Volume 1 Chapter 2 Skill Activation
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
”No way… does that mean—kyaaahhh!! That’s amazing, seriously amazing!” Hibiki’s voice shot through the room like sunlight breaking glass. “A ‘Beauty’ Gift can actually make people prettier, right? Skin, hair—maybe even more than that! This is so awesome, Takanashi-kun!”
She caught Hirose’s hand and pumped it up and down, her whole body moving with unrestrained joy. The motion sent her chest bouncing in wild rhythm.
”W-wait, Rindou-san!?” he blurted, his ears turning red.
”Ah—sorry! I just… got too happy, you know?” Her smile softened; a flush crept up her cheeks as she straightened her cardigan and brushed her bangs aside. Then, curiosity glittering in her eyes, she leaned closer. “So, what kinda Skills does your Gift come with?”
The narration unfurled the logic of Gifts—how Skills branched off, evolving through use, and became visible after one’s first appraisal.
”I guess I’ve got… ‘Skin Quality Improvement’ and ‘Fat Burning.’”
”What did you just say!? What!?” Hibiki squealed, bouncing again.
”I said, uh, skin qua—”
”Kyaaa! That’s incredible, Takanashi-kun!!”
Hirose tried to speak, but her pure delight drowned him out. She pressed her hands to her cheeks, beaming. “I’ve been worrying about pores and these dumb teenage breakouts—and, ugh, my tummy’s been getting soft lately!” She poked her stomach through her uniform, giggling. He quickly looked away, unsure if it was polite to watch.
”So, can you, like, use it right now!?” she asked suddenly.
”Huh?”
”That’s why I called you here!”
”Y-yeah, but… give me a sec, I’ll check how it works.”
As he focused, faint knowledge unfolded in his mind:
[Skill: Skin Quality Improvement]
[Method: Rub the target area]
[Effect: Rejuvenation, wrinkle removal, moisture, elasticity, pore contraction]
[Recoil: Temporary body heat, heightened sensitivity]
[Skill: Fat Burning]
[Method: Massage the target area]
[Effect: Fat combustion]
[Recoil: Same as above]
”Looks like… you have to rub or massage the spot you wanna improve,” he said hesitantly.
”Got it! Then come over to the bed!”
”Eh!?”
Before he could process, Hibiki tugged him toward the bed, slipping off her cardigan, untying her ribbon. When her fingers reached for the buttons of her shirt—
”Wait! Rindou-san!”
”What!? I just wanna be pretty already!”
”You’re seriously gonna strip in front of me—the guy you just met today!?”
Her hands froze. “Ah…” The realization hit her, and her entire face went crimson. She’d undone only the top three buttons, but that was enough—Hirose glimpsed soft pink fabric and the curve of her chest before snapping his gaze away.
”You… saw, didn’t you?” she murmured.
”Uh… sorry!”
”No, it’s fine, it’s my fault… still, it’s so embarrassing.”
”L-let’s just, uh, button that up first.”
”O-okay.”
He was stunned she didn’t yell. A girl like her—top of the social ladder—showing that kind of softness? He hadn’t expected it.
”…But, the Skill needs direct contact, right?” she said after a pause.
”Maybe… maybe we could try your face? You don’t need to, uh, undress for that.”
She nodded. “My face is fine. I’ve been looking for this, you know? Months of trying to find the right Gift… and the moment I saw you, I just knew.”
”Are you sure?”
”Mm-hm.”
She tucked her hair behind her ear, exposing a smooth cheek glowing in the afternoon light. He swallowed hard and reached out, struck by how flawless her skin already was.
(Could she really want my Gift this much?) he thought. The sight alone could’ve made him doubt she needed it at all.
Yet everyone’s struggle was personal—his inability to become an adventurer was his own wound.
They sat facing each other, close enough to feel each breath. Hirose lifted his hands and gently touched her cheeks.
”Mm…” She trembled at the contact, a small sound escaping. Something stirred deep inside him, but he fought it down, focusing on the Gift.
”Okay… activating now.”
”Please do.”
He drew in a slow breath. “Skill—’Skin Quality Improvement.’”
A soft white glow bloomed from his palms.
”You okay?”
”It’s warm… but good. Keep going.”
”Got it. I’ll move a little.”
His fingertips traced slow, circular motions, warmth spreading between them like sunrise.
Once the skill had been triggered, an intuitive understanding of what came next flooded his senses. It wasn’t just her cheek, but the nearby areas touched by his hands that needed attention, too. So, he moved his fingertips next to Hibiki’s ear.
”Ngh!—Hyannh!?”
”A-are you alright?” Hirose stammered, his politeness reflex kicking in.
”J-just… keep going… please. Don’t mind me, just keep doing it. It’s necessary, isn’t it…?” Her voice was pleading and raw.
”Yeah…”
Hirose followed Hibiki’s instruction and, exactly as asked, began to trace the contours of her ear. Her ears were tiny and perfectly shaped, the kind a beautiful girl would have.
He started at the ridge, moving to the lobe, and then to the delicate skin behind the ear. He touched her with soft, gentle strokes, almost like a massage. This was the first time Hirose had ever touched a girl’s ear, and he couldn’t shake the feeling that he was doing something completely scandalous.
And why wouldn’t he? Hibiki’s face was beet red, and she hadn’t stopped letting out small, pleading sounds for a while now.
”Mmm… Aughh… Hyannh… not the ear, please… Nghh… ♡”
Even with his best intentions, Hirose’s lower half was starting to heat up. But he was desperate not to disappoint Hibiki, who had so sincerely asked for this, and he struggled hard to hide his own reaction.
* * *
About ten minutes after activating the skill, the light in his hand faded, and he knew: the ‘Skin Quality Improvement’ was finished.
Hirose gently withdrew his hand from Hibiki’s face.
”Hahh… hah… hah…”
Hibiki was breathing heavily, her face still flushed, and a thread of saliva was even glistening at the corner of her mouth. Anyone else walking in on her right now would surely mistake her for having just finished something intensely physical.
”Rindou-san, are you really okay?”
”I… I don’t think so… My body’s so hot, and it feels… weird… ♡”
”Um, well, I should go home, then. You should lie down on your bed.” He suddenly felt like he shouldn’t be here any longer. Hirose quickly stood up. Wanting to go home and deal with his own restless feelings was definitely part of the reason.
”No… I can’t stand up. Help me lie down.”
”Alright…”
He’d resolved not to touch Hibiki except during the skill application, but since she asked, he felt he had no choice. Hirose took hold of her shoulders to guide her to the bed, but—
”Annh!?”
”Rindou-san!?”
The moment his hands touched her shoulders, Hibiki let out a strange cry and her whole body jerked violently.
”My body… it’s sensitive now. Hold me gently…”
”Y-yeah, okay!”
But how was Hirose supposed to hold her gently? He didn’t know the first thing about it. In the end, he managed to get her onto the bed by holding her shoulders, but not before hearing several more undeniably lewd sounds.
”Hah… hah… This… I have to keep doing this for a while for it to change, right? My skin needs to turn over, too. It’ll probably take a month.”
”I… I think so.”
Hirose considered his own skill and was certain she was right. But he also recognized one more condition.
”This is really hard to say, but… it looks like it won’t work unless we do this at least twice a week…”
”……Will my body hold up?… But if it makes me beautiful…”
Hibiki took out her smartphone and started tapping away. Then, she held the screen up for Hirose to see.
”Huh…”
”It’s my contact QR… Add me as a friend.”
”Are you sure?”
”It’s faster to arrange things through chat.”
”Got it…”
And just like that, Hirose exchanged contact information with a girl for the first time—and not just any girl, but a beautiful, high-caste student.
Hibiki looked miserable, her body flushed with heat. Hirose left the house with her still lying on the bed.
* * *
Hirose was gone, and Hibiki was finally alone.
”This… this might be bad. I think it’s the skill’s aftereffect, though…”
She trusted her Gift. She felt its truth without proof. So she knew the fire Hirose had left inside her was real.
”But this throbbing… what am I supposed to do about it? And Takanashi-kun… he saw me lose control, didn’t he…”
Even understanding the cause, she could not will it away. Heat pulsed beneath her skin; every heartbeat echoed too loudly in the quiet room.
”If I give in now, what will become of me…”
A strange, reckless need rose in her chest. Before she could think, her hand drifted downward, fingertips grazing the hem of her skirt.
”It’s too much… too much…! Why… why does it feel… ngh… like this! ♡”
A single, trembling touch met the ache that refused to quiet. A spark flared, sharp and bright, racing through her veins.
Her breath fractured. Her body arched, small tremors chasing one another.
It had taken only moments, yet she was already at the brink.
”Ah… ah… no! It’s too strong… ♡ I can’t… I can’t… nngh—!!! ♡”
A sudden, blinding wave swept her under. She shook once, hard, then folded in on herself.
”Ooooh… oooogh… it… it won’t stop…! ♡”
She sank to the floor, limbs heavy, lungs burning. But the fire still smoldered.
And so, that day, Rindou Hibiki—alone in the silent house—let the tide take her again and again, her breathless cries fading into the hush until exhaustion finally closed her eyes.
Notes:
• Rindou Hibiki – Hirose’s cheerful, bold classmate who is the first to request his Beauty skill. Hibiki (F, pink bob hair, 158cm, F-cup) is outgoing, expressive about her interests, and quickly becomes Hirose’s girlfriend after an explicitly intimate scene. Her reactions help set the adult tone of the story.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
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