Chapter 22: Embarrassment

“A ‘Tier 0’ actually dared to say something like that?”

“Real or fake… His opponent is SHINING PROJECTORS, you know?”

“Did he hit his head this morning or something?”

—Low whispers spread through the campus like faint noise.

Not loud, but piercing enough.

“Sorry, Yoruichi… My sister, she…”

Heita started to speak but stopped, opening his mouth a few times, yet not knowing how to console me, and finally just swallowed his words back down.

“It’s fine, Heita.”

I shook my head, my tone unusually calm instead. “I’m used to this kind of thing. Let’s head to class first.”

“…Ah, yeah.”

I didn’t look back.

Leaving the blonde twintailed girl named Makura Aya where she was, I walked straight ahead.

Heita hesitated for a moment, glanced back at her, let out a soft sigh, and finally caught up to me.

“By the way, Yoruichi.”

On the way, Heita couldn’t help but speak up. “You just now… really startled me.”

“You mean me making that battle declaration?”

“Yeah!”

Heita nodded. “Usually, even if you got humiliated like that by upperclassmen, you’d endure it, right? But today was completely different.”

…This guy, his way of comforting was as ill-timed as ever.

If someone had a shorter temper, they’d probably punch him already.

I just shook my head, showing a slightly helpless smile.

“I can’t endure it anymore now.”

“If I keep enduring, I’ll really get expelled.”

This wasn’t an exaggeration.

After the “Unknown Name Warrior” account disappeared, all I could use now was the “Night Witch.”

And this BHAO KNOCKOUT happened to be Blue Sea Academy’s mandatory elimination tournament.

Insufficient points—direct expulsion.

Simple, cruel, no mercy.

“R-Right…”

Heita only then realized the severity of the issue. “If you don’t participate, the school will directly deal with you.”

“Yeah.”

I spread my hands, about to say something more, but suddenly felt an unsettling sense of wrongness.

“…Uh.”

The body’s reminder came too abruptly, and I subconsciously stopped in my tracks.

“What’s wrong, Yoruichi?”

“Nothing.”

I immediately shook my head. “I need to go to the restroom.”

“But class is about to start…”

“This is more serious than being late.”

My tone was firm.

“…You’re right.”

Heita nodded. “Then I’ll explain to the teacher for you first.”

“Thanks!”

I quickly put my hands together in thanks, then turned and rushed toward the first-floor restroom.

My footsteps echoed in the hallway, but my mind was a bit chaotic.

*…This situation right now is really bad.*

Standing at the restroom door, the moment I saw the sign, my movements clearly stiffened.

“…”

After a brief hesitation, I still chose the side that was clearly marked and perfectly logical.

According to the follow-up instructions mentioned by The Earth Ring Company—

In daily activities, it’s best to turn off the AR plugin when necessary to avoid sensory errors.

“…Alright.”

Facing the sink, I turned off the plugin.

The semi-transparent data particles quickly dispersed from my vision.

What reflected in the mirror was no longer the familiar boy’s appearance.

But a figure that was clearly petite, with a completely different aura—a girl.

I was stunned.

*…The sense of reality is so strong.*

The girl whose face was flushed red due to physiological reasons—or rather, one that leaned a bit toward “loli” would be about right.

In online terms, calling the girl a “loli” would be completely fine.

“Oh no, I forgot I’m in a rush right now.”

My brain was captivated by the cute appearance of the “Night Witch” virtual image, causing my thoughts to stall for a few seconds.

But fortunately, the body’s reminder wasn’t without effect.

“Wow~ What do I do? Take off the panties first? Or…”

At this moment, what I was wearing was the outfit the “Night Witch” appeared in within the game—

A magic-style purple tracksuit, along with hot pants.

This semi-modernized magic attire wouldn’t look out of place even in the real world.

And from Ameno Yotsuba’s expression when he saw me like this before, there wasn’t anything worth teasing about.

But—

The panties under this body… and even more embarrassing places.

The physiological urge and an inexplicable sense of taboo intertwined in my brain.

So, in the end, I chose to use my usual “self-hypnosis” technique to deal with the current situation.

“Yae Yoruichi! The Night Witch is you, not someone else! Looking at your own body is no big deal!”

Immediately after, I seemed to feel uneasy again and added another sentence.

“Yeah! Absolutely won’t let others think I’m a lolicon or a pervert or anything! Absolutely not!”

With that thought, after slowly removing the black stockings, my hand rested on the edge of the panties printed with a gray little bear pattern.

*Damn, did BHA’s game designers even make such detailed things?*

The heat on my face had exceeded the air temperature by far too much, forcing me to use slight panting to relieve the pressure.

Of course, on one hand, after the “Night Witch” body materialized in reality, it had become somewhat delicate—that accounted for a big part of the reason.

“Hoo~ Then…”

Gently sliding the little bear panties down to my calves below the knees, then sitting on the toilet—this was after preparing everything.

Next, I should be able to resolve this and escape the “crisis.”

However, at the crucial moment, the phone’s ringtone went “du du.”

“Ameno Yotsuba”

That was the name on the phone’s display screen.

“This guy… Ugh, why at a time like this.”