Chapter 53: Holy Blood (7)

As you know, [Omega Detroit] was a colossal metropolis with a population comparable to that of a small nation.

As one might guess from its immense scale, the suburban areas outside the city were not simply a single neighborhood on the outskirts.

They were divided into districts, sprawling wide in each of the east, west, south, and north directions, from 1st Street, closest to the city border, to 20th Street on the far outskirts, which was little more than a wasteland.

And the closer a district was to the city center, the higher the average income of its residents, and correspondingly, the more prosperous it appeared.

This was because quite a few people, unable to afford the murderous real estate prices in the city center, had been pushed out to live in the suburbs but still held jobs within the city.

Naturally, the districts where such residents lived were bound to be more affluent than those inhabited by the poor.

Thanks to this, basic infrastructure like corporate stores and convenience facilities were relatively well-established.

1st Street in the suburbs, being closest to the city center, was precisely such a neighborhood.

It was undoubtedly one of the wealthiest areas among the outer districts, a place where many citizens holding Class 2 or higher citizenship, allowing free access to the city, also resided.

Thanks to this, the scenery of the area exuded an atmosphere almost like being inside the city.

The roads were well-paved, and the streets were clean.

Shops lining the streets displayed dazzling products behind sparkling plate glass windows, attracting the attention of passersby.

It was distinctly different from the scenery of the outlying neighborhoods where trash littered the main streets.

While there were no towering skyscrapers, there were quite a few buildings exceeding 10 stories in height.

The place we entered was a rather large and stylish shopping mall located in the bustling area of such a 1st Street.

Inside, brightly lit mannequins dressed in fine clothes and the latest trendy apparel filled the space.

It was bustling with customers and clerks coming and going, yet it maintained a rather clean and organized impression.

And in the middle of this glittering shopping mall, I was now walking with a very awkward posture.

‘Why, why am I in this state….!’

This awkward gait, as you can see, is due to my attire, which is completely different from usual.

A tight-fitting top that clearly reveals the curves of my body.

In contrast, a short, fluttering skirt.

And even heeled shoes that accentuate the ankles.

From head to toe, it was a style that literally embodied ‘femininity.’

Thanks to this, my bare legs and neckline, which were usually covered, were also clearly exposed.

I could blatantly feel the gazes of passersby subtly lingering there, pretending not to look.

My face, flushed with embarrassment, felt like it was about to explode. The heat warming my ears just wouldn’t subside.

‘No matter how I think about it, isn’t this skirt too short?! And why is the top so clingy, and why is the neckline cut so low….!’

Truth be told, quite some time had passed since I fell into this world, and I thought I had come to accept the changes given to me to some extent.

I even felt I had become quite accustomed to a woman’s body.

However… I had never once worn clothes that openly emphasized femininity like this.

My usual attire consisted only of ordinary t-shirts and comfortable pants for activities.

Of course, when attending to Church affairs or conducting services in front of the believers, I did wear the medieval-style attire I had on when I first arrived in this world, the ‘Saintess’s Robes.’

It was true that those clothes did reveal a somewhat feminine silhouette.

But that was, at most, a kind of role-playing mindset, performing the role of a ‘Saintess’….

It wasn’t this embarrassingly mortifying.

‘No, isn’t it, like, illegal to make an old guy like me wear… wear clothes like this?!’

Moreover, the shorter-than-usual length, both top and bottom, was such that a slight misstep in posture could reveal my navel or even my underwear.

Because of that, I found myself unconsciously being extremely careful with my posture.

If the wind blew strongly just once, or if I turned my body incorrectly… it felt like everything everywhere would be exposed.

My gait had become somewhat light and graceful, unlike usual.

And every time I became conscious of my own appearance like that, my face would flush again.

“…….”

In stark contrast to my feelings, a lively voice echoed beside me once more.

“Eve Unni! Next, let’s go see that store over there!”

Turning my head, I saw the blonde girl, arm linked tightly with mine, her eyes shining as she pointed here and there with the hand holding shopping bags.

“Oh? That dress displayed over there is pretty too! Let’s try that on after we visit here!”

Yoanna, her face full of excitement and showing no signs of fatigue, led me to the next store.

I followed like a puppet, having lost even a shred of will to resist.

“…….”

What on earth was happening?

Why had such an ordeal befallen me?

I truly felt like my vision was blurring.

========

The full story of the incident was as follows.

“My request to you, Lady Eve… is that for today, you’ll do ‘unconditionally’ whatever I say!”

Yoanna declared firmly, as if she wouldn’t take no for an answer.

In front of her gaze, which was hollow and shadowed, as if proving the accumulated fatigue from handling all sorts of Church affairs in my stead… the option of refusal simply didn’t exist.

I was ultimately overwhelmed by her intensity and nodded my head slightly.

Then, Yoanna smiled brightly, as if satisfied.

With a smile that somehow carried an ominous premonition, she began to state her desires.

“Then, first of all, from now on, Lady Eve….”

The girl paused for a moment before speaking, then closed her eyes tightly, blushed, and said, almost shouting.

“U-Unni…. Please let me call you… Unni…!”

(TL: Unni is a Korean honorific used by younger females to address older females.)

I flinched unconsciously at the unfamiliar term of address.

However, compared to what I had secretly worried about…

‘It’s not that difficult a request, is it?’

It wasn’t like I had to call her that myself; just being called that was manageable.

The sight of the child trying to close the distance by even using the word ‘request’ felt rather cute.

So, when I nodded again in agreement, Yoanna spoke once more.

“And second! From now on, when you talk to me, please just speak casually instead of using honorifics, Eve Unni!”

The slightly unfamiliar address felt awkward, but… this too, honestly, wasn’t difficult.

In social life, it’s customary to use honorifics even with younger people or juniors out of respect when first meeting them.

That habit was already ingrained in me, so I had been using honorifics with everyone until now.

But with someone I’ve built this much of a connection with, there’s nothing particularly strange about dropping the formalities, is there?

“Mm-hmm, alright. Yoanna. Like this…. should I call you like this?”

It was still a bit awkward, but I was sure I could adapt to this quickly as well.

Hearing my awkward casual speech, Yoanna’s face instantly brightened as if something wonderful had happened, and she giggled, saying.

“Yes! Then my last request is…. Today, please go on a date with me!”

Because the previous two requests were so surprisingly trivial, I readily agreed this time as well.

“Okay, let’s do that.”

I simply thought she meant she was too tired from work and wanted to go out and have fun together somewhere.

I had nodded my head without much thought at all.

Completely unaware of what would happen to me afterwards.

==========

“……”

And so, the incident had led to the present situation.

Unable to resist Yoanna’s persistence, I was eventually dragged to 1st Street for shopping.

Without even a proper moment to admire the clean, sparkling glamour of 1st Street, which was the complete opposite of the back alleys, I was led by Yoanna’s hand into a clothing store inside the shopping mall.

And when I came to my senses, my shopping basket was already full of clothes of an unexpected style, far from my personal taste.

They were all excessively feminine, and frankly, designs that I found a bit overwhelming.

However, since Yoanna herself was a beautiful girl who wouldn’t be outshone anywhere, I thought she would be able to pull off such a style well enough.

So, I naturally complimented her.

“Yes, they’re all pretty outfits. I think they’d look really good on you, Yoanna.”

But the girl’s reply that followed was like a bolt from the blue.

“What? What are you talking about, these are all for you, Eve Unni?”

“What?”

I was so flustered that I tried to stop her.

“Wa-Wait a minute, Yoanna! There’s no need to buy clothes for me, right?! What I have now is enough!”

Yoanna, as if scolding a clueless child, retorted firmly.

“Not at all?!”

She placed her hands on her hips and continued.

“I’ve been wanting to tell you this for a while, Eve Unni! Aren’t you being too careless about yourself?!”

“Huh, huh?”

“Why on earth were you dressing so strangely all the time? To be honest, the sizes didn’t even fit, and you looked shabby, it was so frustrating!”

I was quite shocked.

‘Was it that bad…? I just thought it was ordinary….’

Come to think of it, no matter how much of a beggar I looked like, no one would dare to criticize the ‘Head of the Church’ like this.

Even if someone had said something, I would never have thought of finding and wearing women’s clothes that fit my current body perfectly.

Yoanna, as if reading my inner thoughts, spoke even more firmly.

“Wasting the beauty bestowed by the Radiance like that is blasphemy! You promised to follow my words unconditionally today, right? Huh?”

At this point, it really felt like I was going to be helplessly dragged around by her.

‘Even though I said I’d grant any request, honestly, to think I’d end up wearing clothes like that….’

It was such an unexpected territory that I continued to protest.

“Wait! Calm down, th-this kind of style is a bit…. shameless for a clergy member to wear, isn’t it…? Shouldn’t a religious person who needs to set an example for the believers be modest…..”

However, even my last protest was instantly refuted by Yoanna.

“What? We don’t have such rules in our Church, do we?”

‘Oops….!’

Right. That was true.

When establishing a church in this liberal near-future society in the first place, I had omitted anachronistic content like ‘women who believe in God must be chaste,’ which resembled millennia-old, stuffy scriptures.

Such talk not only wouldn’t fit in this city but would also predictably create resistance to proselytization.

Besides, in this era where proper religion itself had disappeared for decades, the stereotype of what a ‘clergy member’ should be had long since faded.

“Actually, among the other believers, there’s always talk about wanting the Saintess to dress up prettier. Do you know how happy everyone was when I said I’d take responsibility for solving that problem today?”

With those words, even my final protest was completely refuted.

In the end, with a dazed expression, I was practically half-forced into the fitting room, laden with several outfits Yoanna had picked out.

The sound of the door closing firmly behind me echoed.

Left alone in this space.

Beyond the large full-length mirror in the fitting room, my own reflection was clearly visible.

The face of a girl with an expression as if she had lost her country.

“……”

The smooth feel peculiar to women’s clothing, being handled by my fingertips…. felt so overwhelmingly burdensome right now.