Chapter 35

Chapter 35

He, too, seemed speechless at the unexpected question. Tarhan habitually wrapped her hand in his and then, as if warning, sent a menacing gaze at Yaru, then quickly whispered to her.

“If you’re in trouble, you don’t have to answer.”

Tarhan, who spoke so softly, seemed more troubled. Enya couldn’t get a word out. If she said she wanted to participate in the rituals of the Nervana Forest people, would he harm them?

“I, I—”

The people of Nervana Forest had never done her any harm. Rather, apart from Tarhan, they were the only people who brought joy and excitement to her life.

Enya thought of them over the past few days, pondered over the conversations she had had with them, and prepared what she would say in advance, recalling the thrilling night. Others may not know how much it was though it meant a lot to her.

During that time, Enya could not spend that long night alone without Tarhan’s presence. Of course, it couldn’t compare to what Tarhan meant to her, but she didn’t want to miss this opportunity.

“I, I…”

Tarhan’s eyes, looking down at her, narrowed as if urging something. He tightened his grip on her hand.

“I… want to see what confirmation… after hearing that…”

Enya answered hesitantly, unable to avert her eyes from his gaze. It seemed to her that she should at least know what confirmation they were talking about and participate in the ceremony.

Then, Yaru quickly stepped back and answered with a happy voice.

“Ah, there’s nothing about that confirmation. I just wanted to see if the ritual would work if an outsider like Enya participated in it. It doesn’t matter if it’s not you, but it was Enya because she is the only person close enough to ask for something like this?”

Yaru, speaking in a lighter tone than she thought, seemed sincere. Upon hearing that, Tarhan’s eyes narrowed in suspicion.

Reyhald, as expected, noticed that the situation had improved slightly and came to help.

“That’s right. Enya doesn’t have to go and do anything. Just think like you are playing with us.”

In addition, he didn’t forget to look at the chieftain to speak a word as well.

“It’s been hard working under that swearing old lady all by herself. Sometimes you have to take a day off like this. It was a repetition of working every day, waiting for someone who would never come back after returning home, hmmhmm, and then going back to work, right? Besides, Ihita is also a swearing lady these days. She’s busy running errands, so Enya works mostly alone.”

Hearing that gave Enya the confidence that it would be okay to accept their request. With such hope, she gazed up at Tarhan’s face, and sure enough, his expression was not very good as he was staring at her with a very conflicted expression.

Enya glanced up at his stern face, which was rare when they were together. He must have noticed that her fingers were wiggling in Tarhan’s hand as they were holding each other.

“Well, then… I’ll join…”

Enya looked hesitantly at the people of Nervana Forest and at him. Suddenly, Tarhan’s arm, which held her hand, became stronger. However, since he couldn’t grab her arm like that, he lifted the other one and ruffled his own hair instead.

He uttered as if in a mocking tone.

“Hell… Instead, don’t go alone. Take Rigata.”

He also did not forget to tell them firmly, raising his finger towards them.

“Remember that we are always watching.”

As he pulled Enya closer into his arms, he glared his eyes at Kiyan and growled.

“If you touch this woman by mistake, you will be able to hasten the destruction of your tribe, which was said to be on the brink of extinction.”

She was taken aback by his outspokenness and looked at Kiyan in dismay. On the other hand, Kiyan, of course, seemed quite offended by his words though she nodded her head without loosening her arms.

Tarhan lifted up Enya, who was standing beside him as if he had nothing to do with them anymore.

Enya, startled by the sudden rise of her body, quickly wrapped her arms around his neck. Perhaps Tarhan wouldn’t forgive her for struggling this time, he moved his steps and started to get out of there without asking her intention.

Enya, unlike before, did not ask to be taken down and was quietly in his arms. Behind her, she could see the people of Nervana Forest talking among themselves.

After returning home, Tarhan first washed himself at the well.

Unlike usual, he didn’t do dirty work, so he didn’t have much to wipe off, but as usual, he wiped every corner of his body clean, and soon he saved the embers that were burning, fetched some water, and started boiling water.

Enya sat on the couch while he was doing this, lost in thought.

As usual, she would have been busy preparing dinner for him and her, but this afternoon’s events had put her under much tension, and she didn’t have the energy to lift a finger. She was staring blankly at the wall when Tarhan entered with wet hair and a pot full of hot water.

The moment their eyes met, she unconsciously lowered her gaze. But without saying a word, he silently put the pot he had brought beside her and sat down in front of her.

Enya noticed that he was strangely in a bad mood. Nevertheless, as if he had to do something, he pulled up the long skirt that reached up to her calves and saw Tarhan washing her feet, and his emotions were mixed.

‘I wasn’t trying to hide it…’

It bothered her that she hadn’t told him earlier about her time with the people of the Nervana Forest.

She was afraid that he might be upset.

In the first place, she had never seen him get angry with her, but she watched furious Tarhan from the sides a lot. Enya hated him feeling bad as if she was feeling bad to the extent that she looked at his reaction before every single action and every word she said. It was almost terrifying.

It was the same now. For some reason, she felt like she had done something he didn’t want and a part of her heart sank into displeasure.

Her heart was broken for no reason, and she gently placed her hand on Tarhan’s arm, which was massaging her feet. His hand, which had been silently washing her feet, stopped abruptly. She could feel him looking up at her with one eyebrow raised as if asking why.

“The, the meal…”

Enya asked hesitantly, cupping his cheek gently. Looking up at the quivering eyelash, he paused for a moment before muttering.

Again he set about washing and kneading her feet.

“…I heard you brought it. I should eat it.”

She was taken aback by the answer and pushed him away in anger before hurriedly hiding the lunch box that was lying on the bed behind her back and trying to stand up.

“N, no. I’ll make you a new one. Eat that!”

The lunchbox she brought was completely crushed and ruined in the commotion with Gernan earlier. She could never feed him anything like this. Besides, she felt almost indignant at the fact that, contrary to her expectations, he still hadn’t eaten his meals.

Enya shook his hand and tried to get up.

“You haven’t eaten yet, what have you been doing? I’ll get it right away. I’ll give you beef jerky, so eat that for now. I will put the fire…?”

Tarhan grabbed her as she pushed his shoulders away and tried to go to the kitchen, completely in tears. Then, with a voice that was almost laughing, he lowered her down.

“It’s okay, I’ll figure it out. You just get some rest.”

Enya glared at him, glaring at his nonsense.

She was upset.

His hunger was almost as divisive as hers. No, why was the leader of the allied forces not eating? If they weren’t going to eat, only they that shouldn’t be eating and she didn’t know why he was not eating as well.

Tarhan finally stepped back after rubbing her ankles with great care and rubbing it with the usual herbs. What followed was a spectacle. He quickly snatched the bundle of dried lotus leaves she had hidden behind her back, ready to eat the meal that she had packed.

In an instant, Enya, who had the damaged lunchbox taken away, stretched out her arms to him and shouted, with her neck all red.

“Ta, Tarhan…! I’m not joking. I ate all of them, so there wasn’t much left, and what was left fell to the floor and was covered with dirt and dust…”

“What. You put a lot of meat in it. It’s too bad.”

He was examining the lunch she had packed in the palm of his hand.

Enya drooped her shoulders, despondent at what Tarhan was doing. She suddenly remembered what Gernan had said when looking at the contents of the lunchbox.

As he said, it was a really poor lunchbox. It was a rice ball mixed with steamed barley and millet that she had worked hard to make carefully in the morning, but now it fell to the floor and was distorted beyond recognition.

Just the fact that Tarhan was looking at it made her feel ashamed, so she desperately reached out to him and begged.

“Tarhan, please… I’ll make a new one. Throw it away and come here. Let’s eat something different with me, okay?”

Tarhan listened, but he didn’t stop. He rummaged through the soiled grains of rice and picked up a large chunk of meat. It was a lump protruding from the rice ball that she had left uneaten, specially to give to him.

After brushing it off with his hand a few times, he really threw it into his mouth.

“Ta, Tarhan…!”

She watched him with a reddened face and quickly snatched the dried lotus leaf from his hand before glancing up at him with resentful eyes.

“It’s delicious. Why?”

Tarhan chewed the chunk of meat in his mouth a few times with an expressionless face, then swallowed it in one gulp. It happened so quickly that she couldn’t help it.

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