Cosplay Devil

— — — — — — 

Yukina's gaze flicked over to Shiina Mahiru and the others, her heart subtly shaken.

Could it be...

Was this the reason why their strength grew so quickly, almost unnaturally so?

Gulp.

Yukina swallowed hard, the unease in her chest intensifying.

It felt like… she had just stumbled onto some earth-shattering secret.

To think something this important would just be written so plainly in the Supernatural Research Club's welcome handbook?!

 Her heart pounded wildly in her chest.

At some point, a fine sheen of sweat had formed across her smooth forehead. Her throat felt dry.

Unlike the carefree Kitagawa Marin, Yukina hadn't joined Lynn's familia for fun.

She had a mission—rescue Sayaka.

And once that was done, she planned to leave.

Staring down at the handbook, her pupils trembling, her amber eyes shimmered with the verge of tears.

Now that she knew this kind of secret, was there really any getting out of this?

Yukina slowly raised her head, locking eyes with Lynn's deep, wine-red gaze and his half-smiling, unreadable expression.

Her entire body went tense.

I—I'm screwed!

Ugh!!!

Yukina whimpered in her head.

She didn't believe, not for a second, that Lynn would let her leave now that she knew this.

Honestly, if she tried to back out now, she might not even make it out of the clubroom alive tonight.

What do I do, what do I do, what do I DO?! Dammit!

She was like an ant on a hot pan, anxiety crawling all over her.

And it wasn't just the blessing system.

There were also those "Gates"

Other worlds, according to the handbook.

This revelation hit her like a freight train.

And the kicker? Lynn apparently controlled four of them!

Gulp!!

Sayaka, what kind of terrifying monster did you get involved with?!

Without having seen any of it firsthand, Yukina still had some doubts about the blessings or these alternate worlds.

But— She didn't think Lynn had any reason to lie about this stuff. Especially not to her or Marin.

To him, they were nobodies. Not even worth tricking.

And besides the strength of the others around her? That wasn't fake.

If this blessing system was some kind of cheat code, then their power levels made perfect sense.

So yeah, there was a very high chance it was all real.

Just who is Lynn, anyway?

With power like this, he could easily rival the God of the Bible from the legends.

And her mentor wanted her to seduce a guy like this?

Ugh...

If she wasn't careful, she might end up stuck here for good—without even saving Sayaka.

The more she thought about it, the more hopeless she felt.

Whose dumb idea was this plan?!

...

Meanwhile, Kitagawa Marin was totally thrilled.

Blessings? Other worlds? Sure, that was cool and all—but she wasn't exactly taking it to heart.

But—Eternal Youth.

The second her eyes landed on those words, she couldn't look away!

Marin lit up like a firework.

She was already super hyped to be part of Lynn's harem.

And now she could stay young forever too?

That's like... DOUBLE happiness!!

Marin didn't even bother reading further. She was sold.

With sparkling eyes, she bowed deeply and said with all the seriousness she could muster:

"Lord Lynn, please let me join the Supernatural Research Club!"

"You sure about this?"

Lynn narrowed his eyes slightly. He had a vague memory of her character, but not much else.

"Mhm!" Marin nodded without hesitation.

Yukina turned to stare at her.

So decisive.

But now didn't she look like the hesitant one?

Yukina started to panic.

But Lynn didn't even look her way. He focused on Marin and said casually: "In that case—strip."

Marin blinked.

"St-Strip what now?"

Even Yukina froze up at that one.

Mahiru giggled, chiming in playfully: "It's in the handbook~"

"The reincarnation ritual. That's how you get the blessing."

That was one of the reasons Lynn even bothered making this handbook in the first place.

Explaining everything every time was just annoying.

Marin and Yukina quickly flipped through the handbook.

'To complete the ritual, remove clothing and insert the devil's piece into an appropriate body part… blessing data will be engraved…'

Marin read it aloud softly, her voice getting quieter the further she went.

By the end, her cheeks were flushed pink.

Yukina bit her lip. Her breathing had gotten faster.

They had to... strip? In front of a guy?!

Marin took a few deep breaths, still avoiding Lynn's eyes. Her voice barely above a whisper: "I-I understand."

She turned away and started taking off her clothes.

Yukina's eyes widened in shock.

That fast?!

Not even a moment's hesitation?!

Seeing Yukina's stunned expression only made Marin blush deeper.

Her heart was pounding, but her hands didn't stop.

Marin quickly stripped off her top, but when she reached for her bra, she hesitated, shyly turning away. 

Her flawless skin blushed a soft pink.

Click.

Covering herself tightly with her arms, she hunched slightly and stammered:

"I-I'm ready, Lynn-sama…"

Lynn stood, approached her, and gently brushed aside her flowing blonde hair.

A devil's piece appeared in his hand.

Yukina didn't blink, her eyes locked on his every move.

Without hesitation, Lynn pressed the piece to Marin's back.

"Ah!" she gasped, shivering at the cold touch.

Ripples spread across her skin as the piece slowly sank in.

Marin's breathing quickened. Her body was heating up, fast.

Her pulse thundered in her ears.

Ba-dump! Ba-dump!

And with each beat—new power surged into her.

"Ah~"

She gasped again, squirming as her back and lower spine started to tingle.

Something was trying to come out!

"Mm~"

Her head tilted back, eyes hazy.

Whoosh!

A pair of black wings unfurled from her back, and a tail lazily swayed through the air.

"Haa...haa…"

Marin's face was flushed red, gasping hard.

At the same time—

A system notification echoed in Lynn's ears.

[Ding! You have gained the retainer 'Kitagawa Marin'!]

[Ding! 'Kitagawa Marin' has reincarnated as a special devil!]

The moment the system finished, a glow spread across Marin's back.

Then, Lynn's eyes were filled with the details of her blessing.

---

[Kitagawa Marin]

→Rank: Low-Class Devil

→Master: Lynn Valifer

→Stats:

 •Strength: I0  •Agility: I0  •Endurance: I0  •Magic: I0

→Unique Skills: [Cosplay Devil]

—[Cosplay Devil]—

• Thread of Illusion: Instantly analyzes the appearance and aura of 2D characters. Can weave "Illusion Threads" to perfectly recreate their look and abilities. Duration increases with level.

• Infinite Wardrobe: Body is linked to a dimensional space "Mirror Kaleidoscope," storing illusion data of all analyzed characters. Can be accessed at any time to mass-generate armed retainers.

• Devil Form (Mirror Kaleidoscope)

---

Lynn rubbed his chin, inspecting her blessing info.

If he remembered right, Marin did love cosplay, huh?

Yeah… this ability really suited her.

Yukina leaned in, trying to make sense of the glowing text on Marin's back— But it was all gibberish to her.

Lynn noticed her peeking, but didn't stop her. He just copied the blessing info and handed it to Marin.

"'Cosplay Devil'?" Marin read it with wide eyes.

She didn't even care about being half-dressed anymore—she was too focused on the info.

The more she read, the brighter her eyes glowed.

This... this was perfect for her!

Cosplay-based powers?!

Heck yeah!!

With a twinkle in her eye, she focused. "Thread of Illusion!"

Buzz—

Suddenly, Marin found herself in a different space.

"Whoa…"

It looked like an empty walk-in closet?

Then she remembered her other skill—Infinite Wardrobe.

Everything clicked.

So… she just had to store character data here?

Marin's eyes lit up with excitement.

"Alright! I choose you!"

Back in the real world—She closed her eyes.

Flash!

Her body shimmered with light.

Buzz—

Her form shifted.

Her blonde hair turned a deep violet, and her eyes became purple. Her once-bare body was now dressed in a dark purple maid uniform, complete with a black headdress and tights.

She looked herself over, delighted.

"It's really Shizuku-chan!"

Marin had finally fulfilled her dream of cosplaying as Shizuku Kuroe.

.

.

.