I awoke to the sound of a rooster crowing in the distance. My eyes laid on a familiar ceiling. I sat up on my bed and stretched my arms. I took a deep breath of the brisk morning air.

Small rays of sunlight squeezed through the tiny gaps in the shutter and slew the total darkness of the room.

I took a moment to consider my schedule for today. My first task was to visit the Magic Shop and purchase the scroll for the Recall spell. The second task was to help Rijana earn enough experience for her to reach Level 17 and learn the Gate spell. After that, we will leave London and head over to Oxford to visit the final Ph'laen Ruins.

With my upcoming schedule set, I got off the bed. I walked over to the nightstand and opened the shutter on the wall behind the stand. A brilliant light shone into the room. I peered at the bucket of water in front of the nightstand and winced. The water inside the bucket had turned gray from cleaning Van's armor. Therefore, I could not use it to wash my face!

"Good morning, Brother Mulligan!" a voice said.

Van sat up on his bed and blinked his eyes several times to adjust his eyes to the sudden light.

"Good morning, Van," I replied with a pleasant smile. I didn't wish to make an issue of the dirty water with him. However, the desire to be clean lingered in my head. "Say, do you know if there is any bathhouse nearby?" I asked him.

The paladin nodded and smiled. "Yeah, we should definitely visit the bathhouse," he agreed.

"Let's go downstairs and grab breakfast," I suggested. I quickly walked to the door but waited. I stepped aside and allowed my bodyguard to open the door and check the hallway. Once he gave me a thumbs-up, I joined him outside and locked the door behind me.

I was not surprised to learn that we were alone. The elven siblings, Bjoukia and Bjoukin, were camping in the woods overnight and their friend, Rijana, was spending the night in her own home. Thus, the room to our left was unoccupied.

Sister Waverly and Bila occupied the room to our right. While I was certain that the nun was already awake, I suspected that she was currently engaged in morning prayer in her room. Thus, I did not wish to disturb her by knocking on her door. She will join us for breakfast whenever she was finished with her morning prayer. And obviously, Waverly will drag Bila along as well. For a moment, I pitied the hard task awaiting the sister.

Thus, the two of us descended the staircase and entered the front lobby, which was empty. We walked past the common room, which was only a quarter filled with early risers looking to break their fast. There were a few respectful bows toward me from the patrons who recognized me. I guessed that was due to my high reputation score, which had turned me into a medieval celebrity of sorts.

We entered the VIP room and I took my rightful place at the head of the table. Van sat to my immediate left; he was closer to the door than I was.

Soon, an elven waitress entered to take our order. "Good morning, Lord Mulligan. What would you like for breakfast?" she inquired.

The proper answer for a member of the clergy was oatmeal. Thus, I had to answer to her expectation. "Oatmeal topped with fruits and hot tea, please."

"The same," Van added quickly.

The waitress nodded and left the room.

The two of us sat in silence. After all, Van was fully aware of what I planned to do today: visit the guild shop, learn some spells, and visit the bathhouse. As my bodyguard, he didn't care about the particular order I will tackle these tasks.

Soon, the waitress returned with our food.

We ate our simple oatmeal, topped with bananas, in silence.

While we ate, Bjoukia entered the room, followed by Bjoukin and Rijana. "Good morning!" the elven maiden said in a cheerful voice.

I looked up from my bowl and waved at the newcomers in greeting.

They took seats on the other end of the table, leaving the seat to my right empty. The trio remembered how Sister Waverly had thoroughly beat me in a duel barehanded. They did not want to be caught in between Bila and Waverly's upcoming fight for that seat. Thus, it was safer to sit as far away as possible.

When they sat down, I looked at them and rolled my eyes. I understood their concern but I did not think the nun would fight Bila to claim the open seat next to me.

At the seventh bell, Bila and Waverly rushed into the room. The cat girl was in front but somehow she stumbled.

The sister displayed a surprising burst of speed to sidestep the obstacle and successfully claimed the open seat next to me.

Bila hissed as she sat down next to Waverly. "That was dirty," she grumbled in a low voice.

The nun had a perfectly innocent expression and ignored the complaint.

Once the waitress took the orders of Bila and Waverly, I broached the subject I discussed this morning with my roommate. "We've traveled to many places recently but haven't visited the bathhouse yet. We're thinking of visiting one after my trip to the Magic Shop. Would you guys like to come?" I asked.

Bila immediately shook her head. "There's no need for me to go. I'm clean," she proclaimed with her chest puffed up.

"If you say so," the nun said softly while coughing politely.

"That sounds great!" Rijana agreed. Her mage tower didn't have the luxury of a hot bath.

"What time does the Magic Shop open?" I asked her.

"9 am," she answered.

I winced. The church bell tolled seven times not too long ago. Thus, there was far too much time remaining until the shop opened.

Van looked at me and he knew what I was thinking. "So we'll visit the bathhouse first," he suggested.

I nodded at him. That was an excellent idea! I turned my attention toward Bila. "What will you do?" I asked her.

The cat girl's whiskers twitched in annoyance. "I'm your bodyguard, remember? I will follow you to the entrance of the bathhouse. Then I'll wait outside for your return."

Since my party had finished eating, we quickly relinquished the room for the next group of patrons. The manager bowed deeply to us as we passed through the lobby on our way out the door.

I waited inside while Van and Bila stood in front of the inn and checked our surroundings. I also activated Spirit Sense to check for any malevolent presence. Finding none, I opened the door and stepped out. "Please take us to the bathhouse, Van," I requested politely.

"Sure," he nodded. The paladin took the lead.

As we walked through the busy streets of London, I activated Navigation Sense to follow along on my mental map.

Van led us to the eastern part of the city, almost to the eastern wall. We heard the sound of a river running nearby, somewhere beyond the wall.

The paladin stopped in front of a large building which took up half the city block. The exterior of the building was lined with marble columns and behind them were huge cinderblocks that formed the interior of the building. The building was on a raised platform and there were wide steps leading up to the entrance.

Frankly, the architecture of the bathhouse was out of place compared to the brick and stone or even wooden buildings nearby. At the center of the building was a set of double doors which were kept open. Above the doorway was a sign in gold with a black text which read, "Alfie's Luxurious Bathhouse."

I stared at it for a moment. I saw many patrons of various races, genders, and age entering and leaving the building. I glanced at my in-game notification: "Navigation sense SUCCESSFUL. Location ADDED: Bathhouse. +50XP." "Who owns this place?" I asked out of curiosity.

"It's owned by an idiosyncratic nobleman named Alfie Battle. He claimed he was commanded by the Gods, via a dream, to build this bathhouse in London. It took a lot of convincing with the nobility and the church, but somehow he managed to receive a large portion of a city block to build the bathhouse," Van explained.

Sister Waverly nodded in approval. "The Gods often send dreams and visions to their followers. It was good of Lord Battle to follow this divine command."

I smiled inwardly at the comment. After all, the sister was the human avatar of Lady Musa. Additionally, I wouldn't be surprised if she was the Goddess who had sent the vision to Lord Battle in the first place. If the Gods believed that the city was lacking something, such as a bathhouse, then surely they would command a follower with sufficient resources to provide it.

Speaking of resources, I just remembered something important. "How much is the entrance fee to use the bathhouse?" I asked.

The nun answered for Van. "Pay whatever you can afford," she said with a big smile. When she saw the look of skepticism on my face, she explained, "The bathhouse is subsidized by the Church and the nobility. Lord Battle is more of a manager than a true owner of these facilities." She pointed at the guards standing outside the entrance. "That's why there are knights stationed here."

"I see. But there doesn't seem to be too many customers, though," I remarked.

Rijana shook her head. "Milord, it's early morning. People are busy getting ready for their work day. Very few commoners have the leisure to visit the bathhouse at this hour," she pointed out.

I looked away in embarrassment. She was absolutely correct. I should have thought of that.

Sister Waverly grabbed my right hand and pulled gently. "Let's go," she said with a kind smile. She led me up the stairs and we entered the bathhouse together.

Once inside the building, we encountered a reception counter at the other end of a spacious lobby. There were actually TWO employees behind the counter: a man on the left and a woman on the right. In front of each person was a coin box. Next to the box was a stack of white towels.

"Welcome to the bathhouse!" the two employees said cheerfully once they saw us.

Van approached the male worker.

The employee saw that Van was a member of the church and immediately placed his hand over the coin slot. "Members of the clergy may enter without payment," he announced proudly.

"Thank you," Van said as he received a towel from the male worker.

I took out my truth stone from under my tunic.

The worker saw the necklace and bowed deeply as he handed me the towel. "Please enjoy your bath!"

"Thank you," I replied with a gentle smile. I imagined how Saint John the Kind smiled at people and I tried my best to imitate him.

I turned toward my companions and said, "We'll stay until the ninth bell."

They nodded and we entered the interior of the bathhouse through separate entrances.

As expected, there was a locker room and a coin slot next to each locker. The lockers were one foot wide and four feet high. They were stacked one on top of the other and side-by-side. The available lockers had their doors opened slightly.

I glanced at Van and said, "Where will you put your armor?" I didn't think the locker would fit his chest plate.

The paladin smirked. "Just watch." He sat on a wooden bench in front of an empty locker. He expertly removed his armor by himself and placed the pieces on the ground. Then he concentrated his sight on a bracelet around his left wrist. Suddenly, a black portal appeared! Van nonchalantly shoved his armor, scabbard, and shield through the portal.

When the portal winked out of existence, I asked, "What was that?"

"It's a pocket dimension created solely to hold my gear," Van explained patiently. "I can use it only when I remove my armor," he added.

"I see." I quickly removed my clothes, scabbard, and various sacks and pouches. I took a silver coin from my money sack. I placed my equipment in an empty locker before me and closed the door. Then I put the coin into the coin slot and pressed my thumb against the stone directly under the slot. From past experience visiting the bathhouse in Tregome, I knew that the stone was a thumb reader and it will only permit me to open this locker.

"We should go in before we catch a cold," Bjoukin said. He was naked but for the white towel wrapped around his waist.

Van and I nodded and we quickly entered the bathing section.

The place was even more spacious than I expected. There were shower heads sticking out of the wall and partitions for privacy. On the wall were alcoves containing bars of soap. The water was drained through tiny holes on the ground. There was also a communal bath which was a large pool; it was fenced off to separate the sections for men and women. But nonetheless, the patrons apparently shared the same water, which was heated somehow.

The three of us went to our respective shower stall and took showers.

I took my time enjoying the soft pita-pita sensation of water dripping down my head and face. It had been far too long since I last took a shower. This was the one thing I truly missed from my original world.

After a 10-minute shower, I reluctantly left and entered the communal pool where Van and Bjoukin were already inside. To my surprise, I noticed that they were talking to Kuerten Paget! I quickly approached the group.

A tall, muscular man with many scars on his face and chest stood in my way. He had a square jaw and his hands were clenched into meaty fists. He stared at me with his unyielding dark brown eyes.

"It's okay, Kai," the young nobleman said.

The apparent bodyguard grunted and stepped aside.

I nodded at Kai and then turned toward Kuerten. I bowed deeply to the young nobleman.

"There's no need for that, Lord Mulligan," the boy said as he reciprocated my bow. "I didn't think you would still be here in London," he remarked once he raised his head.

"We remained in London for some errands," I replied. "We will be leaving soon."

"Is that so?" A look of melancholy flashed across his face briefly. "As a young child, I imagined myself wandering from one end of Britannia to the other. Unfortunately, my duties as a Paget prevents me from doing so," Kuerten said with a tone of bitterness.

"Perhaps someday you will have the opportunity to achieve that dream," I said with sympathy. I understood why the Paget family refused to allow him to travel. Given that his father was the Regent of the Kingdom, Kuerten would be targetted for kidnapping to blackmail the father or for a hefty ransom.

The young nobleman looked at me for a moment. "Um, if you happen to visit Tregome anytime soon, can you check in on Yanbrie for me?" he requested and bowed deeply to me again.

"Of course!" I replied with a big smile. Yanbrie was Kuerten's childhood friend and love interest. I could imagine how worried the boy was. But the girl was working under the supervision of Amelica at The Noble Lady. She will be safe.

"Thank you," a relieved Kuerten replied.

We passed the time in the bath making idle chatter until the eighth bell.

"I have to go," the young man said. He bowed to me again and then exited the communal pool.

Once he was gone, I decided to spend the next hour in silent meditation. I toyed with the idea of creating a connection with the bath. But the leyline running through this location was very faint and weak. Therefore, I doubted it offered enough water element to power my water spells. Additionally, I was concerned that there was a limit to the number of leylines that I could connect to. Thus, it would be more prudent for me to limit my connections to stronger leylines.

When the church bell tolled again. I quickly waddled out of the pool and returned to the locker room. I felt refreshed and energized from my visit to the bathhouse. I quickly put on my clothing and equipment.

When Van and Bjoukin were finished dressing, we jointly returned to the lobby and waited patiently for Waverly, Rijana, and Bjoukia to arrive. This occurred some 10 minutes later.

I noticed that their faces were flush but each lady wore a beautiful smile on her face. They were clearly happy with the time spent inside the bathhouse. Their skins glowed with radiance.

We exited the bathhouse and rejoined Bila outside.