Chapter 211: The Room’s Open-Air Bath
“Big sister, big brother, can we take a bath together?”
After finishing our dinner, which was served by the usual dark maids, I was relaxing on the sofa when Phonia, holding Nil close to her chest, approached us with an adorable upward glance.
“Alright, let’s go.”
Rio, completely taken in by Phonia’s cuteness, immediately responded while gently patting Phonia’s head. Ever since that incident with the Ero-jii in the large bathhouse, we had been enjoying the privacy of our own open-air bath, free from interruptions.
“What’s up today? You usually bathe with Ivan, right?”
I glanced at Ivan, who looked utterly shocked, and then turned my attention back to Phonia.
“That’s because… Ivan-nii isn’t gentle with me.”
Phonia puffed out her cheeks in a way that only made Ivan’s shock deepen.
“Hey, Ivan, what do you mean you’re not being gentle with Phonia-chan?”
“Wait, hold on! Let’s calm down, alright? Phonia, you too?”
“But big sister was so gentle when she washed me!”
Hmm. What does that even mean?
“Wait, wait! I’m gentle too, you know!”
“You’re not gentle at all!”
So, is it that typical rough washing style that men have that she dislikes? Ivan does seem a bit careless in that regard. Perhaps Phonia was remembering how gentle Rio had been when she washed her in the large bathhouse.
“Hehe, then let’s bathe together with big sister.”
“Yeah! Big brother, you should come too!”
“Huh? Me?”
I pointed at myself in surprise, but Phonia nodded as if to say, “What are you talking about?”
“You always bathe with big sister, right?”
“Well, that’s true…”
“So, let’s all go together!”
With that, she huffed at Ivan, as if to say he was being left out.
“Phonia…”
Still holding Nil close, Phonia took my hand and led me toward the bath.
“Ivan, stay strong.”
I said this to Ivan, who was still on all fours, reaching out in despair, as we decided to join Phonia in the bath.
After putting our clothes into the Dimensional Box in the changing room, we stepped into the bathing area together with Rio and Phonia, who was still holding Nil. The washing area and the indoor bath weren’t particularly spacious, but the open-air bath outside was quite generous in size. The view outside, separated by crystal-clear glass, promised to be enjoyable even from the indoor bath.
“First, we wash up before soaking in the bath!”
“Okay!”
“Alright, I’ll wash Nil.”
“Wooof wooof!”
I lathered up some soap and began to wash Nil thoroughly.
“Phonia-chan, is there anywhere itchy?”
“Nope, I’m fine! It feels nice!”
Next to me, Phonia was being washed by Rio, and her touch was incredibly gentle. It was a stark contrast to how I was washing Nil. Ivan must have been similar to me in that regard.
Once I finished washing Nil, he shook himself off, splattering water everywhere.
“Whoa!”
“Haha! Alright, I’m done here. You can warm up now.”
“Okay!”
Phonia slowly stepped into the bath, and Nil jumped in right beside her.
“Hey! No running in the bath, Nil!”
Though I scolded him with a hint of annoyance, I couldn’t help but feel amused.
“I caught you!”
Nil, now caught, settled into his usual spot, looking quite content as he floated in the water in front of Phonia.
“Hey, Shuu.”
“Hmm?”
Just as I was about to wash myself, Rio called out to me.
“Could you wash my hair too?”
“Sure, no problem.”
I wet Rio’s hair with warm water and took some special soap meant for hair. As expected from a high-class inn, the bathing supplies were abundant. I lathered up the soap and gently washed her hair.
Even though I had just washed Nil, I couldn’t help but notice how much gentler I was being with Rio. It was clear that there were differences in how I treated them.
“Ahh, it really feels nice to have someone wash my hair.”
“Yeah, it does. Make sure to wash me later too.”
“Hehe, I will.”
Before I knew it, Phonia had taken Nil outside to the open-air bath, having finished with the indoor bath.
“Phonia-chan, no running in the bath!”
“Okay!”
As Phonia stepped outside while holding Nil, she seemed to be feeling warm and laid back on a bench.
“Alright, all done.”
“Now it’s your turn, Shuu.”
I turned my back to Rio, who was urging me to wash her. After a while, I felt the suds building up on my head. Her gentle touch was incredibly soothing.
“Ahh, this is the best.”
When I was summoned to this Otherworld, I wondered what I would do, but lately, I’ve started to think that maybe it’s not so bad after all. Not only did I get to marry Rio, but watching Phonia made me think about what it would be like if we had children of our own. With Ivan around to share silly banter, I might even hesitate if I were offered a chance to return to Earth.
“Shall we head outside too?”
Once we both finished washing, we followed Phonia out to the open-air bath. The sun had set, and the stars were twinkling above us. Though there were walls to prevent anyone from seeing in, it was possible that someone from a higher vantage point might catch a glimpse.
Using magic to create a barrier would be easy, but that would take away from the ambiance, so I opted not to.
“Big brother, big sister, over here!”
As Phonia called us over, we found her soaking in a corner of the open-air bath.
“What’s up?”
“You can see really well from here!”
“Oh, really?”
Rio settled next to Phonia, and I slipped into the water on the opposite side, sandwiching Phonia between us. Looking up, the stars were indeed quite visible.
“They’re beautiful.”
“Yeah.”
And so, the night deepened after the day we defeated the Mole Ball.