Chapter 85.2

Chapter 85.2

–“Not much, just a brief encounter in the same space.”

At those words, a curse nearly slipped out of his mouth. Despite the amount of alcohol he had consumed, his usually clear-headed mind wavered for a moment. His blood coursed hotter through his veins as the alcohol rapidly took effect.

When you work for a military contractor, unexpected dangers are inevitable.

He had wanted to get rid of Han Seoryeong, but in the end, he couldn’t, so he kept her close. He believed that if he trained and interfered with her strictly, she would at least have a minimal safety net.

–“But a few of Blast Agency’s security guards died too, so that’s going to stir things up over there as well.”

Yet, perhaps that was arrogance too. Hearing that she had encountered a dangerous individual in a place where he wasn’t, his insides twisted strangely. It felt as if a control mechanism had broken, allowing raw emotions to surge.

He tugged at his collar as though tearing off an invisible necktie. His mouth went dry from the sudden anxiety that had blindsided him.

He wanted to distance Han Seoryeong from all of this, but Kim Hyun—Kim Hyun was always the problem.

–“Wooshin… You should wrap up your undercover mission as soon as possible.”

Yeah, he had to make her let go of Kim Hyun, the sooner the better.

He needed her to see how futile her trust was… Yet Han Seoryeong still acted blindly, unable to open her eyes to the truth.

As Wooshin climbed into the back seat, he blinked against his spinning vision. The director’s words no longer registered in his ears.

As his head sank deep into the hard headrest, a heavy sigh escaped him. Before he knew it, his face had settled into a cold expression.

***

Seoryeong, who had passed out right after getting home, woke up in the middle of the night.

Her throat parched, and she struggled to push the blanket aside and sit up. She didn’t have to force her sleepy eyes open to navigate her home, which was especially comforting when she woke up in the middle of the night.

Dragging her dry feet, she shuffled toward the kitchen. She blindly grabbed a cup, filled it with water from the dispenser, and drank. As she was about to return to bed.

“Ah!”

She collided with something large. Her drowsiness evaporated as she blinked her eyes wide open, only to find Lee Wooshin standing there like an old tree.

Her lips parted in surprise, and quickly snapped shut. It was the first time they’d faced each other like this since that night, and pretending not to notice the awkward atmosphere required more effort than expected.

“What are you doing here?”

He stood motionless by the wall as if he had just come in from outside or had not even bothered to change his clothes yet. Wooshin’s gaze was fixed on the same thing as always—her empty wedding frame.

“I can’t sleep at the thought of taking Han Seoryeong on a business trip.”

He finally began to remove his coat and wristwatch, his face showing deep contemplation.

“Isn’t the house too quiet?”

He asked dryly, rubbing his face.

At that moment, Seoryeong wrinkled her nose and inhaled sharply. What is that… smell?

“Did you drink?”

Surprised by the faint scent of alcohol, she asked cautiously. His clear, yet somewhat loosened gaze, slowly curved as if to confirm her guess.

He leaned one shoulder against the wall and started looking down at her. Feeling his heavy gaze settle on her, she tried to avoid it and asked,

“Are you that busy?”

“Very.”

“Because of that equatorial business trip?”

“Not just that. There’s a lot of work I have to handle behind the scenes.”

“…”

“There’s so much dirty work in the world you don’t even know about.”

Did he just… speak sharply, as if mocking her?

Wooshin casually averted his gaze back to the empty frame. Sometimes, he would stare at that blank wall with an unreadable expression.

She had seen him do this countless times now—gaze lingering on the frame before it drifted away. At this point, she figured it might be better to just ask directly.

“Are you curious? About why that frame is empty?”

“….”

Wooshin didn’t respond. It was unclear whether he was curious or not; he showed no signs of any emotion. It was as if he had never cared about the frame in the first place and was just asking strange questions.

“Did you clip your nails?”

“What?”

What is he even talking about now?

Seoryeong glanced at him suspiciously, wondering if this was drunk talk. At the same time, her hand was suddenly seized, pulled right in front of his face.