The term "barrel bath" was something that hadn't reached her ears in a very long time.
It is a simple and common way of bathing, where people usually fill a large wooden tub with hot water, choosing a suitable spot either indoors or outdoors. While this method requires no complex equipment, it does demand an ample supply of hot water.
She never expected to experience this kind of bathing method again here. Whenever she encountered it in the past, it was basically during the Qingming Festival, when people bathed in water infused with mugwort.
Back then, her grandmother would always bring out a giant tub, put the mugwort in first, and wait a dozen minutes or so before telling her to step inside.
The only annoying part was that Grandma always liked to place the tub outdoors. Whenever anyone walked by, she had to curl up in the water to avoid being seen.
"Splash!"
Ina deftly poured the prepared hot water all at once into the large tub, followed closely by scattering a few flower petals into it.
"These are Spirit Herb petals, you see. Once Little Theresia finishes her bath, a faint fragrance will linger on her skin. Don't just stand there in a daze, jump into the big tub quickly," she said gently.
Theresia nodded. After all, standing stark naked in front of someone else was a bit embarrassing, and as she prepared to step into the bathing tub, she noticed a problem.
The big tub looked to be about seventy centimeters tall. Comparing it, she could tell that Theresia's height was around one meter six, but it wasn't so tall that she couldn't get in.
It was just going to look a bit unseemly... If no one else was around, climbing in by herself wouldn't have mattered.
Ina seemed to sense Theresia's awkwardness, smiled, stepped forward, scooped Little Theresia up in a bridal style, and placed her into the water.
Theresia could feel the calluses on Ina's hands, which probably had to do with the heavy labor she frequently did.
"Is the water temperature just right? Come on, close your eyes." Ina poured the hot water from a basin over Theresia's hair.
Ina had never seen anyone with gray hair and gray eyes.
Just now, while holding her, Ina could feel that Theresia's skin was exceptionally smooth, as delicate and soft as an infant's. In their village, people toiled away from dawn to dusk and had no time for skincare, so they naturally couldn't possess such tender and smooth skin.
Recently, it seemed like a storm of crusade against the Demon King was brewing somewhere. It must have been some high-ranking aristocrat who met with misfortune, leaving only her to narrowly escape.
Yet the nearby cities were quite a distance from here, and the journey appeared to require crossing the Redmond Mountains region.
How on earth had she managed to arrive here? Ina knew all too well that the forest at night was fraught with endless dangers.
Perhaps someone had escorted her part of the way, but an accident happened midway, leaving her entirely alone. Besides, it had been raining so heavily that day—how had she managed to survive all by herself?
Oh well, better not ask her about such matters for now. Given that her physical condition was already somewhat compromised, it was best not to bring up things that would distress her further.
These things were trivial to Ina; she believed that the young girl surviving was the happiest ending of all.
Theresia originally wanted to offer Ina a faint smile, but she was startled to find that her facial muscles seemed to have become utterly bizarre, forcing her to squeeze out an extremely stiff grin in the end.
"Pfft, what kind of expression is that? Are you trying to make a funny face?"
Ina was amused by Theresia's peculiar expression.
Damn it!
Could it be that after taking a tumble and getting caught in the rain, she had actually turned into a facial-paralysis patient?
No way—a mute plus a deadpan girl? Theresia felt like her life had reached its absolute end.
Seeing that Theresia was still standing in place and continually tweaking her facial expression, a trace of doubt arose in Ina's heart.
"What's wrong? Does your face hurt? Do you want me to massage it for you?"
Ina stepped forward and reached out, gently kneading Theresia's cheeks.
"Mhm... it feels a bit like kneading dough! And the texture is actually quite nice, you know."
Of course Theresia knew; back when she was wandering the forest alone, she often pinched her own cute little face, too.
"Gurgle."
Theresia's stomach suddenly let out a growl, and she realized then that she hadn't eaten a single bite all day.
"Hungry, are you? No wonder. It's fine! It's almost noon now; the pastries that grandfather and grandson made this morning should be sold out by now, and they'll be heading home soon."
Ina fetched a dry towel and gently wiped the water droplets from Theresia's body.
"Come on, get up. Don't rush to eat just yet; you need to dry off thoroughly first. You can wipe your hair yourself while I go get you a few changes of clothes. When I was making clothes for a guest's child before, I messed up the sizes and made them a bit too small, but thankfully I didn't throw them away. They'll fit you just right!"
Ina was treating Theresia entirely like a little child.
Theresia took the towel and carefully dried her soft hair.
Her freshly washed hair was exceptionally smooth and emitted a faint fragrance, which was surely thanks to those petals.
Theresia picked up a petal floating on the water and sniffed it. It smelled lovely, very much like the subtle scent of lavender.
"Here, try this outfit. It's made of cotton! Considering your weak constitution right now and how easily you catch a cold, I found a slightly thicker one for you to wear first. Once your health improves in a few days, I'll find you something more breathable and comfortable."
A dress? No, no, no...
Theresia shook her head frantically while gesturing with her hands to signal to Ina that she wanted to put her old coat back on.
"Are you trying to say your original coat? I've already helped you wash it, but it isn't completely dry yet. Little Theresia, don't be too picky at a time like this; hurry up and change into these clothes."
Theresia was completely powerless to resist. She had never expected Ina to be this strong, and in the end, she had no choice but to put on the dress.
Ina looked over the newly transformed, clean-faced Theresia and broke into a satisfied smile.
"Wow, Little Theresia looks simply gorgeous after her bath! I think the prettiest girl I've ever laid eyes on in my life is you. I'm so jealous!"
Girls naturally loved beauty, and upon seeing someone even prettier than themselves, a twinge of envy was inevitable.
"Mhm~ It smells so good. If they see you, their jaws are going to drop for sure."
"Th—"
"Hm? What did you say, Little Theresia?"
"Th—Th—"
Theresia told herself she was trying her hardest. She found that she could actually speak; it was just that doing so was terribly difficult, and she could only stammer out a few syllables.
"Thank you? That's wonderful, so you aren't mute to that extreme degree after all."
"We're back!"
The wooden door was pushed open with a creak.