episode_0063

“You’re drenched in sweat. Shall we go somewhere you can rinse off quickly?”

Ariel asked, looking at my upper clothes, which were damp with sweat from the vigorous axe-wielding.

The sweat was slowly drying in the cool forest breeze that blew through the trees, but it left behind white streaks and an indescribable sticky feeling.

“Come to think of it, the Hero-nim mentioned there’s a pond nearby…”

“Oh, I know that place! It would be perfect! You can walk, right? Or should I call a Harvester for you?”

Worried that I, exhausted from axe-wielding, might not be able to walk properly, Ariel raised her hand as if to immediately summon the massive slime called a Harvester.

“No, no… it’s just my upper body that’s tired, so I’m fine. And that fellow is a bit…”

Recalling the memory of being attacked by the Harvester, I quickly stopped her.

Even if it listened to her commands, getting help from that giant monster that had targeted us felt burdensome.

Besides, only my upper body muscles were tired from axe-wielding; there was no significant discomfort in walking with my legs.

“Heehee… Your lower body will get tired soon too, you know?”

“Huh…? What do you mean by that?”

“Well~ you’ll see when we get there!”

Ariel let out an ambiguous laugh and slowly began walking towards where the pond was said to be.

Following behind her, I could only tilt my head, trying to interpret her last words as I walked.

———————–

The place we arrived at, following her, which was called a pond, was not a place where the word “pond” fit.

“This… this is almost a lake, isn’t it?”

I had thought it would be a place where a stream flowing along the mountain range briefly settled, befitting the name ‘pond,’ but what unfolded before my eyes was a lake large enough for my entire body to be submerged in and still splash around.

“What? Why did the pond get so big?”

But Ariel also looked surprised at the sight of the pond, which was no different from a lake.

“Someone artificially blocked the waterway.”

Seeing her reaction, as if she hadn’t expected the pond to have turned into a lake, I casually surveyed the surroundings and confirmed that the flowing stream had been artificially blocked with stones.

“Good heavens… In my memory, it was clearly a small pond… Who made it like this?”

Along with Ariel, who let out an exclamation of surprise as if she couldn’t believe it, I slowly began walking along the edge of the lake.

“It’s not a naturally formed lake.”

The lake’s edge was blocked to prevent water from flowing elsewhere, and the lakebed itself was full of traces of artificial excavation.

It was clear that someone had dug out the land to allow water to collect and firmly blocked the waterway, enlarging it to the point where it could be called a lake.

“Could it be…”

There was only one person I could guess. The Hero-nim.

It seemed he had expanded the small pond to the size of a lake to secure a water source for cultivating herbs.

“Well… a large lake like this would be more convenient for washing than a small pond!”

Perhaps preferring this large lake to a small pond, Ariel smiled, lowered herself, and looked closely at the water.

“Honestly, some people dislike small ponds because floating debris like fallen leaves and dust are clearly visible.”

Ariel gently dipped her hand into the lake water.

The transparent lake water rippled gently, clear enough to plainly show her hand.

“Great! The water is super clean! I think we can wash here, don’t you?”

“Yeah. It seems fine to wash, but…”

I quietly trailed off, looking at her.

Under my gaze, Ariel simply smiled brightly and tilted her head slightly, as if asking if there was a problem.

“Ah~ Don’t tell me you’re feeling shy!?”

“Few people wouldn’t be shy about taking off all their clothes and washing their body in front of others, right?”

When I retorted with an undeniable truth, Ariel burst into laughter, as if amused.

“Now that I think about it, you’re right~ Then…”

Ariel, giving a playful eye-smile, suddenly began to unfasten the belt tightening her waist.

After wrapping the loosened belt around her hand and neatly placing it on a rock, she began to unbutton her top one by one.

“Y-You… what… what are you doing?”

With each button she undid, a bit more of her pale skin began to show.

Startled by her sudden action of starting to undress, I quickly turned my head and asked about her behavior.

“It’s embarrassing to do it alone… but it wouldn’t be embarrassing if we do it together, right?”

“What do you suddenly mean by that…”

Thinking her impulsive behavior was just a prank to tease me, I slightly turned my head.

But it seemed she was serious, as she had already unbuttoned her entire top and was taking it off.

Then, her ample bosom and the black underwear with subtle lace trim supporting it came into view.

Terrified by the fact that she was genuinely undressing, I quickly turned my head back and merely tried to suppress my rapidly quickening breath.

“Hurry and take them off~ You’re not planning to make me the only one embarrassed, are you?”

Along with Ariel’s urging from behind me, I heard the sounds of her clothes being taken off one by one.

“A-Alright!”

In the end, due to her urging, I had no choice but to slowly take off my clothes as well.

As I unbuckled my pants and unbuttoned my top, all sorts of complex thoughts raced through my mind.

Even the most clueless man would realize that simply washing together wasn’t her only objective.

Especially her remark about my lower body getting tired soon… Could she have been foreshadowing this situation?

“Have you ever tried swimming?”

While I was undressing amidst all these complex thoughts, Ariel’s question reached my ears.

“Swimming? I haven’t really tried it.”

Whenever I entered water like a lake, it was only to wash my body.

I had never felt the need to try swimming, the kind she meant, moving through the water.

“Then, while we’re at it, would you like to learn how to swim from me?”

Ariel seemed to have finished undressing before me, as I heard a splashing sound as if she was entering the lake first.

Swallowing a tense, dry gulp, I, having removed all my clothes save for the single piece of underwear covering my private parts, took a deep breath and looked at the lake where Ariel had already entered.

“Aww~ What are you doing? Just take it all off!”

Ariel, who had already entered the lake, which was deep enough to reach her shoulders, burst out laughing as she turned to face me, still wearing only the single piece of underwear covering my private parts.

“Surely you’re not planning to put your pants back on while your underwear is still soaking wet, are you?”

“Ah… N-No, that’s not…”

Embarrassed by her suggestion to strip completely, I stammered and looked at her body, already in the lake.

Beyond the clear lake water, the faint silhouette of her naked body, wearing nothing, was visible.

Due to the gently rippling lake water, her body wasn’t clearly visible, but seeing only flesh-colored outlines, it was clear she was wearing nothing.

“Ahahaha~ If you’re shy, I’ll turn my back~ So hurry up and take them off and come in!”

She let out a small laugh and turned her back, as if telling me to quickly take off my underwear and come in.

Unable to refuse her mischievous suggestion, I eventually followed her advice and took off even the underwear that was covering my lower body’s private parts.

Then, as if anticipating the inevitable, my manhood, engorged with blood, stood erect, completely exposed.

“Whew…”

With the thought of releasing the taut tension of being completely naked, not a single thread on my body, I took a deep breath and cautiously stepped into the lake.

The lake water, holding a pleasant coolness, slowly enveloped my feet.

“Whoa!?”

The moment I took a few steps, letting my guard down in the pleasant coolness that gently enveloped me from my toes, I realized that, contrary to appearances, the lake’s depth increased sharply as I walked further in.

In just a few steps, unable to predict the suddenly deepening ground, I misstepped. With a clumsy yelp, I slipped right down.

The depth was only about chest-high, but caught off guard by the sudden increase in depth, I couldn’t find solid ground with my feet and foolishly flailed my arms.

“Ahahaha~ What are you doing~”

Then, Ariel, who had approached me, bursting into laughter as if my struggling was amusing, embraced me with both arms, as if trying to calm me down while I flailed in the water, flustered.

At the same time, I, still flustered, reflexively wrapped my flailing hands around Ariel’s body as she embraced me in the water.

“You’re a total dead weight!”

Within the cold lake water, I clearly felt the warm, soft warmth of her body as she embraced and patted me, as if trying to calm me.

At the same time, my flustered and confused mind quickly calmed down at the distinct sensation of her soft, pliant skin against my arms and body.

“Thank you. I’ve never been in water this deep before…”

During my time as a merchant, even when washing in a lake, I would only go calf-deep, or at most waist-deep in situations where safety was absolutely guaranteed, just in case.

With her help, my mind, which had been flustered by the sudden change in depth, calmed down, and I stopped my futile flailing, able to find purchase on the ground with my feet.

I felt ashamed of my flailing in water that was only chest-deep, and my face flushed slightly… but Ariel merely let out a small laugh, as if she understood my reaction.

“There are actually some people who have drowned in water shallower than their height! It can happen if you’re unfamiliar with or have no experience in deep water!”

Confirming that I had calmed down and was standing on the lakebed by myself, Ariel cautiously stepped back, looking at my lower body as if to guard against me misstepping on the slippery lake bottom and slipping again.

As the embarrassing confusion subsided, the instinctive desire that had momentarily receded began to assert its presence at a rapid pace.

A naked man and woman, a pair, in a lake where no other human presence could be felt. Ariel’s intention in orchestrating this situation was clear.

Ariel, who had been looking at my lower body to confirm my feet were on the lakebed, naturally noticed my manhood, which stood erect, clearly visible even from outside the water.

“You’re perfectly healthy~”

Ariel, giving a coy eye-smile, made a teasing remark that made my face flush slightly, but having vaguely grasped her intention in leading me here, I put on a brazen face and replied impudently.

“It’s quite diligent, already preparing for what’s going to happen.”

As if to return her blatant intention of leading me to enter the lake naked, I, too, brazenly and overtly revealed my true desires.

Then, Ariel, who had let out a small laugh as if amused by my reply, gently showed a playful eye-smile.

“Hmm~ Is that so?”

With an ambiguous answer and an eye-smile, Ariel suddenly stretched out both her hands towards me, as if telling me to grab them.

“Huh?”

I didn’t know her intention, but instinctively, I placed my hands over her outstretched ones.

“Alright then~ Shall we learn how to swim now!?”

“W-What?!”

Ariel gently clasped my hands and slowly retreated backward, leading me further into the lake.