Chapter 0067
While the play between the young mother and the pink haired girl was going on, Tempest was following the plain girl, anxious for the promised bath.
The plain girl didn’t disappoint Tempest. She brought Tempest to a room billowing with steam as 4 massive pots filled with boiling water humidify the room like those sauna rooms Tempest read about but never dared ventured into because steam forms water droplets which Mizu can use to communicate with Tempest.
Back on Earth, Tempest avoids all forms of water, electricity and windy places if she could. These elements intensified her hallucination, and she was at the phase where she was trying to retain her sanity.
Now she wanted to dive right into the boiling pot. In fact, she moved to do so but was stopped by the plain girl. “Those boiling pots aren’t for bathing. You would be boiled alive if you jumped in.”
Tempest wanted to say boiling water does nothing to her since she has affinities with water spirits. She snapped her mouth shut before she could say anything. The red mage didn’t know if the water would boil her alive or if she’d be fine due to her affinities.
As if sensing her question, Ventus answered for Mizu, You can withstand higher than normal temperatures due to your affinities with water and lightning but you are not completely immune to boiling water yet. As you grow in strength, this amount of heat won’t bother you at all. Until then it is better to act like a regular human. We don’t want you to get complacent. The Cardinal Realm is not Earth.
Tempest grumbled but took the warning to heart.
Besides, she doesn’t want to be boiled into soup.
“Then how are we supposed to bathe?”
“You bathe in those wooden buckets over there, but I recommend you rinse off before you do.” the plain girl pointed to the wooden buckets beside the only unlit stove in the room.
Tempest examined the wooden bucket in question. Each bucket was about a meter high and two meters long, big enough for a small girl like Tempest to take a bath in without any problems.
Suddenly a thought came into Tempest’s mind. She examined the room closely. There were five large traditional Asian looking stone stoves with an opening at the bottom for the fire and an opening at the top where the massive pots were. Aside from the large wooden buckets, there was firewood pile high in the other corner of the room. On top of the firewood was some cloth that can pass as towels.
Tempest wasn’t interested in what was in the room, but what wasn’t in the room, namely a privacy screen. Tempest was sure people come in and out of the room all the time to fetch water and Tempest isn't interested in giving people a free peep show.
“Is there nothing set up for privacy here?”
“If you want privacy, you go rent a room in an inn. Here you have to make do with what you got.” the plain girl said in her dead monotone voice. “I thought you didn’t care where you bathe as long as you get a bath?”
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When the plain girl brought it up, Tempest didn’t quibble. She intends to get a quick bath then go rent a room in an inn and get a proper bath there.
“Okay.”
The plain girl filled one the large bucket with hot water and then drew a smaller bucket and poured it over Tempest’s head once she disrobes.
“Hot! Ah, it’s hot!” Tempest complained.
“Did you want to dive right into the boiling water? Well, I’m granting your wish.” the plain girl said then proceed to pour more water on Tempest. After she was satisfied she got the dirty grime off the naive little girl did she allow Tempest to enter the large wooden bucket.
“Heaven.” Tempest moaned. After expending a massive amount of energy killing the bandits and then getting elbows deep in dirty fluids, soaking in a nice hot tub is heavenly.
Suddenly, a red hair girl entered the room without knocking, startling Tempest from her warm refreshing bath.
“A customer is calling for you specifically.” the redhead said in a serious voice to the plain girl.
“The main business?”
“No. These people don’t look like regulars. They look like cultivators.”
“Do you know what they are after?” the plain girl continued her questioning.
“It looks like they are looking for something and are willing to pay handsomely for it.”
The plain girl shared a look of understanding with the redhead then snorted her derision. They both knew they will never see a copper of the reward money even if they told everything they knew to the cultivators. If they know too much they might be silenced instead. Their lives are cheap after all. They have no one to make a fuss about them should they go missing.
“I’ll go see what is happening. Could you take care of the little girl in the tub? Send her out of here when she is done.”
“I will do my utmost best to send her out of here after she is done.” the redhead swore solemnly. She and the plain girl have been together for two years, and during that time the plain girl has taken care of her to the best of her abilities. They couldn’t avoid all the punishment meted out, but it is less than they would normally have suffered.
The redhead was grateful to the plain girl for all of her assistance. During their time together, the plain girl never asked her for anything. Now that she was entrusted with an important job, the redhead intends to complete it with her utmost ability.
The plain girl left, leaving a naked Tempest and a full dressed stranger redhead in an awkward position.
Surprisingly, Tempest didn’t feel shy around the new stranger like a mother doesn’t feel shy when she’s bathing her 4-year-old child. Tempest felt a closeness when she stared at the twinkle in the light emerald eyes framed by long dark lashes in a soot-covered face.
Yes, soot-covered face. It didn’t look like she was disguising her face either. It seems she works in an area where there is soot in the air at all times. The new girl reminds Tempest of the coals miners back in the early 20th century where protected equipment wasn’t the norm for coal miners. The black soot would be everywhere, on their faces, on their clothes and sadly, in their lungs. The coal miners were so used to the dirt and grime; it sank into their bones. No amount of washing could get it out of them.
Except the new girl had a healthy aura around her. Life hadn’t beaten her down yet like it did the plain girl. There is a tenacious vitality woven through her very core.
“You should hurry up and finish your bath.” The redhead said, giving Tempest a gamine grin, displaying her mischievousness side, as if the redhead would play a prank on her if she let her guard down.
“I’m done,” Tempest said. The relaxed mood she was in previous evaporated faster than water poured onto the lava. Although the two didn’t act suspicious before, Tempest can sense the tension in the air.
She would fight if she had to but her newly acquired acquaintance wouldn’t appreciate it so it is best if she did what they were hinting at, skedaddle.
Tempest brought out a new set of clothing from her space ring and got dressed. The clothing wasn’t to her taste but beggars can’t be choosers. She made a mental note to purchase a set of clothes in the next town.
The red mage wouldn’t mind buying more clothes. Although she didn’t have ample funds, she was confident she can easily earn more money.
Tempest was also testing the temperament of the new girl.
When one displays one’s wealth, several reactions occur. The people around them can look on with awe, envy, hatred, jealousy, arrogance or mocking. The last 2 is due to them having more money, status or prestige than the one displaying the wealth.
“This is why Gatsby can never get Daisy in the book.” her snobby sister said during her more lucid moments. Even she had more money than Athena, the disease strikes everyone equally. “New money flaunting their wealth is a joke to those who come from old money. And dirty new money like Gatsby can never stand a chance against even the declining old family. Those born with money know a noble manner and elegant etiquette combined with an intelligent mind is better than the floozy that flaunt their wealth. Old money knows new money wouldn’t last if they are trying to squeeze into their circle.”
Athena didn’t understand the conversation back then. She didn’t have money, and she didn’t interact with society. She knew she was an oddball regardless of how hard she tried to fit in so never tried.
It was sad she was more comfortable in an insane… ahem hospital than in society.
There were only hints of impatiences and worry on the redhead's face. The negative emotions never surfaced on the newcomer’s face. If she was faking her reaction then she deserves an Oscar and Tempest concedes she’d been duped by a pro and will learn from the experience.
Tempest relaxed her guard in front of the red head to the point where she didn’t notice the man barging in the room until the loud bang of the door startled her.