Today, we gathered in an unusual place. Between the portal and the dorm was the armory, which connected to the outdoor shooting range. Carol, Sarasa, Ririna, and I seated on some crates to tackle some important logistical issues.

  Our itinerary for getting swimsuits for the girls!

  “So… You coming with us, Carol…?” After making plans with the others yesterday, I invited Sarasa and Ririna to come shopping with me. And Carol kinda just showed up with Ririna.

  “What? Is that a problem?” She crossed her arms. “Did you want to be alone with them? Too bad.”

  “No no! I’m actually really glad you came!” Honestly… Events like these get better with more girls. “I just wasn’t expecting it. Weren’t you busy with other stuff?”

  “I still am, but I can make some time.” A small sigh escaped her lips. “No way I could let you go shopping with them alone. You have no sense and no control. Who knows what would happen?” Gehh… I won’t argue the control, but didn’t I get Ririna something nice last time?

  We were supposed to sit down and talk, all four of us, but curiosity got the better of the other two. “Now, what do we do about that?” Carol pointed, keeping her distance.

  It was Sarasa’s first time in our world.

  The portal and the forest on this side failed to get any reactions out of her. She, in her own words, was surprised I wasn’t lying, but our world wasn’t as impressive as I made it out to be.

  But that didn’t last long.

  “Woah… This place is crazy… Do you two live here? Where’s the bed? Do the people of this world sleep on top of crates? That’s so funny!” She went all over the room inspecting each and every corner. Making jokes about every little thing was her way of staying calm while faced with so much new stuff.

  “No… This isn’t a room used for sleeping…” I cleared it up. “We have rooms with beds just like you’re used to…”

  The other troublemaker was Ririna, who was initially confident she’d stay calm and collected the whole day like a proper alchemist. “I don’t really like dealing with weapons, but… These are pretty impressive… Can you disassemble this one for me?”

  She inspected the various guns in the room while fighting the urge to get her hands on them. The only thing keeping her in line was some stern warnings on how everything here was super dangerous, and even then…

  “Get it together already!” After a warning, Carol shook her head. “You’re so insufferable… I didn’t sign up to babysit girls older than me. Come here and settle down!”

  “Nyahaha… Fine fine… So? What were you saying?” Her plan worked, and Sarasa and Ririna finally sat with us.

  “Going to the beach, getting you swimsuits… You know… we gotta make some plans.” I smiled seeing them listening. Then, Ririna’s face reminded me of something. “Carol, you were with Ririna when we met up, weren’t you? You were together again~ Are you finally getting along?”

  “Huh?!” She slammed a crate and leaned forward, blushing. “Are you stupid? It’s not what you’re thinking! Not at all! We were not getting along!”

  “We weren’t…? I thought we were friends…”

  “Don’t mind her, Ririna. She doesn’t really mean it. She’s just being tsundere.”

  “Who’s being what? I’ll smack you!”

  “Kyaah!” Sarasa curled up. “Domestic violence already?! Please, no need to fight over me!” Carol immediately glared at her. She might have just added herself as a second victim.

  “Let it go, Carol. We were just messing around.” With the heat off me, I tapped her shoulder and masterfully diffused the situation. “We need to talk about our plans, right? We’re going shopping today. No need to overcomplicate things, so let’s go!” I stood up and raised my fist.

  A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  “Yeah!” Sarasa did the same, followed by Ririna with a small delay.

  “No… You’re all stupid…” Carol facepalmed, then headed for the door and blocked the exit. “Sarasa needs a disguise. She’s going nowhere with her ears and tail out like that.”

  “Ehh? Why not?” Sarasa wondered.

  “Ahh… Well, in our world, beastmen don’t exist… You’d probably be fine, all things considered, but you’d get a lot of weird looks…” She probably wouldn’t be arrested and dissected, but people would think she was a weirdo cosplaying.

  “Like Iroha said. Your appearance alone wouldn’t give you away, but the fact that you’re from another world absolutely needs to be kept secret. The fewer eyes on us, the better.”

  “Hmm…” Sarasa looked over to Ririna. “Is that why you’re wearing those clothes?”

  Ririna looked down at herself before standing up. She was wearing the outfit I got her the other day. The oversized shirt that almost acted like a cloak with shorts underneath.

  “Yep! This is my disguise. Iroha bought it for me.” She spread out her arms with a smug grin. “It’s so loose that I can carry my usual stuff without it sticking out. Look!” She raised the loose shirt, showing off the belts and pouches attached around the inner shirt.

  “Uhmm…! So functional…” Sarasa grabbed her chin. “Oh! That pouch is new too, isn’t it?”

  “This…?” She bashfully tapped the red pouch around her waist. “This one was also a gift… It’s very precious to me…” Guhh! So cute! I’m gonna get a heart attack!

  “Another gift? So lucky… Getting gifts left and right…” Sarasa spoke with a whiny tone. “Iroha, what about me? Don’t you love me? I want nice things too! Gimme! Gimme!” She grabbed my shirt and shook it. “Oh, but if you don’t have anything, I’ll take some money. It’s alright.” She grinned as her acting switched up.

  “I’ll be right back.” With a sigh, Carol turned to the door. “Keep them entertained for me.”

  En- entertained? Just where is she going…?

  “Don’t get too excited, Sarasa…” Ririna continued her conversation while Carol left. “You haven’t seen anything yet. Once we go outside, you’re gonna be shocked!”

  “Hmm? What do you mean? It can’t be that surprising…” Haven’t I heard this conversation before?

  “Oh yeah? How about this then, whichever one of us gets surprised fewer times gets to kiss Iroha for as many times as they want.” Ririna smiled confidently. “What do you say?” Sarasa was ready to agree, but…

  Carol’s voice echoed from outside. “Ririna, that’s not a bet you can win.”

  The poor girl stopped in her tracks. Yeah… Listen to the former champion…

  …

  “How’s this?” Sarasa spun in place, showing off her new clothes. She was wearing a sleeveless, white dress, both thin and simple in design. On top of her head was a beige beret, which perfectly hid her ears. Her straight bangs and tan skin made her look like a high-class lady who loved sunbathing more than she should. “Do I look good?

  “You’re really pretty… The tail’s hidden too. I think this works.” Carol nodded as she agreed with me.

  “Considering it was just some stuff I had lying around, I agree.” The smile on her face told me she was pleased with herself.

  “Actually, no. This doesn’t work.” Sarasa’s arms dropped as if all strength escaped them. “I don’t like wearing skirts, so nope. Get me something else.” What a tomboy she’s turning out to be…

  Carol immediately retorted. “Then you gotta wear pants and tuck your tail in. There’s no other option!” We’ve actually been on a back-and-forth for a while now. Ever since Carol left a while ago to get Sarasa some clothes.

  “Ewww… No way. That’s gross… How many times do I have to say that?” Sarasa crossed her arms.

  “The only thing that’s not a skirt where you don’t have to tuck your tail is your shorts.” They have a hole for her tail. Pretty naughty… “And that’s not gonna cut it. You can’t go outside like that.”

  “Yes, I can… Iroha said I’d be fine.”

  “It’s not that simple… Besides, you’d need a shirt too and my shirts wouldn’t fit you, so I’d have to get you one of Iroha’s.” Which wouldn’t be a problem! She says they’re lame, but that makes them perfect for blending in.

  “Uhmm… What if you got her something like a jacket…? Not to wear but for her to tie around her waist. It’s not a skirt, and it would help hide her tail… From most angles, at least.”

  “That’s it!” Sarasa pointed. “I’ve done that before! It’s fine by me.” She approached and shook my hand. “I knew you were the only one who could understand me!” It’s not that serious, is it?

  “If you say so…” Carol averted her gaze. “I’ll have to borrow some stuff from your room, Iroha. Alright?” She confirmed before leaving.

  “Of course! Get her some clothes so we can finally head out!”

  “What were you thinking?!” At the same time, at a mansion in a city in Darumith, a blonde man with swept-back hair slammed his hand on a desk. On the other side was a relaxed, silver-haired man holding a cup of wine. “Siccing monsters on that village was not part of the plan!”

  “There was a change of plans, Molt.” His long hair fluttered as he scoffed. “The heroine refused to follow the terms of my request, so I had to send in my boys.” The irony of that outcome made him laugh. “But it looks like they were the ones slaughtered instead. Just my luck…”

  “The heroine lost her parents and her whole village to a monster attack… What you did… Destroying a village right in front of her eyes… That’s playing dirty, Thivadi!”

  “So?” Even with Molt glaring at him, he just shrugged. “Isn’t your goal also to stop her? What’s wrong with trying to break her will? *Sigh…* The naiveté of youth…”

  At first glance, both looked like young adults, but in reality, Molt was by far the youngest of the two. He was far younger, but in terms of physical appearance, they didn’t look that far apart. If asked, most people would say Thivadi is two or three years older, but that was it.

  “Besides, the attack worked wonders. I managed to drive a wedge between the heroine and that strange girl.”

  “Girl? What girl?” Molt’s anger temporarily subsided.

  “Oh… You know…” Thivadi snapped his finger, struggling to remember why she even mattered. “The one who took out Armand and his men. I had the misfortune of meeting her too. Really irritating girl…”

  Molt grabbed a chair and sat down. “Did you learn anything about what happened to him?”

  “She’s probably the one people in Ebrilyon are calling the Princess’s Shadow. An exaggeration, no doubt… She lacks the strength necessary for… a massacre of that scale… a storm like that… would be more your style, Molt. No way she has it in her.”

  Molt remained unimpressed. “Hmph, I’ll deal with her if it comes down to that.”

  “No… No need.” Thivadi leaned back and brought things back on track. “The heroine doesn’t trust her anymore. She won’t interfere with us again.”

  “If you say so… But that doesn’t justify sending undead to the village.” Molt wasn’t ready to let bygones be bygones. “Wasn’t killing the wolves going to achieve the same? Sow distrust and isolate the heroine?”

  “That was part of it, yes, but getting rid of the wolves would facilitate moving my minions around… They somehow noticed something was wrong and spared them, so I had to improvise.”

  “You play dirty…” The nonchalant attitude rubbed Molt the wrong way. “We would have had other opportunities that didn’t involve massacring a village.”

  “Keeping you happy sure is a pain…” Thivadi sighed. “What if I told you even that didn’t go according to plan? Someone managed to evacuate the villagers before my dogs arrived.”

  “Evacuate? Who?”

  “Who else could it be…?” He shook his head and let out a sarcastic laugh. “Someone interested in the heroine’s mental well-being… Surely, it must have been one of Velvet’s pawns.”

  “Velvet? That woman… Still forcing her fight on her… Unforgivable…”