Chapter 122.2

Chapter 122.2

Even then, Wooshin couldn’t push her away. Instead, his face contorted, as if he’d been betrayed.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” she asked.

“…”

Seoryeong smiled faintly, brushing her fingers across his furrowed brows. He was battered and bruised, unable to rest even in this condition. If she had to force him to shut down, she would.

But her awkward attempts to comfort him made her falter. She quickly clenched her fingers into a fist to hide her discomfort.

“I’ll stay by your side until we land in Korea. If anyone suspicious comes near, I’ll make sure they don’t get close. So, please, just close your eyes and rest for a moment. I’m not going anywhere. Trust me, just this once…”

Her own words startled her. Trust me—what an absurd thing to say. After Kim Hyun disappeared, she had been the one who lost faith in everything.

And yet, looking at Wooshin biting his tongue, his bloodshot eyes refusing to close, those words had come out so naturally.

“No… the key…”

“Are you worried about the key? If that happens again, I won’t just let myself be taken. Trust the person you trained, Instructor.”

His eyelids began to droop, his once-erratic breathing slowing noticeably. Even then, Wooshin found her hand and loosely held it.

When his exhausted eyes finally closed, Seoryeong exhaled a sigh of relief. Now, it was truly time for him to receive proper treatment.

***

The special security team members were rushed to the hospital in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, where they underwent only the most urgent surgeries before being transferred to the airport.

The decision to board Blast Agency transport plane and receive secondary treatment in Korea was made on the premise that staying in Sakhalin posed greater risks.

With no one else to take charge, Seoryeong bore the responsibility alone. She stayed on high alert, terrified that any misstep could cost someone their life, and didn’t allow herself a moment of rest.

The team included Jin Hoje, unconscious from facial burns and organ damage, Yoo Dawit, with bruises, internal bleeding, and fractured ribs; and Lee Wooshin, whose injuries ranged from shrapnel damage to torn ligaments in his feet.

Ki Taemin, who was relatively unscathed, recounted the harrowing incident. They had tried to drive a truck over a landmine to suppress it, but when a rear wheel suddenly dislodged and rolled away, the mine detonated without warning.

Luckily, Yoo Dawit had been off the ground, and the explosion had occurred far enough away to spare him.

Seoryeong tried to visualize the chaotic scene but couldn’t fully grasp the urgency they must have faced.

Upon their safe arrival in Korea, the team was placed under intensive care at a hospital affiliated with the Saehwa Group.

Their injuries were severe enough to make an immediate return to duty impossible, and the special security team temporarily ceased operations. However, the most pressing matters gradually stabilized.

Seoryeong stopped counting the days since she last slept and stayed by the team members’ sides without pause. Enduring a splitting headache, she pushed through and opened the door to the first hospital room.

“―.”

Inside, a man lay with thick bandages covering half his face and neck. Seoryeong paused mid-motion as she was setting a vase of flowers on the bedside table, her gaze fixed on the unconscious Jin Hojae.

“Kim Hyun is close to you.”

When she first heard those words, her mind had instinctively turned to the special security team members. Among them, Jin Hojae bore the strongest resemblance to Kim Hyun.

Although she had learned that Kim Hyun had used a fake face, a small seed of doubt began to sprout in the back of her mind.

Wouldn’t the bone structure and facial features need to align closely for the disguise to blend so seamlessly? Especially now, as she stared at Jin Hojae, his face wrapped tightly in bandages, the situation felt even stranger.

“Mascara…”

It was as if someone had scripted this moment. How could things align so uncannily?

“It means ‘mask.’”

Her gaze drifted to Jin Hojae’s lower body, and she flinched, quickly brushing her hand across her face.

What am I even thinking about… to my unconscious teammate, no less.

Her chest felt as if someone had struck it with a stone, sharp pangs stabbing at her heart. Seoryeong scrubbed her face so hard her complexion turned blotchy, then picked up her phone. The familiar voice that had been a lifeline throughout their return to Korea echoed in her ear.

― “Yes, unnie! I’m here. Speak!”

“Could you tell me more about Agent Jin Hojae?”

― “Ah, so what you’re really asking is… you’re curious about his skeletons in the closet, huh?”

“No, that’s not exactly what I meant…”

― “…Honestly, I’ve been waiting for this day. The moment you point out a man, I’ll dig up everything down to his underwear! Feeling revolutionary twists in your heart now that Jin Hojae is injured, huh?”

“…”

― “Just trust me! To truly understand a South Korean man, you have to dig through his in-laws too!”

The sound of rapid typing came through the phone. Seoryeong debated how to stop Channa from diving headfirst into her delusions but ended up just massaging her temples.

Quietly leaving the hospital room, she wandered down the empty hallway. Her steps gradually slowed as she added one more question.

“Then, one last thing… Foreigners aren’t allowed to join the NIS, right?”