For Shizuku, Kyoto was a fine tourist destination and quite suitable for living as well.
Its ancient buildings and sprawling courtyard homes lacked Tokyo's modern bustle, yet possessed a unique tranquility and ease. Walking through its streets gave one a distinct sense of being cut off from the world.
Finding a courtyard here, sitting on tatami mats, sipping tea while listening to the soft rain outside—there was a certain charm to that.
Unfortunately, her family was too small. If she bought a large courtyard, it would turn into a haunted house.
Thinking this, Shizuku withdrew her gaze and looked at Hara Masako walking beside her. She was still dressed in a kimono, and as she walked through Kyoto's old-fashioned streets, she looked as though she had traveled straight from the Edo period.
Shizuku rather liked the design of kimonos.
Western dress emphasized one's figure, highlighting the chest, waist, and hips, while kimonos were more reserved. In terms of culture, western dress was more outward-facing; every aspect of its design existed to accentuate the allure and beauty of the female body. Its unspoken message was essentially meant to attract men, telling them, "Look at me, conquer me, possess me"—no different in essence from a millionaire placing a chest of gold before a crowd for them to admire.
Kimono culture, however, was inward-looking. Its implied message was "conservatism" and "protection." Layer upon layer of clothing wrapped around a girl's body like city walls, guarding it tightly. Whether it was the heavy obi or the undergarments, they all conveyed the same message to the observer: "I am not an easy woman. Please do not make a move on me."
Yet that only made people want even more to uncover what lay beneath.
If games were used as an analogy, conquering western dress was