59. Pretty Clothes

59. Pretty Clothes

Countless rows of pretty clothes.

As expected of a store catering to nobles, even to my eyes, which know little about women’s fashion, the clothes displayed were incredibly beautiful.

From brightly decorated outfits to those with a restrained elegance. Even though I wasn’t the one wearing them, it made me wonder who could have possibly made them.

As I looked around for a moment, Iris, her hair shimmering, ran through the clothes with a pattering sound. I shouted towards Iris’s back.

“Iris, be careful not to fall.”

“Yes!”

Iris disappeared among the fabrics in an instant. I chuckled lightly at the sight of such an energetic child. I turned my head and looked at Claire.

Claire, only a few centimeters taller than Iris, looked like a child from the outside as well. She was surprisingly indifferent as she gazed at the store.

“Claire.”

“Uh, uh?!”

“You don’t like clothes much?”

I said this while gently burying my nose in her nape. While such physical contact is common among women, Claire stammered in response.

“Uh, yeah. I prefer swords to clothes….”

“Is that so? Most girls like pretty clothes, so it’s interesting.”

Given my life experiences and the fact that I was originally male, I had no particular interest in clothes. But don’t most women generally like pretty things?

Even Freya, for instance, once brought a seductive black dress from somewhere and tried to make me wear it.

Claire hesitated for a moment before answering.

“… Is it a little strange? For a girl to like swords?”

“Of course not.”

I shook my head and said firmly.

“A woman can like swords. Can’t she?”

“Mmm….”

Claire lowered her head, her face flushing red. I continued quietly.

“Come to think of it, we’re quite similar.”

“Similar…?”

“I’m not very interested in clothes either. And while I don’t like swords, I am interested in swordsmanship. Don’t you think we’re similar in that regard?”

Of course, I don’t lick swords like Claire does. Nevertheless, Claire and I share a significant similarity in our liking for things related to swords. With that in mind, I spoke.

“Similar….”

Claire murmured, her head bowed. I gently hugged Claire from behind and rested my chin on her head.

A soft and fragrant scent emanated subtly from her crown.

After a brief moment of enjoying the scent, Iris came running towards us with flowing clothes in her hands.

“Unnis! Please wear these!”

Iris looked at us with her red eyes shining, as if urging us to wear them. I gently accepted the clothes.

“This is a dress, and this… a suit?”

“Yes! Skadi unni has white hair, is tall, and has a great figure, so I brought a sophisticated and simple black suit, and Claire unni is short and has a cute face, so I brought a white dress with lovely decorations!!!”

Iris spoke in a torrent of words. I couldn’t understand a single thing she said, but the clothes Iris brought were a black suit that fit me perfectly, and a white dress that fit Claire perfectly.

A suit and a dress, at first glance, one might think we were attending a wedding.

“Please wear them quickly!”

“Yes, yes. Claire, you’re going to wear it too, right?”

“Uh… yeah.”

Although I don’t particularly like wearing clothes, there’s nothing I wouldn’t do for my sister. Claire and I went into the fitting room and changed.

Since there was no hole for my tail, I temporarily cut one with a knife, put on pants, a white dress shirt, and tied a tie. Finally, I put on the black jacket and fastened the buttons.

Looking in the fitting room mirror, I saw a wolf beastman with a surprisingly good fit. I don’t know how Iris knew my measurements, but it fit my body perfectly. Even my chest.

“Hmm.”

It’s been a while since I wore such a suit. It felt like the stylish gentlemen from movies in my past life.

Although my chest and hips, my figure, were still feminine, I quite liked the feeling of being able to return to a male appearance, at least through clothing.

“Ah, Claire.”

“Ah.”

As I came out of the fitting room, I met Claire’s eyes as she emerged at the same time. A white dress, golden hair.

She looked like a small princess from a fairy tale. Still, she was so small that she still looked like a child.

Seeing Claire stop abruptly as she looked at me, I quietly murmured.

“You’re cute, it suits you well.”

“Wh-what?!”

As I gently stroked Claire’s cheek, she started stammering like a broken machine.

Meanwhile, Iris, seeing the clothes she chose on us, let out a “Yahoo!” and set off on another journey to find more clothes.

The two of us were alone again.

As I had done before, I hugged Claire from behind and rested my head on hers. The scent of the new clothes mingled with Claire’s pleasant fragrance, creating a unique aroma.

“S-Skadi.”

“Yes?”

“Do I… look good?”

“Of course. You look great.”

I replied to Claire, still hugging her.

Claire gasped and swallowed. Then, Claire, who had been resting her chin on my shoulder, turned her head towards me. Then, as if she had made a big decision, she looked at me intently.

“Um, well.”

“Yes?”

“Um….”

Claire’s face turned bright red, comparable to Priscilla’s hair color. Despite this, her golden eyes stared at me unswervingly, as if she didn’t want to look away even for a moment.

What could it be? What is happening?

However, the atmosphere didn’t seem right to ask aloud. I remained silent, looking at her, and Claire took a breath, then another, and gradually began to lean closer to me.

At a distance where our noses would touch if we moved even slightly. Our breaths mingled intimately, and in the void where there was nowhere to go, a whirlwind formed. My reflection appeared in her eyes, and Claire, placing her hands on my shoulders, stood on her tiptoes and lifted her body.

A slight weight from leaning on someone. Her trembling, fidgeting hands. Then, Claire’s lips touched mine….

“Uwaaaang!!!”

“Iris?!”

But as Iris’s cry echoed from somewhere in the store, I was startled, pulled away, and ran towards the source of the sound. In my haste, I unfortunately couldn’t see Claire’s face.

“Iris!”

“Unni!!”

Iris lay on the ground with a piece of clothing. In front of her stood a sharp-looking female student and what appeared to be a store employee.

Iris, crying her eyes out, ran to me and hugged me. Then, Claire quietly followed and stood behind me. I wiped the smile from my face and spoke to the student who had presumably made Iris cry.

“What business do you have with my sister!”

“Sister? What are you talking about-“

The student, taking her eyes off Iris, looked at my face. Then, her face stiffened as if cracking.

“G-Grand Duchess?! M-my sister? No, but she’s a commoner, uh….”

“Stop with the excuses and tell me why my sister is crying!”

I lowered my voice and looked at her with cold eyes. For some reason, the store felt colder, and the student, trembling, replied.

“Th-that, it’s a misunderstanding. No, it’s not a misunderstanding- No, what I mean is-“

“Speak properly.”

I struck the ground with my sword, leaving a scar on the floor. The student, whose hair tips were slightly cut, continued with a nearly tearful expression.

“Th-that is… there was a commoner child in the store….”

“There was?”

“When I tried to make her leave, a noble sister let her in….”

“And so?”

“I threatened her a little, asking if she wanted to be imprisoned for impersonating a noble, and she just started crying….”

The sharp impression I had from the first moment was gone, and the student began to sob, tears welling up in her eyes. Before I could speak, Claire stepped forward.

“Just for that….”

“Y-yes…? Princess?!”

“You will be executed right here-“

As Claire, radiating golden aura, drew a dagger from her waist, I struck her head with the pommel of my sword, sensing a major incident about to unfold.

“Ouch!”

“Claire, be patient.”

Drawing a sword carelessly in a place with people, I couldn’t stand by and watch such a dangerous act. Of course not.

I looked at the student.

“By the way, I’m glad it wasn’t a big deal, but you should apologize properly, shouldn’t you?”

I sheathed my sword and looked at the student. The student, tears streaming down her face, nodded repeatedly.

“Now, apologize to Iris.”

“Y-yes!”

The student looked at Iris.

“I-I’m sorry, child. I’m sorry for scaring you. I didn’t mean to.”

“It’s okay… I’m fine.”

As Iris replied positively, the student’s face brightened. I immediately stopped the student, who was trying to flee.

“Eh….”

“There’s one step missing in the apology.”

“Yes…?”

“Iris, didn’t I tell you yesterday while reading? How do you give a sincere apology?”

Iris replied.

“A kiss!”

“That’s right.”

I looked at the student. The student looked at me with trembling eyes, as if she couldn’t believe what she had heard, and I presented Iris, making her approach the student.

“Go on.”

Iris pouted her lips. The student hesitated with a confused expression, and finally, after a second urging from me, brought her face closer to Iris.

A moment later, the student left the store, her face tearful.

“That’s fortunate. Nothing serious happened.”

“… Yeah.”

“Claire? Why do you look so upset?”

Suddenly, I looked beside me and saw Claire fidgeting with the hem of her dress, wearing a very displeased expression. It felt like regret for missing out on what seemed like a once-in-a-lifetime decision.

“… It’s nothing.”

“Is that so?”

“Yeah… Ugh?!?!”

Claire looked at me, our lips met-

Even if I’m not the smartest, I could easily tell what Claire was trying to do. Perhaps surprised by the suddenness, I smiled at Claire, who had her eyes wide open.

It was a pleasant day.

——

“The scent is all gone…!”

Freya was wandering lost in the shopping district. Due to the sheer number of people passing by, her sister’s scent had become too faint.

“Calm down… If she came to the shopping district, she must have come to buy something. So, what would my sister buy? Swords? Potions?”

As Freya looked around, a clothing store caught her eye. It was a large store selling high-end clothes for nobles.

“My sister doesn’t like clothes. Skip this one.”

Without a moment’s hesitation, Freya left to find another store without even looking inside. Unbeknownst to her, white wolf fur was lying on the ground in front of that store…