Chapter 25
Fortunately, there was nothing visible behind the car yet. Thanks to Shin Hae-jun’s reckless driving, the rear was vast enough to be considered empty.
Glancing down the cleared road, Shin Hae-jun subtly furrowed his brow.
That “wide open” meant that the loud sounds of this car accident and the tires spinning could easily draw out the infected at any moment.
Shin Hae-jun added, seeing Min Ahyeon’s eyes flicking between the rearview and side mirrors.
“What I’m doing is right. Or do you have a better idea?”
It was a question disguised as a command. A directive to shut up and stay still. A typical military style. It wasn’t that she disliked it, just that she disliked it coming from Shin Hae-jun.
‘While it’s right that we need to move as quickly as possible…’
Even without going outside, just thinking about the battered state of the jeep gave Min Ahyeon a headache. Pressing her throbbing temple, she said.
“Yongcheol will be furious.”
Not just mad, but absolutely furious… Min Ahyeon abruptly shut her mouth as a past memory suddenly surfaced. After asking Shin Hae-jun if he knew who he was, he was very…. Choi Yongcheol was beaten to dust on a rainy day.
“Is Yongcheol’s anger that important to you?”
“Are you asking because you know whose car this is?”
“That’s not the point. Is Yongcheol so important to you, Min Ahyeon?”
At the same time, the car crashed into another vehicle in front of them with a deafening thud. Shin Hae-jun didn’t stop there. The rusty, old car that had been rammed in the side screeched and slid sideways, finally yielding the path.
“More important than you.”
“Than me?”
“More important than General Shin Hae-jun.”
“Oh, really?”
At Ahyeon’s blunt words, Shin Hae-jun burst into laughter. But his eyes seemed fierce, as if he were planning something for tomorrow. What was so unpleasant? The mention of Yongcheol being important? Or…
“Except when I’m on a mission.”
“Is that so?”
The implied meaning of “Is that so?” was clear. So does that mean Yongcheol isn’t important now? Although being pressured for an answer was distasteful, Ahyeon wasn’t foolish enough to push back.
“Not at the moment.”
“So, who’s more important to you right now then?”
“…My client.”
That was the furthest Ahyeon could concede. For some reason, she couldn’t bring herself to utter those three letters—Shin Hae-jun. Well, it wouldn’t be entirely wrong to use another name. After spitting that out, she immediately turned her gaze out the window.
Though there was no response from Shin Hae-jun, a subtle smile curved his lips as he adjusted the steering wheel with a flick of his wrist. It was a different smile from before, clearly satisfied with Ahyeon’s answer.
Her stomach felt queasy. Was it due to the rough driving, her nausea, Shin Hae-jun sitting beside her, or the fact that even in such a situation, she couldn’t help but feel uneasy? Or perhaps it was because she could anticipate Yongcheol’s inevitable complaints?
Shin Hae-jun didn’t try to engage Min Ahyeon in conversation any further.
Thud, thud… clunk…
Of course, the silence was limited to the inside of the car. Crash, bang. Shin Hae-jun’s bizarrely skilled driving continued to smash through the road and damaged vehicles. It was fortunate that the car was still moving forward, at least.
Fortunately…
Thankfully…
Crash!
Without saying a word, Min Ahyeon stubbornly stared out the window, her body jostled up and down as Shin Hae-jun’s reckless driving demolished the Jeep and the road.
Damn it!
She tried to keep the curse from escaping her lips. She definitely didn’t want to open her mouth anymore. She didn’t want to risk sounding rude or inappropriate, especially in this situation.
There was a strange balance in the car. Ahyeon looked out the window while Shin Hae-jun drove. At first glance, it seemed like they were each engrossed in something different, but they both knew better than that.
‘Am I the only one feeling this way?’
It was a moment when she suddenly harbored doubts and glanced at Shin Hae-jun.
Thud, screech!
The jeep Shin Hae-jun was driving finally leaped over an obstacle. From here on, it was somewhat smoother. Like a road roller clearing the broken asphalt, Shin Hae-jun cautiously maneuvered through the rough road ahead.
‘So he only crashes into things when it’s necessary.’
Glancing at Shin Hae-jun’s indifferent expression, focused solely on the driving and not sparing a single glance her way, Min Ahyeon felt a bit embarrassed and scratched the back of her neck.
Memories of the night they spent together flooded her mind, making Ahyeon feel as if she were the only one stuck in the past.
Her throat suddenly felt dry. Her cheeks also felt a bit flushed, so Min Ahyeon cleared her throat uncomfortably, pretending the seatbelt was bothering her.
That’s when it happened.
“When were you planning to bring it up?”
Shin Hae-jun suddenly threw out this unexpected question. She wanted to retort, “What are you talking about?”, but no, Min Ahyeon knew exactly what he was asking about.
Last night, during the infection wave that hit the Seoul shelter, Shin Hae-jun had been bitten and Min Ahyeon had fed him her blood, and he hadn’t become infected—he was asking about that incident.
She briefly wondered if he was asking about the fact that they had been intimate, but the Shin Hae-jun she knew wasn’t the type to pry into that. He would likely just dismiss it as casually as one might swat away a bug, just like he had done this morning.
So, what Shin Hae-jun was really asking was, ‘How did the infection not progress?’
Ahyeon pursed her lips and let out a long sigh.
“I thought you were overlooking it.”
“Well, a reasonable level of discretion is better than ignoring it completely. The fact that I didn’t report it up the chain is consideration enough on my part.”
Considerate, aren’t you? Setting that aside, the fact that you didn’t report it up is truly surprising. Ahyeon turned her gaze, widening her eyes to look at him. Shin Hae-jun, however, remained expressionless as usual.
“Really, you didn’t report it? Not even to the Commander?”
“No, I didn’t. Why don’t you trust what I say?”
“Why?”
At Min Ahyeon’s skeptical tone, Shin Hae-jun brushed the bangs stuck to his forehead, slightly furrowing his brow.
“Just because.”
“Just because?” Among all the answers Shin Hae-jun, a person who always spoke with sharp precision, could give, “Just because” was the least expected.
“There must have been a reason you didn’t report it. Please explain properly.”
Min Ahyeon pressed him immediately. It was such a serious matter to her.
On the other hand, Ahyeon’s attitude seemed amusing to Shin Hae-jun. It sounded as if she believed she knew him very well.
He smirked, as if mocking her.
How would an outsider like Min Ahyeon know the reason he didn’t report this anomaly, when he himself wasn’t even sure?
“Surely you don’t forget, do you?”
Whether or not Shin Hae-jun wanted to continue the conversation, Ahyeon pursued him. Shin Hae-jun hesitated to answer, pursing his lips.
Of course, the memory of that moment wasn’t crystal clear, but it wasn’t completely forgotten either. It was as vivid as the instinctive feeling he had when he drank Ahyeon’s blood, bit her lips, and swallowed her.
It felt like an instinctive urge, like a horny dog eager to devour her and hold her in any way possible.
Shin Hae-jun knew well how he normally viewed Min Ahyeon. He couldn’t deny that he desired her. It was so obvious, how could he not know?
But his actions that night weren’t driven solely by desire. Shin Hae-jun had never moved based on mere desire before. Impulse? That was foreign to him. Excitement, adrenaline—those were only needed on the battlefield, and he knew how to harness his adrenaline properly.
And that night, it was unnecessary.
No, that’s not it. That night…
🕂
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