"I am truly sorry! Please forgive me!"
"No, it's fine. Ann fixed the door, so don't sweat it! Setsuna doesn't mind either, right? Right?"
"Well, yes. I was surprised, but I don't really mind."
A short while later, in a room now crowded with people, Melt was on her hands and knees performing a dogeza to apologize to Yugo and Setsuna.
As Yugo tried to reassure the overly distressed Melt while seeking Setsuna's agreement, the latter—who seemed somewhat amused by the situation—offered her own words of comfort.
While everyone privately agreed that Melt had acted far too impulsively, Marcos voiced the question on everyone's mind.
"So, what is this all about? Why did you want Yugo's opinion on your Shrine Maiden Outfit?"
"It’s a long story. To explain why, I’d have to go into the details of how this attire works."
Setsuna, dressed in an orthodox Shrine Maiden Attire with a white top and red bottom, answered with a hint of reluctance.
Stepping in to help her, Raiha, a fellow Warrior Shrine Maiden, began a brief explanation.
"Setsuna-chan’s goal is to evolve the Warrior Shrine Maiden Attire into something better. She came on this study abroad program hoping to utilize this country’s technology for her modifications..."
"You want to modify that outfit? I’m no garment specialist, but it looks like a high-quality piece of equipment to me," Anhel noted.
"It is. This Shrine Maiden Outfit receives the Protection of the Dragon and possesses high resistance to many attributes. If I had to name a flaw, it would be its vulnerability to weapons with the same Dragon Attribute... but the basic performance isn't what I’m looking to change."
Setsuna half-affirmed and half-dismissed Anhel’s assessment as the engineer scrutinized the fabric. She then followed up on Raiha’s explanation.
"The three of us are Warrior Shrine Maidens, yet we all head into battle wearing the exact same attire... Does that strike you as odd?"
"Hmm? Not particularly...?" Marcos replied.
"...Marcos Borg, you’re just as rigid as the rumors suggested. Well, your defense is supposedly rock-solid too, so I suppose we should just consider that a side effect of your personality."
"Hey! Was that an insult?! Why must I be subjected to such verbal abuse out of nowhere!?"
Marcos sputtered with indignation at the sudden, biting evaluation.
Watching his reaction with a wry smile, Anhel offered her professional opinion.
"I see. You acknowledge that it's excellent armor, but you think it's strange that everyone is equipped with the exact same thing. To put it simply, it lacks specialization, doesn't it?"
"Exactly. You truly live up to your reputation as a skilled engineer."
"Ah, I understand now. Each of you three Warrior Shrine Maidens uses different Magic Items and specializes in different attributes. Despite that, you’re expected to fight in identical outfits—that’s the contradiction you’re concerned with, isn't it, Kogarashi-san?"
At Claire’s insightful summary, Setsuna gave a firm nod of affirmation.
With the explanation laid out, Marcos finally seemed to grasp the concept.
Sakura focused on close-quarters combat; Setsuna specialized in long-range sniping with a bow; and Raiha primarily handled support. Yet, all three wore the same clothes.
Setsuna respected the quality of the armor, but the fact that development had simply stopped there clearly grated on her.
"Adding features to amplify specific attributes, adjusting the balance of mobility and defense according to each person's Magic Item, reducing fabric to prioritize ease of movement... I can think of plenty of improvements off the top of my head. But those stiff-headed traditionalists from the Old Houses won't hear of it! They just stubbornly insist that they won't allow modifications to the prestigious and traditional Shrine Maiden Outfit. I admit the current attire is excellent, but being excellent now doesn't mean it will be excellent forever. Everything needs to be updated to match the times."
"I agree with that. Technology is always advancing," Yugo said. "That attire probably has hundreds of years of history and has remained effective all this time, but the moment you stop progressing, you start stagnating. That's just how it is."
"P-Please don't speak too ill of the people of Yamato, okay?" Raiha interjected. "We Warrior Shrine Maidens have a duty as the One Who Connects Dragon and Man. Many in Yamato deify dragons and believe that casting aside humanity to become a dragon is the ultimate evolution. Because we exist on the boundary between humans and dragons, they expect us to value tradition above all else. They worry that changing anything would be an act of profanity against the dragons, which is why the opposition is so fierce..."
"To hell with tradition. You think so too deep down, don't you, Raiha?"
"Pfft...!?"
The room erupted into surprised sputtering at the crude language coming from the mouth of a Warrior Shrine Maiden—a girl who otherwise seemed the picture of purity and grace. Setsuna merely smiled pleasantly and looked at Yugo.
"When I asked Yugo the same question, he gave me almost the exact same answer. You really do meet my expectations."
"Well, I've seen it once before," Yugo replied. "Back then, I was all hyped up thinking, 'It's a Magical Girl transformation!' so I didn't think too deeply about it. But looking back, I think individual personality is crucial after all."
Even his favorite Magical Girl-style heroes didn't have costumes that were carbon copies of each other, even if they shared a theme. Each had features tailored to their specific weapons and fighting styles.
Setsuna looked deeply satisfied as Yugo explained his reasoning.
"Well, if you want something you could do right away, how about changing the color of the hakama? You could redye them into your respective Image Colors."
"Changing the colors... I see. That would make it much easier to distinguish individuals than having everyone in the same uniform. Since we've only just arrived at this academy, having such an obvious marker would prevent confusion during battle...!"
"Also, since you're a long-range specialist, why not make the design asymmetrical? You could pack more functions into the arm you use to hold the bow. As long as it doesn't hinder your movement, you could even add armor to protect the shoulder area. Like those Energy-style bow users."
"Trimming unnecessary parts while assigning new functions to the useful ones... I love it! That's exactly what I was looking for! You say things that don't make sense sometimes, but even that is interesting and wonderful!"
"S-Something's getting really heated here...!" Melt stammered.
The cool, composed aura Setsuna usually maintained was nowhere to be found. She was listening to Yugo's opinions with visible excitement, interpreting them in a positive light.
Anhel, watching the scene with a wry smile while Melt looked on in a daze, muttered to herself as she finally connected the dots.
"I finally get it. The reason Setsuna took such an interest in Yugo is because he uses armor-type Magic Items."