By Zephyria 
64
“Are you feeling better? God of War? Thanks to me?”
“Of course. Before, whenever he used too much power or got seriously injured, he would break things around him like an angry beast, injure himself, and even cough up blood…”
“Cough up blood? You mean he vomited blood? What do you mean by injuring himself? Are you saying he self-harmed?”
“Yes. He did that often.”
“Oh, why would he do such a thing…”
“He must have been in pain. Gods of War originally have seizures or something when they use too much power. But the Captain was a bit severe. Maybe it’s because he inherently possesses great power…”
“……”
Ho-eun’s eyes darkened. Coughing up blood. Breaking and throwing things like an angry beast. Seizures. Self-harm. These were facts he didn’t know. He could understand why Tae-muk described his injured self as not human, as not being in his right mind.
“But he was fine this time. It’s all thanks to you, Young Master, so there’s no reason for him not to be affectionate towards you.”
“I see…”
He didn’t know if he seemed like a nobleman or a good person, but he understood when it came to Tae-muk. He had clearly seen his wounds heal in an instant. His feverish temperature had also cooled to a moderately warm level. Tae-muk must be the most important person to them, so it wasn’t strange that they were kind to him, his Bondmate.
Ho-eun and Chilbok continued their conversation, looking at many things as they crossed the tents.
How long had they walked? The frequency of military tents decreased, and then he heard the sound of a horse neighing, “Hee-hee-hing.”
At the edge of the encampment, horses were lined up. As many as there were soldiers, there were hundreds of horses, and the sight of them gathered together was truly spectacular. The horses varied in size, color, and breed. Among them was Ho-eun’s horse.
Ho-eun approached his horse with a happy face.
“It’s been a while. Have you been well?”
He gently stroked the horse’s neck and made eye contact. The horse exhaled warm air as if answering. Ho-eun smiled softly. A soldier was giving hay at that moment, so he personally fed the horse hay. Chilbok, who was watching Ho-eun, asked.
“It seems like a precious horse.”
“It probably is. I don’t know much about horses, but I remember my father saying he received something very precious.”
He always took care of feeding it himself and brushed it… Just as Ho-eun’s face was about to become damp as he thought of his father, Chilbok quietly came up behind Ho-eun. Then he whispered secretly.
“I’ll secretly come later and feed it a Korean melon.”
At those words, Ho-eun chuckled. He looked at Chilbok with affectionate eyes.
“Aren’t fruits like Korean melons rare here?”
“Still, it’s for the Young Master’s horse to eat.”
“Don’t feed it to the horse, you eat it, Chilbok.”
“Yes? But…”
Just as Chilbok was about to say something, Ho-eun showed his palm, saying, “Just a moment,” and brought his ear to the horse’s snout. Then he playfully frowned and then unfurrowed his brow.
“He says he’ll consider it eaten. So he says you should eat it.”
His face, smiling brightly, was like a flower.
“……”
Chilbok stared at Ho-eun. His upper lip seemed to repeatedly protrude and then sink, and then he suddenly said something out of the blue.
“Young Master, you’re very strange.”
“……”
At those words, both of Ho-eun’s eyebrows rose.
‘You’re strange.’
Tae-muk had said the same thing. At the time, he thought he was saying something absurd, but seeing Chilbok say the same thing, it seemed that it wasn’t Tae-muk who was strange, but him.
What’s strange about me? Did I do something strange just now? No. I just gave hay to the horse.
“What’s strange? What did I do?”
Ho-eun asked, looking at Chilbok. Then Chilbok brushed off the hay crumbs on Ho-eun’s sleeve and shook his head.
“It’s nothing. Your clothes will get dirty, let’s go now.”
Ho-eun wondered if he should ask again, but stopped. Somehow, he was a little afraid to hear the answer.
“Okay… Alright. Let’s go.”
The two walked in step, crossing between the horses. And finally, they reached the end of the encampment.
At the end of the encampment, there was a defensive line like a fence. Stakes were driven at regular intervals, and a net made of iron was placed. Behind that, chevaux de frise, three large spears nailed in a water shape, as tall as Ho-eun, surrounded the encampment like a fortress wall.
And beyond that, a plain so vast that it was expansive unfolded.
“Wow…”
Ho-eun exclaimed without reservation.
The endlessly spread land was surreal. Because the plain was so large, the sparsely standing trees, though clearly trees, looked small and fragile like a single flower. The clumps of grass looked like moss. The mountains in the distance were so hazy that it was hard to tell if they actually existed or were an illusion.
He had always thought that the largest and most immense thing in the world was naturally the sky. But looking at this place, he could realize that the sky existed because of the land, and that the land supporting the immense sky was also just as immense.
At that moment, the wind rushed over his entire body. The wind, which had never been torn by obstacles, was flat and thick. The wind carried the scent of the outside world. Ho-eun inhaled that scent with all his might.
“The world is so wide…”
It was a moment when he deeply realized that he was a frog in a well. At the same time, his heart pounded, thinking that he had really come out into this wide world. Even though it had been almost twenty days since he left home, he still couldn’t believe it.
Ho-eun was so engrossed in the plain that he forgot to blink, and Chilbok tilted his head and asked.
“There’s nothing there, what are you looking at so intently?”
“It’s amazing that there’s nothing there.”
Ho-eun answered, but couldn’t take his eyes off the plain. Chilbok wondered what Ho-eun was looking at, so he tiptoed and looked along his gaze, but soon lost interest and leaned against a stake. Then, as if bored, he played by gathering dirt to the left with his foot and then gathering it to the right.
Ho-eun continued to stare at the plain for a long time. Watching the slowly flowing clouds and the sunlight coming down between those clouds, drawing paths, and the dust devils that occasionally rose up hazily and then disappeared without a trace, he thought.
He felt truly sorry for the people who would have to live their whole lives only inside the castle, only inside the town. He felt sorry for those who had died without seeing this sight.
“……”
Will the day ever come when we can walk on this magnificent land without any worries? Will that day come during my lifetime? Will that day of liberation come?
No, can I make it come?
Ho-eun clenched his fist tightly.
“Young Master.”
Someone called Ho-eun. Ho-eun quickly turned his head. Soon, a smile spread across his lips.
“Corporal.”
Gil-sang was standing there. Judging by the fact that he was holding the reins of a horse, it seemed he had come to tend to the horses. Ho-eun quickly went to him and greeted him. Gil-sang bowed in return.
“Are you feeling alright?”
“Yes. Thanks to your concern. Have you had some rest, Corporal?”
“Yes. My Bondmate is here.”
Gil-sang smiled. His face looked more relaxed than before, which was reassuring.
“But why are you here, Young Master?”
“I was looking around the encampment with Chilbok.”
“Is that so? It’s not bad for being outside, is it?”
“It’s more than wonderful.”
“I’m glad to hear it. If you need anything besides the mirror, please tell me anytime. I’ll get it for you.”
At those words, Ho-eun flinched. Gil-sang had found the mirror. He didn’t know. He had just assumed that Tae-muk had brought it from somewhere. He had never imagined that Gil-sang, a ‘subordinate,’ would have ‘obtained’ it.
It was clearly Ho-eun’s fault. When he was in Hanyang, he could get anything easily. He just had to pay money and buy it. But here, he had to be careful about what he said.
Moreover, the thing he had asked for was a mirror… He wouldn’t have cared if it was a Gun or a bow. A mirror on the battlefield. He had done something thoughtless again, and he felt ashamed of what Gil-sang must have thought while getting it.
Ho-eun couldn’t bring himself to meet Gil-sang’s eyes and lowered his gaze.
“Yes… Thank you.”
But Gil-sang smiled nonchalantly.
“There are no mountains around here, so the wind is rough. Don’t stay outside for too long.”
“Ah, yes.”
Gil-sang bowed to Ho-eun and disappeared, leading the horse. Ho-eun lowered his gaze until he was far away, then looked at Chilbok with a short sigh.
“Shall we go get the salt now?”
“Yes.”
Chilbok, who didn’t know anything, smiled brightly. That smile was so innocent that even Ho-eun, who had been feeling depressed, couldn’t help but lift the corners of his lips.
As the two people who had come out of the stables were going back the way they came, a woman suddenly appeared between the military tents, carrying three large Straw Sacks on her shoulders. She didn’t look young, but her build was smaller than Ho-eun’s. At best, she seemed to be about Chilbok’s size.
To be carrying three Straw Sacks with such a body. Surprised, Ho-eun quickly ran to her.
“Let me help you.”
At that, the woman looked at Ho-eun with a wary expression.
“Who are you?”
The intonation on ‘who’ was sharply pointed. Just as Ho-eun was about to say something, Chilbok cut in with an answer.
“He’s Young Master Ho-eun.”
“Young Master? What Young Master?”
“God of War’s Bondmate.”
“Ah… A precious person is here.”
The woman looked at Ho-eun with a less wary expression. But she didn’t seem to have any intention of handing over the Straw Sacks.
“I want to help you.”
Ho-eun reached out his hands towards her. Those hands were very white and slender. They were clearly hands that had grown up pampered, without a single scar and without even a speck of dust.