Beneath the Surviving Princess's Joyful Facade - Chapter 175

“So, instead of learning the handover in the office, you were learning how to dance?”

After the long, long banquet ended, as soon as they entered the bedroom, Eirik pretended to frown.

“You promised that there would be nothing more to hide from me.”

“Well, it’s just that…”

Miesa darted her eyes around. She couldn’t tell if he was truly angry or not, but she knew she had to say her piece.

“Eirik, you already knew, didn’t you? You even asked earlier if I hadn’t been practicing for a few days.”

“Did you hide it from me, or did you tell me the truth?”

“…If I had to choose, it’s closer to hiding it.”

Eirik let out an exaggerated sigh. Miesa, standing in the middle of the bedroom facing him, mumbled as she watched his expression.

“But I didn’t mean anything bad by it. I just wanted to surprise you—”

“You broke your promise, so you must be punished.”

Eirik said this as if he had no other choice. Though his face showed reluctance, he quickly calculated in his head what punishment would be suitable.

This one might surprise her too much, so not yet. Perhaps something milder. He thought of seven or eight simple plans on how to spend the night while Miesa pouted.

“Didn’t you say that the real banquet starts when we’re in the bedroom? Can’t we do that first, and then I’ll take the punishment?”

She spoke because she didn’t think he was genuinely angry. At her request, Eirik nodded obediently.

“You’re right, there’s that too.”

His plan quickly expanded to twelve scenarios.

“Then, shall we start by taking a bath?”

Miesa immediately followed him.

When they entered the bathroom, Eirik helped her take off the jewelry from her ears and neck and the dress she was wearing, just like he always did.

Once she soaked her body in the prepared hot water, Miesa let out a natural groan. Her body, which had been tense without her realizing it, slowly relaxed, and it felt so good. However, with Eirik sitting silently across from her, she began to glance at him now and then.

“Eirik, so, is the thing that couples do after a banquet taking a bath?”

“No.”

He shook his head. He seemed lost in thought, which made Miesa grow anxious.

“Then what is it?”

“Well, it’s something better suited for the bedroom than here.”

With that, Eirik silently helped her bathe. There was nothing unusual as he helped her remove her makeup and wash her hair, but when it came time to wash her body, he was uncharacteristically careful.

“Here, wash this part yourself.”

No, it wasn’t just carefulness. He wasn’t touching any of the sensitive areas and focused only on the task of washing her body, which made Miesa feel uneasy.

Cleaned up, she sat wrapped in a towel, quietly watching as he washed himself and put on his robe.

“Aren’t you going ahead first?”

“Eirik, are you very upset?” Miesa asked.

He chuckled. “Who knows.”

He picked her up just as she was sitting and carried her out of the bathroom, grabbing two bottles of scented oil lined up by the tub.

After drying her hair, Eirik spoke, “Lie down properly.”

Miesa obediently lay down on the bed as instructed, and Eirik removed the towel covering her body before pulling the blanket over her.

“You shouldn’t let your body cool down after all that effort to warm it.”

Then he pulled Miesa’s feet out from under the blanket and placed them on his thigh. Miesa peeked at him, curious about what he was doing, and when their eyes met, Eirik smiled and poured some of the scented oil onto her feet.

He began to massage her feet. With his large hands, he firmly pressed and rubbed her feet, which had been trapped in shoes all evening, and Miesa let out a satisfied sigh.

“It feels so good.”

“Thank goodness.”

“I didn’t even realize my feet hurt.”

“The shoes’ front seemed too narrow.”

As they chatted, Miesa suddenly fell silent. She felt an unexpected sensation when Eirik’s fingers started rubbing between her toes.

“……”

She didn’t understand why she was feeling like this. The oil they were using wasn’t anything special, and the places he was touching weren’t even involved in their intimate relations.

His hands slowly moved up to her ankles. When he massaged her ankle, which she didn’t even realize had been sore, she felt relieved once again. As he continued up her calves to the back of her knees, she let out a small moan.

“If it hurts, let me know.”

“…Okay.”

When he massaged her thigh, she felt a surge of anticipation. But frustratingly, his hands didn’t quite reach where she wanted them to.

“Now, turn over.”

Miesa gave him a resentful glare before turning over. When he began to massage her buttocks, her heart fluttered again, but Eirik didn’t spend much time there. He quickly covered her with the blanket and moved on to massaging her back, shoulders, and neck, leaving Miesa confused.

It felt so good, but it was only refreshing and left her wanting more of… something different.

“Now, it’s your turn.”

At some point, Eirik had removed his robe and lay down next to her. When Miesa looked at him, he seemed pleased.

“Now, this really is something you do after a banquet.”

“Are you satisfied?”

“It’s not that I’m not…”

She wanted to complain, but she hesitated. It seemed that Eirik was finally in a good mood, and she didn’t want to spoil it, so she quickly changed her tone.

“It’s not that I’m not happy; it’s just that I don’t know how to do it.”

“I’d be more surprised if you did know. Just do as I did and rub along the muscles.”

Miesa picked up the scented oil from the side table and poured it on his back. She mimicked what he had done, rubbing along his muscles and pressing firmly with her weight, and he let out a laugh.

“This is better than I expected.”

“Really?”

“Yes. You’re doing well.”

Unexpected praise made Miesa a little excited. She climbed onto his back and worked diligently on his shoulders until she noticed his dimples and leaned down.

She was about to kiss his cheek when suddenly Eirik’s dimples disappeared.

“Miesa.”

“Hmm?” she responded while lying down.

Eirik pointed at the side table. “Come to think of it, you’re not wearing anything.”

“Oh… It’s fine.”

“Put something on; your body will cool down.”

His voice was firm. Lying on his back, Miesa shook her head. “But…”

“Quickly.”

They continued arguing, and eventually, Miesa revealed her true feelings. “I mean, you’re just going to take it off again, aren’t you?”

“No, I don’t think you’ll need to take it off.”

“What?” Miesa was startled and sat up.

Eirik replied in such a matter-of-fact tone, “You were going to be punished, remember? This is your punishment.”

Miesa’s mind spun. No matter what…

“Just for today? Wait, for how long? How long are you going to refuse me?”

“Until I feel better.”

His dimples returned, and that annoyed Miesa even more. She panted, still sitting on his back.

“What can I do to make you feel better?”

“Hmm.”

She could hear him laughing from deep in his throat. When she sat there sulking, he half-lifted himself, reached out, and grabbed a nightgown from the side table.

“First, put something on.”

Though he didn’t seem truly angry, he was being petty by using intimacy as leverage. Even though Miesa felt indignant, she complied and put on the nightgown. After he seemed less guarded, Miesa grabbed Eirik’s shoulder as he lay down beside her.

“Lie down properly.”

“What are you going to do?”

“I’m going to make you feel better.”

Eirik raised his eyebrows, wondering if Miesa had figured out his plan.

“Alright.”

As he lay on his back, looking at the ceiling, Miesa climbed on top of him again. She didn’t forget to check on his half-erect length.

“Eirik, close your eyes.”

“…Like this?”

Eirik closed his eyes and thought. His plan included this scenario, but originally, it was supposed to be Miesa who was blindfolded.

Well, this would do too, he thought, waiting patiently. Soon, her small lips brushed against the corners of his mouth several times, then started moving downward. She seemed to lose her way for a moment, her lips wandering aimlessly across his chest before finally reaching his nipple.

“That place doesn’t really…”

He began to speak with his eyes still closed, wanting to spare her the trouble, but as her small, warm tongue started to flick across it, he could only close his mouth. He had expected it to feel like nothing, but surprisingly, it started to become quite stimulating.

Eirik kept his eyes closed, accepting her caresses. Miesa seemed intent on replicating what he had done to her—she even grazed him with her teeth and sucked on him, causing the heat below to steadily build.

Judging by the weight on his chest, she seemed to be sitting up, and when her body shifted, he figured she was turning around to check how much he had grown.

Soon after, he heard Miesa’s satisfied giggle, and Eirik let out a helpless laugh. At this rate, he wouldn’t be able to do even a quarter of what he had planned before giving in.

Miesa turned around, wiggling her hips as she climbed up to his chest. He waited, wondering what she was up to. She leaned over, and not only did her slender fingers grasp his length, but something soft also touched the tip.

“Wait.”

He hadn’t planned to go that far today. Eirik opened his eyes in surprise, but all he could see was her buttocks covered by her nightgown. Beyond that, something warm and wet brushed over the tip.

“Miesa, wait.”

He called out urgently, but instead of answering, Miesa firmly gripped his shaft and took the tip into her mouth. Feeling her slender fingers wrapped around the base and her soft mouth pulling at him, his body jerked involuntarily.

He felt his mind go blank. Her mouth, similar yet distinct from her inner walls, was soft, narrow, and intensely stimulating.