After Gender Swapping, I Became the Daughter of a Yandere Mother with Animal Ears—With the Help of My Yandere Mom and Powerful Sister, I'll Live as a Fox Girl - Chapter 81: I Didn't Hear About This!

“Alrighty! With that said, we shall now commence the 16th annual ‘Who’s the Hottest One?!’ event of the Snow Illusion Festival!!”

As the host’s voice echoed across the snow-covered stage, cheers erupted from the audience. The loudness of whistles and applause indicated a high level of excitement among the attendees. The venue was crowded with many participants, all of whom were dressed warmly. Due to everyone, myself included, wearing thick clothes, the air inside the venue was filled with an unusual warmth.

“Uh… ah, it’s hot… The cold from just a moment ago feels like a lie… Chizuru, are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m okay…”

Gathering all these heated individuals made even the eternally winter town this warm… One thing caught my attention as I looked around at the other participants. Apart from us, there were only men. Not a single woman in sight. Having been in fluffy, girl-only spaces for a while, this musky atmosphere felt quite oppressive to me…

“Hey, young lady. You’re not planning on participating, are you?”

“Eh? Ah, yes…”

“Forget it, you’ll regret it…”

What does he mean by that…? Sure, women might have less muscle mass and be more susceptible to the cold. But enduring the cold seems like a matter of perseverance to me. Could it be that this person thinks men are naturally more enduring, implying that women shouldn’t bother trying in a display of gender bias?

“Thank you for the advice. However, I have my reasons that can’t be ignored… I’m sorry for disregarding your warning…”

“Is that so… Well, don’t push yourself too hard.”

“Yes, thank you for your concern.”

He seemed like a kind person… At least not someone who harbors gender-biased attitudes. So, the issue must lie with the event itself…

“First off, everyone, please look over there!”

The host pointed towards a massive block of ice. Originally a lake, its surface was polished to mirror-like perfection, reflecting the surrounding scenery.

“The rule is simple! The last person standing on that ice wins!”

I didn’t expect natural ice to be used, but the gist was as anticipated. Nothing too worrisome.

However, wouldn’t that make it hard to determine a winner? My question was quickly answered.

“But! We believe our fiery participants won’t give up easily, so we’ll add another rule! Specifically… you’ll have to strip clothing at set intervals!”

An uproar of cheers, louder than before, rose from the men.

No, no, no, no… Did he just say strip? That was not mentioned before! What are they thinking?! Are they out of their minds?!

That’s what the warning was about…

“At my signal, please start stripping! If we can’t confirm you’ve stripped, you’ll be disqualified immediately, so please be careful~”

What kind of caution is that… This is ridiculous…

Such… such a shameful play… Kohaku wouldn’t even do this!

“What do we do… Mashiro…”

“I mean, what can we do…”

There’s no easy answer. But since we need money, not participating isn’t an option…

“Participants can wear up to ten pieces of cloth at the start! However, to prevent anyone from simply wrapping a large cloth around themselves, there will be size restrictions! Once you’ve had your attire checked, please wait by the lakeside~!”

Damn it… I never imagined we’d be asked to strip… But, having decided to persevere, we must go as far as we can…

The cold isn’t the problem… It’s the embarrassment, but I can endure it as long as it’s only up to showing bare legs…

“Mashiro, are you okay?”

“Yeah… I’m okay… I’m used to being stripped by Kohaku…”

“Huh… Well, good luck. I’ll be cheering from over there.”

So it seems… As much as it’s humiliating, I’m accustomed to being embarrassed…

With that thought, I slapped my cheeks to psych myself up and started walking with trembling legs…