Labyrinth: Chapter 61: Magic Silk

In front of the store.

Chishiya was still smiling.

That was the professional quality expected of good customer service personnel.

“Everyone, please be patient. This product was specially prepared for female adventurers.”

“So what? Clothes that flashy aren’t practical for adventuring.”

Dust muttered, “Yeah, have you ever seen a woman fight in a skirt?”

Suddenly,

Chishiya looked directly at him.

“Could you repeat what you just said?”

The blond-haired Dust pointed to himself. “Me?”

Chishiya’s smile didn’t falter. “Yes, you.”

Gulp. Dust swallowed.

“I said, have you ever seen a woman fight in a skirt?”

“Excellent!”

Chishiya suddenly raised his voice.

“This gentleman has hit the nail on the head. Why don’t they fight in skirts?”

“Do they not want to?”

“I’ve always believed that there’s a little fairy in every girl’s heart. No one wants to wear clunky, outdated combat gear every day.”

“Is loving beauty such a crime?”

“No. Beauty is innocent.”

That last line came straight out of some ancient corporate pitch.

Chishiya began spouting textbook rhetoric.

He was giving the locals a solid slap of modern fashion logic.

As he spoke, many of the female adventurers in the crowd looked down at themselves.

Most could only wear the uniforms of their specific job classes.

They were busy day in and day out.

Hardly ever got the chance to wear anything of their own choosing.

And if you were the frontline tank? Heavy armor, all day. You might even start bulking up...

Chishiya’s words struck a chord.

Even Mitsurugi's two female companions started wavering.

Mitsurugi, sensing their change, spoke gently.

“Fio, Cremea, you’re both already beautiful.”

“You don’t need to doubt yourselves.”

“Mm…”

The two nodded, but added quickly,

“Well… that guy’s just a smooth talker. We’re not paying attention to him…”

Mitsurugi smiled and nodded.

He didn’t notice the flash of loneliness in their eyes.

—

On the platform,

Chishiya continued in a loud voice.

“To help every girl break free from the constraints of gear and embrace their love of beauty!”

“I now present to you…”

“A product developed by our store over the past month!”

“Magic Silk!!!”

As the words landed, the crowd froze.

Wait… Chishiya wasn’t selling clothes?!

He was selling… fabric?!

Everyone blinked in shock.

Chishiya lifted the dress from Wiz’s hands and explained,

“This silk isn’t just breathable and comfortable.”

“More importantly…”

Chishiya emphasized clearly,

“It contains a high concentration of magic power, with powerful defensive properties!”

“It can easily block a claw swipe from a Rookie Killer.”

!!!

The moment those words dropped, the crowd exploded.

“What?!”

“Is that for real? It’s better than regular armor? Clothing with that much defense?!”

“You’re joking. That thing looks like it’d tear if I tugged on it.”

“Same here. It feels just like a normal dress…”

“But if what he says is true… doesn’t that mean most armor becomes obsolete?”

Everyone fell silent.

If this was real, forget aesthetics. It meant the entire paradigm of protective gear could shift in the future.

—

At the back of the crowd,

Claire’s eyes lit up.

Textile material with high defense?

If that was real, it would be classified as a strategic military resource!

This could change the entire kingdom’s defense standards!

—

Chishiya was satisfied with the reaction.

He didn’t blame them for doubting it.

This silk had been cultivated for the past month under the joint efforts of Shuna and Haruna.

Spun from larvae of the Hell Moth species.

Chishiya had already considered their commercial use back when he first arrived in the [Tensura] world and asked them to collect moth larvae.

As for skepticism?

Simple solution.

The best way to kill doubt?

Prove it.

Chishiya turned and said,

“Wiz, if you’d assist me.”

He spread the dress open.

“This material is naturally resistant to elementary magic.”

“It even reduces damage from intermediate-level magic.”

“And if a special magic array is engraved during processing, the defense multiplies.”

Then,

Chishiya nodded at Wiz.

Wiz raised her hand.

“Sword of Light.”

A lightning bolt arced out from her palm.

High-tier offensive magic!

Even a level 30 monster would be toast if hit by that!

Were they serious?!

CRACK—!

The white bolt was about to strike Chishiya when—

A magical barrier unfolded from the dress in his hands.

A low rumble echoed as the lightning snake slammed into the barrier and rippled out before dissipating completely.

“WHAT—?!!!”

The entire square froze. Mouths dropped.

Armor that could withstand high-level magic was incredibly rare.

Even the best equipment forged by legendary blacksmiths wasn’t fully immune.

But this “flashy” dress… actually blocked it?!

“Oh my gods!!!”

“Am I hallucinating?!”

“How is this possible?!”

“Magic Silk… is it because of the material?!”

“Crap… I take back everything I said earlier…”

“Actually, y’know, I could wear a skirt…”

“…Huh???”

“I didn’t expect Chishiya-san to make something this ridiculous. First the potions, now this?”

Claire and Mitsurugi both stared wide-eyed.

What kind of joke was this?!

A skirt that could block high-level magic?

Mitsurugi was speechless.

Even his armor couldn’t block magic of that tier with certainty.

But this flimsy-looking garment?

Had superior defense.

That wasn’t just surprising, it was insane.

—

In the crowd, reporters’ pens were flying like mad.

Friction alone might’ve set the pages on fire.

They couldn’t afford to miss a single detail.

They could already imagine how many headlines about Chishiya Shuntaro would be plastered across tomorrow’s newspapers.

The debut of this new material?

Absolutely massive news.

—

Once the barrier faded.

Chishiya folded the dress again.

Still smiling.

“Ladies and gentlemen, this is the fruit of our research.”

“Due to the high concentration of magical elements in Magic Silk, we’re able to inscribe defensive runes.”

“This specific piece of clothing can resist up to five high-level magical attacks in total.”

“So…”

“Are you satisfied?”

As his final words rang out, the crowd erupted.

Especially the female adventurers.

They were initially concerned the clothes would be pretty but impractical.

But now?

It could block high-tier magic?

No more concerns.

Chishiya was right.

What girl didn’t want to look beautiful?

Now, they could finally have both beauty and safety.

However—

Just as the excitement reached its peak—

Chishiya’s next sentence hit like a cold bucket of water.

“But I should mention this up front.”

“This dress costs 40 million Eris.”

(To be continued.)