#22
Suddenly in the water, Noah flailed his arms trying to lift his head above the surface. Though he hadn’t learned to swim in this body, his limbs instinctively thrashed in the water as if remembering skills from his past life.
Chaotic sounds of his name being called and water splashing came from all directions.
“Uh…”
Noah’s flailing hands suddenly stopped. He had no difficulty breathing, and he could clearly see Lucas approaching and reaching out toward him.
He hadn’t been crouching and then stumbled due to a cramp—this was definitely Aeongi’s doing. Just as Noah tried to raise his body slightly, Aeongi had burrowed behind his knees.
But that wasn’t the issue. Was the water this shallow all along?
Though he was soaked from head to toe, Noah now had only his lower body submerged in the warm water.
And just as Lucas was about to grab him, Noah desperately moved deeper into the water. This is perfect. Just perfect. This is what a real half-bath should be.
It’ll be even colder if you pull me out into the cold air.
Splash—
“Daddyyy~”
Hit by the sudden splash of water, Noah grumbled while wiping his drenched face with both hands. Lucas, who had spent years training in various situations and risked his life fighting fierce beasts and monsters, was now sitting in front of Noah with a dumbfounded expression.
He had slipped in a situation where slipping should have been impossible.
Too embarrassed to speak, Lucas hung his head low with his hand on his forehead. Noah splashed water at him.
“Daddy, it’s warm here.”
“…”
“Let’s play here.”
Since they’d already ruined their clothes anyway, why not just enjoy themselves? Noah splashed around happily with a bright smile.
Though Aeongi probably hadn’t deliberately burrowed behind his legs, Noah was simply delighted that Lucas, who had come to rescue him from the water, had fallen in as well.
“Uncle! Uncle, come in too!”
As Noah waved his hands toward the knights who were pretending not to have seen Lucas slip, he caught sight of Loren shaking her head. Beside her, Elisa was holding up a towel. They brought towels along with clothes?
“Daddy!”
Noah burrowed into Lucas’s arms—who seemed quite shocked by his fall and showed no signs of getting up or moving—and tilted his head back to meet his eyes.
“This is nice, right?”
“…Yes.”
Lucas had to agree with Noah’s words with a deep sigh.
He hadn’t ventured deep into the water when he had come with the knights before. He had only confirmed that it wasn’t excessively hot and that there were no living creatures in the water.
Having accidentally fallen in and too embarrassed to look up, Lucas had been feeling something strange for a while. If he were to say he had never been injured in his life, that would clearly be a lie.
Despite being a nobleman and holding the title of Duke, Lucas had lived his entire life being physically active. He wasn’t the type to send knights into the forest while staying safely behind—rather, it suited his temperament to lead the knights from the front.
He had moved his body daily, even if only lightly, in any situation. As a result, he had broken bones multiple times, and mild muscle pain had become part of his everyday life.
But now, his ankle, which could be considered the least healthy part of his body, felt both tingly and refreshing. As he felt his tense muscles relaxing, Lucas’s body instinctively moved deeper into the water.
Noah, sitting on his thigh, was constantly playing with the water, saying how nice it was. As Aeongi gracefully passed by them, Noah’s hand quickly reached out to him.
“You’ll both catch colds. Come out now. Wait, when did Aeongi get in again?”
“The water temperature is just right, and it’s actually warmer in here than outside. We have towels for Noah, so I think we can play a bit longer without worry.”
While Loren fretted from outside, those already in the water were completely at peace.
“Daddy, like this, like this.”
Noah grinned as he saw Lucas’s expression softening—instead of immediately insisting they get out as Noah had expected—and awkwardly enjoying the hot spring bath as he sank further into the water.
Noah moved next to him and showed him how to rest his arms on the edge of the spring.
“Like this?”
“Let’s come here often. We can play in the water even in winter.”
As Noah splashed water on Aeongi’s head, making his fur stick flat to his head, he laughed heartily at how Aeongi shook his body after each splash.
“Mom! Elisa! It would be nice if the uncles came in too.”
“Should we set up a warp nearby?”
Noah sat facing Lucas on his lap and admired his handsome face.
Though he’s not mine, handsome people really do look good even when wet. Noah examined Lucas’s face, which had naturally taken on a pomade hairstyle as he swept his wet hair back with his hands, and smiled with satisfaction.
“Over there! That pretty house!”
At Lucas’s murmur, Noah quickly pointed to a somewhat flat area on one side of the hot spring. This is how we create a hot spring.
Although there was no rice punch, no ramen, no nothing, just being able to dip into the water anytime seemed like enough to make him happy.
Could they somehow install ondol (heated floors) in that house? While he could somehow explain bringing the hot spring inside like this, Noah had no way to explain ondol or a large wooden floor, so he just thought about how he needed to grow up quickly.
Can I change the building techniques around here?
He thought he might even be able to ask Raymond to collaborate with him on creating something like this.
A husband-and-wife inventor duo—how wonderful that would be! They could make a fortune.
“That’s enough, come out now. Aren’t you cold?”
At Loren’s words as she held a steaming mug of warm tea, wrapped in a thick fur with a shawl draped over it, Noah quickly rose and moved closer to Lucas’s face.
Meeting his eyes, Lucas gave him a questioning look, and Noah brought his mouth close to Lucas’s ear and whispered.
By the time Noah finished speaking, Lucas had put him down in the water and walked out of the hot spring with large strides toward Loren. White mist-like steam rose from Lucas’s body as he moved from the warm water into the cold air.
“Oh my! What… what are you doing now?”
Hearing Loren’s surprised voice, Noah once again caught Aeongi, who was floating beside him, paddling his small feet diligently, and hugged him close.
“…Don’t you like it too?”
Lucas brought Loren to the hot spring, sat her down on a low rock, and personally removed her shoes and tights, guiding her white, soft feet into the spring. With only her feet up to her ankles in the hot spring rather than her whole body, Loren was about to say something to Lucas but soon closed her red lips.
A little while later.
Everyone who had participated in today’s picnic had their feet in the hot spring. And the already soaked Lucas and Noah enjoyed the hot spring to the fullest.
“Daddy! Hurry!”
Noah’s voice rang out as he clung to Lucas’s back, who was a good swimmer. Noah liked everything fast.
It was a rare family relaxation time. Noah’s bright laughter echoed through the forest, and everyone enjoyed the snacks they had brought while soaking their feet in the hot spring.
The hot spring, with weather milder than usual, put everyone in a good mood, and the picnic that began with Noah’s insistence was a success.
Everyone expressed their desire to visit this place again, and the knights shared how their fatigue dissipated and even areas of their bodies that had been troubling them felt healed.
Lucas, who didn’t spend much time thinking and deciding before acting, declared that he would make this a space where anyone from the Austen region could come and stay comfortably.
Noah nodded with a pleased smile at Lucas’s swift, decisive action. All the while, he didn’t forget to give one of the chocolate cookies he was eating to Aeongi, who was wrapped in a white towel.
Noah, dressed in fluffy dry clothes to minimize exposure to the cold wind, was bundled up with only his eyes visible beneath layers of clothes and scarves. Still not satisfied, Lucas held Noah tightly in his arms and covered him with his thick coat before they could return to the castle.
As they traveled, Lucas didn’t forget to mention that they should hire a mid-level magician despite the expense. Hearing Loren strongly agree with his words, Noah inwardly sighed.
After returning to the castle, bathing in warm water again, and thoroughly drying off in front of the large fireplace, Noah looked around.
“Elisa, where did Aeongi go?”
Aeongi, who had just been beside him wrapped in a towel held by another servant drying his wet fur, was nowhere to be seen.
“I just dried his fur completely and let him go, and he went out the door.”
“Really?”
I wonder where he’s gone to hide again. Noah didn’t think much about it and rolled around on the soft carpet in front of the fireplace. It was that unique drowsiness that comes after a long outing and a warm bath.
Lying on the carpet and watching the well-burning fire, Noah’s blinking slowed down. Having looked for Aeongi but not finding him, Noah’s hand was stroking the carpet instead of Aeongi’s fur that he usually petted.
Noah’s large eyes gradually grew smaller as he felt the soft, warm texture of the carpet. The crackling sound of burning wood, the flickering flames, the sensation under his hand, and the warmth—everything was enough to draw Noah into a deep sleep.
How much time had passed? Noah slowly opened his eyes, feeling a hand stroking his head and Elisa’s lips touching his cheek. Even as he heard her say he had slept well and that it was time to get up, play a little, and have dinner, Noah’s eyes began to close drowsily again.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
