After resting for half an hour, Ryo asked the manager to prepare the bath. There were two communal bathrooms, one for men and one for women, although both weren't big enough for eight people, so the boys had to take their turns.
The manager, a widow in her fifties, also served dinner—four dishes made from bamboo shoots, radish, mushroom, and green onions. It took a little longer to prepare because she only had two servants, and only one helped in the kitchen.
Ryo didn't waste time and asked for the smoked wild boar meat that whetted his hunger earlier. The boys gobbled up like it was their last supper, filling the dining room with the sound of munching and grunting.
Had the inn been a pub, there would also have been women massaging the boys' shoulders to sweep them off their feet. Though, Ryo would have protested since they were all a bunch of kids.
Favoring them, the manager treated them to two jars of sake, further turning up the heat. Caught up in the moment, Ryo suddenly grabbed the arm of the servant, pouring sake into his sakazuki.
It wasn't violent like a sex-hungry rabble-rouser in an izakaya. He did it gently, almost like how a lonely old man would beg for attention. The servant was a little startled but not threatened. In fact, she felt delighted as few men had ever acted so warmly towards her.
The enchantment was cut short, however, when Ryo began to speak.
"Do you know how to get to Tabishiki Village?" he asked.
These words didn't only douse the servant's growing orgasm, but they also took her aback. She was at a loss for words as if she had heard a forbidden speech.
The two stared into each other's eyes, one awaiting a response while the other contemplated a means of escape.
Time had stopped between them. Before she could open her mouth to let unsavory words escape, the manager called out to her from the end of the room, seemingly worried that the guests were treating him badly.
The nudge swiftly brought them back to their senses, restoring the cheery atmosphere that was temporarily put off.
The servant immediately stood up and walked toward the manager, with her back slightly hunched. Ryo's eyes trailed her, worried that she might get into trouble for what he had done.
He saw the two exchange whispers, the manager occasionally stealing glances at him, which made it apparent he or what had happened earlier was their subject. Then, the manager gently pulled her out of the room.
Curious and troubled,Ryo stood up and secretly followed them. He told Yukimura, who was sittingbeside him, that he needed to take a piss.
As soon as he got out of the room,he began tiptoeing in the hallway toward the kitchen, staying in the shadows toavoid casting a silhouette behind the fusumasliding.
Upon reaching the kitchen, he stood in the corner and began eavesdropping on whatsounded like a tense conversation in progress.
YOU ARE READING
Saving Touma
Mystery / ThrillerWhen the past and the future collide, chaos follows. Lives from different worlds intertwine and dance in a perpetual loop. The victim? An innocent child whose future would remain uncertain and cost many lives to retrieve. The key to all of this is a...
