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"Close your eyes, turn around, and forget everything you just saw!"
Mahiru Shiina crouched on the ground, covering herself with both hands, her pretty face flushed bright red.
"Forget it? There's no way I can forget that, no matter how I try."
Blake complained as he obediently turned around.
The "angel" bit down lightly on her lip, her voice trembling with embarrassment. "I can help erase your memory… physically, if needed."
Blake replied without hesitation:
"It's already gone. Completely wiped."
"..."
"I'm sorry, this is all my fault…"
Yamada Elf clasped her hands together and apologized to Mahiru with a pitiful expression. Her attitude was extremely sincere.
"It's not your fault, Elf." Mahiru kept one hand over her chest, her cheeks still burning. Her eyes were slightly reproachful. "My clothes… can I have them back?"
"My deepest apologies." Yamada Elf bowed. "I have absolutely no idea where they went."
Standing nearby, Blake stroked his chin and started analyzing:
"Putting together what happened to the three of us, the side effect of this invisibility ability should be something like a 'Right Hand of God.' Basically, if your right hand touches clothes—yours or someone else's—the clothes you touch just vanish mysteriously."
"The clothes that disappeared for me were my pants. For Mahiru, it was her outerwear. As for Yamada…"
"D-Don't say it!"
Yamada Elf's face turned red as she hurriedly cut him off.
There was no way she was letting anyone know what had disappeared under her skirt. That was way too embarrassing!
"Hmm…"
Mahiru blinked, her gaze drifting toward Yamada Elf, a hint of curiosity surfacing.
What exactly had disappeared for Elf to make her this flustered?
The pure "angel" didn't even begin to imagine that Yamada Elf was currently going commando.
The reason was simple.
People tend to judge others by their own standards.
If it had been Mahiru, and her underwear had suddenly vanished, she'd have been too mortified to even speak, let alone run around like nothing happened.
"Anyway, that's the situation." Blake continued, "The 'Right Hand of God' probably only works once per target, and it randomly removes one piece of clothing."
"This is awful…" Yamada Elf looked down at her right hand and couldn't help complaining. "What 'Right Hand of God'? This is obviously the Devil's right hand!"
"Let's not dwell on that. We should deal with the current situation first…"
Mahiru took a deep breath, trying to calm herself, though the blush on her face refused to fade.
"Elf is afraid of heights, so she can't climb the ladder. That means we'll have to rely on you, Blake. Please climb through the window and open the door as quickly as possible."
"Exactly, exactly." Yamada Elf nodded eagerly. "We're counting on you, servant."
Blake glanced between the two girls.
One of them was going commando and couldn't climb the ladder.
The other wasn't, but her sense of shame was so strong she clearly couldn't act under someone else's gaze.
Yeah… he really was the only option.
"Leave it to me."
Blake nodded, accepted the task, and walked over to the ladder. With its help, he quickly climbed up and slipped through the window into the second floor.
"Go wait by the door," he said, poking his head back out to look at them. "I'll open it right away."
"..."
A moment later—
The door, which had been blown shut by the wind, quietly opened.
The next second, the two girls darted inside at lightning speed.
"Saved!" Yamada Elf let out a long sigh of relief, hands on her hips. "At least we won't have to sleep on the streets tonight."
You were planning to crash here from the start. You never even considered sleeping outside!
"I'll go grab some snacks." Back home, Yamada Elf's sense of security had clearly returned. Her voice was bright and cheerful. "Let's eat something to calm down."
"It's already late… I'll pass on the snacks." Mahiru gently bit her lower lip, refusing in a soft voice, her pale skin still tinged with red. "Elf… could you lend me some clothes first?"
"Ah—right! I'll go get some!"
Yamada Elf smacked her forehead and ran off barefoot with quick, light steps.
"Phew…"
Mahiru let out a quiet breath, then turned her gaze toward Blake.
"Blake, you can go home now."
"I'd love to," he said helplessly. "How about returning my clothes first?"
Mahiru: "..."
Before long, Yamada Elf came running back, holding two outfits.
"Mahiru, which one do you want?"
She held one in each hand, asking brightly.
"Um…"
Mahiru's face flushed again, her voice timid. Honestly, she didn't want either.
"Do you… have anything else?"
Yamada Elf was a classic chunibyo girl, so her taste in clothes was anything but ordinary. One outfit was a fluffy pink-and-white lolita princess dress, and the other was a cute black-and-white maid uniform.
Unfortunately, both were way too embarrassing for Mahiru.
"Nope." Yamada Elf replied cheerfully. "I just moved in today, so most of my clothes aren't unpacked yet. These are the only clean ones."
"Then…"
Mahiru pressed her lips together, hesitated for a moment, and finally made her choice. She shyly reached out and took the maid outfit.
"I-I'll wear this one."
She had no choice. With her outerwear gone, she was basically down to her underwear. Going without anything was just too humiliating.
Compared to the lolita dress she'd never tried before, the maid outfit felt slightly more acceptable. After all, maid cafés were pretty common during school festivals.
"Blake… aren't you leaving yet?"
Mahiru held the maid outfit in front of her body, her eyes wary as she looked at him.
Blake put on a righteous expression. "I'll head back after I help purify Elf's magic."
A maid outfit on an angel? Totally not interested!
"Yeah, yeah, the servant can stay a bit longer. It's just next door anyway." Yamada Elf stood with her hands on her hips, her face full of curiosity. "No waiting until tomorrow. Explain this whole 'witch' and 'side effect' thing to me right now."
"..."
Mahiru opened her mouth as if to speak, but in the end, she said nothing.
She was a guest here. It wouldn't be right for her to overstep and kick out another guest on the host's behalf. So she took a deep breath, cheeks still red, and headed to the bathroom to change.
"Servant, sit for a bit." Yamada Elf said. "I need to change too."
Blake added:
"No need to wash the coat. I'll take it back and clean it myself."
"Hm?" Yamada Elf covered her mouth, a teasing smile appearing on her face. "Are you planning to hug the clothes I wore and roll around in bed?"
They had only just met today, but her carefree personality, combined with their earlier "adventure," meant she was already treating him like a close acquaintance.
Blake looked at her with a blank, slightly disgusted expression.
"Sorry, I'm not into flat chests."
"Ugh—!"
Yamada Elf puffed up her cheeks in anger and kicked him in the shin.
"Idiot servant! Flat is premium value! All you boob-obsessed people are criminals!"
"....."