Chapter 153: Faint Memories
"That's impossible. Unless you want Ikaros to dress like a delinquent girl with chains hanging all over her, her collar is never going to look normal—no matter how many layers you put on."
Bulma's blunt remark shattered Franklin's idea instantly.
"Then forget it. If that won't work, we'll just do it your way. I'll focus on judging.
Mikan's outfit was great anyway—just a simple next-door-girl style, very nice."
"Mhm, it really is good. The straps don't press on Ikaros' wings, and the jacket hides them well. We should use this style as the model from now on."
Seeing that even Momo and Nana were nodding in agreement, Ikaros' first outfit was settled.
"What did you all pick? Similar styles?"
Momo scratched her cheek, a bit embarrassed.
"Um… we didn't think as thoroughly as Mikan. We kind of forgot about the wings. Should we go pick again?"
Franklin waved dismissively.
"No need. Let's see if the styles work first. As for the wings, we can have someone cut two openings later to let them out. We'll do the same for the Cainan High uniform."
Before long, all of Ikaros' new clothes were prepared. After paying, she wore Mikan's chosen outfit for now, while the rest—and her armor—were stored away in Lala's dimensional phone.
"Ikaros' clothes are done. Next is yours."
Franklin looked at Mikan, Momo, and Bulma giving him this strange look, and scratched his head in confusion.
"What? Isn't that right?"
"Bro, you forgot the most important part. Ikaros doesn't have any underwear. We haven't picked any yet."
Mikan's reminder hit Franklin like lightning. Looking at the skirt Ikaros wore and the outline beneath the camisole—
Franklin felt his throat dry immediately. "So Ikaros is in a completely… empty state right now?"
"What else?"
Mikan grabbed Franklin's arm and dragged him straight into the women's fitting room. Nana tried to stop them, but after Momo whispered a few words into her ear, Nana immediately sat outside as lookout.
Franklin stared in disbelief. Looking at Momo, who wore an all-knowing smile, he could only marvel.
Inside the fitting room, he was stunned again—by how spacious it was. Lala was sitting in a corner of the room in deep thought, Ikaros stood in the center, lost and unsure, Franklin was pulled inside by Mikan, and Momo and Bulma followed after.
Six people inside… and it still felt roomy.
"Aren't women's fitting rooms always this big?"
Bulma gave him a "are you dumb?" look. "Does that sound possible? Space is expensive! Lala used one of her expansion gadgets."
Momo covered her mouth and laughed lightly.
"It's one of the few tools Big Sis made that don't have side effects. We didn't know what it was good for before, but it's perfect right now.
Alright, Mr. Franklin, wait here. We'll pick some underwear for Ikaros. Any preferences?"
Franklin wanted to cover his face. "Is it really okay for me to just sit here and watch?"
"If you're really uncomfortable, we won't force you. Would you like to leave, Mr. Franklin?"
Just as he was about to escape, he felt Mikan's gaze. Seeing the hint of disappointment in her eyes, Franklin coughed and sat more firmly.
"I'll leave it to you, Momo. I don't know what I like, so get a bit of everything. Only requirement—appropriate for her current age, nothing too extreme."
Momo smiled and nodded, heading out with Bulma.
"Bro, you chose this path—don't even think of running. Once you settle things with Momo and Nana, it'll be easier to go after everyone else."
Franklin was speechless. "Do we really have to move this fast? Isn't this going way too fast?"
Mikan tapped her chin, thinking. "Maybe a little fast… but Momo and the others don't mind, so why are you embarrassed?
If you keep hesitating, when will anything get done?"
Franklin covered his face helplessly. "You've changed, Mikan. My gentle, cute little sister has turned into a little devil. Keep egging me on like this and I really will become a devil—then what if I start accepting every girl who shows up?"
"Accept every girl? You? With how shy you are? No way. Don't overthink."
Seeing her "you can't do it anyway" expression, Franklin wanted to argue but couldn't find words.
At that moment, Ikaros, who had been standing silently, stepped toward him.
"Master seems troubled. Is there anything I can do for you?"
Franklin gave a wry smile. "Not really. It's just… I'll be watching you change clothes in a bit. Do you mind?"
"I am the Multipurpose Entertainment Angel. As long as it makes master happy, anything is fine."
"Right… you're missing emotional programming, so you don't understand anything about men and women.
I'll try to find something to help restore your emotional modules someday. I hope you won't end up disliking me."
Ikaros looked even more confused. "Dislike master? Why would I dislike master?"
Franklin waved it off. "Never mind. You just need to learn more. Losing your memories really is troublesome."
As he said that, he fell into thought.
Ikaros' memories didn't feel lost. They felt… blocked.
Digging through long-buried recollections, Franklin felt distant memories resurfacing piece by piece.
Ikaros' memories were forcibly restored by Nymph out of revenge, causing Ikaros' sealed abilities to return all at once. Nymph had nearly died in the process.
Meaning—right now, Ikaros was in a sealed state. But why didn't the Dimensional Tome show that?
Franklin dove into his consciousness and summoned the Dimensional Tome. Quickly flipping through, he checked Ikaros' entry again—still nothing.
Only after flipping to the back did he see it:
[Sealed. Weapon systems usable only by a gifted awakener. Gifted awakener must discover the method to lift the seal for Ikaros to awaken into Queen of the Sky mode.]
Franklin stared speechlessly.
No wonder she seemed off. Not only confused—she didn't even have basic computational capacity.
He smacked his forehead. Too much time had passed—he'd forgotten even the most basic information.