224 Special Momen (1/2)

”Move your asses! Do you want us to all burn alive?” General Donghai's shouts could be heard through the chaos.

”Yes, sir!”

Currently, everyone was handling the aftermath of the battle that had taken place. Men began extinguishing the fires, the wounded were being treated, and the dead were collected from the battlegrounds.

Rin appeared when the fires were almost out; face smudged and speckled with blood and smoke. She stared upward at the pale, white sky as ash drifted down upon her cheeks and eyelids. With dull eyes, she surveyed the crowd. Her gaze darkened when she could not identify the man she was looking for.

”An Sun…” She unconsciously whispered his name, unaware of the worry within her own voice.

Walking through the wounded soldiers, her footsteps quickened, her gaze growing more frantic.

”Move! Out of the way!” A voice shouted amongst the crowd.

Turning, Rin's expression abruptly changed. When she saw the figure carried by Fan Mingli and Yin Changpu, her mind went completely blank. Without a moment of hesitation, she rushed over.

”What happened to him?” Rin stared at the bloodied and unconscious An Sun. She felt anger settle inside her, a tangible weight.

The unconscious An Sun was covered in a cold sweat. There was an unnatural flush on his cheeks, and his lips were pale and cracked. Fan Mingli was close to sobbing as he looked at his battered captain with red, swollen eyes.

When he didn't answer her question, Rin shot him a fierce glare. Fan Mingli swallowed and replied, ”C-Captain Sun was fighting the Tuhan's commander until they retreated...then he suddenly fainted!”

The space between Rin's brows tightly furrowed as she ordered coldly, ”Set him down with the rest of the injured, I'll call a physician.”

Yin Changpu and Fan Mingli nodded their heads. ”Yes!”

The two carried him over stiffly as they sensed Rin's piercing gaze on them as they left. Her eyes shifted to An Sun's pale face as something within her heart awakened.

She took a deep breath and tried to suppress the pain in her chest that felt as if it was about to explode at any moment. When Rin opened her eyes, they reverted to their usual calm.

Right now, she needed to regain control of the situation. Turning around, Rin began directing orders for the wounded.

…

After a night of chaos and tragedy, morning came. The scent of death and smoke lingered through the air as the sun cast upon the province's high stone wall.

Turning his head, he observed the morning sunlight shining through and into the bedroom. He blinked several times to chase away his drowsiness. Shifting his gaze just a little, his eyes stopped. His vision was still rather blurry, but he could still make out the person standing in the room.

”…Rin.”

At the sound of the man's deep, hoarse voice, Rin turned her head. She returned An Sun's gaze evenly with a quiet and impassive expression. There was no sound but the whispering hush of wind and the morning birds.

”How are you feeling?” Rin broke the silence and walked over to sit on the edge of the bed.

”Like hell.” An Sun grumbled, his voice harsh from the smoke.

Rin smiled thinly. ”That's to be expected. You fought well out there.”

Grunting, An Sun shifted his gaze away to look at the ceiling. For a moment he stared in a daze.

”I saw him.” He whispered.

”Sir Manchu?” Rin's brows furrowed.

”My brother…” An Sun corrected.

”Oh…I see.” Her lips pursed.

Silence descended between the two once more, though neither found any discomfort in it. Rather they savored it as both gathered their own thoughts.

”I heard he tried to kill you,” Rin said softly.

An Sun suddenly chuckled. ”He almost did.”

”But he didn't.” She frowned, somewhat displeased with his words.

”Because of Manchu. If it wasn't for him…I'd be dead.” An Sun looked at her with his deep gaze. ”It's because of him that I'm here.”

Rin lowered her eyes and stared at her hands resting in her lap. The tips of her fingers fiddled a little before she raised her eyes again to see his gaze was still on her. Swallowing the lump in her throat, Rin hesitantly reached to touch his hand; hoping to give him the ease she could not yet feel.

”I'll have to thank him when we save him then,” Rin managed a weak little smile and stiffly patted his hand.

The ice on An Sun's face seemed to have thawed into a gentle and warm expression. The corner of his lips had lifted into a smile without his knowing.

”Yeah…” He said softly.

Suddenly, with a grunt, An Sun tried to lift himself from the bed. With wide eyes, Rin pressed her hands to his chest to push him back down.

”You shouldn't get up so suddenly, you still need to rest.” Rin lectured with a frown.

Chuckling, An Sun looked up at her scowling face with amusement.

”You nag like your old man. You know that?” A lone strand of his dark long hair fell in front of his face.

Rin was so startled, and her gaze flew up to his. The amusement in his eyes was evident. Was he mocking her? Rin's scowl deepened. Just as she had been about to refute, she paused and her eyes fixed on An Sun's face.

”You have a wound...” Rin's fingertips gently pressed against his brow. A small but noticeable red gash ran across his right eyebrow. ”It looks like it'll scar.”

The depths of An Sun's eyes darkened as he felt her cold fingertips touch his eyebrow. Realizing what she was doing, a faint blush colored her cheeks. Just when Rin quickly pulled her hand back, her wrist was suddenly caught by An Sun.

Stunned, Rin looked at him with wide eyes. With a hand still on her wrist, An Sun lifted himself upright on the bed.

”Don't—” Rin had been about to urge him to lie back down when the words caught in her throat at the sudden proximity of his face. She felt her pulse quicken as An Sun came forward and her head leaned back a bit.

She felt An Sun's grip slide down her wrist to her fingers, and his hold tightened. For a moment, he stared closely at her face, as if he was studying it.