Chapter 194.1

Chapter 194.1

On the way back to the hideout, neither of them spoke a word. Seoryeong stubbornly kept her gaze fixed on the changing scenery outside the window, occasionally blinking her reddened eyes. She clenched her fists for no reason, not wanting to reveal her trembling hands borne of anger.

She wanted to slash the face in front of her into pieces, but reacting so violently only felt like proof that she hadn’t gotten over Lee Wooshin.

“…”

She had curled up for half a year, waiting for her wounds to heal, but it all seemed to have been in vain.

Then a wave of sorrow crashed over her.

It was Lee Wooshin… It really was Lee Wooshin…

By the time he crawled out a step too late, his figure was already nothing more than a speck in the rearview mirror.

She thought he wouldn’t recognize her with mask on… But the way he pierced right through her with a single glance made her chest tighten with a mix of emotion and pain. It was a feeling she couldn’t explain.

Eventually, they switched cars several times on their way to a new hideout. Even as Seoryeong inserted the key into a door at an unfamiliar place, she stripped off her clothes the moment they entered, as if this life had already become routine. Without even glancing at Kia, who trailed in behind, she slammed the door—bang!—and entered the bathroom.

She bent over, gripping the sink, as steam billowed from the scalding water. Ugh… The sobs threatened to escape her throat.

“…”

Half a year ago, she had left, refusing everything Wooshin said because she didn’t have the emotional capacity to deal with it. Her hands trembled as she stubbornly undressed and stepped into the tub. The hot water, almost peeling her skin, spilled over the edge.

“Ugh…”

Curling into herself, she buried her forehead against her knees. Just one encounter, and already her head was filled with thoughts of Lee Wooshin.

You were alive… You really were alive. That sense of relief heated her body rapidly.

She scooped up handfuls of bathwater and swished it in her mouth. It still felt like his thick tongue was touching every corner inside. She repeated the motion of scooping and spitting again and again, but the memories of his large hand caressing her refused to wash away. That was what made it so excruciating.

“Ugh…”

The heat of his flesh pressing in; how intense it was. The way his body burrowed into her… Seoryeong submerged her flushed back into the water completely.

But now… what’s the point of clinging to a bond that has already ended? Even offering her body, why was she searching? She bit down on her lower lip.

At that moment, the locked door opened too easily, and a familiar head of black hair appeared. Startled, she curled up, covering her chest with her arms.

“What the hell are you doing? Get out!”

“You’re the one who broke the promise between us first.”

“…!”

“I told you not to waver.”

Kia stepped into the opposite side of the tub with a splash. Water sloshed wildly, soaking his clerical robe in an instant. Under the crude lighting, his face looked gloomy yet chillingly calm.

She didn’t know where to start or how to unravel this tangle, it had her completely bound. A cross necklace floated atop the water.

“God said, even if it’s delayed, to keep hoping. That it will surely come to pass, that it won’t be late. So keep waiting. That’s Habakkuk, Chapter 2, Verse 3.”

He stared at Seoryeong’s naked body for a moment.

“I waited earnestly, Sonya. You know that. For the past half-year, I’ve remained faithful to you. That holds true even now.”

The water rippled again. He leaned forward suddenly, propping himself on the edge of the tub. His shadow fell over her face, and the back of her head touched the cold tile of the tub.

If what he said was true, then the fact that nothing had happened between them until now was purely thanks to Kia’s restraint.

Knowing her safety had been preserved by someone else’s self-control was not a pleasant thought. Seoryeong stiffened.

Her hands, clutched between her armpits to cover her chest, and her closed legs both pulsed with tension.

She didn’t want to show him anything—anything at all. She couldn’t move recklessly.

Only now did she clearly feel the line drawn between them.

With Kia, it wasn’t that kind of relationship.

And it never could be.

“Did you already forget? Lee Wooshin deceived you over and over again.”

“…”

“He’s the one who kept the biggest secret from you.”

“I know…”

“No, you don’t know a thing.”

His tri-white eyes glanced past her arm to the breast peeking out. He licked his lower lip thickly, unable to take his eyes off her smooth skin.

“His real name is Yuri Solzhenitsyn. The only blood of Maxim Solzhenitsyn, who ravaged the Koryo-saram brothers…! While we were suffering, that young master lived in luxury! Doesn’t that disgust you?”