Dong! The bell tolled four times. Oh, goody! I still had time to walk around the town and bathe before I returned home for the evening. I saw that Maisen was waiting for me at the exit and I quickly walked over to join her.
“Let’s celebrate your enrollment in our dojo by going to the bathhouse first,” she suggested.
I nodded. “Please show me the way,” I requested and started walking.
My bodyguard looked at me and raised her hand to stop me from walking ahead of her. “I know you’re used to walking in front of me. But for now I need you to walk next to me, preferably to my left,” she suggested.
“To your left?” I asked in puzzlement as I looked at her. Ah! “That would allow you to draw your sword freely from the scabbard on your left hip,” I answered my own question.
“Yes,” Maisen nodded. “We’ll need to walk north and then east toward the river. Our dojo is actually in the southern part of town,” she said and started walking.
We walked two blocks north and four blocks east. When we stopped, I saw that we standing in front of a large wooden building. I saw a few smokestacks on the building's roof with smoke being discharged into the air. In the middle of the building was a large opening; further inside was a booth with an old lady standing in front of a large shelf filled with white towels. Also, there were two members of the Watch standing at the entrance. Above the entrance was an old, worn wooden sign with “Bathhouse” written on it.
I looked east and saw a river with a stone bridge over it. The bathhouse was probably built near the river for easy access to the water needed for the baths. I noticed a few common folk washing their clothes in the river. There were also a few people holding fishing rods over the bridge.
Suddenly, a pop-up appeared and it read, “Location ADDED: Bathhouse. +50XP.” I dismissed the message and pointed at the river. "Where does this river lead to?" I asked.
"Oh, this is the Avonne River and it connects to the central part of the kingdom," Maisen said. "This river moves from east to west and is used by merchants to transport goods and food to the western part of the kingdom. We don't have room for farms within the walls of this market town and therefore we rely on food from the farmlands located to our east."
"If the river is moving in a westerly direction, how do our merchants send goods back to the eastern regions?" I asked.
"Oh, the ships can still go back. But they rely on sailors rowing against the current, which doesn't move too fast, thankfully. Merchants can also move goods by land via horse-drawn wagons. From that bridge over the river, there are roads that continue eastward to the eastern border of Merlin," she explained.
"What kind of ships sail in this river? Do you have steamboats?" I asked as my mind started churning with ideas.
"What's a steamboat?" my bodyguard frowned.
"Nevermind," I shook my head and smiled. I added making steamboats to my growing list of money-making ideas. "Let's go to the bathhouse."
Before we entered, Maisen turned toward me. “Okay, I need to give you some instructions. It costs one silver piece to use the public bath. When you pay old Jenga your fee, she will provide you with a towel to bring into the bath. Your clothes and other belongings are to be stored in the lockboxes. You press your finger against the white identifier stone to lock it and then press against the stone again to unlock it. A button next to the stone will show blue if it is available for use and turn red when something is placed into the lockbox. The bath is separated by gender and if you are caught entering the wrong bath you will be sent to the town jail for a week and given ten lashes as punishment. Off-duty members of the Watch use the bathhouse too and will be there to enforce the law. So, I want you to be on your best behavior and avoid arguing with the other patrons,” she lectured. "Remember, now that you are officially a student in our dojo, your dishonor is our dishonor," she added.
“Can I wash my clothes in the bath?” I asked.
“No,” Maisen replied succinctly. Seeing my confused look she continued. “You could wash your clothes by the river. But then you'll be walking around in wet clothes,” she noted. "The staff at The Noble Lady provides you with a bucket of water, right? Well, you could use that to wash your dirty clothes and hang them up by the window to dry. Obviously, you can’t do that to your only set of clothing. So, we’ll go shopping for clothes after our bath," she suggested.
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“Sounds good to me,” I replied.
"Okay, I know it's been a long day at the dojo and you will probably want to spend more time relaxing in the bathhouse. But the longest we can stay there is for an hour. When the bell tolls, I'll meet you in front of the bathhouse again and we'll spend the next hour shopping for clothes and whatever else you need before we return home," Maisen said.
"What if I decide to leave the bath sooner?" I asked.
Maisen looked at me with a confused expression; since the use of the bathhouse was a luxury for the common folk, most people would try to stay as long as possible. "Well, if you hate bathing that much then just call me by my name and tell me that when you're leaving the bath. I'll leave the bath immediately and join you," she answered in a neutral tone of voice. While it was true that she would be very disappointed if I decided to leave early, she would be Honorbound to accompany me whenever I leave the bathhouse. The decision to leave would be mine, not hers.
"Okay, let's go in," I said and walked past the guards. Again, I noticed the faint hue of red and blue auras indicating that the guards were magically equipped. I received a pop-up that read, "Magic detection SUCCESSFUL. +50XP." Buoyed by the unexpected experience gain, I smiled warmly at Jenga and paid the one silver admission fee. In exchange, I received a thick white towel from the hostess. I saw an entrance on both sides of the booth but there was no indication as to which opening I should enter. I looked back at the hostess.
"First time visiting, milord?" Jenga smiled. "Your lordship should enter through the right," she said.
"Thank you," I replied sheepishly and walked through the right entrance. I entered a small corridor that emptied in a large chamber filled with benches and lockboxes. Not surprisingly, no one else was in the room. After all, very few commoners would have the free time to take a bath during the late afternoon hours.
I looked at the lockboxes until I found one with a blue button. I pressed my right thumb against the white identifier stone to open the box. I quickly took off my dirty clothes and squeezed them into the box. I locked it and then wrapped the white towel around my waist.
Even though I was naked I didn't feel cold. The air in the room was moist and felt warm. I saw another corridor on the opposite end of the chamber and I entered the corridor. I walked along the corridor until it emptied into the public bath. I looked around and saw a large pool with a wooden partition at the left end. There were a few patrons in the water but none paid me any attention.
Mindful of the slippery floor, I walked slowly until I reached the bath and dipped my left toe into the water. The water felt very warm. I slowly stepped into the water. The pool was about three feet deep and the ground inside the pool was very warm.
I waddled across the water until I found a free spot next to the partition. I turned around and sat down with my back leaning against the partition. I sunk deeper into the water until my head was under and I started washing my filthy hair. Unfortunately, I forgot to bring soap. I scrubbed my hair and scalp continuously until I could no longer hold my breath. I quickly rose back to the surface and pulled my hair back. I then scrubbed every part of my body within my reach until I felt reasonably clean. I was thoroughly enjoying my bath and decided to get my money's worth by staying in the bath until the hour was up.
Dong! When the bell finally tolled to mark the change in the hour, I reluctantly got out of the water. The hour I had spent in the public bath was relaxing and refreshing. I dried myself with my towel and slowly returned to the lockbox chamber. Once I retrieved my clothes I exited the bathhouse and found Maisen waiting for me. I noted that her skin had turned bright pink, like a cooked lobster! I looked at the back of my hand and saw that my white skin had turned into a similar color.
"Milord, we need to hurry before the shops close at the next change in the hour," my bodyguard said.
"Lead on," I nodded.