Chapter 40

"Waaah... What the hell is going on!?"

The whirlpool that suddenly appeared in the water startled the staff member playing the Kappa so badly that he finally spoke like a normal person. Moments later, the whirlpool swallowed him.

A few seconds later, the whirlpool vanished, and the Kappa floated back to the surface.

Perhaps because the whirlpool had disappeared so soon after pulling him under, he was unharmed. He had only passed out.

Seeing that the Kappa was unconscious, Lingmeng finally breathed a sigh of relief. She climbed out of the water and back onto the bridge, then discovered that her clothes were soaked through.

"Ah, my clothes are completely wet..."

Instead of heading straight for the far side, Lingmeng lay flat on the bridge and gasped for breath.

A few minutes passed before someone finally approached from farther down the bridge. It was Shiori, of course.

"Lingmeng, are you okay!?"

Seeing Lingmeng lying there with her clothes drenched, Shiori rushed over, crouched beside her, and asked with concern.

"Shiori..." Lingmeng murmured his name, then clung to him as though he were her lifeline.

"Shiori, you're finally here... I was so scared... Those two were picking on me..."

Lingmeng buried her face in Shiori's chest. Her body trembled as she spoke through tears.

"Those two?" Shiori asked in confusion, frowning as he looked around.

He soon spotted Sakurako and the Kappa floating on the water. Both were foaming at the mouth, their eyes rolled back. They looked half-dead.

Just who was picking on whom here...?

Shiori's mouth twitched, and his expression relaxed at once. He was growing more curious by the second about what Lingmeng had been through.

"Don't be afraid, Lingmeng. I'll protect you."

His feelings were complicated, but he still needed to comfort her.

Shiori gently stroked Lingmeng's head as he spoke. His reassurance helped her settle down.

Once Lingmeng seemed more or less back to normal, Shiori spoke again.

"Let's hurry to the other side. You don't want to stay here forever, do you?"

"Mm..." Lingmeng answered meekly, and Shiori helped her to her feet.

"Let's go." Holding Lingmeng's hand, Shiori gave her a warm smile and led her across.

On the far side of the pond, Shiori took a key from a table while holding Lingmeng's hand. He inserted it into the iron gate and opened it.

Dazzling light poured through the gate. Lingmeng's heart leaped. She was finally leaving this awful place.

She stepped through the gate with Shiori. Suddenly, a sound rang out.

Pop! Countless tiny, colorful pieces of confetti rained down from above.

The woman at the front desk, who had spoken to them earlier and wore a pumpkin head, held a confetti cannon she had just fired. She addressed them in a congratulatory tone.

"Congratulations to you both on clearing the attraction!"

"Uh... thanks," Shiori said awkwardly, scratching his cheek.

"To celebrate your successful escape from the haunted house, our entire staff—including the staff members who dressed as monsters to scare you inside—will take a commemorative photo with you!"

Shiori had barely reacted at first, but at the mention of a photo with the staff inside, his eyes flew wide.

After all, thanks to Lingmeng, those staff members were unconscious. If anyone found out, they would be in trouble.

"Sorry, but we'll pass on the photo! Lingmeng, let's go."

"Oh..."

Shiori gave the woman an apologetic bow, grabbed Lingmeng's hand, and hurried out of the haunted house.

"What's wrong? It's just a photo."

The woman tilted her head in confusion.

She did not dwell on it, though. Shiori had declined, and she had no intention of forcing them. She simply shut the iron gate and returned to her post.

"Well, that haunted house wasn't much. It'll take a lot more than that to scare me."

Lingmeng walked down the street beside Shiori, speaking without a hint of embarrassment, as though she had completely forgotten her sorry state earlier.

"Have you already forgotten what happened? You were so scared you were practically crying."

Shiori was speechless at Lingmeng's complete change in attitude. He thought the Lingmeng in the haunted house had been much cuter than this one.

Lingmeng frowned at his words. He had clearly struck a nerve.

"Scared? No way! I was just..."

She trailed off halfway through, unable to think of an excuse.

"If you weren't scared, what was it?" Shiori asked with a smile, narrowing his eyes.

"I..." Lingmeng patted Shiori on the shoulder. "Shiori-chan, you're being shallow. Can a Spirit really be called scared? I was being cautious! That's right."

"Okay, okay, I get it," Shiori said in the tone one used to placate a child. "But you should change first, Lingmeng. Your tracksuit is soaked through, isn't it?"

"Huh?" Only then did Lingmeng remember.

Her tracksuit was indeed too wet to wear comfortably. It clung to her skin and felt unpleasant.

"Ah, I really do need a change of clothes." Lingmeng nodded in agreement.

"There's a clothing store nearby. Why don't we get you changed before we continue our date?"

"Well, I guess that's our only option."

Lingmeng shrugged and followed Shiori to the clothing store...

Spirit Maid Café "Swish!" The fitting-room curtain slid open.

"What do you think, Shiori? Does this look good on me?"

It was Lingmeng speaking. She and Shiori had reached the clothing store, and now that she had changed, she wanted his opinion of her outfit.

She wore a white T-shirt beneath a black jacket, with a silver metal necklace around her neck.

She had paired them with jeans and white sneakers. Her waist-length hair was loosely tied into a ponytail with a hair band.

The androgynous outfit made Lingmeng look less like a young girl and more like a pretty tomboy, someone who could appeal to anyone.

"It looks great. Everything looks good on you, Lingmeng."

Shiori smiled and clapped as he looked at her outfit.

"What? Is that the only thing you've been able to say this whole time? You're no fun."

"Is that so...? Sorry, I really can't think of any other way to describe it."

Seeing that Lingmeng seemed unhappy, Shiori apologized.

Lingmeng had actually tried on several outfits before this one. Like the outfit she wore now, they had all been menswear.

At first, Shiori had wondered why she would not try on women's clothes.

Then he remembered that Lingmeng used to be a man, and he felt foolish for even wondering.

He was a man who disliked wearing women's clothes himself. How much worse would it be for Lingmeng, who still thought of herself as a man? If he asked her outright why she would not wear women's clothes, her affection for him would probably plummet.

That was not the most startling part. While Lingmeng was trying on clothes, Shiori had happened to discover that she was not wearing a bra.

The discovery had left Shiori stunned. When he asked why, she had merely replied, "It feels too embarrassing, and I don't know how to put one on."

After that, it had taken all of Shiori's effort to persuade Lingmeng to wear a camisole instead.

"Well, since you don't have any objections, I'll buy what I'm wearing."

"Mm... sure..."

When Lingmeng decided to buy the outfit, Shiori gave a hesitant nod.

"I might as well throw out the old tracksuit. One sleeve is torn off and who knows where it went. There's no point keeping it."

Lingmeng glanced at the tracksuit in the fitting room as she muttered to herself.

In the past, she never would have thrown it away so readily. She had been poor then and could not afford to waste money on new clothes.

Things were different now. Lingmeng had the five hundred thousand yen Ratatoskr had given her as an allowance for keeping her... uh... as living expenses.

In short, she had money. And since she had money, surely she could afford to be a little indulgent?

"Oh, right, Shiori."

"Mm? What is it?"

When Lingmeng suddenly called his name, Shiori tilted his head in confusion.

"Since we're already at a clothing store, why don't you try on something else too? Don't worry, I'll pay."

Lingmeng gave her chest a generous pat.

"Uh... well..."

At first, Shiori wanted to refuse.

He had only just managed to get used to the clothes he was wearing. Changing into another outfit would only multiply his embarrassment.

But if he agreed, Lingmeng's affection for him might rise a little. For the sake of his greater goal, he decided to sacrifice his dignity.

"O-okay," Shiori said shyly. "What do you want me to wear, Lingmeng?"

"I get to choose?" Lingmeng touched her chin in thought. "How about a School Swimsuit with white stockings?"

She broke into a wicked grin. Shiori's face turned bright red, and he refused at once.

"No! That's too embarrassing!"

"Don't like it? How about a bunny-girl outfit?"

"Who wears that on a date!?"

"Then... a nurse's uniform?"

"That's hardly any better!"

"A Maid Outfit?"

"Are you even listening to me!?"

"Then a shrine maiden outfit! That's as far as I'm willing to compromise! (;｀O')o"

"Lingmeng, are you actually trying to help me?"

Several minutes passed. Lingmeng kept suggesting outfits no normal person would wear on a date, and Shiori rejected every one.

After all that discussion, Shiori finally understood: Lingmeng only wanted him to wear those outfits to satisfy her own desires. He did not know whether to laugh or cry.

"Forget it... I'm not changing into anything else..."

Shiori panted as he spoke. All that retorting had worn him out.

"Aww, come on. If nothing else, a racing suit would work too..."

Seeing Shiori give up, Lingmeng looked dejected.

"There's no hope for you..." Shiori's mouth twitched. "Lingmeng, can we just pay and go somewhere else for our date?"

"Yeah, yeah, I know." Lingmeng sighed and spread her hands.

It was a shame she would not get to see Shiori-chan play dress-up, but if he did not want to, she would not force him. She obediently followed him to the register to pay for her clothes.