Vol 2 Chapter 41 – The Blacksmith Village of Simute【Exile to the Empire Arc】

Roy’s group arrived at Simute Village. Usually, Sophia would arrange lodging while Roy headed to the guild to accept quests. That had been their routine, but since they’d received a reward at the previous village nearly matching what they got for the High Goblin, they planned to stay here for several nights.

After resting briefly in their room, Roy and the others headed into the streets.

Though evening was approaching, the village sparkled brilliantly. The sound of hammering iron rang out from all directions, and despite it being the Season of Blue, the entire village was enveloped in heat. The buildings were stone construction with red-themed decorations here and there. This symbolized an effort to make the entire village feel like a village of flames.

Smoke rose from throughout the village, and it clearly wasn’t just from blacksmithing. According to Palco, who was familiar with this village, there were also hot springs, and thanks to them, the village had an alternate name: the Village of Steam and Smoke.

During this season, Simute attracted fire magical essence second only to the Tower of Agni, making it the time of year when blacksmithing flourished most, as it did every year. On top of that, the opening of the Tower of Agni had accelerated this even further, and the village overflowed with adventurers and soldiers seeking weapons. If Roy’s group hadn’t possessed holy weapons as their main armaments and weapons comparable to them, their eyes would surely be sparkling too.

Palco said he had a highly recommended spot, so Roy and the others headed there.

“Look at this place! There are several hot springs in this village, but the one I’m introducing is what you’d call a hidden gem. Normally, this village’s specialty is hot springs integrated with inns, but this place operates as a hot spring only.”

“It says ‘Intimate Waters’… Are you sure about this?”

“I especially recommend it for you, Roy sir.”

I’ve got a bad feeling about this, but whatever. I can’t decide everything on my own opinion.

The other women seemed entranced by the words “hot spring,” their eyes sparkling as they headed toward the reception.

“Hey, Yukino! Meet at the exit when you’re done!”

“Okay~, understood~!”

After Yukino replied, everyone entered the hot spring facility.

“Palco, everyone didn’t pay…”

“Ah, don’t worry about it. As a token of my gratitude, let me treat you. Besides, I’ve already handled the reception.”

When did he… He interacts normally with each party member, and I don’t recall doing anything worth being thanked for.

Roy harbored just a tiny bit of doubt, but considering today a time to enjoy himself, he proceeded as directed.

After ducking through the men’s curtain and quickly undressing, there was another fork in the path—right or left. The right path had a sign reading “Pa,” while the left read “No.”

“Roy sir, you’re quite toned! But… Manabu! Build some muscle! That scrawny—ah, Roy sir, please proceed to the ‘Pa’ side.”

“Huh? I’m not going the same way as you?”

“This way is the regular bath, meaning the so-called Normal bath. Roy sir should go to that bath befitting a leader.”

“I get that Normal bath is why it’s ‘No,’ but what’s ‘Pa’?”

“Let’s call that a surprise… Well then, Manabu, let’s head to the Normal bath.”

“Uh, Boss? I don’t know what it is, but good luck over there.”

Saying that, the two left Roy behind and headed to the No bath. Since standing around would be awkward, Roy headed to the Pa bath and emerged at a quite spacious open-air bath. The steam was thick and visibility poor, but looking up at the sky revealed a fantastical scene where the blue of the night sky mixed with the orange symbolizing the village’s vitality.

Roy placed a towel on his head and soaked in the bath.

“Kuaaaaaah! This feels amazing!”

It was slightly hot, but an exhilarating sensation welled up as if reviving him from his core.

“Pheeew! …Still, I don’t see any other customers, and the partitions are unusually high. Well, with partitions this high, there’s no worry about the women being peeped on.”

Roy floated leisurely and thought about what lay ahead.

It’d be nice if Kairo just lets us go, but will things go that smoothly…? Besides, once we reach the Empire, what will we do? Live under Sophia’s protection? That’s like being a kept man—no thanks. If Sarina goes to the Empire like this, it’ll actually make it harder for her to see Haruto. The original purpose was treatment, but somehow I ended up completely purifying it…

So many problems, my head hurts… I’ll just forget about it for today.

As Roy floated with his eyes closed, he heard a somewhat leisurely voice, a voice awkwardly trying to sound refined, and a voice like someone going through a rebellious phase.

“Oh, someone else is coming.”

Those voices announced the opening of a covert mission that would determine whether he’d be looked down upon or whether he could continue functioning normally as leader.

Vol 2 Chapter 42 – Shocking! A Steamy Hot Spring Incident with Beautiful Girls!? Part 1【Exile to the Empire Arc】

The owners of those voices were Yukino, Sophia, and Sarina. He had no idea why they were here. After all, this was a place you reached from the men’s bath.

There was a large rock in the center of the open-air bath, and Roy maintained a position diagonally opposite to Yukino and the others at all times.

“Wow~, the steam’s so thick! It’s as good as Japan!”

Yukino brought up her homeland. Sophia responded to that.

“But even with steam this thick, the size of yours is perfectly obvious. I’m jealous—how did you grow them so much?”

Sarina answered with a snickering laugh.

“Sophia, isn’t that a stupid question? Obviously Roy raised them!”

“Yukino, from now on we’re taking turns!”

“That’s not it! I-if that were true, only the left one would grow!”

Hearing that, Roy considered the matter.

(When I purified Yukino, the light spread throughout her body through her left breast. It wouldn’t be strange if growth-promoting elements were also secreted at that time. Actually, the part I touched is warm, so if that’s the case, the hypothesis that I made them grow might not be far off.)

While making such observations, Yukino and the others began washing themselves. Since everyone had their backs turned to Roy during that time, now was the perfect opportunity to leave.

(Alright, now!)

Rattle rattle, rattle rattle

(Impossible! The changing room door won’t open!?)

“Huh? Sophia-san, didn’t you just hear a sound?”

“Oh my, there’s another door here.”

“It’s probably just an employee entrance. More importantly, we already washed, so let’s get in?”

The women soaked in the bath. Roy succeeded in hiding behind the large rock just before Sophia arrived.

As everyone except Roy enjoyed the open-air bath, a strange audio announcement began playing.

‘Ding dong ding dong~’

“Huh? What!?”

“Yukino, calm down. This is the work of a sound magic user. It’s probably a signal that an event by the staff here is starting.”

Hearing that, Sarina asked with a displeased look.

“Event?”

“This Party Bath was apparently newly established to strengthen party unity. This must be entertainment for that purpose.”

‘Thank you for participating in the “Party Unity Enhancement Course.” We will now conduct an event to improve unity. The rules are simple: find and press the “switch” hidden somewhere in this open-air bath area. You won’t be able to leave until then, so please note—’

(So that’s why it wouldn’t open!? Damn! At this rate, they’ll find me!)

‘Furthermore, we believe this will be far too easy for party members who engage in fierce battles daily. Therefore, to increase the difficulty, all lighting will go down—apologies in advance. Now then, start!’

At the signal, the lighting went completely dark. For Roy, a shadow magic user, this was a godsend.

(If I use Shadow Whip, I should be able to get over the partition.)

When Roy looked in that direction with that thought, he realized it had been a mistake. This Party Bath had high partitions, but this village was large enough to be called a town, and the moment he crossed the partition, the lights outside would clearly illuminate Roy’s body.

Therefore, the only action Roy could take was to find the switch, end this event, and exit after Yukino and the others left.

Roy and the others began searching for the switch. Thanks to the darkness, it was fine even if they entered his field of vision now, but he absolutely couldn’t touch Yukino’s chest. The reason was that the purification phenomenon would cause it to glow.

(Damn! Where the hell is the switch… Ah, could this be it?)

In the dim light, something like a protrusion appeared in Roy’s vision. Because Roy was panicking, he pressed it without thinking about what it was.

Squish

“Ah!—Aaaahn♡”

“S-Sophia-san!? What happened?”

The figure that seemed to be Sophia hid her chest with both hands and began warily looking around. Yukino was startled by Sophia’s voice and approached.

“J-j-j-just now! Something touched my… chest!”

“I-it wasn’t me!”

“Which means… Sarina, was it you?”

“Why would I need to touch your chest… You probably just bumped into a rock.”

“There’s no rock near here…” Even as Sophia said that, she began searching for the switch.

(Hah, hah, it’s dangerous to move carelessly in this situation! I should leave the switch to Yukino and the others and focus on stealth.)

The moment Sophia let out a coquettish voice, Roy sensed danger and had wrapped Shadow Whip around the rock in the center of the open-air bath, rapidly contracting it to move to the rock’s location.

(Looks like this’ll be a long battle.) With that resolve, Roy began focusing on concealment.