The sound of a throat clearing echoed in the bathroom.
Both figures remained static, parallel to each other, observing one another with different emotions.
Effie was plunged into deep bewilderment, while Morgan seemed to be entering a state of panic.
Things had not gone as she expected, and she wouldn't have hesitated to carry out a tactical retreat, fleeing the place despite her goals not being met.
However, her escape route was obstructed by the large figure of a woman with a robust yet charming presence; that woman was the size of the door… in fact, a bit more. Her head brushed the ceiling; if she stood on her tiptoes, she would surely hit it.
The stupefied giantess gave no sign of wanting to move; she was stationed right in front of the only exit.
Effie stood like a statue, staring at her.
It seemed Morgan was the only one whose brain was functioning at that moment. Effie didn't look like she was going to move from there; with no other choice, she had to be the one to speak first.
"Raised by Wolves, I haven't seen you in quite a while."
She spoke with a subtlety practiced to the point of exhaustion, burying her nervousness beneath formality. It would have been a sublime performance if not for the blush that still wouldn't leave her face no matter how much she tried to eradicate it; the color of her cheeks betrayed any facade she tried to show.
Effie took a few more blinks to come to her senses.
Her eyes stopped analyzing her as if she were some kind of incomprehensible anomaly.
An incredulous smile crossed Effie's face, and subsequently, a few giggles escaped her lips. She brought a hand to her forehead while the laughter continued to come out. Her laughter was not mocking; it was simply the only reaction she had upon seeing something so incredible.
"I can't believe it… I didn't think it was possible, not so soon, ha, haha! This really is something big…"
Morgan cringed at the apparent mockery, frowning severely. The laughter was irritating her; she clenched her fists but ended up releasing them. It was useless to get angry right now, so she forced herself to swallow her growing annoyance.
Effie's incredulous laughter persisted for a few more exhalations; taking a long inhalation, she finally seemed to calm down.
"Princess Morgan, it is a pleasure to see you. It's a very great joy, believe it or not…"—Effie gave her one last thoughtful look before smiling with fascination.—"May I know what you are doing around here?"
Morgan exhaled deeply and crossed her arms.
"I have that same question for you."
"In my case, it's simple. Can't I visit my favorite coffee shop once in a while? Besides, I am also the supplier for this place—not for everything, of course. But I have business here; I certainly have my reasons to be here, but… what about you, Princess?"
The playfulness in her voice was noticeable, especially in the last question. Effie was being far too friendly with her, more than she should be, but she simply couldn't help it.
She had found gold.
Morgan looked to the side, evading Effie's fascinated gaze. Her cheeks flushed a bit more.
"It is none of your business… I don't have to give you explanations," she answered, trying to sound petty.
Morgan looked back at Effie, and her brow furrowed thoughtfully.
Effie was observing her with an extremely entertained smile. She seemed to be appreciating the near future.
Her eyes seemed to shine at the glowing result she imagined.
Without any beating around the bush, Effie asked:
"You like Master Sunless, don't you?"
The question pierced Morgan like an ice spear; her body paralyzed, and a shiver ran through her. Her heart began to beat at an alarming speed seconds later.
She clenched her fists, and her whole body tensed.
"NO!" she shouted, making the bathroom chamber tremble.
"Shhh!"—Effie leaned toward her and brought a finger to her lips, making the gesture to remain silent.—"Don't talk so loud; you might attract attention. You don't want that, right? Then keep the volume moderate."
Morgan's fists trembled with rage; the person in front of her had made her lose her temper with surgical efficiency. It might not have been intentional—most likely it wasn't—but she couldn't help but feel that everything was heading down a path she wasn't going to like.
"I'll take that negative as a resounding yes… but why are you disguised like that?"
Morgan's lips tightened, and she looked at the woman in front of her with impatience. She wanted to push her aside and go to… what was she going to do now?
She couldn't simply go back and sit next to Sunny just like that; in reality, at that moment, she was afraid to even look him in the face. Just imagining the situation gave her chills.
She closed her eyes and let out a sigh.
She had to plan what to do now and, above all, calm down first.
But there was another problem, a big problem 6.5 feet tall. Of all the people who could have recognized her in her attempt to look like a civilian, this one was certainly the most problematic by far.
It was difficult for Morgan to get inside this person's head. What would she do with the information of her identity? Would she reveal it to Sunny? Would she keep it a secret? She couldn't rule out the possibility that she would extort her to keep her silence…
There was no way Morgan would be intimidated by her. Although Saint Athena held great status, Morgan simply crushed her as the princess of the place where she resided.
But at that moment, she wasn't Morgan; she was Moira. And she didn't have the slightest bit of authority here.
Her tense expression relaxed; she exhaled deeply and looked up at Effie.
She observed her with doubtful eyes; despite being clear about the situation she was in, she didn't feel right. If she let herself be carried away carelessly… she wasn't sure what the results would be.
But technically… Morgan was not herself at that moment.
"I only came to talk to an interesting and kind boy…"—she looked to the side, breaking eye contact.—"Yes, I like him. Happy?"
Effie's smile took on a euphoric joy. And with a voice that clearly tried to contain her excitement, she said:
"More than you can imagine."—Effie took a step toward her and grabbed her shoulders, managing to shake her.
Morgan immediately tried to step back, but the strength in that woman's hands prevented her.
"I will help you conquer him," Effie announced.
Morgan blinked a couple of times.
"What!?"
"I said I'll help you conqu—"
"Yes! I heard you perfectly! But… why would you help me?"
Both held each other's gaze while the question hung in the air. Morgan couldn't help but feel uncomfortable due to the proximity and now even more so with the recent silence. But she couldn't step back any further.
Effie narrowed her eyes, making her smile even more expressive.
"It's simple. I just find that this will be very, very fun."—she chuckled.—"Besides, this can bring me several interesting benefits. We are both interested in this, I assure you."
The ambiguity of her words made Morgan question what kind of results would come from placing even a little bit of trust in her.
But at least Morgan was certain of one thing: Saint Athena wasn't lying.
How was she so sure of that?
Because the face of a little girl who had offered her an ice cream in the middle of summer that she had simply left no room for suspicion.
She let out a tired sigh and looked with annoyance at the bronze-skinned giantess.
"I'm listening."
Effie's eyes sparkled with excitement.
"You've done well, Princess; you don't know how glad I am! I'm very impatient, so first things first. I have some questions, alright?"
Morgan gave a slight nod, showing no particular animosity other than an expression of insecure disgust.
"Good, then…"—Effie gave her another look from top to bottom.—"Wasn't there anything better to wear?"
Morgan looked at herself thoughtfully.
"Is there something wrong with my clothes?"
Effie looked at her with an expression of disapproval. Her pitiful gaze spoke more than her words ever could.
She clicked her tongue before answering.
"Look, your clothes aren't entirely bad—they are clothes, after all—but if you're going out to face a guy… listen, I'm not a stylist or anything like that by a long shot, but wasn't there something less boring to put on?"
The outfit Morgan was wearing was, in fact, the same one she had worn the first time: a white shirt covered by a dull black vest and gray pants.
Morgan looked away and said in a low voice:
"I don't have much else…"—she tried to step back again, looking increasingly uncomfortable.
Giving Effie a pleading look, Morgan said:
"Raised by Wolves, could you let go of my shoulders?"
"Ah," Effie said, and the next moment she let go, taking a step back.
'Not even an apology,' Morgan grumbled in her mind.
"Fine, so you don't have clothes. But don't you have anything to put on quickly that isn't… Well, that?"
"No, and I don't think armor is suitable for something casual."
Effie scratched her head and focused her gaze on a specific point of Morgan's body.
"So, can't you show even a little bit of cleavage, at least?"
Morgan's expression darkened, and her hands clenched into fists.
"What are you insinuating?"
Effie rolled her eyes and let out a tired grunt.
"You don't have the slightest sense for conquest… fine, let Auntie Effie guide you. To begin with, men and women have different striking attributes for the respective gender; this goes back to…"
"Get to the point," Morgan interrupted.
Effie's inspired countenance vanished from her face, and she looked at Morgan dejectedly.
"In short, you are going to show him your attributes and intentions; then, when he least expects it, you take the first step and then—mwah! And then—whoosh! And finally—bam!"
Morgan's eyelid trembled.
"What is that supposed to mean?"
"Oh, don't you understand metaphors? Forget it. I think we'll have a problem with this part of the plan after all…"—Effie crossed her arms and stroked her chin, her gaze dropping to Morgan's lower half.
"Tell me… in the hypothetical case that… you know… if you did something… would he end up as mincemeat inside you?"
"Please move away from the door. I don't want to hear another word from your mouth."
"Calm down, calm down. Gods, can't one even ask a question nowadays? Fine, enough is enough. I'm going to teach you how to court a man. Take notes!"
XXX
Effie came out of the bathroom first, wearing a satisfied smile, convinced of having done a job well done.
Following her, behind her, came Morgan.
From her petrified, blank expression, it seemed she had heard the hidden truths of this world.
'What was I even expecting?'
The study session with Effie on the art of courtship was, in a way… enriching.
Now Morgan knew exactly what she should not do if she were trying to conquer someone.
'I'm not doing that… ever.'
The things she had heard from Effie were… barbaric, to put it subtly, and certainly half of the strategies were strictly limited by her flaw, so sudden approaches were out of the question.
Even if she had the chance to follow the obscene instructions given to her, she would simply refuse to do so.
'I hate her. I definitely hate her.'
Despite her refusal, Morgan ended up giving in to one of Effie's propositions.
She unbuttoned a few buttons on her shirt—perhaps a few more than she would have liked.
Effie tried to improvise more on her appearance, but removing a few buttons from her shirt was the most she achieved.
All of Effie's other suggestions sounded absolutely vulgar and inappropriate.
In reality… it wasn't much that she was showing; she only let some of her femininity be seen by revealing a bit of skin, a bit of cleavage.
But it was strange.
She had never been modest about the subject of nudity itself; she didn't usually feel shame about her body in that way. After all, privacy and comfort were rare luxuries in most missions. She was used to it.
But for some reason at that moment, she felt panic at the thought of crossing the hallway and being seen the way she was.
Once again in her mind, she cursed Saint Athena.
She would definitely not follow anything she had been told.
'Never…'
'Never…'
'…'
Morgan clenched her fists, and her blank face had turned into one of anguish.
'Damnation!'
Her legs refused to move any further.
She was afraid to see Sunny again.
But why?
Not long ago she had shown herself in such a bold way—very proactive! She had approached him closely; she had done it with such confidence that it seemed natural to her.
Everything was going according to plan. At least most of the time. It was true that Effie's implementation in the equation of things had turned the tide of the game, but even so, she was on her side; she just had to continue as she was. So then…
What changed?
Morgan didn't have a clear answer to that; she had never felt this way. So lost and terrified by an invisible threat.
She had lost control, and in doing so, her confidence crumbled. But even if she recovered it, she wasn't sure she could move forward as before.
'I can't believe I'm going to do this…'
Clinging to the idea of a ridiculous plan, she was able to take another step.
XXX
Sunny took a sip of his coffee. He looked at the inside of the cup, which was half empty, and took the last sip in one go, leaving it on the table, which was now clean.
Previously, he had already cleaned up the spilled coffee and the porcelain fragments scattered across the table and floor.
'They're taking a long time…'
It had already been quite a while since both women disappeared, leaving tranquility behind them.
He had had time to clean up the porcelain and coffee mess, prepare another cup for himself, and drink it calmly.
Several more minutes passed, and with each passing minute, he felt more restless.
'What was I thinking, sending Effie to fix her mess?'
Exactly what characterized Effie, what made her who she was.
She wasn't stupid by any means—quite the opposite. No matter how she appeared on the outside, she had a privileged intellect, even if she didn't look it.
She could solve his mundane problems much more easily than he could. And taking into account his streak of bad luck, perhaps he should take lessons from her and learn…
'No, never.'
The problem with Effie… resided completely in her unpredictable and naturally disruptive personality. Unfortunately, he realized that after she had left.
By that point, dozens of ideas were crossing his mind—many different scenarios and situations, all ending in disaster with her being the perpetrator of his misfortune.
Sunny grew more impatient.
'They're most likely talking… damn it, what on earth is she telling her?'
Sunny rubbed his temple and sighed.
It wasn't enough having to deal with the acts of the previous day; to top it off, this was happening… What was next?
Emerging from his side, a small head appeared in his vision with an indecipherable smile.
"No," Sunny said as soon as Aiko moved her lips. "She is not someone you want to get involved with, I'm warning you."
Aiko's countenance soured. She crossed her arms and in a low voice murmured:
"I wasn't going to say anything like that."
"Then what were you going to say?"
Aiko pouted and turned her back on him.
She had remained on the sidelines of the matter until that moment; she had limited herself to observing what was happening from afar, analyzing and evaluating in silence.
In that respect, she had at least behaved, but he had to make things clear.
Sunny stared at her for a long few moments before shaking his head and sighing again.
'I'm sighing a lot lately.'
He took her shoulders and brought her close to himself. He leaned toward Aiko's ear and whispered:
"Stay distant, I mean it. It's for your safety… but I know you won't stay quiet with just that, so if you behave, I'll compensate you later."
He saw how Aiko trembled subtly and slowly turned around.
"Alright, but you'd better compensate me well… okay?"—her voice sounded low but intense, with special emphasis on "compensate."
Aiko didn't bother listening to the response; she moved away quickly with small skips, briefly levitating with her aspect ability.
'How happy she looks… but what could I give her?'
Sunny was sometimes not the most perceptive.
He returned to focusing on his now empty cup.
He headed toward the kitchen to prepare another one.
He sat back down in the same spot as before, taking a sip of the coffee, hoping the bitter taste would relax him.
And as if by that action he had tempted causality, moments later two women appeared, walking directly toward the table.
Morgan seemed downcast, looking at her feet, appearing restless.
Both stood in front of the table.
Effie cast a contemplative look at Morgan, which was not received well.
"I told you everything I had to say—"—she gave her a few pats on the back—"good luck." Having said those mysterious words, Effie walked toward a distant table and took a seat, watching them out of the corner of her eye.
There was a deep and awkward silence once they were left alone.
It so happened that in the interval Morgan was in the bathroom, the vast majority of the customers had left; it wasn't the busiest hour after all.
Sunny was grateful it was this way…
Morgan remained standing, looking at the floor; because of that, he couldn't see her face properly, so he couldn't guess what was going through her head.
He didn't know what to say, so he waited expectantly and anxiously.
Pressure began to rise in Sunny's chest as a result of the heated atmosphere.
He was not at all comfortable with the situation, even less so with the awkward silence that was taking place right now.
With no other visible way out, he had to face the discomfort head-on.
The words came out of his mouth with embarrassing urgency.
"Listen, I'm very sorry for what Saint Athena might have said to you; she's just like that—"
The cups on the table jumped, causing the porcelain to clink and splashes of coffee to fall onto the table.
His voice cut off, and instinctively he leaned back in his chair.
Morgan had leaned abruptly over the table, slamming her open palms onto it.
"Y-you have pretty eyes!" Morgan shouted, looking up.
She cast an intense gaze at him, like that of a predator, but at the same time, there was a notorious torrent of shyness; the slight blush on her cheeks betrayed her.
Sunny blinked a few times.
Morgan was almost on top of him, so he had a privileged view of her body.
'Oh…' he managed to think before his mind short-circuited.
Sunny froze.
In front of him, quite close, were Morgan's breasts.
The unbuttoned shirt reached halfway down her chest, revealing almost completely the line formed by both breasts pressed against each other.
His face began to burn as if a match had been thrown into a pile of dry hay.
They were two generous portions of flesh, the perfect size. Not too big, but not too small, just the right way they should be.
His eyes remained fixed on them, unable to look anywhere else.
Sunny swallowed hard as he felt his throat go dry.
A little more and he would see her nipples.
'She's not wearing a bra.'—that thought echoed in his being like a thunderclap.
He didn't know how much time had passed; the world had stopped for him. It was just him and the view in front of him.
But soon sense and reason began to return to him.
After a few moments that seemed eternal, he finally moved his lips.
"T-thanks… I suppose."
He had to look away; this was no longer an accidental glance or a quick and discreet analysis. It was more than obvious.
Unwillingly, he engraved the image in his head.
'A mole…'
To his bad luck, even if he wanted to, he couldn't look away; the proximity was such that he could only appreciate her attributes.
He quickly felt the blood begin to rise to his face with more urgency… and a bit of blood to go down.
An audible moan, which sounded more like a frustrated grunt, came from a distant table, catching both of their attention.
'Too bad! Not like that!' Effie huffed, slapping her forehead.
Morgan seemed to waver; she looked at herself and then at Sunny, and finally looked at Effie with a frown.
'Y-you told me to lean toward him in a provocative way!' she protested anxiously.
'But not that kind of provocative! Rather… oh, forget it, go on to the next thing!'
Morgan's expression filled with confusion and dissatisfaction; letting out a snort, she ended up sitting down with her arms crossed. Fortunately for Sunny, both breasts were covered enough to not be so noticeable.
'It's over…'
Sunny felt relieved.
But that didn't last long, once everything started to be in order again…
'What the hell is going on!!!?'
His face was visibly nervous, and despite that, what he showed with his bewildered expression was only a tiny hint of what was truly happening inside him.
He had no words to describe how he felt or what was happening; for that, he first had to understand it.
But the situation was completely irrational.
No.
He was just feigning madness; he knew perfectly well what was happening from the start, but he was simply refusing to accept things.
Morgan was flirting with him.
Her attempts had been quite direct from the start, although she then calmed down considerably.
But since Effie appeared…
'What on earth did she put in her head?'
That was a valid question, but questioning that wouldn't put things in order.
And more importantly, now that he understood what Morgan was trying to do… what should he do about it?
Sunny ended up surprising himself, as he couldn't find a concrete answer at that moment.
His thoughts were actually heading elsewhere.
'I want this to end…'
Morgan's visit at another time hadn't been entirely unpleasant; perhaps they would have had a good time, but this was not the time.
Even less so with Effie.
So he decided to think about those kinds of questions later.
He wasn't in a particularly good mood either…
Sunny inhaled and exhaled deeply; his expression softened and he made a decision.
To behave as he should.
He spoke in a calm voice, breaking the silence that had formed once Morgan sat down.
"I'm very sorry for any inconvenience she may have caused you; she's just that way, don't take it to heart."
Morgan looked up at Sunny; they made eye contact, and after a sigh, she replied:
"It's alright, don't worry about it. I'm not upset…"
Sunny smiled.
"I'm glad to hear that."
After saying that, Sunny stood up from the table gracefully.
"I'll be right back," he said, walking toward the kitchen.
After a few minutes, Sunny returned with a steaming cup of coffee.
He placed the cup in front of Morgan before sitting back in his seat.
"Since the previous cup suffered a small mishap a while ago, I offer you a new one," he said with courtesy.
Sunny looked to the side and brought his fist to his mouth to cough.
"Also, I'm very sorry about earlier… I didn't mean to say what I said. I hope you didn't misunderstand me."
Morgan's expression became more anxious at the mention of the delicate subject.
She looked to the side and then toward Effie, who gave her a thumbs-up as a sign of encouragement.
"I accept your apologies; however, I am not upset. It's just that your words… took me by surprise."
Morgan brought a hand to the side of her face and played with a strand of her hair.
She looked to the side as if she wanted to avoid him.
"If you had been more subtle…"
She said that last part in a voice that gradually grew lower.
It seemed she wanted to continue, but in the end, Morgan took her steaming cup of coffee and brought it to her lips.
A single drop of sweat fell down Sunny's forehead.
He would try to play dumb as much as he could, however…
Morgan had a natural talent for making him nervous. The way she expressed herself inevitably almost made him shudder.
"I understand…"
Another awkward silence had formed; neither of them wanted to look at each other directly.
Sunny shielded himself from the lack of initiative to speak by taking constant sips of his coffee.
"So…" Morgan said, breaking the silence.
Sunny concentrated his gaze on Morgan, who seemed hesitant about what she wanted to say.
While he was expectant about what she wanted to tell him, Sunny continued drinking his coffee.
"Are you a virgin?"
Sunny spat out all the coffee.
He hit his chest several times, trying to clear his lungs.
"Excuse me!? Ah—well… no… I don't…"
Sunny's voice cut off when he focused on the person in front of him.
Morgan was looking at herself with wide eyes.
All the coffee from Sunny's mouth had been expelled, and Morgan suffered the consequences of that.
Her hair was damp, and drops of coffee were trickling down her face.
But Sunny could barely pay attention to that. His eyes dropped toward something his human biology couldn't help but pay attention to.
Her white shirt… was now translucent, with a touch of brown.
'Oh gods,' Sunny thought, unable to look away.
Morgan's breasts had adhered to the wet fabric, which also became transparent.
And the pink color of her breasts was what stood out the most.
Again, Sunny remained paralyzed, staring at her shamelessly.
Seconds passed and the observation continued; Sunny's chest jumped in anticipation, and blood began to flow again.
He looked up with a shred of awareness.
He saw Morgan's face looking at him, completely red; her eyes were in a spiral of panic.
Morgan stood up from the chair and, just as she had done before, retreated by walking toward the bathroom.
She crossed a wall, and he stopped seeing her.
Only then did Sunny come back to himself.
He leaned back in his seat, clearly discouraged.
He brought a hand to his face.
'Everything's wrong…'
Effie passed by his side, leaving a current of air behind her.
He grabbed Effie's arm and pulled her.
She turned around with a nervous look toward Sunny.
"Lady Athena," he said with a voice from beyond the grave; the room seemed to drop a couple of degrees suddenly. "Can you tell me what on earth you are trying to achieve with all this?"
Effie laughed nervously while scratching her head.
"Ah, Master Sunless… well, you know, this and that… why do you ask?"
A smile formed on Sunny's face, but it was a smile that was anything but friendly.
"I think you and I need to talk seriously. That's why."
XXX
Morgan slammed the door shut.
All the sounds she could hear were being suppressed by a loud ringing coming from her own ears.
She leaned her back against the door and let herself slide down until she sat on the floor; her face was burning, and her heart was thumping in her chest.
She looked down, appreciating the translucent fabric with brown touches.
Her nipples were completely in view.
Morgan grit her teeth and brought her hands to her face.
'He saw me!! He saw me!!' she repeated to herself several times.
It required all her willpower not to throw herself onto the floor and wallow in absolute shame.
'Why did I ask that in the first place? No… why did I listen to that wretched woman!? Damn it! Damn it! I've never felt like this before; I don't like it. I want to leave; I'm going to leave!'
Morgan raised her head and hurriedly analyzed the bathroom, looking for any kind of alternative exit.
There was none.
But that wouldn't stop her.
Clumsily, she stood up and approached the wall she believed she could tear down without causing too much damage.
'I'll compensate him later… definitely. I'm sorry, Sunny.'
When she raised her fist to hit the wall and finally escape, a series of quick knocks on the door sounded.
Morgan stood paralyzed. What if it was Sunny? What would she do?
She waited expectantly, standing with her fist raised; seconds passed and her heart also seemed to have stopped. Her whole being was attentive to whatever was behind the door.
Then the knocks sounded again.
Morgan's fist lowered.
Timidly, as if at that moment the entire world were watching her, she moved at a slow pace toward the wooden door, which at that moment in her eyes was a door tens of meters high.
She stood there, looking at the floor.
Her hands were trembling subtly; she was hoping it was him. It was a strange feeling—she wanted it to be him, but she didn't want to see him. She didn't have the courage at that moment.
Then a voice sounded.
"Hey! Are you hiding in there again? I got scolded, can you believe it? All for helping you. In fact, I brought you clothes so you can change. I know you don't have a change of clothes, so…"
The ringing she heard became so intense that it silenced Effie's voice.
'I'm going to kill her right now.'
Morgan had to draw strength from somewhere she didn't know not to hit the door and put her hand through the woman behind it.
She squeezed the bridge of her nose and breathed heavily.
The murderous intentions gradually subsided; she stood there in silence for a few moments more.
She wasn't going to open it for her.
This had been enough for her. All of this had gone wrong because of her, but mainly for listening to her.
She didn't know the first thing about having a date—in fact, this wasn't even that; she was pretending to have one.
She didn't even have the patience at that moment to see her again, so she wouldn't open the door, nor would she speak to her.
"Listen, I got you Master Sunless's clothes so you—"
The door swung wide open with such force that the hinges almost tore out of the door.
Effie was standing there with a black t-shirt in her hands. Morgan didn't even bother looking up to see her face.
Her arm became a blur; she grabbed the shirt and slammed the door shut again.
Effie stared at the door, blinked a few times, and then chuckled.
"I'll be in the dining area," she said before leaving.
Morgan heard Effie's footsteps fade away; once she didn't hear them anymore, she finally moved.
She held out her arms, observing the black t-shirt, which lacked any aesthetic detail.
Her hands trembled again.
"I have… I have his…" she said, barely believing what she had in her hands.
She stared at the t-shirt for a few seconds until she suddenly brought it to her face.
Without quite touching it, she sniffed it.
It didn't smell like anything in particular. Apparently, it was freshly washed, but if so, it should smell like lavender or something; instead, it was completely odorless.
She didn't understand why she felt disappointed.
But there was something else to worry about.
'How do I put this on?'
If she put the t-shirt directly against her skin, it would be in shreds in a second.
Nor could she go out all wet; her shirt still wasn't dry and she remained exposed.
But then something occurred to her.
It was quite obvious, really.
Her white shirt glowed for a second and then turned into sparks.
The cold air of the bathroom brushed her exposed skin, but that didn't last long; a glow covered the upper part of her body and the shirt reappeared—this time impeccable, without any trace of stains or moisture.
It wasn't common to have a memory that was simply clothes; it was a considerable expense just for that. Calling a smith and making such a specific request cost quite a bit, so it wasn't something usually taken into account.
With great care, Morgan put on the garment. It wouldn't be good if it touched the seam directly; the slightest slip and she could ruin everything.
It was more practical to go out in her same shirt and explain the situation…
But she wanted to wear it.
"There," she said with a trace of emotion.
Over the shirt was the black t-shirt, which… fit her tightly.
She hadn't expected anything else; between her and Sunny, they were at least a couple of sizes apart.
The t-shirt functioned more like a corset.
But she didn't complain for a single moment.
She wasn't even able to notice the silly smile that decorated her face. This small moment had triggered something inside her; she felt strange. But she no longer wanted to flee; perhaps it was the rush of emotions that prevented her from thinking clearly. But now, she wanted to step out of that door and face her fears.
Perhaps she would regret it later, but that's what she was going to do now—that's what she wanted to do.
She no longer desired to have any plan; she just wanted to let herself go, even though she knew she shouldn't. She stepped out from the door with renewed spirits and advanced toward the dining area.
But then, she stopped dead in her tracks.
Sunny was standing in the middle of the dining area. Her smile faltered until it disappeared.
Locked in an embrace were Sunny and a blonde-haired girl.
She remained standing there, watching the scene.