Insisting on Squeezing into the Bathtub with Firefly

Kafka watched the Trailblazer's receding back and smiled with satisfaction.

"This child really has become much more lively, just as Firefly said."

At the end of Chang'le Region, Jing Yuan had been caught up by a young boy. Needless to say, it had to be Yanqing, finally finished with his business and heading back to Cloud Knight Headquarters.

Watching the tall and short figures of Jing Yuan and Yanqing head back together, Kafka unconsciously sank into her memories.

"Oh, right, Blade, do you remember when Star was still with us? Back then..."

The cold man holding his sword, who had remained silent all along, quietly sighed and turned away, unwilling to respond.

But as Kafka's voice slowly flowed on, he too could not help recalling those past events.

He recalled that time with the Trailblazer—ah, no. Back then, Star had not yet become the Trailblazer.

What he remembered were the years spent fighting side by side with Star, when she had been a Stellaron Hunter.

If Kafka and Blade got a close look at Star with the Elation Switch turned on, they would discover that this Star was no different at all from before she lost her memories!

In other words, when she was in her state of elation, she was her truest self.

"Firefly? Firefly? What are you doing? I'm coming in, okay?"

The gray-haired girl knocked on the door, but there was no answer from inside. Still, familiar as if it were her own home, she turned the handle. With a creak, she strolled into Firefly's room.

Hmm, the decor was nice. It was just a little too minimalist.

As an uninvited guest, Star stood with her hands on her hips and inspected Firefly's room.

She had come to chat with Firefly and relieve her boredom, but after knocking for so long without getting a response, she noticed the door was unlocked and decided to come in and take a look.

As the saying went, locks kept out gentlemen, not scoundrels.

A normal person would not casually enter someone else's room just because the door was unlocked.

But Star was clearly different.

Whether the door was locked or not, she would always try the handle.

If it was locked, she would leave awkwardly.

If it was unlocked, she could conveniently come in and look around.

Hadn't she just caught the perfect opportunity?

"Firefly? Firefly?"

In the empty room, aside from Star calling Firefly's name, only her footsteps could be heard. There was no other sound.

No, that wasn't right.

If she listened carefully—

There seemed to be the faint sound of running water!?

Wait, could Firefly be taking a bath?

To verify whether her guess was right—

She slowly walked toward the bathroom.

They were both girls, so what did it matter?

Star shook out her hands, her joints making faint crackling noises as they moved.

She stood outside the bathroom door for two or three seconds before suddenly throwing it open.

The frosted glass door swung wide, and the steamy heat inside continuously billowed out. At the far end of the hazy mist, the girl lying comfortably in the bathtub while holding a little yellow duck was startled and looked up at the intruder in shock.

When she saw that it was Star, she seemed to relax, but immediately realized something was wrong. She quickly crossed her arms over her chest and curled herself into a tense ball.

"Ah, it's you."

Firefly's face was red. It was hard to tell whether the water was too hot or she was simply embarrassed.

"Um... I'll go out right away. Please wait for me outside. I'll be quick, uh...?"

The girl in the bathtub was racking her brains for the right words, trying to coax the visitor out in a way that was both polite and inoffensive.

But then she saw Star walking toward her step by step.

No, no, this direction wasn't right, was it?!

Normally, if someone interrupted another person's bath, shouldn't they quickly shut their eyes, slam the door closed, and say "Sorry" over a dozen times?

How could there really be someone this shamelessly familiar, who saw someone bathing and, instead of backing off, kept getting closer and closer?

Thinking this, Firefly's face turned even redder. She curled into a tiny ball, hugging her knees and exposing only her face as she looked up at Star, who had already walked up to the bathtub.

"So you were taking a bath. The bath salts smell wonderful."

There was indescribable amusement in Star's voice. The steam blurred the determined gleam in her eyes.

"Why won't you look at me? Are you embarrassed?"

The gray-haired girl crouched down and slowly swished her fingers through the bathtub water a few times. Watching the ripples spread from her fingertips, she asked with a curious expression.

"O-Of course I am! Isn't that obvious..."

Firefly's voice grew quieter and quieter. She—she really had never had an experience like this before. It was only natural for her to feel embarrassed in a situation like this, wasn't it?

She closed her eyes, foolishly thinking that if she did not look at Stelle, then Stelle would not notice her embarrassment.

Yet, amid the darkness clouded by steam, Firefly suddenly heard the rustle of fabric brushing together beside her ear.

Before she could even raise her eyes to look, she suddenly felt the water level rise a little?!

Huh?!

Firefly's eyes widened in astonishment, only to realize that at some point, Stelle had also gotten ready for a bath.

She casually stepped one leg into the tub, and in the blink of an eye, her whole body had sunk into the water.

"What's there to be embarrassed about? Now you've seen me too. I'm not embarrassed, so you have even less reason to be shy."

What kind of logic was that?!

And yet, Firefly really was persuaded by Stelle's crooked reasoning.

Now, she and Stelle were squeezed into this tiny bathtub in their most natural, unguarded state, the mist hazy and the water shimmering.

Firefly could barely catch her breath—perhaps because she was nervous, or perhaps because the water was making her a little dizzy.

She did not want to soak any longer. She wanted to get up and leave.

But she was too embarrassed to stand up openly in front of Stelle, so she could only curl up beneath the water like a quail.

At that moment, Firefly suddenly felt her hand being lightly touched.

Looking down, she discovered that Stelle had quietly moved closer at some point. Her fingers hooked around Firefly's pinky, then, like an octopus, pressed her entire palm against Firefly's hand.

"Taking a bath once in a while is really nice. Too bad there isn't a bathtub in my room—the bathroom's too small. When I get the chance, I'm definitely putting a big bathtub in my room."

Stelle chatted casually with a relaxed expression. Anyone who did not know better might have thought the two were sitting at a breakfast table, rather than soaking in a bathtub without a stitch of clothing between them.

She was both overly familiar and extremely S.

To be honest, Firefly could not really remember how long she soaked that day. All she knew was that by the end, she was practically limp as Stelle took her hand and helped her stand up from the bathtub.

She leaned weakly against the sink, obediently letting Stelle drape a bathrobe over her.

Then she watched Stelle put on her own bathrobe. The gray-haired girl turned around and, not forgetting to look proud of herself, said:

"My figure's pretty good, right?"

"It is. You look great."

Having witnessed everything, Firefly could only answer truthfully.

At the time, Firefly had thought she would stay with Stelle like that forever, traveling through the stars as a Stellaron Hunter.

But later, Stelle had become separated from them. Not only had she forgotten all her memories related to the Stellaron Hunters—

Firefly had not even gotten to see Stelle one last time.

But that was all later.

Firefly: Why didn't I go to the space station that day?!

Elio: The script didn't give you a part.

Kafka: I was the first person Stelle saw when she opened her eyes.

Firefly: ˃̣̣̥⌓˂̣̣̥

Can't find it by searching the book title? Try searching for the author instead—maybe it was just renamed!