory revealed that it was giving off a bright phosphorest glow. The clerk heaved a lean smile, a bit delighted to see that the boy’s nont expression could actually ge.

  “Like the Global sus Register, all the names of our members are recorded in a magic seal,” she expined, her voice carrying the weight of experience. “By simply iing mana into this magic devid reg a resonates with that individual’s blood that holds a unique signature within the magiu. The blood then activates the guild card, which is made using a special material.”

  “…Um, sure,” Daisuke drawled.

  The clerk savored his stupefied expression as if it were a refreshing cup of tea on a rainy day, and her inner goddess bounced around doing a victory dance.

  “So, what happens when you o call hundreds or even thousands of guild members?”

  “We—”

  “Call them one by one?”

  “…”

  “That’s a waste of time and manpower,” Daisuke returned offhandedly. “What happens when there’s aential crisis and you need all hands on deck right away?”

  “That is—”

  “The Guildmaster should sider notifying the regional manager about this obvious fw in the system and e’s rectified immediately.”

  The clerk smiled awkwardly, beads of sweat f on her forehead as her inner goddess defted like a punctured balloon. “Ahem, um. Yes, I’ll see to it that ygestion is passed along. Now, about why I wao call you…”

  Daisuke’s expressioled bato a state of indifference as he listened.

  “Tomorrow at dawn, there’s a mandatory meeting with the Guildmaster for adventurers in the lower ranks. Your attendance is expected without exception.”

  Daisuke frowned suspiciously.

  “Here,” she said, slipping him a letter stamped with the official guild seal. “In light of the abrupt nature of this assembly, the Guildmaster has arranged aodations for everyone. Simply present this letter to any innkeeper in town, and your stay will be settled.”

  Daisuke accepted the letter without a word. This must be a really big deal if they’re willing to i so muto this whole endeavor.

  “gratutions on pleting your first quest, by the way,” said the clerk, her tone filled with genuine praise as she reviewed the details on the part. “Thirty Celestia Flowers—did you mao gather them all?”

  Daisuke retrieved the vibrant white flowers from his iory, their fresh fragrance filling the entire lobby, calming the adventurers who were busy looking for panions or new quests on the bulletin boards.

  “Excellent! And they look pristioo. Here’s your reward.”

  Daisuke slipped the fold s into his iory before turning to leave.

  “H-Haxks,” the clerk stammered, a warm blush c her cheeks as she shyly tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. “I just realized… I never properly introduced myself.”

  Daisuke turned, her a sidelong gnce. “It’s fine; our versations are usually brief anyway.”

  The girl’s expression crumpled, and she started fuming inwardly, but she caught herself just before the urge tle him took over. “You’ll be in town for a while, right?” she replied with a smile, desperately trying to keep her expression even.

  “I guess. What’s it to you?”

  His nond aloof behavior had multiple blood vessels popping on her forehead, but her inner goddess was pletely swooned by his cool attitude. “Then courtesy demands that we’re properly acquainted; it’s only right.”

  “…”

  “My name is Thalia… Thalia Misthaven.”

  “It’s o meet you,” Daisuke greeted ftly, and then he was gone.

  Thalia’s cheeks flushed red with anger, her frustration bubbling to the surface like aing volo. “T-That rude... handsome little... beautiful devil,” she muttered ungracefully through ched teeth before sighing i.

  “He didn’t even call my name,” she murmured with a pout. What am I even thinking? He’s at least three years youhan me.