Fresh Out of the Bath

Fresh out of the bath, I chugged a coffee milk (5 DP) with my hand planted firmly on my hip.

My outfit was a yukata, naturally. Though my underwear was just boxers.

(The yukata counted as cloth clothing, 10 DP per set. I got four people's worth including mine for 40 DP total. Nice and cheap.)

Ahhh, that was a great soak.

My first bath since coming to this world.

Looks like I'll sleep soundly tonight too.

With that thought, I sat down in the massage chair (chair golem) and was already drifting off.

By the way, the materials for this massage chair were just wood and futon bedding. Incredibly cost-effective.

When you sit in the chair, the golem gives you a massage… though the "kneading" and "tapping" were quite difficult to adjust, so only the vibration function was usable for now. Viiiiiiiiin… the vibrations pulsed in waves, alternating between strong and weak. It actually felt pretty good.

Right, I should set it up to run for five minutes per copper coin and leave it out. This'll be popular, a real eye-catcher… zzz…

Something ticklish made me open my eyes. Niku was draping a towelket over me.

Niku was also wearing a yukata. The DP exchange options even included a tail-hole variant. As expected of another world.

"S-sorry! I woke you up…"

"Fwaah… huu, ah, no, it's fine. I was about to head to bed anyway…"

I let out a massive yawn and got down from the chair, then headed toward my room with Niku in tow.

Hmm, I should probably think of countermeasures for customers who fall asleep hogging the massage chair.

"… Nn, just vibration alone does leave something to be desired… Ah, that's right, Niku. Can you do massages?"

"…! Yes, Ichika taught me, but…"

Ooh! When did that happen? Niku sure is a diligent learner.

"Well done, Niku. So, could you give me one?"

"Ah, b-but, um, it's, a s-stepping massage…"

"A stepping massage… you say?!"

A stepping massage. That is, a massage done with one's feet.

Mainly performed by those who lack arm strength, where using their full body weight produces just the right amount of pressure. Children often do it when asked by their parents.

The method is simple. You step on them with the appropriate amount of weight. That's it.

—-Yes, you step on them. With your feet.

Well, obviously it's with feet if you're stepping. As a foot fetishist, this is nothing but a reward!

"I don't mind. In fact, please, by all means—-"

"Eh, y-yes! Um, then, please lie face down."

I laid face down on the futon. Come on. Hurry up.

"Ah, u-um, e-excuse me."

Niku timidly placed her feet on my back.

Through the thin yukata, I could feel the warmth of Niku's soles slowly seeping in… Warm.

She was stepping hesitantly, and it was quite ticklish—crap, I was about to doze off but now I'm waking up.

Her clumsy footwork wasn't bad though.

"Oouf… put a little more weight into it, it's too ticklish."

"Y-yes, excuse me!"

Oh. Compared to before, she was putting much more force into it. This was getting good.

Having the entire sole pressing down felt nice, but I also wanted her to focus on the stiff, knotted areas.

"More like… use your heel and toes to really dig into the stiff spots…"

"Yes! L-like this?"

"Aah, good, right there… fwooh, feels amazing…"

Niku ground into me with her toes as if gouging, and stroked across my back with her heels as she stepped.

Aah, this was truly a stepping massage.

A stepping massage while lying down to sleep. This is dangerous. It feels like a dream come true…!

"Ah, once I fall asleep, you can stop whenever you want."

"Okay… Ei, yah!"

"Ooh, yeah, that stomping is nice too."

Ton, ton, her soles gently pressing against my lower back.

Fwah, the regular rhythm of tapping on my back was making me pleasantly drowsy… this is great, I'll have her do this again for sure… zzz…

 

＊ ＊ ＊

 

When I woke up, Niku had become my hug pillow as usual.

There was a faint sweet scent unique to girls.

"… Ah, good morning…"

Niku woke up as if in sync with me opening my eyes.

"Yeah, morning… Mmm, I slept great. It's rare for me to feel this refreshed when waking up."

"… If I was able to help, I'm happy."

Niku smiled faintly.

… I gently patted her head.

"I'll be counting on you for more massages."

"Y-yes, please leave it to me."

Now then, thanks to Niku's massage, I'm feeling unusually energized.

What should I do… The inn construction is finished, so I guess today I'll work on the dungeon interior.

"Ah, right. Since the massage felt so good, I'll give you a reward, Niku. Is there something you want, or something you'd like me to do?"

"Huh?! … S-something like that, um, th-that, is that really okay?"

"Yeah, say whatever you want. If it's within the scope of a reward, I'll make it happen."

"R-really?"

"What, are you doubting me?"

"! N-no, not at all!"

Niku shook her head frantically. Maybe I teased her a bit too much.

I waited for Niku to voice her wish. So, what would she ask for? All-you-can-eat hamburgers, maybe?

After a moment, Niku spoke.

"Um… please step on me!"

"Huh?"

Uh, what's with this girl? What does she mean?

After hearing her out and putting it together in my own way, it seems the act of stepping on someone, even as a massage, makes Niku extremely conscious of hierarchy. Stepping on someone in the highest position of authority, namely me, was apparently incredibly stressful for her. (Incidentally, she could step on Ichika without reservation since Ichika is her junior as a slave.)

So, to restore her mental balance, she wanted me to step on her.

Of course, she said I didn't have to if I didn't want to, but she'd prefer if I did.

Moreover, she wanted me to step on her face if possible.

And if at all possible, she wanted me to kick her flying.

There's no way I can go that far!

So in the end, I got away with just lightly patting the back of Niku's head with the sole of my foot while she was prostrating.

When Niku raised her head, she looked satisfied.

 

＊ ＊ ＊

 

"So that's what happened this morning, but is that normal for beastkin?"

"Aye, pretty normal."

When in doubt, consult the common sense representative, Ichika-sensei. According to her, it seemed to be completely normal.

Beastkin are apparently very particular about order and hierarchy. Furthermore, since Niku was raised as a slave, she'd been taught that she was at the absolute bottom, making it even more so for her.

"Physically getting on top of someone or steppin' on 'em is a beastkin way of showin' hierarchy, y'know. Famous proposals include stuff like 'I want you right beneath me' or 'Please lay me down beneath you.'"

Those are proposals?

"There are normal proposals too though. 'I wanna feed ya my hunted game every day' or 'On these fists, I swear to fill your belly,' those kinda made my heart flutter a bit."

Those I can understand. They're appeals about never letting them go hungry. That sort of thing would definitely be super effective on Ichika.

"There's also stuff like 'Please brush my tail' or 'You're the only one I'd let touch my belly.'"

"Has anyone ever said those to you, Ichika?"

"Ahaha, no way. There was this beastkin guy who was like a little brother among the adventurers, and he'd tease me with stuff like that, that's all."

Anyway, we got off topic.

"Point is, doesn't this just mean Niku-senpai really likes ya, Goshujin-sama? Ain't that a good thing?"

"Well, yeah, I suppose I'll take it that way…"

Ah, come to think of it, I already asked her for another massage.

But it really did feel good. Yeah, it's a bit of a weird situation, but I'll have her do it again.

And as compensation, I just have to step on Niku again… Is that really okay though?

… Wait, hold on. Could Niku actually be a fellow enthusiast…?!

Nah, no way, hahaha… I'll prepare some hamburgers as a separate reward.