RL Chapter 30

Chapter 30 – A Different Man

Resonance 3, Part 8

Novel Title: 共鳴劣情 オメガバース (Resonance Lust: Omegaverse)

Author：岩本薫 (Iwamoto Kaoru)

Illustrator: 蓮川愛 (Hasukawa Ai)

Translator: K (@kin0monogatari)

Protagonists: 本浄天音 (Honjou Amane) & 苅谷煌騎 (Kariya Kouki) / 首藤煌騎 (Shutou Kouki)

*Please read at knoxt.space, the original site of translation. TQ*

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Amane’s mind struggled to catch up with the situation. But he understood Kouki’s point that, in order to infiltrate the party hosted by the Shutou family and approach the organisers, he needed to look the part. There was no way to cover up the obvious signs of his upbringing; he had no choice but to disguise it on the surface.

(I guess I have no choice but to wear it…)

He let out a long sigh, resigned to his fate, and pulled the cut shirt over his head. He then removed the bottoms. As he attempted to wear the shirt with the fine pleats on the front, he suddenly became curious about the price and searched for a tag, but there was none to be found. The tuxedo suit, which felt to be made of high-quality fabric, also lacked a price tag; he even checked the pockets of the jacket and trousers but found nothing.

(Why is there no price tag if it’s for sale? Is it priced at market value?)

He tried to imagine the price of a luxury tuxedo suit but couldn’t even begin to guess. All he knew was that it was likely several orders of magnitude more expensive than what he typically wore.

Well, if it turned out to be unreasonably priced, he could simply not buy it.

(At the very least, if I wear it once, both Mizutani and Kariya should be satisfied, right?)

With a mindset of whatever will be, he put on the shirt, fastened the front buttons, and slipped into the trousers that had a blade on either side. Instead of belt loops, the items included suspenders, so he figured that must be how they were held up.

As Amane was about to slip on the jacket, he noticed the cuffs of the shirt didn’t have buttons. He opened the fitting room door.

“Hey, this shirt doesn’t have any buttons on the cuffs!”

Kouki, who had been standing a short distance away engaged in conversation with Mizutani, turned around. Kouki’s eyes widened gradually upon seeing him. Meanwhile, Mizutani squinted his eyes behind his round glasses.

The discomfort of being stared at by the two added to Amane’s embarrassment as he flailed his arms awkwardly.

“Hey, about the cuffs…”

As if regaining his senses, Kouki approached the fitting room and said, “This shirt is designed this way.”

“Designed?”

“It has double cuffs that are fastened not with buttons, but with cufflinks.”

Mizutani also came closer, adding explanations as he reached for Amane’s shirt cuffs and fastened them with cufflinks adorned with black stones. As Amane was starting to understand, Mizutani continued by wrapping a cummerbund around his waist and tying a butterfly tie around the wing collar. Finally, he slipped Amane’s arms into the tuxedo jacket and placed a white linen pocket square in the chest pocket.

While Mizutani deftly finished the look, Kouki adhered to the ‘no touching’ rule, standing back and watching.

“Please put on your shoes.”

Prompted by Mizutani, Amane looked down at the shoes set before him. They were slip-on shoes made of patent leather, decorated with a bow on the front.

“These are women’s shoes, right?”

“The term opera pumps originally referred to formal shoes worn during opera performances and has since become the highest standard of formal footwear for men.”

With the owner of a high-end gentleman’s clothing store saying that, there was no way he could refuse to wear them. Even Amane understood that this wasn’t a place for sneakers.

Reluctantly, he slipped his feet into the opera pumps. They fit perfectly. Come to think of it, the shirt and suit also fit as if they had been tailored to him. Was this what they called a ‘bro’s assessment’?

(So? Is this finally done?)

Even though Mizutani had done all the finishing touches, simply wearing this felt oddly exhausting. He couldn’t understand how people frequently wore such stiff and cumbersome attire.

As he mulled over this in his mind and raised his face, his eyes met Kouki’s.

Suddenly, he felt an overwhelming embarrassment at pretending to be a celebrity in front of a real one.

To cover his awkwardness, Amane twisted his lips in a mocking grin and shrugged his shoulders.

“…I know it’s in poor taste, so don’t hold back. It’s okay to laugh, you know?”

Despite having granted him permission, Kouki didn’t even smile. Instead, with an expression as serious as ever, he said, “Honjou-san, take a look in the mirror.”

“The mirror?”

Following his instructions, Amane turned around to face the open fitting room mirror.

“…!”

Standing there was a man he had never seen before.

He looked like a different man. A man raised in a good environment.

A man who had grown up in a decent family, walking the path of sunlight. A man who was untainted by lies, deceit, or violence.

The eyes of a detective, accustomed to suspecting others, now shone brightly, and his gloomy black hair was moist and gleaming with lustre. His usually unhealthy pale skin shone like fine porcelain.

He looked like a completely different person. Even though he was the same human being, he was astonished at how much his impression changed just by wearing high-quality formal attire properly.

“Seriously? This is amazing…”

“This is incredible. Truly wonderful.” His involuntary murmurs were echoed by Mizutani’s admiration.

“I must say, I’m impressed with my own judgement. But let’s hold back on the self-praise. It’s really because of the high quality of the person wearing it. Honestly, there are few in the Alpha social scene who can pull off such formal wear.”

Being praised so openly sent a shiver down his spine, even though he knew it was part of a sales pitch.

“How do you feel, Kouki-kun?”

With an excited expression, Mizutani turned to Kouki for his opinion. Under the heat of Kouki’s intense gaze, Amane felt a fluttering sensation that morphed into a restless buzz. The man, seemingly entranced, gazed at Amane’s reflection in the mirror before speaking.

“It’s perfect.”

He declared it with absolute confidence.

“Men’s formal attire has many conventions and colour combinations are limited. It can feel stiff and constricting, and I wouldn’t exactly call it comfortable. However, by firmly wrapping the body and providing a stoic restraint, it accentuates one’s good style and makes their allure even more pronounced. I believe that is the advantage of formal wear.”

Kouki spoke passionately while Mizutani nodded repeatedly, as if he fully understood.

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*Translator’s Note: Honjou-san is originally a beauty anyway… Well, just wait until Kariya-kun tore off that tuxedo from Honjou-san hahaha! -K

Illustration 4:

Next update: 2025.01.31

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