[Shichen has joined.]
With a blink, Shichen found himself standing on a plain. Floating in the air before him, a line of text appeared out of nowhere.
It felt exactly like a popup in a video game.
He probed the space—unstable, a little unreal. If he wanted, he could tear it apart at any time, but there was no rush.
Swoosh—!
A sound effect chimed, and two figures popped into existence at his side.
"Shichen-nii?" Yui Kotegawa blurted, startled.
"Yui, you two came too."
It was Yui and Frieren.
"Shichen-nii… did you do this?" Yui asked.
"Nope. I just opened an invitation letter and landed here."
"Same as us… That's a relief—since you're here." Yui let out a breath.
"Your outfit…" Frieren spoke softly.
"Ah! What is with this outfit?!" Yui finally noticed what she was wearing and yelped.
She had on a very tight slit cheongsam; the slits up both sides reached her waist, exposing long, pale thighs. One wrong move and she'd reveal everything.
Shichen's outfit had changed too—plain T-shirt and shorts, a sword in hand—like starter gear for a level-one RPG character. Frieren was wrapped head to toe in a long robe.
"There's writing over our heads," Frieren pointed out.
Above each of them were floating labels: over Shichen—Hero. Over Frieren—Mage. Over Yui—Martial Artist. Like classes.
[Welcome to the full-dive RPG trial. Defeat the Demon King, rescue the Princess, and clear the game.]
[Hint: You cannot leave unless you clear the game.]
Two lines of system text hovered in the air in front of them.
"What? A game? We can't leave unless we clear it? Is that for real?" Yui said, incredulous.
"This is actually kind of fun," Frieren said, intrigued. Better than PE by a mile.
"In that case, let's clear it," Shichen said, cheerful. He could world-hop at will, sure, but a true full-dive RPG? He wanted to try it. If it was good, he'd bring it home so Kanna and the others could play. The whole family clearing it together would be a riot—and it might give Kasumigaoka Utaha story ideas.
"You two… Fine, I'll tag along. But what about afternoon classes?" Yui sighed.
Both Shichen and Frieren gave her an odd look.
"W-what?"
"As expected of the discipline committee—still worrying about class now," Shichen said.
"True—though wearing that has zero moral authority," Frieren added with a nod.
"Ugh… It's not like I wanted to wear this! And Shichen-nii, stop staring at me…" Yui muttered, mortified.
"It looks great. How could I not look?" Shichen said, utterly frank.
"Mm…" Yui flushed harder.
"…You two can flirt all you want. I'm going to grind some mobs," Frieren deadpanned, eyes half-lidded, and headed toward a roadside critter.
"Frieren, we're not flirting!" Yui grabbed her hem and hurried after, protesting.
Shichen strolled after them, amused.
The little monsters were a bit abstract—cat-ish, basically big heads with a tail.
"How do we fight it?" Frieren asked, staring at one.
"Aren't you a mage? Use magic," Shichen reminded her.
"Oh, right. Let me see… I don't think I can?"
"Looks like you haven't unlocked skills yet. There's a village up ahead—let's check it out first."
"Alright."
"Shichen-nii is so reliable," Yui said with a smile.
"Just experience talking… heads up—mob."
"Eh? Don't come over!"
The little monster lunged while they weren't looking—right at Yui. Comedy ensued: she reflexively swatted it aside and sent it flying.
Thud—!
It hit the ground, burst into smoke, and turned into several coins.
"Eh? T-that's it?" Yui stood there dazed.
"As expected of a Martial Artist," Shichen applauded—his eyes dropping to her midriff.
"I—hey—ah—!"
Yui scratched her head, looked down, and saw her predicament. The hem of her dress had snagged; her white panties were entirely exposed. Mortified, she crouched on the spot, covering her face.
"It's fine—no outsiders here," Shichen reassured her.
"Ugh… What is with this outfit?!" Yui groaned into her hands.
"Probably Lala's handiwork," Frieren said gravely.
"Eh? Lala made this?" Yui looked over.
"Mm. Only Lala would make something like this. She got the same invitation but didn't spawn with us—maybe she's the Demon King," Frieren said, dead serious.
"Lala as the Demon King? You know… that could be true," Yui nodded solemnly. She'd seen Lala's inventions; who else would do this?
"Shichen-nii, is it Lala's?"
"Hard to say. We'll find out soon enough."
"True."
They picked up the coins and headed toward the village. Shichen left Yui's wardrobe alone—this was a game world and everyone else seemed like data, not real people. And no unknown guys had spawned here—he'd have sensed them. No need to change her clothes then; besides, the view wasn't bad.
As they neared the village, Shichen glanced up, sensing something. Far off, a figure in a witch's outfit, hat and broom and all, flew across the sky—seen only from behind—then dwindled into the distance.
"Shichen-nii? What is it?" Yui followed his gaze, saw nothing.
"It's nothing. Let's hit the village."
"Okay."
Inside, it was all NPCs, each repeating a single line in a robotic tone. No familiar faces. Following the prompts, they reached the Class Awakening hut and unlocked class skills—magic for Frieren, martial techniques for Yui, sword skills for Shichen. Realistically, only Yui needed the boost.
"Frieren, want to test your magic?" Yui asked, curious.
"Okay."
Just in case, they left the village and took a deserted side path.
Frieren raised her staff, face solemn, and chanted: "Pupu-ring~"
Bzz—
Her staff glowed—and then… nothing happened.
"Where's the magic?" Yui asked.
"It did trigger… As expected of a Lala-made game—bugs everywhere," Frieren muttered.
"True, Lala's inventions always have little prob—"
Rip—!
Yui didn't finish. In a blink, her dress exploded and two round, white, bouncy "little bunnies" popped free.
"Eek—!" Yui slapped her arms over her chest and dropped into a crouch.
"What is this!?"
"Was that… my spell?" Frieren blinked.
"Looks like it," Shichen nodded, amused.
To be fair, the two "little bunnies" were lively—downright adorable and… tempting. Tender, juicy—made you want a bite.
"How can this be? What is this? Why am I always the one who gets hit with this stuff?" Yui lamented.
"It's okay—no outsiders," Shichen said, patting her head.
"That's not the point! And you're right here…"
"Don't want me to look?"
"It's not about that…" Yui's voice trailed off, head down.
"Then what is it?"
"It's…"
"Could you two move already?" Frieren asked, expressionless.
"Ah! W-wait, let me put something on—"
"Need a hand?"
"No way!"
~~~
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