"Hmm," the Scholar murmured, falling into deep thought after listening to Elysia's words. "What are you planning to do next?"
"Maybe look for some side quests and try to grind for more points before this mission ends?" Elysia suggested. "But honestly, I'd rather just take a nice, relaxing bath and rest..."
"Then go ahead," the Scholar said. "There's a full bathing suite in the living quarters, and it even has a large pool."
Elysia blinked in disbelief. "???"
Wait, I was just speaking off the cuff! What kind of sane person installs a full bathing suite on an aircraft?!
Even more astonishing, the Scholar added, "Perfect timing. I'm almost finished with my research here. Want to bathe together?"
Elysia's mouth fell slightly open, and she froze in place. "Huh?"
The Scholar, however, moved quickly. In the blink of an eye, she had neatly organized the experimental materials in front of her. Noticing Elysia's stunned expression, she tilted her head. "Is something wrong?"
"This... this might not be a good idea?" Elysia stammered.
Keep in mind that Elysia had never bathed with anyone but herself before! She'd never even been to a public bathhouse. In other words, she'd never seen another girl's body besides her own.
The Scholar tilted her head slightly. "What's the problem? We're both girls."
"No, no, no! It's a huge problem!" Elysia frantically shook her head, but she couldn't quite articulate why.
The Scholar narrowed her eyes, studying the pink-haired girl before her. "Elysia... are you blushing? I didn't think you could even blush!"
For some reason, the Scholar's mind suddenly conjured the phrase: "High attack, paper-thin defense!" The contrast between Elysia's usual extroverted, social butterfly persona and her current bashfulness was striking.
"No, impossible!" Elysia immediately protested. Shy? How could she be shy? She was just worried about taking advantage of the Scholar and feeling awkward about it!
But upon closer reflection, what exactly was there to take advantage of? As the Scholar had pointed out, they were both girls—what was the big deal?
Elysia suddenly stood her ground and declared, "Fine, we'll bathe together then!"
Besides, she stole a glance at the Scholar's rather modest chest, then looked down at her own. This... Who's really taking advantage of whom here? she wondered.
"Let's go, then." For once, the Scholar took the initiative, gently pulling Elysia's small hand and leading her out of the research lab. Since Elysia was floating, it looked like she was pulling a human-shaped balloon.
"Wait, we're leaving right now?!"
"Why not? You said you were tired. The sooner we shower, the sooner we can rest. We still have six days left—plenty of time."
A moment later, Elysia fell silent as she stared at the square bathroom, each side measuring roughly ten meters.
This bathroom is already much larger than a typical home bathroom, she thought, but it's nowhere near the size of a public bathhouse. After all, we're on an aircraft—they couldn't possibly install a hundred-meter-long bathhouse here, could they?
The ten-meter space wasn't huge, but it wasn't exactly cramped either. Which meant that Elysia would be in close proximity to the Scholar throughout her shower.
With the sound of a zipper, the Scholar had already shed her coat. She glanced at Elysia, who stood motionless with a faint blush on her cheeks, a slight smirk playing on her lips. "Elysia, what are you waiting for? You can't take a bath with your clothes on. Don't you know that?"
Elysia pursed her lips before slowly beginning to undress. She was wearing her Herrscher outfit, but even that could be removed.
As each garment was neatly folded aside, Elysia finally slipped her small feet from her white high-heeled boots, revealing five translucent toes that instinctively flexed and stretched. The sight was undeniably alluring.
Releasing her levitation ability, Elysia landed on the cold steel floor, a shiver running through her as her bare feet made contact.
Clutching her chest with both arms, she glanced at the Scholar. To her surprise, the woman had already submerged herself in the adjacent bath, only her head visible above the water.
The Scholar beckoned to Elysia. "What are you standing there for? Aren't you cold? Hurry up and get in!"
Even submerged in the water, Elysia could clearly see the Scholar's body. Her first thought was, "Just as I expected... she's really flat."
Her second thought was, "It's okay, small is cute too."
And then... nothing. She realized she wasn't having any strange thoughts or physical reactions. In fact, it would be stranger if she did have any special reactions right now!
Elysia suddenly realized that her reluctance to bathe with the Scholar wasn't about seeing the other woman's body. It was simply shyness, not wanting the Scholar to see hers.
This was her first time bathing with someone else, her first time seeing another person's body, and conversely, her first time letting someone else see hers. Feeling embarrassed about it was perfectly normal, right?
Tap, tap~ After taking a deep breath, Elysia padded barefoot to the edge of the tub. She lifted her leg, stepped over the rim, and let her toes dangle in the water. Her rounded, adorable toes wiggled gently, sending delicate ripples across the surface.
The water was pleasantly warm, not scalding. Elysia slowly eased herself into the bathtub, mimicking the Scholar by keeping only her head above the surface.
However, unlike the Scholar's short hair, Elysia's exceptionally long, voluminous locks spread out behind her when wet, making her already abundant hair appear even more voluminous.
The Scholar glanced up and remarked, "Such long hair must be a real pain to manage."
Without hesitation, Elysia replied, "Of course! After every bath, it takes forever just to blow-dry and comb it all!"
"Then why not cut it short?" the Scholar suggested.
Elysia shook her head firmly. "No way! I'm clearly cuter with long hair!"
As they continued chatting idly, Elysia's initial reserve gradually faded, allowing her true nature to resurface.