"Hmm?"
Alex woke Bara from his reverie. Alex's question was directed at the outfit he had chosen for Bara for dinner. However, the first thing that crossed Bara's mind was a question: "Who is this handsome boy?" which he quickly answered with, "Oh, it's me hehehe."
Bara had never realized he had a touch of narcissism in him before. As a fighter, overconfidence would lead to his doom. That's why he always kept his pride within reasonable limits. However, when he saw his World-Breaking Handsomeness, he couldn't help but wear a grin.
"Young master?" Alex's voice once again pulled Bara from his daydream.
Bara then began to focus on the outfit Alex had chosen for him. He had to gaze at it several times to make sure he wasn't seeing things or having illusions. After all, what he was wearing was a gown typically worn by noble girls in his old world.
He tried to focus on it once more… and…
'Yup! It's a dress!'
He thought once more if there was something wrong with his eyes or maybe with Alex's brain for picking this dress for him to wear. However, after recollecting the memories of Baralyn, Bara realized it wasn't his eyes or Alex's brain that was off, but rather this world that had a problem.
In this world, the social judgment of men was based on their physical beauty. This led men to become obsessed with showcasing their "inner beauty". Consequently, all kinds of products that could enhance a man's beauty or make it stand out flooded the market.
Of course, the beauty meant here was highly related to sexuality. Beauty products, or more appropriately, handsomeness in this world focused on efforts to showcase a man's sexuality. Again, the sexuality meant here was highly tied to a man's virility.
There were several indicators to assess a man's virility, such as muscular build, deep voice, bony structure, low body fat, and facial symmetry. For werebeast, pheromone scent and fur pattern were also determining factors. Therefore, beauty products and clothing for men are usually centered around these factors.
A prime example was the gown Bara was currently wearing. The gown had a neckline that was too low, revealing his broad chest. The shoulders of the gown were tight to emphasize the width of his shoulders. Since the back of the werebeast was one of the areas covered in fur, this gown had no fabric there at all. Luckily, the gown still covered his buttocks, but there was a fold for his tiger tail to peek out.
One more thing that made him breathe easier was the absence of any slit that would reveal his thigh skin. You might think that the gown was too revealing for a seven-year-old, but werebeasts had a different growth rate than humans. Those who were seven years old were already considered teenagers, and by the age of 12, they would begin to choose their marriage partners.
Werebeast's bodies grew quickly, and Bara had already reached a height of 170 cm, looking like an adult human. This rapid physical growth was what allowed them to compete in the Terra Galaxy with other magical creatures.
Even so, a seven-year-old werebeast wasn't quite ready to wear pheromone perfume just yet. So, at least for now, Bara's body still carried the scent of lilies, rather than the odor of a beast in heat.
Cold sweat dampened Bara's forehead. He had genuinely forgotten about the world's sense of beauty. He had briefly wondered why, in a world with such advanced technology, there were still these cheap-looking gowns circulating among the nobility. The answer to his puzzlement was simple: the nobility was far wealthier than commoners.
Although in this world, there were bio-suits, garments capable of self-cleaning, protecting the body from extreme temperatures, better protection from outside damage, and transforming into any clothing shape, the fashion clothing market had not disappeared. For a noble, buying thousands of beautiful garments just to showcase them was not considered expensive.
To them, efficiency was not a priority; they could literally swim in pools of money. Thus, they rarely wore bio-suits unless they were going to battle or space exploring. Wearing bio-suits for daily activities was done by the nouveau riche-stupid commoners.
Bara swallowed hard, trying to calm himself down and resist the urge to tear off the "sexy" dress he was wearing.
"Y-Young Master?"
Alex called Bara for the second time. This time, cold sweat formed on his forehead. Bara really wanted to dismiss Alex to find a different outfit, but he quickly restrained himself. Although Alex was an irritating spy, Alex's knowledge of fashion was unquestionable, or so Baralyn recalled.
This time, Alex had really outdone himself. The dress that Bara was wearing looked much better than the other clothes he had picked for Baralyn. The dress had a beautiful black and white pattern that followed the fur patterns on Bara's back. It was made of a stretchy yet soft material, so even though it was slightly tight, it didn't hinder Bara's movements.
Bara had no reason to ask Alex to find another outfit. Even though he was planning to act recklessly in this reincarnation, it was based on his physical attractiveness and strength. Currently, he didn't yet have the strength to be reckless, so he had to rely on his physical beauty.
Besides, during this dinner, Bara planned to ask a lot from the Mahendra Family, especially his grandmother Sarala Mahendra. So, if wearing this sexy dress would facilitate things later on, he just had to swallow his pride and flash his beautiful smile.
"It's good! Let's go!" Bara said shortly before immediately heading to the door of his room.
"Yes, Young Master!" Alex nodded and followed Bara from behind.
Opening the door, Bara encountered the protective film, which he easily passed through. These protective films were present on every room door in the mansion, much like curtains but with protective features and alarms. It detected when Bara and Alex were passing through, allowing them to do so without hindrance or setting off alarms.
There were several rooms with protective films that Alex couldn't pass through, but in this mansion, there was only one room where Bara couldn't cross without Sarala's permission. As a personal servant, even though Alex held a high position in the mansion and could give orders to the guards, he wasn't part of the main branch of the Mahendra Family. Thus, without Sarala's approval, Alex still couldn't enter places where the main family gathered, such as the dining room they will go to now.
While Baralyn referred to it as a mansion, this residence was many times larger than the palaces of certain planets' rulers. Before Sarala decided to have Baralyn stay here, the place was called the Secret Palace, now renamed Karambit Mansion.
Karambit Mansion was located on a planet within the Mahendra's Step's star system. This location, combined with the strict procedures for accessing Karambit Mansion, ensured that only Sarala's direct family could stay there.
This was done to ensure that no one else could lay claim to Sarala's most precious possession: Baralyn Rajendra Chandra Mahendra himself. So, in Bara's view, rather than a mansion or palace, this place was more appropriately named Karambit Prison.
After passing through several corridors and intersections filled with guards, Bara found a familiar face: Anika Mahendra. She was wearing a simple white T-shirt soaked with sweat. The well-worn practice sword slung at her waist indicated where she had just come from earlier in the afternoon.
Her short-cut black-orange ombre hair barely reached her neck, looking slightly disheveled due to her exertions. However, her mesmerizing deep sapphire-blue eyes still held a spark of spirit. But those beautiful eyes widened when she saw Bara approaching. There was a noticeable lack of focus in her gaze as she stared at Bara from head to toe, pausing for a prolonged moment at his exposed chest.
Her straight and refined nose seemed to scrunch up as it caught the scent of lilies emanating from Bara's body. Despite the few meters separating them, the tiger beast's sense of smell was quite strong, second only to the wolf and dog beasts. At this moment, Anika appeared to be directly inhaling the scent of Bara's body through his skin.
Her regal and finely sculpted face quickly blushed as Bara stepped closer. Her full and alluring lips appeared to be moistening as they challenged to hold back drool escaping from between them. Her flawless porcelain complexion, damp from sweat, seemed to heat up, allowing Bara to fully smell her scent which already filling the corridor where they stood.
When they were just three steps apart, Bara stopped. He offered a smile, not too broad to appear overly interested, nor too stiff to seem insincere. His voice came out somewhat cold, but the intonation carried warmth. "Hi, Anika!"
Bara chose to address her by her name, Anika, instead of "cousin" or "sister." "Cousin" felt too distant and might give Anika the impression that she had no hope of getting closer to Bara. "Sister" sounded too close and might lead Anika to believe that she was only considered family by Bara. By using her name, Bara conveyed a sense of being on equal terms without the distance of family. It made Anika feel like a friend—perhaps a friend with the potential for more.
Hearing her name called snapped Anika's gaze away from Bara's chest to his face. Her slight delay in responding was probably due to the surprise of Bara greeting her first. Nevertheless, Bara waited patiently, his expression still neutral.
"Ah... H-Hi! Cou-Ah... I mean Baralyn!" Anika stammered.
"Call me Bara, Anika. What's wrong with you? Why does your voice sound so hoarse?" Bara asked, his tone cold but his slightly narrowed eyes revealing concern.
"Ah... hahaha... I was just practicing, so maybe I'm dehydrated! You don't need to worry; a little cold drink will get my voice back! Hahaha..." Anika replied, scratching her head in a flustered manner.
Bara was slightly surprised to see how flustered Anika was about something as simple as asking why her voice was hoarse. He quickly analyzed what Anika might be thinking, and the answer was easy to find since he had been in her shoes before.
Anika was likely worried that her hoarse voice would affect Bara's opinion of her negatively. She might think that Bara didn't like women with hoarse voices, much like how women in the previous world didn't like men with high-pitched voices.
Realizing this, Bara tried hard to suppress the smile that wanted to break free from his lips. He never thought it would be so easy to make Anika feel flustered just by asking about her hoarse voice. "Is it really this easy?" he wondered to himself.
His voice softened, although his face remained expressionless. "Why are you training so hard that you forget to drink? Ugh... I don't understand what you women think. Is training really that enjoyable?" he asked, tilting his head.
Anika didn't immediately respond, appearing startled by Bara's sudden head tilt. Her eyes widened as if she had discovered an uncharted island. However, her composure quickly returned, and she answered Bara's question.
"Hahaha... Men don't like to sweat, but training makes me stronger. I want to become strong so I can protect you... oops!" Anika slapped her lips quickly. Her eyes were wide with fear, like someone who had just stepped on a landmine.
"Ah... um... I mean... uh..." Her hands flew around, forming a flag semaphore with incomprehensible signals. Cold sweat began to bead on her back and forehead, while her wide, guilty eyes stared at every change in Bara's expression as if she were a culprit awaiting the judge's verdict.
Bara was taken aback by Anika's comical behavior. He spoke with a curious tone, no longer sounding as cold as before. "So, you want to become strong to protect me?"
"Ah... eh... hmm... yes..." Anika's face drooped in apparent embarrassment as if she wanted to bury her head between her two bountiful bosoms.
"Fufufu," Bara chuckled, which he had been restraining all this while.
"Fufufu?"
"Fufufu?"
Two voices filled with question marks rang out from Alex and Anika, who stared at Bara in shock. Their faces were filled with disbelief at what they had just heard.
But Bara ignored both of them and looked at Anika while saying, "So, I guess if the opportunity arises, I'll watch you train, Anika. I want to see what a girl who wants to protect me looks like when she's training."
Anika was taken aback, but before she could regain her composure to respond, Bara suddenly flashed a small smile and said, "Well then, see you in the dining room, Anika." With that, he walked past Anika without waiting for her reply.
Without needing to look, Bara knew that Anika was probably frozen in place with her head turned to follow his retreating form. Her eyes might be widened, and her breath might be racing. There was a possibility that her nose was bleeding or her body temperature was rising or both happened.
"What the hell? Is it so easy!!!" Bara exclaimed in his mind.