CH 78

“Where are you going with that body?” 

“But, Your Majesty.” 

“Do you intend to open all the wounds now that the bleeding has stopped a little?”

The emperor’s voice seemed to be firmer than when he was alone with Hwawoon a while ago, but it still contained concerns that could not be concealed. When Yihan tried to add something while covering the blanket over Hwawoon, which was disheveled due to his movement, Eunuch Oh spoke one step ahead of him. 

“Your Majesty. I will have a separate room prepared. It’s not too far from your bedroom, so it won’t be too much trouble for His Highness’s body.” 

Today, Eunuch Oh, who used to say things that the emperor didn’t want to hear by guessing even the thoughts the emperor had unintentionally, was only saying things that were far from Yihan’s wishes. When Yihan turned his head with a dissatisfied face, Eunuch Oh bowed his back even deeper and continued. 

“Your Majesty. If you stay by His Highness Yeonbin’s side without sleeping, how can he rest and recuperate comfortably?” 

Yihan was speechless. Yihan’s eyes, which looked somewhat flustered, saw a bowl of medicine that was still held by Ahjin. Judging from the actions that Yeon Hwawoon showed in recent days, it seemed far for Hwawoon to drink the medicine in peace unless he took a rest. 

In the end, it was Yihan who got up from bed. Yihan said, facing Hwawoon’s eyes as he tried to follow him up in confusion.

“The doctor said it is important not to move as much as possible for the time being. So rest now.” 

Hwawoon, who realized what Yihan’s intention was, tried to say that he could not dare to use the bedroom without its owner, but Yihan quickly said. “ssh,” shushing Hwawoon. 

“This is an order.”  

And the following words were loaded with the dignity Yihan had as an emperor. In the end, Hwawoon, who couldn’t hold out any longer, had no choice but to bow while sitting down.

“I will never forget Your Majesty’s vast grace…” 

Yihan felt he really wouldn’t want to leave the room if he kept looking at Hwawoon. He hurriedly took his eyes off Hwawoon and raised himself. What was the reason for the steps heading outside to be endlessly slow and heavy? The emperor, who had no courage to look into it, left his bedroom without looking back at all. 

***

“Weren’t you always fussing to push Yeonbin forward in front of me?” 

As soon as Yihan left the room where Hwawoon was laying down, he spoke as he saw Eunuch Oh following him. The voice was low and quiet, but it still left the room to read the emotion inside it as an annoyance. It was clear that Yihan didn’t like the fact that he had to rush out without even looking into Hwawoon, who had just woken up because he had to rest inside. 

However, Eunuch Oh only bent his back and answered with a straight face.

“As your servant, I always put Your Majesty first. Nothing is more important than your safety.” 

“You are really good with your words.” 

“There’s no way it’s only words.”  

At that moment, Yihan wanted to ask Eunuch Oh, then was it all for me that you always brought Yeonbin up in front of me and spoke nicely about him? However, strangely, he felt uncomfortable about hearing Eunuch Oh’s answer to the question, which made him shut up. 

Instead, Yihan turned his head again and looked at the bedroom behind him. Then, he thought about the strange feeling he was sharing with Yeon Hwawoon recently, which was very subtle and uncomfortable, yet at the same time exciting, and he was looking forward to it. Something he had never experienced in his life. Such emotions he had never felt with anyone else.

The more he thought about it, the more it pulled Yihan into a well of unwanted emotions like a swamp. Yihan hurriedly discarded his thoughts and spoke to Eunuch Oh.

“Make sure to reveal why such a thing happened suddenly at today’s banquet. The hawk that broke in must be a hunting hawk raised in the imperial palace, so find out where there was neglect in management and identify the person responsible.” 

There was a hint of menace in the voice giving the order. Eunuch Oh hurriedly bent down and replied, “Yes, Your Majesty,” and Yihan stood there for a while, looking a little more at the place where Hwawoon would be, and then turned around. 

A shadow resembling unresolved feelings stretched long behind the emperor’s back. 

***

“Shouldn’t I go back to Jeongan Palace now…?” 

When Hwawoon had a hard time controlling his breath and muttered with a troubled face as if drinking a bowl of medicine was a difficult thing to do, Ahjin opened her eyes wide and quickly said,

“Where are you going with that body? No way! The doctor said that the most important thing is not to move. ”

“Even so, sleeping alone in His Majesty’s bedroom is…” 

“Who cares when His Majesty allowed it? Your Highness, you’re not going to disobey the Imperial Order, are you?” 

Hwawoon thought it would be better to go back to Jeongan Palace and recuperate as soon as possible because he couldn’t stay here until all the wounds healed, but the expression of Ahjin, who saw nothing but her master’s wound, was so firm. 

Hwawoon spoke in a bewildered voice when Ahjin even mentioned the imperial order. 

“Disobeying the Imperial Order? Why are you talking like that…?” 

“His Majesty personally ordered you to stay here, but if you went back as you wish, what would it be if it wasn’t disobeying the Imperial Order? So, Your Highness, don’t think about anything else, and just take care of the wound for now. Do you… do you know how surprised and scared I was when… when you suddenly got hurt like this?” 

“That… I’m sorry. Don’t cry, okay?”

As Ahjin, who was talking, began to cry, Hwawoon, whose expression was turning even sadder, eventually apologized with his eyes drooping to the fullest. Indeed, Hwawoon thought it was better that he was the one injured rather than someone else, but if he changed his position, he couldn’t even guess how much his heart would have collapsed and burned if Ahjin got hurt from saving someone.

Ahjin, who usually said that he should not say sorry to a mere servant, this time didn’t return Hwawoon’s apology, sniffled a bit, and continued.

“Then… you’re going to rest here today, right?” 

Hwawoon nodded his head as the situation became so difficult to be stubborn anymore. 

“Okay. I will.” 

“You will listen to the doctor’s words until you get well…, take medicine…, and don’t overdo it, right?” 

“Okay. I will, so don’t cry.” 

Ahjin, who finally got everything she wanted, wiped the tear with the back of her hand and approached Hwawoon, wrapped his body, carefully helping him to lay down.

“I won’t ask you why you did this far for Her Highness Sukbi. Now I know that you are willing to throw yourself even for someone you don’t know at all.” 

“…”

“Still, Your Highness. Your body and safety are the most important things to me than anyone else in the world. So from now on, please… please think a little more about yourself.” 

Listening to Ahjin’s voice calmly flowing out, Hwawoon felt an emotion that blocked a corner of his heart. 

Hwawoon.

So, Hawoon. 

When he was very young, he lost both his parents and grew up without knowing what it felt like to be loved by someone. Hawoon was a young slave who ate his neighbor’s salt for a while. Then after being kicked out because he was not helpful, he lived wandering around the streets, begging. Since he had to barely survive by filling his hungry stomach with food that was not like food in the age when he was supposed to grow up under his parents’ love, Hawoon’s world was always only a cold and cruel view.

The teacher, whom Hawoon luckily met, must have adored Hawoon inside, but he was not a character who expressed it, as he was a rough martial artist. In addition, Hawoon also had difficulty with his benefactor and sky-like teacher, so the two rarely had private conversations unless they were teaching and learning from each other. 

Hawoon, who grew up without receiving special conveyed love from his parents and teacher, naturally thought so. 

Maybe I’m not the kind of person to be loved by someone. Sometimes I can get sympathy and compassion, but there will be no way that someone truly cares about and loves me. Maybe I was born with such a fixed fate.

“It hurts a lot, isn’t it…?” 

But there was Ahjin here. As if she was the one hurt, Ahjin blew Hwawoon’s wound that was wrapped in a bandage with sorrowful voice. Ahjin was even abused by a person named Yeon Hwawoon in the past. Such clear affection that such a person now showed to him was a wonderful and unfamiliar feeling that sometimes made him suffocate.