Will I End Up As a Hero or a Demon King (WN)

Chapter 128

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Chapter 128 – The State of Baths in the Different World

When I returned to the room with the food from the stall under my arm, Riste was looking outside, drinking wine.

“Sorry to keep you waiting!”

“Why did you go off by yourself? I wanted to go with you, you know?”

“Huh? When I thought I’d better hurry, my legs just started moving by themselves… Sorry. I bought a lot of stuff, so please forgive me!”

“Gosh… but thank you.”

“No problem, I was going to eat them anyway. Let’s go to another table with just drinks for now, okay?”

There are several tables for unknown purposes in this room.

Among them, there is a low table by the window and a sofa that looks like it can seat three people in between. We put the food from the food stall there and brought our drinks in as well.

Even though we’re not face-to-face like before, it’s easier to pass the food around if we’re all sitting next to each other.

“Let’s see, first of all, this is my favorite potato butter. Also, a yakitori skewer, which is close to, but not quite the same as, the classic skewered meat of the street stall. They also sold something I’ve never seen before in Bezart, so I bought it!”

“There are so many different kinds.”

“That’s the great thing about food stalls; you can choose what you want to eat and buy it. By the way, I’ve never had a bad one. The ingredients in this world are basically delicious.”

I pick up some skewered meat first.

So far, I’ve only seen thigh meat, but to my surprise, there was even something that looked like chicken skin in Malta.

Of course, I had to buy some!

“Guhhh… it’s been a while since I’ve had chicken skin… it’s really delicious…”

The familiar salty taste.

The gap between this and what I just had makes me want to cry.

I also really want a beer.

“Can I try some, too?”

“Of course you can! I bought two of each, so don’t hold back!”

“Well then…”

“Huh?”

“Hmm… this is delicious…”

“…..”

Why did she go out of her way to eat the chicken skin from the skewer I was holding?

I told her I bought enough for her to eat, but did she not listen?

“Riste? I bought enough for you to eat, so there’s no need to go out of your way to eat from my skewer…”

“What? I’m just doing the same thing as before, aren’t I?”

“Hmm? Well, if you put it that way, that’s true… Hmm?”

It’s true that earlier, I ate a little bit, as if I wanted to taste it to see if it was poisonous, and then Riste would collect the whole plate.

But I feel like the food from the stalls that we’ve been sharing from the beginning is different…

“Didn’t you like it?”

“I think that’s unfair! Of course, I don’t hate it!”

If I put my hand on the skewered meat, Riste eats it, and if I put my hand on the chicken thigh, Riste bites into it.

What’s more, every time I eat, I feel like Riste is getting closer and closer.

“(My goodness… my head feels like it’s turning into a Happy Meal… what is this happy space?)”

It’s especially intense to see her taking it out of my hand with a smile on her face, especially since this is Riste, who doesn’t seem to let her guard down anytime soon.

The boundary-pushing beauty has even added cuteness to the mix.

“(Phew~… calm down, me. If I get nervous, we’ll go back to that awkward relationship again. Calm down, calm down… Namu Myoho Renge Kyo~)” T/n: Namu Myōhō Renge Kyō are Japanese words chanted in all forms of Nichiren Buddhism. In English, they mean “Devotion to the Mystic Law of the Lotus Sutra” or “Glory to the Dharma of the Lotus Sutra.”]

As I banish my impure thoughts, I reach for a new kind of food at the stall that I’ve never seen before.

“What is it? Is it flour-based?”

“Flour-based?”

“No, in the country where I come from, we call all dishes made with flour ‘flour-based.’ It’s just that I’ve never seen anything like this before.”

Divided into three portions, it looks like a very small okonomiyaki or a flattened takoyaki.

As I popped this unfamiliar and strange-looking food into my mouth, I was pleasantly surprised by the taste.

“Yes, it’s made of flour. It’s not covered with anything like the Earth, but the flavor is already mixed in, so it’s delicious.”

Riste also moved her hands and mouth when she saw it.

“This is delicious, too. It’s a little chewy, but that makes it go down even better with a drink.”

“Yeah, that’s the way it is with flour-based foods. If I could get my hands on some sauce, aonori seaweed, and dried bonito flakes, it would be perfect―but you’ve never heard of those, have you?”

“Hmm, I don’t know… sauce, aonori seaweed, dried bonito flakes… sauce? I think I may have heard of sauce.”

“Really? That would be great! And if possible, mayonnaise too!”

“Mayonnaise… is that a condiment with that name? I think it’s in the same realm as sauce. Unless the merchant’s information is wrong.”

“Wow! This is a food revolution! Where is it? Do you remember where the merchant was?”

“Well, all I know is it’s not in the west; it’s in the east.”

“Okay, I’ve decided. If I’m going to leave the country, I’m going east. I’ve made up my mind. I’m going to find mayonnaise and sauce!”

“I-is that all you need? Mayonnaise and sauce?”

“Yeah, they’re amazing. They’re the typical condiments that awaken ingredients, so if you can find them, your food will change. For example…”

With that, I picked up the last thing left, the potato and butter.

I was the kind of person who saved the things I liked for last, so I had saved this until now.

“This potato and butter dish is delicious as it is, but if you add mayonnaise, it will change the flavor several levels.”

“(Gulp…)”

“But since I don’t have any right now, there’s no point in begging for something I don’t have. Let’s enjoy the taste of this dish first and look forward to the mayonnaise in the future.”

As I say this, I bite into the long-awaited potato and butter.

“Mmm…”

It is so delicious that I can’t help but smile.

As I thought, the taste of the potato itself was wonderful.

As expected, it’s nice and fluffy, but the sweetness is much stronger than anything else on Earth, and I can’t help but wonder if it’s been drizzled with honey.

As if it were part of the same sequence when I offer Liste a potato with butter wrapped in a large piece of the leafy plant as a plate, she takes it in her mouth with bad manners you wouldn’t expect from her.

“Hoh… hafu… it’s so… delicious…”

“Right? And each one is only 100 beekes, you know? It’s unbelievable how cheap it is.”

“My goodness…”

“I told Felin about it, too. The ingredients in this country are really wonderful. I think it’s because of the influence of the skill, but the taste of the ingredients is better than on Earth.”

“So you’re saying that the food in this world can be transformed depending on how it’s cooked?”

“That’s right. I think it’s a field that won’t be easy to crack because cooking is something that is studied, but if there were reincarnated former chefs, it would be a field that would develop quickly. But at the point where there are condiments with names like mayonnaise and sauce, it’s pretty much set in stone.”

“…..”

“See? It’s not all bad to bring in reincarnated people. There are definitely fields that have developed because of it, so you should have more confidence.”

“Yes… Thank you, Loki-kun.”

“No problem. Besides, when I went to buy some food earlier, I noticed that there was a cafeteria on the first floor―well, it’s not really a cafeteria, but… Why don’t we eat there tomorrow? I’d be in trouble if they served us that kind of food, though.”

“That’s true. The food there might be more normal.”

“Yes, yes. If it’s no good there either, then there’s nothing we can do, so let’s give up eating here and go out to eat.”

“Haha, I never thought I’d be able to go out to eat with you on a day other than today.”

“Ah… that’s how it was with Felin. Well, we’ll just have to wait until our schedules match up.”

It was only about 10 minutes.

The two of us couldn’t stop eating and drinking, and in no time at all, we had finished the food I had bought from the stalls.

Now that we had finished eating, the next thing I wanted to do was take a bath, which I had been looking forward to.

But first, I think I’ll ask Riste to do something for me.

I don’t know if she can do it, but it’s definitely better than doing it myself.

“Hey, Riste, I need to ask you a favor.”

“What is it?”

“Can you cut my hair?”

▽ ▼ ▽ ▼ ▽

Snip, snip, snip…

As you would expect from the best inn in the city of Malta, this was the best room.

The bathroom alone is as big as the room I stayed in until yesterday, and the bathtub on the side is round enough to accommodate at least four to five people.

It’s a big one, so it probably takes a while to fill up, but there are also a number of strange chemicals and other things besides soap, so it was made with a lot of thought for the rich and women.

And now I was sitting in front of a large, gold-framed mirror, talking to Riste and watching my hair grow shorter.

“(She’s very skilled, even though she shouldn’t have any skill in cutting hair. I wonder if her skill level has something to do with it?)”

I gave Riste the scissors I had bought and told her to cut my hair however she liked, and she readily accepted.

But then we got to talking about what to do with the hair after it was cut, and it was decided that the bathroom, where we could wash the cut hair away with water, would be the most appropriate place.

“So, are you going to start developing a new kind of cushion next?”

“I think so, based on the feel of it. As I said, the others are difficult to work with because they have metal in the material.”

“But I still have dreams. I’d like to ride a bicycle if I could.”

“Haha, I don’t think that would suit you, Riste~. It’s a vehicle for ordinary people to use when they go out for a bit, so it would be embarrassing to wear a dress, right?”

“I’ll ride it where no one can see me… But I’m really grateful that Loki-kun came up with ideas for the common people.”

“That’s because I’m a commoner through and through. I just tell them what I want in my daily life, so whether they can make those things or not is up to the people of Bezart, isn’t it?”

“It’s the same for us goddesses, and usually, it’s not that easy to come up with such ideas, right?”

“I’m just telling them the outline of things that existed in my original world, not things I’ve developed myself, you know?”

“Still, we are inviting reincarnated people in the hope that they will do so, and we are grateful that you, Loki-kun, who did not follow the process, are taking the initiative. Especially the wooden pen―even from my point of view, I feel that it will bring about a great change in writing.”

“I hope it does! Quill pens are really hard to use!”

“Fufu, that’s it. How is it?”

As she said this, I shook my head from side to side.

“Wow… the sides are balanced too! Thank you, Riste!”

It was shorter than when I was transported to this world, and it was so neat that my ears were completely exposed, and it was finished to a good balance.

I was worried that I would end up with a perfectly trimmed haircut like a young nobleman, so I’m really pleased with the result, which is even better than I imagined.

“I’m glad you’re happy.”

“Well, I’m going to take a bath with my hair flowing. Riste, you’re continuing from yesterday, right? I haven’t put it in the storage room yet, so you can look at it however you want.”

“Okay. When you get out of the bath, please explain it again until you feel sleepy.”

“Okay!”

Well then, let’s enjoy the bath!

I quickly took off my clothes, and since there was no bucket, I scooped up some water with my hands and poured it over my body, then slowly soaked myself in the bath.

Unlike Feeril, Riste didn’t seem to be interested in the bath, so when I thought I was the only one in it, I could put my manners aside for the time being.

Since I was only half-bathed at waist level, I couldn’t help but lie down in the tub…

“Aaaaaaaahhh~~~.”

As expected, the mysterious sound came out of my mouth.

I think to myself that this is not a question of physical age but mental age.

“(Hah, it doesn’t have to be this big, I wish even inns where ordinary people stay had baths…)”

To be honest, I’d like to take a bath every day.

And if you consider the cost of staying at Hanfarest, the cheapest room is 30,000 beekes.

Considering the financial side of things, I could probably stay here forever.

However, considering that there weren’t any inns like this in Bezart, I’m sure that in future travels, towns without baths will definitely appear.

There is even a possibility that all but the major cities will be left out.

“(It’s a matter of whether or not I can popularize baths in the world.)”

Looking at the faucet, I see two boxes about 20 cm square lined up next to each other, with water and hot water coming out of each.

It reminds me of the old-fashioned type I saw at my grandmother’s house when I was a kid, where you adjusted the temperature by controlling the amount of water.

I try to lift the box to see what it’s made of, but the bottom is fixed to prevent theft, so I can’t lift it.

“Hmm. Considering the level of civilization here, it’s unlikely that they’re getting water directly from somewhere, right? After all, it’s the fourth floor… So…)”

I fumbled with the box and found a knob on the back. I turned it and pulled it. The box that dispensed cold water contained three black magic stones, and the box that dispensed hot water contained six black magic stones.

At that size, each one costs about 3000 Beekes.

In other words, it is possible that there is some leeway in the magic power, but it would cost nearly 30,000 Beekes to take a bath of this size.

“(If so, assuming a normal-sized bath, would it cost around 10,000 Beekes to fill it once? No, no, that’s still too expensive. Besides, there’s a good chance that this magic tool is also quite expensive.)”

No matter how you look at it, there’s no way it will be widely used in society.

The fact that I’ve calculated it shows that I reluctantly accept the fact that the bathing situation in this world is not advanced.

“(If only I could make it popular, I could take a bath every day… but it will be quite a challenge.)”

But one day.

While thinking about such things, I enjoyed my first bath in half a month.

After that, I spent about an hour explaining modern products to Riste.

As I thought, Riste was most interested in cosmetics.

She asked me about the details of their use, and I, who had never used them before, was at a loss for words.

“Men don’t wear makeup, so I have only a vague idea. I think you use this brush.”

“I see. It looks like you could use horsehair as a substitute.”

“I’m sure they’ve done a lot of research on that. It feels really good, doesn’t it? The question is whether you can use the fur of animals and monsters from this world to replace it.”

“That’s right.”

Saying that, I put the brush to my cheek and eyes and look at Riste, who is squirming.

“Riste is a woman, so you want to develop cosmetics in this world?”

“Of course, that’s one of the reasons.”

“What? So are there other reasons?”

“Yes.”

“…..”

“…..”

“You’re not going to tell me?”

“Fufu, it’s a secret.”

I can’t help but cluck my tongue at Riste, who smiles elegantly with her hand over her mouth.

Tch! Tch, tch, tch!

Goddess secrets are scary!

Feeril still hasn’t told me what skill she brought with her!

“It’s okay if you don’t tell me now, but you have to tell me the answer sometime, right? Otherwise, I’ll get scared.”

“Don’t worry. I think I’ll be able to tell you the reason when I release the split body.”

“I see. Then I’ll go.”

Maybe it’s because I’m all warm and toasty in the bathtub.

My head isn’t really working, and I’m starting to feel sleepy.

“Sorry, Riste. I’m starting to feel sleepy.”

“It looks like it. Then I’ll put the split body back, so I’ll use Loki-kun as a point again tomorrow.”

“Okay~ I told the person who pulled up the plates earlier, so they’ll be bringing normal meals to this room starting tomorrow.”

“That sounds exciting. I’ll leave the accessories you bought here. Good night then.”

“Good night~”

After seeing Riste off, I collapsed on the bed.

“Oh no… what kind of bed is this… it’s so fluffy…”

While I was impressed by the quality of the bed, my eyes immediately went to the other bed next to it.

There, I found the accessories Riste had left behind earlier.

I guess the shoes are next to the bed as well.

“(I’m sorry… I really want to say that Riste can use the other bed too, but men have their own circumstances. I’m sorry…)”

I apologized to myself and crawled into the bed.

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