Saijo no Osewa ~ Takane no Hana [LN] - V3 Chp 1 part 6
The next day. We met up again at the academy.
Today’s activity starts… in the morning before classes start.
[Strategy 2. Do a makeover]
It’s a simple strategy.
Narika nodded.
(Well, this is what I came up with when I saw Hinako…)
I caught a glimpse of Hinako and our eyes met.
[Is something wrong?]
[…No]
Hinako, who’s in Ojou-sama mode, tilted her head cutely.
In private, Hinako is a lazy girl, but when she changes her image thoroughly, she’s the most popular person in the academy.
Given this, it’s not an exaggeration to say that Hinako is changing her appearance every day.
Hinako is the master of makeovers.
[The purpose of this makeover is to reduce the unapproachability that Narika gives off. To achieve this, we’re aiming for an image that’s the exact opposite of stern and serious]
[I get the logic, but…]
Narika made a difficult face.
[…Hey. This may be a little late but, am I really that scary?]
[Nnn… But in front of us, you look just fine]
Actually, I don’t really feel scared of Narika much either.
Of course, I know that she looks objectively scary, but I’ve never felt truly frightened of her because I knew Narika since she was a child.
[Let’s try an experiment]
[Experiment?]
I nodded to Narika, who was confused.
[We still have some time before homeroom, so let’s go outside for a bit]
Saying this, I went outside the academy with Narika and Hinako.
The Konohana family’s servants were always waiting around the vicinity of the school route to prevent anything from happening to Hinako on her way to and from school. They were probably still there so I tried to stay as close to the school as possible to avoid disturbing their work.
On the other side of the crosswalk, children who appeared to be elementary school students were walking.
(…Let’s call those kids)
I approached the kids and called out to them.
[Can we talk for a bit?]
The kids turned around.
[What~?]
[Hey, we can’t just follow someone we don’t know, right…?]
[Ah, I know who you are! Those clothes are from a very rich school!]
[It’s the Kiou Academy!]
It seems that even children know of the academy.
[I have a question for you all]
I bent down, got to eye level with the kids, and said.
[Compared to this big sister here…]
Pointing at Narika, I took out a picture from the pocket of my uniform.
[And the picture of a certain yakuza boss. Which one is scarier…?]
[H-Hey, Itsuki, why do you have a picture of a yakuza?]
[I heard they once messed with the Konohana group, so there were some documents]
The picture showed a strong-looking old man with a scar etched on his forehead.
Normally, this yakuza would be more frightening.
The children stared back and forth between the photo and Narika’s face.
[…Narika, try smiling a bit]
It makes no sense unless you compare them to Narika when she was at the academy and trying to make friends.
At my request, Narika smiled awkwardly.
[Fu-fufu…]
The children’s faces paled at the sight of her stiff smile.
[ [ Big sister is scarier!!! ] ]
[Uuaaaaa…! Should I just die now…!!]
The children left as if they were running away.
Narika crouched down on the spot.
[Did you feel the need for a makeover?]
[….Yeah. I want her to go all out]
Narika had yet to recover from the shock.
[Then, I’ll let Konohana-san take it from here]
[Yes]
Hinako nodded.
I asked Hinako, a fellow woman, to help me from here on out to change not only her hair but also her clothes to some extent. I was glad Hinako was willing to help.
[Narika, you want to dress up like Asahi-san, right?]
[Y-Yeah. I’ve actually been admiring her a bit for a while now. My family was pretty strict, so that kind of figure looks fresh to me. …Asahi-san has a lot of friends, and I would like to learn from her]
Narika said shyly.
This is something I’ve only recently learned, but there are almost no school rules regarding personal appearance at the academy. It’s considered that the students here already refrain from such things without having to refer to it in the school rules.
Asahi-san is a rare case. However, Asahi-san does not dress down to the extent of disturbing public morals. She just changes the color of her skirt or adds a small accessory to her outfit.
[Well, if you suddenly change your image, it might scare people off, so let’s just make a small adjustment this time[
[T-That’s true. I’d appreciate it too]
Back at the academy, Narika and Hinako entered the locker room, which they were free to use at any time.
After waiting about ten minutes, they appeared.
[H-How is it…?]
Narika fidgeted and confidently showed her new look to me.
Her uniform was unbuttoned and open in the front, and her skirt was slightly shorter. Even the shirt she wore outside was unbuttoned at the top and bottom, respectively, giving her a roughly dressed appearance.
On her slender wrist was a pink bracelet. I thought it was a color that didn’t fit her image, but I felt it helped give her a different aura. It was also nice that it wasn’t too noticeable because of its elegant construction.
[…Just a little change can make such an impression]
Narika now looked like a modest gal.
As for her hair, it hardly changed at all, it only looked slightly softer and more puffy. With this kind of look, people wouldn’t have a bad impression of her.
[Narika, how do you like it?]
[I-I’m a little nervous but…. I think I can handle this]
It was just the right makeover, just enough to make it bearable for Narika’s sense of shame.
[But can my shirt be this loose? It feels a little immodest…]
Narika tugged at her collar as if she was uncomfortable.
[Wai—]
For a moment, I could see her underwear, and I quickly looked away.
How defenseless…
[…You’d better fasten the button on the top]
[Eh? …Ah!?]
Narika also noticed that her underwear was visible and quickly hid her breasts.
Awkward…
Narika was hurriedly buttoning up her shirt when,
[Ouch!?]
Hinako suddenly kicked me in the shin.
[Um, Konohana-san…?]
[I’m sorry, my foot slipped]
[I-Is that so…]
Ojou-sama was in a bad mood.
Her smile was scary.
[A-Alright, now all I have to do is look like this and go to class…!]
Narika showed her motivation.
[We can’t be with you anymore, so just hang in there for now]
[Y-Yeah! I’ll do better this time]
Narika was ready and headed for her classroom.
The locker room and the classroom weren’t that far apart. In a few minutes, Narika’s makeover would be on display for all to see.
[…Itsuki]
After seeing Narika off, Hinako called out to me.
[Do you… like styles like that?]
[Eh?]
I was a little confused by her question, which I couldn’t read the true intention of, and then I answered.
[I don’t necessarily like it per se, but… having gone to a regular school, I’m more familiar with that kind of casual attire]
[…Fuuun~]
The students of the academy wear their uniforms buttoned up from the very top to the bottom. I rarely see this in my old high school.
I was thinking back to my previous high school life then–
[…I’ll do that next time]
[Eh..?]
I don’t know what triggered it, but Hinako muttered something along those lines.
I’m scared that Keigon-san is going to get mad at me but…. I’d like to see it.
Then we headed to our classroom for the first period.
♦♦♦
As I was taking notes on the words on the blackboard written by the teacher, the chime rang.
(It’s recess… let’s go check on Narika)
I looked at Hinako and our eyes met.
We walked out into the hallway and went straight to casually peek into class B together.
Narika was…
[…Huh? Not here..?]
I looked around the classroom and couldn’t find Narika.
I had no choice but to ask a nearby student.
[Excuse me. Is Miyakojima-san here?]
[Miyakojima-san was, um… called to the student advisor’s office]
[…The student advisor’s office?]
I had a bad feeling.
We immediately headed for the student guidance office.
As I was wondering whether to knock on the door of the room, the door unexpectedly opened.
Narika appeared from behind the opened door.
[N-Narika. Why are you dressed like that…?]
Narika’s appearance was slightly different from when she left the locker room.
Her hair was wildly disheveled and her shirt was wrinkled.
And… she had what looked to be abrasions on her arms and knees. I wonder when this happened. They weren’t there before she left…
[…I was so nervous that I fell down on the way to the classroom… after I parted ways with the two of you… I didn’t realize it at that time, but before I knew it… I was in all sorts of disarray and ended up looking like this]
I was convinced those scrapes were from the fall.
(She looks like a delinquent returning from a fight…)
Should I have looked after her properly up until I left for class?
I put my hand on my forehead.
Surely it was not surprising that she was called to the student advisor’s office.
[Earlier, the teacher… asked me who I fought with]
Narika said with tears in her eyes.
[I was told that in this country, both blackmail and extortion are crimes]
[….]
[They asked me what kind of injuries I had inflicted on the other party so they could estimate the cost of their treatment.]
[…]
[Even if I had a squabble or if I was in a fight… Why is there no mention of the possibility that I lost…]
That’s because there’s no image of you losing…
[…Next, let’s go]
Strategy 2—failed.
Donations are very much appreciated. (EDN: Help fuel me and Ezu’s Honkai addiction plz) (TN: I need the VCT champions skin pls)
TL: Ezu
ED: Animu
PR: Mateo
Delgado
🤣🤣🤣