Chapter 164.2

Chapter 164.2

Only after arriving at the primordial land did she finally see her own emptiness. And then, the vengeance and obsession that had filled her mind, it all seemed like a problem that stemmed from her.

Greed for what was never meant to ruin a person. Slowly, she lifted her finger from the trigger.

“I’m going back to being Sonya.”

The tension that had fiercely bridged the space between them began to loosen.

Sensing her withdrawal, Wooshin suddenly gripped the gun from the other side.

Sonya? His lips moved soundlessly.

“Sonya, you said?”

His dazed eyes locked onto her, as if struck in a vulnerable spot. Even bound in chains, he had always carried himself with ease, but now, his expression was unreadable.

Was this what he looked like when all composure vanished? His face was paler than when she had exposed his identity, frost creeping into his gaze.

His pupils wavered, like cold water had been dumped over him, somewhere between shock and sharpened vigilance.

The man, now deathly pale, spoke, “You… remember?”

“So the NIS knew I had a past too.”

“….”

“You people are truly disgusting.”

Seoryeong lowered her head and let out a quiet, bitter laugh. There was no expectation left in her, no resentment, just the desire to leave.

“I already wanted to go. This works out perfectly. I’ll return to where I was supposed to be. Where I was born. And how exactly will you stop me? Blow me up like that tire?”

“Han Seoryeong, watch your mouth!”

His voice was a rough growl, a familiar scolding that made her flinch, but she quickly shook off the useless sentiment.

Just then, blinding headlights flooded over them. The roar of an approaching car shattered the fragile space between them, its vibrations rattling the air.

The moment Seoryeong began to lower the gun, Wooshin’s eyes darkened. He tightened his grip on the weapon, refusing to let go. His expression was terrifyingly certain.

“I don’t regret it.”

“…!”

“So what if I loved you twice, Seoryeong? Even if I went back to the day I first received my mission, ”

She saw his teeth grit.

“I’d become Kim Hyun again. I’d become Han Seoryeong’s husband. The best thing I ever did was become everything to you, why would I regret that? The only reason I met you was because I was an agent. Twice isn’t enough.”

“…!”

“I’d love you again, three times, four times, as many times as it takes.”

He shoved the gun barrel away from his chest and grabbed the back of her neck. His burning lips seized hers in a sharp, biting kiss before pulling away.

“So no, I won’t let you go, not even if you’re Sonya. Not even if you’re a beast.”

At that moment, a dizzying wave of vertigo hit her. Over Wooshin’s tall figure, still gripping the gun, she saw the faint, overlapping image of a beautiful, pale-haired boy.

Seoryeong shook her head, trying to focus, but it wasn’t easy.

Why do I feel so lightheaded? Is this… the dr*g? Is it affecting me too? Did I swallow too much of him earlier? Frustration flickered across her face.

Yet the strange hallucinations continued.

As the boy in the Russian kubanka fur hat glared coldly at her, Wooshin forced her finger back onto the trigger.

A chilling premonition ran down her spine.

He pressed the gun barrel against his own body, guiding it with precision, then clamped down on Seoryeong’s index finger.

The boy shot her.

Bang!

Her body jerked backward from the recoil.

“Ah…”

It happened before she could even react. Seoryeong’s mind, dulled and sluggish, couldn’t process what had just happened.

The cold metal of the trigger under her finger, the warmth of the man’s hand forcing hers down, it all felt too vivid.

When she blinked dazedly, she saw Lee Wooshin, his face deathly pale, cough up blood.

Only then did she notice the acrid smoke curling from the gun barrel.

‘What… is this? What just happened?’

Her breath hitched in her throat. The cold air tasted metallic, like blood.

A car screeched to a halt across the road, and a foreign stranger in the driver’s seat pulled out his phone.

What the hell? Still stunned, Seoryeong looked down at her own hand, then lower.

“Uh… In-Instructor?”

Wooshin was collapsing, blood pouring from his side. The bullet had torn through his torso.

The sight of crimson staining the desert sand snapped her back to reality. She lunged forward, but before she could reach him, Wooshin, coughing painfully, grabbed her wrist in an iron grip.

“Understand? You’re never going to Russia.”

Even as blood seeped from his wound, he refused to let go.

“If you try to run…”

His eyes were losing focus, yet he smiled at her like she was something beautiful.

“Starting right now, you’ll be wanted by Interpol for attempted spousal murder.”