Chapter 175: A Penchant for Cosplay
After the matter with 096 was settled, Alice graciously invited everyone to stay for tea and snacks. Patchouli, however, politely declined, already in a hurry to return to the Scarlet Devil Mansion with the anomalous entity in tow. From the eager glint in her eyes, it was clear she had developed a deep academic interest in 096.
Haruto, naturally, had no objections to staying behind to enjoy Alice's hospitality.
As for Marisa, she didn't even wait for a formal invitation, having already made herself quite at home inside the quaint, western-style cottage.
The four of them—Haruto, Marisa, Alice, and Shanghai—soon found themselves seated in the living room. Alice poured a cup of fragrant black tea for each of her guests.
Marisa snatched up her teacup, drained the entire contents in one go, and let out a deeply satisfied sigh. She then spun around, planting her hands firmly on Haruto's shoulders. Her typically cheerful face was a mask of theatrical sorrow.
"I almost... I almost ended up in a coffin!" she wailed.
"Didn't I warn you, repeatedly, not to take off its hood?" Haruto replied, his voice laced with irritation. "Fortunately, I anticipated something like this and asked Alice to keep an eye on you."
"I-I didn't take it off!" Marisa retorted, her gaze darting away guiltily. "I only lifted a tiny corner!"
"That's the same thing," Haruto said, rolling his eyes. "Consider yourself lucky you're still breathing. But even if you really did kick the bucket, I would have found a way to fish you back out."
"Uh... really?" Marisa's eyes widened.
A sharp flick landed squarely on her forehead. "Ow! Why'd you hit me?!" she yelped, her face a picture of indignation.
"I only said I'd try my best to fish you out; I can't guarantee I'd succeed," Haruto clarified, his gaze turning subtle. "So don't go looking for trouble every chance you get." He knew Marisa all too well. The moment he'd said that, the gears in her head were probably already turning, thinking she now had a free pass to cause whatever mayhem she wanted since someone would be there to bail her out.
Meanwhile, in the outside world...
In a quiet corner of a bustling commercial street, Su Ning watched her best friend with a twitching eye. The girl had set up a makeshift fortune-telling stall and, to complete the look, had even dressed up in the full regalia of a mystical master.
"Dear customer," the girl began, wearing a tall, pointed hat and lightly fanning herself with a folding fan. Her voice was a low, feigned baritone of deep wisdom. "I see a faint green aura swirling between your brows, and your glabella is dark. This is a sign of impending bloodshed during your travels. Within the next three months, you may encounter a great calamity—perhaps even a life-threatening one. You must be exceedingly careful."
Su Ning's expression grew even stranger. "Yu Xuexue, what on earth has gotten into you these past two days?"
She knew her best friend inside and out; the girl didn't know the first thing about physiognomy. And as for a great calamity? She had barely left her house since returning from the last instance. Where was a calamity supposed to come from? Besides, in this modern world, she was a fox demon whose power was equivalent to the Four-Tails level.
"You have the wrong person. I am not Yu Xuexue," the girl declared, hurriedly pulling the brim of her hat down to hide her face. But Su Ning was faster, snatching the hat clean off her head.
"Goodbye!" Yu Xuexue yelped, making a break for it, but Su Ning's hand shot out and grabbed her.
Su Ning gripped her friend's shoulders, forcing her to make eye contact. "What exactly happened? Are you in some kind of trouble?"
Yu Xuexue's lips pursed, and she stubbornly shook her head. After cautiously scanning their surroundings, she leaned in close to Su Ning's ear, about to whisper her secret.
In that very instant, a pair of sharp, peach-blossom eyes materialized in the void between them. A terrifying pressure slammed down upon her very soul, causing her to instantly lose her human guise. A pair of fox ears sprouted from her hair and two fluffy tails burst out from behind her, every single strand of fur standing on end.
The eyes were there for less than a second, but it was enough to leave Yu Xuexue trembling uncontrollably. Her snowy-white fox ears pressed down flat against her head, nearly becoming what one might call 'airplane ears'.
"Xuexue! What's wrong?" Su Ning cried out, alarmed, as her friend suddenly went limp in her arms, shaking like a leaf. She hastily took out a healing-type ghost artifact she carried and activated it on her.
A moment later, Yu Xuexue finally began to calm down, her clothes already soaked through with a cold sweat.
"I understand now!" Su Ning suddenly declared, her expression turning incredibly serious.
Yu Xuexue was deeply moved, secretly wiping away a tear. She finally understands? All my effort wasn't in vain!
"Is your breeding season here?"
Thwack—
The folding fan struck Su Ning squarely on the head. Yu Xuexue pointed the fan at her, her voice a mixture of grief and indignation. "Since when do we fox demons have a breeding season?!"
...Meanwhile...
Haruto had returned to the Yakumo residence, where Yakumo Ran had already prepared the detailed information she had collected. Looking through the file, he couldn't help but click his tongue in wonder. After reading through all the data, he sent a message to Kaguya, telling her to come over quickly.
Perhaps spurred on by excitement, Kaguya was exceptionally fast, arriving in what felt like no time at all.
"Are we going to deal with that 'Truth' person?" she asked eagerly.
"Not exactly. There's no rush to deal with Truth," Haruto said with a sly grin. "First, let's go to the outside world and prepare some... small gifts for her."
While Kaguya looked on, puzzled, Haruto handed her the stack of information.
The moment she saw the photos on the first page, she understood instantly. They were of Su Ning, dressed in various cosplay outfits. Though the costumes themselves were relatively conservative, the sheer number of photos made one thing abundantly clear: the girl was an avid cosplayer.
"Let's go, let's go!" Kaguya's excitement surged as she flipped through the pages, already impatient to see the look on her target's face when they received this particular 'surprise'.
The two of them changed into clothes that wouldn't draw too much attention in the modern world and, with Yakumo Ran's help, teleported to a large cosplay shop to browse. They began picking out outfits for characters they wanted to see their target wear. After all, who knew? They might just get a chance to see a live cosplay service later.
"Haruto, Haruto, why don't you try cosplaying too? You've got the looks for it," Kaguya suggested as she browsed the racks.
"I'm not cosplaying," he replied flatly. "But if you want to cosplay for me, I wouldn't mind."
Kaguya rolled her eyes at him. Just as she was about to continue her search, a mischievous idea struck her. A playful curve hooked her lips as she leaned close to his ear.
"That's fine," she whispered, her warm breath tickling his skin. "You pick any two outfits, and when we get home, I'll wear them just for you." She deliberately emphasized the word "any," her voice a soft, intimate murmur that slid directly into his ear.
"...Hm?"
Kaguya was stunned. She had expected him to shyly dodge or get flustered, but he just stood there, a thoughtful hum escaping his lips. Refusing to admit defeat, she pretended to be unfazed and calmly went back to picking out costumes.
About fifteen minutes later, they were finished. Haruto hadn't picked much, just three sets, while Kaguya had selected five, though hers didn't seem as bulky as his.
"Here, you go pay. I'm heading out first," Kaguya said, handing him her bags.
Though he felt a flicker of suspicion, Haruto didn't overthink it. He took all the bags and, carrying four sets of clothing in each hand, walked up to the counter.
Behind the checkout counter sat a young girl wearing a pair of decorative cat ears. She had been quietly watching the two of them ever since they had entered the store.
"Checking out," Haruto said, placing all eight cosplay outfits on the counter.
The girl kept her head down as she began organizing the clothes, her fingers moving over the scanner. She would occasionally steal a glance at him before quickly looking back down, the tips of her ears turning a faint shade of red.
"P-Please wait a moment, I'll pack them up for you right away..." she stammered, her voice carrying a distinct hint of shyness.
Haruto simply nodded, his gaze casually sweeping over the other cosplay outfits displayed around the store.
Just then, he noticed the girl's movements suddenly freeze. Before Haruto could see what had happened, her face had turned bright red, and she hurriedly finished packing the bags, her movements flustered.
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