Chapter 117.1

Chapter 117.1

“Ugh!”

As the throbbing pain brought her back to consciousness, an unfamiliar ceiling came into view.

Where am I?

The deafening roar that seemed to pierce her ears, the billowing black smoke, the violent impacts against the trailer—those fragmented memories clicked into place, making her gasp for air.

“Haah! Haah!”

Seoryeong jolted upright, her wide eyes darting around.

The truck—what happened to the truck? What about the team? A tremor ran through her as the aftermath gripped her body. Every time she closed her eyes, she could still see the fiery metal sliding across the ground in vivid clarity.

She was in a small, enclosed room. The sparse furniture—a bed and a table—gave the place a basement-like darkness reminiscent of where children might be locked away.

But instead of the damp scent of mold, the air carried the fresh smell of a deodorizer. The bed sheets, crisp and new, added to the dissonance. As she moved her arm naturally―

“―!”

Clank. A long chain attached to the metal bedframe bound her wrist.

Clank, clank. The rattling echoed as she froze, her breath hitching.

Am I… am I being held captive?

It was so absurd that even laughter escaped her. Gritting her teeth in frustration, she shook her arm violently, but the effort only left her head spinning. Just then, the door opened, and Kia walked in.

“You―!”

The sight of his calm demeanor, dressed in pristine clerical robes, ignited a fiery rage within her. But as she tried to leap from the bed, clank—the chain yanked her back. Seoryeong ground her teeth like a beast tethered to a rope.

“You lunatic! What the hell did you do to us?!”

Kia approached her with a tray holding a basin of water and a towel, his expression irritatingly relaxed. His indifference fanned the flames of her anger.

The moment he came close enough, she lashed out, kicking his abdomen without hesitation. The tray shook, spilling water, but Kia merely smiled.

“Sonya, it’s been a while since I’ve felt your kicks…”

“…”

“Have your feet grown bigger? Your strength has, too.”

He looked completely unfazed, his eyes narrowing slightly in amusement. Calmly, he placed the basin on the table and opened a drawer. From inside, he retrieved a long shackle that resembled a dog collar.

Humming a tune, he crouched to secure her ankle to the bedframe. Her boots and socks were already gone, leaving her bare skin to feel the cold touch of the metal.

“What now, you bastard?!”

Despite her thrashing resistance, Kia subdued her effortlessly. Pinning her flailing leg with his elbow, he fastened the shackle in an instant.

Clank, clank. The metal rang out with every movement she made.

Without pause, Kia began wiping the blood and grime off Seoryeong’s face with the towel. She flinched and tried to pull away, but his grip on her chin held firm. His expression turned eerily absorbed, and he muttered softly.

“I just wanted to be alone with you.”

“What?”

“You always had too many attachments, Sonya.”

“…!”

“I brought them along because I was curious… curious about your life, the people you spend time with. But it was pointless. They were nothing but distractions. I have so much to tell you, so much to share.”

Kia tilted his head, his tone almost contemplative.

“Some of them were unbearable to look at. Others were shameless and infuriating.”

“…”

“Sonya, I really hate when ants swarm around.”

Sonya. It was Sonya again. What a lunatic. This deranged priest had gone off the rails. And why on earth did a monastery have RPG-like heavy weaponry? Who was this guy, really?

Seoryeong’s face twisted in sheer disgust as her wariness toward the priest shot through the roof. An ominous chill crept up her spine.

“Where are the team members? What happened to my team—ugh!”

“They’re done for. They’ll never make it out of there.”

His sinister eyes gleamed, and his long fingers wrapped around Seoryeong’s throat.

Deng, deng—

The evening prayer bell tolled at just the right moment.

“You’ll stay here with me, just like this.”

***

By the time Lee Wooshin noticed something flying toward them in the rearview mirror, it was already too late.

He swerved the steering wheel sharply, but the deafening explosion flipped the truck into the air. The team members were thrown helplessly as the truck rolled.

Every window shattered into jagged fragments. The vehicle skidded across the ground, grinding to a halt.

When the mangled metal shell, now reduced to just the truck’s front end, finally stopped after tumbling dozens of meters, black smoke billowed from its crushed bumper.

Blood dripped steadily onto his fluttering eyelids, pooling over his blurred vision.

Through the haze, he saw the owl (Seoryoeng) smiling brightly, extending a hand toward him.

When was this? He remembered her adjusting his collar, awkwardly tying his tie with clumsy hands.

Lee Wooshin had kissed her slender wrist. He lingered at their doorstep, reluctant to leave their newlywed home. She pushed him out, scolding him for running late to work.

He didn’t want to go. But suddenly, his vision spun chaotically, and the ceiling flipped to the floor.

“Instructor!”