Hero Audition Ch. 11

https://ncode.syosetu.com/n5562hc/11/

 

Shower

I want to take one sniff before she gets in the bath. Before the smell is washed away. I almost dropped the change of clothes in my hands while my thoughts were running.

Lily was watching me with confused eyes.

You’ve already labeled me as a pervert, so why can’t you feel the screams of my heart, “The bath will wash the smell away!”

“Let us talk inside. I will be waiting.”

With those words, Lily quickly moved further into the bathroom. And with that, it became certain that her scent would be washed away by the hot water.

I took off my clothes with a hung head and left the dressing room. There is a full-length mirror between the dressing room and the bath. I have a towel covering my front, but I’m not that bad. Although I might lose to Lily.

The bathhouse had a tub large enough to accommodate 30 people at once and another area separated by curtains and wall partitions. Everyone else’s training probably just ended too because I counted ten other people here.

When I tried dropping myself into the bathtub though, I was stopped by Olive who was already inside.

“Hold on you…..oh, Commoner Lily-san……or it is Liffy now right? Do commoners not use showers? The hot water would get dirty, so please head over there first.”

I didn’t notice because they all had towels around their heads, but it looked like everyone already in here were nobles. Olive seemed reluctant to give me directions as she pointed towards the partitioned area, but I guess it is good manners to wash off the dirt before entering the bath. There were a lot of commoners with me last night, so we all jumped straight in.

I thought Olive would be more prickly with me, but she was being surprisingly polite. The incident from the party must still be lingering in her mind.

There would be no point in arguing with Olive about it, so I obediently headed towards the wall partitioned showers.

Since the curtains for all the compartments were drawn, I randomly opened the curtain at the far end.

Inside was Lily, washing herself with water flowing out of some kind of pipe. I guess that’s what a shower looks like. The previous occupant reacted to the sound of the curtain opening and turned around.

She looked surprised for a moment, but she immediately grinned at me and grabbed my arm to pull me inside just like she had done yesterday with her room.

Two people weren’t meant to fit in here, so we had to squish our bodies together. Her skin was smooth like polished pottery. But just like I thought, the fragrance had flown away, replaced with a soapy smell.

The water dripping off her wet, clumped hair trickled down and tickled my body.

“Wai-……let go”

“You’ll need to be punished for peeking on someone in the shower right? Such a covetous woman. This is two days in a row you’ve snuggled up to me.”

“I didn’t do it on purpose…..it just happened”

“Are you innocent of murder if you accidentally killed someone? Of course not right? Besides, you can tell it is in use since the curtains were closed.”

So the fact that all the curtains for all the compartments were drawn meant all the showers were currently being used.

“I….I didn’t know. I’ve never used a shower before…..”

Lily looked at me surprised. She doesn’t seem to know that commoners know nothing about showers.

“O…..Of course. I have done something wrong. I am sorry. This is a device that uses magic to pour out hot water. If you twist this handle to the right, hot water will come out, and if you twist it to the left, cold water will come out.”

Lily’s face was a bright red, clearly hoping I would immediately forget the kind of conclusions she jumped to.

As for the description of the shower, it sounds like a great lead-in to a prank. Without her noticing, I snuck my arm around towards the handle and moved it as far left as it would go, and the hot water turned cold. A cute little squeak jumped out of Lily’s mouth, and her body trembled from the sudden temperature change.

Lily immediately realized my mischief, twisted the handle back to the right, and pushed me against the wall. It was a little chilly after the wash of cold water.

“So you like pranks then. Do you want to be punished that badly?”

“S…..Sorry. I thought it was a natural lead-in…..”

Lily made a straight face, but her eyes were surprised.

“You keep going in a direction I don’t expect……but for now, you know how to use it right? Look, the next shower over is open. Go”

Lily kicked me out when we heard the curtains from the neighboring stall open. When I peeked inside just in case, I was relieved to see it was indeed empty.

Walking in, I realized fully how these stalls were perfectly sized for one person.

Before I could turn the handle however, cold water poured down on my head. When I looked, I saw that it was coming from the next stall over. To my surprise, Lily is someone who likes to hold a grudge.

So I twisted the handle in my own stall to the left and started spraying cold water back at her.

 

♠

 

When I finished washing my body and pulled back the curtain, Lily walked out of the neighboring stall at the same time. I guess she likes to take long showers. 

“What a coincidence. Let’s soak in the tub together.”

The water battle washed everything under the bridge. I nodded my head, and we dropped into the water next to each other. 

Olive and the other noble girls had already left by the time we came out, and as far as I can see, there were only commoners left. Melia and Peony were just coming out of the dressing room as well. 

The both of them ran right into the bathtub without paying attention to the shower. The water splashed Lily and I in the face, but the two of them laughed without minding it. 

“Ah! Lily-chan! The bath feels so good”

“Y…..Yeah”

The nobles were uncomfortable with me just getting into the bath without taking a shower, and now, these girls have jumped right in while also splashing water in one’s face. There’s no way Lily wouldn’t end up angry. I timidly glanced to the side, and while she still had a smile on her face, her twitching eyebrow told a story all its own. 

“Peony-san, Melia-san. Jumping into the bath is prohibited. Also, please take a shower before soaking in the tub.”

“Yeah yeah. We’ll watch out from tomorrow on. Nobles really mind the little things. It’s not like it matters.”

Peony responded while enjoying the hot water with only her face out of the water. She is definitely going to do the exact same thing tomorrow night. 

Watching Peony, Lily released a fed-up sigh. She definitely wasn’t going to try and educate her the same way she did me. 

“Status does not matter. It is about good manners so that everyone can feel comfortable in the bath. You don’t want to see someone pooping while you are trying to eat right?”

Lily didn’t let it slide and continued to admonish Peony. 

“Are you saying we are as filthy as feces? Or do nobles actually enjoy eating food while watching people take a shit? That’s some hobby you have there”

For some reason, Peony seems to see nobles as the enemy, so she was completely dismissing Lily’s words. As a third party here, I would have to side with Lily on this one though.

Melia was staying out of it, carrying a wry smile while not minding Peony one way or the other. I’m not a huge supporter of the nobles, or rather, Lily, but Peony is probably the one at fault here. 

“Melia, could you say something too? Peony is acting as much of a child as she looks.”

Melia looked at me absolutely shocked. She shook her head in a panic, but I have no idea what she was trying to say. 

“Oi. Legacy girl. What did you say?”

Peony’s voice went down an octave. Judging by Melia’s reaction, the word “child” is a taboo. But I can’t think of anyone other than a child who would pick a fight with someone just because they are a noble. 

“I said anyone who can’t reflect on themselves is a child.”

Peony leaped out of the water towards me while screaming. 

I vaguely remember hitting my head on the side of the bathtub when out bodies collided. It honestly didn’t hurt that much. 

Chapter 10 ⊥ Chapter 12