Chapter 31: Cloak and Trouble

"S… Sir?"

Andrea knows she shouldn't be looking. But alas, almost like a magnet presented with a hard, thick, metal– her eyes could not help but stare.

[Reader of Fate: Melancholic Armadillo, is asking how hung Zero is.]

How could she not stare, when this was the first time he was seeing a body like this?

[Reader of Fate: Your Uncle Demon, is saying Excalibur is ready to fight.]

[Reader of Fate: Sulir'spaz, Gifted Zero a Massage Chair so that the other Readers of Fate could relax'.]

Andrea has seen a lot of bodies, of course– she even grew up with little brothers that ran around the house without wearing any shirts. She had also seen the bodies of some of the customers. But never…

…their thing.

"S… sir!?" Andrea truly tried to look away, even using the surgical mask she was wearing to cover her eyes– but alas, try as she might, her eyes kept open due to the sheer curiosity. And as expected, someone of Zero's height has a very– No!

Andrea shook her head to keep her eyes away from the thing between Zero's legs. It was obvious from Zero's attire that he was a Slayer, he even brought a halberd with him.

But to think… a Slayer's body would be this different from a normal human. His body was almost like… drywall– no. Like a canvas.

A canvas painted with nothing but strokes of his suffering.

There wasn't an inch of his skin that was not littered with scars– with some even looking fresh. He was a little skinny too, but it was obvious from the lines that contoured his body that he held strength that was greater to that than a normal human like her.

She has watched the slayers fight beasts on the TV when she was younger, and it almost seemed surreal that there were people out there fighting for their lives. But now, Zero has become proof for her that they do exist.

But then again…

"S… sir, please… please get dressed!" Andrea then ran to the back of the store, quickly getting the clothes she prepared for Zero and politely… throwing them at him.

"..." Zero stared at Andrea for a few seconds, wondering what was wrong with her. He was still not that accustomed to all the emotions that humans show– did he do something wrong?

Zero then looked at the clothes on his feet, and then back to Andrea. Was… it really such a big deal? He should add this to the list of things he needed to learn.

And so, with that thought, Zero finally decided to get dressed with the white set of clothes that was provided for him.

"A… ahem," and as soon as he was done, Andrea once again showed herself, "I… I'll measure you again so we can adjust, sir."

"..." Zero walked towards the small platform as Andrea started measuring him again with her tape.

"Hm… 6'2'' with back fully stretched. Shoulder is around… hm... Hmhm," Andrea once again started writing Zero's stats. And after what seemed like a full minute, she then lightly clapped her hands,

"Please, sir. Choose any cloak you like and I can just make adjustments to your liking."

Andrea then gestured to the almost hundred cloaks that were hanging on the store, "But if you want to, I can give you the saleslady's recommendation– the saleslady being me, of course!"

"..." Zero once again stared at the bubbly shopkeeper, before nodding his head. She was the one working in the store, so she should know more about Zero in regards to what cloak suited him.

And even before Zero could turn around, Andrea was already in front of her with a rack filled with cloaks.

"This will definitely suit your skin color!" Andrea then quickly grabbed a black cloak from the rack and expertly wrapped it over Zero. The black cloak was somewhat similar to the cloak Mark was selling, except it was a little heavier– he could also see some symbols on it, etchings and seams that made the cloak easy to maneuver on even with the weight.

"Yes! Midnight black suits you!"

"..." Zero then slightly took a few steps back as Andrea suddenly shrieked.

"We don't even need to adjust it since it fits you perfectly! This cloak is fire-proof, by the way. It's made from a fabric woven from an ice wolf's fur– it regulates the temperature so you don't have to worry about being hot or cold."

"..." Zero wanted to test out if it truly was fire-proof this time, but for some reason, he believes Andrea.

"Okay, I'll get it."

"R… really? You don't want to fit more?" Andrea looked at the cloak rack.

"Get… me that."

"Hm?" Andrea glanced at Zero before looking to where he was pointing, "Sangria red?"

Andrea grabbed the red cloak and was about to remove the current one that Zero was wearing… but before she could do so, Zero grabbed the red cloak from her and wore it on top of the black one.

"W… what are you doing, sir?"

"I… will get both."

[Some of the Readers of Fate are worried about Zero's money.]

"You… are going to wear them both?" Andrea's eyes started to twitch, "Are… are you joking, sir?"

"No."

"..." However, seeing Zero's eyes that did not seem to have any hesitation in them, Andrea could only let out a small sigh as she shook her head, "A… at least let me adjust the sangria one, I'll make it shorter so it would serve as a contrast."

Andrea then dejectedly let out a sigh as she removed the cloaks from Zero, not even talking to him anymore as she started making adjustments on the red cloak. After a few seconds, however, her eyes started to light up as she started whispering to herself.

"..."

"..."

"I got it! This could actually work! Fit it, fit it, quick!"

And without even waiting for Zero to say anything, Andrea quickly wrapped the two cloaks– with the sangria red now shorter… and mostly only covering one side of Zero's silhouette.

The black hood would cover Zero's head, while the hood of the red cloak would accentuate his shoulders.

"Oh… oh my," Andrea's head started to tremble, "A camera… where's my camera!?"

"..." Zero then watched as Andrea tripped on the floor, but not even minding it as she continued to run all over the store; until finally circling him as she took more than a dozen photos of Zero.

And as soon as she woke up from her stupor, she finally realized… that Zero was still a customer.

"F… forgive me, sir! I… I got a little excited!" Andrea then tried to catch her breath, "Would you like me to wrap up the cloaks for you, or would you be wearing them?"

"...I'm already wearing it."

"O… okay, please follow me for the payment, sir," Andrea smiled as she was finally able to calm herself down, "It's 8 Red stones for the midnight cloak, and then 3 for the red… there's also the cost of alteration…

…Your total is 13 Red stones, sir."

"..." Zero looked at Andrea for a few seconds, before picking up his bags that were sitting beside his halberd and placing them all on Andrea's counter.

"..." Andrea didn't really say anything, as she removed the stones from the bags herself, "Let's see… you have 10 Red stones, and then 5 Green stones…

…you're still short of 1 green stone, sir."

"..."

"..."

"I… it's fine," the smile on Andrea's face slightly wavered, "I'll… just get your old clothes from the dumpster and consider your payment complete."

"Thank you, Andrea."

"Y–"

And without even waiting for Andrea to say anything else, Zero just walked away. Too bad, Andrea thought, she would have loved to chat more with someone who thought of wearing 2 cloaks.

"Please come again, si–"

"Argh!"

"Sir!?"

And before Andrea could even say her goodbyes, a loud scream suddenly echoed inside the store. She quickly rushed to the door to see what happened to Zero… only to see someone kneeling in front of him, his leg twisted in a way it shouldn't.

"G… guards! Call the guards! This… this slayer just assaulted me!"

It was Mark.