Chapter 56 – Cross-Dressing, Cross-Dressing (2)

As Diana said, tilting her head, it had been a week. Considering medieval transportation and communication, the temple group that departed from Grampo wouldn’t have even arrived at Hespote yet, but considering magic, the information that the Saintess had already followed the Imperial Governor’s group should have been delivered.

“We separated from the Governor’s group and traveled separately. Wouldn’t the Order have noticed by now?”
“Probably, if they’re quick.”
“Exactly. So, let’s disguise ourselves.”
“……What? What are you talking about all of a sudden?”
“Of course, the temple will be looking for us.”
“Us? Why?”

I need to explain in more detail to Irian. Is this guy smart or stupid? It’s ambiguous. Does he only become smart when he needs to be?

“We said we were going with the Governor’s group, but we ditched them halfway. Of course, the Order would be in an uproar that Diana disappeared. So, what would happen?”
“Would a pursuit team be dispatched?”
“Maybe. Or they might issue a wanted notice across the entire continent.”
“Ehh~ Surely they wouldn’t go that far.”

He still doesn’t understand the seriousness of the situation.
He’s been with me every day, so he must have forgotten how Diana is treated in the Order.

“You idiot. She’s the Saintess that the Order cherishes. If that Saintess goes missing, a wanted notice is the least of their problems. The Cardinals would be in an uproar.”
“…Is that so?”
“Yes. So, let’s disguise ourselves.”
“Whatever.”

Looking at Irian’s indifferent response… okay. I don’t even need to think about his disguise. As for Diana and Carsilla… hmm.

“Diana, is there a look you want to try?”
“Me? Hmm. Not really. I like how I look now. ‘Someone’ raised me to look like this because it’s their favorite look. Right?”
“…Y-yes, that’s right.”

I remember when I was young, I used to ramble on about Diana’s adult version illustration, saying that it would be nice if she grew up like that. I told her to grow up like that because I thought she would grow up looking like the illustration anyway… When did that become my favorite look?

More than anything, it was a joke I made when I was young. Why is she saying such a strange thing now, while staring at me like that? Avoiding Diana’s burdensome gaze, I turned my attention to the last member of our group.

Looking at Carsilla, who was sitting on my lap and fiddling with her knuckles, a good idea came to mind. She likes physical activity and she’s crazy about her knuckles, which makes her look just like a boy her age… Let’s dress Carsilla as a boy. Our little one would be cute even in boy’s clothes.

“Carsilla.”
“Yes?”
“Let’s dress our little one as a boy. How about it?”

Surprisingly, she didn’t seem too keen on the idea, but I can’t just leave her be because Carsilla is such an eye-catching child. Aside from her being cute and lovely… a child with black hair and black eyes is really rare.

“Our little one is so cute, she’ll look good in anything. Okay?”
“Okay.”
“And~ Sir Ian can help us with that.”
“M-me?”
“You seem like you’d be good at it, so Sir Ian will take care of Carsilla’s boy disguise. And Sir Ian~ that’s right. How about cross-dressing?”
“……What!?”

He’s already pretty, but how pretty would Irian be if he dressed up? Would he look exactly like the illustration? This is definitely not to satisfy my personal desires. It’s just a disguise for the safety of our group.

“T-then you should cross-dress too!”
“……What?”

Well, does it suit me?
It’s not like we’re carrying around long, flowing skirts while traveling, and we don’t have any decent accessories or makeup.

My kids don’t usually wear makeup. It’s funny, but in this game world, there are so many cosmetics that rival modern ones, so women’s makeup is quite heavy. Of course, our Diana is pretty even without any makeup.

Irian, who is always dressed as a boy, is a given, and Carsilla is still a baby, so she wouldn’t wear makeup either. So, cross-dressing would only be about changing hairstyles or wearing women’s clothes.

He’s already tall, and without makeup, I worry if anyone would see him as a woman. My kids all said that it would be enough to just change their hairstyles and put lip balm on their lips, but I’m still worried.

I used my divine power to create a flat water surface and looked at my reflection.

“…Damn, I’m pretty.”

Since it’s water, it’s not as clear as a mirror, but it’s enough to see myself. And what’s reflected in the water is a beauty that no one can take their eyes off of.

From the start, I customized him as a pretty boy with a gigolo style. Aren’t slender pretty boys and young men the standard for male priests, clerics, and healers? If he was a melee type, then a rugged male character with a wild charm would be the standard.

True to my love for stereotypes, I faithfully followed the standard and created a pretty male character. You know how it is. There are comics where they draw a female character, shorten the hair, and call it a male character.

I knew he was pretty from the start, but… seeing him like this, he’s really pretty. With a little bit of basic makeup and a wig, he could become a legendary beauty that would shake the world?

Oh, look at that haughty expression. And if I change the pose like this… Amazing. So pretty. Beyond the water droplets stood a tall beauty with a haughty expression.
…It’s me though. I suddenly feel self-conscious.

How did I end up cross-dressing?
I was too nice to just make my kids cross-dress and get out of it myself. …Actually, I wanted to try it once too.

It would be a lie to say that I didn’t wonder what it would be like to cross-dress with this face, but imagination should remain imagination. Diana, Irian, and even Carsilla pushed me to cross-dress with shining eyes, so I ended up like this.

But it’s not bad. I looked at my reflection in the flat water surface, admiring my own beauty, when the tent suddenly opened.

“Hurry up… Oh. What? You’re prettier than I thought?”
“Heh. How is it? I’m quite the beauty, aren’t I?”
“……You’re still annoying.”

Irian, who always had his bangs swept back, let them down for the cross-dressing. Or rather, he undid the boy disguise he had been wearing.

The irregular bangs covering his forehead and the fine red hair that swayed just above his nape. I knew he was pretty even when he was just roughly disguised as a boy, but… now that he’s taken off the disguise and dressed up properly, he’s really… really…

“…Pretty.”
“Wh-what are you saying!”
“Really. I knew you were pretty, but seeing you dressed up like this, you’re even prettier than I thought.”
“It’s not, not at all pleasing to hear that from a guy!”

He reflexively yells no when he’s complimented for being pretty. Is it a habit by now? Maybe because he’s been dressing as a boy for so long, he subconsciously rebels whenever he hears that he’s pretty.

……Wait. Does that mean he’s been hearing that he’s pretty all the time? Looking at the way he is, maybe the kind people of the Order just pretended not to notice. I used to curse them for having eyes like pinholes, but maybe they all knew and just pretended not to notice. It’s giving me goosebumps.

It’s not strange that the idiot Irian thinks he’s good at dressing as a boy… but did I not notice either! Was I the one with no sense! This is shocking.

“…What? There’s no need to be so depressed. It’s not that I don’t like being called pretty by you… it’s just, you know. It’s a bit weird to hear a guy being called pretty. You know?”
“What do I know?”
“You must have heard that you’re pretty a lot.”
“…I’ve never heard that.”
“What? That’s a lie! You’re so pretty!”

……This is also shocking. This guy thought I was pretty. I wish he thought I was cool instead.

“Anyway. What were you trying to say?”
“No, that’s… I, I mean, it’s not that I don’t like being called pretty by you? It’s not, but… I’m dressed as a boy, so…”

What is he saying? Does he think he’s doing a good job of maintaining his boy disguise without showing it? …If it’s this idiot, he might. More than anything.

“You idiot. It’s just the two of us right now?”
“……Th-that’s right. Yeah.”

What am I going to do with this idiot? If he wasn’t cute, I would have punched him. …It might be okay to punch him in a different way.

“It suits you. You’re so pretty, I wish you could stay like this.”

He always has his forehead exposed when he’s dressed as a boy, so seeing him with his bangs down is quite rare. In the 16 years we’ve been together, I don’t think I’ve ever seen him like this, except when his hair naturally falls down during training.

I thought he looked very pretty when his bangs covered his forehead, even when he was soaked in sweat during training. Seeing him like this, I think my eye for beauty isn’t bad. He’s really pretty and it suits him.

I gently stroked Irian’s bangs and complimented him. He twisted his body, looking like he didn’t know what to do, and asked in a small voice.

“…R-really… does it suit me? Am I pretty?”
“Yeah. Really.”
“……Well, it’s, it’s not bad.”

He’s turning his head with a sulky look, he must be very embarrassed. …I can’t help but want to tease him when I see him like that. Surely this idiot isn’t trying to seduce me. It must be an unconscious action?
…I can’t take it. It’s not my fault, it’s Irian’s fault for being too pretty.

I approached Irian, who was sulkily turning his head with his arms crossed. He flinched, but he stubbornly maintained his posture. When I stood right in front of him, he only rolled his eyes and glanced at me.

Cute.
I grabbed his soft chin, turned his face towards me, and lightly kissed his lips. He still had a sulky expression, but it was Irian who first inserted his tongue.

I wrapped my tongue around Irian’s tongue, which was quite aggressively intertwining with mine, and naturally placed my hand on his waist. Irian, who had his arms crossed, also wrapped his arms around my waist and pressed close to me. Because he had loosened the bandages he used to bind his chest when he was dressed as a boy, I could feel the fullness of his chest against mine.

Our hot breaths intertwined, and our lips parted as our eyes met.

“You’re pretty. Irian, you’re really pretty.”
“…Y-yes. Thank you. You, you’re pretty too.”
“……”

……Is that something you say to a guy? I glanced at the water surface that was still floating in the air. It showed a tall woman grabbing a smaller woman’s chin and leaning over her.

Anyone would see it as two beautiful women having a secret rendezvous. …Seeing that, I have a suspicion.
Could it be that Irian likes the cross-dressed look more, like a lesbian? It’s unsettling to dismiss it as a joke with this guy.

“Do you like being kissed by a pretty woman more?”
“What?”
“It seems like you like it more than when I just kiss you.”

He stared at me with wide eyes, as if he was dumbfounded, and then turned his head away. Ah. Is he sulking?

“…It’s because it’s you that I like it.”

Then he quickly ran out of the tent.
……Suddenly shocking my heart like that isn’t good for my health. Irian is surprisingly good at making people’s hearts flutter. I wonder if I can get him to wear pigtails later. That’s the standard for a tsundere.