The sound of camera lenses clicking against the door echoed in the heavy silence.
Scarlett pressed her forehead against the door, her breath slow and deep. She was still half-asleep, still processing everything.
Only three words came out.
"What the fuck?"
Her mind was a mess. How did those reporters find her? Wasn't this place supposed to be a secret?
"Aren't government employees supposed to do their jobs right?" she muttered to herself, rubbing her temples in frustration.
Before she could overthink it, she heard the rush of footsteps outside.
Security guards.
They stormed towards the swarm of reporters, their voices sharp and commanding.
"Hey! Who gave you permission to enter?"
"This is private property! Leave immediately!"
"If you don't move, we'll have to use force!"
The reporters hesitated for a second, but seeing the security guards ready to drag them away, they quickly scattered like startled birds. Some still clung to their cameras, taking last-minute shots, but within minutes, the whole crowd was forced out.
Then—silence.
Scarlett exhaled slowly.
"Are they all gone?" she thought.
Carefully, she turned around and cracked the door open just a little, peeking through the gap.
No one.
The hallway was empty. The chaos had disappeared just as quickly as it had arrived.
Finally, she stepped outside, running a hand through her messy purple hair.
But before she could relax, the sound of approaching footsteps made her pause.
A tall woman with long black hair, dressed in a deep blue police uniform, walked toward her. Several security guards followed behind her, their expressions serious.
Scarlett narrowed her eyes slightly as the woman stopped in front of her and gave a polite bow.
"I'm Senior Officer Kozuha Konaka," she said in a calm, formal tone. "I deeply apologize for the disturbance. Even we don't know how the reporters found this place."
Scarlett raised an eyebrow.
"You don't know either?" she repeated.
Kozuha nodded, her expression tense. "We will relocate you to another safe house and ensure that no one bothers you again."
Scarlett groaned.
"Moving again? What a pain," she sighed, rubbing the back of her neck.
But she knew she didn't have a choice. The moment those reporters found her once, it meant they could do it again. And not just them—others could come too.
"Alright, fine," she muttered. "So, where are we going this time?"
Kozuha's lips pressed into a firm line.
"Not now," she said. "Before that, you still have your match against the world's top-ranked hunters."
Scarlett blinked.
"A fight?" She scratched her head, trying to wake up properly. "Didn't I already get immeasurable battle points? And wasn't I declared the strongest hunter in the world?"
She looked at Kozuha, waiting for an answer, but the woman only gave her a knowing smile.
"Of course," Kozuha said firmly. "But we still have to answer to the public and show them just how strong you really are as proof!"
Scarlett adjusted her blindfold, making sure her eyes were fully covered again.
"Is that so? No problem for me!" she said with a confident smile. "Who do I need to defeat?"
Kozuha smirked. "Well, we should start with the third-ranked hunter—Sora Aoi."
Scarlett tilted her head slightly.
"That girl, huh?" she muttered.
Then, looking at Kozuha with a fearless grin, she asked, "So where's the place? Let's go!"
But just as she was about to step forward, Kozuha coughed awkwardly.
"Cough… um… before that," she mumbled, turning slightly red. "You should probably wear something to cover your body first."
Scarlett blinked, confused for a moment. Then, she looked down at herself—only to realize she was still standing there, half-naked.
She slowly turned her gaze toward the junior officers standing nearby.
None of them were making eye contact.
Their faces were bright red, and some were even looking up at the ceiling, pretending they hadn't noticed.
"My bad. I should probably put on some clothes," Scarlett said, scratching her head. She turned toward the door, ready to go inside and change.
But Kozuha quickly stopped her.
"Wait a minute..."
Scarlett turned back, raising an eyebrow. "Huh?"
Kozuha chuckled awkwardly, scratching the back of her head.
"You know… Sora Aoi is still a student at the Hunter Academy, so we have to go there for the duel," she explained. She paused for a second, hesitating to make eye contact.
"So, since we're going to the academy, why not wear the academy uniform? I actually brought two sets—one for you and one for Ms. Irish," she added, quickly handing Scarlett a pair of neatly folded uniforms.
Before Scarlett could respond, one of the junior officers, a young man, grinned and muttered under his breath,
"Yeah, our senior has a thing for seeing beautiful girls in uniform—"
BAM!
Before he could finish his sentence, Kozuha delivered a swift, solid punch to his stomach.
"Urgh—!" The officer gasped, clutching his belly as he hunched over in pain.
Kozuha, now bright red from both anger and embarrassment, glared at him.
"Who told you to speak without my permission?" she snapped.
Scarlett, watching the scene unfold, only chuckled before casually taking the uniform.
"Alright, I'll wear it. I'm kind of used to wearing female clothes now anyway," she said with a relaxed tone before stepping into her room and shutting the door behind her.
--------------
Some time passed, and in the meantime, Irish also woke up. She took a bath, freshened up, and got ready for the day.
Scarlett explained the situation to her, telling her about the upcoming duel with Sora Aoi.
Irish nodded, not too surprised, and went to change into the academy uniform.
The uniform consisted of a white shirt made of very thin fabric, hugging every curve of her body, and a black pencil skirt that only reached mid-thigh.
She spun around in front of the mirror, admiring the way the skirt moved.
"Nice! This is the first time I've seen a skirt like this!" she said excitedly.
But there was no response from Scarlett.
"Honey?" Irish called out, turning to see what was going on.
What she saw made her pause.
Scarlett was in a ridiculous situation.
She had managed to put on the pencil skirt without any trouble, but the chest buttons of her white shirt simply refused to close over her large breasts.
"Hmm… your breasts have definitely gotten bigger compared to a year ago, right?" Irish teased, a smirk forming on her lips.
"What nonsense!" Scarlett huffed, still struggling with the buttons. "They're just G-cup, I guess. It's not that big! The problem is the shirt, not me!"
Irish chuckled, crossing her arms as she watched Scarlett's struggle.
"G-cup? Yours are definitely big," she said, tilting her head. "But since they match your height and body perfectly and aren't saggy at all, I guess that's why that policewoman misunderstood your bra size earlier."
She started circling around Scarlett, examining her from all directions like an art critic inspecting a masterpiece.
"Hmm… I guess that's why my honey is just an unmatched beauty!" she said with a satisfied smile.
Scarlett groaned.
"Stop staring at my body and help me already! Do you know any spell that can stretch clothes?"
Irish tapped her chin, pretending to think.
"Maybe… but I never actually learned one," she admitted with a shrug.
Scarlett clicked her tongue in frustration.
"Tch! Guess I'll have to handle this myself!" she muttered in her mind.
Determined, she took a deep breath.
"Let's show the world what I can do!"
With that, her body illuminated in a faint illusory light—something she created purely with her mind.
She focused all her energy.
1000% of her power.
And then—
*Tck!*
A soft sound echoed as the stubborn button finally closed.
Scarlett gave a thumbs-up to Irish, grinning.
"See? It fits perfectly!"
But Irish only narrowed her eyes, looking at Scarlett carefully.
The shirt might have been buttoned, but there was a noticeable gap between the buttons, revealing small glimpses of her cleavage. The fabric was clearly struggling to keep up, barely holding on for dear life.
Rather than fixing the problem, it only made Scarlett look even more alluring.
"Are you sure this is alright?" Irish asked, raising an eyebrow.
"What nonsense! There's nothing wrong! Let's go!"
Without waiting for an answer, Scarlett bolted out the door.
Irish sighed, shaking her head, and slowly followed after her.
-----------------
Scarlett and Irish stepped out of the room, only to be greeted by Kozuha Konaka, who stood there for a moment, staring at them blankly.
Her eyes slowly roamed over their outfits, clearly admiring how well they looked in the academy uniforms.
Then, with a sudden burst of enthusiasm, she blurted out, "Can I have a selfie?"
But before either of them could respond, Kozuha had already pulled out her phone and placed a hand on Scarlett's shoulder.
"Say cheese!"
Scarlett, not particularly interested, made a peace sign with a blank face.
Seeing Scarlett do it, Irish couldn't resist joining in, flashing a cheerful smile and making a peace sign as well.
"Great!" Kozuha muttered, looking at the photo with satisfaction.
But before she could say anything else—
Dash!
Irish swiftly moved, slipping between Kozuha and Scarlett, her movement so smooth yet sudden that it almost looked accidental.
Her lips formed a small pout as she subtly pushed Kozuha aside, making it clear that she didn't appreciate the casual touch on Scarlett's shoulder.
Even though it was just a simple gesture, Irish's little streak of jealousy flared up over something as small as that.
However, Kozuha, oblivious to the silent battle happening right in front of her, quickly switched back to serious mode.
"We should go. We're already getting late!" she announced, tucking her phone away and motioning them forward.
[Author's Note]
Hearing me out, Hear me out ... Actually from 7Apirl, My exams are going to start, So I'm already having a break on my second channel but I'm leaving this one, since it is easier to write for now and also I previously took so much breaks and publishing schedules are worst as it is, So I'll be publishing in this one but it can be rigid
Don't be surprised even I publish on 12:AM or won't even upload for 5 days consecutively....I can only hope that once my exams ends at 19april, I will try my best to improve updates on this one
[/author]