Danmachi: A Despicable Stranger

Chapter 52: about bathing and peeping

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Walking through the strange and quiet forest, they were surrounded by nearly identical trees and fields of crystal formations.

The trees were spaced sparsely, allowing light to filter silently through the gaps in the branches and leaves, illuminating the path ahead.

"Mr. Izzy, do you want to rest now?"

As they passed by a familiar-looking spot, Ryuu asked Izzy the question once again.

"…Ms. Ryuu, why do you keep dwelling on this question?"

Izzy's voice betrayed genuine surprise.

How many times had she asked since they entered the forest? Three times? Five times? Maybe more?

He couldn't say for certain. He had been too focused on deciding their next destination to keep count.

But why? Why was she so insistent on asking if he wanted to rest? Did he seem that fragile?

Izzy couldn't fathom a reason.

Walking slightly ahead, Ryuu's expression shifted subtly as her eyes lowered. Her face briefly took on the lifeless appearance of someone resigned to their circumstances, almost like a dead fish.

Do you think I want to keep asking?

What she wanted—what she truly wanted—was a chance to bathe.

A proper bath!

They were going to pay their respects to her deceased companions soon, and there was no way she could do so while drenched in sweat.

Some people might not mind such a thing, but as an elf, Ryuu cared deeply.

Every time she visited the eighteenth floor to honor her fallen companions, she made sure to bathe in one of the clean springs nearby beforehand.

Now, with Izzy trailing her like a shadow, she couldn't find the opportunity.

That was why she kept asking if he wanted to take a break. She needed to create a window to slip away.

To that end, she had even led him in circles through the forest, but it seemed to be having little effect.

At this point, her frustration was beyond words.

"Um… Miss Ryuu?"

"Mm?"

"Are we… just wandering in circles?"

"That's your imagination, Mr. Izzy~"

Her voice carried a casual, almost teasing tone, but there was an underlying nervousness she hoped to mask.

However, Izzy approached a nearby tree with a peculiar expression and ran his hand over its trunk.

"I don't think it's my imagination… Look at this. It's the mark I left earlier~"

Pressing his fingers against the distinct groove etched into the bark, Izzy confirmed it was the mark he had made with his spear earlier.

The evidence was undeniable.

"Miss Ryuu… are we lost?"

To be fair, Izzy didn't truly believe that to be the case.

He knew that Ryuu had come to the eighteenth floor to pay her respects to her deceased companions. While he didn't know the exact location, he was certain she was very familiar with this floor.

The likelihood of her getting lost seemed almost impossible.

"…"

Ryuu remained silent for a moment, her gaze drifting away as though resigning herself to something.

After a few seconds, she spoke softly.

"No, we're not lost. I did it on purpose."

"Ah, this…"

Izzy blinked, caught off guard by her unexpected response.

"Mr. Izzy."

"Um?"

"You've heard about me from Loki, haven't you?"

"Well… a little bit?"

"A little bit more…"

Ryuu's tone sharpened slightly as she shook her head, clearly unimpressed by his evasiveness.

"Now that we're here, there's no point pretending you don't know, right?"

Her voice carried a note of certainty, as though she had already resigned herself to the truth.

Izzy sighed softly, finally admitting the truth.

"Well, as you guessed, I know quite a bit. But only what I've been told personally."

At his admission, Ryuu rolled her eyes, feeling a strange mixture of irritation and relief.

"You should also know why I came to the eighteenth floor, right?"

"To pay your respects to your fallen companions?"

"Yes. Then do you know what elves usually do before commemorating their deceased companions?"

"Do what?"

The abrupt question caught Izzy off guard.

What did elven customs have to do with her taking him in circles through the forest?

In Izzy's mind, the two matters were entirely unrelated. This question touched upon a blind spot in his knowledge.

"…Bath."

Ryuu turned her head slightly, her voice soft as she uttered the single word.

Suddenly, understanding dawned on Izzy.

"Ahem… I see. I understand…"

So that was the reason. Ryuu had been asking him if he wanted to rest and had even led him around in circles in the forest—all because she wanted some time alone but felt too embarrassed to ask directly.

"In that case, Mr. Izzy, could you wait here for a while?"

Now that the reason was clear, Ryuu spoke directly, her tone calm but firm.

"Um."

Izzy nodded, giving an awkward but polite smile.

With the misunderstanding cleared, Ryuu wasted no time. She quickly disappeared into the woods, moving swiftly between the trees until she was out of sight.

"This is really…"

Izzy scratched his head with a wry smile, realizing just how much he had walked in vain because of the miscommunication.

On the other side, Ryuu had effortlessly found a clean spring hidden deeper in the forest.

Here, the canopy thickened, blocking most of the sunlight and creating a dim, cool atmosphere illuminated by a soft blue hue.

At the spring's edge, crystals grew in orderly clusters, their gentle glow casting an almost dreamlike ambiance.

"Ah… better hurry…"

The elf girl sighed softly and began to remove her clothing.

Unlike her usual visits, there wasn't time to leisurely soak in the spring. Someone was waiting for her, and she needed to finish quickly.

But as she prepared to set her clothes aside, her hands froze mid-motion.

She recalled an incident not long ago. Loki had taken Izzy to the Hostess of Fertility, where, after a few drinks, the topic of conversation had turned… peculiar.

—"Peeping is a kind of romance!"

The two half-drunk men had laughed and debated the statement with great enthusiasm.

"Mr. Izzy… he wouldn't have followed me here, would he?"

The thought caused Ryuu to suddenly turn her head, her sharp eyes scanning her surroundings.

"No… I don't think so, right?"

She glanced back along the path she had taken, her gaze sweeping carefully over the area.

"No?"

She even crouched down to push aside the grass and shrubs, looking for any sign of an ambush.

"It seems… there's no one."

After a moment of hesitation, Ryuu finally eased her mind. Sliding gracefully into the spring, she let the cool water envelop her body completely.

Meanwhile, some distance away, Izzy had climbed to the top of the tallest tree in the vicinity.

Placing his luggage securely on a sturdy branch, he settled down at the fork of the tree and let out a regretful sigh.

"What a pity… I can't see anything."

From this vantage point, Izzy had a commanding view of the forest. He had been watching the direction Ryuu had gone but found his view of the spring entirely obstructed by the dense foliage.

As they say, voyeurism is a man's romance.

Of course, actively following her to spy would be far too obvious and carried a high risk of getting caught. Izzy prided himself on being more clever than that.

His plan had been simple: stay at a commanding height, look down discreetly, and let his blessed eyesight handle the rest. It was a foolproof way to avoid detection.

Unfortunately, nature had its own plans. The thick canopy of trees completely obscured his view, leaving him with nothing to see.

"Well… I guess that's that," Izzy muttered to himself with a shrug.

Accepting defeat, he sat back against the sturdy branches, allowing the gentle breeze to cool his face. The leaves rustled softly around him as he began to relax.

"Huh? What's this?!"

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