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In the early dawn, before the sun had even risen, I got out of bed and immediately washed my face lightly, then washed my hair again that I had washed the night before.

Normally, I wouldn’t have a reason to wash my long hair twice—once at night and again in the morning—because it was a hassle to dry it, but today was a little special.

“If I don’t want to be late for preparation, I’ll have to settle for some bread for breakfast.”

“Hehehe, it would be fun to have a round belly for the opening ceremony after breakfast.”

It was hard to tell whether Anne’s words were serious or a joke. She even pretended to poke my belly with her finger.

But I felt sorry for Anne; my perfectly flawless body, completed with TS magic, was not weak enough to be brought down by mere breakfast.

While the decrease in the amount I eat since becoming a woman surely had some effect, even considering that, there was no part of me that was gaining weight compared to my food intake.

“Come on, come on. Sit here. It’s not good for your scalp to leave it wet.”

As I hurriedly squeezed out the moisture from my hair with a towel in front of the shower, Selian called me while patting the cushion of the chair she had placed in front of her.

Following her instructions, I sat on the chair, and Selian began to dry my hair for me.

Selian’s fingers, slightly spread apart, gently brushed through my hair instead of a comb.

Even though I had no feeling in my hair, every time Selian combed my hair, it gave a ticklish sensation as my hair lightly pulled at my scalp.

Concerned that any tangles might pull, Selian’s delicate touch as she gently untangled my hair was very careful.

The warm, lukewarm wind made the already lengthy process of drying my hair feel even longer.

Glancing around, I saw Yuli diligently polishing the gauntlet, breastplate, and greaves instead of me in one corner of the room.

Linne was also helping Yuli, so Anne, left alone, seemed bored, bringing another chair next to me to plop down on, and began to twist the ends of my hair with her fingers while avoiding the part Selian was drying.

“Hmm… My hair feels dry and frizzy, but Elysia’s hair looks so shiny.”

As she spun my hair around with her right index finger, her other hand was fiddling with her own red hair.

Of course, while Anne’s hair was a bit less shiny and smooth compared to mine, if she had said something like that in front of girls, it wouldn’t have ended well for the legendary Anne.

Rather, it’s amazing that Anne’s hair could be that soft just from using shampoo, unlike me who had the help of TS magic.

“Well, you know, it’s because you wash your hair every day and don’t dry it on time. Wait a bit and go wash yours too. I’ll finish drying Elysia’s hair, and then I’ll take care of yours. Your hair has good texture, so it should be enough if we just dry and comb it well.”

“Really? I’ll be right back!”

With a bright face in response to Selian’s words, Anne jumped up from her seat.

“Ow!”

“Ah! Sorry! Are you okay? You’re not… bald, are you?”

Anne’s sudden movement had pulled at my hair, which was still tangled in her fingers.

When I let out a small yelp and placed my hand on my stinging scalp, Anne realized her mistake and apologized with an embarrassed face.

Feeling a bit of moisture welling up in my eyes, I touched the painful spot and thankfully, there didn’t seem to be any bald spots. It seemed like only a few strands of hair had come out.

“You can’t just wash your hair quickly with shampoo! You need to use conditioner, and even treatment!”

“Okay! Got it!”

In response to Selian’s stern words, Anne again entered the shower with a cheerful face.

Surprisingly, Anne obediently followed Selian’s words, and it took her quite a while to come out of the shower while awkwardly dropping the water that hadn’t been cleaned off properly on the floor.

However, the timing was actually perfect, as Anne came out just after I had finished drying my hair, making it fluffy and voluminous.

When I hastily dried my hair, there would still be some messy strands, but after Selian’s delicate touch, my hair was visibly different from what I had known.

“Okay, now, Anne? Could you come over here?”

As I got up from my seat, Selian offered the place I had just sat in to Anne, just as she had done for me.

With her wet hair fluttering, Anne scampered over and hopped onto the chair.

“Hehe… then I’ll leave it to you!”

At Anne’s cute request, Selian also smiled silently and began to dry Anne’s hair.

Just like when she was working on me, Selian used her fingers instead of a comb.

I watched the two of them, chuckling slightly, and threw the towel I had used to dry my hair onto the floor, starting to clean up after Anne’s mess.

While I was half-heartedly cleaning the floor by stepping on the tossed towel, I watched Anne smiling brightly and Selian with a motherly smile when Yuli, who was oiling the armor diligently from a distance, called out to me.

“Now that you’ve finished over there, why don’t you start putting on your armor?”

“But I still have to eat breakfast, and it’s uncomfortable to wear it this early. Can’t you just remind me later?”

“You said you’d just settle for bread, right? You can eat even with that uncomfortable armor on, so quit whining. Come on, everything’s done, so hurry up.”

Having no retort, I walked obediently over to Yuli, who began to put on each piece of armor for me.

It wasn’t full-body armor; it was merely the breastplate covering my chest for heart protection, and gauntlets and greaves to safeguard my arms and legs.

Yuli meticulously checked for any loose areas.

“Eek!”

The gauntlets and greaves fit perfectly, but as she adjusted the breastplate one last time, her finger slipped through the gap and tickled my side.

“Just bear with it a bit. I’ll adjust it right away.”

If it had been a fully plated armor, it wouldn’t have been adjustable at all, but the design focusing on mobility rather than pure defense allowed for some customization.

However, contrary to Yuli’s claim that it would be quick, her finger continued to fumble awkwardly inside the breastplate so it took longer.

“Ugh…!”

Besides my sides, her finger tickled particularly sensitive spots that had become especially delicate since becoming a woman, causing me to let out muffled groans between my tightly pressed lips.

“Uh, um… Ah…?!”

As Yuli’s hands moved through the narrow gaps between my clothes and armor, I felt the undergarment that had covered my chest shift slightly.

Yuli was so focused that it was a relief she couldn’t hear my strange sounds, but she was completely oblivious to my questions.

“If it’s hard… should I… ah?!”

Then Yuli’s hand brushed by.

I was already struggling to suppress a ticklish sensation, and suddenly, an unexpected feeling surged through my body, making a short scream escape my lips.

“…Yuli?”

Hearing my scream, Selian turned her head in this direction.

“Hehe… sorry. But I was having a hard time holding it in watching Selian dry Elysia’s hair.”

“I don’t have much to say if you put it that way…”

What was the deal with this? Why hold it in just for putting on armor?

“Are you okay, Elysia? Is something hurting?”

Amidst all this, the only one genuinely worried for me was Anne.

Well… it’s true that at least half the time she’s concerned for me is due to her own mischief, even if it isn’t this time.

“N-no, it’s not that it hurts… um… I just got startled for a moment because it felt prickly.”

“Really? It must have been too tight with the armor squeezing you. That happens sometimes.”

Cutting off circulation to my hand, and then suddenly feeling the blood rush back, that sensation.

It was somewhat like that electricity people talk about, but it felt even more exhilarating, almost piercing through my body.

Maybe since it was near my heart, I felt the jolt even more intensely?

Bang bang.

“Alright! All done. You shouldn’t have any uncomfortable areas left.”

While I was lost in thought, Yuli finished adjusting and lightly patted the chest plate of my armor.

The chest plate was indeed sturdy, and I felt nothing from Yuli’s light tap.

“Oh no, time has already slipped away like this.”

However, since it took longer than usual to dry my hair, and putting on the armor was taking longer than expected, the time was already nearing the gathering hour.

“Here’s a sandwich. I thought it might be a bit lacking to only eat bread, so I prepared it like last time. Eat it on your way.”

Seeing the time as well, Yuli handed me a sandwich.

“Well, I guess I’ll go ahead then. We practiced a lot, so you must come watch!”

With my friends’ responses echoing behind me, I left the dormitory and headed towards the street where the opening ceremony was to take place.