Elden and the village chief arrived at Gelida, where the villagers who had been held captive by the Iron Can Brigade were joyfully gathered. The chief, with red-rimmed eyes, offered heartfelt greetings.
“For years, we’ve lost sleep due to those ruffians, but now I can finally stretch out my legs and sleep peacefully. It’s all thanks to you.”
“Blood-Sucking Young Master… um, um.”
Rachel quickly clamped her hand over her mouth, trying to stifle the embarrassing enthusiasm she couldn’t control.
Is this what they call being a fool for love?
It seemed my mentor truly enjoyed the clumsy moniker “Blood-Sucking Young Master” bestowed upon me. Even on the way to Gelida, she’d been unable to hide her delight, smiling at the thought: “If the deity is the Blood-Sucking Young Master, then I must be the deity!”
Of course, with that slight smirk she wore, it seemed she was enjoying the teasing as well.
Anyway.
After exchanging pleasantries with the chief, I surveyed the surroundings.
Those who had lost family to the Iron Can Brigade were rushing together for heartfelt reunions.
They hugged and jumped, embraced and wept, and cheered in their unique ways of expressing joy. The village square buzzed with excitement, and we found ourselves hastily exiting as people insisted on bowing to us or offering gifts.
We had no intention of seeking a reward or followers; all we truly needed was a comfortable place to rest.
Plus, attracting too much attention was not in our favor.
Thanks to the chief’s clout, we passed through the guards without any hassle, but there was still the issue of Lumia hiding in the cart.
If someone were to discover her tucked away in the cart, it might lead to some serious trouble.
We had only wielded our strength moderately; hence, a warm welcome was sufficient.
“I’ll raid the village store and set up a grand welcome feast!”
“That’s fine. We just need a comfortable place to stay.”
“Then I’ll take you to the finest accommodation in the village!”
And so, we followed the chief, who was rolling out the red carpet (or what passed for it), to the so-called best lodging in the village.
Given the total village population of 200, my expectations weren’t high.
“……”
“…”
“?”
The “best” lodging claimed by the village was far from the case; in fact, it made me wonder how bad the other accommodations were.
Having visited countless smaller villages than Gelida and stayed in those claimed to be “the best,” I’d never encountered such a rundown place before. I found myself looking at the beaming chief in utter bewilderment.
Considering they had endured the Iron Can Brigade’s reign of terror for years, I understood their financial situation wouldn’t be rosy.
It was reasonable for the accommodation to be poorly maintained.
With the Iron Can Brigade blocking the road, travelers hadn’t been coming through for a long time.
However, to label a place covered in dust and adorned with cobwebs as “the best” was simply perplexing.
I cast a questioning gaze at the chief, but he merely continued to smile broadly, as if this lodging was some kind of local attraction.
“Haha, actually, this isn’t just any inn; it’s a place managed by our household. There’s treasure hidden here!”
“Treasure?”
The chief’s confident demeanor only raised my eyebrows further as he stepped closer, covering his mouth and whispering conspiratorially.
We were the only ones around, and there was no one to hear the daytime whispers.
“This is where our family’s heirloom has been passed down through generations.”
“…Is that so?”
I couldn’t see anything that resembled an heirloom. It looked just like an ordinary, poorly maintained inn. What on earth was so special about this place that the chief’s ancestors deemed it worthy of such a grand title?
As I looked around the shabby interior with a skeptical expression, the chief leaned closer and whispered again.
“Just as the deity sent a special person to watch over our village, a special power has been bestowed upon this inn’s rear.”
“The rear?”
“Yes. The power is so amazing and miraculous that it has been kept secret from outsiders. However, since you gentlemen are the harbingers of the deity’s messages, there’s no need to hide it from you.”
“……”
What kind of extraordinary power could be hidden in this rundown inn that warranted such a buildup? And why in the world was the family heirloom hidden in such a shabby place?
Just as I was about to urge the chief, who was making quite a fuss over the unexciting heirloom, to hurry it along…
“Then, let me present you with the miraculous blessing the deity has granted to our Gelida village.”
With that, the chief led us to the courtyard behind the inn.
And what I saw there was…
The deity’s miraculous blessing, and the family heirloom passed down through generations.
“……”
Indeed, it was an impressive heirloom that made me understand the chief’s lengthy preamble and boasting about the deity’s blessing.
However…
“…”
For medieval people, it must have seemed awe-inspiring and worthy of being deemed a divine power, but to me, a modern individual, it was merely something ordinary yet familiar.
In the center of the backyard was a small pond.
The surrounding garden was beautifully adorned with greenery.
White steam rose gently from the calm surface of the water.
“Oh, look! A hot spring!”
It was an outdoor bath.
“Isn’t it amazing? The legend states that the fire god Pyron warmed the gods’ bath eternally with the unquenchable flame—this is the very place where that myth unfolded!”
Splash!
I submerged myself into the steaming white mist.
The heat enveloping my entire body was so warm that it felt like my brain might melt away like ice cream.
Leaning back, I gazed up at the clear sky.
The image of the chief introducing this hot spring as the gods’ bathing place was vividly clear in my mind.
《Is it really okay for us to use the gods’ bath?》
《Of course! You gentlemen are messengers sent by the deity, aren’t you?》
《…Well, I suppose.》
How could I refuse the chief’s hospitality, who viewed us as the deity’s envoys, offering the family heirloom in the form of the gods’ bath?
With expectations high for this dreamy hot spring bath in mid-winter, I glanced around at my companions, exchanging looks that hinted at whether we should undermine the chief’s pride in calling it the gods’ bath.
《Indeed, it’s fit for the family heirloom. What a beautiful view.》
《Haha. It’s truly an honor to see the gods’ bath with my own eyes.》
《……This is just a hot spr… um, um.》
Rachel nearly broke the charm with her bluntness, but I swiftly blocked her with my quick thinking, preserving the chief’s beaming smile.
“Hahaha! Well then, I’ll go fetch some things for washing and drying!”
With that, the chief took his leave, and I was left soaking in a hot spring—a luxury I hadn’t indulged in, even in modern times. If the chief were to discover that the family heirloom he cherished was merely a naturally occurring hot spring, his disappointment would be immense.
If only I had the excavation skills, I could turn Gelida village into the best hot spring town in the Northern Regions, akin to the public baths of ancient Rome. But alas, the closed-minded culture of the medieval era would likely treat such public bathing with disdain.
Anyway…
“Hot spring water isn’t a common phenomenon.”
It was only natural for them to react this way, given that they couldn’t scientifically prove the supernatural. They viewed the plague as the wrath of gods, lightning as their anger, and floods as divine punishment. For them, this natural hot spring was a sacred place where the gods would occasionally descend to cleanse themselves.
Hot springs are common in volcanic regions, but rare in ordinary lands. The geothermal heat from underground water heated by tremors or magma breaks through the weak ground and emerges as hot spring water. Thus, a naturally formed hot spring is indeed scarce.
Especially since the Elpherion Kingdom has no volcanic regions.
While there is historical evidence that the ancient Romans enjoyed hot springs, such places were not common, and public bathing was taboo in a society like the medieval one, where the dissemination of information was limited. Many thus regarded this hot spring through the lens of myth, considering it sacred.
Given that it was a family heirloom passed down through generations and kept a secret under the guise of “protection,” I doubted anyone would tell me it was a natural hot spring.
Regardless…
“Ah, this is so nice.”
Sinking deeper into the outdoor bath, I simply enjoyed a soak that wasn’t even on my schedule. In this moment, it almost felt like I was truly using the gods’ bathing place. The experience was wonderful.
While I was relishing the unique pleasure of the hot spring for the first time…
Creak.
The door connecting the inn to the backyard opened.
I turned my head, expecting it to be either the chief or Rendler coming to bring me something to dry with…
“R-Rachael?”
What captivated my eyes was none other than Rachel. Dressed only in a long towel, she stepped into the backyard.
And the contours of her body, restrained by that towel, were shockingly apparent. Particularly, the upper curve of her chest stood out quite provocatively.
“I’ve asked the guards to watch outside. Is it alright if I join you?”
…She’s already in a bathing outfit?
“Well, I-I suppose it’s fine…”
“Then.”
With that, Rachael stepped in first, testing the water with her toes before submerging fully in the hot spring across from me.
Uhm…
A mixed-gender bath, huh.
My mentor certainly had a surprisingly open-minded approach!
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