We spent the rest of the evening sorting the weapons and armor left in the armory and the hallway outside. I didn’t have an eye for weaponry, so I relied on Clena’s judgment and placed the most valuable-looking ones in the back. The job would be easier if Rulitora could help, but unfortunately he was too large to squeeze into a space just one stuto wide. Thus, the hard labor fell on Roni and I. As a man, I didn’t want to lose to Roni here.
We spent the next two days exploring the castle. We came across a library, but most of the books were tattered and eaten away by insects. However we did find two shelves of books still intact toward the back. The shelves were probably encased in a spell that protected the books inside, so we carried them in their entirety into the Unlimited Bath.
We found five treasure chests filled with gold coins inside the treasure room... as well as dozens of ornaments decorated with gems and precious metals. Of course, we packed all of them away as well. I was worried that we wouldn’t be able to use the gold coins, but after inspecting them, they were the same ones that the Olympus Alliance had in circulation since long ago.
So far, we had more than made up for the funds we used to travel to the desert kingdom. Besides that, we also collected whatever furniture and accessories hadn’t deteriorated too badly. According to Rium, anything that hadn’t decayed in 500 years likely had some sort of spell cast on it. We carried everything into the Unlimited Bath, just like the weapons and armor.
“What’s this?”
While we were exploring the castle, we came across a strange room—no, it was just an open space. There were no walls or ceiling left, so you couldn’t call it a room anymore. It was a crater with a diameter of about 100 stutos.
“There used to be something here, but it was all blown away,” Rium said as she stroked a piece of rubble that she picked up at the edge of the crater. “...It got melted, but then it cooled and hardened again.”
“Really?”
“Really.”
Come to think of it, all the rubble facing the inside of the crater was awfully smooth. What in the world happened here? The battle between the first sacred king and the demon lord was the only thing I could think of. So we’d eventually be fighting against an opponent who could make this much of a mess? While I mulled that over, Rulitora noticed something and pointed to the center of the crater.
“Sir Touya, look over there.”
“Huh, where?”
I looked to where he was pointing and saw some sort of black stick at the center of the crater. I approached it and found that it was a black plank sticking out from the floor. The plank was engraved with red lettering, and the sides were sharp and jagged. It was sticking out from the ground in a slant, but it’d probably reach up to my chest if it weren’t. The surface was glossy and gave off a black luster. Looks like it was made from some sort of metal.
Clena came around from the other side and peered at the letters. The engraving was the same on both sides.
“This isn’t the language of Hades...”
“It’s cursive kanji, huh... I think the bottom part reads ‘of the Sixth Heaven’... Including the part buried underground, it might read ‘Demon King of the Sixth Heaven.’ It’s written upside down.”
“Sixth Heaven?”
“It was sort of the nickname of Oda Nobunaga... I mean, the demon lord Amann Naga. Basically, that’s what he was called back in my world.”
“So he was a demon lord even back there?”
“In a different sense, but I guess so.”
I recalled learning that they started calling him that after the Siege of Mount Hiei. I thought he even referred to himself by that nickname in his letters, but I bet he never expected to truly become a demon king in another world.
Anyway, the plank must have had something to do with someone who was summoned from my world, since the engraving spelled out “Demon King of the Sixth Heaven.”
“This almost seems like an epitaph on a tombstone.” It might have had something to do with the first sacred king, considering the writing.
“But Sir Touya, didn’t a demon general escape with the demon lord?” Roni asked from behind me.
If Goldfish had been telling the truth, then a demon general should have taken the demon lord and escaped from Hadesopolis. So if this was a grave, then whose was it? Well, there was a chance this was a grave, but the possibility put me off from finding out by digging it up.
“Was this the cause of all this destruction? What in the world...” I mumbled and traced my finger along the red engraving, wondering if it was made using some sort of paint. Not a moment later, the letters started to glow, and I instinctively grabbed my round shield to cover my eyes. The light grew brighter and brighter, and soon enough the entire plank started to shine. It was so intense that I couldn’t keep my eyes open even while shielding them. Rulitora yelled out my name and I replied that I was fine, since I hadn’t been physically hurt. But the moment I said that, I wondered if I’d really be okay. I moved back a little so that I could guard the three girls.
“What did you do, Touya?!”
“I just touched it!”
We waited it out, and eventually the intense light started to dim. I lowered my shield and looked toward the metallic blank plank, but surprisingly it was now floating in the air. It was still shining, though not as brightly as before.
“Ah...” I finally realized. It was upside down, but this was a grave marker that you’d commonly find in Japanese cemeteries. Instead of wood it was made from metal, plus it was all black, so I hadn’t connected the dots until I saw the entire thing removed from the ground.
“Why a grave marker...?” I looked at the palm of my gauntlet. The metal board was sharp, but I figured I’d be fine if I had a firm hold on it, and reached out to grab the plank. As soon as I did, it stopped giving off light and fell into my hands. It felt dense and heavy.
“I-is that okay?”
“I think so...” Nothing was happening now that I was holding it, so I figured we’d be safe. What was that light, though?
A moment later, Rium pulled on my arm.
“Touya, there’s a strange person.”
“...What?”
I looked at Rium, then followed her gaze and saw a pitch-black mass crouching on the floor. I quickly let go of the black plank and drew the dagger I had on my waist.
Roni moved as well. She took a battle stance next to me. Right when Clena was about to draw her sword, the metal plank I had dropped made a loud clanging noise against the ground.
“Eek...!” At the same time, the pitch-black mass squealed a bit and started trembling.
That voice made all the tension vanish from my body. Roni had a silly look on her face.
Now that I looked more closely, the pitch-black mass was actually a pile of hair. She was wearing a black dress and crouching on the floor. I could see small pale hands wrapped around her knees.
Between strands of hair, I spotted her fear-tinted eyes. She was looking right at us, so I put my dagger away and walked toward her. The mass started shivering more, but when I parted her hair I found a pair of tear-ridden eyes staring back at me like a scolded puppy. Her face was neat and elegant, prettier than a doll could ever be. She appeared to be a bit younger than me. She had a clearly frightened expression, her pale white skin turning almost blue.
I was at a loss for words after seeing her face. It’s not that I had fallen in love at first sight... But I had seen her before.
“Could you be... the Goddess of Darkness?!” Yes, she had the same face as the Goddess of Darkness that I had seen in my dream.
“You... you won’t bully me?”
“...No, we won’t bully you.” I could only sigh and droop my shoulders at her shaking voice on the verge of tears.
Looks like her personality was the same as in my dream, too.
Post-Bath – Author’s Booth
Long time no see to everyone coming from volume one, and nice to meet you to everyone who picked this ti
tle up starting from volume two! My name is Nagaharu Hibihana. It’s all thanks to your support that I managed to get volume two out. I’d like to thank Masakage Hagiya, who had to put up with weird art directions like “emphasize her butt more here,” my editor K, the editorial department at Overlap Bunko, and everyone who was involved in the publishing and selling of this book.
It’s getting hotter outside as I write this, but it’ll be even worse by the time this book hits the shelves. I actually love cloud-watching, and summer is perfect for watching tall cumulonimbus clouds float by. But I cannot stand the heat! Make sure to stay cool and hydrated in the coming months.
I hope to see you all again in volume three of Mixed Bathing in Another Dimension!
Nagaharu Hibihana, July 2015.
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Copyright
Mixed Bathing in Another Dimension: The Fervent Sand Baths
by Nagaharu Hibihana
Translated by Sophie Guo
Edited by C. Vanstiphout
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
Copyright © 2015 Nagaharu Hibihana
Illustrations Copyright © 2015 Masakage Hagiya
Cover illustration by Masakage Hagiya
All rights reserved.
Original Japanese edition published in 2015 by OVERLAP
This English edition is published by arrangement with OVERLAP Inc., Tokyo
English translation © 2017 J-Novel Club LLC
All rights reserved. In accordance with the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, the scanning, uploading, and electronic sharing of any part of this book without the permission of the publisher is unlawful piracy and theft of the author’s intellectual property.
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The publisher is not responsible for websites (or their content) that are not owned by the publisher.
Ebook edition 1.0: March 2017
The Fervent Sand Baths Page 21
