Chapter 159.1

Chapter 159.1

An exotic melody flowed from the radio.

Since the Dagestan region under Russian rule used the Azerbaijani language, Seoryeong picked up a few familiar words as she recalled the vicious bear and the children from the western territory.

Endless stretches of rugged rocks and red reflective barrier zones passed by outside the car window, but Wooshin kept driving faster without saying a word since earlier.

The two had spent about seventeen hours at the airport and on the plane before arriving in Azerbaijan.

Even though Wooshin draped a blanket over her when she closed her eyes in exhaustion during the flight, it only made her nerves fray further.

Blast, the organization she belonged to, seemed on the verge of collapse for some reason. She had even witnessed the murder scene of a high-ranking NIS official with her own eyes, yet no one was chasing them.

And the shooter who fired the gun was…

“Haah…”

Her pair hadn’t changed at all. It gave her a headache and left a bitter taste in her mouth.

She wanted to ask Wooshin what Chief Joo Seolheon had been thinking when he pulled them out as if protecting them, but now wasn’t the right time.

He was hiding his identity as an NIS agent, so she couldn’t act like she knew.

At least not now.

The strange relationship between Chief Joo Seolheon and Rigay, and Kia watching over them. Se’d probably have to ask Kia directly, since she was involved.

These thoughts clogged her mind, but from the moment she boarded the plane and saw the shrinking land below, everything felt insignificant.

Her ears, resisting gravity, felt clogged, and her turbulent emotions gradually settled. All the chaos had already blurred like a dream.

She fiddled with the rosary Rigay had forced onto her. A bracelet with beads as transparent as glass.

Logically, she should’ve taken it off immediately since it belonged to a dead person, but surprisingly, she didn’t feel that urge. Counting each bead one by one somehow put her at ease.

“Instructor.”

Seoryeong rested her chin against the window, gazing at the scenery before suddenly speaking up.

“Don’t we kinda look like fugitives?”

“Huh?”

“Like criminals on the run.”

“….”

“In movies, bad guys always run away like this. And then they get unlucky and get caught by cops chasing them for running a red light.”

She deliberately turned to look behind them, but no suspicious cars were following.

Disappointed, she shrugged, and Wooshin, who had been lost in thought since the flight, suddenly chuckled.

Her gaze lingered on the slight curve of his eyes. It felt like his first genuine laugh in a long time.

“Anyway, how are we gonna make a living now?”

“Worried about getting your hands dirty?”

“Honestly, we quit without a backup plan! What about the Special Security Team members? They’re not gonna end up in prison or something, right?”

“If they’re unlucky.”

“Haah!”

As she pressed her forehead against the window, his gaze settled firmly on her.

“Tell me, do I look like someone who doesn’t have money?”

“What kind of question is that?”

“When I first came to Korea, I struggled financially, but I never actually thought I had no money.”

“Is this some kind of mental victory?”

When she asked in disbelief, the corner of Wooshin’s mouth curled smoothly. He didn’t seem inclined to explain further, simply turning the steering wheel with ease.

Despite being in an unfamiliar country, he looked completely natural, prompting Seoryeong to watch him curiously.

“Instructor, have you been here before?”

“I have.”

His unexpected answer made her eyes widen.

“This is also a war zone. A long-standing territorial dispute with Armenia escalated from civil war to full-scale war. It’s under a ceasefire now, but sporadic skirmishes still break out.”

Seoryeong nodded silently.

“They’ve violated the ceasefire agreement three times, firing short-range missiles without warning. When you suddenly suggested coming here for a honeymoon, I got a headache just thinking about it.”