By Zephyria 
125
The moment Ho-eun saw it, he choked up and quickly straightened his head. But tears he couldn’t catch leaked out. He quickly wiped them away with his sleeve, worried someone might see.
“You’ll live well.”
Gil-sang, who was walking side by side, said. Ho-eun, startled, trembled his shoulders and looked at Gil-sang with bloodshot eyes.
“Will I…?”
“Of course. Your son is so smart. He survived in Ramjae Town, where the Eater Bugs invaded, so why wouldn’t he live here?”
“……”
At those words, Ho-eun stopped breathing for a moment. Yes, they are smart children. Maybe they are smarter and stronger than I am. Maybe I saw them as too weak and soft just because they were young. Thinking that way made me feel much better.
“That’s right. You’re right.”
Ho-eun smiled faintly. Gil-sang is a person from whom I have much to learn, he thought, and then looked back again. But because they had turned the corner in the meantime, the children were no longer visible. Their cries were no longer audible.
“……”
Ho-eun opened his mouth. The cold air rushed deep into his chest through the gap between his teeth. The coldness made him feel empty. It felt like a big hole had been made in his chest. It felt like ice had formed.
Ho-eun, who had gathered the reins in one hand, swept his chest with his hand.
He couldn’t understand why he felt so empty and heartbroken. It’s not like someone died.
Ho-eun, who kept touching his chest, inadvertently thought about how painful it was to say goodbye like this, so how painful would it be if someone died. As he did, he unconsciously looked around.
“……”
Right next to him was Gil-sang, a little behind him was Seong-im, a few rows ahead were Dong-ja and Man-soo, and at the head was Tae-muk. Ho-eun looked at them one by one with an unreadable look, then shook his head in surprise.
Such irreverent thoughts! Thoughts that should not be had.
And they were not just anyone, but the Crimson Rain Brigade, the strongest soldiers in the country, so there was no way such a farewell would happen.
It had to be.
“Chilbok!”
Ho-eun, who was busily rummaging through the tents, called out Chilbok’s name loudly.
“Young Master?”
Chilbok, who was passing by with an armful of green onions, widened his eyes. Ho-eun smiled brightly and waved his hand.
“I’m here!”
The Crimson Rain Brigade moved for three full days and arrived at the garrison late in the afternoon. They met the Devouring Ghoul once, and since there were no refugees to protect this time, they were able to deal with it without difficulty. And as soon as Ho-eun arrived at the garrison, he went straight to find Chilbok without even unpacking his luggage.
“Young Ma-aster!”
Chilbok, who had thrown down the green onions, ran towards Ho-eun. His short hair fluttered, looking like dandelion seeds.
“You’re just arriving now? Are you hurt anywhere? Are you okay? Have you eaten?”
Chilbok fired off worries haphazardly, examining Ho-eun’s face, feet, turning him around to look at his back, and even lifting his arms. Ho-eun chuckled at the sight. Hearing Chilbok’s clear voice, he finally felt like he had returned to the garrison.
“I’m fine. I’m not hurt anywhere. I haven’t eaten yet. How about you? Have you been well? Has anything happened?”
“What could happen here? It’s the same every day. Cooking, washing dishes, cooking, washing dishes.”
Chilbok said with an expression that he couldn’t be more bored. Ho-eun smiled again at his tone, like an old man who had seen the world. Chilbok smiled bashfully and said.
“Are you tired? Shall I draw you a bath?”
“No, it’s okay. I’ll do it myself.”
“Oh, what are you going to do, Young Master? Just wait a moment. I’ll be right back-.”
Chilbok was about to head straight to Tae-muk’s tent. Ho-eun quickly grabbed his elbow.
“Wait a minute, Chilbok.”
“Why? Are you hungry?”
Chilbok didn’t seem to stop worrying. Ho-eun laughed in disbelief. Do I look that clumsy? It was a little embarrassing to be treated like this by Chilbok, who was only fifteen.
“Come here.”
Ho-eun dragged Chilbok behind a tent nearby. Chilbok followed obediently without asking why. Ho-eun, who stopped in a place out of sight, took out what he had been carefully carrying in his arms while moving. And he shyly handed it to Chilbok.
“This……”
“What is this?”
“Socks. Fur socks.”
“Fur socks? Did you buy them new?”
“Yeah. I bought them.”
Ho-eun affirmed lightly. As he did, he watched Chilbok’s reaction. Chilbok nodded his head vigorously and praised Ho-eun.
“You did a good job. It’s really cold here in winter. It feels like your toes are freezing and falling off. Make sure to wear these, and don’t go outside if you can help it. I’ll bring you everything you need.”
“Huh?”
Ho-eun froze for a moment at the unexpected reaction, and soon realized that he was misunderstanding something.
“That… these aren’t mine. I already have several pairs of fur socks.”
“Then? Are you going to give them to the Captain? Hmm… they look a little small for that… And the Captain doesn’t need things like this. His body is so hot that he probably doesn’t feel the cold…”
“No, they’re not for the General either…”
“Then?”
“They’re for you.”
“Me?”
“Yeah.”
Ho-eun nodded his head in affirmation. At that, Chilbok looked at Ho-eun once, then at the socks he was holding, then at Ho-eun again, and then back at the socks, before his face turned pale.
“Th-th-these are fur socks.”
He said, stepping back cautiously. Anyone would think Ho-eun was holding a Gun. Ho-eun affirmed with a calm face.
“That’s right.”
“These are s-so expensive that only nobles wear them…”
“Really? I didn’t know that. But well, it’s not like only nobles have to wear them.”
Ho-eun held out the fur socks again. But Chilbok couldn’t easily accept them.
“…So, you bought them to give to me?”
“Yeah. I had to stop by the fabric store.”
There was no way he wouldn’t have thought of Chilbok while buying clothes for the girls. Although the price was paid with Tae-muk’s money, he had suggested buying them, so it was fair to say that he had bought them, he thought.
“……”
But Chilbok didn’t seem to want to receive the fur socks. Ho-eun became a little anxious.
“Why, don’t you like them? They said these were the warmest… There’s even a small flower embroidery here… Ah, maybe you don’t like flowers? Hmm… what should I do…”
Ho-eun fidgeted and watched Chilbok’s reaction. He had bought the prettiest ones in his eyes, but he hadn’t considered Chilbok’s taste. What should he do…? It was when he was fiddling with the socks in vain.
The sound of footsteps, tap, tap, could be heard, and then Chilbok hugged Ho-eun tightly. Ho-eun almost dropped the socks at the sudden embrace.
“…Chilbok?”
“Young Master is really…”
“Yeah?”
“You’re strange.”
Ho-eun blinked his eyes at those words. Then he smiled faintly.
“There’s that word again…”
I wonder if I should ask what it means now, but I’m afraid to ask because I can vaguely guess what it means. Ho-eun, who had gathered the socks in one hand, patted Chilbok’s back. He said something incomprehensible.
“At first, I wondered why the heavens matched Young Master with the Captain… Now I understand. The heavens had a purpose after all.”
“…Yeah?”
Ho-eun asked back. But Chilbok let go of Ho-eun without answering, and then took the fur socks with both hands.
“Thank you so much. I’ll wear them well.”
“Huh? Oh…”
“Thanks to Young Master, I’ll be warm this winter. No, I’ll be warm for the next 10 years.”
Chilbok hugged the fur socks tightly. Ho-eun forgot what he had said a moment ago and smiled faintly at the sight.
“Are you going to wear them for 10 years? Then I should have bought a slightly larger size.”
Chilbok is still young, so he will grow a lot more. How much will he grow? Will he grow taller than me? Maybe he’ll grow as tall as Tae-muk. Well, it didn’t matter. Unlike the girls or Jeong-woo, I’ll be able to buy Chilbok different things every time he grows up.
While Ho-eun was estimating Chilbok’s future, Chilbok carefully stroked the fur socks and said.
“How can I wear these precious things on my feet? I’ll be so sad every time I walk that I’ll cry.”
Ho-eun smiled faintly at Chilbok’s moved appearance. He was pleased that he seemed to really like them. But, Chilbok, who had been stroking the socks for a while, suddenly said something out of the blue.
“Ah, should I wear them on my hands?”
“What? On your hands?”
Ho-eun tilted his head at the incomprehensible words. Wearing socks on his hands. It must be a joke, but Chilbok seemed serious, and he actually started wearing the socks on his hands like gloves. Then he raised both hands and smiled brightly.
“How is it?”
It was an innocent and naive look. Exactly what a fifteen-year-old would look like.
Ho-eun burst out laughing at the sight. Chilbok widened his eyes as if asking why he was laughing, and even that look was so funny that he ended up holding his stomach and laughing.
As he laughed while looking at Chilbok, the tears of the girls that had been in his heart seemed to lighten a little.