Cold Bath and Hot Bath
"What I was doing was right...?"
"Yeah."
"Wait, hold on a sec. Th-that doesn't make any sense...?"
Even she, who obeyed my every word, tilted her head with a baffled look, her face full of swirling confusion she just couldn't wrap her mind around.
No matter how much bullshit I spin, it must sound totally absurd from Tier's side.
I'd picked up on her freakishly sharp nose and started being careful about hopping between worlds, but that was no one- or two-day thing... Washing up and changing clothes every time I did something was straight-up moronic inefficiency on my part, so eventually I just started zipping around openly. And thanks to my habits, Tier picked up this one quirk: whenever that shit happened, she'd bury her face in my clothes and suck in my scent like her life depended on it.
Was she trying to reset her nose with my smell, or cover up all those weird scents with mine? I never asked, so who knows—but as the guy who'd been hiding secrets and playing dumb, I couldn't help feeling a twinge of guilt. I smacked my lips with a bitter taste and just watched quietly, giving her time to process it slowly.
"So the boss's ability... it's like you can hop between floors of the Tower whenever you want?"
"Put simply, yeah? Called it the Tower to make it easy to get, but it's actually way bigger than that."
"Th-then, what happens to me when you use it?"
"Never seen it with my own eyes when I bounce somewhere else... but judging by how things look after I get back, it's like time freezes here?"
"Ah...!"
Something straight-up beyond comprehension—truly inexplicable, tough to swallow or fit into her worldview. She'd vaguely nodded like she got it, but... once I broke it down in detail again, tailored to her level, Tier finally truly accepted it.
"Th-that rum-piss stink?"
"Real deal, leaked from somewhere else."
"The slightly sour woman smell?"
To me, women's scents were always this sweet, meaty allure that got me hard, but for her, it went deeper—she could even tell people apart by it.
Since I'd already decided to spill and couldn't bullshit my way out anyway, I gave a wry smile and nodded.
"Dunno who, but yeah, real."
"The fishy one, the faint sweaty one, the fluffy flesh-scented one, and..."
Like a storm of insane situations and past memories hitting her, Tier's eyes spun like mad as she folded her fingers one by one, rattling off the list nonstop.
Her count kept folding and unfolding without pause, listing all those women, and cold sweat trickled down my back. Did Tier have this good a memory?
Sh-it. All the maids I railed back at the Demonic Cult are getting exposed here... fuck me.
The maids with their super unique body odors, and Tier pinpointing them one by one—no doubt about it.
"Is... is that everyone...?"
"Y-yeah? Y-yeah, but they don't all live together like you or the others—no more run-ins anyway, so no sweat."
"For real...?"
"...barring a couple..."
Something in the scents she'd clocked must've tipped her off; she shot me this subtle side-eye, and against my will, my imaginary tail tucked between my legs as my words trailed off.
Aiming for peak alpha male vibes, part of me wanted to bark, 'Shut the fuck up and spread 'em!' smack that ass raw, and pound her senseless to bury my slutty track record... but...
Nah, that wet-puppy whimpering is straight foul play, right?
She was glaring, sure, but with hunched shoulders and that natural upward gaze, her athletic, healthy bod clashed with this puppy-cute vulnerability. My calloused conscience—thought to be worn smooth—got a fresh polish, jabbing right at my heart-tip.
"Two...?"
She mumbled low, lips pursed tight.
The second she said "two," Dokgo Hwaryeon and Park Jisu popped into my head. The maids were one-offs, sure, but those two? They were main-wife material like Tier, deep in their own worlds—and after endless tangles, Tier nailed the core players instantly. Scary as hell.
"Whew... yeah, those two are the deep connections I mentioned... kinda like you in their world. Truth is, met 'em before you, Tier."
She could've pieced most of it together from the smells and my slips already. No point dragging it out with her prodding—so I just unloaded smooth, hitting what she really wanted to know. Her pursed lips finally relaxed, and she stared at me all blank and dopey.
Her head was already spinning from grasping the ability, and now shock on shock—she looked flat-out groggy.
"Uh... uh... so... m-me...?"
"Hey! Don't rack your brain more right now—meet 'em later and hash it out yourself."
Creaky nutcracker vibes overlaying Tier, I shrugged it off—whatever—and wrapped her shoulders, yanking her into my chest.
"Found something lately to wield the ability with, so now I can bring you girls along. One, two—whatever, face 'em direct, problem solved, yeah?"
Saying that, my hand started stroking slow from her nape down to her tail-base.
Originally, I'd planned to tidy things up myself for Park Jisu—that skittish little critter who'd get devoured by Dokgo Hwaryeon or Tier... but...
Fuck this. Can't handle more here. Girls'll sort the household drama themselves.
Didn't the old sages say something about hens crowing? Even if I straightened it, if Park Jisu couldn't wrangle the kids, she'd end up cold rice in the corner—par for the course.
A pile of excuses to dodge, plus Tier's hugged bod whispering, Don't overthink—just fuck around.
"...can meet 'em?"
"Yeah, yeah. See faces, chat it up—solve it then. Why waste time now? Huh?"
"Hng...!"
Her question came with a faint growl rumbling out, so before she blew up right in my face, I stuffed her nape in my mouth, gnawing deep to cool her off. Finally, tension drained from Tier's body bit by bit, rubbing slow against my moves.
Head buzzing with rival images, battle lust rising—but body playing separate, my busy hands and neck teasing had her heating up fast.
Hmm... no clue what clusterfuck brews, but I'm in the clear now, right?
She seemed obsessed with main-wife status, and I'd pictured TV-drama nagging like How could you?! But nah—she targeted Park Jisu and Dokgo Hwaryeon over grilling me. Calmed one corner of my heart, but left me cocking my head.
Info overload all at once? Or... my obedience command's like a no-brainer passive—she pivoted ages ago?
Thinking back, early lovey-dovey phase, she'd whine and speak her mind. But post-Daphne's virgin pregnancy? She'd get chewed out upfront, then stew silently alone.
Among the flashing reasons, the latter fit why she was quiet now—nodded to myself.
Sweet deal for me, but play safe—coax her max.
Already dropped hints valuing her crew like Tier's party, so no deathmatches on sight. But max-affinity incubus girls? Chaos potential unknown. Open slaps or sneaky schemes behind my back—who knows. So I stroked her body with full sincerity.
Mentally sour, physically sweet... cold bath and hot bath combo? Heh.