By Zephyria 
“Yesterday’s operation ended in failure.”
Byeonguk began by pointing to a spot on the map. It was a place where a cliff and a plain met in a straight line. However, before he could say another word, Tae-muk interrupted.
“It wasn’t exactly a failure.”
“Pardon?”
“Just, well, we checked, and it wasn’t there.”
As he spoke, Tae-muk glanced at Ho-eun. He was worried that Ho-eun might be upset since it was the operation he had planned. However, Ho-eun was simply absorbed in scribbling something in his notebook. He didn’t even seem to notice that Tae-muk was looking at him.
“Ah… yes. That is correct.”
Feeling suddenly awkward, Byeonguk nodded clumsily. After swallowing hard, he continued.
“Upon ‘checking,’ the Devouring Ghouls that had lost their leader seemed to be returning to their lair, but after some time, they scattered. Their direction did not seem to be related to the garrison.”
“….”
“Other groups of Devouring Ghouls might be different, but as it stands, the possibility of those who have lost their leader returning to the lair seems slim.”
Byeonguk looked at Ho-eun. In response, Ho-eun put down his fountain pen and straightened his back. He gave a concise nod and spoke.
“Yes. I think the same. Even if we continue with the same operation, I don’t think we’ll be able to obtain any meaningful information.”
“Correct. I believe we should now devise a different operation.”
Byeonguk concluded the report, echoing Ho-eun’s words.
“Hmm…”
Gil-sang, who had been listening in silence, let out a low grunt. Dong-ja let out a “Puhuhu…” and thumped her forehead against the desk, while Man-soo scratched the crown of his head while resting his chin on his hand. They already looked like they had a headache at the mention of another operation.
After a brief silence, Tae-muk, who had been rocking his chair by pushing off the floor with his foot, spoke in a listless tone.
“Then how about following the tentacle fellow this time?”
“Pardon?”
“Kill everyone except the leader. Wouldn’t the tentacle fellow react differently? Those bastards have brains.”
He tapped the side of his own head with his index finger. Byeonguk nodded in agreement.
“Ah, yes. It might be different. He is the one who controls the Devouring Ghouls, and since no one has ever seen him moving alone, he might actually return to the lair.”
“What about you?”
Tae-muk asked, looking at Ho-eun. Ho-eun, who had been scribbling something again, snapped his head up. He rolled the fountain pen in his hand, contemplating, before speaking cautiously.
“Hmm… but the Tentacle Plant Monsters have intelligence. If they realize we are following them, wouldn’t they avoid returning to the lair?”
“Why?”
“Well… if I were fleeing and the Devouring Ghouls were chasing me, I don’t think I’d lead them back to the garrison… If I bring the enemy along, other people could get hurt.”
At those words, Tae-muk frowned as deeply as he could.
“Why the hell would you be fleeing?”
“I mean, hypothetically. Just hypothetically.”
Tae-muk’s low voice, sunken as it was, sounded quite threatening, but Ho-eun let the threat slide by with his gentle voice. He then added, looking at the other soldiers.
“I don’t know if there’s a bond between the Devouring Ghouls, but they still wouldn’t want their lair to fall.”
“Yes, the Young Master is correct. They might even lure us into some trap or danger.”
“Agh, then what are we supposed to do…”
Man-soo rested his chin on the other hand and ruffled his hair. Dong-ja remained motionless, lying face down. It was almost to the point where one might think she had fallen asleep. Then, Gil-sang leaned his upper body toward Tae-muk and Ho-eun and spoke.
“Then why don’t we try it with the ones that are a bit slower in the head?”
“Slower in the head?”
Ho-eun asked back.
“Aye. The Leaf Type or Sprout Type bastards aren’t smart enough to use traps or bait, are they? Wouldn’t that be less dangerous? And when we follow them, we give ’em a real scare. Stick close to ’em, fire arrows that almost hit, and make some noise. Make it so they can’t think of anything but running away.”
Finding the idea interesting, Ho-eun let out a humming sound. He pressed the back of his fountain pen against his chin. After contemplating for a while, he soon nodded.
“I think it’s worth trying. After all, the Tentacle Plant Monster will surely react differently.”
“Yes. I think so as well.”
Byeonguk added weight to Ho-eun’s words. Tae-muk then skillfully led the meeting to the next order.
“Fine. Then we need to find the Leaf Types and Sprout Types first.”
At that, Dong-ja, who had been lying face down the whole time, slowly turned only her head to look at Tae-muk.
“But we’ve already investigated all the Eater Bugs around here, so there’s nothing to find even if you scrub your eyes. The Captain killed them all while wandering around yesterday.”
“Dong-ja. Sit up straight.”
Tae-muk spoke with a slight frown. Normally, she should have jumped up immediately, but Dong-ja only mumbled, rubbing her face against the desk.
“Agh, I’m too hungry to have any strength, any strength…”
“It’s because Dong-ja woke up late today and couldn’t eat breakfast. Please be understanding, Captain.”
Man-soo swayed his shoulders as if acting cute. Tae-muk pulled his chin back with a disgusted look, as if he had seen something he shouldn’t have. At that, Ho-eun and Gil-sang, who were sitting opposite him, laughed softly.
“Then we’ll have to go quite far. If we’re looking specifically for Leaf Types and Sprout Types, we might have to wander for several days.”
At Gil-sang’s added comment, Man-soo’s exaggeratedly high cheekbones immediately slumped.
“Agh… it’s cold…”
Dong-ja comforted him by patting and stroking his forearm. Tae-muk looked at the two of them with pathetic eyes, then slammed his palm on the desk to end the meeting.
“We leave tomorrow morning. We need to move quickly, so draft a hundred God of War who are fast runners and a hundred of their Bondmates.”
“Yes, understood.”
“Understood.”
“Yes-sir!”
Byeonguk, Gil-sang, and Man-soo answered loudly. Afterward, Tae-muk buried his back deep into the chair’s backrest and waved his hand with a look of utter annoyance.
“Meeting’s over. Everyone get out now.”
At those words, Dong-ja, who had been slumped as if melted, sprang up.
“Over? It’s over? Yay, let’s eat now! Food!”
She pulled Man-soo up from his chair as if extracting him. Then, wrapping her thick arm around Man-soo’s shoulder, she left the room. Man-soo went “Uh, uh,” but soon wrapped his arm around Dong-ja’s waist and followed her with a grin.
“Yeah, let’s go. Let’s eat!”
Behind the two of them storming out of the room, the sound of them humming songs could be heard. There was no sign of fear regarding tomorrow’s expedition. After that, Byeonguk, Gil-sang, and the other soldiers greeted Tae-muk in turn and left.
Soon, only Tae-muk and Ho-eun remained in the spacious room. Ho-eun, who had been fiddling with his notebook until everyone left, cautiously called Tae-muk.
“Um… General.”
“Yeah.”
“Can, can I go with you tomorrow?”
“….”
One of Tae-muk’s eyebrows shot up. Swallowing hard, Ho-eun softly listed the reasons why he should go.
“I might not be of much help, but, um, since the General will be using a lot of strength, I might be needed, and also, I want to see with my own eyes how the leader Devouring Ghoul moves…”
“….”
Tae-muk stared intently at Ho-eun. A subtle smile played on his lips, but the nervous Ho-eun didn’t notice.
“I won’t get sick. I’ll wear thick clothes, and, uh, I’ll take the herbal medicine three times a day. I’ll make sure you have nothing to worry about, so please take me with you. Please?”
Tae-muk took in every detail: Ho-eun’s white cheeks, his fluttering eyelashes, his straight nose, the rounded tip of his nose, and his plump lips. Then, he answered in a tone that suggested why on earth he was asking something so obvious.
“Of course you have to come. I don’t know how many days it’ll take.”
Being apart from Ho-eun for even one day was burdensome. The thought that they might be apart for three, four, or even a week made his vision go dark. He might actually lose his mind and shove his head into a Devouring Ghoul’s maw.
“Really?”
A smile slowly bloomed on Ho-eun’s lips. Soon, his eyes crinkled as he laughed like a child, “Heehee.” There was no fear of the expedition on Ho-eun’s face either. There was only excitement.
“Yeah. Really.”
Tae-muk, answering casually, grabbed one leg of Ho-eun’s chair and pulled it sharply toward himself. The chair made a scraping sound against the floor. Once Ho-eun was close, he wrapped his arm around his waist and lifted him onto his own thigh. He hugged the small body tightly with both arms and buried his nose in his thin shoulder.
“Fuck… finally just the two of us…”
Tae-muk stroked Ho-eun repeatedly. He smoothed down the braided hair, wrapped around his back, and toyed with his waist. He sniffed Ho-eun’s scent with a certain lack of restraint. As he did, a laugh that sounded like a flower bud bursting softly seeped into his ears.
“General.”
“What.”
“Do you like me that much?”
At those words, Tae-muk, who had been savoring Ho-eun with his eyes closed, slowly opened them and looked at him. He saw Ho-eun smiling brightly. Staring at that face, Tae-muk answered shortly.
“Of course I do.”
I like you so much it’s driving me crazy. I’m going crazy because I like you so much.
Then, he rubbed his lips wildly against those white cheeks. He kissed along the delicate jawline, and moving down to the neck, he kissed the skin, wrinkling the straight collar of the jeogori.
“General, stop, please stop. It tickles, General.”
Ho-eun giggled and shrunk his neck. Tae-muk held onto the twisting Ho-eun tenaciously, savoring him. As he did, he thought.
That he must finish this work as quickly as possible and return home.
No, that he should just kill every Devouring Ghoul in the world.
And in a world turned peaceful, he would spend all day with Ho-eun held in his arms.