FVB - Chapter 13

The very next day, Theo truly began assigning personnel to tend to the garden. 

Watching Orca tear at his own hair from the increased workload, I even briefly wondered if the stress from overwork had influenced him to help Theo burn down the empire.

My task for today was bathing. When I was in the forest, I could just go into the river and wash off whenever I got dirty, but since coming to the Imperial Palace with Theo, I hadn't been able to bathe because of the wound on my wing. 

I must have been showing signs of wanting to bathe, as my feathers were starting to tangle easily, because the related items were prepared right away. 

The problem was that Theo was going to wash me himself.

Normally, a maid would have assisted with the bath, but because I was so wary of people, he decided to wash me himself. 

I could have just washed myself if he had just filled the tub with water, but his stated reason was that he wanted me to have a pleasant massage in warm water.

Why does an eagle need a massage! I don't want to be pampered that much! Besides, you don't get help with your baths! I had a lot to say, but since I didn't have human vocal cords, all I could do was screech as usual.

Following Theo's orders, the maid who had filled the bathroom with warm water saw me clinging to the blanket with my toes and Theo trying to carry me into the bathroom no matter what, and she fled the room with a pale face. No, I really want to wash alone!

"Shuian, stop being stubborn and come here."

"Screech-!"

"Pouting won't work either."

He seemed to think I was resisting because I didn't want to wash. He usually understands me so well, why is he like this today! I resisted for a long time, but since I couldn't tear the blanket, I had no choice but to release the strength in my toes, and I was helplessly carried into the bathroom in Theo's arms. Theo, who had no idea how troubled I was to be washed all over by a man, smiled happily.

"Did you let go because you were worried about tearing the blanket? How thoughtful. If it were me, I would have held on until the blanket was completely torn."

I didn't answer his joking words and turned my head away, and Theo chuckled again and gently tapped my beak with his fingertip.

"Being cute won't help you."

He checked the temperature of the water in the tub with his hand and then slowly lowered my body into the tub. 

It was a bit awkward to be sitting alone in such a large tub that I could even swim in, but soaking in the warm water eased my sulky mood a little. 

It's nice to wash in warm water instead of the cold river that was so chilly even during the day after so long….

"Close your eyes."

I obediently closed my eyes, and warm water fell over my head. The hand pouring the warm water was careful, as if worried about getting water in my eyes or nose. 

I shook my head without realizing it, and Theo, who was suddenly drenched in water, splashed water at me in retaliation. 

I tried to splash water with my beak as well, but it didn't even reach near Theo's face. Theo chuckled and filled his hands with water and splashed it on me.

"Screech-!"

"Haha, this is how you splash water."

He said he would give me a massage, but was that a water bomb massage! So that's how it's going to be? I shook my head again to shake off the water dripping down my eyes and flapped my wings wildly.

"Ugh, wait…!"

As the large wings rubbed against the surface of the water, streams of water splashed in all directions, and of course, Theo had no choice but to become a water-soaked rat.

"Screech- Screech-!"

I Screeched and laughed as I watched him dripping water from his soaked hair. I won…!

"Okay, I was wrong. Shuian is very mischievous."

You started it first! I was about to act shamelessly, but I felt a little guilty that I had gone too far, and just then, he took off his wet clothes and strode into the tub without hesitation. What, what are you doing!

"Screech, Screech-!"

Whether I was trembling my beak at the sight of the final boss's naked body, he sat comfortably in the tub, cupped water in his hands, wet his face, and swept back his hair. 

Every single movement was like a pictorial, and if I had a camera in my hand, my fingerprints would have been worn out from pressing the shutter. 

I tried hard not to turn my gaze to something visible below the water's surface. What, what is that… not heavy at all… no, that's not it….

"Screech…."

Theo knew very well that even people who are vigilant about their surroundings inevitably become defenseless at times, so he never kept people close to him, especially when he was sleeping or washing. The same was true for Orca. 

Orca was also treated as someone who could turn his back at any time if the situation changed, even though their immediate goals were the same. 

So it was a huge exception for Theo to wash and sleep with me.

I'm grateful for that, but… washing together is a bit…. I had finished my military service and gone to bathhouses with my friends many times, so I wanted to think of this as nothing special, but I couldn't help but keep looking at the body in front of me. 

Looking at that perfectly beautiful body made me feel like a pervert. This is truly the mystery of the human body….

Theo took something out of the bath basket that had been brought next to him and dropped it into the tub. It was a fish-shaped toy. 

At first, I thought it was a live fish and stuck close to the wall, but when I realized it was a toy, I approached it and examined it. 

It looked quite expensive, as even the scales were delicately rendered, but why did you bring this?

"Shall we practice catching fish with this? I was so upset that you had never eaten fish because you failed to hunt them. I thought I should give you some practice."

The way he spoke with his eyebrows drooping was clearly that of someone teasing. 

Don't joke again! I flapped my wings again and splashed water everywhere, and Theo finally burst out laughing.

In the meantime, the fish toy began to swim around the tub on its own, moving its fins. 

I opened my mouth in disbelief and stared at it, and Theo laughed so hard that tears welled up in his eyes.

"Screech-!"

So annoying…. I was about to peck him with my beak, but I stopped because I liked seeing him laugh so brightly. There's no other eagle as kind as me!

After playing in the water like a war for a long time, I washed up and went out, only to be scolded by Orca for being so late.

ꕥ

Time flowed like water, and the day of the Hunting Festival finally arrived. 

All the servants of the Imperial Palace were busy from early dawn preparing for the Hunting Festival, one of the biggest festivals in the empire, and that was the same for Theo and me. 

I woke up in the morning and took a long bath, and then I was carefully brushed. 

It was so meticulous that not a single feather was left out, so the already silvery feathers were so glossy that they shone even more.

No, Theo is one thing, but why do I have to do this! I was sulking and huffing, and Theo, who was being dressed, soothed me with a troubled face.

"Bear with it a little, even if it's annoying. You're beautiful enough without these things, but Orca is very worried because it's the first day I'm showing you off."

"Are you blaming me?"

"Then is it my fault?"

"Haa…."

Seeing Orca being abused by his evil boss again today eased my mind a little. Okay, it's not your fault…. Regardless of my unpleasant mood, Theo, who was putting on his formal attire one by one, became more and more handsome, and the sight of him wearing a cloak was truly like a work of art. 

I was afraid that I would damage it if I got too close and touched it carelessly, so I just circled around him.

Come to think of it, I'm going to see the male lead's face for the first time today. If I'm in the Imperial Palace, I can see all the main characters, right? I was annoyed that I had to get up and get dressed from the crack of dawn, but I was quite looking forward to seeing the beauties that I had admired in the illustrations in person. To see the original work in front of my eyes…!

Unlike Theo, who had a cool and fierce impression in the illustrations, the first prince, Ricardo, was a handsome man with a warm atmosphere, with hair woven with golden thread given by the sun and golden eyes as beautiful as melted gold. 

Readers who saw the illustrations compared Ricardo to an angel who would pluck a harp by the stream. 

Furthermore, though he seemed smaller compared to Theo, he had a respectable physique befitting a male lead.

Anyway, due to the nature of the novel, the more important the character, the more outstanding their appearance, so the male lead would also be a great beauty, even if he was different from Theo. And the female lead is such a beauty, really….

"Shouldn't we check the attire one more time?"

Orca's question cut off my thoughts. Before I knew it, all the servants had left, and only the three of us were left in the room.

"It's okay."

"But we don't know what kind of tricks the Empress has up her sleeve."

Orca's concern was valid. This was because the Empress had played all sorts of tricks at every Hunting Festival, and there were countless times when Theo had almost been seriously injured.

The Hunting Festival takes place in the forest behind the Imperial Palace, and monsters and animals are released in advance before the Hunting Festival. 

The list of monsters and animals was announced to the participants in advance, and there were everything from weak and small animals to large and fast monsters, so the participants could choose the area they wanted and hunt freely according to their level.

The participant who hunted the most animals and monsters became the winner of the year, which was actually a competition close to a festival, but in other words, it was clearly a place to prove one's strength, and Theo always won.

Although the nobles of the First Prince's faction brought him prey instead, it was still a festival where it was difficult for the weak male lead to shine. 

In the first place, others couldn't possibly not know that the First Prince had actually caught very few of those prey.

Of course, the Empress, who couldn't stand to see her son's reputation fall, tried to get rid of Theo in any way possible, and if that was impossible, she did everything she could to interfere. 

She sometimes simply sent assassins, and she also captured and released ferocious and powerful monsters or creatures that had to be killed as soon as they were discovered in the area Theo was heading to, instead of the monsters prepared in advance. 

She even used petty methods such as bribing the maid who served him to apply stimulants to the clothes that would awaken the monsters. 

He had actually been seriously injured many times, but Theodore always returned unscathed. 

But the countless days when he returned to his bedroom alone and treated his wounds would never be known by anyone.​