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C167: LARGE PUBLIC BATH: ENJOYMENT
The completed bathhouse is a Japanese-style wooden house, just like the public baths in the Showa era.
I designed and supervised every detail of it, after all.
Now then, let’s take a step inside.
First of all, there is a short curtain with the mark at the entrance Batemy had made for us.
Once you go through it, there is a shoe locker, and from there, the route divides into the men’s bath and the women’s bath.
There is an indigo-dyed curtain with the kanji for “man” and a crimson red-dyed curtain with the kanji for “woman.”
This authentic feel…
Batemy truly is uncompromising when it comes to tailoring.
I’m a man, so naturally, I went through the indigo-dyed curtain to enter the men’s bath.
I was immediately greeted by the changing room.
The breathable wisteria woven floor feels good on my feet.
There are lockers here, so I take off my clothes and place them inside one.
Currently, they aren’t furnished with locks yet.
It’s too much trouble to make such a complicated item, and besides, I don’t think anyone would steal on our farm.
I earnestly pray that it will stay like this even in the future.
And with just a towel wrapped around me, I finally reached the main bathing area!
A hot spring bath surrounded by rocks!
I didn’t set a specific criterion for them; I just picked the best ones I could find in the mountain and cave dungeons and brought them here!
We made the bath as large as possible and now has more than enough space for ten people.
We prepared three of them.
Based on the lesson learned from the private bath, this should prevent crowds of people from having to wait for their turn.
The women’s bath is also the same size, so it should be all right.
“My Lord, the hot water is good.”
“I feel alive again…”
Orkubo, Gobukichi, and the others are already in the bath with blissful looks on their faces.
A men’s bath on our farm would inevitably mean that it will be a monster bath.
Or, to be more precise, an Orc-Goblin bath.
But even the wolf monsters, the Hypercaons, also enter the bathhouse and are being bathed by their goblin friends.
“That’s a surprise. I thought dogs and cats didn’t like to bathe…”
The wolves seem to enjoy it, though.
When the hot water was poured on them, they shook their bodies and ran toward the changing room to thoroughly dry themselves.
Then it was my turn to get in the bath.
Finally… Finally.
I could finally soak myself in hot water. I feel bliss.
“Ah- Ah- Ahhhhh…”
The private bath is always occupied by women every day that I can’t even use it.
Now that the public bathhouse is completed, what would happen to that one?
Should I keep it only for Platy and myself to use for quick baths or for visitors?
Oh well, it doesn’t matter now.
The hot water feels so good that it melts my thoughts away.
“This sure is made splendidly.”
“Ahh!!!”
A dried-up human corpse is floating right next to me in hot water!
Good Lord, that freaked me out!
Wait, no.
It’s not a corpse!
It’s Sensei, the Lifeless King!!!
“Sorry for surprising you.”
You came here, Sensei?!
I would have welcomed you if you’d just said something!
“Oh, no. I should be apologizing for just barging in on my own.”
“No way!”
We’ve been indebted to you for a lot, Sensei.
We’d like to thank you for that, so please feel free to come back to this bath anytime, as many times as you like!
“Hahaha.”
Sensei is so magnanimous.
“I’ll take you up on your offer. This place is close to my dungeon, so I can visit it easily.”
Oh, yes!
The immortal king’s special hot spring.
Not sure if that’s an ominous thing or not.
I think it would be more appropriate to name it “The Hot Springs of Hell.”
“…But Sensei, your body is different from those of the living, no matter how you look at it. Does the hot spring still work for you?”
“Yes, it does. The hot water seems to have soaked into every part of my body, and I’ve felt revitalized for some time now.”
“…”
…I wonder if an immortal king being revitalized is a good idea.
Actually, is the hot water really soaking in his body?
Sensei’s body is all dried up precisely because he’s undead. His bones are covered with a thin layer of skin and a wee bit of flesh, which has also dried up.
A more accurate description would be a mummy, I suppose.
Or maybe a monk who practices austerity to the point of death and mummification.
And since his body is basically dry, it would get sucked up were it to come in contact with water.
“Are you sure you’re all right, Sensei? Won’t the hot spring hurt you instead?”
Don’t they say dried bonitos are kept away from moisture-laden places because they will get moldy?
“I’m sure it’s fine. If hot water is enough to defeat the Lifeless King, word would have already spread among the living.”
Sensei has a point.
“It’s a good thing I have dried-up skin and flesh remaining on me. Some Lifeless Kings are complete skeletons, so I’m sure the hot water would have more adverse effects on them…”
Skeletons, huh?
In that case, calcium content will dissolve and they may not be able to enter hot springs.
The way Sensei was talking made me a little curious.
“Have you met any other Lifeless Kings?”
“Oh, no. They all stay in the dungeons where they are guardians and don’t want to have anything to do with the mundane world.”
But how do you know what other Lifeless Kings look like?
“The mana convection currents that circulate the world can carry thoughts far away if you use the right techniques. It’s the only way for Lifeless Kings living in the depths of the world’s dungeons to exchange information.”
Oh…
So, it’s kind of like a magic phone.
Nonetheless, it’s a technique used by Lifeless Kings, so I’m sure it’s a very high-leveled one.
“It’s useful for sharing information about active adventurers and for exchanging catches from each other’s dungeons. However, it can also be quite troublesome.”
“Oh.”
“Depending on the recipient, some of them may not reply despite knowing that they’ve received and read the message. Some of them would even get angry and send you a follow-up message saying, ‘Why aren’t you replying?!’ Immortal kings are also tough to deal with.”
Ah, the seen-zone problem.
However, I had sometimes wondered how Sensei could be holed up in such an underground dungeon for a thousand years and yet not be frivolous and be knowledgeable about worldly affairs.
So, that’s the reason why.
They’ve been sharing information through telepathic magic.
“Now that we’ve warmed up to the bone… I’d say it’s time we get out of the water.”
“I agree.”
Sensei stands up from the bath with a splashing sound.
When I saw his entire figure, I was terribly confused.
Why?
Because there’s a stranger in front of me.
“Um… Um… Do you mind?”
“Yes?”
“Who are you?” I ask Sensei.
Wait, no.
This guy is standing where Sensei should be, but he’s not Sensei.
What’s going on?
The person who seemed to be Sensei is a living, breathing human being.
His skin is glowing, his muscles bulging, and his hair silky.
His appearance is that of a good-looking man in his twenties.
“Who ARE you?!”
“You’re being silly, Lord Saint. Aren’t I none other than the Lifeless King you call Sensei?”
No!
Our Sensei is more dried-up like a mummy!
He’s not some dashing, young man like you.
“…Please.”
Gobukichi presents a bucket filled with hot water to the young man who seems to be Sensei (?).
A replacement for a mirror?
He told him to look at his face reflected in the water.
“Oh…” says the young man, looking at his reflection in the water.
“Isn’t this what I looked like during my lifetime?”
“During your lifetime?!”
Were you that much of a hottie when you were alive, Sensei?!
You surprised me! Even your voice changed!!!
“This hot spring sure has tremendous benefits. I never thought it would bring life back to my dry body.”
However, as Sensei got out of the bath and wiped his body with a towel, he immediately went back to his original state of looking like a mummy.
It was only a brief change, but I couldn’t help but record it immediately.
My farm’s hot spring benefits: Rejuvenation.