That afternoon, an unexpected visitor arrived at Setsu’s apartment building, carrying maid outfits.
“Xia Jin, why is it you?”
“Hehe, that’s a long story. Let’s go upstairs first.”
Xia Jin parked the car and took out the clothes for Setsu from the trunk. A full ten boxes; even Setsu’s eye twitched at the sight.
“Why so many! Want me to help you carry some?” Setsu reached out, ready to assist.
“No need, no need. I’m an Awakened, after all. Besides, I’m not just here for this.”
Seeing she couldn’t outmatch her, Setsu simply walked ahead to open the door, and they finally made it upstairs.
Her dad was out fishing, her mom was visiting her bestie, and Shāyà had gone to Ling Xiaoxiao’s place, leaving Setsu home alone.
Before even looking at the clothes, Setsu first had Xia Jin sit down and rest.
“So, what’s the other matter?”
“After Cain died, the pace of spiritual energy recovery slowed down a lot. What do you think?”
“I think it’s the calm before the storm. Rather than slowing down, it feels like it’s gathering strength.”
“Oh? You already figured that out?” After a brief moment of surprise, Xia Jin continued, “The fragment handover is officially the day after tomorrow. We need a representative to receive it together with the Pope.”
The fragment, naturally, referred to the Boundary Stone fragment found inside Cain’s castle. According to the information obtained, this fragment contains a small world within it. The small world is temporarily inaccessible, but the bloody aura it emits is still chilling.
“Miss Ling reminds you to be careful when handling this fragment and to mind your boundaries with the Pope.”
“Come on, do you have to be so in character? Calling her ‘Miss’ and everything?”
“You don’t understand. I feel like I’m the butler in those rich boss novels right now. It’s too immersive.” Realizing she had gotten carried away, she reined it in a bit. “Anyway, the main point is to stay away from that Pope. Don’t let him trick you into anything.”
“Seriously, what do you all take me for? Am I really that flirtatious?” Setsu said.
Xia Jin thought about it. Besides her own ‘Miss Ling,’ there was that beast-eared maid, a black-haired girl who looked seventy or eighty percent like Setsu, and even a blonde priestess from another world.
Looking at it that way, her Miss Ling’s concerns weren’t unfounded.
“I think, Setsu, while you might not have those intentions, others might. You need to protect yourself out there.”
Setsu: “…”
“Speaking of which, why wasn’t this important information broadcast through the Pioneer terminals? Why deliver it verbally in person?”
“For secrecy. Only a few people know about the fragment’s purpose. Commander Ye doesn’t want any complications. The public story is just that it’s a simple cultural artifact handover.”
After explaining everything, Xia Jin left somewhat reluctantly. During the latter half of their conversation, she kept hinting for Setsu to try on the clothes, but Setsu played dumb the whole time.
Setsu waited until Xia Jin had definitely left before nervously opening the boxes herself.
Besides two exquisitely made maid outfits, there were also a sailor uniform, a Hanfu, a Lolita dress, and even a one-piece swimsuit.
“Seriously, what’s with the swimsuit?” Even though it was a modest one-piece, Setsu couldn’t bear the thought of herself wearing it.
Despite her strong initial resistance, Setsu now found it hard to look away from these clothes.
They were just too beautiful. For someone who always prioritized practicality in clothing, this was the first time she felt wavering.
She used to just wear whatever was comfortable, hence tracksuits most of the time, and plain t-shirts and shorts in summer.
Staring at the blue-and-white maid outfit, Setsu swallowed hard. It felt like some magic was tempting her to put it on.
“No way, I’m not wearing something like this at home!”
The angel and devil on her shoulders appeared.
Angel: “Wear it. I wanna see.”
Devil: “More, bro. Gimme more.”
Setsu looked back at the blue-and-white maid outfit laid flat on the bed. Her hand reached out involuntarily.
“I’m just checking if it fits, that’s all. Wouldn’t want it to not fit later.” Setsu reminded herself, picked up the maid outfit, and held it up in front of the mirror.
Her new room was decorated like a girl’s room anyway. Setsu changed into the clothes, nervously put on the katsusha headpiece, and slowly walked to the full-length mirror.
The angel in her head marveled: “Ooh la la, white stockings are forever godly!”
Devil: “Pretty. Nice. Gimme more.”
Setsu looked at herself in the mirror. Her snow-white hair looked perfectly harmonious against the maid outfit. The light blue dress paired with the pure white apron made her look incredibly innocent.
She couldn’t help but stare at herself in the mirror for a long time. Even she was mesmerized.
“So pretty, hehehe.” As soon as she said it, she quickly shook her head, trying to dispel the weird thoughts. “Whoa, getting all excited over myself is way too strange.”
What completes a perfect maid outfit? As an old-school anime fan, Setsu had her own idea: a disdainful glare, of course!
She faced the mirror and started adjusting her expression. First, tilt her head slightly, bite her lip softly as if about to make a ‘tsk’ sound, then add a slight sidelong glance.
Setsu tweaked her expression and successfully achieved a ‘looking at trash’ kind of gaze. Then she added some body language, like crossing her arms.
Angel in her head: “Whoa, yes! This is exactly what I wanted to see!”
Devil: “Pretty. Nice. Gimme more!”
Setsu felt like she had opened a door to a new world. She kept changing her expressions in the mirror, making playful faces.
Unconsciously, her face grew warm from excitement, and her gaze became more intense.
She happened to notice the cat ears, also part of the headwear. An impulse made her reach out, and a feeling of guilty pleasure brought her immense delight.
She put the cat ears on, appraised herself in the mirror, and then curled her hands into cat-like paws.
“Meow~”
She mimicked a catgirl, letting out a soft sound.
The angel and devil in her head hugged each other: “OHHHHHHHHH!”
Ling Xiaoxiao was resting in her mountain villa. She had just taken out a jar of bamboo leaf wine and was about to enjoy a sip when she received a message from Setsu.
“Oh? A video?”
Drinking her wine, she opened the video. Immediately, she was greeted by Setsu in the blue-and-white maid outfit, making a cat-paw gesture with her right hand towards the camera.
“Meow meow~”
Pfft! cough cough. Ling Xiaoxiao was caught completely off guard by this sudden dose of happiness, choking and coughing repeatedly.
Shāyà, who was playing games nearby, got sprayed in the face.
“Ugh, Ling Xiaoxiao, you’ve gone too far…”
Just as she was about to protest, Ling Xiaoxiao replayed the video on her phone. Seeing that scene, Shāyà’s mood lifted too.
Setsu was incredibly curious about Ling Xiaoxiao’s reaction, but failed to notice the gaze from outside her slightly ajar door.
Snort. Someone outside couldn’t hold back a laugh. Setsu reflexively turned her head and saw her mother, barely able to contain her smile.
“Ah! Mom, when did you get here?” Setsu’s mind went into chaos.
“Since you started meowing at your phone~”
Aaaaaahhhhh!