I can finally move my body!

　Sister Elinora jumped out of the carriage cheerfully and shouted pleasantly.

　We drove the carriage early in the morning, about three or four hours. We had to take a break on the plains for the horses to rest.

　The plain, with a good view, has soft grass and a small river running through it. There are no forests or other obstructions around it, and even if a demon or ferocious animal were to approach, it would be obvious at a glance. There's also clean water running through it, and it's a perfect place to rest.

　Slowly getting off the carriage, I thrust my arms into the air and stretched.

　The muscles in my back stretch and my joints make a nice joking noise.

　Maybe it's because I've been sitting in the carriage for so long. The muscles that had been stiffening seemed to relax.

　He lowered his hands and exhaled at the same time, then took a deep breath.

　The sensation of fresh air entering my lungs and circulating through my body. The air is delicious, and it's great.

　I feel like I can relax here.

'Oh my, it's a nice place.'

'Yeah, that's what I'm talking about, Mr. Lowe. Looks like you parked in a good spot.

　Even Nord Dad and Erna Mom, who were active as adventurers, praised him. As I thought, Lowe-san is used to traveling, so he's good at choosing places like this and choosing paths.

　I looked at Rowe's direction and saw that he was walking towards a small river with his horse.

　Probably to give him some hydration and refreshments.

　I was somewhat curious, and I followed him in that direction.

''Oh, Alfried-sama. You shouldn't get too close to the back of the horse. I'm trying to discipline them, but there's a chance they might kick you.

Yeah, okay.

　Horses have a lot of leg strength. Even a grown man can be kicked and seriously injured, and in some cases, even killed. It's not like I'm in regular communication with horses. I have to be careful enough.

　Pay attention to their position with me and accompany them accordingly.

　Lowe pulled on the cord and led me to a small, narrow river that was hidden in the grass.

　The river was probably no more than three meters wide. It's also really calm, about my ankle deep.

　The horse may have been thirsty, but when it poked its head into the river, it gulped down a mouthful of water.

　Then it sniffed and spewed out a mist of what I couldn't tell if it was water or snot.

　Dangerous. If it wasn't upwind, it would have been on me.

　But the horse is still so big. I'm seven years old and I'm looking up at them.

　I know they aren't ferocious like demons, and they existed in my previous life, but I'm still afraid of creatures much bigger than me.

　I'm confident that if a horse were to chase me, I would run away.

　However, when I look at his face, he has a large double layer and his eyes are somewhat calm.

　Combined with the soft fur in front of me, I want to pet the horse.

''Is it okay if I pet her?''

'Yes, try approaching them at an angle, calling out to them from the front.

　Trusting Lowe's words, I moved to a position diagonally in front of the horse.

''I'll pet you - I'll pet you!

　As I gradually approached the horse, I wondered if it was showing interest in me, and it moved its head closer to me.

　The horse is sniffing the scent of my palm, while letting out a long breath of air.

　Is it possible to distinguish between them by smell?　I don't know much about horse biology, so I don't know, but it doesn't look like this horse is being terribly wary of me.

　I give Lowe a look to make sure, and he nods firmly with a gentle smile on his face.

　Confirming that, I lightly stroke the horse's forehead.

''It's warm.''

　The first thing I felt was the warmth of the horse's body. It was much warmer than I imagined it would be, which would be natural since it was a living animal.

　And then there was the softness of the horse's fur.

　I quickly ran my fingers through it and my fingers sank into the soft fur. It was like combing a soft woman's hair by hand. You can't help but want to keep stroking it.

　The horse doesn't seem particularly angry, so I go straight to stroking her neck and bangs.

　Her neck is firm and thick. When I touch it, I can clearly feel the unevenness of the muscles.

　Your bangs are a bit habitual and rumpled.

'.........something might be a bit like my hair.

'Haha, there's a bit of a similarity in the way your hair bounces around.

　I mutter casually and Lowe laughs cheerfully.

　It's true that the bouncing of the bangs and the bouncing of the outer part of the hair is similar. But I'm not happy about the resemblance to the horse.

　As I'm staring at the horse with mixed feelings, the horse unexpectedly moves its face closer to mine.

　I had a bad feeling for a moment and stepped back, but it was already too late, and the horse opened its mouth and took a quick bite of my hair.

''Eeeeee!　What are you going to do about this, Mr. Lowe!

　Maybe it's a pattern of hair buzzing out of your head if you go on a rampage or something.

'Excuse me, please don't move for a minute!　Hey, let go of me!

　While I'm getting impatient, Mr. Lowe orders the horse to let go of my mouth with the addition of my hair.

　The horse is still holding my hair in its mouth, but it won't let go.

　I can't help but wonder if he'll start chomping on the grass at any moment. It's the biggest crisis I've ever had to face in my life as an Alfried Slowlet.

　Is he going to be okay?　No fancy way to eat your hair like this.

Hey, let go of me!　That's not something you should be putting in your mouth!　Let go of me!

　While I was thinking that, Mr. Lowe's persuasion continued.

　But my horse was nowhere to be seen. He doesn't seem to be listening to me at all. He's looking off into the distance with a mouthful of my hair.

　I don't know what this horse is thinking. The thought of having the fate of my hair in the hands of such a spaced-out horse makes me a little angry.

　As I was getting a little annoyed, the horse's mouth suddenly started to squirm. With that, my hair is yanked into a giggle.

''Hiiiiiiiiii!　Mr. Rowe, Mr. Rowe!　My hair is in an unprecedented crisis!

'Oh, it's no use!　How about this!

　Lowe took out a small red nut from his pocket. When I put it in front of the horse, the horse easily took its mouth away from my hair and moved its face towards the nuts. It must be this horse's favorite food or something.

　Regardless, with my hair freed, I moved away from the horse with a quick glance.

　Then I looked into the water of the creek and saw my reflection in it.

'Wow, I'm sticky with horse saliva...'

　I muttered to myself, frowning.

　My hair, which is usually fluffy and habitual, has become crispy because of the saliva sticking to it from being bitten by the horse. Moreover, the saliva is even on my scalp.

　I don't even need to touch my hair to check the scent, but the whole place smells beastly.

　If I go back to my family in this state, I'm sure they won't like it.

　I sip water from the stream running in front of me and wash my hair.

　But that takes a long time inevitably, and I can't wash my hair properly.

'd*mn, that a**h*le horse did it,'

　Feeling that it's a hassle to wash myself, I create a water ball with my water magic method and plunge only the head into it.

　Then, I made a water ball and washed my hair at once by moving the water flow gently.

　It's a technique I invented because it's a hassle to wash my hair every time I wash it by myself. It's also perfectly adjusted to avoid damaging my scalp and hair.

　The water ball gently flows through my hair and scalp as if it were wrapped around my scalp and hair.

　Ah, I feel comfortable as if I am having my hair washed by a hairdresser.

　Hm?　Wait. Why don't you try to elephant your arm with water magic and move it around?　That would bring me even closer to that feeling.

　I throw the water ball away and activate a new water magic method.

　As water was generated in the air, I let the image expand as I stare at my arms.

　Then, in the blink of an eye, the water generated changed shape and became two arms.

'Oh, this could work!'

　Excitedly, he brought the water, which was shaped like both arms, closer to his own head.

　And as my fingers hit my scalp, I heard a crunching sound and my fingers disintegrated.

'Yeah?　Did I compress the magic a little too weakly?

　I'll pour more magic power into it and increase the strength of the water magic method.

　The more you mix the water magic with more magic power and compress it, the stronger its form will remain.

　After compressing and remaking the magic, you can try again.

　The hand generated by the water magic is placed on your head....

　Then, this time, I stroked my scalp firmly without my fingers disintegrating.

　Then he slowly moved his hands as if he were washing his own hair.

''.........Oh.''

　The feel of the cold water gently caressing my scalp and hair like a hand makes me sigh. It's a little awkward in some ways because I can't fully reproduce the movement of his hands.

　But this is exactly the hands of a hairdresser. It's wonderful.

　You've developed a wonderful magic again.

　I washed my hair while trying to find the ideal way to move my fingers, and before I knew it, the dirt was gone.

　When I unlocked the magic, my hair and scalp felt so much better.

　Every time a fresh breeze blew, I could feel a swooshing breeze caressing my scalp.

'I'm not going bald, am I?'

　I hurriedly crouch down and look into the water and my hair is still alive and well. I touch the parts of my hair that are not reflected in the water, but I don't see any bald spots.

　I exhale in relief at that.

　It was such a refreshing feeling in my head that I worried I was going bald.

　From now on, when I wash my hair, I'll wash it with my hands of water.