The deafening engine noise made Seoryeong’s eyes widen. Kiya, who had been acting as if he would imprison her forever, alternating between pleading and anger, suddenly changed his attitude. He patted his priest’s robe and stood up. With a face that looked much more relieved, he released the chains and dragged Seoryeong to the top of the tower. A strong wind buffeted them, making her hair messy and stick to her face, while the propeller, like a dragonfly’s wing, spun rapidly. A helicopter with its gray sliding door wide open. Kiya grabbed Seoryeong’s arm and led her towards the helicopter, which looked as if it would take off any moment.
“Let go! Where are you taking me now—!”
“You have to go now.”
“……!”
“Return to Korea, open your eyes wide, and look for your husband, Sonya.”
“…….”
“That’s the only way I can bring you back.”
The continuously spinning propeller created a gust of wind that made her body sway. She thought she would finally be freed, but there wasn’t a single word about the other team members. Afraid of being separated from them, Seoryeong braced her legs and stared sharply at Kiya. Even as the wind raged around them, Kiya’s gaze remained sharp as he whispered: “Follow your instincts.”
Something small and hard, about the size of a knuckle, slipped into her palm.
“This is a location tracker, like a sticker that can be attached and detached.”
“……!”
“You only have one chance.”
The calm yet taunting voice tested and pushed her again. Kim Hyeon is near you.
“……!”
Even though it was swallowed by the sound of the propeller, Kiya’s lip movements were clearly readable. Seoryeong held her breath and frowned. She knew this was just Kiya’s way of messing with her mind, but her heart still pounded fiercely. Near? How near? When she pulled Kiya as if demanding an explanation, Kiya only smiled faintly and closed his lips tightly, not wanting to say more. Kim Hyeon, near me? That’s nonsense… He was a black agent who had never been tracked even once. She thought Kim Hyeon must be far from here, still working for the country. But… Dust and sand flew up from the propeller’s blast, scratching her cheek. Seoryeong tightly gripped the cold plastic in her palm. Finally, Kiya clasped her hand and offered a farewell like a prayer.
“Leave hope in the grave. If that day comes, you will call me, and I will answer.”
Eyes that slowly closed and then reopened looked at her with deep meaning. Then—CRASH!—the tower door burst open. In an instant, messy hair covered her vision and then swept aside. Seoryeong froze. A man entered the room, dragging one leg. The first thing she saw was his forehead gleaming with blood and oil, and his white, torn lips. Sharp metal fragments were embedded all over his body, and his clothes and both hands were stained with red blood. Each step he took with his military boots left a long trail of blood on the floor. He looked terrifyingly wounded, not a single part of his body seemed unharmed.
“Ah…”
An indescribable feeling welled up inside her. He held the long rifle that Ki Taemin often used, tucked under his armpit, and limped straight ahead. Not just limping, one of his legs seemed almost unusable. But the determined look in his eyes hadn’t changed in the slightest. Seeing those endless steps, Seoryeong’s heart sank. When their gazes finally met like magnets, time seemed to stop. His collapsing gaze was clearly etched like a photograph. It was as if a powerful wave of water surged into her chest.
“――.”
After that, her mind went blank. Seoryeong unconsciously pushed Kiya and tried to run towards Lee Wooshin. However, Kiya caught her and pushed her into the helicopter, then slammed the sliding door shut and pounded on the helicopter’s body. Seoryeong’s body slammed against the hard metal seat. The engine noise grew louder, and the helicopter began to ascend. Her ears rang.
“――!”
Seoryeong kicked the windowpane and looked at Kiya waving at her. Behind her, Lee Wooshin aimed his rifle at Kiya. However, due to the wind and his swaying body, the rifle barrel kept shaking. Even from a distance, one of his knees seemed to twitch violently, and his eyelids blinked slowly as if he would faint at any moment. He struck his knee with the rifle butt to stabilize himself. He looked like a broken machine continuing to run relentlessly. Seoryeong felt her head grow hot. She opened the helicopter door without hesitation. The cold wind assaulted her eyes, but she shouted with all her might.
“Instructor! Don’t use the rifle, get in here quickly! If not, I’ll jump from here…! I won’t go alone!”
As she truly bent her knees, ready to jump, the two men both looked towards her.
“Han Seoryeong, stay there—!”
“Sonya…”
Lee Wooshin threw his rifle to the ground and began to run. Kiya stood frozen with both arms open. His hobbling steps instantly transformed into those of a professional runner. If it weren’t for the trail of blood left on the rooftop floor, no one would have thought he was injured. He ran terrifyingly fast. Seoryeong’s gaze was fixed only on Lee Wooshin. But as the helicopter rose higher, Seoryeong immediately turned around and stormed into the cockpit. She cut the seatbelt and wrapped her arms in a crosslock around the pilot’s neck, pulling hard.
“Kgh… kgh…!”
“Спусти́сь!” (Spustís’! - “Go down!” in Russian) She didn’t even have time to be surprised at hearing herself shout in a foreign language. Go down! Go down! Seoryeong continued to press on the pilot’s neck, forcing him. The pilot’s face turned red. He frantically moved the control levers, as if giving up. As the helicopter began to nosedive, Seoryeong’s body was thrown against the adjacent seat.
“――!”
The helicopter’s tail brushed against the tower, knocking down fragments of a cross. As the helicopter tilted, the pilot managed to grab a pistol and point it at Seoryeong. Just as the trigger was about to be pulled, everything felt like it was moving in slow motion. Seoryeong held her breath and was about to kick, but just then, the pilot was struck on the head and slumped against the dashboard.
“You, do you even have a brain?!”
The voice she had longed for so much made her turn her head. Lee Wooshin, who was clinging tightly to the helicopter floor and had managed to crawl up, gasped for breath. His hair fluttered in the wind, sweeping across the dark circles under his red eyes.
“That…”
Seoryeong was at a loss for words. When she looked out the window, Kiya’s figure was gone. Only white smoke remained.
“When the enemy is pointing a gun at you, what are you spacing out looking at…―!”
Unable to hold back any longer, Seoryeong immediately hugged him tightly. The smell of blood from his body stung her nose. Lee Wooshin, who had been scolding her, instantly froze. Seoryeong just remained silent, hugging the man whose body had no unharmed part, even tighter. Her stomach felt nauseous from the endless floating sensation, and her trembling chest beat even more wildly. Han Seoryeong, he whispered silently.
“Haa… I was late. I wanted to come as quickly as possible, but―”
“…….”
“I apologize for shouting first.”
Lee Wooshin, who had momentarily lost focus, immediately hugged her tightly with both arms as if wanting to crush her. The wildly beating heart, it no longer mattered whose it was. Breaths trembling with relief warmed each other’s ears.
“Did the Pastor do anything strange to you?”
“You yourself, Instructor... you look quite severely injured.”
“Seoryeong, you have to answer first.”
Even though his body was almost collapsing on her shoulder, Lee Wooshin still forced her to answer in a firm tone.
“I... I’m fine. I just lay down, ate instant noodles too... even had a peaceful rest.”
“Didn’t eat anything strange? Or touch anything dangerous...”
“Not at all.”
She unconsciously lied while hiding the object she received from Kiya into her pocket. Soon, their bodies moved apart, and a mutual, scrutinizing gaze lasted for quite a while.
“Or... did you hear any incomprehensible nonsense?”
“……”
That name, Sonya, a foreign name that felt like a thorn pricking her heart, but Seoryeong only bit her lip and shook her head slightly. Seeing this, Lee Wooshin lowered his head and pleaded as if begging for something very important.
“Then, let’s go.”
“……!”
“Let’s just go together, Seoryeong.”
“…….”
“I don’t want to be separated from you for even a second longer.”
A subtle vibration began to be felt from beneath their feet. Seoryeong, who had frozen due to the strange feeling enveloping her, suddenly screamed while grabbing the handle on the ceiling.
“It’s shaking! Instructor—! The control room…!”
It wasn’t her that was swaying, but the helicopter was indeed shaking unstably. Because the pilot had lost consciousness and his body had fallen, pressing on the control stick, the helicopter continued to ascend endlessly. Truly, they had completely lost their minds to the point of not realizing it. Hearing her scream, Lee Wooshin immediately shot forward, pulled out the slumped pilot, and sat down in his place. He began to stabilize the helicopter by touching each instrument on the dashboard and the control panel on the ceiling.
“Ah…!”
Soon after, Seoryeong’s eyes widened. Bright spotlights and black smoke mingled before them. As the helicopter began to dive low, the wind caused by the propellers struck hard, flattening the field below. That was the crash site she still remembered clearly. On top of the severely damaged truck, almost unrecognizable, Ki Taemin stood alone, swinging a spotlight. As soon as she saw the face of her comrade-in-arms, all of Kiya’s words began to sink like black sediment to the bottom of her heart. The nightmare- like monastery was now buried in darkness and no longer even visible. And as the tension within her released, she collapsed onto the floor.