New law of Beast Taming

Contrary to Amane's expectations, her stomach did not return to normal right away. If one looked carefully, one could see the budge of the eggs in her stomach. Wearing form-fitting outfits was impossible for now.

And that unfortunately meant that Amane could not wear most of her dresses now. She needed a more free-flowing dress to attend the formal functions.

Well, she did not care about the gossip that would follow her if her pregnant stomach showed on the news but Sakura had talked her out of appearing like that in public.

"Come on Sakura. No one care if my stomach bulges out a little in my dress. Everyone has much more important things to discuss."

Your next chapter awaits on empire

Sakura's eyes shined like an animal who had found her prey. She instantly cornered Amane and leaned over her form.

"How dare you say that no one would care about how you look. The media is like sharks Yoko. If they sense a story, they would harass you and follow you until they find something to write. You should not underestimate them."

Sakura looked traumatized after thinking about something. Just looking at her caused Amane to feel sympathy for her.

But at the same time, she was amused by Sakura's words as well.

Amane knew how brutal the media could be. She had seen carriers being ruined because of media when researching this time. But somehow, Amane was sure she would survive.

And she would not only survive but thrive if the media tried to use her. She would use the media back and then some.

"Anyway, this is not the time to be thinking about the media. We are here to talk about your dress and how to make you presentable. First, we need to find your clothes. Let's go shopping."

Amane smiled on the outside but she was groaning on the inside.

Well, Amane liked shopping just fine usually. But going shopping with Sakura was a total nightmare.

"Sakura, how about we…"

"No, we cannot push it back any longer. We must leave tomorrow for the official Protected and Endangered Beastly Council meeting. We cannot afford to waste any more time here."

Whatever Amane had to say to Sakura was swallowed by her. One look at Sakura was enough to let you know that she was serious about her words - she was not going to back down.

"Fine, let's go shopping. I take it that you want me to wear something that hides me from public eyes?"

Amane's words were a little sarcastic but Sakura's satisfied eyes said that this was precisely what she wanted from Amane.

So, Amane quickly changed and came down.

...….

Sakura had to admit that most of her words about Yoko covering up were said because of her jealousy and not because she was worried about the media.

She knew why Yoko had agreed to take the phoenix's egg and she also knew that Yoko was close to other females apart from her. But that did not mean that Sakura liked this new change in Yoko.

She missed the times Yoko had only been close to her and listened to her. Those times were something Sakura missed a lot.

This new Yoko was good as well, but something she felt distant from Sakura.

"I am ready to leave Sakura. Is this dress, ok?"

Yoko walked out of her dressing room and her body was covered by a full-length coat as well as loose pants. This was the fourth dress Amane had been asked to change into by Sakura.

"This one looks ok. We should hurry up now. I booked us both an appointment at the most famous parlor in the city. They will not let us in if we are late."

Sakura grabbed hold of Amane's hand and dragged her out. Amane could not help but groan once she realized she would have to spend hours grooming herself.

"Sakura, it's only been two weeks since our last visit. Surely, we don't need to go back so soon…"

As soon as Amane finished speaking the first line, Sakura paused. Her eyes looked back with an ambiguous expression and she glared lightly at Amane.

"Yoko, it's already been 'two weeks' since we last went to the parlor. Two whole weeks for the facial growth to come back and haunt us. It's about time we make our rounds at the parlor and get our facials done."

In the end, Amane sighed and gave in. What other choice did she have when Sakura was this stubborn and greedy?

'This is going to be a long day for me. I better cooperate with Sakura and save myself the trouble of going through the whole day like this.'

Sakura dragged Amane out of the Tsurugi home and toward the market. Their usual cloth shop welcomed the pair in.

Usually, as the head of the prestigious household, the formal dressed for events as high-profile as the official Protected and endangered beast council meeting needed officially made dresses.

But right now, the pair did not have enough time to get one made. They would have to improvise and adapt to the times.

"Madam, we need your help urgently. I hope you got our message. My cousin here ruined her figure recently and we don't know what to do about it."

Sakura smacked the door to the cloth shop open. Her sudden entry surprised the 'madam' of the shop. The madam quickly looked up at Sakura with an annoyed expression before she schooled it.

Then, a big fake smile was plastered all over the madam's face as she welcomed the pair in.

"Welcome, my darlings. How may I help you? Ah, Lady Sakura, I did receive your letter so I was getting things ready for your arrival. You said your cousin ruined her form. May I ask you how this happened?"

The madam was someone who made clothes for most of the people in Sakura's circle and she was an excellent way to gather gossip. This lady had a way of getting the toughest of information out of her clients.

The madam was sure that Sakura would be no different from her usual clients. A few words here, a nudge there, and Sakura would spill everything to her.

That should have been the case. But Sakura became quieter as soon as Madam asked her this question.

"It would be better for you to mind your business madam. Unless you want to see this place burn, you better not agitate us both anymore."

Yoko Tsurugi was nice enough to give the madam a warning to not ask questions.

Thankfully, madam had good instincts and she knew danger when she saw it. One look at Yoko Tsurugi was enough for her to shut her mouth and not ask any more questions.

"S-So, this is the dress I modified between the time you called me and your arrival. It is not perfectly fitted but we can fix that soon. It is also a fresh piece not seen by anyone."

The said dress in question was a loose-fitting dress gown that was supposed to look oversized on the wearer.

It was a perfect fit for what the pair was looking for.

"Hmm, I will go and try it out now. Sakura, you keep an eye on things."

Amane took the dress and quickly changed into it. The dress was made purposely loose by the madam.

There was no doubt behind the madam's intentions. Madam wanted an excuse to touch Amane and feel her body. She would be out looking for evidence of why Amane ruined her figure.

This was quite a common tactic in the upper circles where relationships were not as tight.

Both, teenage pregnancy as well as unwed pregnancy was common thing here. As such, the news of this happing often circulated in the circle.

And the common palace for such rumors to be born was the clothes shop like this.

"Oh dear, looks like your dress is a little too loose on you. Here, let me help you fix that. It will only take a minute so stay still…"

The madam reached out toward Amane to check her body but Amane pulled back before she could be touched.

She raised her hand and lowered it before waving her hand around.

"Hmm, this should not be a problem for me to wear. I quite like the fit of this dress as well. I will take it right now."

Amane's words stunned the madam. She had not expected her customer to just take the dress like this.

Her plan to make the dress lose on purpose seemed to have backfired heavily.

"L-Lady Tsurugi, surely you are not thinking of wearing this dress like that. It's not only highly oversized but also makes you look like a child weaning adult clothes."

"So, it makes me look younger? That's even better for me. It's like the ultimate battle armor I could have asked for. Right Sakura?"

The madam looked at Sakura for support as well. She could not believe that Yoko Tsurugi was this shrewd and manipulative.