I've gone bald, so I've become stronger... My foot!
Lancer knew he didn't have that kind of strange ability. In fact, when he realized what had happened, he felt extremely embarrassed.
Only when the Phoenix left did Lancer finally breathe a sigh of relief. What was a "game" in the opponent's eyes was, in Lancer view, a battle to the death that required him to bet everything. No matter how easy the other party was to talk to, Lancer didn't like the feeling of entrusting his life to someone else.
Now that the entity was gone, he could truly relax.
Even though his body was healthier than before, his heart rate—now returning to normal—and his extreme mental exhaustion reminded him of what he had endured. Looking at his right arm, he even felt a strange sense of unreality.
"Lancer?"
The shout from behind startled Lancer out of his personal world. Only then did he remember Kasen Ibaraki, who had just appeared here.
"Sorry, I kept you waiting."
Lancer turned around and apologized awkwardly. To his surprise, Kasen actually blushed and looked away. Was it because of the heat?
"Lancer, I know you should be proud, but... ahem."
As her darting gaze involuntarily focused on a certain spot, Lancer suddenly looked down. He saw his "little friend," who was also exceptionally lively due to the infusion of powerful vitality, standing tall and proud toward Kasen as if saying hello.
"Ahem, ahem, ahem!!"
Amidst a flurry of awkward coughing, Lancer turned around in a hurry. After a while, Lancer, having retrieved replacement clothes from his weapon box, walked back toward Kasen, pretending nothing had happened.
"Why are you here?"
Kasen knew Lancer was changing the subject, but she also didn't want to mention what just happened. Although the Oni race was bold, it didn't mean they were open about that sort of thing. In fact, had she not seen that Lancer didn't have a single hair left on his body, leading her to guess he had just survived a brutal battle, Lancer might have been pinned to the ground and beaten for being a pervert. After all, exposure or physical contact is inevitable in battle.
Recalling the scene, her already red face grew even redder, but she followed Lancer lead.
"The Youkai Sage sent me."
"Yukari?"
Only then did Lancer remember what happened earlier.
"Yukari?"
Following Lancer call, the space in front of them was torn open again, and a figure in a purple kimono leapt out from the gap.
Lancer was overjoyed, but just as she prepared to hug him, she froze on the spot. Then—
"Pfft~"
With a snort, Yukari Yakumo actually burst out laughing. Only then did she seem to realize herself and covered her mouth with her fan.
Earlier, because a certain part of Lancer body was too eye-catching, Kasen had selectively ignored the other anomalies. Now she noticed them too and began laughing behind her hand.
At first, Lancer didn't react, but then he realized what was wrong.
Lancer build wasn't overly bulky, but his muscles were very defined through training. Countless scars were inevitable, and his body hair wasn't particularly heavy. But now? It was as if every hair on his body had completely vanished. He then remembered that when he hurriedly dressed, it was smooth down there too. Suddenly realizing something, he reached up to touch his head.
His expression became very strange because his head was also completely empty. Suddenly aware of something else, Lancer touched his face. Needless to say, both eyebrows had also departed from him...
What should have been a touching reunion after a great battle turned into a comedy because of Lancer bizarre look.
However, whether the "accidental" laughter of a certain Youkai Sage was truly an accident was questionable. It might have been a disguise to hide her excitement, but only she would know for sure...
On the other side, through Kasen's words, Lancer learned that many people were concerned about his safety. Once the laughter died down, Lancer went through Yukari gap to the gathering place of the Youkai to report that he was safe.
As expected, Lancer "new image" left the Youkai bewildered. But when they saw the beautiful crest feather in Lancer hand—longer than a normal person's arm—everyone cheered. Without a doubt, Lancer had succeeded!
After scheduling a drinking party with everyone for that night, Lancer had Yukari take him to Bamboo Mountain. Without a doubt, all the herbs were prepared; only the final step remained!
As the gap opened, Lancer indeed saw Kaguya Houraisan at a glance. But he felt a bit strange; he was used to climbing through her window at night. Going there during the day felt a bit unaccustomed.
Kaguya, sitting formally, apparently hadn't expected Lancer and the others to suddenly burst into her room. However, her gaze was quickly drawn to the crest feather in Lancer hand.
Because she was far from Mount Fuji, she hadn't sensed the battle that caused the eruption. But the feather in Lancer hand said enough. What was incredible to her was that the feather Lancer held seemed even larger than the one her own master had retrieved back then?
But then she saw Lancer "smooth" head. Instantly, her serious expression collapsed. She almost couldn't hold back her laughter. Fortunately, at this moment, a somewhat serious male voice came from the other side of the screen.
"Princess Kaguya?"
This voice instantly "woke" Kaguya up. She realized she was currently in the middle of "social obligations." She waved her hand to signal Lancer and the others to wait, and Lancer "skillfully" flipped back out the window. His movement was so fast that even Yukari, who had already opened another portal, didn't react in time.
At this moment, she really wanted to ask, "Why are you so skilled? Exactly how many times have you climbed through?"
Fortunately, they knew now wasn't the time for banter and temporarily left Kaguya room.
Leaning against the wall, Lancer finally had time to "check" the "impact" of everything he had done in those few short minutes.
A long string of "system messages" had flooded the screen. Luckily he could temporarily mute them, or his vision would be completely blocked, right?