Overloaded With Attributes Chapter 08

Bloomers, School Swimsuits, and the Labyrinth Department. 

I know it's a little rude, but I hit the button to 'whirr' the reclining bed into a sitting position and borrow Shouko-san's tablet, which seems to be her work tool. I start "zapping"—channel-surfing—through the websites of high schools in the Kinki region.

...Still, this tablet... It's not just that it's high-spec or has a stylish design. It's just... got this intense "tool from the future" vibe.

"Hmm... So this is 'Nishi-Oodera High.' Whoa, the model on the homepage is super cute! But... the students in the 'classroom photos' section are..."

How do I put this... They all look like Great Buddhas. Or maybe Jizo statues. Reality can be a cruel mistress.

"Ooh, this 'Seiran High' one! The models are cute, and the uniform is insanely cute! ...Wait a sec! 'Ookimi Commercial' is nuts! The skirt isn't just 'above the knee,' it's like... 5cm below the crotch! That's... that's pushing it way too far... Oh? 'Ootsu High.' Is this a photo from their sports festival..."

Wait. Are those... Are they wearing bloomers?! The 'Holy Cloth' that was supposed to have gone extinct in my world a quarter-century ago... You're telling me they're still standard issue here?!

"Ugh?! A-And this..."

After the sports festival, the next thing I saw was the swimming competition.

"The fabric on this 'Sukumizu' (school swimsuit) is tiny!" This is just Dragon Quest armor at this point!!

"This means... I can't just judge by uniforms. I have to add... 'other costumes'... to my selection criteria..."

I'd completely forgotten my original goal. I was too busy window-shopping these school sites like they were... lewd... reader-submission magazines... ...when the description for a 'certain school' caught my eye.

"Um, Shouko-san. This 'Private Ourin Academy'... Do you know it?"

"Hm? Ourin? Yes, I know the name. It's a rather famous college-prep school in Osaka. If that's your choice, it's certainly a good place to find the... 'reliable and capable women' you were... spouting off... about."

"Shouko-san, you definitely almost said 'spouting off,' didn't you?" And her words have thorns in them. Not quite barbed-wire-level, but definitely a briar-patch-level of spikiness.

"Anyway, that's not what I was asking about. This school... besides the 'General' and 'Commercial' tracks, it has a 'Labyrinth Department.' What the hell is that?"

"Ah... I suppose that would be an unfamiliar department for a male. The Labyrinth Department is a special class, only authorized at ten schools in the entire country. It's been established for nearly a hundred years, but... I believe there has never once been a male student enrolled."

I thought it was a typo, but it's a real department... "So... what exactly do they teach there?"

"Eeeehh... I had already come to terms with you being... cut from a different cloth... than other males I've met, but you certainly latch onto the strangest things... Well... I never considered it for my own education, so I don't know the details. But... I assume, as the name implies, it's a place to learn... exploration and combat techniques... for labyrinths."

Labyrinth... That's just a "dungeon," right? What is going on? This world doesn't just have a bugged-out gender ratio, it comes with dungeons as standard equipment?!

"On that note, I heard the reason your life was saved... despite the severe damage your body took in the accident... was thanks to a 'High-Purity Recovery Potion' brought back from a labyrinth, not a commercial-grade one."

...That's the first I'm hearing of this. Wait... that full-body cast I woke up in... Was that... because my bones were in pieces when they brought me in? ...That's terrifying.

"...Just wondering, but when you say 'brought back'... does that mean you can find potions themselves in the dungeon, not just the ingredients?"

"Of course. ...Though again, I donT't know the specifics. I hear they're sometimes dropped when you defeat 'mamono'—monsters—living inside the labyrinth? The other method... is from treasure chests that are occasionally discovered. Commercial potions are also just processed from items originating in the labyrinth."

I see, I see, makes perfect sense... If there's a dungeon, of course you can get potions... ...AS IF!! This isn't a game! Monsters dropping items and disappearing? Treasure chests just sitting around? That's impossible! I know I'm the one who just got back from another world... but what the hell is this world's common sense?!

"Still... a dungeon... A dungeon, huh..."

"...Your careless repetition of that word... ...is making my delicate glass 'heart' pound... in a way I really don't like."

"Could it be... love?"

"If 'love' is what you call the 'sour' feeling of 'acid reflux' coming up my throat... then yes, probably."

I really don't think I've done anything that weird...

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