Chapter 135 Visible
"The bathhouse," Lucien muttered, his hand going up to rub his temple.
Talia gave a slow nod. "You mentioned that Elias brought their proposal to you? What was their idea exactly?"
"From Elias's words, I believe it was private rooms, attendants, and..." Lucien's brow creased at the next part. "Services for the men who visit it."
At his words, Talia's brow rose. "Huh. They just went and said it like that?"
His junior seemed more surprised by the content of his words than the topic itself. When he gave her a questioning look, she shook her head.
"Let's go through this from the top first, kay?"
At Lucien's gesture, she continued speaking, eyes lowering in thought. "When I found myself in Helvarn, the first thing I did was try to learn the cultural limits of what I could do as a woman in this world."
Leaning back in her chair, Talia exhaled before speaking slowly. "You know how it is. Medieval history doesn't exactly paint a pleasant picture for women. Didn't want to get accused of being a witch or anything like that."
Lucien inclined his head. "But there are differences compared to our own world, quite significant ones."
"Yeeep," she replied even as her hands spread out wide. "There are similarities, of course, but the differences are pretty big."
"Such as the stigma of women not wielding arms or being involved in combat or rather, the lack of one," Lucien added, causing Talia to snap her fingers.
"Yeah, that! Remember how casual Alicia's question was when she asked if there were any female guards in the heartlands? A girl from the medieval era wouldn't ask something like that."
Lucien thought back to Gavin, the master smith from Helvarn, and his lack of reaction to the windlass crossbow being wielded by the only female volunteer.
Or, more tellingly, the existence of Sera.
Resting his hands on the desk, his eyes lowered. "When I put forth the idea of women volunteering for the militia, I had expected the people around me to push back against it from that angle as well."
"Instead, Dorian's concerns were purely military in nature, while Joren..."
His words trailed off as he remembered the blacksmith's words.
'The weight I will have to carry if one of them dies...'
Talia watched him closely for a brief moment before tapping her finger against the desk, louder than necessary.
When he looked up to meet her eyes, she gave him a small grin.
"Don't get all broody on me now, Senior."
He shook his head at that. "So there are differences like that, but what does it have to do with the bathhouse?"
Slipping into a lecturing posture again, Talia made a tsk-tsk sound as she wagged her finger at him. "Come ooon, think about it. What are the biggest things that would shape social norms and culture in this world?"
This nosy junior was getting too uppity for her own good.
As expected, he should have flicked her forehead earlier.
Talia leaned back further in her seat as though avoiding potential retaliation. "Fine! I'll give you a hint. It's thanks to you that I figured it out anyway."
"...Me?"
She gave him a wink. "Okay, more like your library. It's got a better selection compared to the books in the scribe's shop at Helvarn."
At those words, Lucien's eyes sharpened. "Religion and magic. The tenets of the Goddess and the potential force of mana."
Talia mimed a finger gun at him. "You got it! Well, in the bathhouse case, it would be more on the religion side of things. And about women fighting, that'd likely be things like blessings and mana. There's probably a precedent for female mages or priestesses being involved on the battlefield too."
And if one were to include the hostilities with the other races and the annual Tithe, the humans of this world had faced pressures very different from those of Earth.
Perhaps that was why some of the same attitudes toward women had never taken root as strongly here, especially when survival could make distinctions over who was allowed to fight or work far less practical.
Setting the thought aside for now, Lucien reached for the drawer and took out the parchment containing the bathhouse proposal.
"But would that not make this," he set the parchment between them, "even stranger in hindsight? For women who grew up under the tenets of the Goddess, why would they propose something like this so openly?"
His thoughts went back to the scene earlier, the short-haired man passing coin to the young woman. It must have shown on his face when Talia tilted her head.
"What's wrong, Senior?"
At her question, he began recounting what he had witnessed, keeping it brief while avoiding any details about the woman for her privacy.
Once he was done, Lucien's finger tapped the parchment. "I understand individual cases like that. But to form a group and bring forth a proposal for a bathhouse openly...that's a different matter altogether."
Perhaps he shouldn't have been surprised, but Talia didn't seem confused by the situation at all as she let out a hum.
"Actually, it kinda makes sense when you put it all together."
Talia gestured to the parchment. "It was brought forward by people from the second wave, right?"
At his nod, she tapped the sheet lightly. "They don't know you, Senior. Or rather, all they know about you is through your reputation and what they went through in Helvarn."
"Think about it from their perspective. The threat of orcs as soon as they arrive, then they hear about this idea put forward by the ruling noble, accepting proposals, but only five of them?"
She let out a sharp breath. "We need one of ours to be accepted. If not this, then that. That's probably what they're thinking. The communal washing house is likely what they truly want, but if that falls through..."
Talia shot him a wink. "Maybe a noble with a tendency to gather women under his household would accept a bathhouse instead."
Ignoring his junior's teasing remark, Lucien reluctantly had to admit that it did make sense, especially when he remembered the exchange he had with the older villager.
His gaze drifted to the window. "I see. But their proposal brings to light something else that we need to be ready for."
She seemed to understand where he was coming from, a furrow forming on her brow. "Yeah...after all, regardless of the differences between our worlds, there are still similarities when it comes to that."
His eyes went to meet her own. "Did you know that Lord Rathenfell was the one who had the cathedral in Helvarn built?"
At his question, she gave a faint nod. "Yep. I've heard of that. And a little of what happened from another merchant who lived in Helvarn during that time."
Talia rubbed at her temple. "We can't stamp it out completely, Senior."
Rising from his seat, Lucien walked to stand by the window, exhaling faintly. "I know. But neither will I support it. That sort of thing isn't something I would want to allow to take root too deeply in Ashridge."
As he looked over the village, the sound of Talia's chair scraping across the floor came from behind him. A brief moment later, his junior joined him at the window, a rare frown on her face.
For a time, neither of them spoke until Talia perked up before giving him a light nudge with her shoulder.
"And what's this about me making their idea more presentable, huh? Aren't you treating your cute junior a little too casually these days?"
Her words caused him to wonder for the briefest moment before he remembered their earlier talk at the northwestern housing site.
Lucien inclined his head toward her. "Perhaps I should have worded it better. I wanted to ask if you could make the bathhouse idea more public-friendly and less...risqué compared to what they had put forward."
Crossing her arms with a soft humph, a pout formed on her face even as she spoke. "You should've said it like that then. You know how I don't really like that sort of thing myself."
He did feel slightly bad about that, even more so when Lucien remembered something from their past.
"Your father will somehow find a way to cross between worlds to strangle me if I tried to suggest otherwise, Talia."
Talia gave a short nod, a smug look on her face. "My dad's pretty cool like that."
Shaking his head at the sight, Lucien turned back to the window. "I still need your help with it. At least try to speak to them through a proxy if you feel uncomfortable being associated with the idea."
Leaning against the windowsill, she exhaled faintly. "It's fine, I can talk to them directly. We want to know which ones are sincere about the bathhouse anyway, rather than those who might just be looking to make a quick coin."
She glanced at him. "But what're you gonna do about managing their numbers? The night trade in Helvarn sprang up when Lord Rathenfell tried to cull it directly."
Lucien let out a breath as he considered the matter for a long moment. The cathedral at Helvarn came to mind, a large structure that made even his own manor look quaint by comparison.
'A cathedral...?'
His eyes narrowed slightly. "Lord Rathenfell's attempt...perhaps the order was wrong. He tried to place the cathedral over it."
Talia turned toward him, her expression growing thoughtful. "You want to create a framework for it first, then?"
He gave a slow nod. "Yes. It will not be something that I support, but places like a bathhouse, or something of that nature, will inevitably invite people with those inclinations. That's why we need to make it clear that such things are...tolerated to an extent, but not encouraged."
Lucien rested his hands on the windowsill. "The timing is important. A bathhouse will take time to build, but I should invite the clergy to Ashridge soon."
At his words, Talia glanced at him. "Speaking of which, it's kinda strange that the church hasn't gotten in contact with you so far. I actually expected them to arrive along with the second wave."
Lucien's fingers tapped against the sill at that. "Perhaps they have been delayed due to the recent tensions in the inner regions, though I had expected at least a letter from them myself."
"I will have to send a letter to Lord Rathenfell to ask about it soon," he exhaled through his nose, "though it will have to go the longer route via Cragwatch due to the orcs."
"Ugh, tell me about it. My shipments are all messed up now because of that too. The southern roads aren't really all that great for wagons," Talia groused, a scrunch forming between her brows.
She stretched out her hands, letting out a loud groan. "After failing to make any progress with the red herbs, I've been thinking of how to expand my shop's selections, but trade has been slowing so much lately that it's giving me a headache."
Lucien shot her a dry look. "At least you are finally acting like a merchant now."
"Hey! I've been helping with the refugees too, ya know!" she replied indignantly, "not to mention scouring your library for anything we might've missed regarding Cora and all."
Her voice grew softer near the end.
The mention of Cora caused him to exhale through his nose. "Perhaps Lord Rathenfell might have..."
His words trailed off, causing Talia to blink.
"What is it, Senior?"
For a long moment, Lucien said nothing as he stared out over the village.
The older villager's words from earlier returned to him, followed soon after by Talia's.
Finally, he turned toward her, a faint smile on his lips.
"I suppose consistency is my strength after all."
Talia tilted her head. "Huh? I wouldn't go as far as to say it's your strength...though I suppose if you wanna put it that-"
His hand snapped toward her forehead, flicking it softly.
"H-hey! You're the one saying embarrassing...Senior?"
She looked almost confused when he patted her on the shoulder right after that before turning back toward the village.
"Thank you. I will speak to Elias tomorrow."
Despite Talia's attempts to make him "spill the beans," as she so eloquently put it, Lucien decided that it was his turn to play the all-knowing senior this time.
It was only after he returned to his room that night that Lucien realized Talia had somehow escaped without ever telling him what she had whispered to Alicia.