Chapter 236.1

Chapter 236.1

The Unwanted Guest 

I didn’t know how long I was trapped down there.

Every time I blinked, all I saw was a black ceiling tangled with spider webs. It felt like I’d been dreaming forever, but my head was always foggy, like there was a hole where my thoughts should’ve been.

Somewhere in the distance, gunfire cracked through the air, but I just sat there, sucking on my thumb.

I was hungry. Thirsty. I licked the salt off my fingers and, out of habit, rubbed the back of my head.

Every inch of me was broken. My buzzed scalp was dotted with long, red scars like worms, and the countless needle marks had turned parts of my skin black. I looked disgusting.

And I only had one testicle left. The thought made me feel even worse.

My hand brushed over the empty space between my legs before I curled up like a caterpillar.

I was nothing. Nothing at all. Not a person. Not an animal. Not even an insect.

I didn’t know my name or my age. I was just nothing.

“―!”

Then a blinding light tore into the underground, and a rough hand lifted my limp body. When I looked up, I saw a pair of fierce gray eyes trembling in front of me, and for some reason, I laughed.

Something cold ran down my spine. It felt like the end of an endless wait. My collarbone ached like it was splitting open.

“Ah… ah…”

Every time the trailer jolted over the uneven dirt road, my hips bounced. I wanted to curse, but my tongue was stiff, and only pitiful groans came out.

At first, every blink brought a new image; bloody corpses, moving stretchers, and one day, a pair of cold gray eyes.

The background and smells kept changing. I didn’t need anyone to tell me that I was being dragged somewhere.

But the man who always appeared at the edge of my vision never changed.

Who the hell was he?

Inside the trailer, the benches were pressed against both walls, so I could see him clearly.

When my focus finally steadied, I saw his eyes watching me. His cold, heavy gaze traced from my shaved head down to my thin, starved limbs. His expression stayed grim, but his stare never wavered.

Then the trailer lurched. My weak body slipped forward, and the man’s hand shot out, grabbing me hard.

“Damn it.” His touch burned against my skin, and I winced. His grip tightened around my thigh, his sharp gaze cutting through me. His fingers twitched, then stilled.

I didn’t think of anything. Couldn’t. Everything was a blur, dull, exhausting. My head felt like it had been smashed in long before I was born.

Maybe he sensed that I had no intention of fighting back, because he finally let go and sank back into his seat.

He sighed, wiping his weary face.

“You’ve been through hell,” he said, his low, hoarse voice carrying the weight of time and fatigue.

The man, clad in black combat gear from head to toe, began removing the pistol and other equipment attached to his vest.

Watching his wet hair drip down like dirty water, I thought he must’ve had it worse than me.

The thought alone made my mood turn foul.

I kept my mouth shut. The man wiped his face with a towel and muttered in a flat tone,

“Didn’t hear your tongue got cut off.”

He smelled like gunpowder and blood. It was oddly familiar, but so sickening I had to hold my breath for a moment.

“Sometimes that shadow that crosses Seoryeong’s face drives me crazy. So I spent two years behind my wife’s back chasing your trail.”

He took a deep breath, like he was trying to hold down the fatigue sitting in his chest.

“Not sure if you realize it, but a lot of time has passed. So stop playing dumb and talk. You must have something you want to say.”

I just blinked slowly, watching him talk to himself.

“Where do you want to go?”

He only ever asked questions that were hard to answer. He seemed like a nasty person.

When I lowered my head, pretending not to care, I caught sight of my black, rotting toenails. My ankles were swollen, my calves were pitted with deep gouges, and the dried blood on my palms was peeling off in flakes.

For a moment, an urge to crawl back into the dark hit me. My body wasn’t something meant to be seen under the light.

“You split your head halfway open and still move fine. That alone’s a miracle. So start over. Forget all the crap that happened. You deserve at least one decent shot at life.”

“….”

I yawned quietly. Then, without warning, he got up and forced my eyelids open, checking my pupils.

What the hell… Is this guy a doctor? But why would a doctor be carrying a gun?