Chapter 98

"Wow! Claude, you got a nice shot of Lili! Send me a screenshot later, okay?"

"Got it. Still, today was quite a harvest."

Magi and Claude looked at each other, both wearing very satisfied expressions, their faces oddly relaxed. On the other hand—

"Sniff, sniff, Yunchi, I can't get married now."

"Well, someday you'll be able to laugh about it. Just try to forget it."

Yunchi clung to my waist, complaining. I hadn't expected to hear the standard line about not being able to get married, so it felt fresh. Lili was wearing a sailor uniform. While it wasn't particularly striking in design, her familiar presence made her appearance stand out more than the outfit itself. Her hair had been thoroughly styled, with hairpins holding it up to expose her nape.

"It's your fault, Yunchi. You abandoned me. Take responsibility!"

"Well, if I had protected you, I would have been involved too."

At first, it was fun to watch—

But by the third outfit, a blue kimono with fox ears, Lili started to lose her energy.

By the fourth, a cat demon costume, her eyes lost their highlights in a collaboration with Kutsushita.

By the fifth, a shrine maiden outfit, she had tears in her eyes, and a dry smile escaped from her mouth.

Combined with my own memories, I only felt pain, and the guilt of not being able to stop it attacked me.

"Come on, Lili, let's go for the next one, the eighth outfit."

"Help me, Yunchi!"

Lili, with tears in her eyes, looked up at me. If a child cried like this, no one could refuse. Even Magi, who usually acted as Claude's stopper, was so broken that if I didn't stop it, Lili might lose something vital.

"Let's give it a rest. No matter how well it suits her, forcing her to this extent is not right."

I know I used Lili as a scapegoat, but I want them to stop this madness.

"Ugh... You're right. I'm sorry, Lili."

"Finally, Magi stopped."

"If you're lonely, I should have dressed up too. Next time, let's do a Halloween-themed outfit! I'll wear one too."

"Wait, Magi. Isn't the direction of the conversation a bit off?"

It's not like 'if everyone crosses the red light, it's not scary.' And Claude was casually stacking men's clothes on the table.

"…If it's just one more time."

Lili gave in. She even offered a compromise to reduce the damage. In the past, I would have just screamed and tried to escape, but this time, I accepted it, trying to find a mutual resolution and minimize the harm to myself.

"Besides, the traitor Yunchi should join too."

"Wait, what? Why me?"

"Traitors must be punished! You can't escape alone."

In the end, I couldn't avoid it even if I was the scapegoat. But if I had been forced to change outfits like a doll, the number of times Lili changed would have been my burden too. Whether it's one or ten times, it's all negative for me, and the number of times doesn't really matter. But I don't want to let the wound grow larger.

"But the one to deal with is Claude, not me!"

"Hey, Yunchi, do you want to see Claude in a heavy theme costume?"

"Ah, no. I don't really want to see it."

When asked that, I was too scared to say anything but no. What kind of heavy theme costume would Claude wear? I'm curious, but I don't want to find out now.

"So, Yunchi too."

"I haven't agreed to this..."

"Let's also thoroughly style Yunchi's hair."

"Is this already decided, Lili? And by the way, those theme potions take a lot of effort to make."

Honestly, while they don't affect stats, they're not something to use casually. If successful, they provide good experience points, but if not, they waste time. They're high-risk, high-reward items. The hair growth and hair straightening potions are also individually crafted. It's not worth the effort just to play around.

But I won't use them. Since I can make several at once, it's fine. I guess.

"Ha... Just going with the flow. If you're going to do it, do it all at once."

I placed the hair growth potion on the table, closed my eyes, and accepted my fate. I felt the cool liquid being applied to my hair. The gentle touch was probably from Magi. My hair grew longer, feeling heavier but not being pulled, and I just waited.

"Sorry to keep you waiting. You can open your eyes now, Yunchi."

I stood up and looked at my body. My hair was heavy and swung, longer than my waist, covering half of my buttocks. I had to be careful not to get caught on anything.

"Heavy. My center of gravity is off."

Indeed, the weight made me lean backward. However, the three people looking at me had a strangely warm expression.

"Yunchi, behind you."

I turned around, but there was nothing there. However, I heard "nya" and "haha" sounds.

I wondered what was going on and pulled my hair. At the end, I found—

"Why are they attached?"

"Because they were swaying in front of your eyes like a cat toy, right?"

Magi's Reecul, Claude's Kutsushita, Lili's Nisias, and my Zacro were all clinging to my hair, forming a tangled ball.

"Let's take a picture. It's a funny screenshot."

"Stop it!"

"Okay, okay. We'll change our clothes too."

Lili's voice prompted everyone to change. Magi was in a dog-ear costume, but it was strangely Arabian-themed, matching her skin tone well. Lili was in a crow tengu costume, with a leaf fan, black wings, and high geta. The base was a kimono, and the girlishness of her previous outfits made her look like a long-haired boy or girl, creating an ambiguous image. The outfit I was given—

"You have good taste. But, I guess I have to change. Ha."

I sighed and changed into a kimono with exposed shoulders. It felt like a bathrobe or a loosely worn kimono, so I ignored the details and tried to escape reality. The pattern was white with blue snowflakes.

"I get what you're saying. A snow woman?"

"Exactly. A snow woman! The pure white of untouched snow and the pure white of a unicorn, combined! It's the young beast collaboration Halloween!"

"Of course, that's what you'd think. But—"

I picked up Zacro, the black fox, who was the only one left out.

"Hehe, did you think I hadn't thought of that? No! Everything is already resolved!"

"Wow! Claude is so confident!"

"You're too excited."

Claude, with his right hand on his forehead and his left hand extended, gave a speech. At this point, I suspected that the outfit had some special gimmicks.

"Come on—"

He rubbed his fingers together, making a pleasant sound. Instantly, something grew from my body. Two black tails with red tips emerged from my black hair.

"Hey, stop it! Tails!?"

"Since you have dog ears and a tengu, fox ears and two tails. So, Yunchi's costume is a snow woman fox!"

"I've never heard of that!"

"Of course, I created it! It's the result of my inspiration."

I raised my voice, but he overpowered me with a louder one.

"Wow! It feels so good. Yunchi, can I touch your ears?"

"I'll touch the tails. They look like a perfect pillow!"

"Hey, stop it! ...Ah!"

Suddenly touched, I felt a tingling sensation and tried to move my head and pull away, but Magi continued to touch me, and Reecul bit my ear gently. The tails felt like they were being tickled, and I ended up sitting on the ground.

"Seriously... Stop it... Ah!"

I tried to protest, but it was futile, and I could only endure. Lili was touching one of my tails, while the other was being hugged by Zacro, who was nuzzling it. I saw Zacro tilt his head, looking confused, while enduring the storm of sensations.

"Ha... Ha... Ha... Four places at once is too much. It's too ticklish. You guys—"

I tried to speak, but my breath was short, and I could only endure. Each touch was bearable individually, but being attacked without preparation was too much.

"Ha... I enjoyed the fox ears. Thank you, Yunchi."

"I enjoyed the tails. Thank you."

They seemed in high spirits, and their tails and wings moved a lot. Out of defiance, I stroked Lili's crow's shiny feathers.

"Hey, Yunchi!"

"If you do it to me, I'll do it back! Magi, the left!"

"Wow! Yunchi is enthusiastic!"

"Hey, no, ah..."

I thoroughly stroked Lili's next, then Magi's wolf ears and tails until I was satisfied. Lili, to get back at the doll treatment, carefully stroked Magi's ears, and when she was satisfied, Magi stroked both of us at the same time. In the end, we all sat on the ground, exhausted, leaning against each other to catch our breath.

"I'm sorry, Yunchi, Lili. I won't do it again."

"No, I can't move either. It feels like I lost something important today..."

"Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha... I'm tired. It was fun, but I'm done."

They all exhaled weakly.

"Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha... What a great video! It was a wonderful beast paradise—"

We had forgotten Claude was watching the whole time. Yunchi and I, being part of it, didn't understand what he was talking about at first, but Magi, who understood, moved quickly. She stood up, stretched, and with a swift motion, punched Claude's head into the air. We saw his jaw receive a beautiful uppercut, his mouth forced shut, and his body fly in a perfect parabola, landing headfirst. Wow, that's a serious injury in real life. I respected Magi for her punch, and I sent this message to Claude, who had been reckless.

—You're pushing it.

Side story ends!

The chaotic, slapstick, and silly content will have mixed reactions.

But I want to say, cuteness is justice, and in the end, it's all about the fall.