"Assistant-kun, I'm entrusting Sagiri's abstinence tonight to you."
"Don't worry, Contractor! Leave it to me!"
Before Izumi Masamune finished school, Ito handed the task of supervising Sagiri's abstinence for the night over to the Fairy and left Sagiri's house.
Although the system was in place, even if Sagiri were to open up a QQ Space, it would be impossible for her to vent her desires, but they had to complete the performance... School dismissal times in the city were generally similar, and even if they differed, it wouldn't be by much.
Although Kaimu and Misaki didn't attend the same school as Izumi Masamune, their dismissal time was roughly the same as his. Ito left Sagiri's house just as Izumi Masamune was due to return, placing him right outside Kaimu and Misaki's school gate at dismissal time.
At school, the Homebound Club was the mainstream, and Kaimu and Misaki were members of it. As soon as school let out, a bustling crowd poured out of the school gate, and Ito struggled to search for Kaimu and Misaki among the flow of people.
The students were all wearing uniforms, and since this was a world mixing surface and hidden elements where various hair colors existed, Kaimu's dyed blonde hair wasn't particularly conspicuous.
The only person who stood out to Ito was a petite girl with pink hair.
It wasn't because her hair color was obvious, but because the petite girl carrying a guitar case on her back was quite eye-catching.
Wait... long pink hair carrying a guitar case? A dusty memory slightly loosened.
Could this be an unexpected bonus!?
In his previous life, Ito hadn't watched many H-anime or read many doujinshi, and even for the ones he had seen, he didn't remember the protagonists' names. But regular anime was different; his memory of mainstream characters was much deeper.
Ito curiously sized up the pink-haired girl carrying the guitar case while trying to recall the past.
Pink hair, guitar case... Could it be Bocchi-chan?
Hiss... What was Bocchi-chan's name again?
While Ito was trying to remember, the girl suspected to be Bocchi-chan had already walked away. At the same time, a familiar voice reached Ito's ears.
"Ito-sensei~~~"
Just stepping out of the school gate, Kaimu spotted Ito, grabbed Misaki, and waved as they walked toward him.
The three of them had arranged to go to Orie's house tonight to try on the cosplay outfits.
Because Orie finished work relatively late, Ito suggested that he pick up Kaimu and Misaki after school, and then the three of them would go to Orie's house together.
The superficial reason was concern for their safety, but the actual reason... well, that went without saying.
Hehe.
Ito had only met the two of them once before, so he wanted to find more opportunities to see them. As for whether things worked out or not, Ito wouldn't force it.
"Ito-sensei, sorry to keep you waiting." Kaimu smiled and greeted Ito, while Misaki beside her gave a slight bow.
Although both girls were the gyaru type, they weren't the delinquent girls of old. They simply paid close attention to their appearance, and both had small accessories on their ears, uniforms, and wrists to show off their individuality.
"I just arrived myself."
Ito smiled and glanced in the direction the girl suspected to be Bocchi-chan had left. She was already out of sight, but Ito didn't dwell on it too much. Pink hair and a guitar case weren't exclusive to Bocchi-chan; in this world, all hair colors were common, and a pink-haired girl liking instruments wasn't rare.
Besides... knowing that she attended the same school as Kaimu, he could try to strike up a conversation next time he had the chance.
He turned his attention back to Kaimu and Misaki.
"Want to grab something to drink? My treat."
"Really?" Misaki patted Ito's shoulder carelessly. "Then we won't be polite, okay?"
Ito smiled. "No need to be polite with me."
It was still early for Orie to get off work, so the three of them were in no hurry. After buying a cold drink, they leisurely chatted while walking towards Orie's house.
"You two seem very popular at school? I feel quite a few hostile glances."
"Hehe, Kaimu is quite popular." Misaki playfully poked Kaimu's waist with her elbow and chuckled, "It seems someone confessed to Kaimu today too? Kaimu has had many people confess to her since she started high school."
"Sigh…" Kaimu sighed, showing a troubled expression. "If it's a classmate, that's fine, but I don't even remember many of the people who confess to me. How could such a confession possibly succeed? Ito-sensei, you're also a man, why do you think someone would just confess directly?"
"I find it strange too."
Ito had always been curious when watching anime.
In many works, there are plots where the female protagonist is confessed to by a completely unknown classmate, and things like shoe lockers filled with love letters… Although Ito knew that anime is anime and reality is reality, he wondered what people who directly confessed without ever having spoken before, or only having exchanged a word or two, were thinking.
If someone could casually accept a confession without any prior interaction, wouldn't that mean there's a big problem with that person?
"In my opinion, a confession isn't a bugle call for charge, but a bugle call for victory."
"Exactly, exactly!!" Kaimu, who was frequently confessed to, strongly agreed with this. "I really don't know what those people are thinking!"
"Tsk… Kaimu, that's a happy problem for you, it means you're popular. Why doesn't anyone confess to me? Ito-sensei, I look decent, right?"
Ito's gaze fell on Misaki.
"In terms of appearance, Misaki is definitely not bad, it's just that Misaki, you and Kaimu have different styles. Misaki, your figure is more voluptuous, while Kaimu is more slender."
Misaki and Kaimu both had blonde hair, but Kaimu's blonde hair was soft and smooth, while Misaki's was a bit frizzy. In terms of bust size, although Kaimu was already an E, in Ito's opinion, Misaki was slightly larger than Kaimu.
"It's because Misaki usually acts too scary, boys are afraid of you and don't dare to confess." Kaimu said with a playful smile, "Hey, hey, Ito-sensei, have you ever been confessed to by a girl when you were in school?"
"Or were you always alone like an otaku?" Misaki teased with a wicked smile.
"Yes, but not many, but I rejected them all. At the time…"
Ito recalled his high school days, a smile unconsciously curving on his lips.
As they chatted about love, Kaimu and Misaki, who were meeting Ito for the second time, gradually became more familiar with him.
The three of them, like they were taking a stroll, unknowingly arrived downstairs at Orie's apartment. Ito checked the time; if Orie wasn't working overtime, she should be arriving soon.
They didn't have to wait long before Orie's figure appeared in the distance.
Seeing the three from afar, Orie jogged all the way to them, her soft chest bouncing with her movements.
"Hiss… ha… hiss… ha." Orie panted a couple of times after jogging before speaking again, "Sorry, sorry for being late."
"We haven't been here long either." Ito smiled, not holding back his praise, "You made three cosplay costumes in such a short time, Orie, you're amazing."
"Not at all…" Orie shyly adjusted her red-framed glasses. "This time was quite urgent. For Ito-sensei and Mashiro's cosplay costumes, I bought semi-finished products and modified them. Only the H-manga Teacher's set required high customization, it was hard to find semi-finished products, so it took a lot of time."
In the past, when Orie made cosplay costumes for Kaimu, they would personally select the fabrics together from scratch, and then hand-sew them stitch by stitch.
Completely different from those who only buy finished products to cosplay or don't even know which work the cosplayed character is from, Orie and Kaimu do it purely out of passion.
The four of them chatted as they walked towards Orie's apartment.
In the past, Orie always visited Ito; this was Ito's first time visiting Orie's place.
Taking the elevator to the apartment door, Orie's face was flushed with shyness.
"Um… the room is a bit messy, I didn't have time to tidy up, please don't mind it."
Orie took out her key and inserted it into the keyhole.
Click, the key was upside down.
She turned it 180 degrees and tried again.
Click, it was upside down again.
She turned it another 180 degrees back to its original side.
Hmm, this time it finally went in.
Sometimes, keys are like USB drives; you have to turn them around once and then turn them back to insert them correctly.
As soon as the door opened, Ito smelled the unique scent of new clothes from a clothing store. In Orie's home, the source of this scent wasn't new clothes, but various fabrics.
In the small apartment, a sewing machine stood out. The three newly made cosplay costumes hung on nail-free hooks on the wall.
Besides that, there were several simple wardrobes. Perhaps she hadn't had time to tidy up, as there were still many fabric scraps, threads, leather remnants, and other waste products from making cosplay costumes on the floor.
Compared to an apartment for living, this place felt more like a person living in a studio.
"Wow… amazing! Did you make all these, Orie? This set… this set is mine, right?"
Ito had shown Misaki the character design of Sagiri, and she recognized it at a glance.
"Hey, hey, can I wear it now?" Misaki's excitement was written all over her face, as it was her first time wearing a cosplay costume.
"Of course, the purpose of this visit is for you to try on the clothes to see if they fit. If there are minor issues, there's still time to alter them in the next two days."
"Hehe, Orie's creations will have no problems!"
Kaimu took down her set and went to the bathroom with Misaki to change. Ito, pointing to the wardrobe next to him, asked,
"Are these all various cosplay costumes you made? Can I take a look?"
"Um… ugh…" Orie looked at the wardrobe Ito pointed to, her face flushed with shyness and a hint of hesitation. "Please… please feel free to look."
Of course she made cosplay costumes, but what she made most were not cosplay costumes but… lingerie.
When Ito pulled open the simple wardrobe, what greeted his eyes was a row of lingerie, some of which Ito found particularly familiar.
Ito remembered Orie saying that the reason she became an editor of erotic doujinshi was because she liked seeing cute girls wearing sexy clothes.
The reason she learned tailoring was because she wanted to bring the cute clothes from manga into reality.
Previously, for Ito's 'research', Orie had also worn a set.
"These lingerie… uh, have you worn all these clothes, Orie?"
"Th-that's natural!" Orie became serious and eagerly introduced to Ito, "Cute clothes appear in this world to be worn, you know! This set is the battle suit of Anti-Demon Ninja, it's from…"
Normally, Orie always gave the impression of being shy, but once she started talking about topics that interested her, she would speak endlessly. Orie remembered the name of every character for whom she made clothes and which manga they were from.
"Tsk tsk tsk… what a pity."
"Eh…? Ito-sensei?" Orie looked at Ito, who was shaking his head and sighing, in confusion. "Why does Ito-sensei say it's a pity?"
"These are the battle suits of manga heroines, but unfortunately… they have never experienced a battle since they were created."
Ito started spouting nonsense with a straight face.
"I can almost hear them crying. Their mission has been forgotten, and they can only lie in the wardrobe instead of being worn by girls to fight. They want their lineage to be passed down."
"Ito-sensei really is…" Orie hesitated, wanting to say something but stopping. As a doujinshi editor, her experience with doujinshi was much greater than Ito's, so she naturally knew what Ito was implying.
After hesitating for a while, she quietly added,
"Lewd."
"Hmm? Orie, where did your mind go? Do you think I'm implying that you should wear these clothes and fight with me?" Ito said with a straight face.
"N-no?" Orie's eyes widened in shock. "Passing down the lineage… doesn't that mean having children?"
"Of course not." Then Ito began to spout nonsense with a straight face. "These battle suits come from different hands, and their designs are all excellent, exquisite, and alluring, but few people notice them, and few people make them. They lie here only to be forgotten."
"So what I mean is…"
"Ito-sensei means…?"
"If someone could integrate the strengths of all these, absorbing the advantages of these battle suits, they might be able to create the strongest battle suit. And the absorption method is very simple: as long as someone can wear these battle suits and fight with the same person, that person can then comprehend the strongest battle suit."
"…Ito-sensei!!!!"
"Don't misunderstand, this is for drawing better manga, helping mangaka draw better manga is the editor's responsibility… Hahahaha."
After saying so much with a straight face, Ito finally couldn't hold it in anymore.
"Ahem, let's get back to business." Ito cleared his throat. "Currently, including me, there are four mangaka and one assistant in Baumkuchen. If Orie, you could provide us with reference material by wearing these battle suits, our ability to design battle suits would surely greatly improve."
"Four mangaka!? And an assistant?"
"Besides Mashiro and H-manga Teacher, Kashiwagi Eri has also joined Baumkuchen."
"Eh eh eh eh!??? Kashiwagi Eri-sensei too? Even we don't know Kashiwagi Eri-sensei's true identity, does Ito-sensei know?"
Orie subconsciously held her breath. Ito, Mashiro, H-manga Teacher, and Kashiwagi Eri—Baumkuchen, though small, had a strong lineup.
"Of course." Ito smiled. "If Orie, you're willing to provide us with reference material, you'll know their identities."
"I…"
Orie had seen the chaotic relationship between Ito, Mashiro, and Nanami when she was taking their measurements. The so-called 'reference material'… was probably going to involve a lewd party.
But… if everyone in Baumkuchen could contribute to the editorial department, she would definitely be able to transform from an intern editor to a true doujinshi editor!
Moreover… helping artists draw better is indeed an editor's responsibility.
Just as Orie was hesitating whether to agree, the bathroom door opened, and Kaimu and Misaki, dressed in their cosplay costumes, walked out of the bathroom.
Orie quickly shifted her attention to the two of them and spoke up immediately.
"How is it? Is anything not fitting?"
"Hmm… if the waist part could be cinched in a little more, it would fit better… but Ito-sensei's heroine has short hair, would it be difficult to use a wig if I have long hair? Or should I cut my hair short?"
"Hmm…" Orie carefully scrutinized the two of them. "Kaimu, with your hair volume, a wig should be fine, but Misaki, your hair is too thick and fluffy, you can't use a wig at all, and… the biggest problem isn't the wig, skin tone can be done with makeup, but the figure…"
Kaimu was actually fine. JK cosplaying JK only needed a bit of makeup, a wig, and a uniform change to be almost complete.
But Misaki was cosplaying an otherworldly catgirl, and a flat-chested loli catgirl at that… it was completely unrelated. Compressing an E cup to an A cup was simply impossible.
"Don't worry about that, in fact, the bigger the difference in figure, the better." Ito paused. "The fact that you're still cosplaying despite such a big difference in figure proves your love for this character, and it will move H-manga Teacher even more, prompting her to come out of her room."
"Is… is that so? Thank you…" Misaki felt that Ito was comforting her, but there was nothing to be done. It was too difficult to make a busty hot girl cosplay a flat-chested loli catgirl.
To give Sagiri a surprise, people Sagiri knew couldn't be used, otherwise Kamino Megumi, Ami, Maki, any of them would do.
Secondly, personal willingness had to be considered. After all, this was an 18+ doujinshi cosplay. There were no real people behind the doujinshi, but cosplay involved real girls.
Kaimu's friends were all students, and not everyone could openly declare their love for 18+ games like Kaimu.
Many people take photos at Comiket. If classmates found out about cosplaying a heroine from an 18+ manga, it would likely be discovered by classmates. Not everyone could be as outgoing as Kaimu, bravely fighting back when others mocked or despised her interests.
So, after much thought, only Misaki, who also liked 18+ and was a fan of Eri Ri, remained. And she was doing it voluntarily, fully aware of everything.
Later, Eri Ri could secretly observe her, then draw her portrait and sign it… Misaki should like it.
"You don't need to change your figure or hair color. Just put on some makeup to make your exposed skin whiter. The important thing isn't the cosplay itself, but getting the shut-in H-manga Teacher out of her room and to Comiket."
"At that time…" Ito took a deep breath and solemnly entrusted, "I'll be counting on you."
Let the cosplay tempt her mentally, and his own edging training tempt her physically.
A two-pronged approach will surely get Sagiri out of her room!
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