"…I suggest you check your clothes first."
Facing Kiana's distrustful gaze, Ji Ran didn't bother explaining much.
Kiana might be called an airhead, but right now her brain was clearly working.
If she just paid attention to the texture of her clothes, she'd immediately understand what happened.
"My clothes?"
She touched them—
and her expression changed instantly.
Then she pulled on them with all her strength—
…and they didn't tear.
"???"
"What kind of joke is this?!"
"I'm a Kaslana warrior—since when am I so weak I can't even tear clothes?!"
"When I was little, fighting Honkai beasts with my stupid old man, I wasn't this weak!"
"…Wait."
"If I didn't get weaker, then—"
Still unconvinced, she punched her own stomach.
And then—
she froze.
Her stomach was fine.
But…
her hand went numb.
"…The ability I just got can enhance 'weapons'."
Ji Ran sighed.
"In other words, as long as I recognize something as a weapon, I can strengthen it."
"I just wanted to improve your defense as a teammate…"
"And you treated me like a pervert."
"Kiana… I'm disappointed."
"…I KNOW, OKAY?! SORRY!"
Kiana snapped in embarrassment, then muttered under her breath:
"If you hadn't been glancing at my chest earlier, would I have reacted like that…"
"…So she noticed."
Ji Ran felt awkward.
But honestly—
he hadn't meant it that way.
Or rather…
he was so stressed about survival, he didn't even have time to think about anything else.
Seeing Ji Ran stay silent, Kiana assumed he was still upset.
"Geez… what a petty guy. As a man, you should be more generous."
Then—
she grabbed his hand and placed it on her shorts.
"Alright, thanks! If you're going to enhance it, hurry up!"
"…Huh? Oh."
Ji Ran blinked, completely confused.
Looking at her slightly flushed face, he asked:
"…Why are you blushing?"
"Shut up! None of your business!"
"…This is so troublesome."
Ji Ran muttered.
"Feels like our roles got reversed…"
After finishing enhancing her shorts, Ji Ran walked toward the door.
"Put the bat away. You know how to use storage space, right?"
"Of course! I'm a genius, you know!"
Kiana stored the bat, then calmed herself and asked:
"So what do we do after we go out?"
"First, get familiar with the surroundings."
"We'll be active around here for a while."
"And the reason I told you to store the bat—"
Ji Ran opened the door and added:
"This is a hotel. Walking around with a glowing metal weapon will scare people."
"…You're way too careful."
Kiana followed him out, looking around.
Then she realized—
"…Did I misunderstand something about other worlds?"
"This place is way worse than Nagazora City's hotels…"
After leaving the inn, the two walked through the streets of the Imperial Capital.
It was late at night—
almost no one was around.
"…Is it really okay to just wander like this?"
Looking at the palace in the distance, Kiana suddenly got excited.
"If we're looking for Imperial Arms, wandering like this won't help, right?"
"How about… we check out that palace?"
Ji Ran almost rolled his eyes.
"Unless you suddenly turn into some overpowered monster…"
"With your current strength? Forget it."
"General Budo is still there. At this stage, anyone who goes there is basically dead."
"Play around your head. That place is heavily guarded—if we go in, we're—"
Before he could finish—
Ji Ran's expression changed.
He suddenly tackled Kiana to the ground.
"H-hey! What are you doing—?!"
"Ahh… you actually noticed."
A voice echoed around them.
At the spot where they had just been standing—
a figure slowly revealed itself.
Under the pale moonlight—
the man's face appeared, twisted into a disgusting grin.
"I sensed some energy fluctuations in the noble district earlier…"
"I was planning to check it out for some fun."
"But I didn't expect to find two naughty kids wandering around at night."
"My dear children…"
"It's not a good habit to wander outside this late."
"And naughty children…"
He smiled wider.
"…need to be punished."