Soaking in a Hot Spring

In countries like Japan, one of the most popular things to do is soak in hot springs.

There are countless hot spring hotels.

Han Dong initially thought he was going to a secluded, even dilapidated, hot spring hotel that hardly anyone went there anymore, since there were rumors of it being haunted.

Who knew?

When the taxi arrived at this guesthouse and hot spring nestled against the mountain.

The area outside the hot spring hotel was full of cars.

Several shop assistants dressed in kimonos were greeting customers at the door, and they seemed overwhelmed with work.

"Did you make a reservation in advance, sir?"

"No..."

"I'm really sorry, all the rooms are already booked tonight if you don't make a reservation in advance."

"Oh... then can we wait here? If someone checks out at the last minute, we can stay here."

The shop assistant replied with an embarrassed expression:

"Sir, under normal circumstances, there shouldn't be any last-minute cancellations... If you continue along this mountain road, or drive to Kurikawa Valley, which is seven kilometers away, there should be some good hot spring hotels."

"It's okay, let me wait a bit... maybe someone will actually check out later."

At the same time.

Inside the hotel.

A college student couple walked through the bustling passageway, completely forgetting the terrifying rumors about the hotel.

However.

As soon as they Door Opening, a gust of cold wind swept across their faces.

"Strange, why aren't the windows closed?"

The rather cute-looking girl took off her shoes and immediately ran to close the window.

creak...

The closed window could not be locked, as if something was stuck in the keyhole.

"Hirono, come and take a look at this window, what's wrong with it?"

"Let me see."

The man turned on his phone's light mode and looked at the window keyhole, turning pale with fright.

"Hair?!"

Under the light, a large amount of hair was stuck in the keyhole, and it was even wriggling slightly.

"This..."

Just as the young couple was about to call the store clerk for help, they were frightened.

The girl turned her head to look at the elegantly dressed woman on one side.

The mirror is positioned directly opposite the dead corner between the wardrobe and the wall in the room.

A Woman in Red Robe was standing close to the wardrobe, staring at the two of them through the mirror... Her bright red lips were visible through the gaps in her black hair.

"Hiro... Hirono... there's... there's a ghost!"

Less than ten minutes later.

A pale-faced college student couple hurriedly checked out of the hotel.

Leave the hotel as quickly as possible at a jogging pace.

The young couple who were leaving just brushed past Han Dong, who was waiting at the door.

Beside the window of the room where the two were staying, a Woman in Red Robe was still waving slightly... not to continue scaring the couple, but to indicate to Han Dong that her request had been fulfilled.

"Sir... please follow me."

Wow! This room has such a great vibe!

Having grown up in the Holy City, Winry felt a sense of novelty when she checked into this Japanese-style room, which made her temporarily forget the danger of this mission.

same.

As Spider Mia gazed at the cozy room, her cheeks slowly flushed.

Unconsciously, she had already imagined a scene of spending time alone with Han Dong here.

However... Mia can still distinguish between what is important and what is not.

Just as I placed the demon sword wrapped in cloth on the ground, preparing to set up a spider web barrier in the corner of the room.

Buzz...

The demon sword, which touched the inn floor, trembled slightly, as if it had activated something.

In an instant, the four of them were on high alert! Their eyes were fixed on every corner of the room, in case of an enemy attack.

Ten minutes passed, and nothing seemed amiss.

Mia released her vision-sharing little wolf spiders, which crawled out of the window and door to scout the area and found that everything inside the inn was normal.

"Is this normal...? But since the demon sword itself is reacting, it means we've found the right place."

"What's the next step?"

"Soak in the hot springs."

In the open-air hot spring.

The four of them huddled together inevitably attracted the attention of others.

Apart from Han Dong, who has no particularly outstanding features, the other three people attract a lot of attention.

Although Abel was not as handsome as Cas, his wolf-hair-like white hair made him look 'very cute'.

Moreover, when Abel soaked in this natural hot spring...

When the acupoints on his body are stimulated, a lot of white downy hairs grow out of his pores. Although they are not visible when soaked in water, Han Dong, who is pressed against Abel's body, can clearly feel the silky smooth texture of the hair.

Needless to say, the two girls in swimsuits were also present.

Such exceptional foreign girls are rare, and they even aroused malicious intent in some members of a certain organization who were taking a bath.

Seeing that the two girls' boyfriends were not very strong, he immediately went up to them and started to flirt with them, even going so far as to grope them.

Next.

There was absolutely no need for Han Dong and Abel to lift a finger.

Wenli grabbed the man's groping hand and threw him away with a little force!

A large, naked man flew straight into the dark forest and disappeared without a trace.

Immediately afterwards, Wenli, who had been completely submerged in the bath, slowly raised her upper body to the surface... Actually, she was quite shy, after all, it was the first time she had ever worn such a tight-fitting swimsuit.

Staring at Winry's muscular physique, which was 'sharply honed' yet still aesthetically pleasing, all the ill-intentioned outsiders abandoned their malicious intent.

Wow... this feels so good!

Winry submerged half her head in the hot spring, blowing bubbles as she played.

Then, remembering something else, he asked:

"Vice Captain! What did you mean by ' Bionic Person ' that you mentioned outside the store?"

"Winry, your 'perception' is not strong enough. Mia and Abel should have noticed it."

The humans we see in the park, although they behave exactly like normal people—going to get off work, having families, experiencing emotional changes, encountering strange tales, and even being murdered—are not truly human.

Listening to Han Dong's conspiracy theories and staring at the people chatting and laughing while soaking in the hot spring, Wen Li turned pale with fright.

"Hey! Vice Captain, you're scary again!"

The timid Winry immediately hugged Mia.

"I'm not trying to scare you, but there's something missing about this group. It's like..."

Han Dong swallowed back some of the terms 'gene culture' and '3D printing' that Wen Li couldn't possibly understand.

I suddenly remembered the "Human Transmutation" I witnessed when I fought against Demps.

"Like humans created through ' Human Transmutation,' they lack some of the essential qualities of a true human... but their existence stabilizes Paradise."

"Human Transmutation... I've heard my master mention it; it seems to be a type of alchemy that's forbidden in the Holy City."

"Um..."

Han Dong was also slightly surprised.

Unexpectedly, Demps not only had connections outside the city, but the techniques he had learned were also forbidden arts.

"Mia... is the demon sword reacting?"

At Han Dong's instruction, Mia carried the demon sword with her at all times using Spider Silk.

"No... Should we go check the mountainous area? But we haven't heard the rumored woman crying either."

"No... let's continue taking a bath."

Han Dong secretly observed everything.

Something feels off...