"After wearing this Pure White Bride, one will obtain two abilities, one of which is [Flawless]..."
Kitahara briefly described the effects of the optimized affixes, then softly offered his own analysis:
"The so-called debuff state should simply mean negative effects. The Panacea might not be something one can drink casually, but the Fox Spirit Mask can most likely be used without restrictions."
Kita blinked, quickly understanding:
"The misfortune clinging to someone after taking off the Fox Spirit Mask counts as a negative effect?"
"Kita is very smart, thinking the exact same thing as me." Kitahara nodded in agreement, his gaze falling upon Kita and Hitori. "However, whether it matches our conjecture will only be known after verification."
"Mm-hm~" Kita rested both hands on her hips, tilting her dainty chin up, turning to look at her close friend beside her, "Does Hitori want to verify the Bride attire's effects?"
"I don't want to."
Hitori's little head shook rapidly like a pellet drum.
"There's really no helping it then." The corners of Kita's lips curled upward, her small face full of delight, her voice crisp and bright, "Looks like I can only sacrifice myself."
Saying you're sacrificing yourself—you've clearly been itching to try it for ages!
"The Fox Spirit Mask is inside the backpack."
Kitahara said softly:
"Later, put on the mask first, find a way to trigger the negative state of being haunted by misfortune, and then put on the Pure White Bride to complete the verification."
After wearing the Pure White Bride, the affix [Flawless] will be activated. At that time, taking off the Fox Spirit Mask will cause the accumulated 'misfortune' to strike, allowing them to directly observe how effective the affix [Flawless] truly is.
"Shall we go to the Class 2-C classroom for lunch?"
Kita raised her right hand, her voice crisp:
"The event hosted by Class C is a dessert cafe. If you spend over a certain amount, you can get a lottery ticket. It's said the first prize is a brand-new guitar."
"It's clearly a dessert cafe—why would the prize be a guitar?"
Kitahara couldn't help but complain.
Lottery events weren't anything unusual; many stalls at the School Festival used lotteries for spending over a certain amount to attract customers.
"It's very simple." Kita rested her left hand on her hip, gently wagging her slender right index finger, her voice bright and melodious, "Because Senior Yami's parents in Class 2-C run a musical instrument shop, and Senior Yami generously sponsored the guitar."
The corner of Kitahara's mouth twitched slightly: "Knowing senior girls in the second year is one thing, but you even know about other people's family situations?"
"Ehehe~"
Kita proudly raised her little chin, winking her right eye:
"Please call me the School Know-It-All!"
As expected of an outgoing, sunshiny girl with friends all over the world. If you ran for the position of next Student Council President, it would definitely be in the bag!
"Let's go to the dessert cafe then." Kitahara nodded and agreed; he was currently on break, so going anywhere was fine. "However, before leaving, there's still one more thing."
"Eh?" Kita looked over curiously, "What is it?"
"I plan to share the [Optimization] ability with you two first." Kitahara said softly, "If you discover any optimizable items, you can buy them first and notify me immediately."
"Got it"
Kita stood on her tiptoes slightly, tilting up her fair, doll-like, charmingly cute face:
"Quick, kiss me, kiss me."
Kitahara: "..."
The Kita who used to blush just at the mention of kissing can truly never return.
After kissing Kita and sharing the ability over, Kitahara turned his head to look at Hitori.
"Hitori, it's your turn."
"Ah..."
Hitori's small face flushed red instantly. Although she was very shy, Kita was no outsider after all; last semester in the storage room, she and Kita had teamed up for the Pocky Challenge and kissed many times right in front of Kita.
As a side note.
The Pocky Challenge, which had continued all the way from last semester to the present, was finally successfully concluded by Kita not long ago.
As for why Kita suddenly became super formidable... Hitori didn't dare ask more at all.
A moment later.
Along with a soft mwah sound, the girl's rapid panting immediately rang out.
"Haaah... haaah..."
Hitori clutched her chest, gasping for breath.
"Ability sharing successful." Kitahara raised his hand to wipe away the silver thread of saliva at the corner of his lips, showing no trace of shame on his face, "I'll be counting on you two next."
"Kitahara-kun is taking things too far."
Kita's cheeks puffed up softly.
Favoritism!
Unfair!
When kissing me it was so simple, but when kissing Hitori it left a string of saliva, didn't it?
It really makes one mad!
Kitahara leaned close to Kita's ear, whispering softly:
"After we verify the effects of the Pure White Bride later, I'll soak in the onsen with Kita alone, without bringing Hitori along."
"Phooey~"
Kita's face flushed slightly as she spat lightly, secretly pinching Kitahara's waist with her hand, then waved her hand:
"Let's set off, let's go!"
"..."
The three of them left the Onsen Dimension together and returned to the school hallway.
The Domain had already been activated in advance, so there was no worry of causing trouble.
Ten minutes later.
Led by Kita, Kitahara and Hitori had already arrived at the entrance of the dessert cafe located on the third floor.
Today was Friday, so customers were still mainly students; tomorrow and the day after were the truly busy and lively times, so there weren't many customers in line.
After waiting in line for a brief moment, the three were guided into the dessert cafe by a girl and sat down at a clean, round table by the window.
"Kita-chan, welcome, welcome!"
A senior girl with a ponytail walked over holding menus.
"Suzuki-senpai, thanks for your hard work this morning!"
Kita smiled brightly, happily chatting away with her.
As an outgoing girl, Kita had friends all across the entire campus and could greet anyone she ran into.
After chatting for a couple of sentences, the ponytail senior smiled and handed over the menus:
"May I ask what the three guests would like to eat?"
Kitahara's gaze fell upon the menu, finding that most of the options were desserts. After all, it was a dessert cafe, so having mostly sweets was not surprising.
"Give me an omurice, please. Thank you."
Kitahara scanned it briefly, then ordered politely.
He had no interest in sweets; a simple portion of omurice was more than enough.
Hitori and Kita, on the other hand, hesitated for a good while before ordering two different desserts, planning to share and taste each other's later.
"Hey, look, look." Kita lowered her voice, pointing a slender, delicate finger toward the podium, "After we finish eating later, we'll draw the lottery over there."
"I see it." Kitahara looked up over there, his tone carrying deep meaning, "Very good, it's an old-fashioned lottery machine; no need to worry about anyone manipulating it behind the scenes."
Since it was a completely randomized, closed lottery draw, the passive ability [Schrödinger's Cat] could be activated.
If Kita could draw the guitar directly, that would naturally be best; if she couldn't, it didn't matter either, as Kitahara would naturally make a move.
The first prize was a brand-new guitar, so there was certainly no reason to miss out on it.
A moment later.
Three dishes were served.
"Kitahara-kun, would you like some 'Delicious Magic' cast on it?"
The person serving the food was a cute senior girl dressed in a chef's uniform. Even though they had never met before, she was able to call out Kitahara's name in one breath. Right now, she was being exceptionally bold, her eyes sparkling as she looked over, completely undisguised in her affection.
Delicious Magic... it's actually Rip-off Magic, right?
In those Akihabara maid cafes, an ordinary serving of omurice—after the maid casts her 'Love Magic' on it, plus a glass of soft drink—has its price instantly skyrocket to ten thousand yen. That is downright ripping people off!
You guys are running a dessert cafe, not a maid cafe—do your business properly and seriously!
A slight pain came from the tip of his toe.
Kita placed her hands crossed on the table, looking over with a seated smile:
"Suzuki-senpai's Delicious Magic is definitely super delicious, Kitahara-kun surely can't miss out on it."
Saying I can't miss out on it—why don't you stop stepping on my foot under the table!
"Sorry, no need." Kitahara refused politely, "I'll just eat directly."
"W-Well, alright then..."
A look of disappointment instantly appeared on the chef senior's pretty face, and she turned and walked away dejectedly.
"Kitahara-kun really is popular, huh." Kita's cheeks puffed up slightly, "I'm truly sorry that Hitori and I are acting as third wheels."
Kitahara turned his head to look at Kita:
"Actually, I'm nearsighted."
"Eh?"
Hitori tilted up her small face in confusion, her peach-blossom eyes peeking curiously through her bangs.
Kitahara continued speaking in a faint, leisurely tone:
"In this dessert cafe, aside from Kita and Hitori, my eyes can no longer hold anyone else."
"What's that? That kind of line can only fool little kids in kindergarten, right?"
Kita complained in a quiet whisper, but her eyes quickly curved into crescent moons, clearly enjoying hearing it very much. If the dessert cafe hadn't been filled with so many eyes and ears, she would have definitely made Kitahara say a few more words.
Next came mealtime.
The three of them dutifully finished their lunch, paid the bill, and prepared to head up for the lottery.
"Mm, wait a second, my phone is vibrating..."
Kita looked down and retrieved her phone from her pocket, soon pursing her lips:
"An emergency happened in my class and I need to head back immediately to handle it. The lottery draw can only be left to Hitori-chan."
"Ah...?"
Hearing this, Hitori panicked and tilted up her small face, saying hastily:
"I-I'll go back together with Kita."
"Leaving it to me is enough; Hitori, stay here." Kita walked outward with brisk steps, not forgetting to give a thumbs-up, "Don't forget to tell me the verification result later."
Before her voice had fully faded, Kita had already dashed out of the dessert cafe like a wisp of smoke.
"Looks like I can only trouble Hitori then." Kitahara withdrew his gaze, looked at Hitori with a smile, and handed over the Fox Spirit Mask in his hand, "Hitori, put on the mask."
"C-Can we wait until Kita comes back?"
Hitori's small face quickly flushed red, looking over with pitiful pleading eyes, clearly having realized the consequences of taking Kita's place.
Wearing the mask for the lottery draw was fine, and enduring being haunted by misfortune was bearable too, but only after putting on the Pure White Bride could the affix effect be triggered...
(A-Absolutely not! Wedding dresses are far too terrifying!)
(Clearly still just a high schooler—wedding dresses and such should at least wait until graduating from university!)
(I want to turn into a paramecium so badly, drifting far away with the wind in the air...)
"Wait until Kita comes back?" Kitahara gestured behind him with his eyes, "Is Hitori sure you want to cause trouble for others?"
There were many customers in the dessert cafe, and basically everyone participated in the lottery event. In just this short while, people had already begun lining up behind Kitahara and Hitori.
"Ah..."
Hitori secretly peeked behind her. Seeing the queued-up customers behind them, the ahoge on top of her head trembled in panic, and she quickly pulled back her gaze.
Compared to her own embarrassment, not troubling others was indeed more important...
"Don't space out." Kitahara naturally understood what choice Hitori would make and simply placed the Fox Spirit Mask into her hands, "Hurry up and draw the lottery."
"..."
Hitori's small face was as crimson as fire. She could only submissively accept the Fox Spirit Mask, shyly strapping the mask onto her face.
"Hitori draws first, I'll cover the rear."
Kitahara took a half-step back, letting Hitori step forward for the draw, preparing to reenact the lottery scene from back at the motorcycle shop.
If Hitori didn't win the first prize, Kitahara could still handle the 'guaranteed pity.'
"Okay..."
After putting on the Fox Spirit Mask, Hitori quietly let out a sigh of relief. Her nervousness was greatly eased, but her bashfulness only grew without lessening.
"Student, please begin the draw."
A senior girl wearing black-rimmed glasses smiled and looked over. Although she was curious as to why Hitori put on a fox mask before the lottery, she didn't take it to heart, instead stealing glances at Kitahara from time to time.
Clatter, clatter.
Hitori took a deep breath, covered her chest with her right hand, stepped forward, and spun the old-fashioned lottery machine. The balls inside tumbled along with it, letting out a pleasant sound.
Before long, a ball dropped onto the tray with a clack.
The glasses-wearing senior picked up the ball, and after confirming its contents, gasped lightly:
"Congratulations, student! You won the first prize!"
"Ah...?"
Hearing this, Hitori wasn't happy; instead, she grew even more nervous.
The Fox Spirit Mask is so powerful, so the misfortune is bound to be very severe too, right?
After winning the prize, without any gimmicks, a senior girl soon stepped forward and handed a brand-new guitar to Hitori.
"S-So pretty..."
Hitori hugged the guitar with both hands, her eyes sparkling brightly.
She had seen the price and model of this new guitar online before; the price was quite expensive, and adding her part-time job earnings and pocket money together wasn't enough to buy one. Getting it through a lottery draw now naturally made her exceptionally happy.
Right after, another girl stepped forward, asking if Hitori could take off the mask to take a photo together for the School Festival's commemorative booklet. Unfortunately, Hitori shook her head in panic, refusing no matter what.
Once the good luck was used up, 'misfortune' would arrive immediately. If she took off the mask now, her bra strap would definitely snap for no rhyme or reason like last time, wouldn't it?
(Something so humiliating—absolutely not, aahhh!)
Next, it was Kitahara's turn to step up for the lottery.
Since the first prize had already been claimed by Hitori, Kitahara didn't need to provide the guaranteed pity, so he simply drew a third prize, the reward being a cute chef-girl figurine.
One after the other, Kitahara and Hitori left the dessert cafe, arrived at an empty corridor corner, and decisively entered the Onsen Dimension with Hitori.
"Hitori, hurry up and go change into the wedding dress." Kitahara looked over with a burning gaze, "Remember not to take off the Fox Spirit Mask while changing into the wedding dress, so you don't run into danger."
"U-Um..." Hitori parted her lips, whispering softly, "This guitar should be given to Kita."
"Hm?"
"If Kita hadn't left suddenly, the person who won the guitar would have been Kita, so..."
Understanding Hitori's hesitation, Kitahara simply waved his hand:
"Hitori, keep this guitar for yourself. I asked just now, and that senior said there will still be a first prize tomorrow. We'll go draw another guitar for Kita tomorrow."
Hitori: "..."