Ch.5419. A Night for Two (3)

Yuri’s demeanor was different from usual.

She wasn’t the cold-headed guild leader of Flame, but rather like a drunk woman. Well, it made sense that she was intoxicated after gulping down three bottles of vodka as if it were water.

Even Awakened ones get drunk if they don’t detoxify alcohol with mana.

‘A normal person would have passed out by now.’

That’s why her usually pale face now had a flush of color. And the atmosphere was even more different than before.

Unlike earlier when she was proudly recounting her exploits, Yuri sitting in silence, overcome by intoxication, was beautiful.

Her snow-white hair fell loosely down. And her appearance, filled with vitality due to the alcohol, seemed more bewitching than beautiful.

I found myself unconsciously following her face with my eyes. It felt as if I were enchanted by her.

‘Snow woman…’

After opening up to Yuri, there was something she told me.

‘Yuri’s mother. She said there was a legend of the snow woman in her hometown in Japan.’

But the story about her mother, and how Yuri had received hunting training since childhood, giving her an old man’s taste in food—none of that was in the original work.

The original Siwoo was solely devoted to Mina, just like the real-life Siwoo. In the original story, Yuri, who would join the Snow Field Knights, was merely positioned as a rival.

So the personal history of Yuri that I know isn’t mentioned at all in the original work. Yet I know these facts because…

Yuri personally told me about herself, and only me.

‘Because Yuri isn’t the type to go around sharing her personal history.’

The hunting training she mentioned earlier was like that too.

The reason I fell much deeper for Yuri was after learning about the unhappy past hidden behind Yuri, the perfect noble lady and student council president.

So Yuri’s true self, her inner feelings, are much more fragile than one might think. To the point of having attachment issues.

Therefore, I was the man who knew Yuri’s secrets best. That special connection always made me happy.

‘And now…’

As Yuri, exuding a completely different atmosphere than usual, suddenly grabbed my hand. And interlocked our fingers.

“Huu…”

We’re sitting side by side. Thanks to Yuri turning the shelter into a barrier, we can’t even hear the wind outside.

So I can hear even the sound of Yuri’s breath right next to me. Perhaps because she drank so much, her breathing seems quite rapid.

And with that sound of breathing, I couldn’t remain as calm as usual.

‘I keep becoming conscious of Yuri.’

A bewitching, extremely beautiful yokai snow woman. It feels like I’m alone with such a snow woman.

Though to call her a yokai might be inaccurate—the current Yuri’s face and neck are flushed, making her seem extremely human. No, that made her even more captivating.

If she’s human, I can touch her. Feel her warmth. Even Yuri, the ice mage. I can feel the warmth from Yuri’s hand that I’m holding now.

‘What am I thinking…’

I shook my head to gather my thoughts and tried to gently release my interlocked fingers with Yuri. It was dangerous to continue like this.

And at that moment, Yuri said to me:

“Minsu. I want to take a bath.”

I was taken aback by those words.

‘A bath?’

Of course, there are campgrounds with shower facilities, but this was a shelter high up in the mountains. Naturally, there wouldn’t be any water facilities, so there was barely a toilet.

The interior was structured with wooden platforms built in two levels. There was no way there would be shower facilities or a bathtub.

“I’m feeling sticky from sweating so much while training with you. I can’t sleep like this… I want to wash up!”

She spoke to me in a pleading tone that would be unimaginable from the usual Yuri.

‘Is this an order from a superior?’

Come to think of it, Yuri during the Eins days was quite domineering towards me. A queen reigning over the student council president and cadets. She was playing that role herself.

But now it was somewhat different. As if she was being coquettish. No, more than that… her tone seemed like she was trying to seduce me.

“There are no shower facilities here, are there?”

I said that while turning my gaze away from Yuri. Sitting side by side, Yuri was giving me a strangely sticky look.

‘A bath…’

I’m a young man in my prime. So it was inevitable that I would unconsciously imagine it.

‘Is this also a drinking habit?’

If so, it seems like a truly fatal drinking habit. Because there would be no man who could resist the seduction of that snow woman, except perhaps a gay man.

I released our interlocked fingers, but Yuri continued to fiddle with my hand. The atmosphere in the shelter was becoming increasingly strange.

Whether it was the alcohol or the blazing mini-heater, beads of sweat formed on Yuri’s forehead and neck.

Her silver-white hair stuck to that sweat, creating a peculiar feeling. At the same time, as Yuri kept making eye contact with me, I had no choice but to hurriedly look away.

In response to my comment about the lack of shower facilities, Yuri replied:

“That’s right. But what should I do? Today, Minsu was so aggressive, clinging to me… I got so hot and sweaty. I really need to wash up.”

The nuance of her words was quite embarrassing, but it wasn’t wrong. After all, I had truly rushed at Yuri with all my might to adjust the Wind Cutter.

‘There’s no way out.’

I finally gave in to Yuri’s request.

***

On the relatively spacious platform on the first floor of the shelter, the two sat.

No, Yuri brought a small chair to sit on, and I sat beside her with a large pot I had found in the shelter.

“I’d like to soak in a tub of warm water, but that’s impossible. So I need to at least wipe off the sweat I shed because of you.”

If there was something resembling a bathtub, she might really be able to take a bath. Yuri could fill the tub with snow or ice using her ice magic, and I could melt it and heat it with a flame spell.

But there was no such thing. So Yuri decided to wipe her body with a towel dampened with warm water that she had packed in her backpack.

‘Well, it is partly my responsibility.’

And the fire in the heater went out. We could go outside to gather wood, but Yuri, who still had the shelter under a barrier, didn’t seem likely to let me leave.

Yuri said to me:

“Then, I’ll ask for your help.”

So I had to prepare the warm water to dampen Yuri’s towel. Yuri began to remove her black stockings.

It wasn’t an inappropriate scene, but I quickly averted my eyes from Yuri.

“What’s wrong? You’re not having strange thoughts about me, are you?”

“No, I’m not.”

“Really? I’d be disappointed if you had no thoughts at all.”

Yuri said something to me that would be unimaginable from her usual self. Somehow, I thought I heard her laughing lightly.

‘Must be my imagination.’

Then Yuri said:

“Hmm. The water seems a bit cold. Could you warm it up a little more?”

I had no choice but to look at Yuri again. Her stockings were placed beside the chair. And her snow-white legs were fully visible.

Yuri was crossing those legs in a provocative posture. Then she glanced at me sharply.

“Where are you looking?”

“Ah, nowhere.”

I came to my senses. Indeed, the current Yuri was strange. This might also be a bad drinking habit.

But since Yuri wasn’t forcing unreasonable labor on me, I tried to maintain my composure as much as possible while reheating the water in the large pot.

Of course, that water was melted ice created by Yuri’s freezing spell.

“Is this temperature okay?”

“Yes, it’s fine.”

Yuri levitated a towel in the air. The towel went into the pot, and once soaked with water, it floated back up.

Then the towel began to wring itself out. It was all Yuri’s doing. Not using a spell, but accomplishing it with pure mana movement alone.

‘She really… doesn’t seem human.’

It was a level of mana control that would surprise even other Awakened ones. I thought I could do something similar if my mana heart was normal.

And Yuri began to wipe her legs with that towel.

Even though she was just wiping her legs with a towel, the strange atmosphere made me turn my head away again.

“My, why are you doing that? Constantly turning your head away. If you’re so conscious of me, it makes me feel strange too.”

Unable to make any excuse, I reheated the water in the pot with a flame spell.

“Isn’t the water too hot?”

“It’s perfect. Not too hot, not lukewarm, but warm. I can’t take a bath, but this is good enough.”

Then Yuri continued:

“Just a moment. Could you stand behind me this time? I might feel a bit embarrassed too.”

Yuri’s voice was moist. Compared to her usual businesslike tone, it was hard to believe it was the same person. But soon, there was no time to think about her voice.

Yuri began to remove her shirt.

***

Silence fell over the shelter.

No, I couldn’t say anything. But Yuri seemed unbothered. While I had my head turned, I heard her putting down her clothes.

And it seemed like Yuri was wiping her body with the towel again.

“Minsu. If you don’t mind, could you warm the water again?”

“… Yes. Of course.”

I understood why Yuri had asked me to stand behind her. Right now, Yuri had removed all her upper clothing.

Even if I just stood beside her, not in front, it would be a very embarrassing scene. Of course, I was standing behind her, so I couldn’t see her front. That was a great relief.

‘What on earth is Yuri thinking…’

No, Yuri is just casually wiping off sweat with a towel. If anything, I might be the one who’s being overly conscious of Yuri.

Trying not to look at Yuri as much as possible, I reheated the water in the pot. Again, the towel flew over and soaked up the warm water.

And as Yuri was wiping her upper body, she said to me:

“Minsu. Could you help me?”

“Yes… what?”

My answer came out nervously, to the point where I felt embarrassed. Since Yuri had her back turned, I couldn’t see her expression. That was fortunate.

“I can’t reach my back. Could you wipe it for me with the towel?”

“Me?”

“Yes. There’s no one else here, is there?”

It was a dilemma. If I refused here, it would be like showing that I was very conscious of Yuri.

In the end, with my eyes squinting and looking elsewhere as much as possible, I began to wipe Yuri’s back.

“Huu… it’s warm. The towel feels good…”

When the towel touched her back, Yuri made a nasal sound.

It might have been because her back was sticky with sweat, but even that nasal sound made me feel strange now.

‘No. Don’t be conscious of it.’

And the moment I placed the towel, even though I tried not to look, I couldn’t help but see. The smooth nape of Yuri’s neck leading to that snow-white back and its curves.

In the end, I wiped Yuri’s back with my head turned away, extending only my hand.

“Ahh… I feel alive now. It’s all thanks to you, Minsu. Thank you.”

“It’s nothing. It wasn’t a big deal.”

But even as I answered, I kept my head turned. If I accidentally imagined Yuri with her back turned, it would be terrible.

And so Yuri’s brief bath ended. I finally breathed a sigh of relief. No, there was a part of me that felt regretful inside, but I quickly denied those feelings.

‘It’s a bit strange indeed. Maybe it’s because I used too much mana today.’

And Yuri, now dressed again, said to me:

“Then, would you like to wipe your body too, Minsu? You must have sweated.”

“I’m… fine.”

“Is that so? Well, that’s okay. I prefer it that way too.”

Even the meaning behind those words was so subtle that I felt dazed. So I had to think about why Yuri was acting this way, in my own way.

‘If the blood of the snow woman really flows in her… maybe the relaxed Yuri, under the influence of alcohol, is releasing that energy.’

That’s how I explained my current state to myself, as I was unusually unable to maintain my composure. And as it was already late at night, the two of us lay down.

We each got into our sleeping bags. I lay down at a considerable distance from Yuri.

Then, Yuri said softly:

“Why are you going so far away, Minsu?”