Chapter 31 – The First Day of School

After turning ten—after regaining memories of my past life—I never once wore feminine clothes.

Not skirts, bright colors, lacy things, short shorts, or form-fitting clothes. Not a single time.

Why would I be crazy enough to wear such things?

I even tried avoiding underwear whenever possible. Once, I attempted wrapping myself in bandages instead, but it proved unbearably uncomfortable. Not only was it a massive hassle, but going without showed through my clothes, so I had no choice but to wear them.

And yet.

That same me…

Right now.

I’m wearing a skirt shorter than the underwear from my previous life.

“Gasp… It’s the first time I’ve seen Lady Ellie with bare legs…”

“…Stop.”

“It looks so, sooo good on you! How are your legs this beautiful, Lady Ellie?!”

“Yurasia… please, stop.”

“How can they be so smooth? Lady Ellie, your kicks are so heavy, but how are your legs this slim? And they look so soft and delicate too…”

“Please… just stop…”

My face burns with such intense embarrassment it might explode. My thighs feel exposed. Cool. The ventilation is infuriatingly effective.

“…This is the first time I’ve seen her this embarrassed. So you are a girl after all?”

“Sigh…”

“And Sir Yurasia’s right, your legs… they’re really pretty. I’m almost jealous… And when you’re embarrassed, your whole body turns red? Even your legs are blushing—”

“AAAAH!”

“Yikes?! What the—! Why are you screaming?! You think we can’t scream too?!”

“All of you… shut up. Shut up and get lost. Now.”

“Get lost? No way. You have to come with us. We’ll really be late if you don’t hurry.”

Stella smirked at me with an irritatingly smug voice.

“What? Worried the skirt’s too short? Don’t be. The academy uniform has all kinds of magic. Unless you flip it yourself, no one will see your underwear. Besides, honestly, this isn’t even that short.”

Just as Stella said, I’d heard the academy uniforms were enchanted with various spells to prevent any accidental exposure. They claimed even a typhoon couldn’t flip these skirts.

But if this isn’t considered short, what is?

I shot Stella a piercing glare, conveying exactly how I felt.

“Ugh, what? It’s true! If you don’t believe me, look around the classroom later. Some students have already shortened theirs.”

“…Did you shorten yours too?”

Stella avoided my gaze.

“…A little?”

“You little… brat. You’re ridiculous.”

“What?! Hey! It’s not even that much! Look! It’s almost the same as yours! And watch your language!”

“If you care that little, why not just walk around in your underwear?”

“What are you even—”

I clicked my tongue and turned to Yurasia.

“You didn’t shorten yours, right?”

“…Hehe.”

“Hah.”

I don’t even feel like laughing anymore. Barely holding onto my sanity, I rubbed my forehead.

For heaven’s sake.

Even Yurasia shortened hers? Is this really not considered short by today’s standards?

“Why aren’t you scolding Sir Yurasia like you did with me?!”

“…Yurasia probably didn’t shorten hers as much as you did. Just a little, right?”

Yurasia’s eyes trembled slightly.

“…Yurasia?”

“Hehe.”

“…Why? I understand Stella wanting longer-looking legs because she’s short, but you don’t need that. You’d look good without altering anything… No, this won’t do. You need to lengthen it. I can’t stand seeing you like this.”

“Don’t talk about my height! And seriously, who do you think you are? You’re acting like some old geezer!”

“Old geezer? Hah. Look, I might not be Yurasia’s parent, but… uh, well…”

What am I supposed to say?

Calling myself her older sister is out of the question.

I obviously can’t say I’m her older brother with this body. Mom? No way.

And if I say I’m her dad… I’d just get laughed at.

What am I even supposed to call myself…?

“So? What are you?”

I looked at Yurasia. For some reason, she was fidgeting awkwardly, as if embarrassed.

It was clear she wouldn’t help resolve my dilemma.

“…Just shut up.”

“See? You don’t even know what to say. So don’t scold me or Sir Yurasia either. Besides, Sir Yurasia is practically your older sister.”

“Older sister? O-Older sister??”

“This is Karela Academy. You’re a student here, and status doesn’t matter. So Sir Yurasia might as well be your older sister.”

“Then why do you keep calling her ‘Sir Yurasia’ so formally?”

“…I-I’ll just… call her casually from now on!”

Yurasia’s eyes widened.

“Then… may I call you casually too?”

“Yes! I mean, uh… yeah! Feel free!”

“…Okay. I will, Stella. Hehe…”

“Hngh… Yes… Yurasia… unnie.”

“What the hell—? Never mind. Let’s just go.”

I clenched my trembling fists and stood up.

My legs feel exposed. Moving feels strange without resistance.

It’s unsettling. One wrong step and the whole world might see my underwear.

Even knowing the skirt won’t fall, I tugged at the hem instinctively.

Pointless. Stella and Yurasia’s subtle smirks only intensified my humiliation.

“…Can I wear gym shorts under this?”

“Gym clothes are only allowed during practical sessions, I heard.”

“…I see.”

“Lady Ellie, don’t worry so much! It really suits you! You look beautiful!”

“That’s not the problem. I mean… ugh…”

I shut my eyes tightly.

Then I felt the back of my skirt being gently pulled, followed by Yurasia’s soft voice.

“Lady Ellie, when you stand up, you should smooth out the back of your skirt, like this. If it gets folded… it could be troublesome.”

“…Didn’t you say the magic would prevent that?”

“Well… It straightens wrinkles and pulls the fabric down, but it can’t fix folds. So when you sit, you need to smooth it out like this. Over your bottom, like this.”

“…Okay, okay. Stop touching my butt.”

“Oops! Y-Yes!”

Rubbing my now-tingling backside, I started walking. The skirt swayed, brushing against my thighs.

After always wearing pants, the skirt makes my legs feel chilly… and strangely empty.

“If you’re cold, wear stockings like I do.”

“I’d rather freeze to death.”

“Gasp… No, Lady Ellie, you can’t!”

***

We left the dormitory and headed to the central hall of Signia’s main building to check the class assignments posted on the bulletin board.

“Wow!! I’m in the same class as you, Lady Ellie!!”

“Right? I thought we’d be separated.”

Yurasia, now my classmate, let out a cheerful laugh and pulled me into a hug.

“You thought we’d be separated?! Don’t tell me… were you hoping for that?!”

“No way.”

I’d simply thought being in the same class as Yurasia might throw things off balance.

Well, they probably figured they could put us together. The professors wouldn’t have seen me capture the basilisk anyway.

Besides, they gave me a failing score in practicals and made a whole fuss about it. So they likely didn’t arrange this with me in mind, but rather to separate Yurasia and Stella.

And… maybe they knew about my relationship with Yurasia, so they put us together.

Though that last part might just be my imagination.

“…Ugh.”

Meanwhile, Stella, who ended up in a different class alone, looked gloomy.

“Got stuck alone, huh? Feeling sad?”

“What?! Stuck alone?! No way! I wasn’t stuck; I chose this! So I’m not sad at all. Why would I be? It’s not even disappointing. In fact… it’s actually… good!”

“Oh, I see, Yurasia. We’ve been abandoned by the great Stella Verheigen, the brilliant young lady who became the youngest 3rd-circle mage and entered as runner-up. She’s so independent and proactive, she can handle two people by herself. Amazing. You’re truly the best, Stella.”

“Ggh… No! Stop! Don’t praise me like that! And besides… I only abandoned you!”

“Should I insult you instead? Call you a pathetic magic wannabe?”

“Don’t call me pathetic!”

“So you complain whether I praise you or insult you. What am I supposed to do?”

“Just… just… say nothing.”

I let out a small chuckle and placed a macaron in Stella’s hand.

“Make friends with your classmates. Don’t pick fights. If anything gets tough, tell your homeroom professor immediately. If that doesn’t work, come to me. I’ll listen.”

“…Don’t say stuff like that while wearing a skirt, you sound like an old man.”

Stella trembled as she forced out that remark.

In response, I jabbed her side harder than usual. She shrieked, “Eek!”

“Don’t bottle things up. I know you’ve got your pride, but you don’t need to act tough with me.”

Stella’s mouth hung open, dumbfounded.

“…What do you mean I don’t need to act tough with you? What… What are you implying?”

“Who knows.”

Leaving Stella behind with that bewildered expression, I entered my assigned classroom.

Yurasia exchanged a brief farewell with Stella and followed me cautiously inside.

All eyes turned toward us.

Everywhere I looked, people avoided my gaze—except for two.

Twitching ears. A puffy tail.

The messy light-brown bob swayed with the movements of her ears, and eyes of the same color sparkled brightly.

It was the squirrel beastkin I had seen during the entrance ceremony.

Her tiny lips parted.

So pretty.

Her gaze dropped to my skirt.

My expression soured. Our eyes met.

The squirrel’s ears drooped. Her tail curled.

Hugging her curled tail with both arms, she started trembling.

Her reaction was so absurd, I couldn’t help but let out a scoff.

In response, she covered her eyes with her hands and kept trembling.

Why is she covering her eyes now?

As I tilted my head in confusion, another gaze caught my attention.

Platinum blonde hair. Eyes of the same color.

The princess who, despite being only seventeen, looked at the world with the detachment of someone who had lived through it all.

Silina de Hermann.

Her gaze wasn’t exactly pleasant.

She hadn’t seemed interested in anyone before, so why was she staring so intensely now?

With a small sigh, I gave Yurasia’s rigid back a gentle tap.

“Let’s find our seats.”

Just as we were about to move—

“Huh…? Lady Ellie!!”

The world flipped upside down.