CH 24.2

Translator: Erothur @translation.craneanime.com

Editor:

Patron: JP Luna, Wolololy

Thank You!

Eros notes: Holy knight and paladin seem interchangeable. The author sometimes just uses the holy knight without the paladin reading and sometimes just says paladin with katakana outright. Should I just use paladin from now on when talking about the holy knight?

The plan for tonight is to have a good early rest in preparation for tomorrow’s journey so all I have to do now is just to take a bath and go to sleep.

Even if I go to Filianess-san’s room, we would only talk a bit about tomorrow for sure. She is after all a knight that is loyal to the royal family. There’s no way she wants to get ‘friendly’ with me when the princess is also staying in the same house, right? …… Well, enough with the official stance.

(I will only stay for a night so I should not get my hope up)

I am losing myself for a moment because of holy sword mastery. I know I can just change my class to paladin and learn the skill the normal way. Jumping through class all the time like this is not a good habit. But then again, it would take a long time to become a paladin…… It’s a dilemma.

“Hiroto-sama, the preparation for your bath has been completed. We have already prepared the change for you so there isn’t a need for you to bring anything to the bathroom”

The maid tells me the preparation has been completed and just as she told me, I go to the bathroom without bringing anything.

I remember the time back then when I took a bath together with Filianess-san and the two follower knights…… I can’t help but feel nostalgic thinking about that. Only a few years have passed yet I felt that it was something that happened far longer from that.

(It is really a sad thing to grow up. I cannot take a bath together with women anymore…… Well, that is a matter of course though)

Life is harsh. But everyone will eventually grow into an adult. I feel like I get somehow enlightened while walking towards the bathroom.

In the earth’s middle ages period, a hot water bath was a luxury, but in this other world where the culture level is similar to the middle ages, a hot water bath is something common to the populace. Of course, the demand for firewood to heat the water is very high as a result but in this world, the tree grows at a very fast pace that it is impossible for deforestation to happen by only that much.

And in Filianess-san’s mansion, there is a luxurious big bathtub to match with her own status as a landlord. 7 to 8 people could bath together in this large bathtub. The bath in my house is also quite big for commoner’s standards but this is my first time seeing a bath with a ceiling this high.

Back home, I would usually go to the bath with Riona to take care of Sonia together. Mother would also surprise me from time to time by suddenly entering when I am bathing. I would also go in together with Obaba-sama when she asked me to help her take Milty to bathe as she hates taking a bath. Anyway, it is rare for me to take a bath alone. That’s why I suddenly feel a bit lonely when I finally take a bath on my own today.

“Well, I am already at the age where I can’t act spoiled anymore……”

With that monologue, I start to wash my body. It seems that the herb water (soap) in this area has a different mixing recipe…… it has the smell that is similar to Filianess-san and her group. It seems to use a kind of flower extract in the mix.

Nothing special happened as I am done washing my body. I use a pail to pour hot water from my head to wash the herb soap away. As my height is not that high enough, I have to climb the bathtub wall to enter it and it is quite troublesome.

—- And then, when my hand is on the bathtub wall as I am about to climb it, the bathtub water suddenly stirs. I get myself ready in case anyone tries to ambush me.

“SPLASH~! A mermaid appears!”

“……E-err…… have you been hiding in the hot water all this time? Your skin is all red you know, Marle-san”

“Hoaaa, why aren’t you surprised!? Doesn’t it deny my effort of putting my body on the line to do my [mermaid tactic]!?”

“Ahaha…… It really has been a while, taking a bath together with Marle-san that is. I am going to finish my bath quickly though”

“…… Why!?”

Marle-san reacted with a jolt to my statement. When I look up to her, beyond the gorgeous deep valley of hers, her face that is hidden by her sticky-wet hair falls into a truly disturbing expression.

“A…… N-no, you know, I am already 8 years old now. So taking a bath together with a woman is a bit……”

“Oh, so it’s only that…… You are still a small guy yet you push yourself too hard……”

Tha-that’s cruel. I am doing my best to follow the common sense in society and yet she is just totally denied my effort.

(I can’t take any more skill from Marle-san after all…… But she would definitely get angry at me if I were to say it)

“Now that you are visiting Thunder god-sama’s mansion like this, don’t expect to come out easily! You are already at the age where you can’t act spoiled? My answer is NO! I haven’t spoiled you enough to be satisfied!”

“OWA…… Hey, wa-wait a second…… Le-let me get some cover……”

Marle-san, who is naked, carries me, who is also naked, up with her hand. Marle-san’s gaze gradually comes downward.

“…… E-err. What should I say in this kind of situation? …… I feel that, if I were to say anything, it would meet with some trouble with the dukedom’s law……”

“I-I know that you are strong but I would be happy if you don’t lift me up like this……”

“No, I am just helping the boy I acquainted from when he was still a baby to take a bath…… only that! There is nothing wrong with that!”

“Marle-san, you don’t have to push yourself that hard you know…… Look! Even Hiro-chan is perplexed”

These two really are close to each other…… And Aletta-san just comes in like it is natural for her to do so. I have told her that even if she covers the important parts with a towel, it is still a bad thing for a woman who is about to get married to expose herself like this.

“You still dare say such things even when your eyes are locked on the thing!? Aletta-chan you closet pervert!”

“I-I’m not looking! No, I am looking through the professional eyes. I am only looking because of my profession as a medical worker. I am not looking at it from the point of view of different sex so it’s safe. Checking a boy’s body as a medic to examine any abnormality is legal”

A-are they really that impatient to wait for my secondary growth phase? …… Although my soul’s age is already legal, my body is still that of an innocent boy. When someone older shows such an interest to me, I still have to act bewildered.

(…… But still, their safe excuse is really getting stupid…… This is all Marle-san’s fault)

Being lifted by Marle-san like this, my proud side as a man is getting some damage. I start asking myself whether protecting that rule about not entering a bath together with a woman again after growing up is still something valid to do or not.

—- I feel like my mind is growing more mature. If it was the women who ask to join me in the bath, I should not let them feel ashamed by rejecting them.

“Marle-san, I am sorry. I am actually also want to take a bath together with Marle-san and the others”

“Tha-thats good~…… I thought Hiroto-chan really hates it and that I will never have a second chance to take a bath together again~”

“Filianess-sama is also worrying about it you know? …… But really, that’s good to hear”

Aletta-san is holding the side of her eyes. Is she becoming too happy that she cried? …… The atmosphere turns out to be better. My choice seems to be the correct one.

“……Me and Aletta-chan always feel relaxed when we take a bath together with you, Hiroto-chan. No matter how exhausted we are from our duty in the knight brigade, taking a bath together with you would instantly revitalize us…… But then… but then……”

“We know that Hiroto-chan always tries to behave like a grown-up…… I and Marle-san had a talk before discussing how to make you not mind taking a bath together with us again. I’m sorry. Usually, I would be the one who stops Marle-san from doing anything stupid. I am really childish, right? Wanting to keep taking a bath together with you forever like this”

“…… No, it should be me who asks for forgiveness. I am sorry too for not realizing the true feeling of you two”

If all you wished for is just to take a bath with me then there is no problem with that….. I am also a man after all. Even when I am still a baby, I still feel something in my soul reacting when seeing a woman’s naked skin. And I always feel guilty about that.

—- Most of all, I can’t help but think about Riona. Even when I know that this world has polygamy culture, my head still could not accept that notion yet. After all, this world also doesn’t accept the act of infidelity.

But then, the concerned person, Riona, had innocently said something before.

[Milty-chan and Stella-neechan will also become Hiro-chan’s bride together with Riona right?]

I could still ignore her word as she is still a child but looking at Marle-san and Aletta-san, I would be blind if I say that they do not agree with having a polygamous relation. I could clearly feel it…… They have even waited for me to grow up into an adult so there is no way for me to not take responsibility for it. Even more so for Aletta-san as she would enter her thirties in another 2 years. Even if she is going to wait until I reach adulthood at 15 years old, she would be 35 at that time.

(Then again, even when I can think of it in my head, taking action for it is still a different story after all……)

“…… Is Hiroto-chan prefer younger women more? Do you prefer those childhood friends of yours……”

“No, he definitely is not. Because Hiroto-chan is, you see, when I hold him up like this, he would seem really happy. Not to mention when I hug him tight in the bath……”

“Ple-please don’t say it…… For such things, being clear is… It is your fault that I became aware of it now…… This is such an immoral thing……”

“…… It is not immoral, you know? We are not doing something against our will so it is not immoral. Am I right?”

If I am a normal boy then that would be ‘out’. But I am someone who still brings all my knowledge, specifically sexual knowledge, from my previous life. I am not an innocent boy who doesn’t know anything and has his chastity threatened by Marle-san and Alettan-san. Rather, I am the one hanging them dry without any confirmation. The word ‘hanging dry’ sounds very cruel but I just can’t find other words to perfectly describe this situation.

“Hiroto-chan likes girls’ breasts, right? But do you think that my breast is all muscle……?”

“I-I don’t think so. And that…… about liking girls’ breasts, doesn’t it make me sound like a spoiled kid?”

“Tha-that’s not true. It is good to honestly say what you like. If you keep holding yourself back then it won’t be healthy for your growth”

Growing healthily…… What would happen after I finished my healthy growth I wonder? Would I be compensating the women who have been holding themselves back all this year? Those women who were already at a marriageable age and healthy both in physicality and mentality?

“Just for a bit…… before going to Filianess-sama’s room…… how about the two of us…… take care of you? Please……”

“…… It is not good if we faint in the bath so we won’t hold you back for long. So, Hiroto-chan……”

Marle-san has been showing off her naked body sparring nothing. Her long hair mostly covers her breast which is definitely not made of muscles. Her firm abs and that clear hip line are like masterpiece art that could drag other gazes with irresistible force. A beauty that is born from a healthy body.

And then there is Aletta-san. Following Marle-san, she also takes off the towel covering her body. It has actually been a while since the last time I see her naked body like this. She is Marle-san’s partner so she would always do missions together with her yet compared to Marle-san, her skin is a lot whiter. Her body also doesn’t grow muscular. Her modest breast has grown a step larger compared to when we first met. Her hips also become fuller than before. With a woman like her protecting her chastity in order to wait for me and not become someone else’s bride must bring many men especially from the knight brigade in tears.

“The three of us can enter the bath together so Hiroto-chan should be in the middle okay…… So, which one would you like first?”

“Please don’t push the option to him. Marle-san really doesn’t have any delicacy…… How about learning a bit from Hiroto-chan? Look at how gentle his touch is”

“It-it’s been a long time so…… I feel a bit nervous…… A, Hiroto-chan, really, don’t play around with my breast like that~”

(As usual her body deserves to be called a dynamite body. I want to pay my respect to it…… And then even though Aletta-san is quite moderate, I also like it very much)

Even when suckling won’t give me any more skill, it could still smoothen the energy circulation in the two women’s breasts. I can also raise their affection level too at the same time. Skill is not the absolute thing I have to chase all the time.

“Nnn…… I have a feeling that I would be satisfied even better when you become an adult”

“Is that so? …… I also felt that if Hiroto-chan’s hand got bigger…… I somehow feel embarrassed. My breast would still be small at that time……”

“Ahaha, even if it is big like mine, I also still feel embarrassed~. It is only now I can bury Hiroto-chan’s hand in between my breast”

They are having a casual chat while I touch their breast. After this, I will also go to Filianess-san’s room. The feeling of immortality is just too overwhelming.

To perform such an act on the day before Luche receives her baptism, is it alright for such a person to become her escort? …… I can’t help thinking about that. But then again, once we started, Marle-san and Aletta-san would keep on asking for more and more skinship time with me like being insatiable.

(…… Hmm? I seem to hear something from outside……)

“What is it Hiroto-chan? …… Don’t look around and focus on us please”

“A, no…… It’s nothing. What shall I do next?”

“If you ask like that, I of course will egotistically ask for myself to be the next one…… Hiroto-chan, feel free to get some more”

Looking at the two who compete in how they offer theirs made me think. I want to quickly grow into an adult so I can give everything that the two yearn for.

I have been using the excuse that I am still a child until today. But now, I wish on my own that I would grow up quicker. Of course, that wish is not all because of pink-colored thought. It just that I start to consider that my feeling towards the members of other sex is not something embarrassing.

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Eros notes: For those who are not familiar with Japanese people’s bathing culture: before the bathtub, there is a separate changing room to take your clothes off. Then you proceed with washing your body with soap and shampoo before entering the hot tub.