Chapter 1

"Hey, what are you doing? Peeping?"

"Can you give me a cup of water?"

This seemingly mismatched conversation marked the encounter between Tamao Tamano, a regular company employee living in Japan, and Furon, who would later be hailed as the best and strongest king in the history of the Holy Kingdom of York Zai.

Bathing is great.

Bathing is soothing.

No matter how tired you are when you come home, half of it is forgotten once you get into the bath.

The nagging of a noisy boss, the pressure of a crowded train, none of it can stand up to the power of the bath.

Oh, the bath is great.

Even if her room is so messy that there's no place to put her feet, she never skips cleaning the bath.

Today, she had filled the bathtub with sparkling water and added a refreshing bath essence, and Tamao was enjoying the warm water leisurely.

The prickling heat that gradually seeped into her skin was irresistible.

It was worth braving the cold sky and burying her face in a scarf to get home.

Holding her favorite paperback in one hand, she took a cluster of tangerines she had brought and put it in her mouth.

Just as she swallowed the fruit with its perfectly balanced sweetness and sourness, there was a loud sound.

A gust of wind howled, and hot air blew in.

The pages of the book she was holding were flipped by the wind.

"Oh no, I don't even remember what page I was on!"

Perhaps this preoccupation with a trivial problem was a form of escapism.

However, Tamao, who was neither thick-skinned nor delicate enough to ignore the phenomenon and focus on the book, shifted her gaze to the source of the sound—the window on the north side of the bathroom.

There stood a person with their face wrapped in dark blue cloth.

"Mummy!?" Tamao thought at first, but the skin around the slightly upturned eyes was taut and fresh, and the cloth was blue.

As she stared at this intruder in a daze, the sharp eyes turned to Tamao.

The eyes first carefully examined Tamao's face, then slowly moved down, pausing at her chest, and continued further down... After tilting his head to look at her feet, they returned to her face and met her eyes.

It was then that Tamao finally remembered. This was the bathroom, and she was completely naked.

"Hey, what are you doing? Peeping?"

"Can you give me a cup of water?"

"Water?"

"Yes, I haven't had a drop in a whole day. A cup would be a great help."

The man looked at the water in the bathtub and swallowed.

Of course, Tamao's body was submerged in the bathtub, and she couldn't tell if the man's gaze was directed at her nakedness or the water.

No, even if the man only wanted water, wanting the water from a bathtub where someone was soaking was still weird.

Should she scream "Help!" or "Pervert!"?

If the man's face was covered with a stocking, a ski mask, or a full-face helmet, Tamao would have definitely screamed. But the man's unique aura held her back.

"Um, water, right?"

She couldn't give him the water from the bathtub.

Tamao took the cup from the toothbrush set she had brought to use while bathing, turned on the tap, and filled it with water.

After rinsing the cup with cold water, she filled it to the brim and turned around.

The man's gaze was directed at her buttocks.

Should she scream?

Tamao cleared her throat, and the man looked up, startled. Meeting Tamao's disdainful gaze, he quickly averted his eyes.

Tamao stood up, using the book to cover her chest.

"Here you go."

"Thank you."

The man's hand, except for the fingertips, was covered in blue cloth.

No, not just the fingertips. His shoulders and waist were also wrapped in a large piece of dark blue cloth.

As if he were crossing the desert with a camel.

Tamao, who had been examining the man's appearance, noticed the hot, dry wind on her cheek and looked behind the man.

"What is this?"

Tamao's eyes widened as she stared at the landscape behind the man.

It wasn't a desert, but a desolate land that was clearly arid.

Sparse grass and intense sunlight. No trees, no buildings. The barren land stretched to the horizon.

"Um?"

With the cloth covering his mouth slightly lowered, the man drank the water in one gulp, a drop of water trickling from the corner of his lips.

"…What is it?"

The man wiped his mouth with his blue-clothed arm.

"Where is this?"

"Zaharia."

The man, who had twisted his neck to answer, thrust the cup forward.

"Thank you. ...Can I have another cup?"

"Sure."

Tamao filled the cup with water as requested, and the man drank it in one gulp again. The sight of him drinking was so delicious that Tamao believed he hadn't had water in a whole day.

"So, what were you doing in Zaharia?"

"I was stranded."

"That's tough... "

"Don't laugh."

"Okay, sorry. I just wanted to say it."

The man looked at Tamao with a cold gaze. Tamao apologized sincerely.

"Do you have any container? I can fill it with water for you."

"Yes, that would be a great help. Can you fill this?"

The man held out a limp, leather-like bag.

When Tamao took it, the fine sand on the surface fell into the bathtub.

To prevent more sand from falling, she gently moved the bag, rinsed it, and filled it with water.

After filling it to the brim, she turned to the man.

This time, Tamao sent a cold gaze.

The man's gaze was directed at her buttocks again.

"No, I... I'm sorry."

The man turned his head to avoid looking at Tamao's nakedness, his tanned skin slightly blushing.

"No, it's fine now. By the way, you're stranded, right? What about food?"

"Yes, I have hard bread, dried meat, salted fish, and dried fruit. I'm fine with food."

It sounded like a very dry list of food.

"Um, then... Can I close the window? Sand has been getting in."

"Ah, yes... Wait a moment!"

The man's large hand grabbed Tamao's hand on the window frame.

"I want to thank you."

"No, it's okay. It was just water."

"In my homeland, there's a saying that something gained without payment will undermine your own feet."

"Ah, like 'there's no such thing as a free lunch'? But what can I do for you?"

Tamao looked at the man intently.

What kind of thanks could she receive from a stranded person?

"Is this good?"

The man removed the cloth covering his face.

"Wow, you're handsome..."

The man's face, seen again, was rugged and wild, with deep features.

"I am honored by your praise."

The man, who had heard her unintentional compliment, smiled.

The wrinkles around his sarcastically upturned mouth suggested he might be older than the vibrant eyes indicated.

"Please take this."

The man removed the blue-stoned earring from his ear and placed it in Tamao's palm.

It made a cool, tinkling sound as it settled in her hand.

"It's a Lipse earring."

"Ah, no, it's fine. It looks really expensive. I can't accept something so grand! I only gave you water?"

"What are you saying? That water saved my life. It's not enough as a reward."

"Well, I guess you could see it that way..."

"The exchange is complete. I'm sorry for disturbing your bath."

The man ended the conversation unilaterally, silencing Tamao's hesitation.

"Then... I'll take it. Wait a moment!"

Tamao called out to the man as he was about to close the window.

The man raised an eyebrow and looked at her.

"Is the water enough?"

Wouldn't it never be enough if he was stranded?

"Yes, I seem to have escaped the desert. There are oasis cities to the east. If I keep walking, I'll eventually reach one. Thank you for your help."

With that, the man closed the window, leaving behind that sly smile.

When the window closed, the bathroom returned to its usual state.

The orange walls, the white floor, the yellow bathtub, the shower, the mirror, and the shelf with bathing supplies where sponges were hanging.

The familiar view of the bathroom.

In the midst of it, the earring with its strange light made Tamao suddenly come to her senses.

What was that? What just happened?

The earring, tinkling in her hand, made her feel as if she hadn't woken up from a dream.

Tamao examined the earring closely. It had a delicate gold base with a deep-colored stone set in it. It was a hook-shaped earring with a curved needle-like part, and the black dirt on the hook gave it a very real feel.

A strange anxiety slowly crept up from her feet.

Tamao slammed her hand on the bathtub's edge, placed the earring there, and got out of the bathtub.

She quickly dried herself, put on her clothes, wrapped a towel around her wet hair, and rushed to the entrance.

She put on her sandals and went around to the back of the house.

There was the bathroom window.

The surrounding scenery was certainly not a wilderness. There was only a plain brick wall and a neighbor's fence peeking over it.

A narrow path covered with gravel ran between the wall and the house.

Tamao carefully looked around, making sure not to miss a single ant, and walked to the bathroom window, which she opened with a loud creak.

Steam rose from the warm bathtub, filling the bathroom.

In the hazy white vision, she saw the blue stone glinting and leaned against the window, feeling weak in the knees.

What is this...?