Hot Spring Therapy (3)
What on earth had happened while I was passed out?
Sion lay sprawled atop me without a twitch. At a glance, she might have seemed asleep, but the tension in her body made her look dangerously unstable.
"Sion!"
I had to give her some kind of external stimulus to snap her out of it. Suddenly trying to lift her might provoke a backlash, making her tense up even more, so I started with my voice.
"Sion! Pull yourself together! I'm right here!"
But what next? Sound was the obvious first step, yet nothing else came to mind. My arms were pinned under the blanket and I couldn't...!
"Hope... Director?"
Huh? Was that Sion just now...?
"There you are."
She recognized my voice instantly and slowly—very slowly—lifted her head, turning to look at me.
"Yeah, I'm right here. You with me?"
"Director... Hope Director..."
Her gaze locked onto mine as she dragged her entire body toward me with her arms, inching closer. Finally, she draped herself over me again, burying her face against me.
"I looked everywhere for you. Sniff... where the hell did you go...?"
She slipped both arms behind my neck and hugged me tight. I still couldn't free my arms from under the blanket with her weight on me, but I tilted my head to press my face against hers.
"It's okay now, Sion. I'm right here."
"Don't go anywhere, Director. Don't vanish, don't leave."
"I won't. I'm not going anywhere, so don't worry."
"And no getting hurt, no collapsing. And, and..."
Before I knew it, the pillow under my head was soaked. Sion was sobbing her heart out as she clung to me. She shook her head side to side, yanked her arms harder, burrowing deeper into my side like she could never let go. She crushed my head against her in a grip that stole my breath, wailing all the while.
"And don't you dare die. Ever."
"......"
Die? It was just exhaustion-induced blackout, but had she imagined me dead?
This was getting ridiculous. At this rate, I couldn't even pass out in peace.
"Who's dying? Quit worrying about nonsense and rest easy."
"Hic, sob..."
I could feel Sion's pulse through her ear pressed to my cheek, her tears soaking the pillow, her breath warming my neck. The hero Sion Laurel—who had always been everyone's pillar of strength and hope—was now sobbing and clinging only to me.
A patient getting overly dependent on their doctor wasn't ideal, but I'd brought her here precisely to see this side of her. I couldn't push her away or refuse.
Time passed, and Sion finally calmed down. We ate the dinner the hot springs staff had prepared, and with baths next, it was time to wrap up the day.
Not just Sion—even I was a patient now, so wandering around at night was out of the question. For overwork, rest and recovery were the only cure; half a day of blackout wouldn't erase the built-up fatigue.
At least during this therapy period, I needed to focus on my own recovery to return to work safely once we got back to the kingdom.
"Um, Director Hope."
"What is it?"
"For the hot springs... we'll go in together, right?"
"Obviously. What if you drown without me?"
"Haa..."
Sion, piggybacked on my back as we headed to the baths, let out a huge sigh and drooped her head at my answer.
To immerse someone as unsteady as her, I had to watch her closely—and no one else here could do it but me.
"No need to sigh like that."
"I wondered why you insisted on the hot springs... so that's your angle."
"What kind of angle do you think I have?"
"You're after my body in the end..."
"If that's what you think, go ahead and hit me—but don't. I don't wanna collapse again."
"What? I was joking, but you were serious?!"
"Just drop it."
This hot spring facility had four baths. Since the less-used ones lacked men's or women's divisions, we headed to the changing room near a small one perfect for two.
I sat Sion on the central bench, and we agreed to turn our backs while undressing.
"Don't look!"
"I'll see it all eventually anyway..."
"I'll cover with a towel!"
"You don't look either, Sion."
"I have to."
"Why?"
"To check if you're peeking."
"We agreed to face away."
"I can still turn my head."
"What about me then?"
"Pervert?"
"No..."
I didn't need to see her naked, but being ogled one-sidedly felt unfair, so I grumbled a bit. Still, Sion fired back at every word, keeping me in check.
In the end, turning around was impossible under her piercing glare from behind. I stripped, wrapped a towel securely around my lower half, and felt her eyes burning into my back.
"I'm done, Sion."
"Not yet—don't look!!"
"I was gonna say, I didn't mention it to keep things fun, but do you really think I'm dying to stare at you?"
"Director... have you forgotten your track record?"
Track record? Massaging her was muscle checks, watching her was rehab monitoring, carrying her was because she couldn't move, asking if she hurt was genuine worry...
"I can look to the heavens and swear I've done nothing to deserve this treatment."
"Ah, is this shameless pervert really part of the hero party? Am I being fooled by some outrageous lie?"
Unbelievable—she was getting closer to the truth through my character. Sure, personality-wise, I was miles from the other four heroes, but I'd never imagined Sion calling me a liar like this.
Of course, it was obviously a joke, so no real risk of exposure.
"All set. You can turn around now."
With her permission, I finally faced her. Sion sat on the bench, draped in a single towel, head bowed shyly—but her eyes looked straight up at me.
Did she realize how tightly she'd knotted it, making the towel cling like a second skin, outlining her near-nude, slender lines? Her arms, thin and smooth from lost muscle, flowed into delicate shoulders and a deeply hollowed collarbone. Against her dark hair, her porcelain skin glowed, flushed either from the ambient warmth or her embarrassment.
"Quit staring and carry me already."
"...Got it."
I nodded casually, feigning nonchalance with a light smile, then scooped her up princess-style.
She covered her chest with both hands, turning her head away to avoid my gaze.
Bringing her here was purely therapeutic, no ulterior motives—but her shyness was making me feel weird now.
"Ugh, it's hot."
I dipped a toe in while holding her, testing the temperature. Hot, as expected, but...
"Whoo... damn, it's scorching."
Bearing it, I stepped in—thankfully tolerable. Careful not to let her touch the water abruptly and startle, I probed the bottom with my feet.
"Huh? This shallow?"
Exploring, I found the deepest part barely reached my thighs—a shallow bath.
Because I picked a small one?
"It's for dwarves, you know. You sure you've been here?"
Ah, right. Dwarf bath, so this depth made sense. For humans, even sitting meant no drowning risk—pretty safe, really.
"Yeah, forgotten how long ago. Anyway, no danger for you—perfect."
"Isn't it too hot?"
"Better to feel it yourself than hear it. I'll lower you in slow—don't freak."
"Okay."
Held in my arms, her body hovered just above the surface. Easing her down...
"Eek!!"
She jolted at the heat, her hips bucking up. I startled too but held steady, lower body submerged, grabbing her flailing form.
"That hot?"
"Not that—dipping my butt first?!!"
"Oh."
Right. In this position, her rear hit first—hence the buck to escape.
"Feet first this time."
I raised my right arm holding her upper body, tilted, and lowered her toes-in. She trembled the whole way—hot or scared?—and only sighed hugely once fully in, leaning her against the edge.
"Haaaah... been forever since I felt this."
With her safe, I sat a bit away, submerging fully and leaning back comfortably. Dwarf bath: knees straight to sit, body just covered.
"Sion."
"Yeah?"
"If you feel off, tell me right away. Got it?"
Glancing worriedly, her face was flushed from the steam, beaming with joy. Happy?
"Worry about yourself, Director."
"Fair, but if I crash here, nothing we can do."
"Why not?"
"You couldn't help if I collapsed."
"......"
Her smile faded slowly, silence falling. Had I messed up? A chill ran down my spine—but she exhaled softly, smiling faintly again.
"True. If you collapsed, I'd be useless. Totally."
Her words dropped my gaze involuntarily. What had happened while I was out...?
"So don't collapse. Promise?"
The same plea from before, when she'd sobbed into me. No collapsing, no pain, no dying.
I couldn't know exactly what she'd been through or thought, but...
"Got it. I promise."
Saying I understood right now? Not hard at all.