Once the group had returned to shore, they parted ways. Santeri and the other fishermen dispersed to check on the other fishing spots, while Squad Leader Bel and her band of SEEC student adventurers headed to attend a class on grilling fish. Citrina naturally accompanied her, but so did their usual open-fire chef Liora and knife-wielding Tiona. Abel and Sion tagged along too...and so did Keithwood, silently trailing behind them.
Meanwhile, Orania and Kiryl were brought to the baths to warm up. Julius accompanied Kiryl, while Mia, Anne, Rafina, and Chloe came with Orania. Patty and Yanna tagged along as well, wanting to wait for Kiryl.
Once she had thoroughly cleansed herself, Orania dipped into the bathwater. The warmth seeped into her skin, eliciting a satisfied sigh.
I hadn’t realized how cold I was...
While the heat of summer still lingered, it was now fall, and naturally too cold for swimming. The sight of her tinged cheeks as she let out an amorous sigh teetered on the erotic, and was a far cry from the odd, old-man sighs of a certain princess. A vast ocean could even separate two princesses, and which princess was serving as an object of her comparison doubtfully needed clarification.
Ugh, this fishing competition wasn’t fun at all... thought Orania as she stared at the ceiling. Why did I have to save a pirate, anyway?
No matter how hard she pondered that question, she couldn’t find an answer. She hugged her knees to her chest, sinking the bottom half of her face in the water to blow out some bubbles with a groan. She just couldn’t get those words out of her mind.
“I’m so glad you were here, Orania.”
“He’s the only family I have left. So really...thank you.”
Every time she mulled over Mia’s words and Yanna’s honest thanks, she just got...
She splashed water on her face and sighed once again. I really should have kept my distance from Princess Mia.
The woman in question was currently washing some hair. Not her own, but one of the students in the SEEC program. Orania was pretty sure her name was Patty.
They really do look alike... Are they related? Either way, it’s weird for a princess to wash someone’s hair...
Next to Mia, her personal maid was washing the young Visalian girl’s hair. Her eyes were shut tight and she sat there frozen. Orania just couldn’t comprehend the girl.
Why does she hate water so much...? She’s a pirate! Her brother was quite pitiful too... They can’t swim, can’t fish... How do they even survive?
The three-eyed pirates took to the seas, attacking harbors and kidnapping Ganudos’s citizens, right? But falling from their boats would spell death for these children who couldn’t swim. How did they plan to make it in life?
Just as Orania was starting to worry, she shook the thought from her head. What does it matter to me...? It doesn’t! Yup, I just wanted to fish and ended up getting swept up in all this boring stuff... I had no fun at all...! Not one bit!!! she thought, her inner voice sounding less like she was confirming her beliefs and more like she was trying to convince herself they were true.
That’s right. She had no fun at all—she couldn’t have! What could have been fun about what she just experienced? And yet...
Why was her chest filled with a sense of satisfaction? She had never felt this before... No, that wasn’t true. It had simply been a long while—the sense of accomplishment that overwhelmed her was one of nostalgia.
But just as she began to ponder its source, a certain young lady addressed her. “Do you have a moment, Princess Orania?”
She looked up to find Rafina Orca Belluga, wearing a cool smile as she dipped into the water next to her.
“Um...”
“I was hoping we could chat. Do you mind?”
I do...
This was Mia’s self-proclaimed best friend, after all. Orania wanted to stay far away, and she unconsciously scooted farther from the girl. But Chloe had slipped in on Orania’s opposite side without her noticing, trapping her. She wore her glasses, and the steamy air had thoroughly fogged them up. She removed them, dipped them in the water to rinse them off, and stared back at Orania.
Oh. I’m trapped.
Orania was ignorant. While the open waters were her territory as a princess of Ganudos, these baths belonged to someone else. Mia was the Washing Aurelia, and these were her waters!
Not that Orania could have possibly known.