After Retirement, Living a Stud Life in Another World - 146

Episode 146: I Love Hot Springs!

“Ahhh… It feels like I’ve come back to life.”

Ayaka-san, with her jet-black, slightly long bob tied up with a cord, lets out a content sigh and gives me a melting smile. We’re relaxing in a lukewarm bath, naturally without anything on.

The hot spring-loving imperial folks must have been thrilled because they worked overtime to build our own outdoor bath. They created a spacious stone tub, stylishly roofed, enough for about ten people, with no walls of course.

The milky-white water, cooled moderately through a long pipe from the source, elegantly conceals Ayaka-san’s impressive chest armor. Well, when she shifts a bit, glimpses that peek out are quite intriguing for a man.

Despite being a descendant of Akitsushima people who loved hot springs, Ayaka-san herself had never experienced one. I thought she might be confused, but from the day she first soaked in, she’s been melting like butter. It seems she really likes it… Her love for hot springs must run deep in her veins.

“I feel like I could stay here forever… Lady Margarete, you should come soon too.”

“Yeah, but… just wait a moment!”

On the other hand, Gretel is completely unaccustomed. In Berzenbrück, exposing one’s body in broad daylight like this is considered “unthinkable” culturally. Even though she impulsively stripped off her clothes after seeing Ayaka-san and me cuddling, she’s now frozen, wrapped tightly in a towel.

“Once you do it, it’s not such a big deal.”

Ayaka-san, unable to bear it, gets out of the water and approaches Gretel, who’s frozen like a statue. Somehow, her words sound subtly suggestive to me—maybe my mind’s a bit dirty?

“You can’t stay like this… Alright, here we go!”

“Gahh!”

Ayaka-san deftly grabs a corner of the large towel shielding Gretel’s body, pulls it off smoothly as if performing a magic trick. Even though Gretel, with her immense strength, was holding it down with all her might, how did she do that?

Touching Gretel’s back gently with her palm as she tries to minimize her exposure, Ayaka-san speaks softly.

“It’s alright, Lady Margarete. Your finely sculpted body is as beautiful as a deity’s statue. Surely Lord Lutz will be captivated. Now, let’s go together…”

Led gently by Ayaka-san, Gretel approaches the bath timidly, hiding here and there with her towel. Seeing her, who had been calm until now, I too start feeling lively in certain areas. That’s right, I’ve experienced this in my previous world too. Mixed bathing is nothing special if the other person is comfortable, but if they’re embarrassed, it oddly becomes arousing—I wonder if my heart is corrupted?

Finally sinking into the rock bath, Gretel seems to calm down a bit. After all, this hot spring, rich in sulfur, is cloudy milky-white and nicely conceals bodies beneath the water’s surface.

“Yeah… it’s warm. But it feels so refreshing with the winter air cooling my head… I think I understand now why the imperial people love hot springs so much.”

Yeah, maybe she’s starting to grasp a bit of the charm of hot springs. Cultural differences are not easily bridged, but I hope Gretel, like Ayaka-san and me, can come to understand and even love these Japanese-like cultural aspects.

Little by little, her stiffness eases, and her cheeks loosen.

“In the world where Lutz was, did they have bathing customs like this?”

“Yeah. In Japan, there are places all over where hot springs bubble up like this. People come to heal their tired or wounded bodies and hearts. I also loved soaking in the hot water while feeling the breeze blowing.”

Yeah, I really love hot springs too. Until we had kids, my wife and I often visited hidden mountain hot springs together. And after retiring from work, we talked about traveling across the country again… but my wife passed away first… and that opportunity was lost.

“I see… If Lutz liked it, I think I could come to like it too.”

Surprisingly blushing at her earnest words, Gretel looks unusually cute. Without thinking, I take her hand, and for a brief moment, her gray eyes shine brightly… but she quickly turns away, perhaps to hide her embarrassment.

“I hope Lady Beato will come too.”

“Yeah…”

I nod in agreement with Gretel’s words, but realistically, Countess Beato is too busy with official duties to come all the way here. After all, this place is a remote borderland from the capital city, and it would take several days even in the royal family’s luxurious carriage.

With various thoughts in mind, we silently watch the setting sun sinking behind the western mountains for a while.

—

Afterward, the Baden territory was caught up in a hot spring boom.

Originally, the imperial people enjoyed a mixed bathing culture with hot springs, but for them, hot springs were like a boss overseeing their bath while wearing a yukata, not something to bare their skin in.

That’s where I and the Dark Clan introduced the pleasure of soaking without any clothes. Once you’ve tasted the freedom from the discomfort of wet clothes sticking to your skin, there’s no going back. Before we knew it, the “thousand-person bath” was overflowing with naked men and women. It’s not just about comfort; of course, one of the pleasures is being able to observe the bodies of the opposite s3x up close. Women boldly gaze at the men’s bodies, while men, somewhat more reserved, clearly focus their attention on certain areas.

From then on, the number of marriage forms submitted to Max’s office between slaves increased significantly—a delightful miscalculation.