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"How could you??"
Kai's explanation made Marin Kitagawa blurt out without a single second of hesitation.
"How could you miss out on such an absolute masterpiece just because you didn't have the money? I'll lend you my copy of the game later. You absolutely have to try it!"
She's seriously persistent.
"I don't actually have a PC or console to play it on right now."
"NO WAY! THAT SUCKS!"
Marin instantly deflated, losing all her energy.
But immediately after, as if a brilliant idea had just struck her, she perked right back up and exclaimed:
"How about this? Whenever you're free later, just come over to my place and play it!"
"??"
'Did she just invite me over to her house to play an eroge?' Looking at Marin's incredibly earnest and sincere expression, Kai couldn't shake the bizarre feeling that he was the one falling into a trap.
Shouldn't he be the one taking the initiative here?
"Ahem!"
Sitting off to the side, Yukino couldn't help but clear her throat loudly.
Especially when she saw just how physically close Marin had gotten to Kai, a subconscious, highly uncomfortable feeling flared up in Yukino's chest.
"Kitagawa-san, please get back to the matter at hand. It's getting late."
Right now, all Yukino wanted was to quickly resolve the issue and shoo Marin out the door.
"Oh, right, right! The actual problem!"
Marin was entirely pure-hearted and lacked any ulterior motives. Hearing Yukino's reminder, she immediately picked up her original train of thought.
"Well, I really, really want to cosplay Shizuku-tan. But since the pre-made cosplay outfits online are super expensive and usually have a ton of flaws, I decided to make one myself from scratch."
"Shizuku-tan?"
"Shizuku-tan is Shizuku Kuroe! She's the main heroine from Saint Slippery's Academy—"
"Alright, I understand."
Before Marin could finish blurting out that absurdly long, highly embarrassing title again, Yukino quickly raised a hand and cut her off.
"So, your request is for us to help you tailor your cosplay outfit?" Yukino felt she had successfully deduced the nature of Marin's problem.
"No, that's not it! I've actually already made a good chunk of it myself, it's just..."
Pausing right there.
Marin hesitated for a split second before suddenly reaching up to grab the zipper of her jacket.
"Wait. Kai, step outside for a moment."
Seeing Marin's actions and immediately guessing what she was about to do, Yukino ordered Kai out of the room. After all, there were boundaries between boys and girls.
However...
"No, no, it's completely fine! We're fellow otaku comrades, so it's not a big deal!"
"..."
Before anyone could say another word, Marin moved a step faster and threw off her jacket. He couldn't actually see anything indecent—the garment underneath perfectly covered all the critical areas. The only undeniable takeaway was that Marin Kitagawa had an absolutely incredible figure.
"This is the cosplay outfit you made?"
Beneath the jacket was a clearly unfinished, recently tailored cosplay dress.
It was obvious that this was just the base foundation—most of the intricate frills and lace decorations hadn't been attached yet. Still, it was glaringly apparent that Marin had poured her heart and soul into it. Every single stitch and seam was meticulously crafted.
Yukino couldn't fathom it—with tailoring skills this impressive, what did she even need their help for?
"Well, after I finished this base layer, I couldn't resist trying it on. But then... I couldn't take it off."
"?"
Yukino blinked in sheer bewilderment.
Then, she asked in a highly uncertain tone. "You couldn't take it off? What exactly do you mean by that?"
"I mean exactly what it sounds like! No matter what I do, it's like this fabric has literally fused to my skin. I've tried cutting it with scissors, burning it with a lighter... absolutely nothing leaves a mark."
"??"
'What is going on? Weren't we just having a completely normal, mundane conversation? How did this suddenly escalate into a full-blown paranormal incident?' Even Shizuka Hiratsuka, who had been grinning on the sidelines enjoying the show, completely froze in shock.
"Is it possible you just messed up the measurements while sewing it, and now it's too tight to pull over your head?"
"No, I swear! I've seriously tried every method possible, and it won't budge. If you don't believe me, you can try it yourselves."
Saying that.
Marin threw her arms wide open, adopting a stance that essentially invited them to step up and try.
"..."
"Let me try."
Unable to hold back her curiosity, Shizuka stepped forward.
Clothes that can't be taken off? This statement genuinely piqued Kai's interest. However, he didn't rush forward to show off. Instead, he simply stood quietly on the sidelines, watching closely. If things went sideways, he could instantly step in and resolve the issue.
————————————————————
"How is this possible? Is the fabric just that incredibly durable?"
Shizuka struggled with it for several minutes, only to discover that it truly wouldn't budge an inch. Beads of sweat were already starting to form on her forehead.
"It's literally just ordinary fabric."
As she said this, Marin's face was filled with sheer helplessness.
That was exactly why she had desperately sought out Hiratsuka-sensei for help, which ultimately led her here. In reality, Shizuka hadn't known the specifics of Marin's problem in the beginning either. She had merely assumed it was a standard student issue, which was why she dumped the request onto Yukino.
But she absolutely hadn't expected this.
This request had clearly crossed the boundary from the mundane straight into the supernatural.
"Are you not terrified?"
Seeing Marin still smiling so cheerfully, Yukino couldn't help but ask.
"I mean, I was pretty freaked out at first, but I'm not that scared anymore."
Marin scratched her head sheepishly. Her personality bordered on that of an absolute social butterfly—the more people there were around her, the more outgoing and comfortable she became. She had been panicked initially, but now surrounded by others, her fear had mostly dissipated.
"After all, at the end of the day, it's just a piece of clothing. Even if I can't take it off, it's not like I'm going to literally die from it, right?"
"..."
Yukino and the others fell into a heavy silence.
None of them had ever encountered a phenomenon like this before, so they had absolutely no idea what the consequences might be.
"You will." Breaking the heavy, dead silence in the room, Kai suddenly spoke up.
"??"
Instantly, all eyes snapped toward him.
Staring directly into Marin Kitagawa's eyes, Kai stated with absolute certainty.
"If enough time passes, you really will die."
"Kai, don't make such morbid jokes," Yukino couldn't help but reprimand him.
"I usually love a good joke, but this isn't one."
Knowing exactly what Yukino was thinking, Kai simply shook his head.
"If I'm not mistaken, this dress is actively draining Marin's life force. It's going to continuously absorb her energy until it completely assimilates her. Once that happens... Marin will be completely dead."
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