My Gift Is “Beauty”. I Think It’s Useless, but It Seems to Be an S-Rank Gift With the Strongest Buff Effect for Beautiful Girls - Chapter 13.2: Beautiful Girl's Worry Is Her Thick Hair

Chapter 13.2: Beautiful Girl’s Worry Is Her Thick Hair

She was happy to be complimented, but she was also afraid that admiration could turn into resentment. In fact, there had been classmates Kirino used to be close with, but now they didn’t even speak to her.

“Hey, why don’t we start calling each other by our first names? What do you think, Hyoudou-san?”

“Eh? First names?”

“I’m Hibiki, this is Hiroyo, and this is Koharu. And we’ll call you Kirino!”

“…Kirino.”

Kirino was eating slowly, having taken only a single bite of her melon bread.

Meanwhile, Hibiki and the others had already finished about half of their lunches.

But the truth was, Kirino was too nervous to swallow her food.

“Um… It’s all so sudden, I can’t process it… Sorry.”

“It’s fine, it’s fine! Then, once we get closer, okay?”

“Get closer… Get closer…”

“Yeah, exactly— Wait, whaaat!?”

They had been having a normal conversation when Hibiki suddenly shouted with her mouth wide open.

Startled, Hiroyo and Koharu dropped their chopsticks onto the ground.

“Hey, Hibiki!?”

“Hibiki-chan, don’t just scream out of nowhere!”

As Hiroyo and Koharu sighed, wondering how they were supposed to continue eating, Hibiki explained why she was so shocked.

“Um, listen carefully… Hyoudou-san, Hiroyo is glowing.”

Only the three of them understood what that meant.

Kirino, not knowing anything, just looked confused.

“Eh? Hyoudou-san is reacting to Hiroyo!?”

“So that means—”

“Hyoudou-san is looking for something that Hiroyo has…”

However, Hibiki had a question.

Hyoudou Kirino already had flawless skin, to the point where she didn’t need any more skincare. She was also tall and had a model-like figure. She didn’t seem to need ‘Skin Quality Improvement’ or ‘Fat Burning’ at all.

“No way, could it be…”

That was why Hibiki arrived at one conclusion.

“Hiroyo… you’ve awakened a new skill, haven’t you?”

Saying that, Hibiki stared at Hiroyo.

“Haha… As expected of you, Hibiki.”

“Then that means…!”

“Yeah… This morning, actually.”

“W-What did you learn!?”

At Hibiki’s words, Hiroyo nodded and gave an answer.

Hibiki had a feeling this skill was exactly what Kirino wanted most. But at the same time, she was also curious about what Hiroyo’s skill could be.

That was only natural—Hiroyo’s gift was ‘Beauty.’

Whatever skill he learned, it was bound to be something any girl would love.

“—‘Hair Removal.’”

Hiroyo spoke the skill’s name in a short, clear voice.

Hibiki and Koharu were about to cheer, but before they could react—

“—No way!?”

Kirino was the first to respond.

She suddenly stood up, unable to hide her shock.

Her lips trembled, and she clenched the melon bread in her hand so hard that it got squashed.

“So that means…”

Hibiki had a habit of unconsciously using her ‘Grant Seeker Search’ skill all the time.

Whether chatting in the classroom or walking outside, she would instinctively activate it to see who was searching for what.

If someone was drawn to Hiroyo, she wanted to bring them together and help them—

“Ah… um… I’m sorry for standing up so suddenly.”

Kirino quickly apologized for her outburst and sat back down.

Seeing her reaction, the three exchanged glances and then nodded.

“Hyoudou-san… This might be really hard to talk about. But if you’re struggling with something… we want you to hear us out.”

“Eh…? O-Okay…”

Kirino agreed without thinking, but she still didn’t fully understand.

What was she supposed to say? What was she about to hear?

“…You want Hiroyo’s ‘Hair Removal’ skill, don’t you?”

“—”

Just by looking at Kirino’s face, they knew that was the right answer.

She had the expression of someone whose secret had just been exposed.

When Kirino asked, “How do you know that…?” Hibiki, after getting approval from both of them, began explaining her and Hiroyo’s gifts and skills.

“Huh… So if I have that skill activated, does that mean my wish will come true?”

Kirino quickly understood Hibiki’s explanation and looked at Hiroyo, asking cautiously.

The three of them nodded together, confirming her words.

“So that’s what it was about… The thing Hayashido-san mentioned, the difficult thing to say…”

“Yeah. We don’t go around telling other people about someone’s concerns. You can rest assured about that.”

“Hyoudou-san, can you look at this?”

Koharu took out her phone, operated the screen, and showed Kirino a picture.

“…This is…”

For someone seeing it for the first time, it might be horrifying.

The photo Koharu showed was from when her body was covered in bruises. She had taken the picture in front of a full-length mirror while wearing only underwear.

“But look at this one too.”

Koharu slid to the next photo.

What appeared was an image of her body, now completely free of any bruises, looking perfectly smooth and clear.

“Huh!? This is…”

“Hiroyo-kun’s skill made me look like this.”

“A-Amazing… They’re completely gone…”

“See? It’s not just edited with a photo app or anything.”

“It’s real…”

Koharu rolled up her sleeve and showed Kirino the spot where the bruises had been.

There were no bruises left, only her smooth, fair skin.

“Hyoudou-san, we’re not forcing you. We just happened to notice. So you don’t have to—”

“—Excessive hair…!”

“Huh?”

Hibiki had been speaking with the intention of giving Kirino time to think and choose for herself. But her response came before Hibiki could finish.

“E-Excessive… hair. I… have it…”

Blushing, Kirino hid her face in her hands.

From the moment they learned Hiroyo’s skill was “hair removal,” they had a vague idea.

They had suspected it, but until she said it out loud, they couldn’t bring themselves to believe it.

After all, these words were coming from the most beautiful girl in their grade.

“Every single day, every single day, every single day… I shave my entire body thoroughly… But after just half a day, it sprouts up again.”

It was just like how a businessman shaves his beard every day.

The speed at which her hair grew must have been extreme. It was easy to understand why Hibiki’s skill had reacted.

“I hate it so much… Back in middle school, there was someone I liked once. But I was terrified of them finding out how hairy I am… So I couldn’t bring myself to be positive about love…”

“You’ve worked so hard all this time…”

If she had been a boy, maybe she wouldn’t have minded.

Or even if she did, it wouldn’t have been to the same extent.

Girls pay close attention to body hair on a daily basis.

None of them knew exactly how hairy Kirino was.

But the one who could empathize with her the most was Koharu.

Because she, too, had once given up on love and summer fashion because of her bruises.

“Hyoudou-san—no, Kirino-chan.”

“Eh…”

“I was the same. I couldn’t expose my skin because of my bruises. I always kept them hidden. But Hiroyo-kun healed me and made me look beautiful again.”

Koharu gently stroked Kirino’s back and called her name with warmth.

“That’s why—if it makes you cry this much… Let’s fix it! Both Hibiki-chan and I trust Hiroyo-kun’s skill completely!”

Letting it all out, Kirino couldn’t hold back her tears.

She had never told anyone about her problem.

Yet she had just confessed it to people she had barely met.

But those people had become the ones who could give her hope.

And so, Kirino’s answer was—

“…Yes…!”

She said, taking Koharu’s hand and gripping it tightly.