Tactical Embarrassment

"Speaking of alternate realities," Airi said, her tone deliberately shifting to something lighter, "I notice you didn't mention what happened to your precious figurine collection in this alternate reality. Did that disappear along with you?"

I felt my face burst into flames as everyone within earshot roared with laughter. Even Miyako was giggling uncontrollably beside me.

"That's... that's not... they're collectibles," I sputtered, which only made everyone laugh harder.

"What figurine collection?" Hitomi asked, immediately sensing juicy gossip.

"Nothing! It's nothing!" I protested, trying desperately to change the subject.

"Andie has a very extensive collection of Battle Sorceress figurines," Airi explained gleefully. "With extremely detailed lace patterns, if you know what I mean."

"They're limited editions! They're investments!" I insisted as everyone continued to laugh. My collection was totally legitimate, even if nobody here seemed to appreciate the artistic merit.

"I believe they're called 'bishoujo' figurines," Kazuki added helpfully, the traitor. "He's very proud of the custom display cabinet he built for them."

Rurielle, who had been silently observing the conversation, tilted her head with genuine curiosity. "Figurines? What are these objects you speak of?"

The table went quiet for a moment, everyone suddenly realising that explaining Japanese otaku culture to a shadow assassin from another world might be complicated.

"They're small statues," Miyako explained, her eyes glinting with mischief, "of female warriors in very, very tiny outfits. Andie has dozens of them, all posed in... let's say 'dynamic' positions."

"And he keeps them in glass cases," Airi added. "With special lighting to highlight all the... details."

Rurielle's brow furrowed as she processed this information, her expression a mixture of confusion and something approaching judgment. "You create miniature females for display? Are real women not sufficient for your attention?"

The table erupted in fresh laughter as I sank lower in my seat, wishing the floor would open up and swallow me. Was this really happening? Being roasted about my figurine collection in front of everyone, including several otherworldly beauties?

"It's a perfectly normal hobby!" I protested weakly, knowing full well I sounded pathetic.

"Is it though?" Miyako whispered loudly enough for everyone to hear.

Ruri, who had been listening with increasing interest, suddenly clapped her hands. "Oh! I understand now. Like little sculptures, yes? To capture beauty in static form?"

"Exactly," I said gratefully, seizing on what seemed like the first sympathetic response.

"How fascinating," Ruri continued, rising gracefully from her cushion. "So, they pose like... this?"

She struck a pose reminiscent of a classic bishoujo figure: one hip cocked to the side, chest thrust forward, one finger playfully touching her lower lip. The gossamer silk of her dress shifted with the movement, clinging to her curves in a way that made several students choke on their drinks.

"Or perhaps more like this?" She changed to another pose, this one even more provocative, arching her back slightly while tossing her platinum hair over one shoulder.

The entire room had gone completely silent, all eyes fixed on Ruri as she moved with fluid elegance between poses that would have made any figurine sculptor immediately retire, claiming they'd never capture such perfection. Her generous curves defied both gravity and logic as she shifted positions with seemingly effortless grace.

"I believe you're missing some variations," Noel commented, rising gracefully from her cushion. The midnight blue silk of her dress rippled like water around her voluptuous form as she joined Ruri.

I found myself momentarily speechless, again. Standing side by side, the two rabbit-eared women created a vision that seemed plucked from the most elaborate fantasy illustration. Where Ruri was all moonlit abundance with her platinum hair and spectacularly bountiful curves, Noel embodied a more refined but equally breathtaking beauty. Her cream-coloured rabbit ears with their delicate gold tips caught the lantern light as they twitched slightly with her movements. Though marginally more modest than Ruri's eye-popping proportions, Noel's impressive figure still boasted measurements that would make any fashion designer weep at the impossibility of creating properly fitted garments.

"If I understand correctly," Noel said, adopting what must have been her interpretation of a battle stance while somehow managing to look both elegant and alluring, "some figurines depict heroines in combat, like this?"

The silver lunar phase embroidery on her dress caught the light as her silhouette was highlighted against the fireplace. The silk clung to every magnificent curve, revealing that while she might be slightly smaller than Ruri's impossible proportions, the difference was purely academic.

"While others showcase more playful poses," Ruri added, seamlessly transitioning to demonstrate, her already spectacular assets somehow appearing even more prominent as she struck a pose that would have caused a nosebleed epidemic in an anime. She placed one finger against her cheek and winked, somehow making the innocent gesture look scandalously provocative.

"A moment," came Rurielle's voice as she gracefully rose from her cushion near Ruri. "If we're demonstrating cultural artifacts, I should contribute as well."

All eyes turned to Rurielle as she moved to the open area. What had seemed merely revealing in a seated position now became spectacularly so as she stood in the full light of the hearth. The tribal garments consisted of a halter-style top that seemed designed specifically to present her substantial assets to their best advantage, teamed with a skirt composed of overlapping strips of fabric that revealed glimpses of her toned blue-grey thighs with every step. Silver cuffs adorned her upper arms, connected to the minimal top by delicate chains that drew attention to her sculpted shoulders and collarbones. The entire ensemble could have fit in a small pocket, yet somehow managed to be simultaneously tantalising and regal.

"In my culture," she explained with a hint of mischief in her violet eyes, "we have specific poses designed to entice potential mates." She demonstrated with a movement that was so fluid it seemed almost supernatural, arching her back slightly while her horizontally pointed ears twitched imperceptibly. The bioluminescent patterns beneath her skin pulsed subtly in rhythm with her heartbeat, creating a hypnotic effect.

"This is the traditional greeting of availability," she continued, shifting to a stance that somehow managed to be both demure and provocative. Her eyes locked directly with mine as she performed the movement, a small smile playing at her lips.

"The shadow-bond allows me to sense your reactions quite precisely," she commented, her voice pitched to carry across the table to me despite the distance between us. "Fascinating how your pulse quickens, shadow-kin."

I felt Miyako stiffen slightly beside me, her hand tightening on mine beneath the low table, while Miyuki, seated on my other side, leaned subtly closer in what felt like a protective gesture. She shifted her weight on her cushion imperceptibly, her eyes briefly glinting with what I recognised as her subtle warning look.

"What exactly are they?" Hitomi whispered to Airi, eyes wide at the display.

"I think those," Airi gestured toward Ruri's spectacular proportions, her hands making an exaggerated circular motion well away from her body, "have to be at least L-cup. Maybe bigger."

"And for comparison," Haruka added, making a similar gesture while glancing at Miyako, "our resident H-cup here is considered extremely well-endowed by human standards, yet she's dwarfed by these three."

Miyako shot Haruka a murderous glare. "Thanks for bringing me into this," she hissed.

"What? It's true," Haruka shrugged unapologetically. "Your practically legendary chest is tiny compared to them. The blue one's definitely K-cup, and the elegant one with the gold-tipped ears is maybe an J or K-cup."

I couldn't help but sneak a glance at Miyako at this comment, definitely not to verify this observation but simply out of... academic curiosity.

"I can feel you looking," Miyako growled without turning her head, delivering a swift elbow to my ribs that left me gasping.

"I was just—" I wheezed, trying to catch my breath.

"Don't even start," she warned, though there was a hint of amusement beneath her annoyance. She leaned closer, whispering, "Besides, I thought you preferred quality over quantity. Or is your taste limited to whatever's biggest?" Her teasing tone carried both challenge and playfulness. "You can have it, all you need to do is ask," she added with a mischievous glint in her eye that made me nearly choke.

"That's not—" I started, then caught her smirk and realised she was enjoying my discomfort. "You're evil," I muttered, unable to keep from smiling back despite the heat rushing to my face.

"You realise they can hear you, right?" Miyako then said to the girls, though her expression suggested she was making her own mental comparisons and feeling distinctly inadequate for possibly the first time in her life.

"Obviously," Airi replied with an eye roll, dropping her hands. "But when are we ever going to see anything like this again? I'm taking mental notes for fashion research purposes."

Several of the other female students were doing similar comparative analyses, with expressions ranging from professional curiosity to outright envy at the otherworldly proportions on display.

The male students had collectively lost whatever composure they'd been maintaining. Yuto briefly lost consciousness while remaining upright, while Kazuki abandoned mathematics entirely in favour of frantically sketching the poses in his notebook. The jocks had devolved into various states of stunned appreciation: Ryota giving himself a pep talk, Naoki desperately trying to capture the moment on his phone, and Tatsuya nodding with feigned cultural interest that fooled absolutely no one.

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"And this," Rurielle said, her violet eyes focused on me from across the table, "is how Luxuriveth acknowledge a soul-bond." She executed a movement so graceful and so provocative that several students seemed to forget how to breathe. "Normally performed in much more private settings, of course," she added with a knowing smile.

I could feel Miyako's and Miyuki's gazes burning into me from either side, followed by a synchronised narrowing of their eyes that promised future conversations I wasn't looking forward to. The intensity of their stares made me swallow nervously. Yeah, I was definitely going to pay for this later.

Amakata-sensei cleared her throat loudly. "I believe that's quite enough cultural exchange for one evening." Her voice carried a note of authority that somehow managed to break the spell the three women had cast over the room. "I think we should let Andie rest. He's still recovering, after all."

The room seemed to collectively exhale as the impromptu demonstration ended, though a charged energy remained in the air. Several students were fanning themselves, while others avoided making eye contact with anyone. Amakata-sensei's authoritative tone had stopped the display, but it would clearly take more than words to erase what everyone had just witnessed. The cultural exchange had definitely made an impression, one that would likely feature in Crossroads folklore for years to come.

Noel returned to her seat with perfect composure, as if she hadn't just participated in what could only be described as the most mesmerising impromptu performance in the history of two worlds. Ruri followed with a satisfied smile, the sway of her hips as she walked causing several students to suddenly develop intense interests in the ceiling architecture. Rurielle sank gracefully back onto her cushion near Ruri, settling into a position that allowed her to maintain unbroken eye contact with me across the tables.

"Educational, wouldn't you say?" Ruri whispered to Noel loud enough for nearby students to hear, her voice carrying just enough sultry undertone to make it clear the lesson wasn't over for anyone interested in after-hours tutoring.

"Quite," Noel agreed, smoothing her dress with elegant fingers. "Though I suspect we've given the young adult males material for their dreams for weeks to come." She cast a sidelong glance at me with those luminescent violet eyes. "Some more than others."

"Mission accomplished then," Ruri replied with a delighted giggle that sent interesting ripples through her spectacular physique. "Though I fear we may have broken a few of them."

As if to confirm her assessment, Sora finally managed to climb back onto his seat only to immediately drop his face into his hands with a muffled groan. Yuto was polishing his glasses with such vigour it seemed possible he might wear through the lenses entirely, while Kazuki had filled three pages of his notebook with sketches he was now hurriedly tucking away.

"The shadow-bond alerts me to your precise reactions," Rurielle remarked across the table, her voice pitched for my ears alone though the curious glances from Miyako and Miyuki suggested they'd caught at least part of it. "It seems we will have much to explore about this connection, shadow-kin."

As people began to drift toward their rooms, I caught Miyako looking at me with an unreadable expression.

"If you're comparing them to your figurines right now, I will end you," she said, but the slight upturn at the corner of her mouth told me she was mostly joking.

"The real thing is always better anyway," I replied, reaching for her hand under the table.

She rolled her eyes but squeezed my hand back as conversations resumed and the embarrassment of the moment began to fade. Soon, only a small group remained: myself, Miyako, the Kimochi sisters, Rurielle, Noel, and Ruri, who seemed determined to be the last one standing.

"So," Ruri said, addressing none of us in particular, "what's next for our intrepid adventurers? More heroic battles? Daring rescues? Romantic entanglements?" She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively at that last suggestion.

"Rest and recovery first," Noel answered pragmatically. "Then continued searches for the missing Kimochi matriarch."

Miyuki nodded. "And research. We need to understand more about the shadow-bond and its implications for Andie's abilities."

"And training," Miyako added. "We need to be prepared for whatever's coming."

I looked around at these remarkable women who had, through various circumstances, become central to my life in Voluptaria. "All of that sounds right. But maybe we can take one night to just... be here. Together. Safe."

Miyako's hand found mine under the table, and she smiled, a real smile, without the strain and worry that had marked her features since finding me at the sanctuary. "I think we've earned that."

As the others drifted into conversation, Miyako leaned closer to me. "So, in the Rubicon... I was really with Airi? And we were both... boring?"

"Yeah," I confirmed. "And you seemed... content, at least. Not the Miyako I know, but a version of you that had taken a completely different path."

"With Airi?" She made a face. "We're best friends, but no. And the conservative look? That's the real nightmare scenario."

"You were different there," I explained. "More reserved, more traditional. But seeing you with someone else, not even remembering me, it was harder than I expected." I swallowed, remembering the strange hollowness I'd felt seeing that alternate version of her, living a life where I didn't exist to her.

For a moment, something flickered in her eyes, a complicated emotion I couldn't quite read. She glanced down at her fashionable clothes, her perfectly styled hair, then back at me with a look that seemed to hold a secret. It was gone in an instant, replaced by her usual confident expression, but it left me wondering what she wasn't saying.

She studied me for a moment. "Now you know how I feel when I see you surrounded by girls who all adore you."

I stared at her, the parallel suddenly obvious. "I never thought of it that way."

She laughed softly. "Of course you didn't. You're dense as a black hole when it comes to these things."

"That's not fair," I protested. "I recognised your feelings eventually."

"After I practically beat you over the head with them," she countered, but her smile took any sting from the words. "It's okay. It's part of your charm, somehow."

We sat in comfortable silence for a moment, watching the others interact. Across the table, Rurielle and Miyuki were deep in conversation, the Luxuriveth's reserve gradually thawing under Miyuki's genuine curiosity. Mochi had joined a discussion with Hitomi and Hina, her usual shyness giving way to animated gestures.

"It's weird, isn't it?" Miyako said softly. "How all of this happened. How we ended up here, together, in this strange world."

"Weird doesn't begin to cover it," I agreed, glancing around at our bizarre little gathering. "But I'm grateful, despite everything. To be here. With you."

She squeezed my hand. "Me too."

As the celebration wound down and people began to disperse to their rooms, I felt a strange sense of peace settling over me. We'd faced death, forged bonds, discovered strengths we never knew we had. We'd established a place for ourselves in this strange, beautiful, dangerous world.

And whatever came next, whether Incendiveth plots, continued searches for missing friends, or the ongoing complications of our unusual relationships, we would face it together.

Later, as I lay in my room staring at the unfamiliar ceiling, I felt that familiar prickle at the edge of my consciousness: the system that had been with me since our arrival, always watching, always measuring. I'd almost grown accustomed to its presence, this bizarre digital companion documenting our journey. True to form, I felt rather than saw the notification appear:

[Volume 1 Complete: "The Isekai Experience"]
[Volume 2 Loading: "Worldbound Foundations"]
[Character Relationships Updated: Bond Synchronisation In Progress...]
[Warning: Emotional Configurations Have Changed. Recalibration Recommended.]

Even through my exhaustion, I couldn't help but smile. Some things never changed, even in a different world.

Tomorrow would bring new challenges, but tonight, at least, we were safe.

Open Letter to My Readers (End of Arc 1)

Hi everyone! 🙇‍♂️

Thank you so much for journeying with me through Arc 1, all the way to Chapter 32. When I first started writing this story, it was meant to challenge myself: to prove that I could still create something worth reading and enjoying. It began with the simple thought, "If people love isekai stories, why not try?" That spark has grown into this project, and your support has kept me going.

Why I Write

When I first read Loner Life in Another World, I remember feeling frustrated. In the manga and anime, the class rep and the others seemed to only hold Haruka back, making him look shackled by his classmates. But when I read the light novel, I realized something crucial: Haruka was someone the locals and even his classmates couldn't understand at all without her. The class rep, who seemed like a burden in other versions, was actually the bridge that allowed Haruka to exist in the world of the story.

That disconnect between versions stuck with me. It showed me how much perspective shapes a story, and how easily important context can be lost depending on the medium. In a strange way, it inspired me. I wanted to write something similar where the ensemble matters as much as the protagonist, and where shifting viewpoints reveal new sides of the same events while still keeping my own characters, twists, and world.

But I'll be honest: I think I've sometimes kept too much in my head instead of putting it on the page. Readers only see what I write, not all the details in my brain. More than once, I've found myself replying to comments to explain why the protagonist or others acted the way they did, explanations that should have already been clear in the story itself.

At the same time, I don't want to spell everything out or tell readers how to feel. I want you to think, theorize, and maybe even challenge your own assumptions. Instead of dismissing a character's choice as dumb, I hope you'll dig deeper and ask why they made that choice. For example, if the protagonist doesn't use their bazaar app to solve a problem, there might be a reason beyond forgetfulness or stupidity. Maybe they've learned not to trust it completely. After all, if you ordered a "Silken Dress Set" tagged as "Modest Replacement Attire for Travellers" and received sheer lingerie and stiletto heels instead, would you really trust that system again?

I want to challenge readers' thinking without making anyone feel dumb, but I'm not always sure if I'm striking that balance right. That's part of why I'm doing the New Game+ project. It's my chance to slow down, build things more carefully, and make sure the characters' actions and emotions land in a way that invites exploration rather than requiring my explanations afterward.

Looking Ahead

Tactical Embarrassment series scope & direction:

Planned length:

6–7 major arcs, not counting the epilogue arc

Each arc:

Roughly 35 chapters max (including subchapters)

Endings:

There will be at least 2 different endings. I might release one ending for the current series and another for the New Game+

Arc 2 will be more of a setup arc that lays the groundwork for Arc 3. But don't worry, there will still be fighting, engineering, and the journey east.

New Game+ (The Rewrite)

Now, a quick update on the rewrite (NG+): This is not a hard reboot, but rather a retelling in a separate timeline. Think New Game+ in an RPG or a multiverse branch where things unfold a little differently. Both the original and rewritten versions will be canon, each showing an alternate path for the same cast, world, and themes.

What's new in NG+:

Tighter structure and pacing

Slower burn to give more room for character moments and worldbuilding

Sensitive themes handled with more emotional clarity

Timeline tweaks so certain events hit harder later or make more sense

Some cast members, including a few main characters, will be renamed to better differentiate personalities in our large ensemble

Reader feedback woven in where it strengthens the story

Right now, I'm deep in the planning stage, though progress has paused at Chapter 3 while I redo the selection list (yes, that one). It's taking longer than expected, but it will be worth the polish.

With the website and wiki also being developed alongside planning future volumes and arcs, I know I haven't been able to reply to comments as often as I used to. Writing is a hobby for me alongside my full-time job and life, so I simply can't reply to everything anymore. My apologies for that. Please still leave your thoughts and reactions, though. They help enormously, and I'll always try to reply to the more pressing ones. Even if I don't respond, I read every single one.

Community

It's still small, so please don't leave too quickly. Sometimes I can't catch people joining right away because of work, writing, or life, but I really do want to build a community there.

Feedback

If you feel like any chapter in Arc 1 was lacking, please don't hesitate to go back and comment. Your feedback will definitely help shape the NG+ rewrite process and make the story stronger.

Finally, there's a non-binding poll at the bottom. It's just for sense-making, so feel free to answer honestly!

Thank you again for reading, commenting, and supporting this story. Arc 1 is done, and there's so much more to come. Arc 2 starts next week! I hope you like reading this series as much as I like writing it, and I hope you guys will be here again.

With gratitude,
JagdDrache