Accident (1)

I did manage to use the bathroom, but perhaps because of what had happened earlier, I started feeling uneasy.

I felt bad thinking this about the Hero, but I wanted him to stay with me until I came out.

Of course, nothing like that would happen again, but after being sexually harassed by complete strangers, of all people, while in this body, I was already mentally vulnerable, and the experience had left me very uneasy.

Of course, I couldn't bring myself to say that out loud.

No, how could I ask him to stay with me?

I couldn't say something like that even to my parents.

I wasn't normally this bad; had what happened earlier really been that shocking?

“...”

Phew.. Yeah, it was shocking enough.

Because I'd finally realized that I was a woman now, and that I could become an object of desire to other people. Of course, those bastards hadn't touched my ass out of lust or anything.

Their tone alone made it obvious they had been trying to mock me.

Though I didn't know why.

I looked down at my hands.

I know.

That my body had already become a woman's,

And all the more so because, someday, if I wanted to avoid dying, I would have no choice but to love the Hero. It was no different from being told to choose between simply dying and abandoning myself as a man to love the Hero and become pregnant with his child.

‘Haa..’

I wanted to sigh, but this inconvenient body wouldn't even let me do that.

Of course, I couldn't complain, since that was because I'd cast magic on myself.

Though I could complain about being unable to speak.

Hmm..

I should probably head out soon..

I got to my feet.

I left the bathroom with the impression that bathrooms in a fantasy world were a little.. no, a lot more inconvenient than I'd expected.

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“...”

After dinner, I went into my room and stared blankly up at the ceiling.

I heard that those two bastards who had been carried off by the Hero were dragged away by guards who came after receiving a report.

That was a relief, but the memory of what happened kept surfacing, leaving me feeling strange.

If it were up to me, I'd chase those bastards down and obliterate them with my magic, but since they'd already been taken away by the guards, I didn't particularly want to go after them just for revenge. It would be much better to bury it and forget it.

I shook my head.

Perhaps because he was worried after what happened earlier, the Hero had seriously asked whether we shouldn't get separate rooms this time, despite having plenty of money. To be honest, I'd come to see that the Hero wasn't particularly dangerous and had grown to trust him after traveling with him all this time, so it was much better to stay together.

It wasn't for any other reason.. I was afraid to be alone because I kept thinking that I'd been dropped into this world by myself, that I was the only one here. As soon as he noticed I was uneasy, he immediately dropped the idea of separate rooms and booked the same room as me.

Last time, I'd gone in to wash first, so this time I'd let the Hero go first.

“...”

But this guy..

Does he even have clothes to put on when he comes out?

I looked around.

Did he really just go into the bathroom without any clothes to put on afterward?

I had pushed him in to hurry him along, but still, forgetting the clothes he'd need afterward and going inside was a bit much.. After glancing around nervously, I approached the Hero's bag and carefully opened the zipper.

Inside was a comfortable set of underwear.

I knew it.

I'd figured everyone carried a spare set of comfortable underclothes to wear underneath, so there should be some in his bag, and sure enough, here they were.

“...”

Should I bring them to him?

Taking the underwear, I crept toward the bathroom door, took hold of the handle, and carefully turned it so it wouldn't make a sound. I was afraid it would make me look like a pervert trying to spy on him while he bathed, but I was only there to hand him his underwear.

Surely he wasn't planning to wash up and then come out wearing the same clothes he'd been wearing all that time while we traveled by carriage?

Once I thought that far, I started worrying about the smell that would come from him if we ended up sleeping in the same bed as last time.

If he smelled dirty, or at the very least of sweat, I didn't think I'd be able to sleep.

Of course, when you're adventuring, not being able to wash properly—let alone do laundry—was simply a given, but if we were staying at an inn like this, I couldn't help wanting to sleep a little more comfortably.

I was a mage, so I could at least clean the dust off his clothes.

When I opened the door and went inside, I saw the bathroom door and the basket with his clothes piled on it. Since he'd gone straight to wash because of me, it was only right that I prepare something for him to change into.

I wasn't interested in seeing some man's body, either.

The only reason I was bringing his underwear like this in the first place was that I was worried he'd come out naked and wanted to leave it there beforehand.

Besides, I'd seen my own male body every time I bathed before becoming like this, so I had no interest in it and didn't want to see one now.

I'll just leave the underwear, take the clothes he was wearing, and wash them with magic.

As I approached the basket, I saw the clothes the Hero had been wearing.

First, I'd take all his clothes out, empty the basket, and put the underwear on top..

But did these need washing?

Based on what I'd tried on my own clothes, the Clean spell only removed dust, so I didn't know whether it could get rid of smells. Should I take this chance to check whether they smelled, and if they smelled too strongly, try removing the odor with another spell?

I did feel a little bad experimenting on the Hero's clothes, though..

I brought the clothes to my nose and sniffed..

Clunk, screeech

“Phew.. Uh..?”

“..?”

Uh.

Huh..?

“Lumia..?”

Wasn't he washing just now..?

Apparently never imagining that I'd be here, the Hero stood before me completely naked, just as he had been at birth.

I barely managed to drag my gaze away and whipped my head around.

This is fucking insane.. What the hell am I doing?!

“Um.. er.. why do you have my clothes..?”

“!!!”

W-wait a second!

It's a misunderstanding.

This really is a misunderstanding.

But I was caught in such an incriminating situation that I couldn't explain myself at all. I tossed the underwear I'd brought earlier onto the basket and fled the bathroom.

Fortunately, the Hero didn't call after me.

The problem was that in my haste, I'd brought all of the Hero's clothes out with me. I couldn't throw them down while running away, and I couldn't put them back in the basket either, since it already held the underwear I'd placed there. Unable to make a proper decision, I simply ran out with everything in my arms.

“...”

What should I do?

Does he think I'm a pervert?

If he really was a regressor, wouldn't the old Lumia have acted like this..?

Could he suspect me?

I had all sorts of worries, but for now, I needed to figure out what to do with these clothes first. To have an excuse ready when the Hero came out, I at least needed to get rid of their smell.

I used magic on the clothes, hoping they'd take on the scent of the perfume I remembered. Fortunately, perhaps because the spell worked properly this time, the clothes now smelled nice.

This should do, right..?

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“Lumia..?”

What happened?

As soon as I came out after washing, the first thing I saw was none other than Lumia, holding my clothes to her face and sniffing them.

Of course, it wasn't hard to understand why Lumia had done that.

Since Lumia couldn't hear or speak, her nose was unusually sensitive compared with other people's.

Even before returning to the past, Lumia used to cast a spell whenever she thought a smell was a little too strong.

Besides, she'd come in so hurriedly that she hadn't brought clothes to wear out, so it made sense that she'd come into the bathroom to get them.

If I thought about it rationally, that was probably it.

If only I were thinking rationally.

“Ngh..”

It was hard to hold back.

To make matters worse, the person I liked had been unknowingly tempting me all day, and now I'd seen her clutching my clothes and even sniffing them.

As a man, there was only so much I could take.

I was already on the verge of exploding.

“I'm going crazy..”

Of course, she probably hadn't done any of it directly or intentionally.

Most of it had been to look after me, after all. Perhaps thanks to everything that had happened so far, it seemed I had managed to earn some of her affection; whenever she saw me, she would give me a smile with her eyes.

Besides, she'd held my hand so I wouldn't get lost, wiped food from the corner of my mouth for me, and straightened my disheveled clothes. Before the meal earlier, she'd even taken off the robe and pointed hat she normally hardly ever removed.

It felt as though each and every one of her actions was tempting me.

To top it off, she'd even seen me naked earlier..

One thing after another was happening that had never happened before my return.

What was going on?

Was this a side effect of returning to the past?

Or was she, like me..?

“Damn it..”

That couldn't be it..

More importantly, what mattered right now was whether I could hold out.

Should I relieve myself alone..?

For a long while, I sat slumped against the wall with both hands covering my face.