- Delegation
After finishing touring the capital and returning to the castle, Formo lay on the bed and caught his breath. When he turned his head to the side, he could see the sunset sky through the large window. The sunset was dyeing the world orange.
Formo looked outside and reflected on what happened today. The capital was truly a hectic place. There were many buildings and they were all tall, and naturally, there were also very many predators.
Not only that, but there were also salons that dealt with strange things. It was shocking to see feline predators who enjoyed various plants as entertainment there, and he was in a complete daze after even learning that their relationship with the canine predators of Chaimb wasn’t good.
He had obtained too much information in a short moment and was dumbfounded.
“Pipi, you need to change your clothes.”
Serdin, who had returned from visiting Harold, said as he entered the bedroom.
“In a little bit……”
“If you’re tired, should I change your clothes for you, Pipi?”
“I-I’ll change now.”
Formo, who had been lying still and feeling drowsy and was about to postpone changing, bolted up from his spot at Serdin’s words. If it were Serdin, he felt like he would pick up his limp body and change his clothes, so he couldn’t stay lying down any longer.
Formo glanced at Serdin, who was trying to manipulate him with strange threats, then puffed out his cheeks. Someday he would repay this humiliation.
* * *
Time flew by like an arrow. Before he knew it, the morning of the day the delegation from Chaimb was scheduled to arrive had dawned. From morning, the imperial castle was busy with preparations to receive the delegation. Formo was no exception. Even though he wouldn’t have any direct contact with the delegation, he was led by Serdin’s hand into the grand bath and bathed for an hour until his body gleamed. Being in the warm water for so long, he somehow felt dazed.
The reason his head was dazed wasn’t just that. In fact, Formo had ended up seeing things in the grand bath that he shouldn’t have seen. A scene he neither wanted nor expected.
“Pipi, your face is red.”
“Sh-shut up!”
This is all because of whom. Formo bit his lower lip while keeping his head lowered as much as possible.
“I can understand, Pipi.”
“I said shut up!”
He absolutely didn’t see that on purpose. His heart pounded intensely from feeling so wronged. Formo quickly put on his clothes while turning away from Serdin. Even while buttoning up, he couldn’t help but recall in his mind a certain part of Serdin’s body that he had witnessed in the grand bath. He didn’t really notice when he was a long-tailed tit, but that thing he faced again after transforming into human form…… was tremendously large enough to make him lose his words.
‘Compared to mine…… No, no! What am I even thinking……’
Formo unconsciously compared its size to his own, then startled and shook his head from side to side. It’s definitely not that his is small. Serdin’s is clearly abnormally large. Since what he’s seen is only his own and Serdin’s, exactly two, there’s absolutely no need to feel inferior.
“Pipi, your face keeps getting redder.”
“I-it’s hot. This, this is just because I was in hot water for too long……”
Formo spoke gruffly and hurriedly put on his pants. Then his hand reaching for the lone remaining cravat hesitated. He really didn’t want to. How could he ask Serdin to tie his cravat in this situation? His reddened earlobes and face still hadn’t calmed down.
“Come here, Pipi.”
Serdin, who had been waiting for Formo to come with the cravat, finally reached out his hand first. And Formo decided to take Serdin’s outstretched hand. He should learn how to tie a cravat soon. He couldn’t keep asking Serdin for help forever. He didn’t want to become a stupid long-tailed tit who couldn’t even tie a cravat without Serdin.
And every time he received help from Serdin, he felt emotions that were difficult to explain. While feeling helpless and ashamed, his mood wasn’t entirely bad, and his still fingertips tingled strangely. Anyway, he felt such complex and varied emotions that were impossible to describe, so he wanted to avoid his help as much as possible.
“You look especially dignified today, Pipi.”
“……Really? Really?”
At the words Serdin casually threw out, Formo’s eyes sparkled. Formo grinned broadly as if he had never felt inferior. To think that he looked dignified even in Serdin’s eyes. These kinds of words could never be brushed off as mere pleasantries.
“Where, how, and how much do I look dignified?”
Formo stared at Serdin with heated eyes and persistently asked. Serdin, who had been momentarily surprised by Formo’s passionate appearance when he would usually just smile pleasantly and brush off compliments, blinked and then answered with a grin.
“Well, your outfit and all.”
“Yeah. What else?”
“Your neat hair also looks dignified.”
“Uh-huh. What else?”
“Just your bearing itself is dignified and valiant today, Pipi.”
“Really?”
Since Serdin had never praised him in such detail before, the corners of Formo’s mouth twitched as if convulsing.
Serdin, who came to the conference room leaving behind the fully dressed-up Formo, wanted to quickly finish talking about the delegation and whatever else and send them away. However, since they had decided to stay in Tersium for more than a week, he had to stamp his face as Crown Prince every day for at least that period.
Being given a crown wasn’t particularly attractive to Serdin, so it wasn’t just once or twice that he had thought about giving up the Crown Prince position.
The position of Crown Prince was nothing if not troublesome and inconvenient. There was only one time in his life that he had liked this position. The fact that he could keep Formo inside the imperial castle, which was the safest place in Tersium. Everything else besides that was mediocre.
“You’ve come.”
Harold welcomed Serdin. The conference room was packed with officials and the delegation. With this many people, the discussion would surely be long. Serdin, who became tired even before starting the discussion, sat down and propped his chin. Sitting across from him was a beastman with a firm and agile physique no less than Serdin’s.
The beastman with pale blue eyes looked very taciturn.
“Now that everyone has gathered, it seems we can start the discussion. Is that alright?”
At Harold’s question, the beastman with pale blue eyes nodded. Soon the meeting began. While Serdin concentrated on the meeting with his chin propped, he also observed the beastman. Though his eyes clearly looked calm, looking closely, there was a faint anxiety that emerged, which was incongruous.
The way he kept glancing at the window throughout the meeting as if something was on his mind also looked suspicious. Was he planning something? It was the moment Serdin’s gaze looking at him became even sharper.
“So, what kind of punishment do you plan to impose on the member of Chaimb who attacked those who are citizens of Tersium Empire and soldiers guarding that territory?”
Harold passed the responsibility for punishment to Chaimb’s side. This was a kind of pressure to prove how Chaimb would think about and deal with this matter. In any case, it was Tersium’s side that had seized the upper hand in this matter.
It was a moment when everyone’s attention was focused on what the delegation that came to represent Chaimb’s will and the Crown Prince leading that delegation would say. After a long silence, the one who opened his mouth was the beastman with pale blue eyes that Serdin had been watching, the Crown Prince of Chaimb.
“Chaimb will follow Tersium’s decision.”
The Crown Prince of Chaimb spoke as if drawing a line. Harold and Serdin furrowed their brows simultaneously.
“I didn’t ask whether Chaimb would follow Tersium’s decision or not, but what punishment you plan to impose.”
When Harold re-emphasized his meaning with a stern face, the Crown Prince opened his mouth again.
“Chaimb has no intention of keeping alive someone who not only broke their own country’s laws but also nearly caused discord by breaking the implicit rules between empires.”
“May I take those words to mean that Chaimb is taking this matter seriously enough to deal with it strictly?”
“That’s correct.”
The Crown Prince, who responded without any change in expression, made eye contact with Serdin, who was looking at him. The golden eyes and blue eyes looked directly at each other. Serdin looked at the Crown Prince of Chaimb and tapped the desk with his index finger.
The rumors seemed to have been excessively distorted. Even though his behavior of constantly glancing outside the window and his anxious-looking face seemed suspicious, he didn’t feel at all eccentric or violent like the rumors circulating among people said. Rather, if anything, he looked calm.
Harold, who had exchanged glances with the officials, nodded and said.
“I understand Chaimb’s will well. Then the punishment of those individuals will be handled by Tersium. Does Chaimb accept that after this time, you can no longer raise objections regarding this matter?”
“We accept.”
The meeting that was expected to continue for a long time ended sooner than expected. It was thanks to the Crown Prince actively supporting Tersium’s will without any unnecessary words and clearly expressing Chaimb’s position.
“Then starting tomorrow evening, let us enjoy the banquet prepared for harmony with Chaimb.”
“Thank you for your hospitality.”
Serdin glanced at the Crown Prince conversing with Harold and then left the conference room. He was about to head straight to the carriage when he heard the conversation some officials were having outside the conference room.
“That Crown Prince started a trend in Chaimb, didn’t he?”
“I heard so. They say he carries around a sparrow.”
“Ooh, a sparrow.”
“They say he brought it this time too, won’t we be able to see it at the banquet?”
Hearing the conversation they were having, he could understand why the Crown Prince kept glancing out the window. Surely the sparrow must have been waiting nearby. Would he also look like that when he left Formo in the palace and came to the conference room? Serdin suddenly had such a question.
