kscans

Chapter 190 - I Haven't Awakened!

Apparently, I have no friends.

"Yoshino-san, we’re friends, right?"

"Yeah, we are. I’m sure Lin thinks so too."

Safe! I have female friends, which are rarer than male friends.

"Just so you know, I had them in college. It’s just that my corporate job was so black that we grew apart."

Don’t you forget it!

"I get it. You’re so flustered you’re reverting to Okita-kun."

"It’s the truth! It’s only because I barely had any time off and couldn’t even go to reunions!"

"Don’t say sad things in a tsundere-like way… Here, drink."

I drank the beer she had chilled for me.

"Listen, Yoshino-san. Happiness isn’t about the number of friends you have. It’s about money, money."

"I couldn’t agree more."

Yoshino-san nodded emphatically.

"Even if I quit being an adventurer, I have routes to sell my items. The guild route, the Claire route, and this Frontier route. In other words, our victory is assured."

"As expected of an Alchemist. My judgment was not wrong!"

"And for that, we will endure this simple task today and tomorrow."

"Right… That said, my hands are starting to reek of herbs."

Yoshino-san sniffed her hands.

"Ah, we need gloves. Well, let’s call it a day."

"How many did we make?"

"Umm, I think we passed five hundred."

We did take occasional breaks, so that seems about right.

"Can we finish in one day tomorrow?"

"Probably. It’s a bit uncertain if we’ll stay another night…"

"Since we’re here, let’s take our time. I’m curious about the food in Frontier."

I agree on that point. If I stay out for many days, Kaede-chan will worry and get lonely, so I want to avoid that, but two or three days should be fine.

"Let’s do that…"

"Yeah. I’m going to take another bath before bed, what about you?"

"Since I’m here, maybe I’ll take one too? Opportunities like this are rare."

"Then let’s do that. I’m going back to my room. See you tomorrow."

Yoshino-san said and stood up.

"Mm. Good night."

"Yeah, good night. I’m actually looking forward to the luxurious bed too."

Yoshino-san looked at the king-sized bed.

"Well, yeah. You only find those in places like hotels."

"I’ve dreamed of one since I was a kid."

I dreamed of having a bed, period. I always slept on a futon.

"Well, rest well."

"I will. See ya."

"Yeah."

Yoshino-san gave a wave and left the room.

"Alright, I’ll take a bath too."

After Yoshino-san left, I cleaned up the mess from potion making and left the room. Then, I went to the men’s bath and took off my clothes in the changing room.

"Still, even though I can get a rough idea of the time from my phone’s clock, having no windows really messes with your sense of time…"

The clock says it’s 11:30 PM. My internal clock feels about right, but not being able to see outside is tough.

"Man, I can’t believe they live in a place like this."

I took off all my clothes and underwear, becoming completely naked, then went into the bath and washed my body and hair. Then, I got into the tub to warm up.

"Ah, this feels good…"

At this age, I feel like I’ve started to like baths. It might be an old man thing, but oh well.

I continued to soak in the hot water, healing the fatigue of the day. Suddenly, I sensed a presence from the changing room.

"Hm?"

I looked at the door connecting the changing room and the bath area.

"…………Ah, that’s heavy."

I could hear someone’s voice. It was hard to make out through the door, but it was just loud enough to hear if I strained my ears.

"…………I’m tired, I’ll go to bed soon."

Who? No, that voice is…………Arc. Why is he…?

Oh, this is the men’s bath. That’s why he came…

I wondered what to do, but it was too late now. Besides, he’s just a kid, so I didn’t care if he saw me, and I calmly rested my elbow on the edge of the tub and kept my eyes on the door. Then, the door opened, and someone entered the bath area.

"………………………………"

"………………………………"

And then, we looked at each other, and time stopped.

The other person froze probably because I, who clearly looked like a woman, was in the men’s bath.

The reason I froze was because the person I thought was Arc was clearly a girl. Moreover, she was naked, and various parts were in full view.

"……W, why are you here?"

The girl rebooted faster than I did.

"There’s no one here but me and Yoshino-san, so I figured it didn’t matter which one I used."

"O, oh, I see…………"

An awkward and flustered air flowed between me and the girl.

"…………Why don’t you get in? Aren’t you cold?"

If she stayed naked like that, she’d catch a cold.

"R, right."

The girl went over to the washing area where the showers were, turned on the water, and started washing her body. I stared at her back. The girl had a feminine, rounded body, but it was frail, as befitting her age.

"…………What?"

The girl, who must have noticed me staring, turned to face me.

"You have showers in this world too?"

"Showers? This?"

The girl looked at the showerhead she was holding.

"Yes. We call that a shower."

"I see. W, we don’t really have a name for it."

Hmm. Anyway, she started to say ‘boku’ and then corrected herself to ‘watashi’.

The girl finished washing her body and got into the tub I was in. However, she went to a corner of the large tub, keeping a subtle distance.

"………………………………"

"………………………………"

Once again, an awkward silence flowed.

"You look like Arc, are you his older or younger sister?"

"…………That’s right! I’m his twin sister!"

What a simple-minded kid.

"What’s your name?"

"Huh!? My name…………"

She can’t think of one.

"Arc. You were a girl, weren’t you?"

"…………Yeah."

Arc seemed to have given up.

To be honest, I’m a little relieved. I had thought Arc was a cute kid. I was right to think that such a cute boy couldn’t possibly exist. I’m glad I didn’t open a psychological door that should have remained shut.

"So you were hiding the fact that you’re a girl?"

"……Yeah."

So that’s why she was wearing armor. I thought it was strange that she was still in armor during dinner, but this was the reason.

"Well, I can kind of understand wanting to hide your gender…………"

I’m hiding mine too.

"There are some circumstances…"

Well, of course. People don’t normally do that.

…………Putting myself aside.

"Can I ask?"

"…………I’ll tell you later."

She’s willing to talk.

"Come to my room after you get out of the bath. I’ll give you some alcohol or juice."

"I can’t drink alcohol, so I’ll pass. I want to try the juice. I’m curious about the juice in your world."

Apple juice or cola…

"You’re thirteen, right?"

Come to think of it, me staring at this kid’s body is not okay.

"That’s right. Half your age."

The guilt inside me vanished.

"You should eat more. You won’t grow big… Hmph."

I looked at Arc’s chest and snorted.

"Don’t get cocky just because you’re a little bigger."

Don’t talk about my body like that. You’ll make Kaede-chan angry.

"Hey, why did you come here?"

"This is the bath I always use. No one ever comes. I never thought you’d be in the men’s bath."

I couldn’t exactly bathe with Yoshino-san.

"I’m sorry."

"It’s fine. It’s my fault for not checking."

"I’m really sorry…………"

"What’s wrong?"

I’m a guy. I saw all of you…