DanMachi: Orario Daily Chaos ~Goddess's Bathhouse Brouhaha~ - Liliruca's Intuition and Crossed Wires — The Road to the Bathhouse Is Full of Suspicious Shadows

Morning light was beginning to bleach the cobblestones of Orario's West District white. In front of the Hearthstone Manor—the rundown two-story rented house that served as the Hestia Familia's home base—Bell Cranel heaved yet another sigh. His slightly unruly white hair stirred in the morning breeze. His crimson eyes darted around restlessly. "Haa... I'm kind of nervous, honestly." Beside him, his patron goddess Hestia hopped up and down, tilting her head in puzzlement. "Why? We're just going to a bathhouse." "But it's Yggdrasil's Spring, you know? A luxury bath that costs two thousand valis per visit. I'm not sure someone like me—a total rookie—belongs in a place like that." Bell's voice trembled slightly. The ninety valis he'd earned yesterday from defeating two goblins in the dungeon still seemed to linger on his fingers. That reward from a life-or-death battle—how many visits to this luxury bathhouse would it even cover? "What are you talking about? We've got discount tickets, so it's fine! We can get in for eight hundred valis each!" Hestia clutched to her chest a slip of paper she said she'd gotten yesterday from a kind-looking stranger on a street corner. A discount ticket for Yggdrasil's Spring. Bell stared at the ticket. (Is a deal this good really possible?) Somewhere deep in his chest, a small thorn of unease pricked at him. "Bell, you look so gloomy. We're going on an outing—let's be more cheerful about it!" "Y-yes. Sorry." Bell bowed his head—and that was when it happened. "Hey, you two. What are you doing out here at this hour?" A petite girl came running up from across the street. Brown hair tied in twin tails. Large amber eyes. A small beast-ear hair ornament bobbed with every step she took. Her tiny frame—barely four foot nine—was outfitted with a well-worn leather breastplate and a hip pouch. It was the reliable adventurer, Liliruca Arde. "Lili, good morning." "Morning, Bell. So what's going on?" Lili planted herself beside Bell and fixed her gaze on Hestia's hands. "Oh, this! A discount ticket for Yggdrasil's Spring! A kind person gave it to me yesterday on the street!" Hestia happily held out the ticket. Lili stared at it intently. Her amber eyes narrowed. "...Lady Hestia. Who gave you this?" "Huh? I told you, a kind person. Their face... hmm, I don't really remember, but they were nice, anyway." Lili's eyebrow twitched. "There's no way a discount ticket for a luxury bathhouse like this just falls into your hands. Yggdrasil's Spring normally costs two thousand valis, right? Someone offering to knock it down to eight hundred—does a deal that convenient actually exist?" "But we got it for free, so it'd be a waste not to use it!" "A waste... Lady Hestia, our household finances are in the red, you know? Bell's earnings yesterday were ninety valis, remember? If all three of us go, that's twenty-four hundred valis! That's a whole week of food budget down the drain!" "Urk..." Hestia was at a loss for words. Watching the two of them go back and forth, Bell was overcome with guilt. "Lili's right. It's because I earn so little..." "That's not it, Bell. I'm not saying you earn too little. I'm saying this ticket is suspicious." Lili looked up at Bell's face. "...Hey, Lady Hestia. Do you really think that ticket was just a simple act of kindness?" "Y-yes... it was. They smiled and said, 'here you go.'" Lili let out a small sigh. "Haa... fine, whatever. But I'm coming with you. I don't want anything to happen." "You'll come too, Lili?" "Obviously. I can't let Bell go to some suspicious place alone." With that, Lili slipped a hand into her coat. Her fingertips confirmed the hilt of the small knife hidden deep in her hip pouch. (Just in case. If something happens, I have to protect them.) Lili's amber eyes flashed sharply for just a moment. The three of them set off north through the streets of Orario. They passed through the residential district of the West Ward and crossed Guild Street in Central Ward. The Tower of Babel—a colossal structure eight hundred meters tall—gleamed white in the morning sun. Beneath it lay the entrance to the dungeon. "Lots of adventurers heading to the dungeon again today." Lili remarked, watching the crowds that filled the street. "Yeah. Everyone's doing their best." "You did your best yesterday too, Bell. You took down two goblins, right?" "Y-yeah. Well, somehow." Bell scratched his head, embarrassed. Lili watched his profile and smiled faintly. (Bell is more earnest than anyone I know, and weaker than anyone I know. But he never gives up—more than anyone.) To Lili, Bell was someone special. He had picked her up when she was suffering in her old familia, on the verge of being cast out onto the streets. Supporting Bell as a member of the Hestia Familia—that was what gave Lili's life meaning now. "...Hey, Bell." "What?" Lili lowered her voice. "Lately, a lot of people say they've spotted you around town. Be careful." "Huh? Me? Why?" Bell tilted his head, bewildered. "I don't know the details either. But there seem to be strange rumors going around. Someone saw a small adventurer with red eyes and white hair." "I'm just a rookie adventurer. I don't have anything that would make me stand out." "...Right. Which means you stand out way more than you realize, Bell." Lili said nothing more. (The Apollo Familia recruitment flyers. They had a sketch of Bell's face on them. I saw it.) Lili was remembering the piles of flyers she'd seen on the town bulletin board yesterday. The Apollo Familia—a major faction of a hundred and twenty members, led by the sun god Apollo. They were notorious for obsessively collecting beautiful followers and forcibly recruiting anyone who caught their eye—a faction infamous for recruitment poaching. (Could Bell be a target? But why?) A dark unease spread slowly through Lili's chest. Yggdrasil's Spring stood in a corner of the upscale residential district in the North Ward. A magnificent building constructed of white marble. At the entrance hung a sign adorned with gold ornamentation, and steam from the free-flowing hot spring curled lazily into the morning air. "Whoa... amazing." Bell stopped dead in his tracks. "Right, right?! Come on, let's go in!" Hestia took the lead, striding toward the entrance with gusto. Lili glanced around nervously and tugged at Bell's sleeve. "Bell, if you see anything strange, tell me right away." "O-okay. Got it." As the three approached the reception desk, the dwarf manager, Garm Lodge, bowed amiably. "Welcome. Welcome to Yggdrasil's Spring. Will it be three of you today?" "Yes! With this discount ticket, please!" Hestia held out the ticket. Garm checked it and smiled broadly. "Thank you very much. Ah, yes—your companions have already arrived, by the way." "...Companions?" Hestia tilted her head. "Yes. Two guests are already waiting, saying they're with Lady Hestia's party." "I didn't invite anyone! Bell and Lili, and Welf said he couldn't come because of work at the forge..." Lili's spine went rigid. (Companions? There's no one who should be coming besides us.) That was when it happened. "Oh my." A clear voice rang through the lobby. They turned around, and there she stood— Long, straight golden hair. Eyes shining the same gold. The first-class adventurer of the Loki Familia, renowned as one of the most beautiful women in the Labyrinth City: Ais Wallenstein. Beside her stood Ryu, an elf with bluish-silver hair. Former captain of the Astrea Familia, a warrior of real strength who bore the alias "Crimson Flower." "A-Ais?!" Bell's heart leaped. "Bell. What a coincidence." Ais spoke in her usual flat tone, yet somehow she seemed pleased. "W-why is the Sword Princess here?!" Lili stepped in front of Bell, openly on guard. "We're conducting an investigation. What brings you here?" Ryu said quietly. Her voice held a faint tension beneath its calm surface. "An investigation? At a luxury bathhouse like this?" "Yes. We heard there's something suspicious about this bathhouse's water-heating system." "Something suspicious..." Lili's expression hardened visibly. Hestia furrowed her brow, studying Ais and Ryu as if pondering something. (Why would Loki's girls be in a place like this? Could that Apollo be involved...?) The smiling face of the sun god Apollo surfaced in Hestia's mind. Years ago, he had tried to pull her into his familia, and she had refused. Ever since, Apollo had harbored a grudge against her. "...Surely not." Hestia shook her head slightly. "Lady Hestia, what's wrong?" "Nothing, it's nothing. Come on, we came all this way—let's enjoy the bath." The changing room was a cool, stone-walled space. On the men's side, Bell swallowed hard. (Calm down. Just act normal, normal...) He undressed and picked up his towel. That was when it happened. Slip. The towel slid from his hand. "Ah—" Bell reached out reflexively. The towel glided across the floor, rolling toward the curtain that served as the partition to the neighboring changing area. "Whoa—" Bell chased after it in a panic. His fingertips were just about to brush the hem of the curtain. In that instant— "What are you doing?!" Grab. Lili's small hand yanked hard on Bell's arm. "Wha—?! Lili?!" "Honestly! What were you thinking?! The other side is the women's bath!" Lili, her face bright red, shouted while still gripping Bell's arm tightly. "S-sorry! My towel fell, and I was just trying to pick it up..." "I'll pick up a towel! You—you're—naked, so just go over there!" "Y-yes! Sorry!" Bell turned crimson and leaped back. Lili picked up the fallen towel and tossed it to him. "Here. Honestly, get it together." "...Thanks, Lili." Bell caught the towel and bowed his head. Lili's heart was still pounding. (Good grief. Bell is just way too defenseless...) Desperately hiding her fluster at having caught a glimpse of Bell naked, Lili retreated to the women's changing room. The women's bath was a spacious area filled with white steam. The marble tub brimmed with free-flowing hot spring water. On the wall, a magic-stone water heater maintained the temperature. "Haa... bliss, pure bliss." Hestia sank up to her shoulders and closed her eyes in rapture. "Really, this water is wonderful." Lili soaked beside Hestia. (But those two earlier—Ais and Ryu... were they really just investigating?) Lili couldn't shake her wariness. She slowly scanned the bathhouse. The tub. The changing room. The ceiling. The walls. The water-heating system— That was when it happened. Lili's gaze locked onto the piping along the wall. (Huh...?) Midway along the pipe, there was a joint that clearly didn't match the standard. The other pipes were connected with smooth metal, but on that one section alone, a component of a different color and shape had been attached. "...Lady Hestia." "What is it?" "Look at that pipe. Something's off." Lili climbed out of the bath and approached the piping. "Huh? Where, where?" Hestia splashed her way over too. Lili pointed at the unnatural joint. "Here. The parts are clearly different from the other pipes. Looks like someone attached it after the fact." "Someone? What do you mean?" "I don't know. But this isn't normal. Someone tampered with it—" Just as Lili was speaking— Thunk. Beyond the wall, something moved. "...!" Lili's whole body went rigid. The air in the bathhouse turned taut. The steam that had felt so pleasant moments ago suddenly seemed eerie. "Wha—what? What was that sound?" Hestia clung to Lili. "Quiet. Something's wrong." Lili lowered her voice and reached for her hip pouch. She gripped the hilt of the small knife hidden in her coat. (So the discount ticket really was a trap.) Lili's heart beat cold and steady. Meanwhile, on the men's side. Bell was soaking alone in the wi

日本語

What is Novelia? →

Episode 2

Name: DanMachi: Orario Daily Chaos ~Goddess's Bathhouse Brouhaha~
Author: Novelia

What is Novelia?

Novelia is an AI-powered platform to read original light novels and fan fiction, create your own in just a few taps, and chat with the characters. New, illustrated episodes arrive daily — free to start.

Learn more about Novelia →New sign-ups get 5,000pt