I’ll Be The Warrior’s Mother

Yelena cast a sideways glance downwards and answered.

“Ah, well… It’s just today that I’m like this. I’m usually fine.”

“If you’re worried about something, by any chance…”

“No, I’m not.”

Yelena smiled faintly.

Kaywhin’s voice was filled with worry.

Pleased by his concern, Yelena spoke with a smile. “Sometimes I feel like I’ve become a glass doll when I’m with you.”

“…A glass doll?”

“You get worried over the littlest things.”

Come to think of it, her husband was always like that.

When was it?

“When I told you to hold my arm, gosh… You barely touched it.”

“That couldn’t be helped. Wife…”

“What did I do?”

“…”

“What were you going to say?”

“Nothing.”

Kaywhin evaded an answer.

Now curious, Yelena considered forcing him to tell her everything.

Another breeze blew.

A small leaf blown by the wind stuck to Yelena’s hair. Yelena raised a hand to brush it off, but Kaywhin was faster. His large hand came close and then removed the leaf stuck to her hair.

“…”

Yelena fiddled with the spot the leaf had been on in vain.

Then her eyes widened as an idea suddenly came to her.

“Ah.”

“…?”

“I thought of a good idea. Let’s go back for now.”

Yelena led Kaywhin out of the garden, ending their walk a little sooner than planned. They held hands again as they found their way out of the garden.

Soon after, they arrived at Yelena’s quarters.

Back in bed, Yelena and Kaywhin lay facing each other.

“When I was young, do you know what my nanny would do whenever I would whine about not being able to sleep?” Yelena asked.

“What would she do?”

“She would tell me stories from long ago. Until I fell asleep.”

“…”

“But now that I’m all grown up, I don’t want to hear such old stories.”

Inside the dark bedroom, Yelena gazed at Kaywhin with eyes filled with anticipation.

“I want to hear your stories.”

“…My stories?”

“Yes, your stories. Anything I don’t know about you.”

He must have countless stories to tell her.

Yelena’s husband has lived for over 20 years, and his time with Yelena was only a few months.

“For example, stories about your monster subjugations… Or how you came to rescue Anna and Hans.”

“Those stories won’t be very interesting.”

“I don’t mind.”

Yelena wasn’t particularly looking to hear an interesting story. She just wanted to hear her husband’s story.

But for some reason, she felt too shy to say that. And so she said something else.

“That would actually be good. If the story is boring, I’ll be able to fall asleep quickly while listening to it.”

“…”

“Don’t you think?”

Perhaps Kaywhin thought her logic was valid. He grew quiet, unable to refute.

Yelena nudged him on. “Hurry. Ah, if you don’t want to, then you can sing me a lullaby. Do you want to sing me a lullaby?”

“…Are you really okay with any story?”

He must not have wanted to sing.

‘Hold on, I’m curious about what he’s like when he sings too…’

But that wasn’t her goal for today, so she decided to leave that for next time.

“Yes, that’s okay,” she replied.

“All right. Then…”

Soon after, Kaywhin continued speaking after contemplating briefly.

“Eight years ago…”

***

To think Kaywhin said his story wouldn’t be interesting—it was remarkably exciting. Yelena wanted to know what happened next, and after that, and after that.

Kaywhin continued telling his story as the night deepened. Yelena could not win against her drowsiness and she eventually fell asleep.

Kaywhin gazed at the sleeping Yelena. Whenever his wife inhaled and exhaled, her slender body would move slightly.

‘She’s small,’ Kaywhin unconsciously thought to himself. He thought she looked small and slender and fragile. ‘No, she doesn’t just look fragile, she actually is fragile.’

If he were to hold her with a lot of force, she would literally break.

Truthfully, rather than that being because Yelena was fragile, it was because Kaywhin was overwhelmingly strong. Strong enough to tear a monster apart with his bare hands.

So he was careful. Always, since the beginning.

‘That couldn’t be helped. Wife…’

This is what Kaywhin had stopped himself from saying in the garden.

Kaywhin didn’t know how to act towards Yelena, frankly even more so at first.

It was the first time in his entire life having someone so small and fragile close to him.

It was unfamiliar and awkward.

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