Shade felt sorrow about to overflow from his heart—
[How about making whoever stays over tonight wear this outfit?]
"She" made the suggestion, and Shade's eyes lit up.
"Good idea. I mean, this isn't the time to be thinking about that."
"It's beautiful."
Gina said softly, and the other two Witches also praised it lavishly. As for the skeleton at the sewing machine, this time it did not merely glance at it. Instead, it carefully examined the style of the dress.
"Silk? It even looks like high-grade silk. It certainly has an exotic flair. In today's Material World, what region does this clothing style come from?"
It asked Shade again, but he shook his head.
"I dreamed it."
"You dreamed it?"
The skeleton offered no comment. It withdrew its gaze and continued pressing the pedal as it worked on the clothing.
"You may leave now. If you set out quickly, you will see the Life Furnace after passing through three more rooms. Outsiders, I am very satisfied with the clothing style you displayed. Besides that gift, I will allow you to ask me one question. If I can answer it, I will."
The four exchanged glances, and in the end, all the Witches indicated that Shade should ask.
Since he could ask only one question, Shade gave up on questions that would be of no help to their current situation, such as "Who are you?", "What do you know about the Skin Object Hall?", "Do you know how to cure the congenital illness caused by the Emerald Record?", or "How does one hatch a Moon Egg?"
"I want to know whether the four of us have a chance to return safely, normally, and without any aftereffects to the Material World from here."
The bloody skeleton nodded while continuing its work.