Chapter 13: A Dream Shattered and a Shopping Trip

The following morning, Ellis was still lost in the depths of sleep. In her dreams, she had not only reclaimed her male form but had also managed to transform the formidable Demon King into an adorable, petite loli using a magical mirror. She was just about to embark on some rather delightful ‘punishment and training’ when…

“Ellis, Ellis~”

‘How utterly annoying,’ she thought, recognizing that distinctly foolish voice. ‘Don’t interrupt my loli training!’

“Ellis, it’s time to wake up.”

Her beautiful dream shattered abruptly amidst the incessant prodding. Ellis slowly opened her eyes, reluctantly, to find her good friend, Larry.

Ellis sat up groggily, rubbing her eyes with a cute gesture. “Good morning, Larry,” she said.

“Good morning, Ellis.”

Larry’s eyes darted away, avoiding her gaze, a tell-tale sign of his guilty conscience.

“What’s with that expression?” Ellis asked, puzzled.

Larry coughed awkwardly. “This expression merely proves I’m still a man. Perhaps you should take a look at yourself instead.”

‘Myself…’

Ellis glanced down. Her loose sleep robe hung open, revealing the full extent of her figure beneath, entirely exposed due to her lack of underwear. From Larry’s vantage point, she was completely visible.

‘So, becoming a man again was just a dream after all?’

Everything that had happened yesterday flashed through her mind like a rapidly spinning kaleidoscope, and Ellis’s face turned increasingly ashen.

Seeing her expression, Larry immediately waved his hands. “I didn’t do anything this time! I just woke you up for breakfast, perfectly normally. See how much of a gentleman I am? I made sure not to glance at anything I shouldn’t have.”

However, Ellis would be a fool to believe him. Though faint, a trace of touch lingered on her face, along with the distinct sensation on her chest from last night!

She kicked Larry clean down the stairs.

“A gentleman who can’t keep his wolfish paws to himself?!”

Larry scrambled up from the bottom of the stairs, utterly dejected. ‘She truly holds a grudge,’ he thought. ‘It’s been a whole night! And this morning, I swear I only gave that wonderfully soft little face a quick pinch.’

Passersby on the street stared at Larry strangely, unsure what was happening.

Left alone, Ellis swiftly donned her clothes, as if only this could provide her with a sense of security.

While washing up, Ellis fumed to herself, ‘No, I can’t stay in the same room as that beast anymore. I refuse to lose my virginity before I even get my male body back.’

A click echoed from outside as the door opened, followed by Larry’s voice.

“Alright, I know I was wrong. It won’t happen again. Is that good enough?”

Ellis yanked open the bathroom door, glaring daggers at Larry.

“If there’s a next time, I’ll chop off your wolfish paws.”

“Okay, okay,” Larry urged. “Let’s hurry up and pack our bags. We need to leave this place immediately, or those devils will come looking for us.”

“I know.”

Ellis was speechless. Those women had truly scared Larry into gynophobia.

When settling their bill, the two also paid for the damaged furniture.

Upon hearing the cleaning staff’s report, the receptionist’s face took on a peculiar expression. ‘Did these two really play so intensely?’

Fortunately, the bounty for apprehending the bandits and the money plundered from their lair were more than enough to cover their expenses. The two smoothly exited the inn.

Ellis had initially intended to leave directly, but Larry’s chosen direction seemed off.

“Hey, where are you going?” Ellis asked, confused. “This isn’t the place to rent a Swift Dragon.”

“The ladies’ lingerie shop,” Larry replied casually.

“Why are we going there?”

Larry looked at Ellis with a helpless expression. “What do you mean ‘why’? No matter what you were before, you’re a girl now. It’s time you learned how to wear a bra. You don’t want a repeat of yesterday, do you?”

Ellis: “…”

She felt that Larry had a point, but she was reluctant to admit it. Wouldn’t that be acknowledging she was truly a woman?

Yet, denying it was pointless; this was her reality. Her antics yesterday had given her a thorough understanding of her current body.

To protect her delectable body from being devoured by certain trash and scum before she could revert, it was best to obediently wear some essential items.

Ellis could not fight reality, so she yielded, meekly following Larry into the women’s clothing store.

Unbeknownst to Ellis and Larry, a black-haired beauty in a kimono adorned with cherry blossoms watched them from afar. The beauty gritted her teeth. “I’ve finally found them.”

“Are the two of you a couple? What a handsome pair! We have a special promotion for couples and lovers. If the male partner is brave enough to accompany his wife or girlfriend shopping in our store, you’ll receive a 30% discount!”

As soon as Larry and Ellis stepped into the seemingly high-end lingerie store, they were aggressively pitched by the proprietress.

Ellis had initially bristled at being called part of a couple, but upon hearing about the 30% discount, she thought, ‘Heh, a little bit of dignity for 30% off? Why not throw it away!’

Anyway, they would be leaving soon, free as birds with a wide-open sky. They would be strangers from now on.

Ellis decisively slung her arm around Larry’s shoulder and said shyly, “Oh, proprietress, what are you saying? How embarrassing!”

Larry: “…”

‘Had she already forgotten what happened last night?’ Ellis wasn’t wearing a bra right now, yet she had just clamped his arm between her breasts.

‘Poor me, Larry, who only ever wanted to be a true gentleman and marry a wife I loved. Until now, I’ve been extremely cautious in my interactions with women, all to preserve a pure body for my future wife. For this, I’ve even been ridiculed more than once by a certain damned friend, asking if I was impotent.’

‘But I never expected that the one to defile me would be this shameless friend! Where is your integrity? Where is your anger?’

Larry silently wept internally, while Ellis was happily enjoying the discount.

“Hey, Larry, which lingerie do you think is better?”

Ellis was completely oblivious to the turmoil within her friend. Instead, she was busy browsing the store.

Larry snapped out of his daze. “Are you asking me?”

“Of course,” Ellis said as if it were the most natural thing. “Didn’t I always ask for your opinion before?”

Ellis had always been terrible at dressing herself, lacking any sense of fashion. Therefore, whenever she went shopping for clothes, she would drag Larry along for his advice. However, this was her first time buying lingerie, and since Ellis had no experience, she had no choice but to appeal to her good friend.

‘But you’ve defiled my body, and now you want to defile my heart too! Helping to buy lingerie is supposed to be a perk for my girlfriend!’

Though he was internally resistant, since it was his good friend Ellis’s request, Larry truly couldn’t bring himself to refuse.

“Let me just say, I pick things according to your figure and my taste.”

Ellis nodded, puzzled. “Didn’t you say that in your previous life? Why say it again?”

“Because it’s different now. Before, we were both big men, and I picked men’s clothes. Now you’ve become a cute girl, so of course, I have to say it again.”

Ellis shivered involuntarily, looking at Larry suspiciously. “What you just said was really disgusting. Isn’t ‘girl’ enough? Why add ‘cute’?”

‘Could this simple-minded friend still be plotting against her?’

‘It seems I’ll need to be careful from now on. Should I temporarily castrate him?’

This world allowed for limb regeneration, something Ellis herself could do.

Larry, meanwhile, had not yet realized the gravity of the situation. He was merely slandering himself in his mind.

‘Self-consolation, that’s it. Picking clothes for a cute girl isn’t too bad, even though I’ve met many cute girls, Ellis is the only one I’ve picked clothes for.’

Larry didn’t voice this thought, instead saying casually, “Just being honest. You’d say the same if you looked in the mirror.”

Ellis pouted. She felt Larry was being perfunctory, that there was definitely more to his reason, but her intuition told her it was best not to ask.

What followed was Larry’s lengthy selection process. This torment was the price Ellis paid for his help. Larry was extremely strict in choosing clothes, meticulously examining everything from fabric to appearance.

This was only the selection phase. Usually, four or five items would make it onto Larry’s shortlist. After that, Ellis would try them on for him. But Ellis couldn’t complain; this was the price for Larry’s help.

“This brand only has so many options. Only these three are decent-looking. Go try them on.”

Larry completely disregarded the proprietress’s weary expression behind him, bluntly stabbing her heart with his words.

Ellis looked at the few sexy pieces of lingerie, her face flushing crimson. “Aren’t these a bit too trendy?”

Larry put his hands on his hips. “I carefully selected these based on my aesthetic taste, an assessment of the materials, and a consideration for our future adventurous life.”

Ellis was a little bewildered. “I can understand the first two, but what’s the consideration behind the last one?”

“The comfort of joint movement, the degree of protection for important areas, and the wear and tear during long-distance sprints.”

Larry’s explanation was perfectly logical, leaving Ellis no room for refusal. Although she suspected this friend, who had suddenly awakened to the existence of his lower body, had ulterior motives, for now, she obediently went to try on the clothes.