TGS - Chapter 55
Chapter 55: Hot Spring
It was evening. The sky was a dusky yellow, and an autumn wind carrying a hint of chill swept through the mountain forest, only to be kept at bay by the steam from the hot spring.
Lotus picked up a cup of fruit wine from the tray beside her and took a small sip.
This wine had a low alcohol content and wasn't very strong. It was more like fermented fruit juice and could be drunk like a beverage.
Across the hot spring pool, positioned almost diagonally from the goddess, Alyuin kept her head down, silently staring at the small patch of water before her as if there were something worth studying there.
The movement of Lotus raising her arm created a ripple in the water. As the waves spread, Alyuin stiffened imperceptibly, then turned and also picked up a cup of fruit wine.
She tilted her head back and downed the drink in a couple of gulps.
The princess's swallowing was a bit rushed. After finishing, she held the empty cup in her hand and began to stare at it blankly, as if the object of her study had moved from the pool into the cup.
Lotus noticed the unusual behavior from across the pool and tilted her head. "Are you very thirsty?"
Alyuin shook her head, paused for a moment, then nodded gravely.
...Lotus thought the princess was being a little strange.
It had been the same when she first entered the pool. She had stepped into the water and immediately leaned against the wall, unmoving. She would respond when spoken to, but she seemed to be constantly avoiding eye contact.
This avoidance was subtle; it didn't look like she was obviously shying away. Her demeanor was quite composed, as if she were just unconsciously averting her gaze.
For as long as the princess had been in the pool, she had been pressed tightly against the wall, as if her back had grown fused to the stone.
Normally, Alyuin loved to be close to Lotus, taking every free moment to press up against her.
Lotus understood this psychology. Children, after all, always wanted to cling to adults to gain a sense of security and contentment. If they couldn't get it, they might feel disappointed and start to doubt themselves. She herself had once experienced this deeply.
Of course, the princess could no longer be considered a child, but perhaps it was a habit retained from her childhood. This behavior was not uncommon, and Lotus was quite indulgent of it.
In comparison, her actions this time were very abnormal.
Lotus thought for a moment, then stood up and waded through the water toward the princess.
This hot spring pool wasn't very deep. When sitting on the edge, the water only came up to one's chest. Even in the deepest part at the center of the pool, the water surface only lapped gently below the waist.
Alyuin could no longer keep her head down. She looked up, her expression as normal as ever, thinking to herself that she should try to keep her eyes only on the goddess's face. However, it was difficult to control where her gaze landed.
Snow-white peaks, a connected mountain range, held up the translucent celestial garment. On their tips grew hardy flowering trees, standing tall and graceful, their blossoms soft.
They were pink.
Alyuin: "..."
Help me, this is going to be the death of me.
Although they had always lived together, the princess had never actually seen the goddess expose anything.
First of all, the goddess's clothes were mostly conjured by herself. At night, with a "one-click change," her daytime attire would instantly become a loose nightgown, which was very convenient.
Even on the rare occasions she needed to change clothes, she wouldn't do it brazenly in front of her. She would always be discreet, and Alyuin was also very self-aware, never trying to peek.
Suddenly seeing such a scene, Alyuin's breath caught for a moment. Her fingertips twitched slightly before she forcibly restrained them.
Lotus waded over and sat down beside her, her usually cool voice tinged with concern.
"Are you not feeling well somewhere?"
Alyuin said calmly, "No, I probably just don't feel like moving while soaking. I get lazy sometimes too."
Lotus deeply agreed. "One should take the time to relax." The past few days in Wash City had been too tense. Tannier was very suitable, and it even had hot springs...
"How long does the caravan plan to stay here?"
"Five or six days, I suppose. Tannier doesn't have many local products, so it's not a place for the caravan to restock. They won't stay long."
As they spoke, the frosty, ethereal fragrance of snowtu flowers mingled with the air she breathed. Perhaps because of the pool water and the rising steam, the scent was a little stronger than usual.
The scent from Lotus's body never had a seductive quality. It was just faint and cool, as if always separated by a layer, no matter the time.
But in the current situation, it seemed exceptionally different.
It wasn't just the scent, but also the faint, intermittent touches. Alyuin lowered her gaze and glanced over. It was Lotus's hair.
Her long black hair, which usually hung below her waist, was now partly spread over the smooth, round stone she leaned against, with most of it submerged in the water. It drifted like clouds with the ripples, inevitably brushing against the princess beside her.
Again, and again.
It wasn't exactly ticklish, but it truly stirred the heart.
Sight, smell, touch, and with Lotus's unhurried voice, hearing was also captivated.
Alyuin's throat unconsciously went dry. A certain thirst quietly gathered, challenging her self-control, making her desperately want to fill her sense of taste as well, to savor the sweetness of the water.
Just like—
The princess's gaze swept across the goddess's face, especially her pale, thin lips. They were unbelievably moist. Their light color always gave one the impulse to change them—for instance, to make their color deeper, their shape fuller.
No, how did my thoughts stray here again?
Alyuin could no longer tell if she wanted more to get up and run away, or to turn and pounce on Lotus to put her fantasies into practice. The former was born of a fear of losing control, the latter from a desire to abandon it.
But reason told her she couldn't let herself act under any circumstances. This was a hot spring, surrounded by water. If Lotus wanted to stop her, it would only take a single thought.
—Though it would be just as effortless elsewhere. No matter where they were, she couldn't bear the consequences of being rejected.
Choose to get up and leave? She could find a hundred reasons; it would be too easy to avoid arousing Lotus's suspicion. The problem was, Alyuin couldn't bear to.
Who could bear to give up such an opportunity?
So she could only endure. Alyuin recalled the solemn temple, the long, drawn-out tones of the priestess singing hymns, those divine and holy scenes, hoping to distract herself.
But it was useless. The first thing that came to mind was a dream she once had, where she grabbed the goddess's wrists, pinned her against the altar, and kissed her deeply.
The desire to defile the sacred and the wish to protect it conflicted with each other, yet strangely seemed to be able to reach an accord.
As it turned out, when the object of one's desire is a god, the common method of finding peace by silently chanting the god's name and recalling one's faith was completely ineffective.
On the contrary, it only added fuel to the fire.
Lotus, her eyes half-closed, roused herself from a relaxed, half-dreaming state. She glanced at the hourglass placed by the side of the pool. They had already been in the water for over half an hour.
Soaking in a hot spring for too long was more harmful than beneficial. Lotus herself was fine, but Alyuin was still human. It was time to get out.
Lotus turned to the princess and was taken aback.
Alyuin's hands were crossed over her lower abdomen, her back was straight, and her expression was one of forbearance. Her cheeks and the rims of her ears were flushed red from the steam of the hot spring.
Lotus: "Alyuin, are you all right?"
Could it be that she's been soaking for too long?
Alyuin closed her eyes, her voice slow and firm. "I understand now."
Lotus: "Hm?"
"To be a ruler, one must endure what ordinary people cannot." The princess's gaze was distant. "Only with a will strong enough, with enough endurance in the face of temptation, can one taste the sweetness of victory."
Lotus: "While that is indeed true..."
But why would she come to such a conclusion while soaking in a hot spring?
The princess, wrapped in a long towel, stepped out of the pool and turned back to look at Lotus.
The goddess's frost-blue eyes held a look of confusion. Her right hand was unconsciously turning her bracelet again, clearly pondering, but she hadn't grasped the deeper meaning of Alyuin's words at all.
Alyuin sighed silently.
"It's nothing," she said nonchalantly. "The hot spring is a temptation, but soaking for too long is bad for you. A person really must resist temptation."
Lotus came to a sudden realization.
Perhaps in some corner of her heart, she felt something was off, but she didn't pay it any mind. When it came to someone she trusted completely, she was fundamentally incapable of suspicion.
And here, the only one Lotus trusted with all her heart was Alyuin.
The goddess rose from the water. The moment she emerged, her long hair and clothes were instantly dry.
"If you like the hot spring, we can come again tomorrow. There should be other types of pools here."
Lotus picked up a clean outer robe and draped it over herself. Just as she was lowering her head to tie the sash, a sudden weight fell upon her back, accompanied by a damp coolness that enveloped most of her body.
The princess was hugging her from behind. Through the soaked linen bath towel, the warmth of the young woman's body was still distinct.
"You dried yourself off, but you didn't care about me."
A deliberately aggrieved voice sounded as Alyuin buried her face in the crook of Lotus's neck and said sullenly.
Droplets of water rolled down from the stray hairs at the side of the princess's face, racing to drip onto Lotus's shoulder and neck before sliding down her fair skin and into her robe.
Lotus didn't turn around. Her fingertips tapped Alyuin's forehead with unerring accuracy, then she ruffled the top of her hair.
"I thought you'd had some great epiphany today and were pondering the philosophy of life, but here you are, back to your games a moment later."
With the goddess's action, the water droplets on both of them vanished, leaving them completely dry.
Alyuin: "It was just a random thought. I'm not one of those sages."
She reluctantly let go, looking proud despite her messy black hair, and didn't forget to emphasize, "Anyway, a great epiphany is impossible."
Lotus chuckled lightly. "I know. Let's go back."
The city of Tannier was quiet and gentle at night.
Perhaps because enduring what ordinary people could not was truly mentally exhausting, Alyuin fell asleep quickly, sinking into slumber almost the moment she closed her eyes.
Her consciousness fell into a dream. It was the temple in Kadera from her memories, the wide avenue leading straight to the sacrificial chamber. The middle section of this path was actually a bridge, spanning a clear pool filled with snowtu flowers.
Alyuin wasn't on the bridge. She was under it.
Along with Lotus.
The dream was subtly different from reality. A mist hung over the pool, and the water was warm, just like the hot spring from today.
Lotus was pressed against a bridge pillar by her body, her face turned slightly to the side. Her eyes were wet, and a pleasant, low gasp escaped her throat.
"No one will see. This is our temple."
She heard herself say.
Unlike the tentative kisses and touches of her previous dreams, this time she explored further down.
The surface of the water stirred with considerable movement, sending waves spreading outward and causing the clusters of snowtu flowers to sway.
Lotus didn't say a word the entire time.
Only at the very end did Alyuin see the goddess raise her arms to embrace her, patting her gently as if to soothe her.
"Don't be afraid. You will always be my favorite child."
Her voice was as gentle as ever, devoid of any other emotion.
...Alyuin was literally scared awake by those words.
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