Bonus chapter thanks to @Pop and @Friendly_Noctis from Ko-fi!
Selena followed my suggestion and went into the changing room to try on the dress.
It’s strange how she’s been so compliant lately, especially in unexpected situations. I still haven’t figured out her criteria. Normally, she’s quite stubborn.
‘Speaking of which.’
This is quite awkward. Feeling uncomfortable with where to look, I glanced up at the department store ceiling.
─I noticed them. The ones tailing us.
Elodie, Sybil, and Aten, huh? I never thought I’d be the first to notice them, even before Selena.
After I destroyed the Helheim fragment and absorbed all that Mana, I experienced all sorts of things. I think it’s because of that.
At first, I thought I could only see beings from other worlds, like ghosts or gods. But it went beyond that, and now I can see things like auras and the flow of Mana.
During spring break, I had a really hard time adjusting to this.
Not because I couldn’t see, but because I could see too well. I could see things even when I didn’t want to. It wasn’t like a game where I could turn the settings on and off.
I once heard that pigs can’t lift their heads, so they never see the sky unless someone helps them.
Right now, I’m like a pig that has lifted its head and seen the sky. I’ve already seen it, and since I can see it, it’s hard to look away.
A pig that has seen the sky. It’s a really easy metaphor to understand.
‘They don’t seem to be planning anything, though.’
The three of them are just loitering around, not doing anything in particular. However, Elodie’s magic is so thorough that passersby often bump into them without noticing.
Seeing them just walk away after bumping into them, not knowing what they bumped into, makes me realize how much trouble they’re going through.
The fact that Elodie is with them means it’s not just a prank. They wouldn’t be so thoroughly concealed if that were the case.
‘It’s because of me, after all.’
Recently, my nickname has changed a bit to ‘Sloth’. Now, among the students, I’ve gone from being an object of scorn to an object of fear.
Maybe that has affected them too. Maybe they’re worried that I’ll do something to Selena.
When someone who was powerless gains power, you never know what they might do.
Elodie, who knows Frondier from his childhood, would know this even better.
Selena and I are in an employer-bodyguard relationship, so it’s a pretty convincing story that I, the one in the superior position of power, would use that to intimidate Selena. Even though that Frondier is me.
‘Let’s leave them alone.’
Sybil is like a storm, capable of causing trouble if she sets her mind to it, and Aten can be a bit clueless, which is worrying, but if those two are with Elodie, there’s nothing to worry about.
Elodie was the character I trusted the most from beginning to end in the game Etius.
I’m probably not the only one.
Even though she doesn’t become a party member of the protagonist, Aster, or rather, because of that, the players have a strong trust in Elodie. In the end, Elodie achieves feats comparable to Aster’s party.
‘Besides, I’m not going to do anything.’
It might take some time to choose Selena’s clothes, but once we’re done, we’ll go straight home. By then, they’ll feel relieved and disband.
So today will pass as a small incident, not even a minor event.
“Um, Frondier-nim.”
Then I heard Selena’s voice. It was so quiet that I almost missed it.
“Ah, Selena. Are you done changing?”
I turned my gaze to Selena.
And froze for a moment.
Selena was wearing a white dress. Honestly, it was a completely different style from the clothes she’d been wearing so far. It was loose and flowing, with a pure image rather than a sexy one.
I was a little worried about whether it would suit Selena, but as expected, it was a needless worry. Instead, another concern came to mind.
‘…It doesn’t seem to hide her figure very well.’
The exposure was almost completely gone. The skirt was a bit short, but that was unavoidable due to the way Selena hid weapons on her thighs, and it was actually quite normal.
However, apart from that, it didn’t do much to hide her figure.
Instead of her chest or hips, her delicate shoulders and legs stood out. Since she had good proportions to begin with, hiding the exposure only emphasized her overall silhouette.
Seeing her change into this outfit, I understood even better why Manggot had Selena approach Frondier.
“H-How is it? I’ve never worn clothes like this before.”
She was clearly very awkward, even without saying it. She kept checking the skirt and sleeves, as if she was worried about whether she was wearing it properly.
“It looks good on you.”
“R-Really?”
“What do you think? It seems less embarrassing than the clothes you’ve been wearing so far.”
“…I wasn’t embarrassed before.”
“Don’t lie.”
Of course, Selena was lying.
The biggest reason I was buying Selena clothes this time was because she had been feeling uncomfortable with her own clothes since a certain point. For emotional reasons, not functional ones.
Selena was originally sent to seduce me, so she completely changed her mindset and approached me.
She probably didn’t even see me as a man while she was trying to seduce me. It was just a step she had to take to carry out her mission.
In my terms, I was nothing more or less than a quest NPC.
But after the seduction failed, or more precisely, after I led Selena in a different direction, things changed.
She had no intention of seducing me, but after that, all the clothes she had were for seduction.
I was no longer a quest NPC but another path for her to regain her family and clan, a teacher who taught her the Ancient Language, and the person she was protecting.
It wouldn’t have been easy to keep wearing clothes like before in front of someone like that. But she couldn’t tell Manggot either.
“You’re just awkward because it’s your first time wearing it, right? Is there anything uncomfortable?”
“…No.”
“Okay, let’s buy it.”
“There are still a lot of clothes I need to try on.”
“If you don’t feel any problems with the clothes, we’ll buy them. Depending on the situation, we might even buy all the clothes you picked out earlier.”
Selena’s small mouth opened at my words. Only then did she move her body a few times and examine various parts of the clothes thoroughly.
“Ah, Frondier-nim. Now that I look at it again, the ankle part here…”
“If you’re lying, I’ll burn all the clothes you’ve been wearing so far. Then you’ll have no choice but to buy new clothes.”
Selena immediately shut her mouth at my words. I smiled at her and said,
“You don’t have to worry about my money. I won’t reduce the money I give you just because I buy a few clothes.”
“T-That’s not why…”
“Whatever the reason, you don’t have to worry about my money.”
I turned my gaze to the employee. Just by looking at my eyes, the employee quickly came over and helped with the payment for the clothes Selena was wearing.
Since the security at the Terst Department Store was also magic, it was quite convenient to be able to buy the clothes right away without having to change back.
“Instead of worrying about that, help me by wearing better clothes and getting better equipment.”
“…I understand.”
Only then did Selena nod as if she understood.
But soon, she rolled her eyes around as if checking something and said,
“Um, but Frondier-nim.”
“Yes?”
“I mentioned this before, but your way of speaking…”
Ah.
I guess my tension around Selena has really eased since winter break. I wonder if even this is part of Manggot scheme, but that’s too ridiculous.
But whatever it is, it’s better to maintain a strict tone with Selena. It’s important for me to keep my mind focused, and it’s also more natural for Manggot to see.
If Manggot finds out that I’m relaxed around Selena and tries to do something weird, it’ll just make things more tiring.
So I was going to go back to my usual way of speaking, but…
‘…Ah.’
I remembered that we were being followed.
They were watching us with suspicion and vigilance, wondering if I was going to do something strange to Selena.
To reassure them it would be better to avoid being too harsh.
“No, Selena.”
“Yes?”
“I’ll talk to you like this today.”
“…Yes?”
I smiled at Selena.
With a kind face, a kind smile, and a kind heart.
Today, I’m a good man.
“Let’s just be like this for today.”