Who Could Have Loved the Monster Princess? - Chapter 25
“Originally, I thought about coming in the summer, so I didn’t really prepare anything.”
Although he didn’t prepare anything, there was a hearth and simple cooking utensils under a rock shaped like a roof. A mat, too.
While Ken lit the fire, I found a spot on the rocks by the water and sat down.
Then, I pulled up my pants over my knees and dipped my feet into the water.
“Oh, it’s cold!”
Even though it was clearly spring, the water from the valley felt as cold as ice. My legs were a bit numb from walking, so the sensation was pleasantly exhilarating.
I struck up a conversation with Ken while playing in the water.
“Reminds me of when we were kids.”
Until Ken received his mission, we used to play like this whenever we had the chance.
“You would’ve liked it.”
“Yeah. I would have.”
As he replied, I splashed both feet high above the water.
While I played, Ken began rinsing off the dirt from his work in the water. He scooped water into his hands, washed his face, and even rinsed his bangs.
With the wet strands of hair swept up, it revealed his shining beauty. Water droplets that clung to his hair rolled down his forehead, dripping onto his eyelashes with a soft sound.
Gulp. Unconsciously, I swallowed dryly.
Ken ran his large hands over the water droplets on his face, then started washing his arms and legs. Why was it so hard to look away from his skin, damp and showing off his well-defined muscles?
‘Is, is it okay to look at this? Why does it feel so weird?’
When we were young, we used to play in the water until we were completely soaked. Now, however, with him wet from washing up, his shirt clinging to his chest looked dangerously tempting.
In that moment, I understood the conversations I had with Ken since coming here.
“He meant he’s dangerous to me!”
Ken may not have cared much about himself or others, but he was well aware of his appearance. I would say he’s prettier than Princess Cetiletty, the most beautiful lady in the empire.
I watched him wash with a feeling as if I were peeking into Ken’s secret diary.
Then, strangely, I began to envy the water droplets clinging to his skin.
‘Why am I like this all of a sudden? It’s not like Ken started looking like this overnight.’
Is it because of the dream? No, it’s something else, something inexplicable that I couldn’t quite put my finger on. Because of that, I kept thinking that Ken, like the peaches he gave me last time, was tempting… Wait, peaches?
Thinking of a peach reminded me of the splendid ceremonial outfit Ken wore on the day of the coming-of-age ceremony. I had completely forgotten about it because of the dream.
‘Oh! That outfit back then. Why did he wear that?’
The outfit Ken wore that day was an attire suitable for entering the royal palace. Last year, he didn’t attend the coming-of-age ceremony despite coming of age. However, this year, did he escort a lady to the ceremony?
‘I haven’t heard any rumors about that.’
Well, he’s Ken, so he had plenty of ways to get around without being seen, right?
‘Could he really have a girlfriend? Then, spending time like this with me shouldn’t be appropriate…right?’
Or is it okay? Does it even matter? Nobody sees me as a woman, even if Ken has a girlfriend.
Am I feeling frustrated because I want to be the one making his girlfriend jealous? Lost in these strange thoughts, I realized Ken was staring at me, probably wondering if I’d finished washing up. I freaked out and stomped my foot like I was splashing.
But I kicked too hard, and a stream of water flew up and splashed onto Ken’s pants, as if I had scooped it up and poured it on him.
“Oops! My bad!”
“What, do you want to play in the water?”
“No! Uh…no?”
No, I want to. The idea of playing with water and splashing around with Ken sounded fun. It would be incredibly cold. When we used to play water games as kids, I always emerged the victor.
“Do you want to do it too? But at this age…”
Lady Staedt playing in the water.
Ken, watching me in my dilemma, chuckled. “There’s no one here anyway. What do you think?”
“Well, that’s true.”
I quickly agreed and reached out to skim the surface, eyeing Ken.
“First strike, guaranteed victory!”
With a powerful swing, the water sprayed into the air. However, Ken wasn’t where the water landed with a splashing sound. I felt a shiver down my spine and hastily spun around.
Suddenly, next to the rocks, there was Ken, trying to pull my legs to make me slip.
“Take this!”
I attempted to kick him away, but Ken grabbed my ankle and I slid into the water with a splash. It was freezing cold.
‘Ack!’
Letting out an internal scream, I saw Ken, after letting me slip into the water, climbing up onto the rock where I had been sitting. I grabbed his ankle as Ken had done. I pulled with all my might, but he didn’t budge.
Instead, when Ken pulled his leg, I was pulled up out of the water.
“Pffft!”
I looked at him, panting. Ken, as if finding me pitiful, lifted a wet strand of hair falling over his forehead, flicked it back, and snorted.
“Heh.”
It was amusing to see Ken, in such a playful position, pulling me up. No, it was hilarious.
“Pfft!”
I burst out laughing as I clung to Ken’s leg. “Anyway, you’re all wet! We could have fallen in together. What are you holding on for?”
“Battle is serious business.”
“…No, let’s play, not fight.”
“You said it was a preemptive strike.”
I did say that.
“Come at me as much as you want. I’ll take it.”
“Oh, really….”
It felt like I was talking to an active-duty warrior.
