Clothing Store in a Small Town

A world of pathogenization, all kinds of beings beyond common sense and developable abilities, and the mysterious organization he was about to head to, endless unknowns awaited exploration.

Yi Chen was so excited that he had only slept four hours last night... perhaps because of obtaining the 'Pathogenization Trait,' he wasn't sleepy at all, and both his spirit and appearance were in excellent condition.

Just as he stepped out of the cemetery gate, he had expected to be greeted by fresh air, warm sunlight, and all kinds of lively townspeople.

However, the street scene wasn't much better than the cemetery.

The wind blowing toward him carried a thick smell—crude oil, industrial waste liquid, metal, and various byproducts—so strong he could almost taste it.

Through rows of low, pointed town buildings, he could see several thick chimneys spewing exhaust.

The sunlight wasn't as bright as he had imagined either.

The sky seemed to be covered by several layers of fine fabric, with only sparse rays falling to the ground, not even enough to dispel the dark dust left from the previous night.

As far as his eyes could see, the number of townspeople didn't exceed the fingers on one hand.

They seemed unwilling to expose their bodies to the air, wrapping themselves entirely in large pieces of cloth.

Even their faces were covered with simple homemade masks, their bodies hunched as they tried to breathe the air closest to the ground.

The entire town was strange and cold, with even a hint of despair mixed in.

"This world... is worse than I imagined."

Just then, a cheerful rubbing sound came from his shoulder.

The furry black flesh ball seemed to have just woken up, its mouth wide open, revealing the black-and-white eyeballs inside, constantly rubbing... as if stretching its limbs.

Two thin, small black hands waved back and forth like ripples.

"Finally leaving this damn cemetery, this is great!

Before we start our adventure, let's go get something to eat... I haven't eaten in a long time."

"Alright, what do you want to eat?"

"Grapes, lots of grapes..."

When the black flesh ball said the word 'grapes,' it also pointed at its own eyeballs, and Yi Chen naturally understood what 'grapes' really meant in its mouth.

He didn't think there was anything wrong with it.

Thinking back to the world he came from, there were plenty of people who liked eating things like fish eyes or grilled pig eyes.

"Fine, but I need to go to a clothing store first."

Currently, Yi Chen was only wearing a shabby, torn shirt, with holes running through the sleeves, and scratch marks on the waist of his pants and the legs.

Combined with the body of [William. Berens], which hadn't been washed or had its hair cleaned in days, he was at the lowest level even among the homeless.

Walking along the town's still-spacious streets, because no one had cleaned them for a long time, the cracks in the ground were full of melon seed shells, dirty water, and rotting insect carcasses.

The population had been decreasing year by year, and many shops had long since closed.

The remaining stores were barely holding on, on the verge of shutting down at any moment.

This sight made Yi Chen wonder—could there really be a decent clothing store here?

Just as he was puzzled, at a street corner, a building with a structure completely different from the surrounding houses came into view.

It was predominantly black with a strong Gothic style, tall and slender.

Someone seemed to be secretly peeping out from the long, narrow windows.

Overall, it gave off a refined, gloomy feeling, like an aristocratic building that would only exist in a big city, completely out of place in this rundown town.

On the copper-framed plaque by the door was written: [Maurice & Sad]

With the visual enhancement provided by the little meatball, he could see the high-end clothing inside through the window.

"This should be the highest-end clothing store in town that Mr. Wilbert mentioned.

By the way, a store like this must cost a lot to run every day. The townspeople's income probably wouldn't allow them to shop here.

Why does such a store exist?"

Harboring doubts, Yi Chen crossed the filthy street and, under the gaze of masked residents, pushed open the front door of the clothing store.

Jingle~

The silver bell connected to the doorframe chimed at the same time.

A faint, elegant fragrance quickly swarmed his senses, drowning out the lingering industrial smell in his nostrils.

This scent instantly filtered Yi Chen out of the dilapidated town and drew him into this refined, tranquil clothing store.

Various handheld lamps were scattered across different areas of the shop—

On top of wardrobes, In corner nooks, Or displayed alone on certain stands as decorations.

The interwoven lamplight presented the full view of the store to customers, while also imparting warmth and a sense of safety.

A lady wearing an embellished hat, her face veiled behind thin gauze, and a long dress trailing the floor, walked out from the inner room.

The firelight could trace a beautiful face like a painting through the veil.

Yi Chen had thought his shabby appearance would be looked down upon by the boss, or even get him thrown out.

However, The woman stopped in front of him, And, through the veil, gently sniffed, Capturing the graveyard scent unique to Yi Chen.

"How rare. It's been a long time since a living person left the cemetery... Wilbert sent you, didn't he?"

"Yes.

Mr. Wilbert told me to come here and buy a fitting set of clothes before boarding the carriage."

Yi Chen immediately pulled the metal business card from his trouser pocket.

"Do you need to leave urgently today?"

"Yes."

"In that case, I can only pick from the [ready-to-wear]... Once you pass the organization's review, you can go to the tailor shop over there for [full customization]."

When the boss's wife mentioned the word 'organization,' it seemed both she and this clothing store were connected to it, which explained the financial backing.

"I wonder if the money I have is enough?"

Yi Chen took out all his earnings from working at the cemetery—a small pouch stuffed with silver coins.

However, The boss's wife didn't even glance at these scattered coins.

Instead, she grabbed Yi Chen's wrist, her sharp nails nearly piercing his skin.

Through this simple contact, The boss's wife not only measured his body dimensions but also read some internal information.

"No wonder you managed to walk out of the cemetery alive, and even got Wilbert's business card and a Cemetery Product. So you actively accepted [Disease Transformation]. Quite interesting."

The boss's wife withdrew her words along with her hand, And casually took nearly half the silver coins from the cloth pouch.

"I happen to have a ready-to-wear suit here that fits your body size.

But before trying it on, you need to 'purify' your body and wash off the dead dust brought from the cemetery."

Under the boss's wife's guidance, he entered the bathroom within the clothing store.

After washing, The boss's wife personally trimmed his beard and cut his hair.

Once the grooming was done, Yi Chen could finally see his own appearance in the dressing mirror.

Under the finely trimmed, scattered black hair, his facial features were surprisingly similar to his original self. In fact, it could be said that some Western traits had been added to his original appearance.

Such as a higher nose bridge and deeper eye sockets.

Looking closely, he even bore a slight resemblance to a young Keanu Reeves... though lacking in some details, the overall effect was quite good.

'There really are a lot of similarities between me and this body's original owner. Maybe it's all related to the transmigration.'

Next came the fitting.

A white shirt, A small vest with dark green stripes, Black, somewhat elastic western trousers, And a black trench coat similar to the work clothes at the cemetery, capable of wrapping the whole body and covering the face... giving off a gloomy vibe.

After tying the laces of the black Oxford shoes, The boss's wife personally fastened a black tie.

When he saw his new image in the mirror, Yi Chen's spirits lifted.