Chapter 113.2

Chapter 113.2

The man jolted awake, throwing off his blanket and sitting up abruptly. Beads of sweat rolled down Lee Wooshin’s chin, his body drenched enough to soak the sheets.

It had been a long time since a nightmare had left him in such a state. In the stillness of the monastery, devoid even of the chirping of insects, he dragged a hand down his face.

Kia and Sonya…

The unfamiliar names stabbed at his chest. Even pronouncing them felt heavy, frightening.

Sonya… Kia… Kiara…

“――.”

Perhaps returning to this land after so long had frayed his nerves. The entire day had been plagued by unease that clung to him like a shadow.

The connections between the Winter Fortress, the Russian Orthodox Church, and the black-haired children were steadily becoming clearer. Adding to that was Rigay’s act of terrorism, which had blown all the evidence into sharp relief—it was undoubtedly significant.

Rising from the bed, Lee Wooshin felt as if he was standing at the threshold of something monumental.

The lingering questions he had about the Solzhenitsyn family estate. The incidents at the Winter Fortress, where government officials, religious factions, and scientists had been entangled.

If there was one thing tying them all together, it was the sheer power to reshape the world.

Bearing the onset of a throbbing headache, he staggered as he walked. A gnawing unease coiled deep in his gut, propelling him faster with each step.

For reasons he couldn’t explain, he desperately wanted to see Seoryeong.

The feeling was unbearable, like something was about to happen. Had it started when he saw that mask? His pounding heart refused to calm down, as if fueled by a relentless rush of caffeine.

As if letting his guard down for even a moment would trigger disaster—

“What… what nonsense is this?!”

Suddenly, a heated voice rang out, fragmented but loud.

At this hour? What’s causing such a commotion? More importantly, the voice sounded familiar.

Lee Wooshin’s expression hardened. Without hesitation, he raced toward the source of the noise—her room.

“…I told you to stop spouting nonsense, didn’t I?”

Another cracked voice erupted, splitting the tense air. “Sonya, Sonya,” the urgent, low voice repeated, like the fragments of a heated argument.

Thud. Thud. Something heavy hit the floor with dull thumps. A muffled sob followed—a sound of someone trying to swallow their tears. The chaos beyond the door reverberated through the worn wooden floor.

Lee Wooshin grasped the doorknob with the intent to tear it off and twisted it violently.

“Let go of me! Let go!”

What he saw next froze the blood in his veins.

“Don’t! Don’t touch me… Hic, get away, get away!”

“Sonya, calm down, Sonya!”

“If all you’re going to do is spew nonsense, then just get out!”

“Don’t cry. I’m sorry. Please don’t cry.”

Her room was a wreck. Her belongings lay scattered across the floor in utter disarray. In the middle of it all, the two of them were entangled, locked in what looked like a violent struggle.

Between her forcefully parted lips, something bright red pushed its way in. The wet sound of flesh being sucked was sickeningly vivid.

“――.”

What the hell is this?

His mind went blank. The scene flickered in and out of focus, like a hammer had struck his head, blackening his vision before it returned.

Kia consumed her lips as if trying to devour her entirely. His grip crushed her jaw, and her cheeks hollowed painfully with each agonizing pull.

Even as Seoryeong grimaced and tried to push him away, her sobs broke through in disjointed gasps.

Lee Wooshin lunged at them without thinking. Fury ignited every vein in his body, flooding them with molten rage. In a single motion, he grabbed Kia by the neck and wrenched him away from her.

“Han Seoryeong—!”

His shout shattered the air like a lightning strike, plunging the room into a suffocating silence.

But the sight of her swollen, bloodied lips—violated by another man—sent a murderous wave surging through him.

Damn it! His face hardened as he reached out to steady Seoryeong, but—Smack! His hand recoiled before it could touch her, stinging from the force of her rejection.

The situation made no sense. As his face twisted in utter confusion, his eyes locked with hers—red-rimmed and brimming with an eerie disdain. She glared at him as if he were some vile, loathsome creature.

“I just heard something truly insane.”

Her empty gaze darkened with an unsettling clarity. Slowly, she muttered, almost as if biting down on her words.

“You’re… really—”

A trembling laugh, jagged like a broken arc, escaped her lips.

“Are you Kim Hyun?”