Chapter 195.2

Chapter 195.2

“We couldn’t find her. She switched cars several times, and Russia doesn’t have as many CCTVs as Korea… so we lost her trail.”

The voice on the line was heavy with guilt.

Lee Wooshin clenched his jaw, rubbing his hollowed cheeks, his body weakened from days of fever.

Even when his mind drifted in the haze of heat, the faint trace of her scent lingered in his senses, and his body would react instantly, as if taunted by memory.

Ever since realizing she was both his first and last love, every inch of him ached with a madness he couldn’t contain.

That moment when he had touched the inside of her mouth, he had never been more certain of anything. The soft tremor of her lips, the delicate flesh that melted beneath the tip of his tongue, the neat alignment of her teeth, the tender groove behind them, the rush of warm breath and saliva whenever his tongue brushed her palate.

And especially, the way she would scratch his forearm every time he sucked on the root of her tongue, an instinct that belonged only to Han Seoryeong. It was something only a man who had once been her husband would recognize.

To have found his wife again after all that, only to lose her right before his eyes—it felt like his insides were dissolving.

He sank into the sofa, resting his head back. His Adam’s apple rose and fell slowly as a sigh slipped from his lips.

“Sorry, but that’s what you call a delusion,” Na Wonchang muttered in a dry tone.

Wooshin tilted his head at the absurd remark, the leather of the sofa creaking softly beneath him.

The main house was alive with movement as staff members bustled about, but Wooshin didn’t even glance their way. His breath still came out hot, a sign the fever hadn’t left him.

Propping his head with one hand, he tapped his slippered foot lazily against the floor. His expression said, Go on, let’s hear what nonsense you’ve got next.

“Maybe she just happened to use the same perfume. When people get desperate, they start believing even lies are real.”

“So?”

“If we consider your state of mind after running yourself ragged, it’s more likely it was just a mistake. In this line of work, suspicion comes first.”

“For once, you’re making sense.”

“R-right? I compared her build with Owl’s. The shape of her hands and face were kind of similar, but Owl was more muscular, and that brown-haired woman was thinner. Her posture wasn’t as steady either.”

“So what are you getting at?”

“Well…”

“You think I forced myself on some random woman?”

“Yeah, well… if she said no and you still did it, that’s a crime, you know…”

Lee Wooshin leaned back, one arm draped loosely over the sofa, his face unreadable. A cold draft swept through the room.

His hair fluttered, exposing the suffocating layers of bandages beneath. A few days earlier, he’d tried to rip them off and open his eyes by force, only to set his recovery back. He scratched at the thick wrappings in frustration and muttered,

“What you see isn’t everything.”

“…Bullshit…”

This time, it was Heo Channa’s voice from his left ear, small and trembling, as if it didn’t even sound like her.

“You asked us to be your eyes. If you weren’t going to believe us, why ask at all?”

Looking completely exasperated, Na Wonchang’s voice burst in from the other side.

“Were you just going to kiss random women until one of them matched Owl? Brown hair, brown eyes, that’s it? The build and size were different! Why’d you kiss her? You won’t even fake being a couple, but kissing’s fine? That’s a serious double standard, man!”

Whatever seriousness his tone had quickly dissolved into whining.

“Haa…”

Wooshin exhaled heavily, pressing a hand to his temple. I’m telling you, it was her. No matter what the analysis programs said, it wasn’t data that convinced him but the pull in his chest and his body’s reaction.

He had no words for that certainty. He only ground his teeth, trying to hold it in.

While he struggled to rein in his temper, the chatter continued in both ears.

“Channa, why’re you so quiet today? You’re usually the one yelling the loudest about this stuff.”

Channa made a thoughtful noise. “Hmm…” Then she went silent again.

The two of them started arguing, and Wooshin ripped out the in-ear communicator.

Just before the line cut, the last thing he heard was Na Wonchang shouting near his ear, “But still, she’s nothing like Natalia Yegorova!”

“I know, fuck…”

The words slipped out, heavy with longing.