Steampunk Era: Mad Abield

Are the tailors in this otherworldly realm monsters?

Malin looked at his reflection in the mirror, his beige pure cotton shirt secured with double rows of copper buttons. An unknown creature's soft yet sturdy belt cinched his straight, wide-leg trousers at the waist. A gray, thickened coat with the right length and a stand-up collar was casually draped over him by a lady, and below, a pair of brand-new leather shoes perfectly complemented their owner.

"Absolutely perfect," the leader among the ladies smiled from behind Malin. She straightened his collar and then handed a beautiful flat cap to him, "This was specially selected for you, Young Master Malin."

"Thank you." Malin placed the hat on his head and took another look at himself in the mirror.

He had not expected himself to look quite handsome.

Flushed with pride, Malin was startled by the sound of the dressing room door opening. He turned and saw Maya, who followed Faye out.

Malin was somewhat breathless—Faye continued her trademark long, straight look, but today she was in a light yellow waistcoat that complemented the white silk shirt underneath, topped with a low V-neck overcoat fastened with two buttons at the midriff. The use of long trousers and small leather boots finally made it clear to Malin—the women in this world had incomparable freedom in their attire; they could wear anything they thought they could pull off and that looked good on them.

And Maya was dressed in a floor-length dress adorned with beautiful accessories and embroidery that dazzled Malin, completed with a beautiful little leather purse featuring a pattern he didn't recognize.

Like Faye, she too was in pretty little leather boots.

"What do you think? Except for the shoes, everything is made on the spot." Faye smiled as she stepped in front of Malin.

"It's very beautiful, and you've made my sister even more beautiful. Those wishing to duel me will probably queue up all the way to the Central Administrative Province," Malin quipped.

Faye smiled and placed Maya's hand in Malin's, "Then you had better get used to holding her hand sooner rather than later."

Malin took Maya's hand and then extended his other hand to Faye, "It's getting late; let's go."

.........

As the time neared five o'clock in the afternoon, Logan began to second-guess his actions... yes, the act of inviting Malin and Maya.

It was supposed to be a very ordinary private invitation, but after it became known to his parents, things started to spiral out of control—his father and mother insisted on meeting the Apprentice who was studying and living alongside their son.

Consequently, the private invitation was no more; since this morning, everyone in the house had been busy preparing for the evening's guests.

This made Logan very embarrassed—the grander the scale, the better the guests were expected to dress, and from what he knew of Malin and Maya, although they were not poor, they were very casual in their attire. Logan had even seen Malin coming to school in flip-flops.

And more excessive than wearing flip-flops to school was wearing them to the training ground and beating up troublemakers until they were down on the ground looking for their teeth.

That was a fearsomely strong classmate; Logan had no doubt about his strength since the day he witnessed it. If Malin had been a girl, Logan would have braved a beating just to pursue her – to Logan, getting beaten up was nothing if it meant that his children could have a powerful mother; it was a perfectly normal sacrifice to make.

Moreover, Malin was awfully cute as a boy, just that the hollow iron rod in his hand, and those flip-flops-wearing whip kicks, had never been remotely associated with cuteness.

"He's not going to show up in flip-flops, is he?" As classmates and friends arrived one after another, Logan grew increasingly unsettled. He had even sent a loyal servant to wait outside with freshly prepared clothes, ready to remedy the damned mess at any moment.

Because Logan really couldn't introduce to his parents a classmate dressed in flip-flops, a short-sleeved linen shirt, and capri pants.

It would be altogether too disrespectful.

As Logan was lost in thought, a carriage came into view.

The carriage belonged to the Mowish family, which initially delighted Logan then immediately filled him with dread—would Malin and Maya know their way here if Faye came by herself?

Sorry, Father, Mother, the classmate I most wanted to introduce to you is missing because he got lost.

That would surely be the most interesting joke among the Carterburg nobility this year.

With such regret and agony, the frustrated Logan saw Malin jumping out from the opened door of the carriage.

"... Why were you in the carriage?"

Confused by the question, Malin replied—wait, if I shouldn't be in the carriage, should I be under it?

Logan seemed to realize his mistake, "No, I mean, did you come together?"

"Yes." Malin said, reaching to help Faye out of the carriage.

"Where were you at noon?" Logan suddenly realized something—he was on leave today, but he knew that Malin had classes in the afternoon.

"Skipped it. My fourth-year Instructor wanted me to deal with his students. I found it pointless, so I didn't go," Malin explained earnestly.

Having stepped down from the carriage, Faye stood by Malin's side with a smile, watching him receive his sister and added, "Malin was at my family's suburban manor in the afternoon."

Logan had a face full of question marks, then a face full of exclamation marks.

"Ah..." he finally noticed something, "What's up with these clothes?"

"The lady of our house made them for Malin, except for the leather shoes, though they're also never worn by my brother." Faye's face brimmed with the satisfaction and joy that a hostess should possess.

Logan seemed a bit disheartened, but as the host, he quickly adjusted his mood and led his classmates into the already prepared venue.

"Seems a bit too much, Logan, do you have enough pocket money?" Faye asked.

"No, there was a little problem. My parents found out about this..." Logan turned his head, smiling awkwardly, but he still offered an explanation, "But anyway, the food and atmosphere, as well as the staff, have all been enhanced."

"Wow, cute girls, Logan, aren't you going to introduce me?" A chestnut-haired boy half a head taller than Logan approached. He didn't bring his companions, but from his facial features and tone of voice, he seemed to be at least related to Logan.

"Cousin Leon, this is the Malin I always tell you about."

"Malin, hello." The cousin smiled and extended his hand, lifting Malin's hand, "What charming sword calluses, miss. You must practice your swordsmanship frequently."

Logan's face visibly turned ashen.

Malin smiled and withdrew his hand, "I'm a boy."

Then Leon's face also turned ashen at a visible speed, he turned his head to glare at Logan, then turned and walked away without looking back.

Faye snapped open her fan with a pop and covered her face.

"Oh, everyone, forget this unpleasantness. My cousin is just that kind of blunt person." Logan forced a smile.

Malin smiled and nodded, "It shows."

To call it a party, in Malin's view, it seemed more like a stage for children of the same age and class to show off to one another.

Filled with elements that bored Malin, but good psychological quality and the determination not to disappoint the two girls allowed Malin to handle it all with ease.

"I heard you are Malin." Another relative from Logan's family approached, and Logan did the introduction again, "My cousin, Selena."

"Yes." Malin smiled and nodded.

"You don't look as amazing as my cousin described. Jason, why don't you try challenging an undefeated warrior?" She turned to look at another group.

A tall one-meter-seventy individual approached — among the children, this one was a true big guy.

"Hey, Selena, that's a bit much. Jason is already a full-fledged Knight at the ninth ladder." Logan narrowed his eyes.

"Oh, my God, Selena, do you want to ruin my reputation? This is just a child. I'm already seventeen, can't you let me do something that won't trouble my conscience?" This Jason turned out to be surprisingly upright. Not only did he not provoke Malin, but he also stood up to Logan's cousin.

"It's fine, I've checked him out. This is a child with Frost Giant bloodline, so drop your condescension." Selena raised her head and glared at Jason.

Malin turned to look at Faye, who walked up to his side, "Do I need to take care of this?"

"No, I'm wondering who the unlucky one is that leaked my information."

"Don't worry, I will check it out. But can you handle him?"

"If I can use Spell Formations, I think I should be able to."

Their whispered conversation ended there when Malin heard Jason's inquiry, "Malin, is that true?"

Malin turned, smiling innocently, "Yes, I should have that kind of bloodline power. Is there a problem?"

"My family, Stansen, has a title called Giant Slayer. During the dark ages before the era of civilized coexistence among races began, we always battled Frost Giants in the north..." Jason seemed to be reminiscing about his family's glory, "Could you give me a chance to witness the power of Frost Giants? I swear the fight will end with a touch."

"...Alright then, Logan, do you have training swords here?"

Malin quite liked this big guy in front of him. Although he was already an adult, his face showed no arrogance or complacency, and there was no haughtiness or blind pride.

So, Malin didn't mind having a training battle with him.

After all, this world didn't mind boys using this method of communication to seek common ground while reserving differences.

As for why they use the phrase 'seek common ground while reserving differences,' of course, it meant that if you're won over, that's common ground; if not, then differences remain.