Otherworld Tourism
It’s not that Elphy can’t wear clothes. But that hood-shaped hat of hers is so unmistakably otherworldly that it clashes with everything she puts on. The combination feels too alien, drawing every eye on the street. That’s why the two of us are standing together inside this clothing shop right now, but…
“How does it look?”
“...”
How does it look? She’s standing there in nothing but a few flimsy scraps of fabric and a single pair of panties and she wants my opinion? What the hell am I supposed to say? This isn’t a strip show… Every single outfit she tries on seems to have zero interest in warmth or protection. And of course it’s a master artisan’s boutique, so the prices are insane.
“Hey… why is this so expensive? Converted to won, isn’t this like seven hundred and fifty thousand?”
“Probably…? Still, for this price point, it’s not bad, right…?”
“It’s recognized as the work of a master in Ferid, after all…”
“...”
A master? Wait, does the otherworld hand out that title to people who design stripper outfits? I don’t get it. The pricing in this place pisses me off too. Why the hell should I drop three-quarters of a million won on some panties and a couple of strings?
Even if the lining were plated in solid gold I still wouldn’t accept it. I felt like a father vehemently opposing his daughter’s marriage, dead set against buying any of these garments, but… she seemed to genuinely like this one. Suddenly she started making weird noises.
“…Magic?”
"Even if I take it off… if I simply slip it on like this…!"
⟨ Diiha ⟩
It ties itself up neatly like a gift. God, this is embarrassing. Thank goodness a high-end shop like this has private fitting rooms. Off, on, off again… no pole, but it might as well be a full strip show.
Dizzy from the sheer absurdity, I squeeze my eyes shut, then open them again.
“How about it? Worth the money, right?”
“No… ha… So you’re seriously planning to walk down the middle of the street wearing that? For real?”
“Are you crazy? I’m just trying it on.”
“Why? Were you imagining some outdoor play while I wore something like this? How perverted~”
“...”
Bullshit. If anyone’s perverted it’s you, babbling about rotor play and whatever else. I told her to stop talking nonsense and handed over the outfit I had carefully chosen.
“What is this? No… what kind of clothes did you pick? Is this a nun’s habit?”
“Shut up and put it on. I chose the most ordinary mage-style robe I could find that would still match that ridiculous hat of yours.”
“...”
She clearly wasn’t thrilled, but what was I supposed to do if she refused? Thinking she would come out in something modest and sensible had already been a relief, yet no matter how hard she tried to cover up, that overwhelming sensuality radiating from every inch of her body refused to be hidden.
“How does it look? Does it suit me?”
“Uh… yeah, it suits you…”
“See? It has this sacred priestess vibe, right? Doesn’t it?”
“...”
Sacred priestess, my ass. Honestly it looked more like a fallen nun straight out of some sex-crazed doujin. Saying that out loud would probably earn me a smack. Of course, I knew Elphy better than anyone. I knew exactly how she transformed the moment she climbed onto a bed, so maybe that’s why the thought even crossed my mind.
Even with all the coverage, her generous chest still created an unavoidable hint of cleavage. Those holes deliberately placed near the pelvis, clearly designed for sex appeal, stirred up all sorts of obscene imagery I couldn’t ignore.
Ha… fuck… Should I make her change into something that actually wraps her up tight? Or just buy this one…? I was torn. When she cinched the belt around her waist, the line between nun and some kind of ritual slut disappeared completely.
“Hey… this won’t work. It’s way too erotic. Let’s get something else.”
“What? No… what exactly is erotic about it?”
“It is erotic! Does something have to be completely naked to count as erotic? Huh?”
It wasn’t some MILF-look trending on SNS. Holes punched over both hips, fabric clinging to every curve of her breasts and ass—it was pure, shameless sex appeal. Any guy with a functioning dick who saw her walking down the street in that would have no choice but to stare.
“No… why are you being so strict?”
“What do you mean, strict? How many times have I had to police your wardrobe? Here, try this.”
“Ha? No way! What is that… some kind of cloak? Even a slave has the right to choose her own clothes, you know?”
“If you don’t take this I’ll seriously walk around naked.”
She threatened to let her tits and crotch roam completely free, along with five rotors, basically daring us both to commit social suicide together. No… ha. Fine. I get it. I’ll buy it, so let’s loosen that belt. I made the offer to my slave.
“Hmm…”
“...”
“No. I want the belt pulled tight.”
As expected, the moment we stepped onto the street I felt countless gazes lock onto Elphy, who had her arm looped through mine. By my estimate, men and women of every race were stealing at least one glance. Especially the looks coming from all the dick-bearing bastards. Those stares pissed me off the most.
“Elphy… um… how about loosening the belt just a little now?”
“It feels like every single person walking by is staring…”
“I know. That’s the whole point of wearing it. Doesn’t it excite you?”
“...”
Crazy woman. Yeah… what could I even say to her?
While walking the streets of Ferid with Elphy, we arrived at a famous weapon shop. At the same time I tried to decide what kind of weapon I should buy.
“…Do they sell guns here by any chance?”
“Guns?”
“Guns are what I’m most familiar with… it’s not like I can go around swinging a sword.”
Gun ownership is illegal in Korea, but maybe things were different here. I spotted an M4 hanging behind the counter by the entrance and felt a surge of genuine hope, but the employee told me that was just decoration. There were no actual guns for sale.
“Who uses guns as rift-clearing weapons these days?”
“Magic works better on monsters than bullets… plus there are too many friendly-fire accidents, so nobody wants to carry them.”
“If you want long-range attacks, why not just use magic…?”
“...”
Fuck… how did the world end up like this? Sure, friendly fire is inevitable when untrained people start shooting, but still… to hear that magic was simply more efficient than firearms? Even though I already knew it, the reality still left a bitter taste in my mouth.
The weapon the shop owner handed me announced that the world I once knew was well and truly dead.
“What the hell is this…?”
“Knuckles. When I told him you throw a decent punch, the old man pulled these out.”
“They’re expensive, but he said he’ll cut the price because he likes you.”
“...”
Fuck… knuckles. I had been a top-tier marksman even in a special forces unit full of absolute monsters, yet here I was, strapping on knuckles. The disconnect between memory and reality felt surreal.
On top of that, these things were heavier than they looked.
“Whoa… if I punch wrong while wearing these I might dislocate my shoulder…?”
“Even then they’re considered really light. They cover up to the forearm, so they’re convenient in a lot of ways.”
“Knuckles that only cover the hand make defense difficult, right?”
“...”
Hmm… that was true. If they only protected the wrist it would be hard to deflect incoming attacks like you could with a sword. You’d have to dodge everything. Adding protection to the forearm made sense. The real question was whether I could actually throw punches while wearing them.
“I want to test these out… got anything like a sandbag?”
“Probably. Want me to ask?”
***
Following the owner down into the basement, an unbelievably vast space opened up before us. The enormous structure that resembled an indoor soccer stadium left both me and Elphy stunned.
“What the hell is this…?”
“No… I only needed one sandbag…”
This was way too much. The sheer overwhelming scale left me speechless. The owner simply smiled and uttered a single word.
“Diiha.”
A magically created space. The latest state-of-the-art weapon testing ground and arena, shared by the entire city of Ferid.
“Diiha? You mean the whole thing was made with magic?”
“Yeah. The old man says it’s newly built. The whole city of Ferid shares it. The power of the gods really is amazing, isn’t it?”
“...”
Yeah. It really was. Thanks to that sight, instead of the usual image of a mischievous daughter, a genuine sense of divine majesty floated through my mind for once.
I looked around at the circular rows of seats and loosened up my body a little. There were quite a few other people already sitting in the stands. Was some kind of event going on?
(…What is this?)
(There’s no way they all came here for the same reason I did…)
So they were holding matches here? It was called a testing ground and arena, after all. That made sense. Come to think of it, what kind of arena was this exactly?
“Hey, Elphy. Are they holding some kind of match here today?”
“Yeah. The old man said they’ll do something fun in a little while.”
“If you’re free, why not stay and watch with him? The arena?”
“…The arena?”