By Zephyria 
68
“Shit, eat, eat…….”
Ho-eun’s cheeks paled. Why the hell would he eat fingers? There were plenty of pigs and chickens to slaughter and eat at the garrison. Anyway, Tae-muk’s words meant he wouldn’t cut off or eat his fingers, so he was relieved for now.
“Then why the hand…….”
Without answering, Tae-muk scooped up a generous amount of ointment with his index finger. Then, he applied it to Ho-eun’s shriveled fingertip.
“…….”
Ho-eun’s eyebrows shot up like seagulls at the unexpected turn of events. He was wondering why he was putting it on his hand, when.
“Ouch…….”
He couldn’t help but groan. He thought his fingertip was just shriveled from being in the water, but it stung subtly every time the ointment touched it. It seemed he had an invisible wound.
At the groan, a furrow formed between Tae-muk’s brows. He only made guttural sounds when applying medicine to his backside, but now he was saying ‘ouch.’ He bent over, hunching his back, and began to apply the ointment meticulously.
“Your skin is too soft for kitchen work. So don’t do it anymore.”
“But…….”
“You make a fuss about not wanting to do what you’re told, so why do you do things you’re not even asked to do?”
“That is…….”
Ho-eun quietly looked down at his hand. He felt very ashamed that his hand was hurting from something so trivial. Chilbok washed more than twice as many cucumbers as he did without showing any signs of difficulty. Just as Tae-muk said, his hands were too soft.
“I wanted to be useful. I thought if I did something, this soft hand might become useful…….”
At those words, Tae-muk chuckled. It was a sneer. A shallow furrow formed above Ho-eun’s eyebrows at the reaction. He felt bad, as if his efforts had been ignored. Tae-muk was the God of War, the strongest God of War in the world, so he wouldn’t know even a fraction of what it felt like to be ‘useless.’ Still, it was a virtue for superiors to look after their subordinates…….
Just as Ho-eun was about to pull his hand away, saying he was done with the treatment, Tae-muk said in a tone as if he were incredibly stupid.
“Washing cucumbers isn’t your use. Being by my side is your use.”
“…….”
Ho-eun’s eyes widened slightly. He looked again at his hand, which was touching Tae-muk, held by Tae-muk.
Yes, that was right. He had momentarily forgotten that his greatest use was as Tae-muk’s Bondmate. He hadn’t thought of it as ‘work’ because it wasn’t a visible task like guarding the warehouse, moving luggage, or cooking.
“You are absolutely right. I am the General’s Bondmate…….”
Ho-eun smiled faintly.
“…….”
Tae-muk focused on the treatment without further comment. Only after Ho-eun’s fingers were completely covered in ointment did he withdraw his hand.
Ho-eun quietly stared at Tae-muk’s profile. Then, he belatedly realized that the back of his hand, which had been held by him, was warm. It wasn’t as scaldingly hot as before, but it was definitely warm. Without realizing it, Ho-eun sat half a handbreadth closer to Tae-muk.
“You didn’t use your strength today?”
“Well, not really.”
Tae-muk replied nonchalantly, pressing down on the ointment lid. Ho-eun swallowed hard and asked cautiously.
“Still…… shall I, shall I hold your hand?”
For a moment, Tae-muk’s movement of closing the ointment stopped.
“Even if, even if you didn’t use your strength, uh, it’s good to hold it in advance…….”
Ho-eun murmured, pushing the Braided Hair that had fallen in front of his shoulder back. Hold it in advance. He couldn’t understand what he was saying, even though he was the one who said it.
Bondmates were said to be able to heal the God of War when they were physically injured or when their energy was depleted from using too much strength. That meant they could replenish what was lacking, but not make them more than they were when they were fine. But ‘in advance’?
Ho-eun squeezed his eyes shut as if he were crushing them. How foolish. He shouldn’t have said that. Tae-muk would surely laugh at him. But.
“……If you want.”
Tae-muk gave an unexpected answer. Ho-eun’s eyelashes shot up. He looked down at Tae-muk’s hand. The dark, large hand was resting loosely on his thick thigh.
‘Any God of War can’t refuse their Bondmate clinging to them.’
‘Even if it’s our Captain, he can’t help it with his Bondmate.’
He remembered what Chilbok had said once. He felt a surge of emotion, realizing that he was indeed Tae-muk’s Bondmate.
Ho-eun smiled slightly and reached out to take his hand. But the hand that was cutting through the air paused.
“Ah, this…….”
His hand was all greasy with ointment. Not just his fingertip, but all his fingers were covered. If he grabbed Tae-muk with this hand, the ointment would get all over him.
“…….”
Tae-muk frowned when he saw it. He looked as if he regretted applying it, wishing he hadn’t.
Ho-eun looked back and forth between Tae-muk’s hand and his own for a moment. Then, he suddenly jumped up and stood in front of Tae-muk. Tae-muk looked at him as if asking what he was doing.
“E, excuse me.”
After asking for permission, Ho-eun awkwardly climbed onto Tae-muk’s thigh. He was going to hug him. He thought Tae-muk would like it if he hugged his waist and leaned against his chest, just like when they rode a horse together. To be precise, he thought that action would be helpful to Tae-muk.
Ho-eun diligently climbed Tae-muk. But the moment his knee touched his rock-hard thigh, he slid straight down. Because of the ointment on his hand, he couldn’t grab Tae-muk, so he just flapped his arms.
“You’re such an idiot…….”
Thud, Tae-muk’s large hand supported his back. Not only that, but with his other hand, he grabbed Ho-eun’s hip and pulled him into his arms. Ho-eun’s cheek instantly stuck to Tae-muk’s bare chest. Surprised, Ho-eun stiffened.
“Uh, I…….”
“What. Isn’t this what you were trying to do?”
“That’s right, but…….”
He did aim for this position. But now that his skin was actually touching Tae-muk’s, something felt uncomfortable, irritating, and awkward. So he wiggled his butt, twisted his waist, and fidgeted with his arms, and Tae-muk scolded him in a low voice.
“Just stay still. How can a nobleman be so restless?”
“…….”
Ho-eun quietly lowered his flapping arms. Then, he composed himself. This was an extension of the ‘clingy operation.’ Thinking that, the discomfort lessened. But the awkwardness was unavoidable. There was also some embarrassment.
“N, next time, I should hold your hand before applying the ointment.”
Ho-eun blurted out anything that came to mind. He said it thinking that Tae-muk would ignore him, of course. But.
“……What’s the big deal about getting a little ointment on me.”
A heavy, low voice fell over the top of his head. Ho-eun felt the vibration around his collarbone in accordance with the sound. It was a rather comfortable vibration.
Ho-eun relaxed his body. He could feel Tae-muk’s smooth skin beyond his cheek. It was definitely the skin of the same human, but the feeling was clearly different from his own skin. It was like wearing armor made of skin. It was also like tough yet soft animal hide. He was so fascinated that he rubbed his cheek against it without realizing it.
Thump.
Something rang inside Tae-muk’s chest. What was it? Ho-eun pressed his cheek even closer. Then, the ringing became even louder.
Thump, thump, thump.
After feeling it for a long time, Ho-eun belatedly realized that it was Tae-muk’s heartbeat.
Tae-muk had a heart.
It was obvious, but it was surprisingly new. After all, he was a being who didn’t seem human at all. Not that he was a monster, but rather, what should he call it, like a god. Anyway, it was the heartbeat of such a person. It was fascinating.
Ho-eun wriggled further into Tae-muk’s arms. Then, he stuck not only his cheek but also his ear tightly to him and focused on the sound.
The heartbeat became louder. He didn’t know if it was because he was closer to the heart and could hear it better, or if the beat had actually become louder.