Published: February 1, 2026
“When I tried to take a morning bath, another guest got in first, and the moment I entered, he drowned.”
“I figured.”
His slightly flushed cheeks were probably from the bath.
For someone who’d just tried to drown another guest and then calmly gone on to enjoy the hot spring, he was thick-skinned in a way that didn’t match his looks.
Lizel, uncharacteristically dressed light and sitting in the room, shook his still faintly steaming hair. Apparently the trapped heat made him feel hot.
Gill, who sympathized with the poor guest who’d suddenly had a man who could only be taken for a noble walk in on him, let out a sigh of relief that Lizel at least hadn’t passed out this time.
Yesterday, right after he got out of the water, it had come to light that Lizel had actually been on the verge of fainting from the heat; apparently he’d learned from that and enjoyed the hot spring in good health today.
Eleven was still sleeping in the bed at the very end, which he’d won from Gill in a card game last night.
Since they didn’t have any plans that required them to hurry, they left him alone. If he kept sleeping like this, Lizel and Gill would just go eat breakfast by themselves. Having gone out to prowl the night as soon as it got dark, Eleven showed no signs of waking anytime soon.
Lizel combed his still slightly damp hair and let out a soft breath.
“Phew, it’s a bit cooler now.”
“That’s good.”
He fastened the one button he’d left undone and started putting on his usual clothes.
It was certainly lighter than the full gear he wore when they went out on a request, but by no means casual.
For Gill or Eleven, coming out of the bath with anything on their upper body at all was the exception rather than the rule, but Lizel was more or less always neatly dressed.
Gill had once asked, “Isn’t it hot?” and Lizel had answered that it was just a matter of habit. At this point, it would be more shocking to see Lizel walking around half-naked.
“Let’s go have breakfast. Do you know what time Eleven came back?”
“’Bout dawn, I guess. He reeked of booze, so he ain’t gettin’ up.”
Gill eyed Eleven, who was lying face-down with his face buried in the pillow, wondering if he could really breathe like that.
As befitted a nation of working men, the Demon Ore Nation (Kavana) had an impressive variety of liquor.
He and Gill had drunk at dinner like they intended to work through the entire selection the place had in stock, but apparently that still hadn’t been enough for Eleven; Lizel was almost impressed.
He’d never seen Eleven that drunk before. For a moment he’d been tempted to forbid him from going out at night.
Gill drank a fair bit on a regular basis, but he never got drunk, so Lizel didn’t have the impression of him really putting it away.
“Inns that come with breakfast are great. What do you think they’ll serve?”
“As long as there’s meat, I’m fine.”
Closing the door quietly behind them, the two vanished from the room.
“It’s lunchtime…”
Eleven grumbled, cheeks puffed out as he devoured what served as both breakfast and lunch.
Lizel, who’d spent the morning enjoying a search for specialist books, smiled wryly, while Gill, who’d scored some famed local sake in his hunt for good liquor, watched him in exasperation.
Having slept straight through until now, Eleven apparently felt he’d wasted the precious chance to do touristy things properly.
The pilaf he was shoveling down had reached his fifth plate. It was a mystery how his body could stay so lean.
“You’ve only got yourself to blame for not getting up.”
“It’s not like we’re going home today. We’ll wake you from tomorrow on.”
“Yeah, but the first day of sightseeing is today! Another helping!”
Proclaiming his self-centered logic with great dignity, Eleven added to his order as a server passed by.
If that would satisfy him, Lizel had no intention of stopping him from eating as much as he liked. Gill all but washed his hands of it, drinking the water he’d been served as if to say he wanted no part of this.