episode_0061

The massage began immediately.

Rub- rub-.

Hmm. This…

Isn’t it the same as the usual massage?

He massaged my legs, loosening the tense muscles.

Stimulating my ankles, insteps, and soles, he relieved the accumulated fatigue.

Then Fosao climbed onto my body and gently massaged my shoulders.

My arms, stiff from swinging the sword, quickly relaxed.

“Hehe-. It really feels good.”

After my shoulders, he slowly moved down, pressing firmly with his fingers on my back and shoulder blades.

This gentle touch, tracing the line from my neck down to my waist.

…It’s tingling.

After taking a bath and getting a massage, I felt incredibly relaxed.

My eyelids grew heavy, and I almost dozed off.

Fosao whispered into my ear.

“Tia. From now on, it’s the ad-advanced technique.”

“Ah, yes… Please do…”

“Then, c-could you lie on your back?”

“…Huh?”

Until now, I had only received massages while lying on my stomach.

Since the legs, feet, shoulders, and back were the main areas.

But he said the advanced technique required lying on my back, facing the ceiling.

In other words, it was a position where I would be facing Fosao.

“Alright…”

As I turned onto my back, Fosao’s hands immediately approached.

The place where those damp, warm hands touched was…

“Gah-?”

My lower abdomen?!

Startled, I immediately grabbed his hands.

Fosao, without a twitch, spoke with a serious expression.

“Now… I need to relax your ab-abdominal and pectoral muscles…”

“M-Mister… Do you massage even these areas? I’m fine here…”

“While the stomach and ch-chest don’t often get tense… you should release them occasionally.”

“But…”

“It’ll feel much, much better than anything you’ve had so far…”

It would feel much better.

At those words, I took a shallow breath.

Fosao’s massage felt good no matter where he touched.

Every time he pressed my skin, pain and pleasure intertwined…

And after being massaged vigorously, when he gently lifted his hands, even the feeling of cool air touching me felt good.

But there was something even better than that?

My heart pounded.

If Fosao confidently called it an ‘advanced technique’, then what on earth…

“Can I… ca-can I continue?”

“Yes…”

I gently released Fosao’s hand that I was holding.

“Mmm…”

Warmth crawled across my lower abdomen.

Fosao spread his hands wide, taking hold of my waist as if wrapping around it.

And with the joint of his thumb, he slowly began to rub around my navel.

Deeply, yet gently.

I slightly raised my head and looked at my lower abdomen.

I could see the skin sinking in as much as Fosao’s thick fingers.

This feeling of him slowly stroking, as if making me eager…

“Hah…”

It’s different.

Just as Fosao said, this isn’t an ordinary massage.

If before it was simply loosening tense muscles.

This… feels like it’s warmly embracing even the deepest parts within.

It didn’t hurt, nor was there intense tingling, but.

Endless comfort.

And the sensation of the inside of my lower abdomen filling with warmth felt good.

Fosao explained.

“I’ve heard that women sh-should often keep their lower abdomen warm…”

“…Hnnh. Really?”

“The b-baby’s room… is here. Eeheehee.”

“Baby’s room?”

I looked down at my lower abdomen again.

If it’s the baby’s room… then my womb?

But Fosao was just pressing on my skin.

As if by magic, my insides felt a warm tingle.

“Hah… Suddenly… something feels hot.”

“W-Well, it worked! The advanced technique… was successful.”

It felt as if a hot stone was resting on my lower abdomen.

It was a strange yet pleasant feeling, as if my insides were filled with warmth.

“This part is ov-over.”

Fosao slowly removed his hands.

I already felt a sense of regret.

“Is this… the end?”

“Actually… there’s more after this. Sh-shall I do m-more…?”

“If you’re okay with it…”

“Thennnn…”

Fosao swallowed hard.

This time, he extended his hands straight forward.

Tap.

His thick fingers touched my chest area.

“…”

I flinched for a moment, but then relaxed and let him continue.

Because Fosao… isn’t that kind of person.

Because I trust him.

As if to be considerate of me, Fosao pressed below my collarbone only with his fingertips, trying his best not to let his hand touch.

And while doing so, he massaged my chest in a circular motion.

“Women, th-this area also needs to be relaxed. Unlike men, they have br-breasts, so it gets stiff…”

Drip.

Fosao’s sweat dripped onto my shirt.

“…”

It’s a strange feeling.

I understand that he has to massage carefully, so it can’t be helped, but.

It’s as if Fosao is staring intently at my chest…

It’s embarrassing.

“Hmm… I’ve never really felt it was heavy, though.”

“Really? Ah, maybe it’s because Tia’s chest is st-still small…? Eeheehee…”

“Ugh.”

I recalled my aunts’ chests.

They all had rather large chests.

Aunt Olivia, who breastfed her baby, was as big as a pumpkin.

Even Aunt Merid, who was considered small in the village, had a noticeable curve above her clothes.

But strangely, I showed no signs of developing such ‘large breasts’.

Did men prefer women with larger chests, I wonder?

I remember Uncle Joseph giving me that hint.

Would Ritsu prefer that too…?

Haa-.

I hadn’t really worried, thinking that someday I’d grow as big as my aunts.

But they were still only fist-sized, which was a bit concerning.

“Mister.”

“Hm?”

“In your opinion, Mister… are my breasts really that small?”

“Huh? N-Nooo! N-No! Absolutely not!”

Fosao shook his head vigorously.

“Ti-Tia’s breasts… they’re just right and pr-pretty.”

“You’re lying. You just said my breasts were small earlier.”

“They’re not too sm-small… I think this size is p-perfectly good…”

“Hmph-.”

It’s strange to ask such questions while my chest is being massaged, but.

I was still curious.

“Do men prefer women with larger chests?”

“W-Well… I don’t really know about that…”

“What about you, Mister?”

“Me…”

Fosao glanced down at my chest.

“I… I like breasts about Tia’s size.”

“…That last comment, it’s a bit unpleasant.”

“N-Nooo! S-Sorry! I’m sorry!”

“Hmm- but the massage felt good, so I’ll let it slide.”

“I’m sa-saveddd-. It’s all over now…”

The moment he removed his hands.

Strangely, my chest area felt lighter.

I tried rotating my shoulders slightly, and I could bend them back flexibly without any feeling of resistance.

It truly felt like magic.

Fosao, who had finished the massage, asked.

“Ti-Tia. How was it? The advanced technique… fr-from a woman’s perspective…”

“It was incredibly good. I think I understand why it’s called an advanced technique.”

I said honestly.

“However- I wonder if it might be a bit awkward for women you meet for the first time. Hehe-.”

“Eeheehee. R-Really?”

“Yes. I think it would be better to use the advanced technique after your relationship with a woman has deepened considerably.”

“Thank you. I’ll ke-keep that in mind.”

I extinguished the candle and lay down on the bed, when Fosao, who was lying on the floor, suddenly spoke to me.

“Tia… Are you asleep?”

“No. Not yet.”

“Actually, I was trying to keep this a se-secret, but…”

Fosao said in a low voice.

“If you get that massage… it’s said to have the effect of making your ch-chest bigger…”

“…”

I shot up from the bed.

What? My chest gets bigger?

I quietly asked Fosao, who was lying on the floor with his back to me.

“…Was what you just said true?”

But Fosao didn’t answer.

“Mister?”

Silence.

The moment I poked him with my toe, getting no response.

Snore-.

“…”

Haa-.

This Mister, he’s really annoying.

He just randomly falls asleep in the middle of talking.

And his snoring is so loud.

His stomach sticks out.

With all that, will he ever get married?

Perhaps the woman who could marry Fosao would have to be…

broad-minded enough to understand all those flaws.

diligent enough to tolerate his lazy personality.

and tough enough to speak loudly to others for her timid husband.

…More than anything.

She would have to love that Mister, ‘whom everyone dislikes’, all by herself.

Could such a woman exist in this world?

Hmm-. Indeed, it would be difficult.

…But why am I seriously thinking about that Mister’s marriage?

Annoying.

I should just go to sleep.

***

Clink-.

I spread the gold coins on the bed and counted them one by one.

The total money earned so far was 443 gold and 65 silver.

One could say it was going smoothly, but…

Checking the calendar, the day I left Breezedown was October 9th, and today was November 13th.

A month had already passed.

“Will it be alright…?”

It would be truly great if I could safely gather 1,000 gold at this pace.

But after giving up the arena, which had been a decent source of income, I was now wondering how to earn money.

Rustle-.

I carefully swept up the spilled gold coins and stored them in my pouch.

Ritsu must be doing well, right?

I’m worried something might have happened in Breezedown.

If I had my way, I’d write a letter saying I’m doing well and send it.

But stationery is surprisingly expensive, and even if I could send it, I wouldn’t receive a reply here, so I decided to just endure it.

Besides, there’s also the saying, ‘no news is good news’ [meaning a lack of information implies things are fine].

Creak-.

Fosao, who had gone to look for work, returned.

“Welcome back, Mister! Did you find anything?”

“No. As expected… De-Deseo isn’t a place for work…”

“Hmm- What do we do now? It seems I’ve tried everything I can do with my specialty.”

“I’ve been th-thinking on my way back…”

Fosao scratched his head.

“How about we st-start a business here…?”

“‘Business’?”

It was a word I had never considered before.

I had heard of it.

There were often people who came to Taildon to start businesses.

Even the road expansion project often discussed in our village was said to be part of a business.

Even without knowing the exact meaning, ‘business’ seemed to mean the same as ‘undertaking something big’.

“Isn’t that… like gambling? I heard if you succeed, it’s a huge hit, and if you fail, you’re broke.”

“Huh? Absolutely not! Of course, that’s n-not entirely wrong, but…”

Fosao said in a serious voice.

“It’s not g-gambling, but more like an ‘adventure’.”

“Adventure…”

Hearing that interpretation, it didn’t seem so bad.

After all, adventure is!

The joy of finding new things in dangerous, unfamiliar lands!

Would business also feel like doing something new?

Perhaps because I had always yearned for adventure, I could easily understand the concept.

“Then what kind of business will you do?”

“I h-have something in mind…”

The plan was this.

Fosao was registered in Deseo as the owner of ‘Modaless Trading Post’.

Modaless Trading Post was a temporary trading post created to operate a general store, and he said they traded goods in Deseo through it.

Therefore, the plan was to start a new business in this city using the name Modaless Trading Post and 400 gold as capital.

“But to do business, you need a store, right? And you have to bring in goods.”

“The store is… he-here.”

Fosao pointed to the floor beneath his feet.

“You’ll do business here? But this is the Deseo Inn?”

“You don’t necessarily need the ac-actual goods…”

He said that was possible in Deseo.

For example, you buy a ruby from ‘Ruby Store’.

But you don’t actually bring the ruby, you just get a promise of the ‘right’ to it, that it’s yours.

And then you sell that right to ‘Sapphire Store’.

Saying, ‘The ruby you bought is at ‘Ruby Store’, so go pick it up yourself’.

If you only trade like this, you don’t really need a store.

Because you’d be doing business only with ‘rights’ that don’t have a physical form.

After listening to the detailed explanation, I understood a little.

“Is that kind of trading method possible?”

“It’s co-common here… because a lot of goods go in and out of Deseo.”

“But if there are no actual goods, how can you know if someone is lying about it being real?”

At my words, Fosao’s eyes twinkled.

“Exactly. That’s why ‘trust’ is ne-necessary.”