Chapter 56: The Hot Spring

After quickly finishing our curry, we took a moment to relax.

“The boiled egg was surprisingly good too.”

“They had eggs in the other world, but almost everything was served as scrambled eggs.”

They were delicious in their own way, but considering how many ways there were to prepare eggs, it was strange that they were almost always scrambled.

“Man, that hit the spot. All right, shall we go to the hot spring?”

“Exactly.”

Takamiya and Kitaura stood up, so Ayaka and I stood as well.

“Thank you for the meal!”

“Okay! Come again!”

We left the restaurant, took the elevator down to the first floor, and headed toward the large communal bath at the back.

“Here it is.”

Naturally, the baths were separated by gender.

Not disappointing at all.

“Yuu-kun, we’ll probably take longer than you, so I’ll give you the room key.”

Ayaka handed me the key, and I took it.

“Sure. Since we’re here, take your time.”

It was only natural that the women would take longer.

“See you later, Takanashi-kun!”

“I’m going to teach you that a beautiful woman in a yukata plus a beautiful woman fresh from the bath is an unbeatable combination.”

The three of them went into the women’s bath.

“…I already saw that in Beppu.”

I muttered it under my breath before entering the men’s bath.

There was no one inside, so I quickly undressed, entered the bathing area, and washed myself.

Then I slipped into the empty bath and stretched out my legs.

“Ahh…”

This really was nice.

I had the entire spacious hot spring all to myself.

After enjoying it for a while, I headed outside to the open-air bath.

A bamboo fence surrounded it. Unlike Beppu, there was no view of the ocean, but it had an atmosphere of its own.

As I relaxed in the hot spring while feeling the cool outdoor air, another guest arrived.

“Hm? Are you here by yourself, young man?”

A small demon had entered. Tiny wings fluttered on his back as he floated gently in the air.

He looked exactly like the stereotypical image of a little demon, and somehow a large pitchfork would have suited him perfectly.

“My companions are in the bath next door.”

“Oh, you came with women? Are they demons from around here?”

The little demon, who had settled into the bath beside me, asked.

“We came from Beppu in Kyushu. We’re traveling east while searching for our companions.”

“Oh… That’s pretty unusual… So, are you heading toward Shimane? The area around Izumo is human territory.”

I hadn’t known that.

“If we can’t get through, we’ll take a detour. Though I’m a little worried about the area around Hiroshima.”

“You mean that Jack the Ripper fellow. It’s frightening to think he might come this way.”

I really hoped he wouldn’t.

“Are you a local demon?”

“Yeah, more or less.”

A local demon, huh?

“We’re thinking about going to Hagi. What’s it like there?”

“It’s a peaceful, pleasant town. Some demons avoid it because there isn’t much excitement, but for a weak demon like me, it’s comfortable.”

Well, he certainly didn’t look very strong.

“Hey, do you know about the cosplayer who was staring out at the ocean?”

“Yeah, yeah. The guy people were talking about recently, right? I hear he’s looking for his companions too.”

What an unexpected source of information…

“Actually, we’re his companions. We were separated from him.”

“That’s rough. But I don’t know where he is now. Rumors about Jack the Ripper have spread even to Hagi, so I’d guess he’s either heading this way or toward Shimane, but…”

I see.

“That’s useful information. Thanks.”

“Mm.”

The little demon extended his hand.

“Mana?”

“That was useful information, wasn’t it? Give me something in return.”

So that’s how it worked.

“Fine.”

I took the little demon’s hand and sent him as much mana as I could while keeping it under control.

“Whoa! Nice! You understand how this works, young man! Though I feel as though you gave me a little too much… All right! I’ll give you one more useful piece of information. Apparently, Jack the Ripper is human.”

Oh?

“Can a human really kill hundreds of demons?”

“Apparently, more and more strange humans have been appearing lately. We imps are weak, so we’re sensitive to that kind of information.”

So he was an imp.

“Is Jack the Ripper one of them?”

“Yeah. I heard the demon in charge of Hiroshima has placed a bounty on him. Apparently, everyone is getting worked up over it. Hiroshima will be off-limits for a while. Things are going to get rough there.”

A demon in charge, huh…

“What about the other strange humans?”

“You know how humans retook Tokushima in Shikoku? I heard that happened because one human went on a rampage there as well.”

So that was what had happened…

“That’s scary.”

“Sure is. Humans are weak, but their desires and refusal to give up are seriously frightening. You’d better be careful too, young man. Wait… Are you human as well?”

He was perceptive.

“Even if I were, none of that interests me. I enjoy spending time and having fun with my companions.”

“Right? That’s how it should be. You only live once, so you might as well enjoy it. Keh-keh-keh.”

I thought he had a point.

I continued enjoying the hot spring, and after about thirty minutes, I left the bath.

I dried myself off, put on my yukata, and returned to the room.

Naturally, Ayaka hadn’t returned yet, so I went to the little space by the window, sat in a chair, and waited for the three of them while looking outside.

Then the door opened, and Ayaka and the others entered the room.

“Sorry to keep you waiting!”

“That was such a good bath. Seriously, it was like paradise.”

“Totally worth it, totally worth it.”

The three of them sat down around the table and drank some tea.

All three had just emerged from the bath, and somehow they looked about thirty percent more attractive than usual.

“Was there anyone in your bath?”

“No, no one. It sounds as though someone was in yours, though. I could hear Yuu-kun’s voice, even if I couldn’t make out what you were saying.”

I see…

Since it was an open-air bath, Ayaka and the others must have been directly on the other side of the fence.

“There was an imp. I got some information from him.”

I told the three of them what the imp had just told me.

Specifically, what he knew about Jack the Ripper and Riku.