Xin Yi clutched the soap formula like it was the Holy Grail, and she immediately got to work. She gathered the ingredients, animal fat from the kitchen scraps (gross, but necessary), ash from the cooking fires, various herbs and flowers she had spotted around the forest. The System guided her through the process, and finally, FINALLY, she had it.
A bar of actual, real, honest-to-god SOAP.
It was lumpy. It was kind of ugly. It was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.
"System," she whispered, tears in her eyes. "It's perfect."
[It's really not. But it'll work! ☆]
She didn't even care. She was going to smell like proper lavender for the first time in DAYS.
That evening, after both clans had settled down for the night, Xin Yi crept into her bathing room with her precious soap bar hidden in her hands like contraband.
The bathing room was.…..well, it was an attempt. The beastmen had tried their best with the knowledge she had given them. The pool was made of smooth stones, and they had rigged up a heating system using hot coals underneath. It wasn't perfect, as there were gaps in the walls, the floor was a bit uneven, and the whole thing was more "rustic cave spa" than "luxury bathroom."
But the water was warm. And she had SOAP.
That was all that mattered.
She stripped off her leaf clothing, she was SO sick of leaves, and slipped into the water with a grateful sigh. Then she unwrapped the soap.
The moment she wet it, the scent bloomed, rich, floral, absolutely heavenly lavender mixed with hints of chamomile and mint.
Xin Yi actually moaned. She lathered it up and started scrubbing, her arms, her legs, her hair, everywhere. Days of forest grime, river water, and general wilderness living melted away.
"Oh my god," she whispered, scrubbing her scalp. "I'm never taking modern hygiene for granted again."
[Host is crying.]
"I'm NOT crying! My eyes are just—it's the soap!"
[Sure it is. (◕‿◕)]
She ignored the System and continued her aggressive cleaning ritual. By the time she was done, she smelled like a walking lavender field. The entire bathing room was filled with the scent.
Xin Yi leaned back in the water, eyes closed, completely blissed out. This. This was civilization.
However, what she didn't realize was that the scent was escaping through those gaps in the walls. And it was spreading.
Fast.
~
Xin Yi was still in the bath, humming happily to herself, when she heard it.
Sniff sniff sniff.
She froze.
"Little female?" Hei Yan's voice came from outside the door. "What is that smell?"
"Little female~?" Feng Huang's voice joined in from.….a different location? "What are you doing in there?"
Oh no.
OH NO.
[Uh oh! (≧▽≦)]
"NOTHING!" Xin Yi called out, her voice slightly panicked. "I'm just—bathing! Normal bathing!"
CRASH
The door burst open.
Hei Yan stood there in human form, his purple eyes wild, his nostrils flaring. "What IS that SMELL?!"
"GET OUT!" Xin Yi shrieked, sinking deeper into the water.
Then Feng Huang appeared at one of the wall gaps, his face pressed against the opening like a cat trying to get into a locked room. "How are you making that scent?!"
"STOP LOOKING!"
"I can't!" Feng Huang inhaled deeply, his eyes rolling back slightly. "It's—what IS that? Are you a goddess?"
"WHAT?! NO!"
Hei Yan was slowly moving closer, sniffing the air like he was in a trance. "You smell like... like..." He couldn't even finish the sentence. His eyes had gone hazy.
"Like FLOWERS!" Feng Huang managed to squeeze his head through the gap. "Like a FIELD of flowers! Like the SKY!"
"The sky doesn't have a smell!" Xin Yi protested.
"YOURS DOES!"
More faces appeared at the gaps in the walls. Panthers. Tigers. ALL of them sniffing frantically.
"Alpha, what is that?!"
"Is she magic?!"
"Can we bottle that smell?!"
"I WANT TO ROLL IN IT!"
"EVERYONE OUT!" Xin Yi screamed. "OUT OUT OUT!"
But Hei Yan was too close now. He dropped to his knees at the edge of the pool, staring at her intensely. "How are you doing this?" His voice was rough. "What magic—"
"It's not MAGIC!" Xin Yi threw her hands up. "It's SOAP! S-O-A-P! SOAP!"
Dead silence.
"...Soap?" Hei Yan repeated slowly.
"What is soap?" Feng Huang asked, still wedged in the wall gap.
"It's—" Xin Yi gestured at the bar sitting on the edge of the pool. "THAT! You wash with it! It's for CLEANING!"
Every single beastman stared at the lumpy bar like it was a holy artifact.
"That.….makes you smell like that?" Hei Yan whispered, awestruck.
"YES!"
"Can you make more?" Feng Huang asked immediately.
"I—yes? Maybe? Why—"
"MAKE ME ONE!" Feng Huang demanded.
"NO, MAKE ME ONE FIRST!" Hei Yan countered.
"I ASKED FIRST!"
"I'M COURTING HER!"
"SO AM I!"
They were about to start fighting again when—
"BOYS!" Xin Yi shouted. "CAN I PLEASE FINISH MY BATH IN PEACE?!"
Both Alphas froze. Then, reluctantly, they backed away.
"You smell very nice, little female," Hei Yan said, still looking dazed. "Thank you for the discovery," Feng Huang added, finally extracting himself from the wall gap. "You truly are a goddess."
"I AM NOT A GODDESS!"
But they were already stumbling away, drunk on lavender. Behind them, the other beastmen followed, all of them mumbling about "scent magic" and "flower goddess" and "must protect."
Xin Yi sank deeper into the water, her face burning red.
[Well! That went well! ☆]
"I HATE YOU!"
[No you don't! Now Host is the mysterious 'Scent Goddess'! How fun! (^▽^)]
"This is not fun! This is a DISASTER!"
[New Quest Unlocked: Teach These Beastmen About Soap!]
[Objective: Introduce basic hygiene to the Beast World]
[Reward: 100 System Points + Unlock: Advanced Soap Recipes]
[Warning: They will probably try to EAT the soap. ☆]
Xin Yi groaned and slid completely underwater.