episode_0020

Dakota Kale. She is the main heroine of this novel.

…She was definitely petite.

With a beautiful pelvis that smoothly descended from her waist, she had a chest so small that one would wonder how she could possess such a figure.

It might be a bit too much to say, but…

The cliff above was so steep that it seemed like she didn’t need underwear.

“Tell me.”

Dakota’s eyes, while not carrying any firearms, overflowed with intense energy.

A threatening gaze that seemed to say, “Answer well.”

“Is having a big chest a good thing?”

Even though there was no dagger in her hands, the feeling of being able to die immediately if she answered incorrectly was palpable.

Dakota, with a fierce gaze, scanned Lager.

Slowly, she reached for the buttons of her blouse.

Effortlessly, she grabbed the tie that was tightly blocking her neck like a lock and pulled it off.

The first button

Snap.

The second button

Snap again.

The third button.

…As her hand was about to reach towards it.

“What, what are you doing?!”

Lager, with a flushed face, grabbed Dakota’s hand.

Dakota, releasing the tension in the hand that was about to unbutton, looked up at Lager with dull violet eyes.

“Hehe, I got your hand…”

She laughed.

It was even scarier because she seemed genuinely embarrassed here.

“There are still many people in other rooms.”

“It’s okay.”

“Why are you trying to undress here? Snap out of it!”

At Lager’s firm words, Dakota’s expression darkened again.

And then, the third button

Snap.

“Even if your chest is small, it’s still pretty. I’ll show you.”

“No, why are you going this far…!”

“Because you like big chests. I’m trying to correct you.”

This is insane. Lager couldn’t make sense of it with her flushed face.

Fortunately, Lager was in a position where she could sincerely lower her head at this point.

“I, I don’t like big chests. That, that’s just… a useless lump of fat!!”

Because.

She herself was a cliff when she was a woman.

At least when she spewed derogatory remarks about big chests, there must have been sincerity in them.

Dakota nodded with an understanding “I see.”

And then she buttoned up the third button.

Slowly, the second one.

The last one.

As she was about to button up the first one.

“But why.”

“Why can’t I take my eyes off that woman?”

That gaze that seemed to have a taste, and that sharp smile, caught my two eyes again.

My heart sank and my lips dried up in an instant.

The fear that trembled sweetly to the fingertips felt like something I was experiencing for the first time.

A clear emotion of ‘jealousy’ directed solely at me.

When that fierce anger that wanted to kill me enveloped my body, the experience of shivering with fear from the depths of my chest was something quite difficult to come by.

“Answer me.”

Dakota’s eyes were about to emit light.

I looked back and forth between Dakota and Lager, sending urgent glances.

Quickly say something.

It’s not right. Say no quickly!

The smile slowly disappeared from Dakota’s face.

At the same time, a shadow was cast.

“…I can’t answer.”

Clang.

She bit her lip.

And the next moment.

As she stomped on the ground, Lager urgently reached out her arms.

She tightly embraced Dakota, who had turned her back.

With all her strength, with a determination to straighten things out, Lager embraced Dakota.

After several attempts to break free from his embrace, Dakota, growling, twisted in his arms, then stopped abruptly and slowly turned his head.

“Godingun….”

As Dakota turned his head, he weakly smiled, tears streaming down his eyes.

Trickling down.

A single tear flowed down his cheek.

“My side hurts too much….”

Cough.

Finishing his sentence, Dakota coughed up blood and slumped.

In a sudden turn of events, I hurriedly approached her, Lager holding her and checking her consciousness.

The support from the Academy had arrived by then.

*

A while later. The apprentice team from the Academy wiped away the blood splattered in the subway and packed the bodies to be incinerated. Dakota received help from the medical team and headed to the hospital.

The subway resumed normal operation.

Only the meticulous male instructor who escorted us on the first day remained.

“No matter how strong Dakota was as ‘Tier Red,’ it couldn’t have been easy to face humanoid monsters.”

I’m not exactly sure what level ‘Tier’ refers to, but being Red seems to indicate a fairly strong level. However, judging by the instructor’s uneasy expression, it seems that the humanoid monsters were indeed dangerous opponents even at that level.

Since we had nothing to say in this situation, we had no choice but to come up with a plausible excuse to deceive the instructor.

“She was really strong.”

“Yes, that’s right. It was unbelievable to see her facing such a monster alone.”

Lager and I smoothly deceived the instructor with a fantastic story as if we had rehearsed it. The instructor nodded vaguely and turned away.

“Originally, the duty roster had two people. Since the two of you seem uninjured.”

“Oh, yes.”

“It may be a bit harsh to ask when your friend is injured, but can you fulfill the rest of the duty schedule?”

Lager and I exchanged glances for a moment.

“Yes.”

“Of course.”

We nodded simultaneously.

“Then I’ll leave it to you.”

After saying that, the instructor walked into the still open portal.

Slowly, just like last time, people filled the subway car and life seemed to flow as if nothing had happened.

[This station is Baha. This is Baha station. The doors will open….]

A little later, we got off the subway and headed towards the turnstiles. As we tapped our cards and went outside, the applause and strange murmurs grew louder as we approached the surface.

Curious, I glanced over.

“♬~♩~♪~”

“Wow!”

“Yay!”

In the small square in front of the subway exit, a few people were playing the guitar and singing, while others clapped along.

It was busking.

Even a little further inside from the exit, there were several teams busking. People naturally gathered to enjoy the lively performances.

It felt like Hongdae in the previous world.

Of course, Lager, who probably set up this setting, looked unimpressed as he glanced around.

“There’s a clothing store over there.”

Lager pointed to a casual brand store. It was a popular brand among people in their 20s and 30s, and it was interesting to see it implemented here. But as far as I know…

“It seems expensive.”

It was a fairly high-priced brand.

As I hesitated, Lager pushed me forward, shaking his head and pushing my back.

“Just think of it as being in Hongdae and buy something. I’ll pay for it.”

“It’s fine. The Academy students seem to have a good salary, so there’s no need for you to owe me anything.”

“It’s a survival gift, damn it.”

Anyway, making excuses. I chuckled and pretended to give in, heading towards the store.

Suddenly, I saw the blood-stained shirt of Lager and made a suggestion.

“Hey, are you seriously going to keep walking around like that with blood on your shirt? I’ll buy you new clothes.”

“Oh, then should we match in couple outfits?”

“Don’t talk nonsense. It’s annoying.”

“If you don’t like it, then just say so. Why swear and make a fuss?”

He deliberately cursed to hear me swear. It felt satisfying to see him return to his normal self after acting strange for a while. We were a combination that suited pork rice soup and soju better than pasta and wine.

“Don’t keep trying to steer towards pasta.”

“Welcome… Oh, are you okay?!”

The young female clerk greeted us, but then gasped in shock when she saw Lager.

I knew this would happen. Lager, not flustered at all, calmly explained, “We’re academy students on weekend patrol duty, and our clothes got a bit ruined. This friend here also has some circumstances, so could you help us find some clothes to wear together?”

“Oh, then come this way.”

“Please take a look at this friend’s clothes first. She’s looking for a skirt.”

I wanted to complain, but I had no choice. If I wanted to get my pants fixed for the tail immediately, it would take more time. It was frustrating that I couldn’t get away from the skirt situation.

Lager glanced around for a moment and scanned my clothes again. He seemed to be looking for a combination that would match well.

After browsing through various clothes, Lager finally chose one.

“How about this?”

I immediately shook my head vigorously.

“Are you crazy?”

“No, why?”

“How am I supposed to wear this over my uniform?”

The reason for my reaction was that Lager had picked out a long, flowing A-line dress!

“Who fights wearing a long dress that almost reaches the knees?”

He had chosen a dress with intricate floral prints all over and a fabric that rustled softly as it moved.

“This covers your knees so you won’t be embarrassed. If you’re worried about the jacket, I’ll take care of that.”

“No, that’s not the problem!”

For the tail, a long dress would be better. But this dress… it was the epitome of femininity.

“Hey, I’m not wearing this. Are you really joking? Do you want me to die?”

“What’s wrong with it? It suits you.”

“Are you kidding me?”

Lager leaned in close to me and whispered, “These days, it’s either really long skirts or really short skirts.”

“Oh…”

“Mini skirt then?”

The conversation took a different turn…

I bit my lip and reluctantly nodded. Lager pushed me towards the fitting room as if pleased with my response.

“Hurry back before the clothes disappear.”

That annoying smirk. I hesitated before entering the fitting room and tried to unzip my pants, only to find them gone.

“Wow…”

I almost found myself in a precarious situation. It lasted shorter than before. Does it depend on how many people see it?

I stared at my bare lower half in shock.

“Sigh…”

Realizing I had no other choice, I reluctantly slipped my foot into the dress.

I struggled to find the zipper, which was at the back. With my stiff arms, I managed to pull up the zipper and completed the dress.

I never thought I would wear a dress in my life.

As I sighed and lifted my head…

“Oh.”

Under the platinum hair, a shirt and dress harmoniously falling. The flowing long hem and elegantly embroidered floral patterns. The waist-cut line of the dress that accentuates the slightly curved figure even more attractively.

And a long skirt length that perfectly covers the tail.

It’s just that, for some reason.

Maybe that’s why the protagonists in novels seem to utter such lines at least once.

I murmured quietly to myself while looking at my reflection in the mirror.

“Is this… me?”