TBML 66

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁣⁣⁣⁠⁣⁣⁠⁠⁣⁠⁠⁠⁠⁣⁣⁣⁣⁠⁠⁣⁠⁣⁣ ⁣⁠⁣⁣⁠⁠⁠⁠⁣⁠⁣⁠⁠⁣⁠⁣⁠⁣⁠⁣⁣⁣⁠⁣⁣⁣⁣⁠⁠⁣⁣⁣⁠“Yeon-ah?”

His hands, which had been moving so busily that he’d almost forgotten he could use only one, came to a halt, so Hyunhak called out to Yiyeon. His face was deathly pale, and his eyes darted nervously. Was he lost in thought and unable to hear Hyunhak calling him, or was his hearing so poor that he couldn’t hear him? No matter how many times he called, there was no response.

Finally, Hyunhak reluctantly reached out and touched his arm; only then did he startle and gasp for breath. As Hyunhak looked at him with a grave expression, worried, Yiyeon’s eyes widened. He fixed his gaze on his face and shook his head vigorously.

“……Huh? Yes, yes!”

“Yeon-ah, are you hurt? Are you alright?”

His body wasn’t even fully recovered, even shaking his head made him feel dizzy. Yiyeon nodded so vigorously that his body swayed. He shook off all the filthy and horrific thoughts that had flashed through his mind. As his brain churned, Hyunhak’s voice seemed to waver in his ears as well.

Yiyeon touched his forehead and dropped the cotton cloth he was holding onto the floor.

“I’m sorry. My mind just wandered for a moment…”

He bent down to pick up the cloth that had fallen to the floor and apologized to Hyunhak. Not only had he let his mind wander while attending to his master, but now he’d made a mistake. As he hurriedly picked up the cloth that had fallen to the floor and straightened up, Yiyeon let out a startled shout at the astonishing sight right before his eyes.

“Ah…? Ah, aah!!”

Just as Yiyeon, who had been bending over, raised his head, it was perfectly at eye level with it. He had never even looked at his own that closely, let alone someone else’s. If Hyunhak’s private part had eyes, their gazes would have met exactly right then.

Startled, Yiyeon clutched his pounding chest and screamed. It must have been the highest-pitched scream he had ever let out in his life.

“Why, why! Why are you completely naked, My Lord!”

Was this the same Yiyeon who had been as pale as a corpse just moments ago? His face turned not just red, but crimson all the way to his ears as he raised his voice. What on earth had he just seen? He had seen a nobleman’s penis. Befitting Hyunhak’s imposing stature, the organ at his center was quite extraordinary.

Yiyeon, who had been washing in the dead of winter at night to avoid people’s gazes, had never had the chance to look between another man’s legs, but even at a glance, its shape and size were anything but ordinary. He realized that the expressions adults used, like “piercing a chamber pot” or “made for a general” must refer to something like this. It felt strange to apply such terms to a nobleman’s private parts, but regardless of its size, its shape was as handsome as his face.

When a flustered Yiyeon shouted, Hyunhak stood with his legs spread [Read on]wide, looking dignified, and replied as if he had no idea what he was talking about.

“Didn’t you tell me to change my clothes?”

“No! What I mean is….”

Yiyeon swallowed the follow-up question: “Why are you undressed?” Of course, you have to take your clothes off to change them. It was a silly question. However, when a stranger is standing there staring at you, you don’t just suddenly strip down completely, do you? As Yiyeon tried to calm his racing heart, a single word suddenly appeared in his mind.

‘Servant.’

Hadn’t he vowed to live as Hyunhak’s servant, as a slave? He’d never had any reason to talk to people who worked as servants, but he knew that if they ended up with the wrong master, they often weren’t treated like human beings and suffered all kinds of harsh hardships. He’d even seen a slave who’d been cast out and ended up on the streets as a beggar overnight. All because, while changing his master’s clothes, his fingernail had accidentally scratched the master’s skin, leaving a barely visible mark.

Unlike himself, who was horrified and blushing, this must not have been anything out of the ordinary for Hyunhak, who had lived his life surrounded by attendants.

“…….”

“……?”

Yiyeon, whose face had turned bright red as if he were running a fever, once again looked dejected and bowed his head, so Hyunhak tapped his arm again. When even that single touch failed to make Yiyeon lift his head, he tapped him again. Hyunhak’s fingers landed like raindrops on Yiyeon’s arm, where bruises and fingerprints were still clearly visible.

Although he had volunteered to become his servant, Yiyeon was someone who had always held his head high and lived with dignity, even in the face of intimidation. It wasn’t as simple as he thought to cast aside all his pride overnight and live as a slave. Yiyeon was once again reminded of his situation, which he had momentarily forgotten.

“I’ll bring you some clothes to change into.”

Yiyeon’s face darkened as he picked up the cloth he’d dropped again in his startlement. This time, his expression was calm and serious; he neither flinched at Hyunhak’s body nor let his gaze linger on him.

He left Hyunhak, who was in the process of undressing, and looked at the corner of the room where his clothes were piled up. It wasn’t even his own home, how was he supposed to know where Hyunhak’s clothes were? Yiyeon picked out a set that looked relatively clean from the pile of clothes.

Once my arm feels a little better, I’ll have to start by doing the laundry. Even in the midst of all this, Yiyeon thought to himself as he returned to Hyunhak, who was still half-naked.

After wiping the moisture from his body, Yiyeon skillfully dressed Hyunhak. Yiyeon was used to tending to his bedridden parents. Since Hyunhak wasn’t unconscious, he understood what Yiyeon was saying and could lift his arms and legs. Yiyeon could easily dress him with just one hand. Yiyeon didn’t realize until then just how well he was suited for this kind of task. Those practiced movements left him with a bittersweet feeling.

Meanwhile, Hyunhak, who was being tended to by Yiyeon, was oblivious to his thoughts and simply felt good. Read on It was nothing special, but Yiyeon taking such good care of him reminded him of the day they first met in human form. On that day, Yiyeon had also tidied up his clothes. The corners of Hyunhak’s mouth twitched.

“You did this for me back then too, Yeon-ah.”

“Huh? Oh… that’s right.”

Yiyeon had to pause for a moment to figure out what Hyunhak was talking about. Then, upon realizing he was referring to the day they first met, he smiled gently and nodded.

Even back then, he’d been wet, barely dressed. It was a strange sight, but he remained as fascinating as ever. Unlike back then, Hyunhak had grown up and his demeanor had changed completely, but his mannerisms hadn’t changed much, and Yiyeon found himself smiling.

“My Lord, could you hold this for a moment?”

It was time to tie the sash. Since he couldn’t tie the knot with just one hand, Yiyeon asked Hyunhak for help. After all, he couldn’t very well tie a nobleman’s sash by holding it in his mouth.

“I’ll do it.”

In response to Yiyeon’s request, Hyunhak skillfully tied the sash. Once Hyunhak had tied it, Yiyeon adjusted it slightly to straighten out the crooked part. Next, Hyunhak stolen contentsat down on the floor and began tying his legs wraps. By now, Hyunhak was accustomed to wearing human clothing.

Yiyeon swept his long hair behind his back as he watched Hyunhak tie his leg wraps, holding the ends of the hemline snugly around his ankles. He needed to dry his wet hair, comb it, and tie it into a topknot, but while he had a headband, the comb was nowhere to be found.

“My Lord, where did you put the comb and the hairpin?”

“Hmm… I’ll go get them!”

Hyunhak nodded and promised to fetch them, even though he had no idea what Yiyeon was talking about. As Hyunhak shook his head, the long strand of hair that had been resting in Yiyeon’s palm slipped right out. The texture was so fine that even the imported silk used by wealthy young ladies to make their dresses couldn’t have been this soft.

After hearing Hyunhak’s reply, Yiyeon, who had guessed why his hair had always been disheveled, waved his hand dismissively behind Hyunhak’s back – even though Hyunhak couldn’t see him – to indicate Hyunhak wasn’t to blame.

“No, no. It’s just that my hands are in this condition… By any chance, when is Lord Zao expected to arrive?”

He couldn’t twist his topknot with just one hand. Yiyeon hadn’t even learned to style his own hair yet. He didn’t have the confidence to do it properly, nor could he. Convinced that the man named Zao was looking after Hyunhak’s daily life, Yiyeon asked when Zao would arrive.

However, in response to Yiyeon’s question, Hyunhak straightened his back, which he had been hunching over to make it easier for him to touch his hair. Startled by Hyunhak’s unauthorized copy sudden increase in height, Yiyeon stumbled backward.

“Zao? Why the sudden question about Zao?”

“Um… Since my body is still in this condition, I’m afraid I can’t serve you properly, My Lord. I apologize.”

When Hyunhak turned to Yiyeon with a look that seemed to ask, “Why are you bringing up Zao?” Yiyeon pointed to his left arm, which was immobilized by a splint. With only one arm, he still couldn’t even clean a room properly. Far from being able to serve Hyunhak, the reality was that he needed Hyunhak’s help.

Just moments ago, Hyunhak had been relishing Yiyeon’s touch and trying to hide the smile that kept slipping out from joy, but now he pouted his lips behind Yiyeon’s back. Then, out of the corner of his eye, he glared beyond the closed door. From outside, the intermittent clucking of a chicken (probably wrestling with Zao) could be heard.

“It’s fine. Just leave it like this.”

“But…”

“Zao isn’t… going to come.”

Hyunhak intended to do everything he could to prevent Yiyeon from ever meeting Zao in human form. Yiyeon’s reaction to ​unauthorized copy​seeing Zao was one thing, but it was also driven by his own selfishness and jealousy.

In short, he felt he’d get sulky just seeing the two of them sitting face-to-face and talking. If Zao – who knew far more about humans than he did – ended up talking to Yiyeon more and growing closer to him, he felt he’d get very sulky.

“Is he really not coming? I need to apologize… and I have a favor to ask.”

Yiyeon said this as he glanced around the room. Although quite a few items had been added since last night, presumably due to whatever had happened, the household goods were absurdly sparse for the home of a nobleman. Just look at it now, there wasn’t even a proper comb. If Zao was the one looking after Hyunhak’s daily life, there would be plenty of things to ask of him.

“If you need anything, just ask me.”

“You, My Lord?”

Hyunhak puffed out his chest as if to say he could get anything, but Yiyeon looked at him with an unconvinced expression. It just didn’t seem right to make a request of a scholar who had just come in, soaked to the bone after falling into the river in the dead of winter…

It wasn’t that Hyunhak was untrustworthy; rather, to Yiyeon – who had led a tough life – this kind-hearted gentleman was far removed from the practicalities of daily life. He was undoubtedly a kind and honest man, but precisely because of that, Yiyeon had the feeling that if he sent him to buy even a little rice, he’d end up paying an exorbitant price and bringing back barley that was half stone.

“Right. I’ll get you anything, so just let me know if you need anything.”

Oblivious to Yiyeon’s expression, Hyunhak spoke very majestically.