Chapter 101 : Why Are You Walking Around Naked?

I ended up in a woman’s body again after all that.

This isn’t right. But now, the moment my body changes, I just think, “Well, of course,” without even realizing it.

Repeated despair has made the unsettling thought—”Will I live my whole life constantly changing like this?”—feel like an accepted truth.

It was a kind of resignation that came after persistent denial.

This wasn’t a small problem. Usher felt a deep sense of crisis about the situation.

Especially because he was gradually losing his sense of shame when handling Bersia’s body.

…Is this really okay?

From a common-sense perspective, a man changing and washing a woman’s undergarments was something he absolutely shouldn’t do.

Yet, even while doing it, he felt no guilt or shame.

It just felt like he was handling his own belongings.

If he had to add one more emotion to it, perhaps it would be a sigh of exasperation directed at Bersia for putting him in this situation.

“Couldn’t you just endure a little…!”

Smack!

In frustration, Usher slammed the laundry into the water, letting out a groan before shaking his head.

Complaining wouldn’t change anything.

If anything, maybe this was for the best.

Let’s just look at the reality.

Bersia was not someone known for patience—not even as a joke.

Hadn’t he seen firsthand what happened after she took over his body?

She tried to pounce on him at every opportunity.

And she was using that overwhelming divine power of hers to attempt that.

If he wanted to avoid such a disaster, it was better for him to endure and keep this body under control.

It was unfortunate, but it was the only option.

After finishing the laundry, he bathed himself.

The moment he submerged in warm water, he felt all his fatigue melt away.

And then, it hit him—Bersia’s body had probably been under constant tension.

Just soaking in warm water was enough to make all the muscles in the body relax, which was surprising.

A pang of guilt struck him.

Had she been trying to endure, only to finally lose control and attempt to assault him?

…No.

Even so, assault was assault.

Usher quickly pushed aside any sympathy.

Bersia needed to take responsibility for her actions.

With a sulky expression, he sank deeper into the water until it reached his neck.

How much time passed after that?

Drowsiness crept in.

A quiet bathroom, warm water, fading tension, and a rare moment of peace.

All of it combined to lull him into sleep.

Despite his efforts to fight it off, he eventually drifted off—still submerged in the bath.

“……”

He dreamed of floating in the sky.

A soft sensation surrounded his body, as if he were wrapped in clouds.

A faint smile formed on his lips.

It felt like he could go anywhere riding this cloud.

Then, suddenly, the cloud transformed into Bersia.

She looked him up and down.

A sly smirk spread across her lips.

—”Why are you walking around naked? You look like a pervert.”

A chill ran down his spine.

His face instantly burned with heat.

Startled, Usher flailed—

And woke up.

Splash!

“Ahck!”

There was no need to shake off sleep.

Flailing in the water had yanked him right back to reality.

Barely managing to grab the edge of the bathtub, he gasped for breath.

Of all the dreams he could have had, why that one?

As he pressed his palm to his forehead, trying to recover from the dizziness, he slowly lifted his head—

And froze.

“…Ah, you’re awake?”

His face went rigid.

His gaze turned ice cold.

Bersia was there.

Standing in the corner of the bathroom, arms crossed, looking down at him.

Silence.

Usher had to put in serious effort to process this situation.

Was he still dreaming?

No, this was real.

And upon closer inspection—

Bersia was watching him.

Watching him sit naked in the bathtub.

“……”

“…What are you doing?”

Humans tend to freeze when faced with unexpected stimuli.

Usher was no exception.

Why was Bersia here?

Why was she looking at him?

Why was he exposed to her gaze?

Those thoughts swirled chaotically in his mind.

Then, Bersia spoke.

“Just admiring.”

“……”

“My body is really pretty. The curves are nice.”

“……”

“Why were you so against it? If it were me, I’d have stripped you down and jumped you immediately.”

She stroked her chin thoughtfully.

Did this person even understand what guilt was?

Or for that matter, did she understand human emotions at all?

Probably not.

That much was clear from her expression—completely devoid of guilt.

Usher finally accepted that he was being visually harassed.

And the realization made him tremble.

His eyes welled up, and his entire body flushed red.

Bersia tilted her head.

“What’s wrong?”

Usher screamed.

“Get out!!!”

With a loud splash, he flung water at her.

His voice was hoarse with embarrassment.

Bersia muttered in disbelief.

“…But that’s my body—”

“Get out! Get out! Get ouuuuut!!!”

Losing all composure, Usher wildly flung water at her, shrieking at the top of his lungs.

And he didn’t stop until she finally left the bathroom.

Only after being left alone did Usher collapse into himself, covering his face with his hands.

He let out something between a sob and a groan, trying to collect his emotions.

Only after a long while did he step out.

“…You’re so sensitive.”

Bersia spoke nonchalantly, but Usher narrowed his eyes and glared at her.

Then, without a word, he sharply turned his head away.

This was too much.

This was undeniably harassment—a crime, even.

Of course, Bersia probably had her own reasoning.

As she said, it was her body.

And if someone took forever to come out of the bath, naturally, anyone would be worried and want to check.

But that was beside the point.

It was just… too embarrassing and infuriating.

“Are you really not going to talk to me?”

…….

“Are you seriously sulking? Over this?”

Bersia’s expression clearly asked, Are you for real?

Usher ignored even that.

He felt like his emotions were completely overpowering his body.

He didn’t want to say anything.

For the rest of the day, he completely ignored everything Bersia said.

At some point, Haliah, noticing something was off, asked Bersia about it.

After hearing the situation, she burst into laughter.

“Isn’t it because of the Curse of Lust? It affects emotions, doesn’t it? Maybe that’s why he’s acting so childish. Just let it go.”

Usher was dumbfounded.

Why was he the bad guy here?

Bersia was the one at fault!

But deep down, he had to admit…

Maybe this wasn’t worth sulking all day.

Maybe he had overreacted.

And maybe…

…Was it the curse?

Unlike Bersia, who struggled with increased lust, Usher often found it difficult to control his emotions due to the curse.

“Sir Knight, you’re not as patient as you think, huh?”

That stung.

The curse triggered them differently—for Bersia, it amplified desire; for Usher, it amplified emotions.

“Such a crybaby.”

That was it.

Usher snapped his head away, once again ignoring her completely.

At some point, he kept ignoring her out of sheer stubbornness.

It became a vicious cycle.

Until finally—

“I’m sorry, okay? Can we make up now?”

Bersia leaned in and wrapped an arm around his shoulders, whispering her apology.

Usher had to admit that he had been waiting for that apology.

And now, realizing that he had kept sulking on purpose, he felt embarrassed about himself.

His voice came out curt.

“…Don’t do that again. I really hated it.”

“Okay, I won’t.”

She smiled as if she had expected this outcome.

That only made him more embarrassed.

Usher bit his lip.

The day finally came for them to leave Baern.

Unfortunately, they couldn’t gather much more information about Téhra—no, Sera Wizdia.

All they learned was how she had driven the kingdom to ruin from behind the king.

Nothing personal about her could be found.

“We’ll have to go back to the Order and dig through the archives.

The Church is the spiritual successor of the Holy Kingdom—there should be plenty of records left.”

Haliah emphasized the need to return quickly and collect information.

And so, it was time to say goodbye.

Usher took one last look at Baern.

This place held memories now.

He no longer had to force himself to forget it.

One day, after everything was over, he would return.

He would see how Baern had changed.

He would smile as he took it all in.

And he would properly honor the Therbion Mercenary Corps.

With that resolve, he turned away.

Gester and the other mercenaries of Baern came to see them off.

On their way back, they traveled faster than before.

They increased their speed by about 1.5 times and arrived much sooner.

Upon arrival, Bersia stretched and sighed in relief.

“This place is still the best.”

“Yes.”

Usher smiled softly as he answered.

She was right.

Now, this place felt like home.