After arriving back in Karshis and collecting our pay, we head home. As soon as we get inside, we strip off our adventuring gear and dump it in the mess room for cleaning. Master Liina has me run a bath right away, and she strips completely naked, right in the entrance.
“Wash our clothes, I'm going to go take a bath.” She groans, stretching up and bending in a way that makes me avert my eyes.
For just a moment, I'm flustered, before her command registers. I'm supposed to wash all of this, right now? When we just got back? Then I shake my head. “Yes, Master.”
If she wants me to wash the clothes, I'll wash them. She already told me, that's my duty as her slave. She's done hers already, caring for me and protecting me, even though it cost her... well, that.
Thinking as much, I watch her walk through the living room, ignoring her nakedness to confirm that she isn't limping anymore.
I sigh lightly, relieved, then get to work washing all our gear after our trip.
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It takes a while, in the little mess room right near the entrance with nothing but a water tap to get hot water for washing with. I'm obviously getting better at this after months of washing clothes by hand. Once everything is set to dry, I head over to the bathroom myself. A quick peak into the bedroom along the way reveals Master Liina lying in bed already.
Once in the bathroom, I check the temperature of the water in the tub, and it's definitely started to cool off, so I turn the tap to add some more hot water. Then I sit down and start to scrub away the filth after our half-month long journey.
Ugh, I'm dirty and nasty all over, not to mention hairy in places I really don't want to be... Haven't been able to shave since I came to this world, and it feels awful.
I look around some, but of course there's nothing like a razor here. How many times have I looked already? Besides, Master Liina is literally a fox-person, what would she ever need to shave for?
Maybe... maybe I can ask? I've wondered about asking for certain things that would make my life much more pleasant a few times, but I've never had the courage before. With everything that happened on our trip though, maybe...?
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After I finish washing up and take my bath, I head into the bedroom, dressed in some house clothes, wonderfully loose and comfortable after so long in my gear.
Standing in the doorway hesitantly, I gulp. It's like a mixture of fear and embarrassment, and no small amount of shame, all coming together to make me blush deeply as I stand, trying to work up the courage to speak.
“Yumi.” Master Liina's voice makes me jolt. Then she asks, “You aren't feeling needy again, are you?”
At her implication, my whole face is instantly on fire as I wave my hands frantically. “N-n-no!” My head whips back and forth.
“Hoho?” she chuckles, but I don't think she believes me.
She looks about ready to pounce on me, so I force the words out, “I w-was just- I- I need something!” With my eyes squeezing shut, she's quiet for a few seconds.
Then she asks, “Hmm? What do you need?” I swallow and peek my eyes open a little, to see her sitting up in bed. When I don't answer for a few seconds, she prompts, “Yumi, tell me.”
With one last shuddering breath, I say, “I need... razors.”
“Like blades? What for?” Now she just sounds curious.
“W-well, for... shaving...”
Oh my god I want to crawl into a hole...
“Shaving, huh? Right, that's a thing humans do to groom themselves, isn't it?” She sounds so unconcerned with all of this that it's just making me more embarrassed. Why does she have to buy all my things for me, and why does this have to be my first request...?
“Alright, let's get you what you need.”
“Huh?” Just like that? She agreed so easily!
Seeing my surprise, Master Liina asks, “What?”
I slowly mumble my way through a response. “I just, I don't know. You said yes so easily. Isn't shaving, like, uhh, I don't know... weird to you... or... something?”
“Haha, no.” Practically bounding up off the bed, she ruffles my hair. “I don't need to shave, but I absolutely understand the importance of keeping oneself well groomed. This coat doesn't take care of itself you know.”
Oh, that... makes a lot of sense. She literally has a Grooming skill over level fifty...
“O-oh...”
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After changing into some town clothes, we head out.
“Hmm, where would they have something like this, I wonder...” Master Liina wonders aloud.
“Well, they were classified as personal hygiene products in my world, kind of like shampoo and conditioner, so maybe wherever you get those?” I suggest, trying to keep my embarrassment under control since she's so understanding about this. I've also been wondering about other personal hygiene products I've been living without since coming here, but...
Even after asking her about razors, mentioning that... I would probably just die of embarrassment...
Besides, I'm the one who washes all the clothes anyway...
“Mm, let's just check the general store first,” she says with a few nods.
It's a quick trip there, where the shopkeeper eyes me a little, but doesn't say anything as long as I'm standing with Master Liina. She actually finds the razors easily enough, and lotion that's labeled to work for shaving. It doesn't exactly look like shaving cream, but I guess it should do the trick.
As for the razors, they're the old fasioned big, single blade things, like you see in old barber shop movies and stuff. No safety razors in magical fantasy worlds, I guess...
Of course, all of the stuff is labeled for men. Which... actually makes sense when I think about it. Plenty of male altraska are human enough that they would need to shave their faces.
Hmm, there are plenty of females that are also human enough that I'd expect them to shave, but... maybe it's a cultural thing that they don't? I know some cultures back on Earth were like that, but who knows?
Turning my thoughts away from that, I follow Master Liina through the shop as she purchases the items, and then we return right home.
That's when Master Liina tells me to show her how I shave.
What.
Despite all of my flustered, panicked stammering, she won't be denied. I don't even know how to use razors like this, I feel like I'm going to slice myself open... I'm forced to ignore the huge, staring fox-woman and turn all my attention to the task.
As it turns out, it's way easier than I expected. Despite the terrifyingly sharp razor without any safety anything, it's that exact sharpness that allows it to slide along like butter. It goes through the hair with unnerving ease, and I'm done in like, half the time it used to take because I don't need to keep rinsing the thing after every single stroke of the blade. A single piece of metal can't get clogged.
One part of my mind questions why the hell we use safety razors on Earth. The other part tells me I'll understand the first time I nick myself.
Despite needing to focus basically all of my attention on not maiming myself, that tiny fraction of my attention left over ends up screaming in horror as I shave my more... private parts... with Master Liina staring with rapt attention.
I'm just going to put that memory in a box and never think about it again.
Then I finish and I... actually feel clean. And smooth. And so comfortable. No more awful, scratchy, sweaty hair where it shouldn't be...
I flop down on the bed, just rubbing my legs against each other. And on the soft bedsheets. I'm dressed in a skirt for the first time since... well, since Master Liina had me try it on before buying it for me.
I just don't feel gross. Maybe not sexy, I don't really know what that feels like, but still infinitely less self-conscious about how I look.
Which might just be silly. Part of me reminds myself that I'm still applying my old cultural standards. For all I know, even humans in this world don't shave like this.
Then screw them. Because this is wonderful.
“My my, this is certainly new,” Master Liina suddenly speaks up, a wry grin on her face.
I flush a little. “S-sorry, Master. Am I, umm, not supposed to be on the bed?” I ask nervously. We still haven't worked out our sleeping arrangements.
“Haha, not what I'm talking about. I've never seen you so... comfortable with your own body. Were you that in need of grooming? You were at it for a while in there.”
“U-umm...” I flounder a little when she points that out, but then I nod anyway. “Yeah, I... really was. I haven't really been able to clean myself properly since I first came to Verilz. I've just been... I don't know... ignoring it, I guess...” Which reminds again me of the other thing I've been ignoring...
“Hmm, that's no good. It's obvious that you need to be clean to be happy. From now on, you are to keep yourself groomed, including shaving, whenever you're able.”
“Yes, Master.”
Then I lower my head. I should tell her. I've never been able to deal with it myself, but maybe she can...? But it's so embarrassing...
“Yumi?” I look back up at her guiltily, and she just says, “Tell me.”
Despite any shame, embarrassment, or hesitation, she gets it out of me. Stammered and forced, word by word at times.
Judging by her reactions, the altraskan reproductive cycle is completely different than the human one. Or maybe just mine. I don't know how it works for humans here either.
But by the end of it, she's shaking her head. “So you've just been bleeding into your clothes because you didn't know what to do? Come on Yumi, that's not sanitary, you're a smarter girl than that,” Master Liina scolds me.
“I- I know...” I respond with my head lowered.
“You should have come to me about this sooner.” That stern tone makes my heart quiver with guilt...
By the time she's done admonishing me for not relying on her more, she's swatted me on the butt twice. It still stings as she brings me out again to search for the hygiene products I need, if they even exist...
I just follow along behind, feeling like a dog with its tail between its legs. I don't think she's ever been so disappointed in me before. Thankfully, she eases up after she finds what I need, though she ends up needing to go to a store specifically for products slaves might need to find them. I guess they have shops like this too...
To cheer me up a little, she keeps her promise and buys me another set of town clothes to replace the ones that got destroyed back in Rialetra. Then we head home again, as the day is coming to a close.