Chapter 92: The Never-Ending Fashion Show

“Hmm. El has such good looks that anything she wears suits her well.”

At this point, this dress-up session is nothing new.

Of course, the problem is that the doll in question is me. But based on past experiences of being tormented like this, I know that the quickest way to get through it is to obediently wear whatever they hand me—again and again.

“That’s true. Whether it’s casual or formal wear, it all looks good on her.”

Thankfully, only Celian and Yuri are bringing in new outfits. If Anne and Linne were involved too, I wouldn’t even get a moment’s rest between outfit changes.

Linne is standing in front of the dressing room, evaluating my attire like a judge, while Anne simply stares with her mouth slightly open beside her.

“Here, try this on next. El definitely looks best in dresses.”

This time, the outfit Celian brought was a flowing dress.

Considering the chilly weather, it wasn’t too thin. The beige fabric dress reached just above the knees.

A dark brown ribbon was attached to the waist, designed to be tied to accentuate the waistline.

Half a year ago, I would have been horrified at the idea of wearing something like this. But as humans are creatures of adaptation, I’ve come too far to start protesting now.

“Of course, dresses suit her, but I still think El looks best in pants.”

I stepped out of the dressing room and spun around as requested by my friends. Just then, Yuri came from somewhere with another pile of clothes and shoved them into my arms before pushing me back into the dressing room.

Taking a closer look, I found a loose-fitting blue knit sweater and black cotton pants.

At first glance, they seemed fine, but once I put them on, I noticed that the oversized sweater had slits on the sides, subtly exposing my waist.

And unlike the loose sweater, the pants were made of a tight-fitting stretchy fabric.

I had been relieved to be wearing something as ordinary as a knit sweater and pants instead of a dress, but once I actually had them on, they felt a bit too revealing in their own way.

Either way, now that I was dressed, it was time for their evaluation.

When I stepped outside, Celian was nowhere to be seen, likely off searching for more outfits. Only the three of them were waiting in front of the dressing room.

“See? El has such pretty legs, I knew it would look good. And this knit sweater—watch this…”

Not satisfied with just assessing my outfit, Yuri came closer, turned me to the side, and suddenly lifted both of my arms.

Naturally, my sides were exposed.

The slit I had noticed earlier was now revealing my bare skin as my arms were lifted.

“See? It has this kind of detail too. What do you think? Pretty good choice, huh?”

But instead of asking me, Yuri turned to Anne and Linne, who had now brought out chairs and were seated in front of us like judges.

No, more importantly, behind them—I could see those three ghostly figures from before.

Why were they showing themselves in broad daylight inside a shopping mall?

And, just like last time, they whispered among themselves before simultaneously raising their signs.

Each sign had a big circle drawn on it.

Satisfied with their decision, the three ghosts nodded before disappearing with a soft “poof.”

Seriously, what even was that?

Meanwhile, Anne continued to stare blankly with her mouth open, simply nodding in response to Yuri’s question. Linne, however, stood up and flew over to get a closer look at my outfit, inspecting me from every angle.

“But Yuri… isn’t it a bit too chilly for this sweater now?”

“…El, do you not like the outfit I picked?”

“No, no! It’s not that! I was just worried you might catch a cold.”

“Come on, El. Don’t be silly. Someone as well-trained as you isn’t going to catch a cold.”

Was Yuri saying that because she knew my concern was just an excuse, or did she genuinely believe it was a joke?

I was curious, but I didn’t say anything.

“Ah! Celie, you take a look too! What do you think? Doesn’t it look good?”

Celian had returned at some point, holding another set of clothes.

Like an evaluator, she circled around me, examining my outfit carefully.

“It does look good… but don’t you think it’s a bit too revealing around the hips and legs? I don’t think it’s very suitable for formal occasions.”

“That may be true, but…

…Didn’t you just pick out a dress that fully exposed her legs? This isn’t that different, is it?”

Well, to be fair, the dress had been quite embarrassing too.

“But look at how the lines of these pants fit. Honestly, that dress only showed her legs up to the knees at most, but these pants cling tightly from the hips down—”

“Hyah!?”

Suddenly, Celian knelt down and ran her hand along my lower back and thighs while explaining her point to Yuri.

Even if the body is that of a woman, the sensation of touching the hips and thighs is still unmistakable.

Especially when my mind is that of a man.

Already sensitive, my nerves reacted even more strongly to the unexpected situation.

“Now that you mention it, that does seem to be the case?”

However, neither Celie nor Yuri seemed to pay attention to my cry. Instead, Yuri also latched onto my other thigh, evaluating the pants I was wearing.

“Uh, um, Celie? Yuri?”

“At least it looks like they used a decent material. It won’t chafe your skin.”

“Since it’s made of spandex, it stretches well, so it’s good for mobility too.”

Celie began rubbing the fabric to check its texture, while Yuri pinched a section of my thigh to lift and release it, demonstrating the elasticity of the material.

“It definitely stretches well. These pants aren’t bad. Though, of course, they’re not suitable for formal occasions.”

“I didn’t pay much attention to the fabric, but as Celie said, it feels nice.”

Now, the situation reversed—Celie started pinching my thigh, while Yuri ran her hand over it.

“S-Stop…”

I definitely wanted to step back and escape, but Celie and Yuri were simply assessing my clothes.

If I raised my voice and made a fuss, it would only make things awkward for them when they were just trying to help me.

The only thing I could do was plead in a small voice, ensuring that the passersby wouldn’t hear.

Even though my voice was quiet, it should have been loud enough for them to hear. Yet, they continued their discussion, seemingly oblivious to my discomfort.

By the time they finally let me go, my face was as red as a ripe tomato.

The never-ending fashion show and their relentless critiques were enough to drain the soul out of me.

In this embarrassing situation, my only escape was to mentally check out—essentially, running away in my head.

I felt bad for Celie and Yuri, who were working so hard for my sake, but I had no choice if I wanted to protect my sanity.

The noodles I had for lunch today were delicious. What was on the dormitory menu for dinner again? Fried fish, right? Cats would love that.

Speaking of cats, they’re the cutest, aren’t they?

Kitty, kitty, my adorable kitty. What are you up to right now?

This big sister… no, this older brother wants to see you.

As I was lost in these pointless thoughts, I snapped back to reality for a moment—only to realize that Celie and Yuri, instead of waiting for me to change, had taken it upon themselves to dress me.

My body, obedient to their commands, automatically raised its arms whenever Celie said, “Arms,” making it easier to put on a new outfit.

Whenever Yuri said, “Legs,” my legs slipped into the pants without me even thinking about it.

…I need to retreat back into my mind. The real world is too much for me to handle.

Kitty…

“Meow.”

?

“Kitty?”

“Meow.”

I had entered my mental sanctuary, yet why did I actually hear a cat’s voice?

Just in case, I cautiously returned to reality.

While my body was still being dressed by the two girls, a cat had somehow slipped under the dressing room curtain. It hopped over Celie and Yuri before landing on my shoulder.

“Kitty!”

“Meow!”

I never expected to meet a cat in a place like this.

It must have been happy to see me, too, because it immediately began rubbing its head against my cheek.

“El? I need to adjust the shoulder straps, so can you hold the cat for a moment?”

I carefully lifted the cat with one hand while Celie adjusted the straps, then switched hands to fix the other side.

Looking down, I realized that this outfit was a full-on party dress.

Somehow, I had even been made to wear high heels.

…Weren’t we supposed to be shopping for an outfit for the Heavenly Festival?

Regardless of my thoughts, Celie and Yuri led me out of the dressing room.

Outside, Anne, Rinne, and even the ghost trio were still standing there, waiting.

“Hing, the kitty avoided my hands.”

Anne, with her lips pouting, must have tried to catch the cat when it entered the dressing room.

You should have just left the cat alone.

“Nyaa.”

The cat responded as if agreeing with my opinion.

Huh? Did I say that out loud? And how am I able to understand what the cat is saying?

Ah, right. Thanks to Presia, my mind had connected with the cat before.

I had forgotten about the contract I made with it back then.

So, you came because you heard my call.

“By the way, hasn’t quite a bit of time passed?”

Regaining my focus, I glanced at the clock inside the store. It was already past 4 PM.

Since we arrived right after having an early lunch, that meant we had been here for hours.

Which also meant I had spaced out for quite a while.

“But there are still so many outfits we haven’t seen…”

“Not to mention, we haven’t even looked at the armor section.”

Despite having tried on clothes for so long, the two still seemed reluctant to stop.

Seeing this, Anne suggested a new idea.

“Then how about we each go and pick out what we want El to wear? If we grab too many, time will fly by again, so let’s be reasonable and narrow it down.”

—I want to pick too!

“Nyaaong.”

“Hmm… Then let’s meet back here in 15 minutes. El, you have to stay put, okay? Even if someone offers you something delicious, don’t follow them.”

Celie spoke as if she were instructing a child.

Honestly, she worried too much about unnecessary things.

“Hehe, I need to grab the one I saw earlier.”

“Rinne, if you pick an outfit, let me know. We don’t want to scare people, so I’ll bring it instead.”

—Ehehe!

With that, the three, along with one ghost and one cat, scattered excitedly.

…Why do I have a bad feeling about this?