Chapter 20

Chapter 20

He raised his hand and unconsciously tried to sweep the woman’s forehead, but he couldn’t reach her and only the hair on her cheek was brushed away.

“…But, Enya wants a child. I have no idea how to convince her.”

After hesitating for a while, Piache opened her mouth very carefully.

“…If you can’t persuade her, there are many ways. I’m not sure, but first of all, start with not putting it inside when ejaculating… Hmm. Of course, the surest way to ensure the results is not to do it at all…”

An awkward silence descended. Tarhan, who had been still, suddenly bowed his head and let out a choked moan.

“…Damn. I didn’t expect to hear this from you, Piache.”

“Hey. I feel so terrible right now, too.”

She responded coldly.

“Do you understand the heart of an old woman who has to sit down with a grown man and talk about his bedding relationship?”

Seeing him ruffling his hair and grumbling, Piache turned her gaze again and pounded the mortar. Soon, the long silence subsided.

With a sigh, the man opened his mouth again.

“…It’s not that I haven’t tried very much. It’s a problem because every time, I fail to the extent that I can’t even imagine.”

Thinking back on that time, his mind still wandered, and Tarhan made a painful sound and touched his forehead.

He and this woman thought they were going crazy for each other. Originally, they were two people who acted like crazy if they couldn’t touch each other’s bodies for as long as their eyes met. From a very young age, for so long, it was an old habit for each other, almost a necessity for survival.

Especially for Tarhan, it was nothing but his purpose in life… One of the only good things he had left. With such a thing in front of him, he drooled like a chained dog, breaking his surroundings. He didn’t want to go through something like that again.

“Her eyes are full of tears, and I tell her that I don’t want to do it anymore… What was I supposed to say?”

Piache opened her eyes and muttered, understanding the situation.

“I thought so.”

Tarhan seemed to tremble for a moment at the reaction before tightening his throat. He suddenly flashed his eyes and threatened her.

“So, I’m asking you to find a way. Find a way to keep Enya from getting pregnant even if we slept together.”

Suddenly, the arrow’s direction was focused on her, so Piache gave strength to the pounding hand.

“I am always doing research. By the way, these days, the bull’s shin tendon has decreased, so…”

A wheezing reply came back at once.

“You’re a materialistic old woman. Even if it’s not me, you’re the kind of person who’d catch another pawn.”

“Of course. How did you see me as?”

Piache responded with a snort.

Shortly thereafter, he gave a reply came that he would send a transport wagon supplemented with bull’s shin tendon within the next month.

Even after Piache returned, Enya did not wake up for a long time. When she opened her eyes, something squishy and warm was coming and going between her legs. As she opened her eyes in surprise, Tarhan immediately pulled out his hand and muttered hastily.

“I’m sorry, did it wake you? There was so much blood that I was just trying to wipe it off.”

She tried to get up, but his hand blocked her body and lay her back down.

Tarhan had been wiping the blood stains from between her legs after gently dampening the cloth with boiled water in the water container that he always kept.

Originally, on such a day, Enya would take care of herself and sleep in his arms, wearing a skirt with a cloth between her legs. Now that she had suddenly collapsed, there was a cloth placed on the bed so the blood wouldn’t leak.

“It’s still midnight. Sleep more.”

Tarhan felt very sorry for waking her up and laid her back and patted her. However, Enya, who was already red up to her earlobe, blocked his hand.

“I’ll do it…”

The voice was so rough that she was startled. Still, Tarhan didn’t care as he whispered back.

“It’s done.”

It was really clean between her thighs. The cloth underneath didn’t feel damp as it was new, and it smelled freshly dried.

He reached out his rough hand and placed it on Enya’s forehead. It was to measure her heat. When he saw that she had a fever, he shut his mouth. Enya’s moon cycle, which should have been once a month, came after three or four months, so the accompanying pain was rather severe.

“…Does it hurt?”

After a moment’s silence, a frantic voice came out of his throat harshly. She thought for a moment if he was guessing if she was ill.

Enya covered her eyes with one of his arms and grabbed the hem of her skirt with the other, tucking her thighs. Her trembling body felt like it had a chill.

She shook her head.

As a woman, when she was just about to go through her cycle, she used to whine like a child every night because of the pain. Each time, Tarhan would prepare a towel soaked in boiling water, put it on her belly, and stay up all night with her.

As he hugged her with his warm body from behind and wiped away her cold sweat, she would soon forget the pain and fall asleep together.

“It doesn’t hurt at all. Really.”

Saying so, she raised her eyes and looked into his face. His brow furrowed, showing that he didn’t believe it at all. She didn’t know when, but Tarhan started not believing her right away. In the end, he sighed again and went back to Enya and laid down.

Carefully holding her from behind as they used to do, he brought a warm wet towel to her belly. Her back pressed against his flat chest as if settling it into place. Enya automatically closed her eyes in the greatest comfort. It looked like she slept after a while.

When she opened her eyes, he was still holding her from behind.

She slowly got up. Fortunately, the underside, which had just been cleaned, did not leak. She got up quickly and removed the rags before putting a new cloth between her legs again.

When she returned to the bed, she saw Tarhan waiting for her with his eyes open. Perhaps, he was already awake by the time she tossed and turned. Enya had seldom seen Tarhan fully asleep. From a young age, he would wake up to even the slightest sound.

Looking at it like that, it was almost as if he had never slept in the first place.

Their eyes met in the dark.

As she stood there, unable to approach right away, Tarhan spread his arms from where he was sitting. Seeing his expression, Enya couldn’t help but approach him and hug him. She took a quick step and fell into his arms in an instant.

Tarhan, who had been holding her in her arms and inhaling her face, buried his face in her collarbone, and he let out a deep sigh. While Enya still felt her mood subside, he stroked the nape of her neck with his hand.

“How are you feeling? Aren’t you hungry?”

As she shook her head, Tarhan hugged her again. The rustling sound was heard, and he pulled something out of his arms. It was a package with several layers of dried leaves.

Tarhan’s earlobe blushed slightly as he spoke hesitantly.

“I know you don’t like this. But… I just couldn’t pass it after looking at it.”

Enya opened her lips.

Tarhan, who was examining her expression, stopped and finally unpacked it. The package in his large hand looked too small. It took quite a while for the man’s hand, who was never clumsy with his dexterity, to untangle the package.

Then, lifting the unpacked package onto the palm of his hand, he held out the contents to her.

Enya’s eyes widened at the precious sparkling metal. His expression, gazing at her, was dyed with anxiety.

“Is the color a little dull…”

When she didn’t even touch it, with a clumsy hand, he held up the trinket. The thin golden cord did not match his clunky hand at all, and it felt alien to him.

The little bracelet was more beautiful than any jewelry she had ever seen. In the middle, there was a grain of blue light tinged. Enya’s eyes widened a little at the pretty color, like a stone that he and her had picked up by the river.

“After thinking of you… I just couldn’t get past it.”

Tarhan looked at her expression and added in a slightly hoarse voice. His chin was a little stiff.

Enya shut her mouth again, unable to speak.

He was in Perugia, what time did he come up with something like this? It looked like it was worth a lot. No, could he get these things with money in the first place? She had no idea how much he had to pay to get it.

As Enya couldn’t even touch the bracelet, Tarhan’s expression darkened at once. He seemed to be mistaken that she didn’t like it.

He hesitatingly suggested.

“Even if you don’t like it… Try it just once.”

At his words, she raised her head in surprise. It wasn’t that she didn’t like it, she never did. Enya quickly shook her head and answered.

“No, I like it……. Very much.”

At those words, Tarhan muttered faintly.

“Really…?”

The bracelet was so beautiful that she was hesitant to even touch it with her own hands.

As Enya hesitated, Tarhan’s face darkened once again. Eventually, he grabbed her arm and put the bracelet on her wrist. The golden string in his hand, which ran to and fro over her clumsy slender wrist, contrasted in stark contrast with the rugged hand.

After he moved his hand a few times, the bracelet was wrapped around her wrist. Enya couldn’t even shut her open mouth and looked at it.

“Let me see.”

Tarhan turned her body slightly. He seemed to want to see her wearing the bracelet.

Enya, a little shy, lifted her wrist up and showed it to him. In the dark, his expression looking at her became so distant that it could not be expressed in words. An indescribable sense of satisfaction spread from his eyes.

In front of the man with that expression, as he put on the bracelet on her wrist, she felt a pain as if someone was stabbing her heart.

Tarhan, who was holding her wrist and gently caressing her wrist, whispered softly in a hoarse voice.

“…It’s really pretty. Enya.”

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