Aida woke up the next morning significantly refreshed - her senses were back to normal, and she was able to trace faint outlines of the few bodies passing around outside of her room. A quick check of her mana pools indicated they had leveled out to a somewhat balanced level - her fire level was still low, though, despite the hot spring soak. It was fascinating how two opposing elements could come together in one medium.

She carefully folded the futon and blankets Caleb had provided her last night, making sure to tuck them with her rucksack next to the door so she could grab them quickly if Connie needed the room for a guest. Connie had also left her a simple yukata to change into.

Padding over to the reception counter, Connie quickly came to receive her. She took a good look at Aida, holding her shoulders as she looked over her visage from all angles.

“You’re looking much better!” Connie said, relief coming through her smile. “Have you eaten yet?”

Aida shook her head, and Connie ushered her to the family wing.

“I left my sleeping things and bag in the massage room—“

“That’s fine, we won’t be using that one today.”

“Is there anything I can do to help today?” Aida asked earnestly. “Caleb had told me that you would be willing to teach me your acupressure techniques so I could help out on the rest days.”

Connie’s eyes lit up. “Oh, yes! I’m so happy you want to learn.” She efficiently prepared a hearty breakfast tray for Aida, plopping massive portions of food into her bowls before setting her down in front of the warm hearth. “Eat up, and I’ll see if there’s anything I can quickly train you on.”

“It doesn’t have to be acupressure and mana today,” Aida added hastily. “It can be anything. Helping check customers in, cleaning the changing rooms - anything. I mean it.”

Connie blinked wetness out of her eyes. “You’re so sweet. Let’s talk about it after you finish eating. I’ll meet you at the reception desk.” Giving her a quick wave, Connie hurried out.

Aida ate as quickly as possible, blowing on the porridge between every bite. She could hear voices out in the courtyard. There weren’t too many customers yet, but it seemed like regulars were beginning to trickle in, as Connie - and occasionally John, as he passed through - chatted with the customers.

Finally, she couldn’t eat anymore. Connie had clearly been working on autopilot, serving her the same amount of food she would normally give John and Caleb. She found lids to cover her bowls of leftovers before hurrying out to the courtyard as well.

Several customers smiled at her as she passed them. She smiled back, feeling her body automatically straighten into Customer Service mode. Connie looked up from the counter when Aida arrived, gesturing her over to the other side with a smile.

Connie quickly ran Aida through the check-in procedure. It was very simple, since the records kept were all analog. The male and female lockers had their keys on different-colored cords, and all Aida had to do was note down the time in the logbook (there was a convenient clock on the desk in front of her) of when she first handed keys over after receiving payment, and again when a customer checked out. If they ran out of keys, then she would direct the customers to please wait either in the zen garden or at the small seating area in front of the reception counter after assigning them numbers.

“If you could please manage the reception for now, I will go see if John can take over when we have a customer who won’t mind being practiced on,” Connie said to Aida. She winked. “Grandmama Rylla is coming in before noon, and she’s very forgiving.”

Aida smiled tentatively. She liked Connie, and didn’t want to ruin her business’s reputation - a far cry from how she felt about her previous jobs. Hopefully Grandmama Rylla really is forgiving.

The morning went quickly - Caleb stopped by very briefly, looking harried, to let her know that he had made arrangements for them to take a public transport golem back to school in the late afternoon so they could get dinner at school. Before she could do more than nod, he had disappeared.

Shortly before noon, a tiny old woman with a pleasant round face and a white bun high on her head arrived. She wore a red short-sleeved dress with a wide purple cloth belt. She carried a cloth bag that was much too large for her, clanking and rattling with every movement.

“Good morning, pretty young lady,” she quavered. Her words lilted with smiles, and she sounded very…grandmotherly. “One hot spring session followed by a massage, please.”

“Of course,” Aida said pleasantly. “May I have your name?”

“Rylla Klin, though everybody calls me Grandmama,” she said cheerfully.

“Grandmama! You are here early.” Connie bustled over, beaming at Grandmama. “Your session today will be on the house, if you would be so kind…” Grandmama’s smile lines deepened as she glanced askance at Connie. “…I was hoping I could teach Aida here some basic massage techniques, and—“

“You’re looking for a practice golem!” Grandmama chuckled merrily. “Of course, I don’t mind. Don’t you worry, pretty lady, you won’t hurt me - go as hard as you like. I’m stiff as a board, so if you manage to crack me at all, I may have to pay you for your service anyway!”

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With a cheery smile, she waved at Aida and Connie before tottering towards the dressing room.

“She seems very nice,” Aida said, charmed.

“She’s our best customer,” Connie confided. “She has been instrumental in our word-of-mouth marketing.”

“Connie! Hello, Aida,” John arrived, wiping his brow with a handkerchief. “Caleb is infusing the water reservoirs right now, so I can come take over. How are you liking the front desk, Aida?”

“It’s going well,” Aida nodded. “I hope I can eventually be of more help.”

Connie beamed. “Caleb mentioned that we should check with the school to see if we can sponsor some assignments. That would be helpful, wouldn’t it? If you don’t find an assignment you like, you can come here on your rest days.”

“That sounds great,” Aida said enthusiastically. The greedy part of her had been sullen about losing her chance to learn anything yesterday, but if she could have other opportunities to visit the Tulvers - and fulfill a school requirement - that was most ideal.

Grandmama’s arrival was only the beginning. Slews of patrons began arriving, in groups of twos and threes. Even with John’s help in handling customers and dispensing keys, they were so busy there was no further opportunity for them to chat. Connie had departed to handle the massage treatments of the few who purchased the package (the majority of customers seemed satisfied with just the hot spring soak - and Aida could see why. The price for the massage was eight silver baen, while one hour of hot spring soaking was three silver baen).

Aida was bringing the linen hamper of used robes and towels out of the women’s changing room when Grandmama stepped through the curtain, a very satisfied expression among her wrinkles. “Hello, pretty lady! Is it time for you to break my back in?”

“I’ll give it my best shot! Please come this way.”

Aida lugged the hamper to the front desk, where she was relieved to see Connie resting.

“Oh, excellent, thank you dear - Grandmama, are you ready for your massage now?” Connie asked, beaming as she jumped to her feet. She guided the two of them down the veranda, to a single-person massage room next to the one Aida had spent the night in. Ushering the two in, Connie slid the door shut behind them, muffling the conversations and laughter outside. Grandmama had already started disrobing, completely comfortable and familiar with the drill.

“Thank you again for your cooperation,” Connie said to Grandmama, with Aida echoing her sentiment. Grandmama waved the thanks away genially, bringing out a stool from under the massage bed so she could climb up.

“Now, Aida, you remember how I treated you last time, yes? It is the same, you hunt for passages where the mana is blocked…”

Connie was an efficient instructor, never wasting any words. Aida could tell Connie’s mana senses were duller than her own, not noticing blockages in Grandmama Rylla’s body until her hands approached the stagnant pools; yet, despite her “blindness,” she worked with the speed of competence and experience.

Under Connie’s tutelage, Aida learned how to massage the body’s muscles, loosening the fibers so that the mana she applied could more easily permeate the flesh, clearing Grandmama’s mana blockages more readily.

As she worked, she noticed that her Heal overlay had improved resolution. Grandmama’s body was green overall, but underneath the layer of green, she had another overlay, one that looked like a stick figure that aligned with Grandmama’s limbs. Along the stick limbs, she saw swollen nodes, which as she worked towards, she could see lined up with the blockages she sensed.

Fascinated, Aida burrowed her knuckles into Grandmama’s muscles, separating the fibers while needling the blockages with her mana. Grandmama let out a moan, making Aida stop.

“Are you all right?” Aida asked, embarrassed. She hadn’t been paying attention to Grandmama’s comfort at all, as she was so focused on clearing the blockages. Like popping bubble wrap.

“No, no, keep going,” Grandmama’s voice was lethargic. “Connie, dear, you have a natural talent on your hands here.”

“Don’t I know it,” Connie said proudly. “She is a student at Maglica Academy, so it’s not a surprise that she picked this up so quickly.”

“You are?” Grandmama turned her head towards Aida. “Are you classmates with young Caleb?”

“Yes,” Aida said simply, continuing to pop Grandmama’s blockages.

“Not just classmates - they are good friends!” Connie continued. Now that she was confident Aida knew what she was doing, she settled back to gossip. “Caleb brought Aida and her friend Suelina here one moon cycle ago, and Aida expressed interest in learning acupressure, so they came this rest day to learn.” Connie let out a dramatic sigh. “The school is working the students so hard; Caleb didn’t have time to come back until this cycle, but then unfortunately…”

Grandmama gasped at all the right moments as Connie recounted Aida and Caleb’s harrowing journey. She clucked her tongue disapprovingly at how late the Border Stronghold arrived. “They’ve known the monster attacks are becoming more prevalent this past moon cycle, you would think they would have more patrols out.”

“When did the increase in attacks start?” Aida asked, unable to help herself.

“Hm. Well, we’ve heard of some close calls from some hunters during the Eighth Moon? But nobody started reporting incidents to the Border Stronghold until the Ninth Moon - that was when one of the lads from the Death Cullers was grievously injured, so that group made the first official report. Everyone had thought the hunters’ near misses were just a result of their working independently, you see. The Borders sent out an announcement warning to be more careful in the middle of the Ninth, promising to send out more patrols - but who knows how that’s going right now.” Grandmama peered up at Aida. “Am I done?”

Aida flushed. She had stopped massaging Grandmama, enthralled with the story as she was. “Just a few more.” She resumed her treatment, as Grandmama sighed in satisfaction.

“I certainly hope you and young Caleb aren’t going to go back to school on foot.”

“Caleb said he made arrangements for us to take a golem back later this afternoon.”

“Oh, most excellent. I would hate for something to happen to you.” Grandmama fixed Aida with a stern eye from her position on the massage table. “You and Caleb are the future of our society, and if we lost you we will be devastated. Not just lady Connie and mister John here, but me as well. So mind you take care of yourself, you hear?”

Aida nodded, feeling her throat close up at the heartfelt insistence. It was so odd, having literal strangers - people she had spent less than a day with - openly show so much care for her wellbeing.

Congratulations! You have learned Regen (Lv1). +5 RP