Time had moved on to the next day. Last night, since it was Mashiro's first experience and they had school the next day, Rin Ito didn't overdo it with them.
After they left in the morning, Rin Ito headed to the front of Elf's mansion, carrying his backpack containing his laptop, drawing tablet, and the catgirl outfit enthusiastically sponsored by Sagiri. Rin Ito didn't ring the doorbell but took out his phone instead. He had confirmed with Elf the last time he visited that the doorbell wasn't broken; Elf simply assumed Rin Ito was an editor chasing a manuscript.
Rin Ito: [Open the door, chasing the manuscript!] Elf: [Don't scare me!]
Rin Ito's opening gambit was one that could make an author's heart skip a beat, especially for Elf, a notorious procrastinator. She treated every person who knocked on her door as an editor chasing a manuscript.
After a while, the mansion door opened. Standing before Rin Ito was the petite Elf, dressed in a red-themed Lolita long dress.
"Another one of your 'staying inside to write' days?"
"Absolutely not!" The blushing Elf glared at Rin Ito, then looked at his backpack. "Did you bring the cosplay outfit?"
"Yup, it's in the bag. Put on the catgirl outfit, and I'll take you to meet the Ero-Manga Sensei."
Sagiri had already agreed with Elf that she could meet her as long as Elf wore the catgirl outfit. Rin Ito passed through the entrance hall to the living room, placed his backpack on the table, and pulled out the folded catgirl outfit. To match Elf's hair color, Rin Ito had bought a golden catgirl outfit. He smiled as he handed the catgirl outfit over.
Seeing Elf close the dressing room door, Rin Ito mentally counted down.
10... 9... 8...
"Aaaahhhhh!!!!"
Before Rin Ito reached zero, Elf's scream came from the dressing room. Then, a rush of frantic footsteps followed. Elf burst out in front of Rin Ito, holding a detachable cat tail prop.
"W-w-w-what is this thing!?"
Rin Ito blinked, presenting a look of total innocence and matter-of-factness. "The Ero-Manga Sensei is preparing to draw a cat-themed illustration. Isn't it normal for props to be included with the costume?"
"This..." Elf froze. What Rin Ito said seemed so logical that Elf couldn't find a counter-argument for a moment.
"Everything else is fine, but this tail... no!"
"That's fine," Rin Ito said. "We can just use the costume without the tail for now."
After getting the affirmative answer, Elf breathed a sigh of relief. She threw the tail onto Rin Ito's hand and returned to the dressing room.
A while later, half of her face peeked out from the corner of the living room. Gray cat ears emerged from her dazzling golden hair. A light blush colored her fair cheeks, and her pink eyes were slightly watery from embarrassment. Looking at Rin Ito, Elf hesitated to speak.
"I've seen your initial character designs already, so what's there to be shy about?" Mentioning this, Rin Ito's mind recalled Elf's small stature and her elegant appearance.
"Ugh..." After hesitating for a long time, Elf finally stepped into Rin Ito's line of sight. Under the playful gray cat ear hair clips was a choker with a bell. A pair of adorable cat paw gloves covered her hands. The outfit itself was a tight, but non-explicit, gray vest and shorts with cat paw details and thigh-high boots.
Coupled with the wet embarrassment in her pink eyes... Cute and lovely.
"Perfect! The Ero-Manga Sensei will definitely love this for her reference work!" Rin Ito suppressed his smile. "Put on a coat; I'll take you to her house."
"What kind of embarrassing character research is this!" Elf couldn't help but complain. "Can't I change into it when we get to her house?"
Rin Ito's mouth curved into a mysterious smile. "It's too much trouble to change when we get there. We can just go over like this~"
The utterly confused Elf put on a coat as instructed by Rin Ito, followed him out the mansion door, and then... they turned and walked right next door.
"...." Elf's mouth twitched. "Did you check the window to see if you could see the Ero-Manga Sensei's room on your very first visit!?"
Rin Ito pursed his lips, forcefully suppressing a laugh. "Elf, you have very good luck. The house you randomly chose is right next door to the Ero-Manga Sensei's." Rin Ito pressed the doorbell, then looked up and waved at the window on the second floor. "Sagiri, your catgirl model has arrived."
"Don't use such suggestive language!"
After a short while, with the sound of footsteps, the door opened. Although trembling with shyness, Sagiri mustered her courage at the thought of the catgirl model outside.
"Hello, Ero-Manga Sensei~"
"I-I don't know anyone by that name!" After an instinctive retort, Sagiri stepped aside. "Come inside."
As Rin Ito closed the door, Sagiri relaxed. Then, her eyes fixed intently on Elf. Sagiri's artistic gaze made Elf nervously clutch her coat, her eyes darting around.
"Hehehe, hehehe... Don't worry, my brother is at school; I'm the only one home." Sagiri swallowed. "Let's go to my room."
"Mm..." Elf curiously looked at the girl similar in age to her. It's school time; why isn't she at school? However, Elf didn't ask further, as she hadn't gone to school herself. Her educational level was only slightly better than a kindergarten graduate... she had completed elementary school.
Walking into Sagiri's room, Sagiri gave a slightly mischievous chuckle. Elf's body shivered the moment the door closed. She knew they were here to work, but the atmosphere felt intense.
Rin Ito took his laptop and drawing tablet out of his backpack and placed them beside Sagiri. The two sat side-by-side, staring at Elf.
"This Lady..." The blushing Elf forcibly straightened her posture to conceal her shyness and took off her coat. "Feel free to capture this Lady's pose for your work."
"Ooh ooh ooh!!!!" Sagiri's breathing became heavy. The pen in her hand slid across the drawing tablet, and Elf's shy figure gradually appeared on the computer screen. As she drew, Sagiri occasionally shifted position, looking up at her from various angles for compositional reference.
Although Rin Ito was also drawing, he wasn't as excited as Sagiri. He quickly determined the composition for his own work. He was focused on a light-hearted scene involving three characters interacting in a non-sexual, dynamic group pose.
Rin Ito was completely absorbed in his work, focused on the form and lighting of the illustration. Unbeknownst to him, Elf and Sagiri had both moved to stand behind him, curious about his progress.