Chapter 18 #2
A few hours later, Reiya tied off the last bracelet, running her fingers over the even braids.
Her shoulders ached, and the bite mark still throbbed, but a quiet sense of accomplishment settled in her chest. The braided cords—each a careful twist of colourful dyed fibres—lay stacked in a small basket beside her.
Su Lian stepped over, her gentle smile softening the tired lines around her eyes.
“They’ve been selling well,” she said, nodding at the basket. “It seems travellers enjoy carrying a small reminder of the market with them.”
Warmth spread through Reiya’s chest. “I’m glad. I’ve added knots for extra protection—to invite good omens.”
Su Lian’s smile widened. “Something anyone on this perilous road would appreciate.”
She reached into her pouch and pressed a handful of coins into Reiya’s palm. “Here,” she said, voice gentle but firm. “You’ve earned this. Go treat yourself—it has been a long and difficult day, hasn’t it?”
Reiya’s fingers curled around the coins, the cool metal pressing into her palm—a reminder of what she’d earned with her own hands. The novelty of honest work hadn’t worn off yet, and she wasn’t sure it ever would.
“There’s a stall famous for sesame-honey confections. If you’d like, I can point you in the right direction.”
She looked up, meeting Su Lian’s gaze. “Thank you, but I was thinking of visiting the bathhouse. ”
The thought of sinking into hot water, letting it unwind the tension in her muscles, cleansing the lingering trace of Jodhar’s touch, felt like a small escape.
Maybe the heat could wash away the weight of the day—the unspoken claim he’d tried to leave behind.
With the humid air pressing down, her skin damp and sticky, the bath seemed less and less a luxury and more a necessity.
Su Lian’s expression flickered. “Is it wise to go alone? Ru Rong and I have to prepare supper. We can’t accompany you.”
Reiya nodded. “I’ll be careful. I won’t let Jodhar’s actions hold me back.”
When the woman was still unconvinced, she gently pressed, “It’s just off the main thoroughfare. I’ll be back before supper.”
Su Lian studied her, then sighed, a knowing smile tugging at her lips. “The lure of a warm bath . . . that, I understand very well.” She exhaled softly before adding, “Be sure to return in time for supper. You know Ru Rong worries.”
“I will.”
Quietly, she slipped away, weaving through the bustling stalls toward the bathhouse.
It rose ahead like an oasis amidst the market’s chaos.
Mosaic tiles in deep blues and greens adorned the outer walls, reflecting the depth of water.
Stone reliefs of bathing maidens framed the entrance, their serene expressions welcoming her into a place of peace.
Just inside, a small courtyard awaited, slender palms casting delicate shadows over a fountain. The gentle bubbling of water mingled with the faint scent of jasmine and sandalwood. The air was cooler here, the market’s noise softening into a tranquil hush.
At the entrance, the attendant greeted her with a polite nod. Reiya handed over a few coins, and he ushered her through a long, dimly lit corridor where steam curled in the air, thick and perfumed.
The hall stretched in two directions, branching toward communal bath chambers at each end.
“Men’s baths to the left, women’s to the right,” the attendant explained. “Each bath is divided—Alpha-Beta and Beta-Omega. Feel free to choose one that is most suitable for you.”
With a polite bow, he returned to the front .
Reiya drifted toward the women’s area, pausing at the entrance. Warm, perfumed steam curled toward her, soft and inviting. A sign split the path ahead—left for the Beta baths, right for the Omega’s.
She hesitated.
She could slip into the Beta section, lose herself in the crowd—unnoticed, ordinary. Safer. Easier.
But the Omega chamber beckoned—quieter, more secluded, its stillness curling through the air like a whispered promise.
She curled her fingers, nails biting gently into her palms. The thought of sinking into that silence, of letting the water fold around her, felt like a balm she hadn’t known she needed.
Crossing that threshold also meant more than bathing. It meant yielding to a truth she had spent months outrunning.
Her heart stumbled on the choice.
Was this surrender?
Or was it acceptance, quiet and inexorable, slipping past her defences without permission?
The questions coiled in her chest. Beneath the uncertainty, a deep longing stirred: the ache to finally understand. The possibility of finding another Omega inside—someone who could help her make sense of her body’s betrayal—was a pull she couldn’t ignore.
Why had her instincts responded when her mind recoiled? Why had she felt trapped in a body that no longer felt like her own?
She slipped into the Omega bath chamber. The dressing room was empty, steeped in a hush that felt almost sacred. She undressed, folding her clothes neatly into a woven basket before wrapping a jasmine-scented linen towel around her torso.
A pair of heavy wooden doors led into the bathing chamber. It was empty, too. Soft candlelight flickered across polished stone. An oval pool, sunken into the floor, shimmered faintly beneath rising steam; the air thick with warm minerals and herbs, soothing in its quiet luxury.
Her gaze traced the room’s design. Slender channels etched into the stone walls guided water from unseen sources, and copper pipes snaked beneath the surface, radiating gentle warmth—earth’s heat, perhaps, or hidden fires banked below.
Along the pool’s edge, stone benches held embroidered cushions, while nearby, clay and copper vessels brimmed with steaming and icy water, ready to temper the bath.
Shelves overflowed with fragrant oils and soap cakes, their mingled aromas weaving through the air.
Reiya ran her hand along the stone, marvelling at the craftsmanship woven into every detail. This was more than an ordinary bathhouse—it was a sanctuary, built by someone who understood how to comfort more than just the body.
She slipped out of the towel, letting it rest on a nearby rack, and descended into the pool.
The water enveloped her in a slow rush, heat unfurling against her skin, untying the knots in her muscles.
A soft groan escaped her lips as the ache ebbed away—a rare indulgence she hadn’t felt since Aethonia.
She hadn’t been long in the water when soft footsteps echoed across the stone floor.
Reiya glanced up.
The woman from the market—the one with the dark curls who’d guided her through the stalls—stood at the bath’s edge. Candlelight flickered in her eyes, a curious smile tugging at her lips.