By Zephyria 
154
Killing a Devouring Ghoul, yeah, I actually wanted to try it once. Like Tae-muk said, I couldn’t just keep shooting at targets forever.
But now that the opportunity was so close, I was afraid. It wasn’t that I was afraid I wouldn’t hit the Devouring Ghoul.
“W-What if I shoot wrong and hit someone else?”
I was afraid that I, being the idiot that I am, would shoot the Gun at the wrong place. What if Dong-ja got hit by that bullet? What if Man-soo got hit? That couldn’t happen. Absolutely not, that could never happen. But Tae-muk replied nonchalantly.
“No one here is going to die from a gunshot.”
“Ha…”
Ho-eun squeezed his eyes shut as his vision blurred. What kind of nonsense was that? I shouldn’t even create a situation where someone could get hit in the first place. How painful it must be to get shot. How much blood must come out. I knew very well that it was by no means a small wound, since I had once removed a bullet that was lodged in Tae-muk’s back.
“B-But, still, I’m, I’m still not ready. It’s, it’s snowing, and it’s cold, so the Devouring Ghoul won’t be easy to see, and my hands will be shaking, and, uh, also…”
As Ho-eun was rambling, Tae-muk steered his horse closer to Ho-eun. And he met Ho-eun’s eyes intently and said in a whisper.
“You said you learned from a great teacher.”
“……”
“You’re ready, you.”
“But…”
Ho-eun tried to speak again, but Tae-muk had already passed him and gone somewhere else. Ho-eun just chewed on his lip as he watched Tae-muk’s back. Byeonguk, who was standing nearby, approached with a small piece of paper.
“Young Master, I will explain the operation to you.”
“E-Explain? To me?”
“Yes. The Captain told me to.”
“C-Can’t you… not do it?”
“……Excuse me?”
“Ha…”
Ho-eun looked up at the sky where snow was falling heavily.
Since leaving home and coming here, I had never hesitated once. Well, there were many twists and turns in having a Sexual affair with Tae-muk, but that aside, I could confidently say that I had never hesitated to face a Devouring Ghoul.
But now I hesitated. I wanted to avoid it. I wanted to run away. It was always the case that I was useless and unhelpful, but hurting someone with my own hands was a completely different matter.
Also, what if I was thrown into the battlefield for nothing and ended up dying? Then Tae-muk would be left alone. He would become the God of War without his Bondmate again. What would happen then?
Byeonguk smiled slightly at Ho-eun, who was turning pale, then ashen, then gaunt.
“You don’t have to worry too much. You won’t be facing the Devouring Ghoul up close.”
“……Excuse me?”
Byeonguk held out the paper he was holding. It was a map of what appeared to be the inside of the fortress wall. The lines were crooked as if it had been drawn roughly by hand, and some parts were difficult to see because the ink had smudged.
“Look. The inside of the fortress wall is made up of slopes like this. There is a cliff at the innermost part, and from there, a long downward slope leads to the fortress wall.”
If the village was represented as a circle, half of it was surrounded by high mountains, and the other half was surrounded by a fortress wall. The mountain side was higher in elevation, and the fortress wall side was lower, so the entire village was a gentle downward slope.
“First, the Captain and we will go all the way to the end of the village. And we will deal with the Devouring Ghoul from the inside out. At this time, you will not accompany us, Young Master.”
“Then where am I?”
“Here, you will wait at the fortress wall, and when the Captain finds and kills the leader, the Antenna Devouring Ghoul, you can participate in the battle from then on.”
“What… do you mean…”
“The Devouring Ghoul who have lost their leader will try to escape immediately. They can’t climb the mountain over the cliff, so they will run towards the fortress wall. You can take care of those guys, Young Master.”
“M-Me?”
“Yes. They will be running straight towards the fortress wall from inside the village, so it won’t be too difficult to hit them.”
Ho-eun took quick, short breaths. He swallowed hard, cleared his throat, and asked with a nervous face.
“H-How many Devouring Ghoul are there?”
“We estimate there are hundreds to thousands.”
“……Excuse me? How can I possibly deal with that many Devouring Ghoul…”
“You don’t have to kill them all. Just do as much as you can. The rest will be taken care of by the Crimson Rain Brigade who are waiting outside the fortress wall.”
“……”
Ho-eun was stunned. He had clearly heard Byeonguk’s words, but nothing remained in his head. He was just bewildered and dazed. His cheeks felt numb, as if he had been hit hard by someone.
“Then.”
Byeonguk left as if there was nothing more to say. Ho-eun watched him walk away, then squeezed his eyes shut to avoid the falling snowflakes and opened them again. But.
Whoosh…
Before he knew it, he was standing on the fortress wall where the wind was blowing.
“Ah… Ahh…”
Ho-eun made a groaning sound, his chin chattering.
How did I, how did I end up here, how did I end up here…
He raised his hand to rub his face, which was becoming distant, but he was holding something in his hand. It was a cold and heavy Pistol.
“Haa…”
Ho-eun sighed as if the ground was sinking. When did this happen…? I clearly remember filling the Gun with bullets as I came here, but that memory was hazy and distant like a dream. As he shook his head to try to come to his senses.
“Young Master, are you alright?”
Gil-sang, who was next to him, asked worriedly. Fortunately, Tae-muk had not ordered Gil-sang to go separately. Ho-eun felt a little relieved by his presence.
“I’m not alright… I’m too, too worried.”
“I will protect you. Don’t worry.”
“I’m not worried about my body. It’s just, just…”
I had faced many Devouring Ghoul before, but this was the first time I was facing them as a ‘soldier’. The hand holding the Gun was trembling. How do people endure this tension and pressure? And what is Tae-muk thinking when he is always at the forefront?
“Haa…”
It was when Ho-eun was looking at the snow-covered village and sighing for what felt like the hundredth time.
Ppoooooooo.
The sound of the Conch Horn echoed through the sky. And the fortress wall he was standing on began to vibrate slightly.
Ho-eun turned around quickly. The vanguard, who had been waiting outside the fortress wall, was riding towards them. Hundreds of horses were running at the same time, making a sound like a mountain collapsing.
“……”
Ho-eun habitually looked around for Tae-muk. But he was not to be seen at the front or among the soldiers. I thought he had gone into the village first, but then.
A gust of wind, slightly different from the wind that had been blowing, rushed in, and then, tap. Someone stood next to Ho-eun with a concise footstep.
Short, fluttering black hair. A towering physique. A clearly sparkling glint in his eyes.
“……General?”
Ho-eun looked at Tae-muk as if he couldn’t believe it. How did he get here, the way up here is far behind. No, why is he here at this important moment, I was about to think. Tae-muk said with a strangely smiling look.
“You’re going to have to shoot hard.”
“Excuse me?”
“I’m not going to let you come down until you use up all the bullets.”
“……Excuse me?”
As Ho-eun only repeated the question with a dumbfounded expression, Tae-muk chuckled. Then he gently cupped Ho-eun’s cheeks with both hands.
Smack.
He kissed him. His warm lips fell away before I could even fully feel the sensation. After that, he swept down Ho-eun’s Braided Hair, then tapped, tap, crossed the fortress wall, and jumped down.
“General!”
Ho-eun, horrified, quickly ran to the end of the fortress wall and looked down, but Tae-muk was already running far away. Hundreds of Crimson Rain Brigade soldiers on horseback followed him vigorously.
“……”
Ho-eun still looked at him with a dazed face.
Kaaaaaak!
Kak, kakak, kaaaaak!
Kkik, kek, kakgak!
The Devouring Ghoul swarmed out in droves. There were hundreds of houses in the village, but the Devouring Ghoul were gathered in three or four large houses and poured out like a swarm of rats. Because the distance was far, they just looked like a black wave to Ho-eun’s eyes.
They were very excited, as if they were happy to see the prey that had rolled in on its own. The saliva that dripped from their teeth was enough to form a puddle.
“……”
Ho-eun stared at the black Devouring Ghoul who were beginning to stain the village with a nervous face. His hand holding the Pistol was sweaty, so he rubbed it against his thigh to wipe it off.
The Devouring Ghoul that appeared were all large. They were mostly twice the size of a person, and they were incredibly strong, so every time they swung their arms, two or three soldiers would fly away. Their bodies, hands, and feet caused houses to collapse and break, raising a cloud of dust.
The soldiers fought against such Devouring Ghoul, not being afraid or retreating. Every time a soldier and a Devouring Ghoul collided, red blood splattered on the white snow. Sometimes it was the blood of the Devouring Ghoul, and sometimes it was the blood of the soldier.
“……”
Ho-eun swallowed as he gently stroked the trigger with his index finger. Before the battle started, I only wanted to quit, but as I watched the Devouring Ghoul hitting, tearing, and chewing on the soldiers, making disgusting squeaking noises, I wanted to blow their heads off right away. Anger had overtaken fear.
While Ho-eun was grinding his teeth with an incongruously angry face, Tae-muk was quickly crossing through the Devouring Ghoul to find the leader. Wherever he moved, the Devouring Ghoul would fly up and crash into the wall, or crash into the ground. The ground rumbled, and the snow scattered like sleet.
When Tae-muk was doing one of his ‘favorite’ acts, ‘tearing off the Helmet Bone of the Devouring Ghoul’, blood spurted out. He swung the torn Helmet Bone like a sword, stabbed it like a spear, and pushed it like a shield, running rampant.