By Zephyria 
91
As he said that, Ho-eun’s eyelids drooped. Now, he not only lacked the strength in his body, but he also had no sensation. It was a wonder he had lasted this long. He should have collapsed while running through the rain. Or he should have fallen on the uphill climb to the shelter.
Anyway, now that Tae-muk was here, wouldn’t it be okay to rest a little? Could he sleep just a little? Just a little… As he closed his eyes without realizing it, some faces flashed before his eyes.
“Ah…”
Ho-eun forced his eyes open again. Then, he looked at the girls who were still huddled and shivering in the corner of the church.
“There, there are children, children there. Those children saved me and Seong-im. They’ve been here for two days, and they haven’t eaten or slept properly. They must be very scared. They must be very cold, too. And, uh, the girl with the yellow Hair Tie is named Jeong-i. The child with the injured leg is named Jeong-woo, and it looks like he needs to be treated again. And…”
Ho-eun continued to speak slowly, when suddenly his body floated up. Tae-muk had picked Ho-eun up.
“I know. I’ll take them all, so stop chattering.”
Although his tone seemed annoyed, Ho-eun knew that he was not the kind of person who would not keep his word. Ho-eun wriggled and leaned deeply into Tae-muk’s arms. And in a voice half-asleep, he called him.
“General…”
“What again.”
“Thank you…”
“……”
Tae-muk did not answer. Ho-eun did not expect an answer in the first place, so he just said the words and closed his eyes.
Soon, he felt his body swaying, and the sound of rain became closer. The wind that brushed his nose and cheeks was cold. But because Tae-muk’s arms were so warm, he wasn’t cold at all.
With a relieved smile, Ho-eun let go of his consciousness.
Ho-eun woke up from his sleep, unable to bear the discomfort. Today, the Sokjeogori felt so rough, as if it was twisting and squeezing his body. How should he put it? It felt like he was wearing wet clothes…
And why was his body so cold? Didn’t they light the fire in the room? That couldn’t be. His mother or father always checked the furnace in his room every night…
Thinking that far, Ho-eun opened his eyes wide.
“……”
He saw a ceiling stained crimson. It wasn’t the sunset. Because it was indoors. Judging by the way the light was swaying and dancing, it seemed to be a lamp. And below that.
“……”
There was Tae-muk.
“…General?”
But he was holding something in his hand. Some kind of string, or a piece of cloth… Ho-eun lowered his gaze, following what he was holding. And he realized that what he was holding was none other than the Jeogori tie.
Ho-eun, horrified, abruptly raised his upper body.
“W-what are you doing.”
As he said that, he tried to pull out the tie that was caught in Tae-muk’s hand. But Tae-muk wouldn’t let go of it.
“Undressing you.”
At the brazen answer, Ho-eun was momentarily stunned, as if he had been hit in the back of the head. Then he shook his head and came to his senses.
“Why!”
“To wash you.”
Tae-muk answered again in a nonchalant manner. At that, Ho-eun’s eyes widened. Wash him? Who? Him? Where? He belatedly looked around.
Ho-eun was lying on some kind of wooden floor. It was an indoor wooden floor connected to a room presumed to be the main building. And below the wooden floor, there was a tub. It wasn’t originally a space for bathing, but it seemed like they had brought a tub from somewhere and moved it there. The tub was filled with hot water, with steam rising from it.
Ho-eun blinked rapidly. Where was this place? His last memory was the church, had they returned to the base in the meantime? But this wasn’t Tae-muk’s tent…
“Where… is this?”
“An empty house.”
Tae-muk replied insincerely. It was an insufficient answer to resolve Ho-eun’s questions. He frowned slightly. He could hear the sound of rain on the roof. The sound of pouring rain was familiar.
“Are we still in Ramjae Town?”
“Yeah.”
At that, Ho-eun’s shoulders stiffened with tension. Ramjae Town was where the Devouring Ghoul had invaded. There were so many Devouring Ghouls, and you never knew when and where those things would appear.
“Is it okay to take a bath on the battlefield?”
Ho-eun asked. He wasn’t questioning it, but asking because he didn’t understand. But Tae-muk chuckled.
“The battlefield is still a place where people live. They eat, wash, and do everything.”
“W-what if there are Devouring Ghouls nearby?”
At that, Tae-muk paused his breathing for a moment. He narrowed his eyes slightly. He seemed to be listening to the surrounding sounds. Because of the heavy rain, he couldn’t hear from a long distance, but at least there was nothing nearby. Not Devouring Ghouls, nor people.
“There aren’t any.”
At Tae-muk’s words, Ho-eun immediately rebelled.
“They could come.”
“So what if they come.”
“……”
At that, Ho-eun’s chin trembled. Well, it was Tae-muk. If a Devouring Ghoul came, it would not be their misfortune, but the Devouring Ghoul’s misfortune. The image of Tae-muk knocking down a Devouring Ghoul with one punch and stomping on its head was still vivid in his mind.
So now, was there no justification for avoiding the bath?
Ho-eun stroked his dry and rough cheeks and glanced at Tae-muk. Tae-muk was also soaked all over, as if he had been rained on a lot. His already black hair had become even darker, and his military uniform was glistening with water.
“Y-you go first. I’ll wash after you’ve washed, General.”
Ho-eun got off the wooden floor and stood up. But he couldn’t find the door to leave, so he went back up to the wooden floor. He was planning to go into the main building and close the door while he washed.
“……”
At that ridiculous sight, Tae-muk raised one eyebrow. Ho-eun noticed that his mood was souring, but pretended not to notice and awkwardly entered the main building. No, he was about to enter. But Tae-muk grabbed Ho-eun’s ankle.
“I’m going to wash with you.”
“…Excuse me?”
Ho-eun turned around creakily. Then Tae-muk kindly repeated the same words.
“I said, I’m going to wash with you.”
At those words, Ho-eun’s eyelids fluttered busily. He swallowed hard and stammered out an excuse.
“B-but the tub is small, it looks small… There’s not enough room for the General and me to go in together-”
“Should I just throw you into the water like this?”
“…No.”
“Then take off your clothes quietly.”
Tae-muk dragged Ho-eun to the end of the wooden floor and dropped his ankle as if throwing it away. Then he began to take off his own clothes. Ho-eun was stiff and unable to do anything, just watching him.
At that moment, Tae-muk took off his military coat. As he did so, the Yui he was wearing underneath was revealed, and that Yui was stained all red. It was also torn in places. Seeing that, Ho-eun jumped up as if he had been thrown.
“Are you hurt?”
He asked as if screaming, and ran to Tae-muk barefoot. Then he pulled up his Yui roughly.
“How much, how much are you hurt?”
“Huh…”
Tae-muk scoffed at the presumptuous and absurd behavior. Ho-eun, not caring, continued to rummage through the Yui. Soon, Tae-muk’s upper body appeared.
Large and small wounds were scattered irregularly over the bulging muscles. It wasn’t to the extent that bones were exposed like when he was injured in a small village sometime ago, but it was still a wound. Come to think of it, his shoulder was also stabbed by a Devouring Ghoul’s fingernail in the church, but he had forgotten about it.
“……”
The corners of Ho-eun’s eyebrows drooped. It wasn’t that he thought Tae-muk was late because he was playing around, but when he actually saw the injury with his own eyes, his heart sank. While he was struggling, Tae-muk was also struggling, he thought.
“We have to, we have to treat it quickly. Did the militia come with us? No, there was a skilled doctor at this hospital, did you happen to see him? I’ll, I’ll go out and look for him.”
As Ho-eun said that and turned around, Tae-muk snatched Ho-eun’s wrist and turned him back to face him. And standing close, he grabbed his chin and lifted it up.
“Why do I need a doctor? When I have you.”
“…Excuse me?”
“There must be something a Bondmate can do for a wounded God of War.”
He stroked Ho-eun’s chin with his thumb as if pressing down on it. His eyelids drooped languidly and then lifted.
“Uh…, ah…”
Ho-eun’s mouth opened slightly. Through the slightly opened teeth, a moist tongue was clearly visible. Tae-muk’s eyes narrowed for a moment.
He slipped the thumb that was holding Ho-eun’s chin into his small mouth. Then he gently pressed down on the soft tongue. He could feel the soft flesh being pressed down under his thumb. For a moment, Tae-muk’s Adam’s apple became distinct.
“Cough…”
Ho-eun stepped back, his chest heaving. Tae-muk’s thumb, which had been in his mouth, came out with a chop sound. Tae-muk rubbed his thumb, which was wet with his saliva, with his index finger. For a moment, he felt the urge to put it in his mouth, but he barely managed to resist.