V1C25

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There are still several hours of daylight left after we wrap up at the slime merchant’s.

Because I spent so much time at Old Man Japan’s house yesterday, I had to skip taking a bath, but it seems like I’ll be able to take one today. I might live alone and kill wyverns and argue with shopkeepers, but I’m still a girl, and I like being clean. Let’s get home as soon as we can, then!

“See ya, Tarō! I want to get a bath today, so I’m going to head on home now.”

I took him to the slime merchant and everything, so there’s nothing else for me to do to help him out. He should be good on his own.

Having said my goodbyes, I start walking back home. Once I get there, I’ll grab my bucket and my washcloth, and then I’ll head straight to the bath, and…

Guh! Somebody grabs the back of my jacket collar. Obviously, when I say ‘somebody,’ I mean Tarō. Who else would it be?

“What the frick are you doing?! That hurt!” I pull away from him.

“Marron, what did you just say?” He seems agitated, his words almost tripping over themselves as they come out. “You said bath, right?! Do you have one at your place? Because Old Man Japan doesn’t.”

I rub my throat. “No, I don’t have a bath in my house. Did Old Man Japan not tell you? There’s a public bath nearby. It’s free.”

“I can’t believe this little town actually has something like that… Me and Gramps were up late last night talking about anime and stuff, so we never actually got around to talking about like showering and all that. Marron, do you think you could show me where the bathhouse is?”

It seems that Tarō really wants to take a bath. That’s why he was so agitated when he heard me mention it. I’m pretty sure I talked about the bath back in the glade when I showed him how to use the bubble fruits. He must not have been paying attention, as usual.

Looks like there’s one more thing for me to help him out with today. “Yeah, sure. The bath’s open whenever—day or night—but it gets really dark at night with no light. So, I try to take one when the sun’s still out. It was too late yesterday when I left you at Old Man Japan’s, and I didn’t have a chance to go. To make sure I don’t go another day without bathing, I’m planning on stopping by my house really quick and then heading straight to the bath.” Without waiting for a reply, I turn and stride off.

“Alright. Got it.” I hear Tarō’s voice behind me along with the sound of his footsteps keeping pace.

The rest of my day isn’t as free as I’d hoped now, and I can’t help but worry a little about bringing him to the bath. I’m sure it’ll be fine.… right?

We make it back home, and I grab my bucket, my washcloth, and a bubble fruit. I have to wait in front of my house for a bit before Tarō comes out of Old Man Japan’s with a bucket in his arms.

“Hey, sorry for making you wait! I borrowed this from Gramps.” He shows me the bucket proudly.

I note that, unlike mine, his bucket is empty. “So, Tarō, I noticed that you don’t have a washcloth or any bubble fruit? You’re not really planning on getting in the bath without washing yourself first, are you? That’s against the rules.”

“What are you talking about? Of course I’m not going to do that. It’s a bathhouse, right? I’m sure they’ve got a selection of soaps and towels for sale, so I’ll just buy some when I get there.”

Can we go even an hour without you saying something strange and incomprehensible? Where do you expect anybody to be selling anything?

I shake my head and take a deep breath. “Tarō, you can’t buy any of that at the bath. There’s no shop or stall or anything. There isn’t even anybody in charge of managing the bath itself.”

“You’re kidding, right? They don’t have a store or front desk or anything? Where the hell should I go to buy a towel, then?”

There’s that word again—towel. In context, it’s pretty clear he means washcloth, but whatever.

I decide that we’ll cut through the plaza on our way to the bath, meaning we’ll be taking the long way around. There, I point Tarō to a stall where he buys a washcloth and some bubble fruit.

When we finally make it to the bath, Tarō looks surprised. “Hey Marron, is this really a bathhouse? It looks more like the rotting ruins of… something.”

What stands before us is a small building. Its roof is collapsed, and half the rest of it is threatening to crumble away. A long, long time ago, this bath was made for the miners and their families who used to live here, apparently. Mining is dirty work, so they needed somewhere to clean off.

When the mine closed, the bath was also abandoned. So, the other residents in town started using it. Unfortunately, because there’s nobody properly in charge of it, the building’s been left to rot.

“Didn’t you hear me earlier? I said that nobody manages the bath. Nobody takes care of it.”

“Well, if that’s true, then that also means there’s nobody to heat the water! So how the hell does this bath have hot water, huh?”

“Hm? There’s no need to heat the water, because it comes out of the ground already hot. There’s also no need to clean it—the water’s always getting replaced with fresh, hot water, so it stays clean by itself.”

The building might be falling apart, but the bath itself doesn’t need anybody to take care of it. Everything is kept clean and sanitary by the constantly replenishing water. At least, that’s what I’ve heard.

“Whoah! Are you kidding me right now?! That’s not a bath, it’s a hot spring! Now I’m really excited! I’m getting in there right freaking now!”

“Hold on, there’s still…” I halfheartedly hold my hand out to stop him, but he disappears like a flash into the boys’ changing room.

I sigh. He never listens.

I undress in the changing room and enter the bath to discover Tarō already there.

He’s standing with his legs spread wide, looking around and yelling to himself, “Oh hoh hoh! So this is the hot spring? It’s so big, I feel I could swim a few laps! Hahaha! And with the building falling apart so much, it’s actually pretty much an open-air bath! Nice!”

He could at least take his hands off his hips and try to cover himself a little.

Well, at least there’s nobody here right now. If I don’t teach him the rules for the bath, he’s going to annoy a lot of people. And by ‘a lot,’ I mean everyone.

I call out to the boy still lost in his own world. “Tarō, at least cover yourself! That’s the bare minimum you have to do!”

He turns to look at me as I warn him. For a moment, he seems shocked. “Yo, what are you doing in the men’s bath? I know you’re a kid and whatever, but eight is big enough that you need to go to the girls’ bath!”

That’s part of what I was trying to tell you, you blockhead.

I can’t help it. I let out a long, slow sigh.