Chapter 46
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
In the end, I left Iris’s room only after it was completely dark outside.
The dining hall and tavern on the first floor of the inn were lively, and while there were fewer customers than usual, there were still a lot of men.
Even though I thought it was risky to bring Iris, who was somewhat cleaned up but still strongly smelled like a woman after being with someone, I decided to have her dinner brought to her room.
”…”
”…”
I had asked another employee to bring it using written notes, but the one who took the order was that woman who had approached me earlier.
Carrying a basket with dinner, she leaned in close to me and sniffed.
”I told you I would be your partner, right?”
She said this with a dissatisfied look, and I replied in writing.
”(There’s no reason to obey someone whose identity I don’t know.).”
”Ugh…”
I was hinting that I would consider it if she revealed her identity, but it seemed that would be a problem for her too…
”Haah, let’s leave it for today. But… if you want a woman, just come to me. I can be your partner as much as you want.”
With that, she went up to the second floor.
Since I might get complaints from that woman after meeting Iris, I decided to head back to the room I had just rented.
* * *
I could take a relatively bright path to the building where my rented room was, thanks to the tavern and other places, and I arrived without any issues.
Well, on the way back, I was almost invited by a woman selling herself when I returned to “Koji,” but… she quickly gave up and walked away as if she could tell from the smell that I had just been with someone.
Because of that, I hoped to avoid meeting the residents, who were mostly women, as I entered the building… and just then, I ran into Ms. Sakura, who was coming out of the management office.
*Click!*
”Ah.”
”Oh, thank you.”
She replied like that and looked behind me.
”…So you really are alone, huh?”
”Eh? Well…”
I guess she means that I really use the room by myself.
When I confirmed that, she leaned closer to me.
*Sniff*
”Sniff sniff… Ah, I see. You took care of it outside, didn’t you?”
It seems like she checked the smell I had after. Ms. Sakura said this while nodding.
It’s a bit embarrassing, but she continued.
”Well, it’s better than being bothered by the other residents, but if possible, please try to get rid of that smell quickly, okay?”
”Ah, yes.”
I answered that way since I intended to do so, and Ms. Sakura let out a light sigh.
”Haah, I wish others were this straightforward too…”
”Is there a problem?”
”It’s not really a problem, but… how should I put it, there are people who do that ‘kind of work’, and while it’s not every time, when they come back, it can be quite…”
”Ah, I see…”
Since she said it’s not every time, I guess they try to be careful, but depending on the timing, there might be times when the smell lingers.
”Well, that person is careful to some extent, so I can’t say much. But it’s going to get colder, and taking a bath will be harder, so even if you wipe with a wet cloth…”
”It might get a bit messy, huh? The smell will probably stay in the hair too.”
”Yeah. Actually, it’s been like that every year for the past few years… Haah.”
Ms. Sakura sighed again.
I felt a bit sorry since I was planning to take a bath in the room.
There is a water area inside, but… I can’t really provide a way for myself to bathe.
”Well then, just be careful.”
With that, Ms. Sakura walked towards the water area.
*…Bang, click*
”Phew.”
After parting ways with Ms. Sakura, I entered my room and took a breath.
It feels a bit more comforting than the inn.
Now, let’s get ready for my main goal: taking a bath.
First, I lay down a silicone mat to protect the tub and provide some cushioning, then I inflate a vinyl bathtub and set it up on top.
I surround it with partitions to prevent water splashes, and then I fill the tub with water… adding some detergent to make it a bubble bath so I can wash myself inside.
Once everything is ready, I strip down again and soak in the tub, enjoying my first bath in days.
After that, I clean up, and after finishing my gyudon for dinner, I brush my teeth.
It seems that anything that changes state can’t be returned to magical power, so I need to make sure to get rid of anything left in my mouth.
Since water can be returned to magical power, I spit the water I rinsed my mouth with into a plastic bag to turn it back into magic… then I create a bed and finally get a refreshing sleep after a long time.
* * *
The next morning.
After having breakfast (nori bento and salad), I return the bed to magical power, put the trash bag in my bag, and leave the room.
In the toilet at the water area on the first floor, I plan to turn back the bag and the container that held the food into magical power, and wash away the waste from bathing and brushing my teeth with water.
I go down to the first floor without running into anyone and head towards the water area, passing by a kitchen-like place before the toilet… where I spot a woman.
It’s Ms. Mira, the resident of room 302, whom I met yesterday.
There’s no door here, probably to make it easier to carry water, so you can see inside normally as you pass by.
Ms. Mira, who was doing the dishes, seemed to notice my footsteps. When she realized it was me, she called out.
”Good morning!”
”Good morning. Are you doing the dishes?”
”Yes, well… are you going out?”
When I asked about the dishes, she gave a subtle reaction.
It was probably something she didn’t want to draw attention to.
She thought I was going out because I was carrying a bag.
So, I decided to tell her where I was headed.
”Yeah. I’m going to the dungeon.”
”Oh, is that so… um, are you going to be okay?”
”Yeah, well, for now.”
”…”
Ms. Mira looked worried at my answer.
I said it that way because I planned to go deeper in, but I guess it made her anxious.
As I was thinking that, she seemed to pull herself together and brightened up.
”Oh, I’m sorry. Since I can borrow a room, it should be fine, right?”
”Yeah, I guess.”
”Then, I’m going back to the dishes. Sorry for holding you up.”
Saying that, Ms. Mira resumed doing the dishes, so I left the area and headed to the bathroom.
What was that about? I wondered as I took care of my business and glanced at her continuing with the dishes before I exited the building.
In the dim light, I headed to the dungeon through the usual empty alley, becoming “Mose.”
Today was different; I was pulling a cart, and on the cart, I had wooden boxes that were supposed to contain water and food.
This was to hide the magic catalyst I received from Seria and to prevent anyone from guessing how much I was making based on the amount of magic stones.
I don’t really understand, but if I’m going along with Frederica’s plan, it seems necessary, and it should reduce the number of invitations I get on the way back.
It’s probably better to not draw too much attention, especially since everything is wooden except for the axle.
Still… passing it on to Ms. Wendy, huh?
What is she thinking?
Well, for now, let’s focus on safely receiving the package from Seria and making sure she gives up on following us in the future.
So… as I rolled the cart into the square in front of the dungeon, I started looking for Iris and Seria.
Today, like every morning, young adventurers were crowded everywhere, and I could hear calls for recruits from teams that seemed short on members.
I could tell Seria was a Cleric by her outfit, so she probably wouldn’t get pressured into joining. First, I need to find Iris.
She has a red scarf that shows she’s not accepting invitations.
I swapped what she was wearing with something I made, so I could easily spot her.
I found her, but… once again, she was surrounded by a group of guys.
She had a hooded robe to make it less obvious that she was a girl, but it seems she took the hood off and showed her face.
She must know that doesn’t help, and maybe the guys figured out she was a girl and pulled it off?
I moved behind the group that was trying to recruit her, and when I got into her line of sight, I waved at her.
I can’t speak because of the setting, but she noticed me right away and avoided the guys, running over to me with a smile.
”Good morning, Mose~♪.”
”(Nods).”
I nodded back, and then the group that was trying to recruit Iris came over.
”Hey, from what I can see, this guy is all alone. You think he’s better than us 4?”
”Is that so?”
”What!?”
The men were surprised by Iris’s straightforward answer and immediately started to give off a dangerous vibe.
”Hey, hey, you’re talking big. So, if we beat him up, he becomes ours, right?”
I wanted to say, “Why would that be?” but since I couldn’t talk, I was about to pull out a writing tool when Iris responded first.
”You should probably back off. We’re going into the dungeon soon. Getting hurt for no reason would be a problem, wouldn’t it?”
”Huh? If anyone gets hurt in a 4-on-1, it would be him.”
”There’s no guarantee that no one will get hurt. So, wouldn’t it be better to do your best inside the dungeon?”
”…Hey.”
””Whisper whisper…””
After hearing Iris’s words, the men gathered and whispered among themselves… and then they easily gave up on her.
”Tch, let’s go.”
”Yeah.”
The leader-like guy said that, and the men left, heading straight into the dungeon.
”I’m glad they understood.”
Iris said with satisfaction, but… it didn’t look that way to me.
Since things like this could happen, I initially thought about going alone to pick up the catalyst.
But… I have the role of protecting her, so I figured it would be strange to enter the dungeon without her and decided to have her come along.
Once the men were out of sight, I was about to ask Iris what happened when I heard a voice from a little distance away.
”Mr. Moseee…”
When I turned to look in the direction of the voice, Seria was running over to us.
She was wearing a backpack, and her chest, emphasized by the straps on both shoulders, bounced.
What a nice bounce.
While I was thinking that, she came over to us, took a light breath to calm herself, and spoke.
”Ahh. Good morning, Mr. Mose. Is that Ms. Iris over there?”
”Yes, that’s right. You must be Ms. Seria?”
”Yes! I look forward to working with you today!”
Since I couldn’t speak in front of others, Iris handled the conversation, but Seria’s words made it sound like she was already part of the team, and she shot a glance at me.
Of course, I shook my head.
Iris seemed to understand that Seria was just saying that on her own and decided to ignore it.
”Um… well, nice to meet you. Is your luggage okay?”
”Yes! I have everything prepared.”
Relieved by her response, we confidently entered the dungeon…
* * *
After a while, in a quiet spot of the 2nd District, we were supposed to receive the catalyst, but Iris raised a question about what was presented to us.
”…Isn’t this a bit less?”
The magic catalyst that Seria took out from her bag was much less than the amount we were supposed to have bought at “Hooters.”
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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