Chapter 321
Luna White arranged for Lily Clark to stay in her room. There was no need for the two girls to sleep separately.
That afternoon, she took Lily to the workers' communal bathhouse. It was Lily's first time seeing so many people bathing together, and she blushed furiously, clutching the hem of her shirt. Back in the village, she only bathed once a month, using a wooden basin to scrub herself hastily.
"So many people... undressed..." Lily's voice trembled.
Luna chuckled and pulled her inside. "Don't be shy. It's all women here."
When the warm water cascaded over her head, Lily's eyes widened in surprise. This was far more comfortable than the wooden basin at home. The female workers around them chatted and laughed, scrubbing each other's backs in a relaxed, carefree atmosphere.
"Use this." Luna handed her a bottle of Seagull shampoo.
Lily accepted it gingerly. The lather flowed through her hair, carrying a faint floral scent. Then came the yellow conditioner, smoothing her strands effortlessly.
After the bath, Lily's hair had never felt so soft. The comb glided from roots to ends without a single tangle—unlike before, when every stroke had made her wince in pain.
"The soap smells so nice," Lily murmured, sniffing her arm with a delighted smile.
They spent over an hour in the bathhouse before leaving. Luna paid with bath coupons, and they walked back with damp hair.
Exhausted from her day-long train journey, Lily went to bed early. Having eaten at two in the afternoon, she skipped dinner and fell asleep the moment her head touched the pillow.
Around eight in the evening, Luna quietly picked up the phone. She hadn't wanted to disturb Andrew Smith during work hours, but now was the perfect time.
"Hello?" The familiar voice answered.
"I was just about to call you," Andrew replied, amusement in his tone.
Luna kept her voice low. "What a coincidence."
"Call it telepathy," he teased—a rare moment of playfulness from the usually serious captain.
"Since when did Captain Smith learn to sweet-talk?" Luna muffled a laugh.
"Why are you whispering?"
"Lily's asleep," she explained. "The mayor's daughter."
Andrew remembered instantly. "The girl we rescued last time?"
On her end of the line, Luna gazed at the peacefully sleeping Lily, her lips curving into an unconscious smile. Moonlight streamed through the window, casting a silvery glow over the room.