Chapter 466: Ice Baths
Oli left the table with a bow and scurried away before anyone could object or say anything. Yeter motioned to follow but Zelsh stopped him with just a look, glaring at the stallion and his unfinished bowl of food.
Oli didn’t concern himself with the status of the dinner table. He rushed to the bathhouse, entering the male side. The bath was much larger than Oli expected, so Oli made the most of the situation and stored his clothes in the void ring. Picking up a towel on the side, Oli boldly approached the water.
Ice cubes were drifting across the water’s surface but there didn’t seem to be too many. However, Oli wouldn’t underestimate the temperature so easily. He reached out to feel the water and shivered the moment he came in contact with it. “... Famous ice baths indeed...”
Grumbling, Oli decided to gradually wade into the bath. Step by step he went deeper and deeper. It took Oli a couple of minutes for the water to reach his waist. Then, he slowly sat down.
Oli ignored the chills overtaking him. All Oli wanted to do was relax and try his best to adjust.
“OLI!” Splash! “AAAHH!”
Suddenly, a huge horse barreled into the bath and jumped in without any sense of caution or worry. And he immediately regretted his actions.
.....
The freezing water washed and bounced over Yeter’s body, stripping him of all excitement he’d shown a second ago. Yeter rushed to get out but someone hurriedly jumped onto his back and held him down.
“What were you thinking?!” Oli shouted shaking the splashed water from his shivering head and hair.
“But Oli-”
“You’re already in it, so stay a while!”
“O-Oli...” Yeter didn’t know whether to smile or cry as Oli pushed him over and dunked his head into the water.
It only lasted for a few seconds but it was enough for Oli to feel better. So he let Yeter go and returned to his seat.
“HUUH!” Yeter rushed to breathe and regain his senses. “What was that for!?”
“You’re the one who dove in and covered me in ice-cold water,” retorted Oli. “Since you were so eager to get wet, I gave you a hand.”
Yeter started laughing and trotted over to Oli. He laid down in the shallow part to keep his head above water, letting loose a long sigh of relief. “I can’t believe it... It’s actually you. It’s actually you!”
“Yeah, yeah, but you’ll really have to call me Oliver from now on while I’m like this,” reminded Oli motioning toward his human features.
“So you can turn back into a go-?!”
“Shhh. Calm down...” sighing, Oli nodded. “First, if I don’t want you calling me ‘Oli’ then why would I want you talking about that so publicly?”
Yeter puckered his lips and shut up as he realized his mistake.
But Oli just laughed and shook his head. “... You haven’t changed at all, have you, Yeter?”
“I have! Now I’m strong! One of the strongest in the clan!” replied the stallion, lifting his chin with pride.
Nodding, Oli asked, “So, how’s the water and the weather? You’re a Thick-skinned Stallion, so are you holding up well?”
“This isn’t too bad if I’m being honest,” Yeter shyly replied. “It’s still cold, but I can deal with it since there’s no wind.”
“So, how’s the water?” Fulkar laughed as he walked in next.
Trenk followed Fulkar, staring at the water with trepidation and a hint of fire appearing in his hand. “Hey, I can warm this up for us.”
“Really?” Yeter looked at Trenk with longing and admiration.
But a large hand immediately fell onto Trenk’s shoulder, halting all of the youth’s plans. “You know, if you just change the water temperature, would that count as adapting to the temperature?”
“... No,” Trenk replied, looking up at Zelsh.
“Then stop thinking about it and hop in!”
Smack! Splash...
Trenk was shoved into the bath without any remorse. Yeter shut up and looked away while Fulkar just laughed and gradually waded into the water, similar to Oli.
The moment Trenk lifted his head above water to breathe, another huge splash washed over him as Zelsh jumped in and reclined against the bath’s edge. “This is the life... How relaxing...”
“Relaxing? ...” Yeter stared at the king in utter confusion. “Master Zelsh? Is there some secret technique you use?”
“Oh? You noticed!” Laughing, Zelsh sat up and motioned for Yeter and the others to get closer. “Come, come. I can’t be too loud when I say this... Want to know the secret?”
Trenk nodded desperately while he struggled to not release his flames out of instinct. Yeter marched through the water and got extremely close. Oli and Fulkar glanced at each other and then at Zelsh, but they didn’t move or show over-the-top interest.
Seeing everyone’s reactions, Zelsh smiled and nodded warmly. “Good, good... Now listen carefully... I HAVE BALLS!”
That shout reverberated through Yeter’s and Trenk’s heads while Oli and Fulkar broke out in laughter, along with Zelsh. Both Oli and Fulkar had noticed Zelsh activate a silence formation from his ring, so they knew the old king was up to something. And since Zelsh was a long-time friend of his grandpa, Oli knew from experience that Zelsh had a mischievous side to him.
“OW!!” Yeter howled while shaking his head more and more in hope that the ringing would stop.
“Calm down. I didn’t shout loud enough to harm you...” Zelsh chuckled, slapping Yeter’s side and knocking him into the water. “I’m just messing with you. There’s no special technique, just physical adjustment and adaptation. As a king, it’s easier for me to withstand extreme temperatures. But that doesn’t mean I haven’t done similar things back when I was young. How else can your body grow without some good training?”
Nodding and shivering, Trenk quietly backed away so he wouldn’t get roped in any further.
Yeter came back up to breathe, shouting, “Hey! That’s not-”
“What’s not what?” mocked Zelsh, eyeing the stallion with an uncaring grin. “... If you’ve got nothing to save, then stop complaining and let the cold become the norm!”
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