Chapter 42: This is Female Equipment!

"That's true!" Komachi nodded in sudden realization. When it came to information gathering, national agencies were naturally much stronger than they were. Soon, information about the victims would probably be broadcast on TV. "Hmm, by the way, Komachi, hold out your hand..." Hikigaya Hachiman nodded in agreement, then took out the red ponytail wristband he had removed earlier from the system space. "What's this?" Komachi looked curiously at the strangely-shaped wristband in Hikigaya's hand. "This is a combat wristband I exchanged from the system..." Seeing the wristband brought back memories of his own embarrassing past for Hikigaya. But to avoid Komachi noticing anything strange, he kept a straight face and seriously explained the wristband's purpose. "But Onii-chan, if you give me the wristband, what will you do?" Upon hearing that the wristband had strong defensive and offensive capabilities, Komachi instinctively pushed Hikigaya's hand holding the wristband back. "I'll exchange new armor from the system." After saying this, Hikigaya directly put the wristband on Komachi's wrist, nervously watching the bead on the wristband. "Buzz..." Because the wristband was now on a stranger, it automatically started scanning Komachi's physical condition. Then, the bead on the wristband lit up red. "Conditions met!" Seeing the bead light up successfully, Hikigaya smiled. He immediately transferred ownership of the red ponytail wristband to Komachi in the system. "Hmm, Onii-chan, I feel a warm flow inside my body..." Just after Hikigaya transferred the wristband's ownership to Komachi, she felt a sudden warmth rise within her. This warmth circulated inside her body, finally rushing straight to the red ponytail wristband on her wrist! A dazzling red light flashed across the room, and then Komachi, transformed with red ponytails, appeared before Hikigaya. "It's completely different from my transformation..." Hikigaya watched Komachi, whose only changes were in clothing and hairstyle, and pondered while resting his chin on his hand. Why was this happening? When he used the wristband, his body shape and appearance immediately transformed into a girl's form, so why did Komachi's transformation involve so few changes...? "So amazing, Oniichan!" While Hikigaya was thinking, Komachi was also amazed by the changes in her own body. The seemingly heavy armor was actually surprisingly light, and although she had always kept her hair short, suddenly having long hair styled into twin ponytails seemed like a good choice. "Yeah, this is what you look like after transforming..." Hearing Komachi, Hikigaya snapped out of his thoughts. Seeing Komachi easily handle the transformed armor, he nodded. Then he began explaining combat techniques. "Onii-chan..." However, halfway through Hikigaya's explanation, Komachi suddenly cut him off with a strange expression on her face. "What's wrong?" Hikigaya looked at Komachi with confusion. Everything he said was based on his own experience and couldn't be wrong! "Why do you know so much about this female battle armor's performance?" Komachi looked at her brother suspiciously. Since her transformation, the wristband had sent messages in her mind, telling her it was a tactical wristband designed for females. So she could accept that Hikigaya gave her this equipment. But the only problem was, why did Hikigaya, a male, know so much about a female-only equipment's performance? "Onii-chan, could it be that..." Komachi narrowed her eyes and stared at Hikigaya. "There's a user manual in the system for this!" Hikigaya's eyes met Komachi's clearly. Although he wasn't good at acting before, this moment revealed his awakening talent for acting. Indeed, no one knows their own potential until a crisis forces them to try. "Is that so?" Hikigaya showed no sign of panic, which made Komachi wonder if she was mistaken. After all, the wristband told her it was equipment for females. Surely, a man like Hikigaya couldn't use it, right? "Of course. You don't think a guy like me would use this kind of wristband, do you?" "That's true..." Komachi nodded, deciding not to dwell on the issue. After Hikigaya finished explaining how to fight, Komachi closed her eyes. Then the armor on her body turned into red light and flew back into the wristband. Hikigaya's eyes widened watching this. "Komachi, how did you retract the armor?" "Eh, I just simply communicated with the wristband in my mind, that's all." "Simply communicated with the wristband?" Hearing Komachi's answer, Hikigaya collapsed onto the floor, completely dejected. "What's wrong, Oni-ichan? Suddenly you look so down..." Her clothes changed back to pajamas, Komachi looked curiously at the suddenly pounding chest and stomping Hikigaya. She felt that since returning home tonight, Hikigaya had become very strange... "Nothing..." Realizing he was still in Komachi's room, Hikigaya immediately composed himself. He looked at the red ponytail wristband on Komachi's wrist and warned her not to use it unless absolutely necessary, then left her room. The night passed without incident... The next day, Hikigaya also woke up early as usual. Komachi, now used to this, just glanced at him up and down, muttered that he had really changed, then slipped into the bathroom to wash up. Then Komachi prepared breakfast, and Hikigaya took care of washing the dishes. After finishing everything, when Hikigaya walked out carrying his backpack, he saw Komachi sitting on the rear rack of his bicycle waiting for him. "You've been getting lazier lately..." On the way to school, Hikigaya rode the bicycle and said to Komachi on the back. He remembered she used to only occasionally hitch a ride, but now Komachi seemed to want to ride almost every day. "Hehe..." Komachi said nothing. She just glanced at the wristband on her left wrist and then hugged Hikigaya's waist with a silly smile. Soon, they arrived at a fork in the road. Before Hikigaya could stop the bike, Komachi quickly jumped off. Hikigaya could only complain a little for her to be careful, then rode toward Sobu High School. Passing a crossroad on the way, as if recalling something, Hikigaya deliberately slowed down. But after passing the intersection, nothing happened. "Was I just overthinking?" Looking back at the empty crossroad, Hikigaya shook his head with a smile. Suddenly, a sharp barking sounded from a narrow alley by the road. Then a familiar figure dashed out and bit Hikigaya's trouser leg, refusing to let him go. Hikigaya: ....