Chapter 13: If We’re on the Road, You’ll Just Have to Deal Without a Bath

After finishing lunch, we headed toward the southern region of Elgrand, our destination.

I was in a noticeably better mood than usual.

There’s something deeply satisfying about watching someone finish the food you made. Especially when you’re used to cooking for yourself and eating alone—this kind of appreciation hits different. Honestly, it felt great. I even had to stop myself from humming.

After about three hours of walking, we took a short break and then resumed our journey.

When we set out, we’d been told, “You’ll know which direction to go right away,” and now we understood why.

—Even from a distance, the other side of the mountain was shrouded in a black haze.

According to Karen-san, that was the miasma produced by the ‘Demon Dragon.’

Miasma’s essentially a kind of poison. If you’re not resistant to it, it can kill you frighteningly easily.

If there’s a silver lining, it’s that elves are a race highly attuned to handling magic. They should be able to endure it for short periods.

But—it’s already been a year since the ‘Demon Dragon’ first appeared.

…The closer we get, the lower the odds that any survivors are left.

I asked if there was any way to purify the miasma, but even elven knowledge didn’t have an answer.

All we can do is reach the Demon Dragon and defeat it as quickly as possible.

Silence ruled our steady march forward.

Karen wore a grim expression. Raiga was deep in thought. And me—well, I’ve never been the type to lighten the mood in times like these.

So I decided to focus entirely on my Search Sonar.

Night fell.

We had gotten fairly close to the mountain. By tomorrow, we should be able to enter the miasma zone.

Raiga had pushed for a night march, wanting to reach the Demon Dragon as soon as possible.

But after both Karen-san and I explained that resting was just as important, he eventually gave in without complaint. I doubt he would’ve listened to me alone, but it must’ve been hard to argue when the elf in our party said it too.

Dinner was more lavish than lunch had been.

Turns out, a lot of wild animals had fled down the mountain to escape the miasma and were now wandering aimlessly. Once they told me to wait behind, the two of them went off to hunt.

I was honestly stunned when they came back with a deer.

From the books I’d read, I already knew this world had many animal species similar to Earth’s. Maybe even in a world with magic, if the environment’s close enough, life evolves along similar paths.

That Karen-san recognized the word “deer” probably has to do with the goddess’s translation effect.

Still, it threw me when she casually used the word “sweet potato” during a conversation about vegetables.

There’s no “Satsuma” (Japanese sweet potato) in this world. Sure, the vegetable looked just like one, but that kind of translation feels way too liberal.

I struggled with butchering the deer. I had zero experience.

I just kind of guessed where to cut, slipping the blade in here and there.

Even so, the mithril knife was so absurdly sharp that it made it all possible.

While I was working on it, I remembered my dad’s friend—an old guy who used to hunt for a living. He’d helped out my father, who had nowhere to turn after running away from home with my mom, by getting him work and such.

I don’t think a five-year-old should’ve been watching a deer get cleaned, but the guy probably just wanted to show off. I remember him demonstrating it a few times. Surprising how much of it stuck with me.

Maybe those memories are burned into my mind because they came from the brief stretch of time when I was actually happy.

He passed away from illness when I was six. Then, a year later, my parents died in an accident. Misfortune tends to come in waves.

Anyway, even with all that, I managed to chop the whole thing up, relying on the blade’s sharpness more than anything else.

I grilled the bone-in cuts over an open flame and tore into them.

Karen-san looked slightly put off, so I might need to start prepping vegetable-focused meals for her separately.

Even with my appetite, there was no way I could finish all that meat alone in one sitting.

Karen-san froze the leftovers with magic and stored them in a pot. Freezing alone only takes a low-level spell, but the one she used was special—apparently it won’t thaw unless the caster wills it.

I’d been ready to toss the extra meat, unable to think of a way to preserve it, so that spell was a lifesaver.

Unfortunately, there was nothing we could do about a bath.

Sure, we could conjure up hot water with magic, but we didn’t have a tub. For a Japanese person used to daily baths, this was torture.

Oh, back at the castle, I was able to bathe daily. In this world, most people get by just wiping themselves down—but elves are a different story. With magic, they can prep a bath easily. As long as they have a tub, anyone can use one.

According to Karen-san, on the road we just have to make do with the magic called Purification Clean. It cleans not only the body’s dirt but also the clothes, making it very hygienic.

Still, it somehow feels unpleasant.

So, as a small comfort, I decided to dampen a cloth with hot water and wipe myself down.

Naturally, Raiga was asked to leave the area.

Karen-san agreed with that.

She seemed to think it was better for relaxing and getting a good sleep.

“Yuto-sama, would you like some company?”

She said that, but I politely declined.

Karen-san only knows me as a woman, so even if I told her I used to be male, it probably feels unreal to her—like I’m still a woman of the same sex.

On the other hand, while part of me wanted to see, I felt a surprisingly strong sense of guilt.

Probably because I felt like I would be sneaking up on a defenseless woman while pretending to be someone else.

After all, I even averted my eyes from my own naked body, which I saw every time I bathed or changed clothes during this past week.

While Karen-san wiped herself down, I sat in front of the women’s tent.

Like a guard.

Well, I don’t think Raiga would come sneaking a peek.

If anything, he’s the type who’d say, “If you’re gonna look, then just show me.” But that’s just my prejudice.

…Originally, we had planned to bring only one tent.

Raiga and I were supposed to share a single tent. When we were packing, Karen-san asked, “Won’t that mean you have to share the same bed?” I panicked and hurriedly added a second tent.

Sometimes I forget that my body is female.

A while ago, if it had been Raiga, I probably wouldn’t have minded. But now, right after his confession—especially since he told me, “Have my child.”

—No, wait, maybe that’s a bit off?

Anyway, either way, I couldn’t help but feel my chastity was at risk.

Considering Karen-san came along, I think it was a fortunate outcome. She’d be in danger otherwise, and besides, the three of us sharing a single tent would have been too cramped.

“It’s done. Let’s switch.”

Karen-san’s words broke my train of thought.

Now it’s my turn.

“Phew.”

I entered the tent and quickly undid my travel clothes. After removing my underwear, I dampened a towel with hot water.

Then, I rubbed it against my skin. First my face, then my shoulders—then my chest.

“Nngh…”

I almost let out a sound, but held it back, thinking of Karen-san on the other side of the tent.

This body, remade through the goddess’s intervention, was overly sensitive. It reacted to the slightest touch. It was deeply unpleasant.

After managing to wipe down my whole body, I donned pajamas that were more comfortable than my travel clothes. I purified the travel clothes with Purification Clean for now.

At last, I could breathe a sigh of relief.