NOVEL NEXT Chapter 26
When I was young, and my father told me that I would experience my first heat, I truly thought the sky was falling.
Until that point, I believed heat meant that no matter what thoughts I had, just catching a whiff of a man would bleach my brain and send a shiver through my lower abdomen—what a terrifying concept that was.
Since my father advised me to steer clear of unknown men during their heats, I trembled in fear, thinking I was right about it.
But having gone through it myself, it turned out that wasn’t the case at all.
It felt like my head was clouded with pink fog, I became slightly dazed, more aware of others, and just a bit more sensitive.
Spending a day trailing the captain of the guard, annoying him, or being cradled by my mother while she pet me was what I experienced during my own heat.
So, even if my mother and the captain were absent, it wouldn’t be a big deal, or so I thought.
As I squirmed in bed, I sensed my clothes were rumpled.
Why was I even wearing clothes? A moment’s thought brought back memories of yesterday when Dokan called out my name and I, embarrassed, went straight to bed. I must have fallen asleep without undressing.
Someone mustered the courage to call out my name, and yet Dokan seemed utterly indifferent to it.
He was handsome, with a good personality, so being called by a girl wasn’t likely to faze him much.
…But really, now wasn’t the time to be thinking about him. My clothes were getting wrinkled in real-time as I lay there.
When I took off my clothes and smelled them, thankfully, there wasn’t a terrible odor. I could probably wear them a few more days before tossing them into the laundry.
It was free, and if I told them my room number, they would even deliver it, so it felt like I could drop it off without worry.
But since I hadn’t washed properly yesterday, I was sure I must smell somewhat.
While my mother and father said I didn’t smell, that was probably just them being kind as parents.
As a boy, my parents always told me that even if I skipped a day of washing, I’d start to stink, so I should wash up.
Now that I was in this body, I didn’t have to deal with such nuisances, as most things could be handled by asking the God.
Though the floor felt a little cold, it was just about enough to snap me back to reality. I knelt and offered a prayer for cleanliness to the God.
– I beseech you, please rid me of all impurities from this body.
…Huh? Why isn’t it working? Is it broken? Even after praying again, there was no response from the God.
Ah, right. The God must be in a terrible condition. How could I have forgotten this?
I felt a bit anxious about whether the God might wake up if I pushed it too hard, but it seemed like it was deeply asleep.
That was a relief, but the fact that I smelled remained.
Then, it was back to the old method of washing with water, but there was one issue.
I didn’t know how to wash a woman’s body. After all, I had managed to maintain cleanliness by praying to the God all this time. I had never been drenched in water.
I instinctively shied away from it. They say tigers aren’t afraid of water, but just thinking about falling into it or being drenched sent chills down my spine.
However, I had no choice now. I was more scared of being laughed at for smelling than getting soaked. I had enough unpleasant memories tied to that fear to overcome my instinctual dread.
I thought I wouldn’t have to enter a bathroom, but while complaining, I took off my underwear.
A naked girl reflected in the mirror, but I felt no sense of excitement. Maybe it was because it was my own body that I had seen since childhood, but it didn’t feel particularly provocative.
If anything, the only thing I noticed was that my curves had indeed come in nicely?
Holding the showerhead, which screamed “I’m ready for a shower!” I looked at the faucet, but it had no indications for hot and cold water.
I figured there was a shower because we were in a world based on a novel, but what could possibly be the reason for not indicating which was hot and which was cold?
Left side for hot, right side for cold, I suppose. There were no symbols indicating cold water, so I turned the faucet to the left.
Typically, washing starts from the top of the head. When I turned on the water, cold water gushed out.
Before I could even be shocked by the ice-cold stream rushing down my body, I quickly turned off the tap.
…My heart nearly dropped. This continent is bizarrely off in strange ways, like its unusual etiquette and everything happening now.
With shaky hands, I turned the faucet the other way. But this time, I wouldn’t carelessly splash cold water onto my head.
Having gotten burned before, I planned to control the temperature this time by splashing water into my palms first.
As expected of this absurd continent, the water was nearly scalding hot. Once I managed to get it to a lukewarm temperature, I finally could wash myself.
After enjoying the warmth for a good while and finally preparing to wash, I was then faced with way too many products.
I could tell which was body wash and which was shampoo, but the rest, like treatments and rinses, were overwhelming.
If I didn’t know what something was, I wouldn’t touch it. I only soaked the body wash into a shower towel and rubbed it on my body, but it felt oddly peculiar.
“…Mmm.”
The tickling sensation was at least somewhat familiar. Strange feelings washed over me with every rub.
Now that there was no green orb, was my condition just off?
Each time I brushed over sensitive areas, weird sounds like “hee” or “huh” would escape from me, but that was surely just me being unwell. And also, just the novelty of washing with water for the first time.
Come to think of it, they say women should use a lot of shampoo when washing their hair. How much was enough? One or two uses wouldn’t do at all.
I thought it might be just right, but when I actually applied it, it felt insufficient.
After slathering it on until it was covered like a cake, I finally generated just enough lather to feel satisfied. I felt like I had used a bit too much shampoo, but for someone washing their hair for the first time, I was secretly quite pleased with myself.
“Hmm…?!”
Except for water getting into my ears while rinsing, everything went smoothly.
To sum it all up, I managed to rinse off without any major mishaps. I nearly smashed my head against the wall while twisting awkwardly, but still.
Looking in the steamed-up mirror revealed a drowned cat of a girl.
As I stepped out of the bathroom, the sun had already risen. It felt like it was still dim when I went in, but how long had I been washing?
– Did you come out?
Lost in thought, I heard a faint voice, barely audible unless concentrated.
When we spoke in the gym, I could hear it just fine without focusing, so I felt gloomy at the thought that I might have weakened my God’s power.
– Yes, did I wake you, by any chance?
– Indeed. How could I call myself a deity if I cannot respond to the call of my one and only believer? Especially since you are the child of Byeolbi, I am rather sorry that I was late.
– No, I am the one who should be more apologetic. If I am troubling you, please do not force yourself.
– Oh, are you perhaps bothered by what you asked of me? While I appreciate your concern, there’s no need for that. I’m not so frail that a mere wiggle of my fingers would collapse me. Speaking of which, you did indeed pray for cleanliness.
Then what in the world could have weakened the God so much? I wanted to ask, but the God seemed unwilling to disclose it.
If it were a person, I would have pressed for more information, but since it was the deity’s wishes, I had to respect them.
– No, I’ve already washed up. If you wish to grant me a blessing, simply drying my hair will be more than enough.
– Just like before, you only wish for the simplest of desires. Are you really lacking any greed? If you wanted, I could force the boy in the next room to obey your words.
– Have you been watching…?
I was taken aback enough to slip into formalities, momentarily forgetting that I was conversing with the God.
I thought the God was in poor condition and would be sleeping the whole time, but was it really watching me like the folks back at home?
– Ha ha ha. I thought you were merely polite, but you have some adorable sides too. It’s hard to believe you’re truly that person’s child. To answer your question, I was watching you just pleasantly float by.
– Ah, ugh…
So the God had seen me reveal my true self to Dokan as his so-called friend.
Feeling embarrassed enough to bury my face in a towel, I felt my hair drying in the draft that swept through from somewhere.
Thank you, but God, could you Please leave me alone for now?
– Oh dear. A temperamental contractor calls me. Take care.
– …Contractor?
Does a deal with a God even make sense? But the God didn’t seem to be lying. The questions multiplied, but since the God had left, I had no choice but to keep them to myself.
Then, a more pressing matter came to mind. The God had just mentioned that it had seen my antisocial, pathetic self—what was I supposed to say to Dokan in front of others now?
I could act as usual, but that would no doubt draw annoying rumors.
Even I found it fascinating that a princess would act friendly toward a commoner. I didn’t want to provide grist for the mill for other girls feeling lower by hanging out with a guy like that.
Sure, he looked amazing, but well, today, my thoughts seemed to drift into strange places frequently.
Since my father told me never to show my true self in front of others, when it came to one-on-one time with Dokan, I could just talk comfortably, but
ultimately in public, I should stick to my father’s teachings.
I thought I would sort everything out once I got dressed, but even after putting my clothes on, I still couldn’t make any solid decisions.
But he was a friend, so maybe it would be good to at least call him by name.
As I stepped out of the room, I found Dokan just emerging from his room at the same time.
Alright, then…
“Han Dogon. Come here.”