In the house at the edge of the village, Minjun is awakened by the rustling sound of paper crumbled together rather than the sun nor the village roosters' crow at dawn. He sits up a little and sees a small child with cookie crumbs on his cheek. The little hands are covered in black ink and crumbled papers all around him.

“Young is sorry!” The child shrieks and drops the blackened and crumbled paper in his hands. 

Minjun crawls over to the child and tries to calm him down, “Young is not in trouble. Tell me, what happened?”

Still, the cries did not cease. However, Young explains through the snobs and hiccups, “P—Practice writing. Added t—too much water. Characters light. S—So, Young makes more ink. Ink spill on Appa’s p—paper and—”

“So Young tried to clean up but ended up making more mess?” Minjun asks solemnly after the child couldn’t say anymore. 

“All ruined…” Young mumbles the almost inaudible expression as he points toward all the blackened and crumbled papers scattered at the foot of the bed.

Minjun knows that Eunwoo has been calculating the day of the solar eclipse because he asked Eunwoo to. Eunwoo has been working hard and yet… Minjun sighs to himself and plans to ease the bad news later to Eunwoo.

“Let’s wash our hands and faces,” Minjun pats Young’s head. “As long as we explain what happened to Appa later, he won’t be angry at us.”

Although Young isn’t convinced by Minjun’s simple solution, he follows Minjun to wash his hands and face. 

When they return from the well in the backyard, a familiar figure with luggage opens the front fence and enters. His eyes are bloodshot, dark, and sleepy, and his clothes have blood stains.

“Your… Darling! You’re back!” Minjun calls.

Instantly, the face changes to a brilliant smile while the colors stay the same. Eunwoo places down his luggage and approaches them, “I’m back! Yong is fine. She needs to stay at the clinic for a while, and I’ll visit her again the day after tomorrow. How about you three? Was everything alright while I was gone? No one tried to harm you?”

Minjun softens his expression and helps take off Eunwoo’s soiled clothes. He wants to embrace the body that he went to sleep without and woke up empty this morning, but suppresses his urge because they’re outside and in the presence of a child.

“Why are you hiding behind Eomma, Young?” Eunwoo asks the little boy after removing his soiled clothes. “Is Young not feeling well?”

“Explain what happened,” Minjun hands Young over to Eunwoo.

Young has hope that Minjun is correct, so he looks up to see the colossal beast whose eyes are without light and mercy. Young gives up and his emotions swift out like an amber igniting a harvested rice field. 

“What’s wrong?” Eunwoo squats down, and as he places a hand on the child’s shoulder, the child slaps the hand away.

“Eomma!” Young falls back to hide behind Minjun’s legs.

Minjun sighs. Since the rain has just passed and the ground is muddy, he gestures for everyone to enter the main room. Seeing that Eunwoo also brought the luggage inside, he asks, “Do you need help putting this away?”

“Later.” Eunwoo brings out four fried pancakes he bought in town. He hands them one each and eats two himself. “Minjun, I’m too tired. I apologize, but I’ll need a nap before taking a bath.”

“Go to sleep. We won’t hold your time anymore.”

Young is still much too scared of Eunwoo’s appearance in which he did not notice before. And because he has ruined Eunwoo’s manuscript, he stays far from Eunwoo and subsequently Minjun. Eunwoo takes this opportunity to rest his head on Minjun’s lap and hugs the round stomach.

“Why are you like this?” Minjun touches the black lashes hovering above the deep dark circle under Eunwoo’s eye. His hand moves forward and unties Eunwoo’s hair.

The child watches them closely, nibbling on half of his pancake while saving the other half for his sister. He observes that the big monster doesn’t look so scary next to Minjun, but cute as Minjun combs through the long hair with his fingers and smiles as he looks down at the monster’s face.

He does not wish to admit his guilt because from what he has heard and seen, that gentle giant can easily pummel him into a pool of flesh and blood without bones to consider broken. Accordingly, he keeps an eye on him and hopes that both Minjun and Eunwoo forget and continue to care for him as if nothing happened.

“Let’s cover Appa with that,” Minjun disrupts Young’s intention to fade into the background and points to the comforter on the gung bed. 

“It’s alright. I’ll sleep on the bed,” Eunwoo sounds and moves onto the bed before closing his eyes again.

Minjun sighs and goes to put the luggage Eunwoo brought back. Inside are some kitchen items, hemp and cotton cloths, a set of children's clothes, and a porcelain bottle. He places things away neatly, and to the small boy, “When Appa is awake, ask him to help bathe you.”

Young frowns but nods in response. 

As they take the kitchen items to the kitchen, Minjun sees at the corner of a dark large bird flies into a tree out in the fields and flies out toward the mountains just as quickly. He sighs in his heart.

Not long later, clouds cover the sky and showers the earth. The raindrops are small and light, if one is not outside to feel it, one wouldn’t notice it’s raining. Cold breezes often slip through the cracks and sweep away the warmth off people’s skin.

Young curls next to Minjun in front of the stove, eating glutinous rice balls in sugar water and herbs. From time to time, Young notices how dark Minjun’s eyes are but by the time he blinks a second time it’s gone. Even in front of a four year old child, this trick only masks so long.

Minjun slides a hand to feel the bump, sighing. He didn’t think that another assassin was on their tail so soon. It has only been five days since the shaman who cursed him revealed herself before Eunwoo. He can recall that moment clearly, the way Eunwoo looked at him and the way he tried to get back by hurting Eunwoo. 

Eunwoo said to Minjun at that time, “Without a face and a history, I was able to say I can kill anyone for you. But I saw their face today and learned that they lost their son, husband, and country because of you. I love you but I also pity their injustice.”

The door slides open and a gust of wind blows in. A light layer of rain water splashes on Minjun’s face. He turns to see a giant ducking down to fit under the doorframe. He laughs and waves, “Come in. You’ll get all wet standing there.”

“What’s Young eating?” Eunwoo closes the door behind him. “May I have some if there’s any left.”

“Sit. I’ll pour you a bowl,” Minjun pats on the empty space beside him. 

Eunwoo sits and eats the glutinous rice balls, “Delicious.”

“Thank you. I couldn’t have made it without the ingredients you bought back today.”

“Have you tried some yourself?” Eunwoo scoops up a perfectly white glutinous rice ball with plenty of warm sugar water and places the spoon to his wife’s lips.

Minjun chuckles and eats it with a smile.

Eunwoo detects the little child trembling next to Minjun and asks, “Are you cold?”

“Young is sorry!” The child burst into tears, couldn’t keep the guilt churning his gut any longer. “Young didn’t mean to! Young only… Only wanted to write!”

Surprised, Eunwoo glances at Minjun for answers. He reaches toward the child and pat the little round head, “If Young knows what he did and is sorry, then Appa forgives Young. Now, don’t be so sad and scared. Appa is not angry.”

“B—But everything is black and it can’t read anymore. Appa isn’t angry?”

“Oh. No. Appa isn’t angry. But, Young needs to clean it up as punishment,” Eunwoo answers sternly. 

“Yes! Young will go clean it up!” The child stands on his feet and goes to the main room to clean up the mess. 

Minjun laughs, “I told him that it was okay as long as he explained to you what happened but he didn’t believe me and was so scared. I’m glad I wasn’t a liar.”

“And I’m glad I didn’t make you out to be one.” Eunwoo moves a strand of hair to the back in Minjun’s ear, “Thank you for believing in me.”

A surge of guilt flickers, but Minjun suppresses it well with gentle eyes, “How can this subject be blind to Your Highness’s grace?”

The smile on Eunwoo’s face wilts in an instant. It was all too obvious now that something is bothering Minjun. Something about himself is the obstacle of doubt for Minjun. However, Eunwoo can’t recall what he did and blames himself for doing something horrible to Minjun unconsciously.

“Why is Your Highness sad? Is it something this subject said?”

“I could say the same,” Eunwoo replies with a knot in his throat. 

Minjun knits his brows together with his emotions entangled. He sits in a kneeling position with his hands resting on his knees, “Your Highness has always worn your heart on your sleeve and spoke with much gentleness. It is rude if I continue to hide and suppress myself… In war, it is kill or be killed. It is win or lose. And lastly, it is never personal to the individuals on the battlefield. So, when you said, ‘Without a face and a history, I was able to say I can kill anyone for you. But I saw their face today and learned that they lost their son, husband, and country because of you. I love you but I also pity their injustice.’ What is it that you mean?”

“To me,” Minjun lifts his head and sees the black eyes that reflect even the faintest light. “Because to me, I interpret your words as I am the evil doer for taking away someone’s son, husband, and country and still needs to be brought to justice. And because that justice has not yet come to fruition, I don’t deserve all the good things that have happened to me. I don’t deserve you, and I don’t deserve our baby.”

Eunwoo immediately clenches his teeth and balls his fists. Then he takes in a deep breath, “I see. My words can definitely be interpreted in this manner. It is not far from what my intentions were with those words. War is evil. Killing is evil. I understand that in the state of war, black and white must be there to keep soldiers fighting. It let them act without questioning authority and order. Perhaps I should’ve added that nevertheless, you’re already punished enough by me, and even the devil himself deserves peace even if no one can forgive him.”

The room is still cold even though the fire is burning. Minjun feels that his fingertips are frozen yet in pain, so he stopped listening to Eunwoo much earlier. He doesn’t know about the later revision Eunwoo made. 

“Your Highness, please excuse this subject.” Minjun gathers the ends of his skirt and prepares to leave.

Noticing the fast rising and falling of Minjun’s chest, Eunwoo grabs him. Minjun says, “There are people outside. Stay here. If something is to go wrong, run and save yourself.”

Eunwoo clicks his tongue and pulls Minjun backwards. He opens the screen door himself and there before him are six men in his front yard.