The timeline is between chapters 158 and 159.
The perspective is that of Toriumi.
They entered a poison hot spring.
This happened during our last trip in another world before returning.
“Look at this. It’s a hot spring.”
“Is that so? President can see a hot spring. All I see is a poisonous swamp.”
Hmm… To me, it also looks like that thing where your HP decreases by 1 with each step.
…In other words, a poisonous swamp.
At our feet, pools of poison emit steam.
Somehow, President is gleefully collecting water (or should I say, hot water?) from the pond.
And the area is full of poison gas! Like hydrogen sulfide, but not something so trivial… no, actually, it’s much more terrifying than that!
Hmm, probably the reason is that the poison swamp has become a hot spring state.
Somehow, President is gleefully collecting air from around with a gas collecting bottle.
As you can see from this, the ground feels somewhat warm.
“This seems like a perfect location for geothermal power generation.”
President says something, but yeah, that’s the gist of it.
…And so, there actually was a hot spring.
Not a poison swamp. Oh, wait, correction.
Not so much of a poison swamp.
…Well, hmm, we have “Poison Resistance.”
So, even amidst the poison gas and in a poison bath, we’re okay. Yeah. It’s just a bit mentally unsettling.
“Shall we go in since we’re here?”
Hariu seems to live on momentum and curiosity. Too hasty for life!
“…In this poison gas?”
“In this bath that seems to be filled with poison?”
“It won’t affect us anyway, so why not?”
Hmm, President just seems to want to enter the poison bath.
“…Now that I think about it, this is the first time we’re taking a bath since we did at senior’s place…”
Maito-san seems a bit attracted to the idea of a bath. Well, she’s a girl, after all.
“…I don’t mind going in.”
Hagasaki-kun is interested… oh, maybe not. Hmm, tsundere.
“Since we’re here, why not train our ‘Poison Resistance’?”
I joined the pro-bath side, and everyone agreed.
Well, it seems unnecessary, but if you think of it as training, it’s not bad, right?
It’s a rare chance to see another world, after all.
“It’s ready.”
President did it in 5 minutes.
What a surprise.
The area around the hot spring, which was too open, has transformed dramatically thanks to “Earth Magic.”
Screens for privacy have been added, allowing us to relax in the hot spring.
The ceiling is made of latticework, balancing the need for light and preparation for enemy attacks.
Furthermore, the hot spring is divided into two, one for Maito-san and one for us.
Now, everyone can enter at the same time.
And next to the hot spring, there’s a dressing area as well.
President’s thoughtfulness and playfulness can be felt in the rock walls turned into shelves.
…Something like that, I guess? Yeah.
Hmm… I wish the surrounding poison gas could have been dramatically changed as well, but it remains as is.
Truly President’s craftsmanship.
“So, use this cloth, hand towel, for now. You can bathe in clothes if you don’t mind being wet until I ‘clean’ it up later. There are yukatas available if you want to use them. Well then, I’ll leave you to it.”
Maito-san quickly placed about three bundles of cloth down and then entered the bath.
…Yeah, those are hand towels, yukatas, and sashes.
“…Maito-san seems pretty happy, huh?”
“It makes no sense to be excited about entering a poison bath.”
Well, she’s probably a girl, after all.
…No, does being a girl have nothing to do with it? Maybe she just likes hot springs simply.
“The temperature is nice.”
“This is quite a nice hot spring.”
Katori and Hariu have already fully adapted.
Since bathing with clothes on definitely doesn’t feel like taking a bath, we all stripped and got in.
“Once you get used to it, a poison bath isn’t that bad.”
Suzumoto is soaking with a distant look in his eyes. Well, poison doesn’t matter to us, so if we don’t mind it, in the end, it’s just another bath.
“We haven’t bathed in a while.”
It makes me think that, after all, we’re still Japanese.
Even though Maito-san’s “cleaning” keeps things clean, this is still something else entirely.
Ah, what nice hot water.
“Look, a jellyfish.”
Hariu plays with a hand towel, making it look like a jellyfish.
“…Kadomi-kun, if you’re getting dizzy, you should get out.”
“…Yeah…”
Kadomi-kun is getting dizzy and starting to sink.
“Since we’re here, shall we try other places too?”
“Huh? Go into a place with stronger poison? Are you sane?”
President has gone mad… ah, no, this is normal operation for him. My bad.
…Well, we were enjoying the hot spring like that when suddenly.
“Something’s coming out, gyaa!”
…Suddenly, from the other side of the wall, we heard something like that.
Just as I thought I heard splashing water, the ground shook.
…Ah, this is bad.
“It’s coming from below!”
President said something, but there’s not much we could do about it, right? Can’t be helped.
In an instant, the ground cracked open, and we fell into an underground cavity along with the hot spring water.
“It came from below.”
We were cautious of the sides and above, but completely unprepared for below. Not that there was anything we could have done about it.
“…Where’s Maito?”
“I’m over here.”
…But it’s too dark to see much of anything ahead.
“Ah, I’ll turn on a light.”
“Wait, Kariya! …Think about our equipment.”
Ah, yeah, we’re all naked.
…Ah… Being without any equipment might be a problem. We can’t use “Transfer.”
“Being dark is a bit of a relief…”
Yeah. Well, because of that, we can’t find Maito-san.
“I’m dressed, so it’s not a problem for me…”
Kadomi-kun, having felt dizzy, got out earlier and is wearing a yukata. Lucky him.
“Toriumi, “Transfer” is…”
“Yeah, I took off my bracelet to enter the hot spring.”
“I also took off my barrette…”
Ah, so Maito-san is out of options too.
This is troublesome, indeed.
We can’t see the surface from here.
Probably got buried, I guess.
…In that case, escaping might be a bit tricky without any equipment at this height.
“…Alright. Got it. Let’s do this. Maito, can you hear me?”
“Yeaaah.”
“…Are you wearing anything?”
“Chanel No. 5.”
“Got it. Apply stealth to everything but your right arm. And close your eyes. Don’t look at anything. Got it?”
“Yes, sir.”
Clever. This way, we can prevent further damage. It’s great that Maito-san can use stealth!
“I’m ready.”
“Good. Kariya, turn on the light, please.”
“Roger that. ‘Light Sphere’.”
As Kariya conjures a sphere of light to illuminate the surroundings…
“Gyaa! An arm and a hand towel are floating!”
“It’s like a horror scene.”
The hand towel is like a blindfold. Yeah.
“Okay, Maito, you’re still there, right? Eyes closed?”
“I’m covering them with the hand towel.”
“Good. Then it’s fine. Kadomi-kun, is the yukata okay?”
“Uh, yeah, sure.”
Kadomi-kun takes off the yukata he was wearing and passes it to Suzumoto, who hands it to the floating arm.
“Can you put it on without looking?”
“Easy.”
Then, Maito-san puts on the yukata. …Hmm, well, it’s like the yukata is floating. Feels like there was a monster like this—just a cloak and a sword. What was it called again?
After finishing dressing, Maito-san deactivates stealth.
It’s dark, and it’s better if we can easily spot where our allies are. Yeah.
“…So, what do we do? We’re at this height, and the exit is blocked.”
“Oh, about that, I saw some light flickering in the back over there, so if we go that way, it might lead somewhere.”
Oh. That’s useful information.
“Alright. Let’s head that way. Okay?”
Naturally, everyone agrees. It’s not like we have any other options.
“…However, my friends, there’s one thing I’d like you to ponder. Why didn’t I die after falling from such a height?”
…Right, that’s a good point.
Maito-san mentioned that falling from a height half her own could be deadly… well, not really, but surviving a fall from this height is unusual. Yeah, now that you mention it.
“The reason I’m alive is… it’s because I landed on something soft, slimy, and somewhat fluffy.”
…Soft, slimy, and fluffy?
“Could it be a monster?”
“The possibility is quite high. After I landed, it moved sluggishly away, but I don’t think it went too far.”
Ah… that makes the lack of equipment even more concerning.
People like me, Kadomi-kun, and Suzumoto really can’t do much without our weapons.
“I can use magic to some extent even without my staff.”
“I can use magic too, but given the monsters in this land, poison might not be very effective, so please don’t count on me too much as a combatant.”
Yeah, it does seem likely we’ll encounter poison-type monsters here.
“I can use light magic too.”
“I can shoot beams, though weaker, and I can do a bit of wind magic too.”
“I might be able to use dark magic… but it’s really dark here and there are no shadows, so it might be a bit difficult.”
“…I think I can make an ‘Energy Sword’ out of fragments of rocks around here.”
Kadomi-kun can fight, but without armor or a shield, we really shouldn’t push it.
Our combat ability is significantly reduced without our equipment.
“Not having equipment is a real problem…”
“We have no choice but to focus our battle strategy around me and Hagasaki. Kariya, since you’ll need to handle lighting and healing, please conserve your MP. Kadomi-san, please act according to the situation. Since you don’t have armor or a shield, safety first.”
That’s the plan we ended up with.
If we encounter a monster that’s resistant to magic, we’ll see if Kadomi-kun can deal with it. If not, we’ll have to flee and see if Suzumoto and Hariu can try to break through the ceiling by flying.
“Then, Maito, sorry to ask, but could you let yourself be carried? Since you’re blindfolded, we can’t let you walk.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Toriumi, you good?”
And so, the task of carrying Maito-san fell to me.
…Well, yeah.
Without equipment, it seems I can’t really act as a tank, and I don’t have any magic to use.
Can’t fly, nor am I specialized in evasion, so this time, the least useful ones are Maito-san and me.
“Sorry about this, then.”
I picked up Maito-san. Considering stability, maybe carrying her on the side is best. Doing a fireman’s carry like Suzumoto did before seems a bit cruel.
…
“Sorry for being heavy.”
Well, there are adjustments, so I don’t really feel the weight that much.
But, um.
Yeah. …But this is Maito-san, huh.
“…Uh, are you okay?”
“Eh, ah, yeah, I’m fine.”
Maito-san seemed a bit suspicious, or maybe worried, since I hadn’t responded, so I answered, but I wonder if there’s a problem.
The problem being, well, it’s nothing, really. All good here.
“Ah, I can see the light.”
Being at the back is quite a fresh experience.
For those at the front like Hagasaki-kun and Katori, it must feel new too.
“…But the color of the light…”
“Purple!”
…Hmm… that light is more like…
“Ah, there’s something there.”
“‘Ice Coffin’.”
And it seems we encountered something, but before we could even assess it, Hagasaki-kun encased it in an ice coffin.
…
“Eh, it’s over just like that?”
Kariya seems to be illuminating it for confirmation.
“Ah… it’s perfectly frozen. I think it was probably a monster that used poison, but since it’s frozen, it can’t move anymore, I guess.”
I heard later that it was similar to monsters like Betobeter or Betobeton.
Yeah, if they’re frozen, that’s definitely a problem for them.
“So, the light is coming from this?”
Behind where the monster was, there was a mysteriously glowing purple stone. So, this was the source of the light. It wasn’t the outside after all.
“…This is…”
President’s expression changed, likely after using some form of “Appraisal.”
“It’s called the ‘Source of Poison.’ Can we take it back with us?”
“Do whatever you want…”
“Then, right away.”
With what seemed like half-hearted permission from Suzumoto, President gleefully removed the stone from something resembling a pedestal.
…And then.
“Ah, it disappeared.”
The frozen monster vanished.
“This stone appears to have been anchoring the poison in this area. By removing it from the pedestal, its effect was lost, and the poison monster disappeared.”
Ah, so that’s how it works. Interesting.
“…So, how do we get back?”
“Looks like I’ll have to create a foothold with earth magic and alter the ceiling. Be prepared for the risk of cave-ins.”
Ah, I see.
I initially thought Suzumoto and Hariu would have to do the heavy lifting, but on second thought, it makes more sense for President to take charge. Right.
Thanks to President’s efforts, though we faced a few rockfalls, we eventually made our way outside.
Climbing up the stairs he created, we emerged into the open air.
“Ah, the poisonous fog is gone.”
“And the poison swamp has turned into a hot spring.”
What a turn of events. The once-poisonous area had transformed, all because we took that stone.
Wow, truly a dramatic change.
“I want to go back into the bath… I’ve gotten cold…”
“No, everyone, we need to find our equipment first, or we can’t leave.”
“Ah…”
…Eventually, we spent the rest of the day soaking in the bath and digging up our equipment, managing to recover everything.
“It was quite an adventure, wasn’t it?”
“…I think I’ll pass on hot springs for a while…”
…Well, these experiences aren’t too bad once in a while, I suppose.
“Let’s come back again sometime.”
“Next time, let’s keep our clothes on.”
Right. Once in a while.
And thus concludes the tale of the Poison Hot Spring Trip, later known as the Maid Doll Hot Spring Town.