“Why do we have to go in together?”

  As the fragrance of the bath reached the tip of her nose, the drowsiness that had been restraining Mira lessened a bit and, since she was already there, the girl decided to get into the water. Of course, the main reason for that choice was her curiosity over the enormous bath in the castle.

  “C’mon, it’s fine, the place is really large. And since it’s been so long since we’ve last met, let’s just go there naked and socialize!”

  After being carried by her friend, the girl finally reached the dressing room of the castle’s large bath.

  Luminaria, already used to undressing herself, folded and placed her clothes on the clothing shelf; in contrast to the woman, Mira was still struggling with her robe covered in ribbons, something that had been personally customized by the aides, Litalia and Mariana.

  “Geez, let me help you.”

  Standing in front of the young girl, with dexterous hands Luminaria began untying the ribbons, one by one. At the same time, majestically emphasized before Mira’s eyes was the voluptous object of that woman’s obsession. Since she couldn’t possibly look straight at it, the girl forced her eyes to wander around the place. Then, after Luminaria’s efforts, there was a total of twenty ribbons lined up on the shelves. With those items removed, the robe returned to its original form as the hemming that had been prepared came undone. Finally, when the woman took off the ribbon-shaped hair band that had been fastened around Mira’s body, the robe’s collar opened to the point that the girl’s shoulders could be seen, revealing through a small opening her modest chest; the moment Luminaria noticed it, she gave an approving smile.

  “Hmm, I see that even this part of your body fits your tastes.”

  “Just drop that topic already...”

  While dragging the lower hem of her garment on the ground, Mira walked towards a corner of the room, brought her arms inside her robe and, after squirming around, finally removed it. With the faux magical girl-esque attire out of the way, the only thing remaining on Mira’s figure was her underwear: the Robe of the Celestial Maiden and the bloomers. That ended up being enough to, once again, incite Luminaria’s attack.

  “Damn, wearing a see-through lingerie together with the old-fashioned bloomers… even though you’ve barely spent a day in this world, look at how much you’ve grown up. At this rate you’ll reach my level soon enough.”

  The combination of a childish, bewitching see-through garment and the seemingly unattractive bloomers made the red-haired woman discover something new. Throwing the robe that was in her hands towards that pervert, Mira hurriedly stripped off her remaining clothes and ran in the direction of the bath. Luminaria carefully folded her friend’s garb and placed it on the clothing shelf, afterwards joining the same place as Mira.

  Considering it resided inside the castle where the King lived, that bath was so splendid it would never bring shame to its royal location. The large bathtub was always filled with warm water; in the middle of that place, looking almost like a fountain, hot water was gushing out towards the ceiling and, with the gravity’s attraction, kept showering the surroundings, incessantly.

  Since even visitors were allowed to use that bath, it had been packed with things to show off how grand the kingdom was. Consequently, since she had already decided to fully enjoy that completely new world, it was possible to guess Mira’s current state inside such a luxurious bath.

  “This is crazy! This thing here is completely ridiculous!”

  With the rest of her sleepiness blown away by that spectacle, Mira was cackling right below the fountain, basking under the water that fell there. In an instant, after absorbing the moisture around it, the girl’s hair began sticking to her body and droplets of water slowly flowed down her soft, fair skin. Such a place felt ridiculously extravagant, even when compared to a high class spa; and in that bath, the girl was now kicking around the hot water that poured out of the fountain, all the while savoring the pleasure of swimming around that place.

  “Now that I look at it, she’s really acting fit for her appearance, huh. Well, from the beginning that guy always had that childish side of him. But are you perfectly fine with this, Dunbalf?”

  Luminaria muttered to no one in particular as she, looking somewhat pleased, observed her friend’s antics.

  In the bath, a familiar theme song from a certain anime could be heard; while deeply submerged in the bathtub and getting completely relaxed, the woman had began humming to herself. Then, after glancing at the singing Luminaria for a second, Mira returned to the dressing room, feeling refreshed as her mind and body were healed by the hot bath.

  Since the garments that the girl had left on the shelf had been sent to the laundry, a change of clothes was placed there for her use. However, the moment she took that article of clothing and unfolded it, Mira instantly froze; what she saw in her hands was a frilled, sky-blue dress. At her own discretion, a maid had mustered all her strength to find an outfit that would best suit Mira.

  Yet, that wasn’t the only problem. Or rather, that simple dress was overshadowed by something else that had been prepared next to it: white panties decorated with a small ribbon. Although it looked plain, that piece of clothing was showing how it was still possible to further boost Mira’s already perfect allure. There was no need for the other useless stuff, just wearing those panties was good enough. She would then be able to reach the supreme body… no, the embodiment of her tastes12. That was what the underwear told the girl.

  Promptly, Mira opened her Item Box and tried to find something to use as a replacement for those clothes. But just like the other night, when she verified its contents, there was only the reaffirmation that she could not escape her fate. In order to recompose herself, the girl casually averted her sight from the panties. The moment she did that, before her eyes appeared a beautiful girl, one that would probably look pretty well with the underwear Mira had been trying to forget.

  “Hmm… ahh, there is a mirror here...”

  That cute, stark naked girl was none other than Mira herself, her body reflected in a large, full-length mirror. After staring at that figure with great intensity,

  “I am… so cute.”

  Was what she murmured. Since becoming Mira, the first time she saw her own figure was on the mirror-like armor of the Magic Clothed Knights. Then, the next one was on a window, dyed by the dark of the night. As a result, after seeing her perfectly detailed reflection on the mirror, the girl became thoroughly captivated by her own charms; in the process, she was reminded even further of her own preferences.

  Mira continued to observe the mirror as she wiped her body with a bath towel and, for some reason, began touching her face. After starting with her cheeks, she kept moving her fingertips and reached the lips; following that, her fingers slowly ran down towards the nape of her neck. Once she removed her hands from that place, Mira directed her attention to the sleek, fluttering silver hair on her head and began to gently comb it.

  “I welcome you to my side of the world. Greetings, my friend.”

  Engrossed in her own stupid world, the girl was taken by surprise and, startled, straightened her back, looking towards the source of the female voice that had tried to imply something about her. There, Mira found the figure of Luminaria, a triumphant and warped smile on that woman’s face.

  “How long… have you been here?”

  “ ‘I am… so cute.’ ”

  A second later, the young girl used 【Way of the Xian: Shukuchi】 to charge against Luminaria. However, as if it was an illusion, the woman’s figure flickered and she easily evaded the attack.

  “Hey, what the hell is that? I have never seen that kind of movement before.”

  Luminaria seemed to have disappeared all of a sudden. Needless to say, Mira found herself fascinated by those never-seen movements; among all the skills she knew, there was nothing that would have caused those motion effects.

  “Don’t go thinkin’ that the only progress we made during your absence was the Sorcery Engineering. It’s been thirty years, yanno? Day by day, all sorts of skill classes made steady progress too.”

  Together with her illusion, the woman kept appearing and disappearing. When Mira saw that, she completely forgot all the embarrassment she had been feeling a moment earlier, the girl’s head now filled with her curiosity over that brand new ability.

  “I think this one was developed eight or so years ago, the evasion skill 【Mirage Step】. Its effects are, well... exactly what you’re seeing now.”

  Explained Luminaria as she continued to leave behind afterimages while doing her movements.

  “There are some conditions to learn it. If I remember, first, you need to possess mana, and second, you must have acquired the divine protections of light and water.”

  “Oooh! Then it means I am able to learn it immediately. Teach me!”

  Aware that she met all the conditions to obtain that ability, Mira strongly demanded the woman to instruct her.

  “Whaaat? I wonder~... why would I teach it to you for free? That was something produced through many years of effort and history, yanno~?”

  Replied the unwilling Luminaria. He—or rather, she— knew, from the very beginning, about Mira’s striking and insatiable tenacity when it came to skills.

  “Hmpf, never mind then. Solomon probably has that ability too.”

  While saying that, the girl threw her bath towel. Then, after receiving it, Luminaria used the towel to cover her hands, as if hiding something.

  “Hey, wanna guess what I have here?”

  Like a magic trick, the moment the woman flung the cloth high into the ceiling, a book appeared on her previously empty hands. Written on its cover was 『Skills Compendium - 2146 edition.』.

  “No… no way… is that what I think it is?”

  The “Skills Compendium” was a huge bestseller, created in order to collect in one single book the countless number of diverse skills that had been appearing. Obviously, as a skills aficionado, Mira had one copy, but it was the 『Skills Compendium - 2116 edition.』. In other words, a book from three decades ago.

  It wasn’t a surprise, then, that Mira couldn’t take her eyes from her friend’s compendium. Even in the four years since the opening of the game’s servers, various kinds of abilities were either discovered or developed; as a result, the thirty years of wisdom written in the book held by Luminaria was inestimable.

  “Currently, this valuable book is heavily limited, to the point that no matter how much money you accumulate, you still won’t be able to get one. So, what if I said that I’m willing to give this one to you?”

  “...What do you want in return?”

  The young girl asked, going directly to the point. In Luminaria’s case, she had already finished reading all the instructions written in that compendium; however, she knew exactly how attractive that book was to the current Mira. Since the woman brought it out, she had no intention of giving it for free. That fact was also obvious from the pretentious tone Luminaria had just used.

  “Good, this won’t take long, then. Anyway, considering it’s you we’re talking about, it won’t be hard to achieve. I heard from Solomon that you’re going to search for those guys. So while you’re at it, I just want you to get your hands on two items.”

  “Oho. Then, what is your request?”

  “The first item is the Sword of the Red Lotus King, and the second one is the Yggdrasil’s Charcoal.”

  “Hmmm… they are pretty rare. But well, it is not like I cannot get them. The problem is that the same thing applies to you. Why would you bother asking me to collect them?”

  Both the items mentioned by the red-haired woman were first-class treasures. On the other hand, with Mira’s strength, they wouldn’t be impossible to obtain.

  “As you know, I can’t take a single step out of this country. There’s also the development of our Accord Cannon, but damn… the biggest problem is that I have to, by any means necessary, avoid giving the other countries a reason to attack us. Like carelessly crossing our national borders, for example. I’ll have you know that I’m considered a big shot in this world.”

  While saying that, Luminaria threw out her ample bosom, full of pride, and raised the corners of her mouth in a fearless smile.

  “I see. Since the beginning this game was pretty realistic. But now it became reality itself, huh. Indeed, if that is the case, then it might be easier for me to move around.”

  “Right? That’s why I’m counting on you. If you complete my request, this thing here will be yours.”

  She replied and, at the same time, as if trying to show off, patted Mira in the head with the book.

  “Okay, okay, I accept it. However, what are you going to do with the sword? I believe that using Sorcery is faster and stronger, no? And what are you using the charcoal for? From what I remember, it was a material used for alchemy. Did you not say that packing too many professions was not your cup of tea?”

  Luminaria was a Sorcery Expert. And the highest ranking one to boot. But no matter how rare the Sword of the Red Lotus King was, it would only display its true worth when equipped by an advanced Swordsman. A Sorcery Expert would never be able to master its use; and even if their intention was to employ flame attacks, using 【Sorcery：Dual Blaze】, for example, would be overwhelmingly better in terms of efficiency. Then, since Luminaria had a hard time dealing with delicate works, she completely ignored alchemy, so Mira had no idea why her friend would need Yggdrasil’s Charcoal, an ingredient required for the Secret Gem of Purification.

  “Well, I’m not planning on using them normally. They will just work as a catalyst.”

  Completed the woman as she lightly hit Mira’s head with the compendium, following a rhythm. Raising her eyes, the girl glared at her aggressor.

  “Catalyst…? Wait, by any chance are you talking about a catalyst used to learn spells!?”

  “Correct. Long ago, I found a completely new pentagram. And after analyzing it, the information I got was that those two items should be used as its catalyst.”

  As their conversation continued, Mira took the opportunity to strike and stretched out her hands towards the book on her head. Sadly for the girl, though, they uselessly grabbed nothing.

  “To think that even new abilities were developed… those thirty years were amazing. But hey, you just mentioned something about ‘analyzing,’ right? What is that? Were you not supposed to randomly expend different materials until you actually found the right catalysts? If you apply that ‘analysis’ method, can you really discover the right ones?”

  “Yes, it’s a new skill that evolved from Appraisal, the 【Technical Analysis】. Of course, inside this book you’ll find the information related to this new ability.”

  After answering Mira’s question, Luminaria held the compendium right before the girl’s eyes. In an instant, faster than the eye could see, Mira stretched out her hands, only to grab an afterimage.

  “Ughh.”

  “You’re exactly thirty years too early to even think of defeating me. Now then, what are you going to do? I’m givin’ this to you if you find those items for me.”

  “Okay, I accept those terms.”

  Turning her head to look at her friend, who used Mirage Step to sneak around her back, the girl consented, her eyes sparkling at the sight of that skill.

  “But only on one condition.”

  “Hm? And what is it? Travel expenses? Some tools you would need? I believe Solomon’s going to provide those already, man.”

  “Oh no, I just want you to teach me how to use that illusion-like ability.”

  With an expectant expression on her entire face, she looked up towards Luminaria. After receiving such an indirect attack, even the deeply experienced woman felt her heart skip a beat.

  “You know quite well how to use that body of yours, huh? Fine. Think of this as an advance payment.”

  Then, inside the dressing room, a temporary study session between two naked ladies began.

  ◆◆◆

  Before long, the teaching of the skill finished. Once she got the gist of it, Mira didn’t have any problem using the ability. But maybe because of the difference in training experience, when compared to Luminaria, the girl’s roughness was evident. Nevertheless, that was and would always be the point of diligently practising.

  As they completed their study session, the stark naked friends finally started dressing themselves.

  “Wait what. Are you really hesitating there? You better give up now since you’ll have to deal with this same shit for your entire life. If you’re going to freak out with every single thing you’ll just end up wasted.”

  While putting on the clothing that was prepared to her, Luminaria looked at Mira, who stood still with the dress and panties in her hands, and complained. She’d only needed a second to understand what was happening.

  “But... you see...”

  Murmured the girl as she turned her face towards Luminaria and stared at that robed figure, eyes wide open.

  “Why do you have a robe to wear…?”

  “Come on, I often come here, you know? If it’s a change of clothes, I have plenty enough of them.”

  “Then lend one for me. No way I am going to wear these.”

  “They would never fit you, look at the difference in our sizes. And no matter how I look at it, those you have there will really suit you, so don’t worry and wear them already. I could even give you a hand too.”

  Luminaria completed, a suspicious smile on her face as she gradually approached Mira.

  “I can do it myself!”

  Immediately after replying, the girl left an illusion behind, escaping to the other side of the room. She then took a deep breath, readying herself, and pushed her head through the skirt of the one-piece dress. A few moments later, feeling her wet hair getting cramped inside the garment, Mira used one hand to force that shining silver hair out.

  Finally, the only thing left was the panties. Inside her head, two different options waged war: one would result in her going commando and the other would cause her to lose something dear to her very being. The latter option was strongly backed by how short was the hem of her dress; the former option, however, was desperately defended by the last line she didn’t want to cross, as someone who was once considered a man among men, the great Dunbalf.