Volume 5 Chapter 226, Men’s Bath_1

: Nonon

Proofreader: Silavin

 

“Ahh… a hot spring is nice when it’s cold outside…”

“Yes, Lord Clo… It warms me up…”

 

Having fainted after seeing Robot, Silva recovered surprisingly quickly, and after eating dinner together, we all went to the hot springs.

It had appeared seemingly out of nowhere a short walk away, and thanks to road improvements, it had finally become a place that Shiki residents could visit easily. It had been now renovated enough to be properly used as a bath, and monster-repellent measures had also been put in place.

Until recently, it had no changing rooms or walls, so it felt like a completely natural, mixed-gender hot spring, but a simple changing room had been installed, creating a clear separation between men and women.

The reason why we came here tonight was that during a dinner conversation, Ms. Kriemhild recalled the hot spring she had visited during the previous investigation, and upon hearing that, Ms. Mary declared,

 

“A hot spring?! I want to go!”

 

Ms. Mary’s eyes lit up with excitement and she really wanted to go, so we all decided to oblige her.

Silva, who was initially enthusiastic about the idea of going to a hot spring since it wasn’t something he got to do often, turned bright red when he heard from Ms. Kriemhild that it was a natural mixed-gender hot spring and embarrassedly blurted out, ‘you girls can go by yourselves!’

I was about to mention that it wasn’t mixed-gender anymore, but before I could do it, Ms. Kriemhild and the others continued speaking.

 

“Indeed, it might be a bit strange for boys and girls of marriageable age to go in together… however, since we’re all here, I would like to share some memories…”

“Why don’t we just wrap ourselves in towels? It might be bad manners, but I’d like to share the memories too!”

“That’s right. So please don’t say sad things like it’s better to go separately, Silva.”

“Yup, adventurers bathe outside all the time, and mixed baths are how natural hot springs are! Besides, I’ve heard that mixed baths exist in eastern countries too, so it’s totally fine!”

“Oh, I remember a mixed bath in a book I read a long time ago! It was used as a way to deepen their relationships, so I think it’s fine! Let’s all go in together!”

“Do you two feel no hesitation at all?!”

 

It seems that both Ms. Kriemhld and Ms. Mary were fine with mixed gender baths, saying that it was the rule of the natural hot spring, but… did they have no reservations? What they were doing was at the level that could easily be called sexual harassment.

 

“Say, Sir Clo, do you think they just don’t see me as a man?”

 

And Silva, who had been egged on to take a bath with the girls, sat cross-legged in the man’s bath, and dejectedly asked me.

By the way, Silva had been using polite language with me due to the accident, but I’ve told him he didn’t need to be so polite or considerate with me, so now he was speaking with me as he would with Ms. Kriemhild. Though he still referred to me with a ‘Sir’ because I’m technically an older Nobleman.

 

“Why do you think that?”

“I mean, they said it would be okay to go into the hot springs with me, and they looked at me with warm eyes, saying things like, ‘you’ve grown up’…. I feel like the way they look at me…”

“? What’s wrong, Lord Silva?”

“… It’s like how they look at Gray. As if I’m only seen as a Little Brother and not as a man, the member of the opposite sex… I’m the smallest compared to Vermillion and the others, so maybe I’m just too child-like…. Ugh.”

 

He does have some height, but I think it’s his way of speaking and his personality that are a big reason why he’s seen as a younger brother.

… Still, I don’t think he’s wrong in saying that he’s being treated like Gray. I vaguely remember that in Ring of Fire, unless you entered his route specifically, Silva was often treated more like a younger brother.

He rarely got ‘noticed as a man’ in the so-called main route. That said, it seems that was actually what made him popular with players.

From what I can see at the moment, it’s complicated and unclear how Ms. Mary sees him, but Ms. Kriemhild definitely isn’t conscious of him as a man… Well, even in Ring of Fire, the heroine didn’t show much shyness or anything like that.

Besides, I think the biggest problem is not the fact that he’s seen as a Little Brother, but rather his reactions instead.

 

“Well, I’m sure the girls were just saying it on a whim. When it actually came down to us all going in together, I’m sure they would feel too embarrassed to join in and would have panicked, thinking ‘Urk, how did things end up like this?!””

 

Actually, I think that’s exactly what happened. With the way Ms. Mary is now, I’m sure about it.

 

“Really…?”

“In fact, you blush so easily, you’re more likely to be teased, Silva.”

“Is that so?”

 

Whenever a raunchy topic comes up, Silva’s face turns bright red and he immediately gets embarrassed. He blushed and looked away when he saw Cyan’s thighs peeking out from the slit in her dress, and he blushed again when asked if he wanted to touch Ms. Mary’s chest.

I suppose they find that kind of reaction amusing and fun to tease, so they end up saying those things.

 

“Ah, I know. I believe it’s the same when Lady Cyan says it’s fun to tease Lord Clo and Lady Violet.”

“Oh, I see… so that’s what they think of me too…”

“Don’t just accept that.”

 

Well, I admit that I also easily blush around Lady Violet. It makes me feel complicated that Silva seems convinced by that… It’s probably because of that declaration I made in front of Gen and Sumi.

 

“So I guess that means they didn’t really want to take a bath together?”

“That’s right. Seriously planning to enter a mixed bath is something Ms. Kriemhild–

 

Would not do, is what I was about to say when I remembered something from Ring of Fire.

It was an event that happened during a field training in Chartreuse’s route (in this world, it refers to the investigation that Ms. Kriemhild and the love interests come to the Shiki for). The heroine went to investigate a place with a hot spring inn. There, she was presented with three choices.

 

・You should attack here.

・You should to sneak into his room at night.

・Let’s go to Valhalla (the men’s bath)

 

… Uh oh, I remembered some unpleasant choices.

The choices in Chartreuse’s route that seem like something the screenwriter must have come up with as a joke.

Should you approach Chartreuse before he enters the bath?

Should you suggest sneaking into his lodgings at night?

Should you barge in while he’s taking a bath?

…Since those options emerge from the light-hearted jokes leading up to them, they appear to be purely comedic choices, but they’re actually quite significant.

Depending on the choice you make, the time of day you meet him later on changes, which in turn alters the content of the conversation and Chartreus’ situation. This is one of the choices where, if you make a series of wrong decisions, including other options,  Chartreuse will end up seriously injured. In any case, it’s a crucial choice in the game.

However, even if it’s important from a gameplay perspective, it’s a fact that the heroine of Ring of Fire tried to act with a more aggressive, carnivorous mindset.

I understand that Ms. Kriemhild is different from that heroine. Since their environments and routes are different, she might not say anything. But…

 

“What’s wrong, Sir Clo? You suddenly went quiet.”

“Silva, just in case somebody peeps in, make sure you have a towel ready at all times. Someone might barge in too.”

“Wait, we’re the ones who’ll be peeped on or barged in?! Who would benefit from that?!”

“Well, Ms. Kriemhild would probably say something like, ‘we have to go in together to make memories!’, Cyan would probably egg her on, and Apricot would have no problems with it because she’s usually going into the hot spring with Gray and Brown.”

“… I don’t know about Apricot or the Sister, but I feel like I can’t deny that Kriemhild might actually do that.”

 

Just what do people think of Ms. Kriemhild that I can say something completely outlandish on the spur of the moment and they still seem to accept it? I’m the one who said it though

 

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Author’s note:

Approximate heights of the love interests (as of January)

Vermillion: ~181-185 cm

Ash: ~185-189 cm

Chartreuse: ~176-179 cm

Eccles: ~181-185 cm

Silva: ~160 cm

 

Silavin: Come on. 1.6m is short, but not child level short.