Night Wind on Wet Hair

I would have at least liked to get dressed first… but the distance between us and the approaching party made that impractical.

The fact that they were using lights suggested they weren't bandits, but if they turned out to be hostile, I'd be exposing a fatal opening.

Covered by nothing but a towel, I would have preferred a monster I wouldn't mind being seen by rather than a person.

Only Master was allowed to see my bare skin.

Everyone had kept weapons within reach in case something happened, so we readied them and waited.

What emerged were two knights and several attendants.

"… A bath, is it?"

They looked at us with bewildered expressions.

I held the towel in place with my left hand and drew my sword.

The attendants were clearly ogling us, unlike the knights. I could tell.

It was not a pleasant feeling.

"Wait, put your weapon away. We have no intention of fighting. You can see we haven't drawn ours."

One of the knights held up a hand to stop us.

Indeed, none of them had hands on their weapons.

Judging they meant no harm, I exchanged glances with the others and we lowered our guard. But we didn't let go of our weapons.

"… Sorry about interrupting your bath. I'll handle things from here. The rest of you, step back and turn around."

"Yes, ma'am!"

Everyone except one knight retreated and faced away.

The remaining knight removed her helmet, revealing a woman with short hair.

Knowing we were no longer being watched by men eased some of the tension.

"Whew, you've finally let your guard down. Allow me to apologize for the rudeness. We never expected to find anyone bathing out here."

"No… So what brings knights all the way out here?"

"We detected the labyrinth's pacification and came to investigate. We'd been told the viscount had adventurers coming to clear it soon, but we didn't really believe it."

"I see. Could we get dressed first, though?"

"Of course. I'll turn around too if it bothers you."

I set my weapon down, took out a fresh towel, and dried off.

I gave my hair a rough toweling as well, then pulled on my spare underclothes and a change of clothes.

Only the rustle of fabric broke the silence of the night.

I'd hurried, so my hair was still damp, but it couldn't be helped.

After confirming everyone else had finished changing, I called out to the knight.

"We're good now."

"Are you? Then I'll call them back."

The group that had been facing away returned.

"Can we take it that the Poison Labyrinth has been cleared?"

"Yes. We collected the deepest magic stone as well, so it shouldn't reactivate for a while."

When I said that, I could see the attendants visibly relax.

The other knight silently chided them with a look.

It must have been a truly troublesome labyrinth for them.

The female knight cleared her throat and spoke.

"As you've seen, that labyrinth is a real problem. Once it goes dormant, it stays quiet for a long time, but when it's active for too long, the monsters inside start spilling out. We've suffered no small number of casualties. We can handle ordinary monsters well enough, so long as there aren't too many, but the poison is another matter entirely."

"So that's why you had us handle the clearing instead of the local garrison."

"… We simply called in the experts. It was a wise decision by the lord. And indeed, you dealt with it swiftly. Thanks to that, my soldiers won't suffer any further losses. You have my gratitude."

"We just did our job. We're being paid for completing the quest, after all."

"Even so."

This female knight probably held a fairly high position.

The fact that a knight was willing to bow her head to adventurers made that clear enough.

But I hadn't forgotten that they'd had us attempt the clearing without providing any information.

"Would you mind telling me how you went about clearing it? For reference."

"Well…"

I glanced at Ramiza-san. She mouthed "no," so I shook my head.

"Sorry, but we'd prefer to keep that to ourselves."

"Hm, I see. Fair enough. The viscount is quite pleased about the labyrinth's pacification. He said that if we encountered the adventurers, he'd very much like to invite them for a proper welcome. You'll come, won't you?"

Her face said she wasn't entertaining the possibility of refusal.

It wouldn't be wise to turn down a noble's invitation without good reason, either.

I looked up at the sky.

Only the moon and stars gave off light; beyond them, there was nothing but darkness.

"Right now?"

"Yes. Surely you'd rather sleep in a proper bed than camp out here?"

"Well, that's true, but…"

My resolve wavered slightly.

Even though I'd gotten used to it, sleeping on the ground was rough.

No matter how many blankets you laid out, your body still ached the next morning.

"We'll prepare breakfast for you as well, of course. You'll likely meet the viscount over lunch. He's a man who understands adventurers."

"If we're free to leave once that's done, then we'll come."

I'd met this viscount once before, at a salon.

He hadn't looked at me with contempt, so he was probably one of the better nobles.

Accepting a few words of appreciation shouldn't be a problem.

I just didn't want to be held up for long.

I wanted to get back and see Master as soon as possible.

"… Understood. I'll convey that. Please, follow me."

"Sure. Give us a moment to pack up."

We asked them to step back, then set about packing our gear and taking down the tent.

After cooling the stone bath's contents with water, Alexia-san shattered it to pieces.

The attendants looked impressed.

"Sorry for deciding on my own."

"It's fine. Anyone would have made the same call, and you are the leader, Azu."

"Exactly. Though being walked in on during our bath was a bit much."

"I just wish they'd left it at 'good work' and been on their way. If I don't get to sleep soon, my skin's going to suffer."

I was relieved that my handling of the situation hadn't been too far off.

We gathered our things, did a visual check for anything forgotten, and headed over to the knight.

"Um, Dame Knight?"

"All set? Oh, right, I never introduced myself. I'm Moomya. I'm no noble, so no need for formalities."

"Understood, Moomya-san."

"Then let's be off."

With Moomya in the lead, we followed.

My wet hair felt a little cold in the night wind.

After a short walk, we came upon a city enclosed by low walls.

This must have been the viscount's territory.

Moomya knocked on the gate and had it opened.

"Welcome to the city of Ludea."

Led along, we set foot for the first time into a city we'd never seen before.