I definitely warned them.
I outright said they could end up in an awkward situation, or worse, lose their clothes completely.
“Then let’s get started quickly. I’ll go first.”
“I don’t care about the order, so it’s fine if I go after Seria.”
But why in the world are they reacting this way?
They’re way too nonchalant, it’s honestly absurd.
And to make it worse, they were dressed lightly for a holiday.
At least Alkiné had a coat on… but Seria was just in a fluttery long-sleeved T-shirt.
The moment a layer comes off, it’s guaranteed chaos, so why are they so carefree?
No, it would be one thing if they were just carefree. These two went a step further.
“Um… is this okay?”
“No, just keep it on your arm! Why are you tucking it away inside your clothes?”
She was holding the black thing in her right hand, completely hiding the bracelet tucked away in her sleeve with the other.
“Ooh. Is it okay if I keep it like this?”
“No… President. If you put it in that pocket, I can’t reach for it…”
Wearing the knuckles normally but shoving the brooch into her chest pocket!
They’re wearing their weapons normally but hiding the accessories, leaving me confused about whether they really want to cooperate or not.
Of course, if this all goes too smoothly, the word “experiment” loses its meaning.
But I didn’t want to go through this kind of trial… it’s bound to be awkward in many ways.
‘Sigh, they really make things difficult.’
Their actions were clearly out of the ordinary. At first glance, it looked like they wanted to shed their clothes.
But looking at their beaming faces, I could roughly guess what they were thinking.
‘So that’s how it’s gonna be, huh?’
Anyway, I’m the one calling the shots in this situation. This is all for testing the inventory ability I have.
So, in their hearts, there’s probably a mix of confidence that they’ll handle it well and a mischievous desire to tease me if they mess up.
In other words, their reactions are results filled with trust and mischief!
Well, then I have to boldly succeed and break through!
“Alright. Let’s go with this.”
I snagged Seria’s left wrist, trying to pull the sleeve covering the bracelet down, but she held it tight with her hand, so I failed.
But do they think I’ll just give up like that?
First, I tried to put the sword in my inventory.
Honestly, I thought this wouldn’t work. I had grabbed Seria’s left wrist, and she was holding the sword in her right.
Given the distance and the fact that I hadn’t touched the sword itself, I assumed I wouldn’t meet the storage conditions.
But… surprisingly, the sword she was holding vanished right into my inventory!
I hadn’t touched the sword directly, just caught Seria who was holding it.
‘…The judgment is beyond my imagination, huh?’
At this point, I don’t even need to risk getting close to someone swinging a weapon. As long as I can make contact with their body somehow, I’m golden.
This alone is a massive gain! I could end the experiment right now and be satisfied.
“Now for the bracelet?”
But Seria didn’t seem to think so.
Yeah, I figured. So I don’t plan on stopping either.
Time to move on to the next round.
Now! Come here! Bracelet!
“…Ah.”
“…Ah.”
“…Ah.”
Failed. I won’t go into details, but that’s how it went.
It’s only natural that the three of us let out the same sound given the disastrous outcome of my bold attempt.
In a hurry, I pulled out the clothes that got sucked into my inventory and threw them away before turning my back.
What am I thinking right now? Nothing special.
‘Shouldn’t have done that.’
That’s the only thought in my head.
What’s the point of regretting after the fact? All I can do is reflect.
“Rudion?”
As I splashed some cold water on my face and let out a deep sigh, I heard Seria calling me.
“Uh, can I turn around now?”
“…Yes.”
“Hold on, Seria. What…?”
“Sigh… Why are you hiding the bracelet so carefully… no, can I turn around?!”
Wait, but isn’t Seria just holding her clothes without wearing them?
In the chaos mixed with embarrassment and disbelief, I completely forgot to look away.
“I only said you could turn around, but I never said I was dressed!”
Looking at me like that, she just said it like it was no big deal.
Oh my, Seria. You’ve finally gone nuts.
Don’t you feel embarrassed showing off your bare skin like that?!
Of course, she seemed embarrassed. She was slightly lifting her clothes to cover up little by little.
I can understand liking to mess around, heh, honestly, I didn’t completely hate the playful tricks she pulled on me.
But this… isn’t crossing the line? Are you trying to make me a criminal for real?
“What on earth do you think you’re doing?”
“Um, Seria? That seems a bit much, even for you.”
Thankfully, Alkiné didn’t side with Seria on this one.
It made sense. What Seria was doing right now went beyond just playful antics.
It was a behavior that would’ve gotten her kicked out if one more person had been present.
She seems aware of it too, since her clothes had risen enough to partially cover her face… but that just revealed her belly button. I mean, come on, hurry up and put some clothes on!
“…I’m going to put them on, so turn back around.”
You gladly showed me your body but now don’t want me to see you getting dressed, huh?
I didn’t quite understand the logic behind that, but I turned around as she instructed.
I heard the sound of clothes rustling for a moment.
Soon, Seria, fully clothed, approached me and started poking my back.
When I turned around, thankfully, it looked like she was properly dressed now.
Her face was red, but her expression was all smiles, clearly filled with some mischief.
“Rudion, how do I look?”
“…What are you talking about?”
“You saw it.”
“I didn’t see anything.”
“Alkiné, do you think Rudion really didn’t see?”
“I definitely saw him widen his eyes in surprise. He didn’t turn his head at all.”
See? I’m not wrong!
With Alkiné, who was my ally just moments ago, now against me, I realized I had no escape!
When I fought Seria one on one, there was at least some leeway, but facing them both, it felt utterly impossible to win.
So, you feel embarrassed but play it off like this?
Guess I have to counterattack in kind.
“…Hey, Seria.”
“Yes. Are you ready to share your thoughts?”
“I made a mistake.”
In an instant, I put the shirt I was wearing into my inventory.
A surprise attack, and now I’m in the same predicament, serving as my apology in a high-stakes operation.
They say eye for an eye, right?
The most effective way to counter crazy behavior is with even crazier behavior!
Seria… was stunned by my unexpectedly bare torso.
“…Wow.”
…Wow?
Feeling uneasy, I hurriedly pulled out my clothes again to put them back on.
Did you know? Clothes in the inventory can be worn immediately upon pulling them out.
It’s like switching gear in a game, requiring barely a second to change.
“Ah, why?!”
As I returned to wearing my clothes in no time, Seria sighed as if disappointed.
…I swear Alkiné looked equally disappointed, but maybe that was just my imagination?
Anyway, it’s best to wrap this situation up quickly.
“Since I showed you, we’re even, right?”
“There’s a difference between a guy and a girl! To be fair, you should show at least five times… no, maybe fifteen times more!”
“Seria, I don’t share your man-woman biased thinking, so I can’t accept that.”
“What kind of discrimination is this?!”
Seria desperately protested, but I dismissed it all.
I quickly pointed out the next person to speed things along.
“President’s turn.”
“Mm. Fine.”
“Are you really going to do it after seeing what just happened?”
“Of course.”
I was worried she might change her mind after seeing Seria’s antics, but her resolution was firm.
Eventually, we had to repeat the same experiment, but thankfully Alkiné was wearing outerwear, making the failure risk much lower compared to Seria.
And since I learned I didn’t need to touch her near the chest pocket from the previous experiment, I didn’t have to put my hand near that area.
The result of the experiment ended up being… Alkiné’s outerwear went in and out of my inventory once, but otherwise was successful.
“I’m sorry.”
“No, I was expecting that, so it’s fine.”
This isn’t easy. I wonder if there will be a need to use this again, but if there is, I think I would have to be careful.
“…I probably shouldn’t have put this on.”
“What?”
“I think I’m just not good at using this newly acquired ability.”
I hardly feel like I talked that long, but hey, if she thinks so, then that’s that.
Well then… I guess it’s time to wrap things up.
Continuing any further in this atmosphere would only make me miserable.
I might have put more effort into something else than the inventory experiment, but I did try and achieved some results, so I should just be content.
“Is that all?”
“Yeah… I’m mentally exhausted, so I can’t do anything more.”
Thus, the inventory experiment concluded.
Alright, then it’s time to disband. Disband!
“Where do you think you’re going? Didn’t I say I was going to write the report?”
“Ah.”
Right, I did say that.
“Get ready to write the report while I talk to Seria for a bit.”
“What do you have to talk about?”
“Um, I think I might need to reprimand her about the dress code.”
“Oh, I see.”
A very understandable reason indeed.
Yeah, Seria, you crossed the line this time. You need to be scolded a bit.
///
Rudion left first, and Seria and Alkiné were left standing together, gazing at each other.
The first to speak was Alkiné.
“Are you satisfied?”
“Sort of. A little embarrassed, though.”
“After pulling that stunt, being ‘a little’ embarrassed is quite impressive.”
“You regret putting on your outerwear too, don’t you?”
“…”
Contrary to her earlier statement about reprimanding Seria about the dress code, Alkiné was just having a conversation with her.
And this discussion, while not vulgar, definitely strayed closer to something inappropriate.
But when Alkiné was called out for her slip, the conversation couldn’t continue, and a brief silence settled.
How long did it last? The next to speak was, of course, Seria.
“Alkiné. Don’t forget the promise we made, okay?”
“Why would I go that far?”
“Just say you understand. Me letting you spend time together here has been quite a challenge.”
“…I understand.”
At that moment, a chill ran down Alkiné’s spine. She unknowingly blurted out exactly what Seria wanted to hear.
That became their final exchange. Alkiné excused herself and left the scene.
As Seria watched Alkiné’s back as she followed after Rudion, she sighed.
“I’m not entirely happy about this.”
While it’s good to see more people trusting Rudion, her heart felt strangely heavy.
If it were anyone else, she would’ve handled them easily as she usually did.
But maybe because she had formed a bond with him, it wasn’t so easy to do so. They wouldn’t be able to avoid seeing each other anyway.
She nodded when Alkiné wanted to spend time alone with Rudion.
There was definitely a subtle undercurrent between her and Rudion, but it wasn’t strong enough to stop her.
[Current Affection Level: 52/100]
[8 remaining until the next reward.]
Of course, the uncertain one is Rudion, and while her feelings were firm, what significance could that have given the current situation?
“If Mom finds out, she’ll have a fit.”
She had said one should be able to do anything to get what they want, but she wasn’t capable of that. Just thinking about how to explain this later gave her a headache.
…I don’t know. My head isn’t functioning well with all these mixed feelings.
“Hah…”
All she could do was let out a sigh and keep staring at the gloomy sky, hidden behind the trees, that she couldn’t even see properly.
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