NOVEL NEXT Chapter 338: Before the Funeral?
An hour or two had passed, and currently, both Lillian and Marionette were out to retrieve another trolley for themselves.
And as the two were doing this, they couldn't help but find the surroundings much flatter and barren compared to before. Less ruined.
The sky was bright as ever, having been fixed after the invasion. And builders had already begun preparation on what to repair and construct.
Lillian glanced towards a Crimson Crusader carrying away an entire wall before looking back up at Marionette, finding her glancing around as well.
"Weird, isn't it?"
"Hm?"
Marionette turned her attention towards Lillian and raised an eyebrow.
"What is?"
"Well, all of this." Lillian gestured with her hand, waving it around. "No one would imagine that their academy would end up in this state. Especially not during their stay, right?"
"I suppose..."
Marionette then gave a low hum before stating:
"But I have also experienced things that I wouldn't imagine during my stay here."
Lillian tilted her head, raising an eyebrow before asking in a curious tone:
"Oh? And what would that be if you don't mind me asking?"
Marionette turned her eyes towards the white-haired girl, taking in her appearance. Her lips then curled upwards into a smirk.
She then said:
"You can take a few guesses."
"E-eh?"
***
After a few more hours had gone by, the funeral was ready to take place. However, Lillian and Marionette would need to change into something more appropriate to attend.
Fortunately, since not every family member who would be attending the ceremony had arrived yet, they quickly headed back home and got to work changing.
Since the dormitory was also under repair, they had already transferred all of their possessions back to their previous residence. Which, in this case, was their apartment.
Lillian, standing inside her bedroom, looked around before glancing towards her girlfriend, who was scrutinising her room.
She then smiled wryly and asked:
"So... Can we take the cuffs off?"
Marionette, shifting her attention back to Lillian, glanced at the metal cuffs. She then gave a low hum before pulling a key out of thin air and holding it over the keyhole.
Lillian breathed a sigh of relief. Her ears then twitched at the woman's next words:
"I'll be watching you change."
"E-eh!?"
Lillian flinched back, causing Marionette to move the key away from the hole.
The Assassin gave the Rabbit a strange look, finding their face to be red. She tilted her head, confused by the expression before asking in a stoic voice:
"Is there something wrong?"
"I-is there a reason for you to do this? You let me change alone this morning!"
Marionette's eyes narrowed, "That was because I wasn't thinking clearly. And it was also when I wasn't thinking about how you haven't told me where you had actually gone on that day."
"Oh, come on! You can't be serious..."
Lillian couldn't believe what she was hearing. She gave a loud sigh, scratching the back of her head as the Assassin continued to stare at her stubbornly.
"Look, Lillian. Nothing you say will convince me to have you leave my sight."
"E-even if I promise to kiss you later—"
"I'm not degenerate and naive enough to be allow you to do whatever you want for physical affection."
The Assassin then held up two fingers.
"You have two options, Lillian. It's either I strip you down and dress you up myself. Or, I can unlock the cuffs and allow you to dress up yourself as I watch."
"N-not degenerate, my butt..." Lillian grumbled before giving yet another exasperated sigh, this time filled with hopeless defeat.
She threw her arms up and yelled, "Fine! You can watch me, now can you just get these cuffs off?"
"Now that's a good girl."
***
The two arrived back at the Academy Realm, this time with a change of clothes.
Lillian was dressed in a dark black dress along with Marionette. And they looked rather stunning in them.
Lillian's face was still flushed red, while the Assassin wasn't much different compared to her usual.
However, if someone were keen enough, they would find a pleased look inside the woman's dark red eyes.
Lillian pouted, wrapping her arms around her chest, "Did you enjoy the show?"
Marionette glanced at Lillian, blinking at the girl before revealing a small smile, "I did. However, I would've preferred if you didn't keep facing your body away from me, though."
"You got a look at my rear! That's all you are getting!"
Marionette sighed, "I changed in front of you as well and hid nothing. Why the unfairness, Lillian?"
"I was looking away when you were doing it!"
Marionette sighed again, shaking her head, "I see absolutely nothing wrong with either of us taking a look at each other's nude bodies. I've already seen yours much earlier, anyway."
"W-when!?"
Marionette silently stared at her before holding her chin in deep thought. She then muttered:
"The Forest of Disruption inside the second layer, and when we went on our first date. However, the latter wasn't entirely true considering I've only been able to see your chest rather than your entire body—"
"O-okay... T-that's enough... Let's talk about this after the funeral..."
Marionette, staring at Lillian's face, found the girl looking around.
The Assassin looked towards the sky, finding it to now be golden hour—a point in the day where everything becomes a lot more beautiful, even on a day like this.
The woman glanced around, finding crowds of people dressed in black like the two of them were, even seeing large cars coming through portals and moving on the newly constructed roads.
The people around them, the families of the deceased, had crestfallen expressions—something that she hadn't experienced much in the past, except only recently.
She looked down at Lillian, finding the girl's face to also shift to a more depressing look.
Lillian, who was walking beside the Assassin, felt a hand fall on her head. Looking up, she found the Assassin staring down at her.
"Apologies... I was merely trying to liven the mood between us before the funeral began."