Chapter 41

Walking down the hallway of the inn, I headed toward the room we’d be staying in tonight.

“…This is the one.”

I unlocked the door and stepped inside.
The familiar scent of tatami hit me—a little nostalgic, a little calming.

I slipped off my slippers and entered the room.
Looking out the window, I noticed the sun had already set.

“…Today was really fun.”

Since then, we’d wandered around the hot spring town until evening.
We soaked our feet in a foot bath, grabbed some snacks, and even bought matching teacups from a souvenir shop—just the two of us, me and Yuu.

Now we’d returned to the inn, and I’d just had a soak in the large public bath before dinner.
The place boasted multiple types of baths, and just going around trying each one had been thoroughly enjoyable.

“…The water was great.”

I approached the window and cracked it open.
A cool breeze drifted in—refreshing and pleasant.

I’d noticed it earlier while sitting in the open-air bath. Even though it was still August, this area, surrounded by nature, wasn’t hot at all.

I fully opened the window and stepped out onto the veranda.
The balcony here had a private open-air bath attached, and it was spacious and clean.

I sat down on a chair tucked in the corner.
Beyond the veranda stretched a forest, and the air felt so fresh I could almost taste it.
I could hear the distant chirping of insects—there was something poetic about it all.

“…Hm?”

I heard the door open from inside the room.
It sounded like Yuu had returned from the public bath.

“…Shin?”

“Yuu, I’m out here on the veranda.”

I called out, realizing she must’ve been looking for me.
She came over right away.

“What are you doing?”

“There’s still some time before dinner, so I’m just cooling off.”

About thirty minutes remained until the scheduled dinner time.
Just enough time to relax for a bit.

“…I see. Then maybe I’ll join you.”

Yuu stepped down onto the veranda and sat next to me.

“…This is… a nice place.”

“Yeah, it really is.”

Her voice caught slightly, but I agreed with her.
I truly felt that way. It was quiet, peaceful—easy to unwind.

We had only chosen this inn based on some photos, but I was glad we’d picked it.

“…Hey, that’s the open-air bath, right?”

“Yeah.”

Yuu pointed to the large, square tub in the center of the veranda—
the private bath that came with our room.

“…Shin, are you… planning to use it?”

“That’s the plan.”

The open-air bath on the veranda was the inn’s main attraction.
Each room had one, and they were all supplied with fresh, free-flowing spring water.

Being able to soak without worrying about others, surrounded by nature—that sounded perfect.

“I’m thinking I’ll get in after dinner, once I’ve settled down a bit.”

“O-oh, I see.”

Maybe I’d try it again in the morning too.
Morning baths always felt nice.

“You should get in too, Yuu. It’ll definitely feel great.”

Wandering the hot spring town was fun, but being able to enjoy various baths multiple times a day—that’s a big part of the charm of a hot spring trip.
I thought Yuu should experience it too.

“Huh!? M-me too?”

“…? Yeah.”

For some reason, Yuu reacted with shock.
I turned to her, surprised, and saw her face and neck turning red.

…Was that from the bath? Or did something else happen?

“What’s wrong?”

“What’s wrong, he says… Why are you so… so casual about it?”

Why was she panicking so much?
I didn’t really get it.

…Well, lately she’s been like this sometimes.
Every now and then, Yuu would suddenly get flustered out of nowhere.

Now that I think about it, she was like this this morning too, right before we left the house.
And usually, if I just switched the topic, she’d calm down naturally.

“Then, want to decide who gets to use the open-air bath first? You want to go before or after me?”

So, I threw out a random question.
If we started chatting, she’d probably settle down.

“…Huh? Who goes first?”

“Yeah.”

Just as I thought, Yuu stopped panicking.
She calmed down quicker than I expected this time.

“What do you want to do?”

“……”

Her face turned even redder right in front of me. It had already been flushed before, but now it was a deeper shade.

Then suddenly, she reached for my face.

“Y-Yuu?”

She pinched my cheek.
It didn’t hurt, but she tugged at it so I couldn’t speak properly.

“Whath are you dohin’?”

“…Don’t know.”

She let go of me and turned away, cheeks puffed out a little.

…Seriously, what was that about?
I really had no idea.