*Bam!*

I kick open the door without knocking.

“Hiih?!” (Shiva)

And Shiva screamed in surprised from it.

He stops his hands that were signing documents.

“What, so it was Haine! Ah~, that surprised me. Did you check on Hyue already? I want to hear the details about it, but sadly to say, I still can’t get my hands off this, you see.” (Shiva)

“[Dark Matter, Set]” (Haine)

“Eh? Uwaaa?!!” (Shiva)

I engulf Shiva in dark matter no questions asked and, just like that, leave the room carrying him on my shoulders.

Kidnapping the Founder?, I don’t care.

I have the permission of the wind hero, so there’s no problem.

***

And in this way, I return shouldering my catch, and there, I could see Hyue returning with the ghost Juo under her arms.

“Good?” (Hyue)

“Good.” (Haine)

We were having an exchange with the minimum amount of words.

Quick information transmission is an important part in succeeding at a crime.

And so, like this, we gathered the bride and groom.

We made them do a seiza side by side.

“Uhm…Hyue? Just what in the world is going on?!” (Shiva)

Shiva was unable to understand what was happening at all and the fact that he was suddenly kidnapped.

You would obviously want to hear the reason in all the confusion.

“There’s no way you don’t know, Aniue-sama. I have already heard everything from Fein-san.” (Hyue)

“Eh…” (Shiva)

“Even when you are in face of your wedding that only happens once in your whole life, you have been too focused in your job that you haven’t done the preparations. Aniue-sama’s wedding not only involves both of your families, but also the whole Wind nation, and on top of that, it also gathers the attention of the other Churches.” (Hyue)

Truly the epitome of workaholic.

“If you were to show an unsightly wedding because of a lack of preparations, the embarrassment of the Wind Church could be transmitted to the whole world! I will have Aniue-sama and the others concentrate on the wedding preparations! All other jobs will be temporarily put on hold!” (Hyue)

“B-But, if we were to do that, the management of the Wind Church would stagnate—!” (Shiva)

“Just leave it to administration. If they can’t progress with anything without inquiring with the Founder, they are of no need!” (Hyue)

“No, but…it was because of my long absence that work that only the Founder can put a final word to has been accumulated heavily…!” (Shiva)

“If you have been able to manage until today, you can manage to accumulate it for 10 days more. At any rate, please quickly decide the priest for the ceremony!” (Hyue)

Uwa…

Hyue is going full-throttle, no questions asked.

I thought she was a straight-laced and moderate girl, but to think she had such a strong pushy side to her.

“Hyue-ojousama has been like that since long ago.” (Fein)

Fein-san, who is standing by my side, says this.

“She is polite and proper when in public, but with her relatives…especially Shiva-obocchama and Juo-sama, she is…how to say it, incredibly strong!” (Fein)

“Even towards Juo?” (Haine)

Meaning she sees Juo as a relative?

Or more like, she sounds like the total opposite of our Doraha.

“Yes. I am serving the Toreido family from my father’s side, so I know of Obocchama since they were children. Hyue-ojousama, who is normally obedient like a doll, would turn into a beast only at the times when Juo-sama came to play!” (Fein)

“I thought that was because she hated me…!” (Juo)

““Hiiih?!””

Juo suddenly appeared from nowhere, and Fein and I were about to have our heart stopped.

Looks like her ghost-looks aren’t something that you get used to no matter how long you know that person for, as proved by Fein-san.

“I have been bitten by her in the times she was not even a year old. I thought that she simply couldn’t stand me in a physiological level…!” (Juo)

“T-That’s not the case, Juo-sama! Hyue-ojousama likes Juo-sama quite a lot!” (Fein)

“Really?” (Juo)

Maid-san, I understand you wanting to smooth the relationship of your employer’s family, but I think you shouldn’t say those kind of things so lightly…

“That’s true. When Juo-sama was a child, every time you came to play to our residence, Shiva-obocchama would always meet you together with her, didn’t she?!” (Fein)

“Rather than calling it meeting me, it was more like she was waiting to hit me…!” (Juo)

I can imagine a little Hyue going ‘grrr’ as she shouts ‘don’t touch Aniue-sama!!’.

“Even when Juo-sama walked the path of a scientist and entered the academy, Hyue-ojousama had Juo-sama in her mind. She held you in her mind as much as Shiva-obocchama who had entered training for the Kazama Shinobis.” (Fein)

“It is more of a ‘know thy enemy’…!” (Juo)

The one who controls information controls the war after all.

“Well, I have tried asking about this to Hyue-ojousama once. About what she thinks of Juo-sama.” (Fein)

“You overstepped your boundaries there, Maid-san.” (Haine)

This has already pushed me to blurt my thoughts out.

“Well, I brought that topic up in between casual talk though. Until that time, I honestly thought that Hyue-sama didn’t like the lady of the Brastor household.” (Fein)

But Hyue apparently answered in this way.

“She said: ‘It is the person that Aniue-sama likes a lot, so it can’t be helped’.” (Fein)

Fein-san plays out with a change of tone.

“Looks like rather than her own feelings, she had accepted the feelings that Shiva-obocchama had towards Juo-sama and couldn’t do anything about. She treasures her brother more than anything else after all. She understands that the help of Juo-sama is necessary for the sake of Shiva-obocchama’s happiness.” (Fein)

“Eh…” (Juo)

“There’s no bigger happiness as a maid than being able to serve these siblings.” (Fein)

That’s how Fein-san wrapped this up.

This might be the silver tongue of a maid that is trying to avoid problems within the family, but it also felt like there was a tint of truth in it.

That must be how the heart of a human works.

“Fein-san! Fein-san!!” (Hyue)

And Hyue was currently unstoppable.

“The personal selection of the priest, the interior design of the banquet, the seating order of the attendees; all of those have been decided! What’s left is for the staff to do their best!!” (Hyue)

Already?!

Hyue-san sure works fast!

“Thank you very much!! With this, we will make it to the estimated day!!” (Fein)

“What hasn’t been decided yet is the bride’s dress!!” (Hyue)

Hyue’s gaze falls onto Juo.

“Let’s go, Juo! This point alone can’t be left to the groom! You have to choose for yourself the dress that you will be displaying!!” (Hyue)

“……Hyue.” (Juo)

“Hm? What?” (Hyue)

“Nice, sister-in-law.” (Juo)

“Stop with the nonsensical talk and hurry. I heard that the bride’s dress is still only sewn in its initial stages!!” (Hyue)

Hyue pulls the hand of Juo-san.

This is the first time I see her going in such an energetic manner. I can already see the difference in treatment she has towards family.

• 353: Purification equipment

Hyue pulls Juo-san away.

We can’t just leave those girls alone, so Karen-san, Doraha, and I go together with them.

The place we arrived at was a luxurious clothing room.

There were several tens of clothing that were worn by mannequins or hung and lined up, moreover, they were all female clothes. On top of that, from what I see, each one of them looks so fancy that I think it would cost a whole month of my pay for a single one.

They truly are the dresses.

“These are all the candidates for the wedding dress of Juo.” (Hyue)

“All of them?!” (Haine)

Isn’t there way too many?

There might actually be close to a hundred dresses here!

“Are you saying we have to choose only one from all of this?!” (Haine)

“What are you saying, Haine-san? In the weddings of these days, it is common sense to change dresses.” (Karen)

“Change dresses?” (Haine)

Karen-san’s was looking at me with eyes as if saying ‘does he not know?’.

“You change several times in the middle of the ceremony. And so, you dress in several different types of wedding dresses.” (Karen)

“I see, and in that way, it entertains the eyes of the guests.” (Haine)

“That’s not it!” (Karen)

“It isn’t?” (Haine)

“Isn’t it obviously because the bride wants to dress in a variety of dresses?! A wedding ceremony is something you only get once in a lifetime!! That’s why, it is impossible to just go in one dress!!” (Karen)

Go in several different dresses for one’s own sake?!

I can’t understand well the desires of a woman!

“Well, adding to that, this is the Wind Founder’s wedding, so it has the influence of the whole Wind Church on the table. There’s the need to make the wedding as extravagant as possible, which will also lead to showing the other churches how big the Wind Church is.” (Hyue)

Hyue explains as she checks the dresses.

“The era of confrontation has passed, and peace is becoming the standard of the whole world, so there’s nothing good in being seen lightly. The other churches will definitely send envoys to celebrate this occasion, so we have to make a grand wedding that will awe them!” (Hyue)

Well, Karen-san and I are like the envoys of the Light Church in a sense.

We only noticed at the moment we arrived though.

“If we are going to make it extravagant, changing the dresses once or twice won’t be enough. Ten times, twenty times…no, we should change it 100 times, maybe 200 times.” (Hyue)

Wouldn’t that make her change all the time in the wedding?!

“But there’s a problem with that…” (Hyue)

Hyue’s bitter gaze turns towards a certain direction and we follow it.

At the place we focused our gazes in, there was a ghost that felt as if she had crawled from the depths of the netherworld.

This ghost is without doubt the bride of the wedding.

“…No matter how beautiful and luxurious of a dress we have her wear…” (Hyue)

“If the person herself is like this…!” (Haine)

The guests will most likely be in awe for a different reason —mostly fear.

“It is practically a mystery why this point hasn’t been addressed until now though!” (Haine)

“Well, the way of dealing with it had already been established, so it wasn’t taken as a big problem.” (Hyue)

Right.

In the past, there was a time when we tried to beautify this Juo-san that looked like she had came right out of drowning in the sea, and the result was that she ended being an incredible beauty.

It was as if a vengeful ghost had ascended to heaven.

I have seen this purified Juo-san once, but she was so dazzling and beautiful that I don’t remember it well now.

“Haine-san? What are you remembering~?” (Karen)

“Wah?!” (Haine)

Karen-san whispered at my back and I felt my spine shiver.

“Uhm…then, how about calling Celestis or Sarasa-san to beautify her by the time of the wedding?” (Haine)

With the help of the water divine power that can affect the body, we can purify Juo-san.

By doing that, a heavenly bride will most definitely descend in the wedding.

“Umu, that’s why this problem was not seen as a big one-de gozaru ga. But with this, it might be impossible to try on the wedding dresses-de gozaru na. For now, how about selecting the ones she should wear just by glance?” (Hyue)

“No problem.” (Juo)

Is what the ghost bride added.

“I don’t have any preference. I can’t go troubling my friend Sarasa all the time.” (Juo)

“By that, you mean?” (Haine)

“I have made this.” (Juo)

Saying this, she points at a certain something that’s at the corner of the room.

Looks like…a metallic capsule that a whole human can enter?

We again didn’t notice such a strange thing so close by us!

“After receiving the help of Sarasa and the others, I tried making this. This is an ethereal device that replicates their techniques.” (Juo)

“Eh?! Don’t tell me, you are planning on using this to…” (Haine)

“It is pretty easy to replicate the effects that the water divine power has on the body by using ethereal. With this, I can transform again!” (Juo)

Saying this, Juo-san presses the button on the capsule.

Then, the capsule opens in two as if saying ‘come in’.

Juo-san enters the capsule as if this was the obvious way, and then, presses a button inside the capsule, and the capsule closes.

Right now, Juo-san was completely a Schrodinger Juo-san.

I can only feel uneasiness in all this, but maybe because of Juo-san operating it from the inside, the machine began to slowly move.

…*Wuuuun, clank*

*Beep, Beep, Beep, Beep, Beep, Beep, Beep, Beep—!*  

*Zugagagagaga!!*

*Dotan, batan*

*Zudodododododo!!*

*Oraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraora!!!*

*Dorararararararararararararararararararararararararararararararararararararararara!!*

[Thank you very much!!]

“Awawawawa?!”

From inside the capsule, sounds that are definitely not natural were coming out from it?!

Is the person inside okay?! Or more like, what is happening in there?!

By the time our uneasiness changed to fear, the capsule that was making noises like crazy let out a groan as it stopped, and turned silent.

And then, it opened slowly, and what appeared from inside it was…

“Aloha~.”

A heavenly descended, purified Juo-san.

• 354: Dress Selection

I just can’t believe it.

Seeing this heavenly descended being as the same person as that vengeful ghost is just…

Glossy black hair flowing down, skin that glows like a pearl; the two eyes of hers, that one couldn’t see at all because of her previously weedy hair, were now visible and dazzling. This slightly drowsy expression of hers contrasted with the clear-headed expression of Hyue.

“…Tch.” (Hyue)

Hyue-san, I have to question that habit of clicking your tongue everytime you see her.

“If you can turn into that in an instant, you should just maintain that look in your everyday life.” (Hyue)

“But that side is my natural form, so don’t you think that’s fine?” (Juo)

Well, your current form gives more of a reassuring feeling, you know…

Isn’t it just fine to make the beautiful form into your actual form?

“Haine-san? Why are you getting all lovestruck?” (Karen)

“Ouch ouch ouch ouch?!” (Haine)

It hurts?!

Karen-san is pinching my butt for some reason!

I am not lovestruck or anything. I was simply admiring a beautiful woman.

“Haine-dono doesn’t understand the heart of women-de gozaru na…!” (Hyue)

Even Hyue pitched in!

And the Juo-san in question…

“…Fuhi.” (Juo)

Her inside was the same as before.

Well, obviously. If her personality changed along with her appearance, I wouldn’t be able to trust women anymore.

“Let’s leave that aside. Now that you are in that appearance, we can actually resize the dresses. Let’s begin trying them on.” (Hyue)

“…For now, let’s reduce the candidates. Which one to wear at the wedding ceremony? It would be better if it were as flashy as possible.” (Juo)

“Right.  There will be envoys of the other churches as guests, so this will also serve as a show of our change in policies from the time we were secretive. Let’s make it a really flashy one.” (Hyue)

“A plain one would give out the impression of still being secretive…” (Juo)

Is what Hyue and Juo-san said as they begin choosing the dresses…..

““DOOOON’T!!””

For some reason, the one that they chose was completely dirt bad.

“It is no good-de gozaru! Even if my head understands it, my instincts ends up choosing the plain ones-de gozaru!!” (Hyue)

“…..We of the Wind nation try our best to not stand out, and our motto is to have an air-like presence… Even if asked to choose a flashy dress now…” (Juo)

What a praiseworthy nature you have been born with, Wind people.

They have been tasked with the duty of hiding since the time they were born, the very place they live in is always in motion, and it is the church that no one could put a finger on; being unable to suddenly stand-out might not be that much of a surprise.

“Uhm…If you want…!” (Karen)

Karen-san raises her hand nervously.

“How about I check the dresses?” (Karen)

“Karen-dono will?!” (Hyue)

“The Wind people can’t choose flashy designs. In that case, I as someone of the Light nation, might be able to take a different perspective about it. Since I am already here, please let me help out.” (Karen)

“Karen-dono!!” (Hyue)

Hyue firmly took the hand of Karen-san.

“I am truly grateful! If Karen-dono of the Light nation is to oversee this, I am sure we will be able to find a dazzlingly flashy dress in no time-de gozaru!!” (Hyue)

“Wait, Hyue-chan?! In what light do you see the Light Church?!” (Karen)

True.

Do you think the Light Church that worships the Light Goddess Inflation would be a bunch of eccentric people……wait, that might not be wrong?

“Fine!! See! This is the one I have chosen. My favorite wedding dress!!” (Karen)

What Karen-san pulled out was…a pure white dress that was way too loyal to the basics.

In a sense, it looked like white like snow, and released a radiance that could dazzle the eye.

“Ooh! The white color easily shines and stands out! So the basics is the way to go, is that right-de gozaru?!” (Hyue)

“Good job, light hero…!” (Juo)

Looks like Hyue and Juo-san were satisfied with Karen-san’s suggestion.

“Well then, let’s try it out at once, Juo! If there’s an issue with the size, we have to resize it at once! We have short time to do that!” (Hyue)

“Y-Yes, ma’am…!” (Juo)

Hyue and company were going at high pace. At that time…

“Wait, please.” (Karen)

Karen-san stepped in again.

“I am sorry to stop you when you are in a hurry, but I have another proposal.” (Karen)

“A proposal?” (Hyue)

What in the world would Karen-san propose?

“How about Hyue-san also tries out the dresses?” (Karen)

“Excuse me?!” (Hyue)

Hearing this, Hyue was greatly confused.

“What do you mean-de gozaru, Karen-dono?! I am not the one getting married but this woman-de gozaru zo! There’s no point in anyone other than her wearing a dress-de gozaran ka!!” (Hyue)

“There is meaning. We will be comparing how it will look in differing heights.” (Karen)

““?!””

“Clothes give off quite the different impression depending on the height of the person wearing it. There’s designs that go better for plump people, as well as ones that look good on slender ones. We will be comparing to see which one it is for each dress.” (Karen)

“In other words…Juo and I?” (Hyue)

Now that she mentions it, these two girls have quite the contrasting body build.

Because of her work as a scientist, Juo-san’s body is decently plump, and her breasts and butt have volume.

On the other hand, Hyue has trained her body, so her body is well-toned, and looks like an herbivorous beast that’s specialized in running. And the breasts to match that body…

“…” *Bang!*

“Uoo?! That was dangerous!” (Haine)

Hyue had silently shot her gun?!

I guarded myself with dark matter right before it hit me, but Hyue really is quite radical in her reactions!

“…Fuhi, tiny breasts seal of approval.” (Juo)

“Shut up!” (Hyue)

Friction was happening between Juo and Hyue.

“It is fine! Hyue-chan’s small breasts are efficient small breasts!! They are made in a way so they don’t obstruct your job as a hero!” (Karen)

“Even if Karen-dono -a hero that has pretty big breasts- tells me, it doesn’t sound convincing!” (Hyue)

Calling them efficient small breasts made my heart throb for some reason.

“As proof of that, Hyue-chan’s whole body is well balanced, and has a smoothness like that of a cat! It is a body build that is practically fated to have small breasts as the most beautiful part of it!” (Karen)

“I can’t tell if you are complimenting me or picking a fight with me!” (Hyue)

“It is exactly because of Hyue-chan that we can compare it with Juo-san on the same dress!! Now then, you two, change clothes!!” (Karen)

The ultimate pushiness of Karen-san had now activated.

When Karen-san is like that, the only one who would be able to stop her is Yorishiro.

“I understand! I will do what Karen-dono says, so just…!” (Hyue)

Hyue’s embarrassed expression is directed at me.

Ah, well, of course.

“I will be waiting outside.” (Haine)

“There’s no need for that.” (Karen)

“Eh?”

“[Holy Light, *Nekodamashi*]” (Karen)

It was in an instant.

Karen-san, who had walked right in front of me, had both of her hands release an incredible amount of light, and dazzled my vision.

“My eyes!! My EYEEEEEESS!!” (Haine)

I can’t see anything!!

It was such a strong light that I felt as if my retinas had been burned.

“Once in the effect of this ‘Holy Light, Nekodamashi’, your vision won’t return for a while. With this, there won’t be any worries of being peeked at when changing.” (Karen)

“Was there a need to do that?! Wouldn’t it have been okay to just leave the place?!” (Haine)

“Out of room doesn’t mean out of means.” (Karen)

That’s a hell of a paranoia there!

Damn it. My eyesight will properly return, right? I feel as if this will definitely leave some sort of lasting damage.

At any rate, it doesn’t feel right to stand still when I am unable to see anything, so I tried to fumble my way to the wall, but…

…*Squish*

I touched something soft.

“KYAAAAAAAAA!!!” (Karen)

And Karen-san lets out a cute scream.

I would call this divine punishment.

Now then, which part did I touch?

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