In exchange for surviving the terrifying dinner, Rest had suffered a temporary handicap.
That handicap was… the inability to walk without hunching forward. The inability to perform any movement that would cause his lower body to swing violently. And the risk of it going off if accidentally stimulated.
No, please don't ask me what kind of handicap that is.
He might feel better if he just let the whole thing go, but it was far too intense to keep dealing with while still holding onto it.
"Gwoh… nngh…"
"Fahh, that feels so good! As expected, a shower after a hard day's work is the best!"
"Valhalla… Valhalla…"
"My lady, allow me to wash your back."
And then… came yet another trial.
Even though they were camping, the women had started bathing.
Shrill, excited voices echoed from within a partition made of cloth.
Rest was sitting just outside the partition, gritting his teeth through the various sensations while manipulating his mana.
The reason being… the scene reached back to earlier in the day.
While they had been exploring the muddy marshland, a certain exchange had taken place among them.
"Man… my body's completely covered in mud. This is pretty gross."
"Squelchy."
While fighting a monster, Yuri had been splattered with mud, and she shook her limbs with a disgusted look.
The filth caked all over her body didn't come off that easily — it clung stubbornly to Yuri's supple limbs.
"If it's mud, you can wash it off with magic… [Clean]!"
"Oh! The mud came right off!"
When Rest cast the spell, the grime clinging to Yuri's body was cleaned away.
This was a spell she had found invaluable since her days kept at House Eberun — she used it for mucking out stables as well as washing dirt from her own body.
"As expected of Rest... Still, I feel like I want a proper wash. It's like there's invisible grime still on me."
"Yeah... there probably is, actually."
Whether it was residual grime that magic couldn't remove, or simply a psychological matter, she couldn't say.
Even after being cleansed with [Purify], there was a strange sense of lingering discomfort on the body.
Yuri's desire to take a bath was perfectly understandable.
"I hate to trouble you, but could you draw water later? I want to wash myself properly."
"Rather than just water, I'll heat some up for you. You should take a bath."
"A bath? Out here in the middle of the plains?"
"Sure. I can make a tub with earth magic, and heating water is easy with fire magic. Child's play, really."
"I want a bath too."
Urla chimed into the conversation.
As expected, the girls were fond of bathing.
Behind Urla, her attendant Earlie was watching with keen interest as well.
"Alright, fine. I'll have a bath ready by tonight. If you want, I can even set up a makeshift shower, so look forward to it."
Those words were meant as a kindness to the women... but Rest would come to deeply regret saying them.
Time returned to the present, and Rest was making good on her promise to let them bathe.
Inside a bathing area constructed with tents on all sides, the three women stood as they were born.
The bathroom had a tub that Rest had set up before sunset, already filled with warm water.
"Ahh, this feels wonderful… It's like being reborn."
"So warm… melting…"
"My lady, I'll wash your hair now, so please use the shampoo hat."
"Nn… gu…"
Rest was standing outside the bathroom.
Just a single cloth away, a paradise was unfolding. The women's excited cries tickled Rest's ears.
Thanks to that, the worm thing wouldn't calm down at all, and Rest found themselves in a state of being very much worm-ish.
No seriously, why are you even there.
Rest understood the urge to tell it to get the hell out of there right now.
But… Rest had been asked by the women to fulfill a certain duty and was in the middle of doing just that.
(Calm down… focus. Direct all of your consciousness toward the casting of magic…!)
Above the bathroom, a massive blob of water—or rather, hot water—was floating.
Rest had created an improvised shower by breaking the suspended hot water into droplets and raining them down.
(I never should have said something so smug like, "If you want, I'll even prepare an improvised shower for you"…!)
Rest regretted their own foolishness from the bottom of their heart.
If they hadn't made such a careless promise, if they hadn't made a statement that raised the women's expectations, none of this would have happened.
They had been asked to make a shower as promised… and Rest, unable to refuse, ended up creating one with magic.
"Focus… focus… I am a water heater. I am nothing but a machine that dispenses hot water…!"
"Rest, are you in there?"
While he was repeating his self-hypnosis, Yuri called out to him from beyond the tent.
"...What is it?"
"If you'd like, won't Rest join us? Staying out there the whole time must be making your body cold, right?"
"No way that's possible! Urla is in there! What are you even saying!"
"There's no need to worry. Urla says she doesn't mind at all. Lady Karley feels the same way."
"I'll wash your back."
"Wh—...!?"
Following Yuri, even Urla was throwing those words at him.
The lower half of his body wanted to leap into that temptation, but Rest suppressed his desire with an iron will of self-restraint.
"I'll pass... I'll get in after you two are done...!"
"Oh... what a shame."
"So disappointing..."
Yuri and Urla said with regret.
Above Rest's head, the ghost of waste was dancing a samba, but it seemed he had somehow managed to overcome the trial.
"Well, it can't be helped. Then, how about we wash your back for you later?"
"Petto-petto, service."
"Stop it!"
At the two who were somehow still pressing the issue, Rest shouted through the cloth.