Chapter 8: Shopping for skirts… and… stuff.

“Of course your stats went up, you’ve been submissive,” Melody explained. “Offering to cut yourself, taking off your pants for me, trading your panties for my skirt, letting me lead you around everywhere…”

“You didn’t have to say it all!” Eek! Why am I so submissive? And why does it still not feel real? I feel like I’m floating on some ephemeral cloud. It’s still nothing but a dream. But, BDSysteM I thought only system-related quests or activities could increase stats?

They were quests, Scarlet. Melody made them quests, all of which were hidden from you. In fact, she already has a few more active.

“Wait, you made more quests?” I spun to Melody, who was concentrating on driving as she navigated out of the parking lot.

“We need to raise your stats before class starts, otherwise you can’t show off your abilities,” Melody answered as she drove the car onto the main dorm road. “Did BDSysteM tell you everything?”

“That you hid quests?” I questioned.

“So that’s a no. Good,” Melody replied, reaching the campus’ central roundabout.

“You won’t tell me?” I whined. I have so little control over my own system. This is insane…ly hot.

“Nope, we need to choose an upgrade though.”

Status Share from Melody

Please select one upgrade path for your pet.

Note: This selection must be discussed with your pet unless they choose to forfeit this requirement.

Core Ability Augment: Heal (Level 2) - Breadth

Expand the breadth of your pet’s healing abilities.

In addition to current healing capabilities, pet gains the ability to heal anyone when certain conditions are met.

Ratio of health healed to health lost (for others):

1 : 1

Static health loss speed:

0.1 health per second (mirrors default speed)

Condition:

Pet must be exposed to healing target in some way that causes humiliation.

Core Ability Augment: Heal (Level 2) - Strength

Improve the efficacy of your pet’s healing abilities.

Pets healing speed is increased based on health difference between Mistress and pet. Additionally, ratio is improved to 3 : 1.

Healing speed is multiplied by:

1 + ((Pet’s current health percentage / Mistress’ current health percentage) / 10)

Minimum value of 1x.

“Thoughts?” Melody asked after I finished reading.

I definitely needed stronger abilities, but at the same time, right now I can only heal Melody and myself. Doesn’t that seem a little weak for an X, or to public knowledge S, tier?

Then again, “I might need strength, I could barely heal your needle prick.”

“No, you really don’t,” Melody said as she shook her head. “That was just me. I have over two thousand health.”

Dang. How the hell… “Are you sure you aren’t a tank?”

Melody chuckled. “I’m pretty sure. So which one do you think is better?”

In that case, breadth is certainly the better option. It’ll allow me to not seem useless to other people… although that condition is a little… well… “Breadth, I suppose.”

“I agree,” Melody continued. “Your healing speed is already like level twenty A tier, so I think we’re good.”

“Really?” I didn’t think normal abilities were that slow. I mean, I should be stronger but… actually I’m surprised I’m not stronger. I’m X tier. What is the scam? Shitty system.

“Yeah,” Melody replied as we left the campus grounds. “Most healers don’t get any good until well above a hundred levels.”

As she started driving to whatever we’re going, she initiated my submission rewards, triggering a log of messages.

Submission Level Up!

Having reached submission score 5, you have unlocked the following ability upgrade.

Your level has also increased by 1.

Core Ability Augment: Heal (Level 2) - Breadth

Expands the breadth of your healing abilities.

In addition to current healing capabilities, you gain the ability to heal anyone when certain conditions are met.

Ratio of health healed to health lost (for others):

1 : 1

Static health loss speed:

0.1 health per second (mirrors default speed)

Condition:

You must be humiliated in some way by or towards your healing target.

My level also went up, which should mean…

Scarlet Diamond

BDSysteM

Unique - X tier

No active effects.

Level 1

Credits: 600

Health: 20/20

Mana: 20/20

Submission: 5

Strength: 20

Agility: 20

Points: 10

Yup, my stats are higher… 2x higher? That’s a huge increase. Lower tiers are usually a point or two higher. Lower as in A and B. Five hundred credits too? I could buy a house with that. I could buy anything with that. Well, not anything made by high-level craftsmen but anything made by anyone below C tier I could easily afford.

Shortly after, we arrived at a mall. Melody refused to let me get out on my own and walked over to open the door for me. Doesn’t this feel a little backwards?

Anyway, I walked out and we headed toward the store, aptly named Celestria Apparel. The mall building wasn’t huge, it was two floors, but it took up a lot of space. The design was what you’d expect, that generic light brownish plain wall color, except for the store entrances, which were all decorated in the store’s styles.

The Celestria Apparel store had a plain entrance of giant glass floor-to-ceiling windows, they extended to the second floor too, with a couple glass doors in the middle of it all. We entered the fairly busy store and Melody immediately turned right heading towards an escalator. As we passed by a section of skirts, I asked, “Why are we going up?”

“The second floor has the better-quality items,” Melody explained, pausing for a second before adding, “And larger changing rooms.”

“Why… does that matter?” I questioned, only for Melody to grab my hand, and walk a little quicker.

“The ones down here can’t fit two people,” Melody said right as we stepped onto the bottom step of the escalator.

Great. Melody’s going to make me change in front of her. And not just once, I’m sure.

As we stood on the escalator, I looked down and saw more people getting on, suddenly becoming a nervous wreck. I still wasn’t wearing any panties, although the angle probably wasn’t high enough for anyone to see—

“Melody!” I shouted out and shoved my skirt back down, spinning around to Melody, my face completely red. She saw me looking and decided that would be the perfect time to flick my skirt up. As I glared at her, she calmly held her sly little smirk.

“For the record, you’re the one who just drew everyone’s attention, kitty,” Melody whispered as her eyes darted around us. The people who I feared would catch a glance were now staring directly at us. Gah! Why did I shout?!

They might have seen things because of my shout, Melody’s little flick wouldn’t have gotten anyone's attention, regardless of how much it revealed, but now we were the main damn attraction. Why am I so stupid? I need to just shut up sometimes, protest with silence. Yes. That. I’m sure my shouts are what excites Melody, so I need to just shut—

“MELODY!?” She did it again! She fucking did it again. Everyone was looking! I think… I don’t know. I was too busy getting lost in my head… but there’s no way they weren’t. It just happened, no one had time to look away. They all saw. The entire fucking store. They all got a glimpse of my dripping little… gah! Melody, you’re so… infuriatingly cute. Kill me. Why do I love this?

Before I sorted through my thoughts, we had reached the second floor and were forced to step off the escalator or risk getting eaten by it. Melody grabbed my hand and turned right, then immediately right again to the area behind the escalator, right beside the windows. I feared something similar to that escalator situation was about to happen, but Melody just began looking around.

There were a bunch of spaced-out racks with hangers holding skirts along with some other blouses and dresses. I followed Melody as she started filtering through one, eventually grabbing four or five short black skirts of a couple different sizes.

After that, Melody turned toward me. “Any colors you like?”

“Pink, I guess?” Although… pink skirts don’t always look great. They’re a little… obnoxious I feel? I mean, I’d wear them in private and on weekends, of course.

Having been too slow to voice complaints, Melody had already walked to a couple racks, grabbing another handful of plain pink skirts, all very light shades, and a couple plaid black and pink skirts. They all looked fine.

“Any other colors?” Melody spun to face me again. “Or designs?”

“I don’t know…” I don’t really shop all that much. It’s fun, but there's just too many options. I can never decide on anything. And I’m not rich. Well, now I am, but before I wasn’t too rich. Just middle class.

Melody took that to mean every color in existence for some reason, and soon loaded up one of every shade in the rainbow with a handful of different stripe patterns and even a polka dot, which looked terrible by the way.

By the time she was satisfied, she held at least thirty skirts all layered onto one arm reaching her head. How the hell she was able to carry that, I don’t know. And neither did the staff. Seeing her, one brought over a cart for us, and Melody dropped all the skirts in.

After that, Melody dragged me over to another section of the store… lingerie, bringing my lack of it once more to the forefront of my mind. I wish I could just ignore it, but every little thing we do seems to highlight my present predicament. Something like how when you learn a new word you suddenly see it everywhere… what was it called… Baader-something or other effect. When you don’t wear panties, you’re suddenly cognizant of every situation where panties would be beneficial.

That sounds so stupid.

While I was focused on holding my skirt far too tightly, Melody was focused on intimately examining every damn article of clothing in this place. She couldn’t find what she was looking for, and she ended up flagging down an employee.

The female employee, dressed in the store's black suit uniform, promptly arrived and asked, “What can I help you with, miss?”

“Do you have anything transparent?”

Oh my fucking god Melody.