Mixed Bathing (Though Not with the Opposite Sex)

I headed toward the Grand Bath I’d been directed to, assuming it wouldn't be anything particularly impressive.

The changing room was unexpectedly splendid, though, being a commoner’s inn, there were naturally no maids to assist me in undressing. I had no choice but to strip off my own clothes before stepping into the bath area.

I froze. What spread out before my eyes was a tub far more expansive than anything I had ever seen back at the Royal Castle.

Impossible... What is this place? A bath reserved for nobility?

That was a possibility. I had heard that members of the Royal Family from neighboring countries often visited this territory. A bath of this scale would be a necessity to provide them with proper hospitality.

But then, why build such a thing here at an inn? If it were for high-ranking guests, wouldn't it make more sense to put it in his superior’s mansion? Surely he wouldn't suggest that every house in this town came equipped with a bath this size?

It wasn't entirely outside the realm of possibility. Even as I tried to dismiss the thought, I realized I had no evidence to refute it. My fiancée, Miranda, had warned me that this territory was insane. Considering she was the daughter of a Duke, if she was rattled, then this was likely only the beginning.

As I stood there lost in thought, a crowd of people suddenly swarmed into the room.

"W-what are you doing!?" I stammered.

"The hell do you mean 'what'? It’s a bath, ain’t it?"

The men stepped into the water as if it were the most natural thing in the world. Back at the Royal Castle, maids would certainly enter the bath with me to scrub my back, but I had never shared a tub with anyone else. To be thrust into a mixed bath with a pack of Mercenaries went beyond "rare"—it felt entirely wrong.

Still, when in the territory, do as the locals do. It wouldn't serve me to cause a scene here and earn Yuri’s antipathy. It was just a bath with some other men. If I couldn't handle something this trivial, I’d never survive in this land.

"...Alright. Let's do this!"

I braced myself and stepped into the water. In that instant, a sensation washed over me as if every ounce of my exhaustion was being vaporized. I felt a dreamlike weightlessness, a sense of floating that bordered on the ethereal.

It made sense. This bath wasn't just powered by a Water Heating Magic Stone; it was equipped with another stone that imbued the Water with a Holy Attribute.

I suspected Yuri’s only thought was that the Holy Attribute was efficient for scrubbing away grime. He likely had no idea that the water was actively knitting together the wounds of every Mercenary in the building. A bath that heals injuries without the user lifting a finger—that alone was a strategic threat.

What would happen if this technology fell into the hands of another nation? We were on the border, a place where blood was spilled as a matter of course. If wounded soldiers could soak in this tub and return to the front lines fully healed the very next day... the tactical advantage would be monstrous. One wouldn't even need to soak; simply bottling the water and carrying it away would be enough.

A war could break out over this single tub.

"I see... So that's why the other nations are watching us."

I was tempted to fill a bottle and smuggle it home myself.

No, no. If I do that and Yuri marks me as an enemy, I'm finished.

I couldn't allow the power to create such things to be handed over to outsiders. At all costs, it had to stay within this country... or perhaps not. If it stayed, the other nations would simply tear us apart trying to take it.

If Yuri himself desired Independence, it might actually be in the best interest of the Kingdom of Inraku to grant it. We could then treat this land as a Subordinate State. It would deepen our diplomatic ties with other powers, and the nightmarish bureaucratic red tape that currently made travel impossible would vanish.

Besides, if the Kingdom of Inraku ever faced a crisis, I would be safe as long as I kept Yuri in my debt. Perhaps I should even request to be dispatched here as a Minister—effectively acting as Yuri's Overseer. Once the court realized I had no intention of inheriting the throne, the vultures plotting my demise would disappear. And since I’d be doing Yuri a favor, he wouldn't treat me poorly.

The more I thought about it, the more it felt like the perfect escape.

But independence, really? I can't imagine why anyone would want to found a nation. It's nothing but a magnet for more troublesome work.

Yet, given the technology this territory possessed, no existing nation would ever be allowed to monopolize it. For the sake of peace, it would have to be a Neutral State, its power shared equally among all.

"I can't just act on my own, though. I need to confirm Yuri's intentions first."

Then again, Yuri was the son of that Staff Officer. If I let my guard down, he’d have me dancing on his strings. Just imagining the overbearing, "take-no-prisoners" attitude of Balan Lousouth made me shudder.

Regardless, I had to overcome this if I wanted to secure the future I desired. I steeled my resolve.

But at that exact moment, my head began to swim, and my consciousness simply flickered out.