Aspiring to be a girl in a band

Go pick out a few clothes for me.

Arakawa Kirika gave the order.

So Xiangzi took a few steps forward, but she soon encountered a difficult situation.

To be fair, none of these clothes were bad in Xiangzi's eyes, but figuring out Arakawa Kirika's preferences... was actually an extremely difficult task. She was a little worried that the clothes she had chosen would be thrown away by Arakawa Kirika like trash, which would make her somewhat sad.

Arakawa Kirika seemed to sense Xiangzi's distress, and added a comment.

"It seems you haven't realized it yet."

Attracted by Arakawa Kirika's voice, Shoko turned around and looked back, his expression full of confusion.

Arakawa Kirika continued in her cool, aloof tone.

"This is a test. A test of your aesthetic sense... After all, you're well-educated, so you'd better not disappoint me."

They actually called it a test...

Toyokawa Shoko was taken aback. Arakawa Kirika's rather convoluted phrase lingered in her mind, and she eventually came to a conclusion.

In other words... you mean I can choose according to my own preferences... right?

"Um... Miss clerk."

Having figured this out, Xiangzi softly called out to the shop assistant who was standing not far away.

Upon hearing Xiangzi's shout, the shop assistant first looked at Arakawa Kirika.

Arakawa Kirika nodded slightly, as if to express her permission.

So the shop assistant jogged over to Xiangzi.

"How can I help you?"

The shop assistant knew very well that no matter what the girl's relationship was with her owner, she needed to treat her with caution.

"Could you help me get that item...? I'd like to take a look at it."

Xiangzi's face flushed slightly, and his voice dropped considerably.

She hadn't experienced shopping like this in a long time.

Anyway... I got that guy's permission... so I might as well be a little reckless this once.

Xiangzi thought to himself.

After receiving the dress she wanted, Xiangzi's pupils widened slightly, showing that he was very fond of it.

After all, she's just a girl who's just started high school. How could she not like pretty clothes at that age?

"Can I...can I try it on?"

When making this request, Toyokawa Shoko deliberately lowered her voice and looked at Arakawa Kirika with a wary gaze.

Because she was terrified, the yuri fanatic Arakawa Kirika would order her not to go to the changing room and to change right there on the spot...

She would be so embarrassed she'd die.

However, she was clearly overthinking it again.

Arakawa Kirika didn't even glance in her direction, and even yawned out of boredom.

However... even though Arakawa Kirika hadn't done anything, Shoko's face turned even redder.

Doesn't that just make her the one with a head full of dirty thoughts?

As expected... Arakawa Kirika will find new ways to bully her, it must all be her fault.

"Okay, please follow me."

Filled with shame and indignation, Toyokawa Shoko quickly followed the shop assistant to the changing room.

Then, Toyokawa Shoko repeated this action many times in a row.

Whenever she sees a set of clothes she likes, she will try it on.

And so, after a long time, Xiangzi finally finished his selection, still feeling unsatisfied.

The reason that stopped her from continuing to shop wasn't because she was already satisfied... it was simply because her hands were already full.

Is that all?

Arakawa Kirika looked at Shoko, whose hands were full of bags, and had no intention of helping her. Instead, she stretched her neck out of boredom.

"Hmm... how is it?"

Xiangzi asked somewhat nervously.

Although the clothes are already packed in shopping bags, every time she changes into a new outfit, the shop assistant brings her to Arakawa Kirika to show it off.

Therefore, she wanted to know Arakawa Kirika's opinion.

"The things I set my sights on are naturally of high quality."

Arakawa Kirika didn't make eye contact with Shoko, and simply said one sentence.

Although Toyokawa Shoko harbored some reservations about the word "things".

But at least she could tell that Arakawa Kirika... was probably praising her.

So she was a little happy.

Ok?

Happy?

Realizing this, Toyokawa Shoko quickly pinched her thigh in Arakawa Kirika's blind spot.

How could I be happy because of what she said...

She's the person I hate the most.

After finishing shopping, since this is Arakawa Kirika's own store, there is no "payment" step.

Arakawa Kirika seemed to have nothing else to do, so the two quickly returned to the car, where a waitress had been waiting for them for a long time.

But... just as Xiangzi was about to get on the bus, he met Arakawa Kirika's eyes.

Those sharp, snake-like eyes stared intently at her, forcing her to stop her from getting into the car.

"You can go home now. Remember to come see me early tomorrow."

Arakawa Kirika seemed quite satisfied with Shoko's motionless posture.

Eh?

Xiangzi was startled. She had been prepared for what was to come, and she had even expected that Arakawa Kirika would make her suffer... but she never imagined that after only half a day, she would be able to go home?

For a moment, Xiangzi was both surprised and delighted. But being able to end her job as a servant was naturally a good thing for her. She wasn't some masochist who liked to stay by the side of a capricious and eccentric person like Arakawa Kirika.

So Xiangzi began to hand the shopping bags in her hands into the car, since Arakawa Kirika had asked her to pick them out.

As a result... Arakawa Kirika gave him a look as if he were an idiot.

"what are you doing?"

ha?

Xiangzi was taken aback. "Isn't this the one you asked me to choose? Now that I'm leaving, I naturally have to return it to you."

Xiangzi thought to himself.

"You don't really think I'm short of clothes, do you, huh?"

Arakawa Kirika stretched her hand out of the car window, pinched Shoko's chin, and had a teasing expression on her face.

Only then did Xiangzi finally understand that these clothes were originally meant for her.

So she quickly said.

"This...this won't do, it's too valuable, I can't accept it."

Toyokawa Shoko was well aware of the value of what she possessed, which was why she didn't want to accept it.

Arakawa Kirika raised an eyebrow, her tone gradually becoming displeased.

"So... you're planning to keep wearing those tattered clothes to disgust my eyes, is that it?"

Then, Arakawa Kirika didn't bother to say anything more to Shoko and simply had the maid start the engine.

……

Watching the departing vehicle, Xiangzi felt a little dazed for a moment.

On the one hand, she felt wronged.

The clothes she was wearing were, after all, her everyday clothes. Even if they were a bit old, they were far from being called "rags"...

But on the other hand... she felt a strange sensation in her heart, a little itchy... yet also a little warm...

She sighed softly, then picked up the shopping bags again, muttering to herself.

"If...you just wanted to give me clothes from the beginning...why..."

"Can't you just be a little gentler?"

Toyokawa Shoko began walking towards the nearby subway station.

Perhaps at that moment, in her heart, Arakawa Kirika had changed her judgment from "a bad thing that should go to the 18th level of hell" to "the 17th level of hell".

Volume 1: Chapter Sixteen - New Ways to Play

Arakawa Kirika slowly opened her eyes.

She was always listless when she first woke up every morning, so when she came to her senses, she saw Xiangzi standing respectfully beside her, waiting.

When did she arrive... never mind.

In energy-saving mode, Arakawa Kirika was too incapable of thinking much; she even wanted to lie back in bed immediately.

But after that one glance...

She noticed that Xiangzi had changed into new clothes today.

Wearing clothes she designed herself on her favorite toys gave her an extraordinary sense of satisfaction.

So she thought to herself.