Lingering Warmth

Actually, there wasn’t much to do for dinner preparation. With no proper ingredients on hand, the only cooking possible was grilling meat seasoned with salt and pepper. Thus, while Lily and Agniele were busily fumbling into their raincoats and heading out, Ensi finished the work in a flash and even managed to assemble the field cots.

With time still to spare, he pulled out the Sun Grass and began trimming it. Since it was a familiar task, he worked half-absently; before he knew it, half of the Sun Grass he had brought was piled up in front of him, neatly processed.

Flutter. At the sound of the tent flap shaking, Ensi leisurely turned his head to see Lily shaking water droplets off her raincoat. He tilted his head to the side.

“You’re back already?”

“The rain got so heavy I could barely see anything. I figured moving around like this wouldn’t amount to anything, so I came back. What about Agniele?”

“Not yet.”

At the news that Agniele hadn’t returned, Lily peeked outside through a small gap in the tent. She looked as though she were weighing whether or not to go fetch him. Since Ensi was effectively grounded by the heavy rain, he began organizing the firewood Lily had collected.

“It soaked up too much water while we were fumbling around. I wonder if we can even start a fire with this.”

Confirming that the rain was still pouring down terrifyingly, Lily decided to trust that Agniele—who was stronger than her—would return on his own. She hung up her dripping raincoat to dry so it could be used again tomorrow.

“Whoa, why do you have so much Sun Grass?”

Lily, who had sat down on a cot to ponder a way to dry the wood, widened her eyes at the heap of Sun Grass piled on Ensi’s bed.

“Donovan packed it for me. I didn’t realize there was this much either.”

Donovan usually managed the high-quality Sun Grass meant for medicinal use separately, claiming he “didn’t trust Ensi’s own hands” with it. Upon hearing that Ensi would be participating in the practical without exception, Donovan had personally tucked Sun Grass into Ensi’s bag this time as well. Consequently, Ensi hadn’t known exactly how much he had brought.

Furthermore, since he had prioritized the medicine Luke gave him for this trip, he’d had no reason to check the Sun Grass until now. In the end, Ensi had only just realized the quantity.

“Anyway, Lily, don’t you think we could dry these logs with the Sun Grass?”

“Considering the heat the Sun Grass holds… it seems possible?”

They wouldn’t be able to use it as medicine afterward, but since the quantity was so large, a little waste seemed fine. Lily felt relieved that they could have a fire even in this situation. The two of them stacked the wood in the fire pit, tucking Sun Grass in between the logs, and sat on their respective cots to wait for Agniele.

“By the way, Ensi.”

“Yeah?”

The temperature, which had dropped naturally with the rain, was bothering Ensi. He placed some Sun Grass—which he usually tried to avoid burning—into his pipe and took a deep breath.

“How did that happen?”

An ill-suppressed curiosity and anticipation surged up, invading Ensi’s space. Lowering his eyes as the smoke reached deep into his lungs, he nibbled on the stem of the pipe.

“How did what happen?”

“There’s only one thing I’d be asking about, isn’t there?”

Lily told him not to play dumb and promptly moved over to Ensi’s cot. She nudged his side, urging him for an answer, completely unbothered by the hot heat radiating from the pipe. Ensi winced at the touch, which teetered somewhere between a dull ache and a tickle. While pulling away from her playful fingers, Ensi recalled the past from less than an hour ago.

Wiping a stray droplet from his cheek, Ensi frowned slightly. To think it would rain just as they finished pitching the tent—to think their luck would be this bad from the very first day of camp. Ensi forgot the unintentionally awkward atmosphere and focused on the remaining chores, like finding kindling or assembling the cots.

Thinking that firewood was the most urgent priority, Ensi turned to head out and try to find some nearby, but Agniele suddenly grabbed his wrist.

“I was wrong.”

Surprised by the sudden contact, Ensi looked up at Agniele. The eyes meeting his were colored with a deeper intensity than usual, filled with anxiety and self-reproach.

“Regardless of my intentions, I shouldn’t have done that. I’m sorry.”

Agniele laid out his faults one by one, yet he didn’t go so far as to beg for forgiveness in the end. Only after meeting that steady gaze did Ensi realize that this wasn’t something Agniele really needed to apologize for. However, being genuinely flustered by the sudden outburst, Ensi remained dumbfounded and silent.

A heavy silence settled between them once more. Agniele lowered his gaze as if in reflection, but he did not let go of the hand he used to hold Ensi. Ensi stared down at the wrist Agniele was holding. In contrast to the chilly air, the hand felt hot enough to be noticeable, and its presence slowly began to thaw Ensi’s cold skin.

Finally tearing his eyes away from the large, sturdy hand wrapped around his wrist, Ensi looked at Agniele, who still had his head bowed.

“Agniele, first… my wrist…”

Ensi’s voice trailed off weakly as he wiggled his captured hand. Agniele flinched and immediately released him. It was an action that suggested he had been holding on unconsciously. Ensi rubbed his wrist where Agniele’s warmth still lingered, then looked up at the sky as the rain began to exert its presence more strongly.

He then met Agniele’s eyes directly and spoke calmly.

“And you don’t need to apologize, Agniele. I was being sensitive.”

“No way. It was my lack of—”

“No. It was my fault, so don’t worry about it anymore.”

Ensi drove the point home with a firm shake of his head. He used a finger to wipe away the raindrops hanging from his eyelashes that were blurring his vision. The air was growing colder than before. He felt that if he kept standing out here unprotected, it would interfere with the subjugation starting tomorrow.

“Also, Agniele. I’m sorry, but since it’s raining, we should put on our raincoats and—”

Rain.

At Ensi’s mention of the weather—something he himself seemed to take in stride—Agniele’s eyes wavered. He looked around frantically before realizing the weight of the cloak resting on his own shoulders. What happened next was natural. Agniele unfastened the pin holding his cloak and pulled the fabric down from his shoulders.

Ensi watched blankly until the sound of fabric snapping in the wind filled his ears. Simultaneously, feeling the weight of the material on his head, Ensi reflexively grabbed the edges of the cloak that now draped down to his waist.

“At least wear this for now. I didn’t bring a raincoat—”

Agniele, having a body sturdy enough to withstand the rain, hadn’t brought a raincoat. No, the thought hadn’t even crossed his mind. Regretting his earlier decision, he wrapped the cloak meticulously around Ensi, leaving no gaps. Ensi was dazed by Agniele’s busy hands touching areas that were rarely touched by others.

While he could only stammer with parting lips, Agniele finished the adjustment and pulled his hands away with a satisfied expression. Only after the unfamiliar warmth vanished from his skin did Ensi snap out of it, realizing he had even forgotten he was cold. In truth, the large cloak covering his entire upper body held a residual temperature that had made the chill vanish.

Touching the soft fabric that shielded him from the rain, Ensi spoke with a voice tinged with hesitation.

“I meant… that I had brought raincoats for us…”

Ensi had originally intended to suggest they both put on raincoats to go gather wood. He hadn’t been trying to say he was in trouble because he lacked one.

“Was… that so?”

The realization hit Agniele, and his eyes wavered once more. The cloak perched so neatly on Ensi’s head suddenly seemed futile.

“I’ve done something unnecessary,” Agniele muttered dejectedly, dropping his head. Seeing his companion lose heart so rapidly, Ensi waved his hand.

“I actually happened to be feeling cold just then. Thank you for the consideration.”

Ensi comforted Agniele, even though he knew there was no strict need to. Coldly speaking, Agniele had acted on his own judgment before Ensi could stop him; Ensi didn’t have to soothe Agniele’s dejection. Yet, the thought that he had technically “informed” Agniele of a fact he could have remained silent about kept floating through his mind.

“Was it really helpful?”

Agniele’s face, soaked by the thickening rain, suddenly brightened. Ensi didn’t look away from the clearly changed expression; he nodded to provide certainty.

“I’m glad.”

Agniele stood there in the pouring rain, completely vulnerable, and offered a faint smile. At that sight—of a man completely unconcerned with his own well-being—the corners of Ensi’s mouth twitched imperceptibly.

There wasn’t much after that. Just as they were staring at each other in a different kind of awkwardness, Lily had stepped in. In a way, wearing Agniele’s cloak might not have been a big deal.

Ensi could have explained the situation, but for some reason, he felt reluctant and simply shook his head. Lily pouted at Ensi’s stubborn silence, but only for a moment. Eventually, she gave up on asking.

Whatever happened, she knew enough: progress was unexpectedly being made between them. To be honest, the relationship between Ensi and Agniele was one that could have snapped at any moment if Ensi chose to cut it off.

After all, Agniele deferred most choices to Ensi. She didn’t quite know why he valued Ensi’s opinion so highly. The important thing was that Ensi hadn’t pushed Agniele away. This meant Ensi was, perhaps subconsciously, keeping Agniele in his heart.

Lily let out a quiet laugh, already looking forward to the future where Ensi, who had always maintained a detached attitude, would slowly begin to change.