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CHAPTER 01
A familiar man stood in an unfamiliar place.
“Gasp!”
Chohee’s eyes widened as she clapped both hands over her mouth.
She had called the man before her by many names.
At first, she called him a “shameless scoundrel.” Or, if not that, a “lecher.” But the title she had thought would never change took an unexpected turn after their secret contract together.
In an instant, the “scoundrel” became her “husband.”
It had only been a contract, but he became family. Like clothes slowly dampened by a drizzle, he had quietly become the person Chohee trusted most.
Until she discovered who he really was.
The last name she called him was “traitor.” So she ran away from him as if fleeing for her life. From the lecher, from the traitor, and…
From her own husband.
And yet, the man she thought she would never see again had appeared before her once more.
“H-how are you here…?”
Chohee froze on the spot. The man, too, seemed not to have expected her appearance; confusion flickered across his sculpted face.
“Why are you here? I was clearly told one of our comrades would be in this room—”
Chohee realized her mistake and quickly bit her lip.
How could she make such a foolish slip?
She had nearly leaked important information so carelessly. Had seeing him again after so long muddled her mind? Pressing her lips tightly together, Chohee swallowed the sigh threatening to escape.
“Forget what I just sai—”
“My wife?”
Before she could finish, his low voice cut between them.
My wife…
Hearing the title again after three months nearly made her knees give out.
He took a step toward her.
Then, slowly emphasizing each word, he spoke.
“Are you truly… my wife? And if you are here, then that means…”
Before he could finish, the sound of hurried footsteps thundered outside the door. Japanese voices rang out beyond it.
{This way!}
The police were searching for Chohee.
She had barely escaped, and of all places to hide, she had stumbled into a room with him in it. But there was no time to be picky now. Looking up at him, she spoke.
“Dowoon—”
The moment she called his name, Dowoon grabbed her wrist.
“Ah—!”
Before she could react, she was pulled helplessly into his arms.
She squeezed her eyes shut, expecting to crash into his chest, but instead careful arms wrapped around her gently.
Before she knew it, she was sitting on his lap with her arms around his neck, clinging to him as she tried to steady herself.
He had pulled her in, but to anyone watching, it would look as though she had thrown herself at him first.
“L-let go of me!”
“Shh. If you don’t want to be discovered, stay quiet.”
Dowoon raised a finger to silence her.
“Stay still.”
As he whispered, he grabbed the hem of her skirt and lifted it sharply, exposing her pale thighs.
Chohee inhaled sharply at his sudden touch. Before she could protest, Dowoon pulled her tightly against him. His firm arms trapped her so completely she couldn’t move.
“Shh.”
As though soothing a child, Dowoon exhaled softly against her. Without even a chance to resist, Chohee buried her face against his chest.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
Dowoon’s heartbeat echoed loudly in her ears. The hand resting at the nape of her neck felt burning hot.
The familiar scent of him made her relax before she even realized it.
How ridiculous. She had worked so hard to run away, only to end up right back where she started.
Once again, she was in this man’s arms.
Bang!
As the door burst open, Chohee squeezed her eyes shut and pressed herself closer into Dowoon’s embrace.
Praying desperately that this traitorous ex-husband would save her.
Half a year earlier.
Click, click—
The sound of heels striking the wooden floors of Simpson Hall echoed through the corridor.
Creak—bang!
Soon, a door burst open urgently.
“You should knock before entering, Miss Seong.”
Without even looking up, the middle-aged white woman scolded the young woman who had rushed into her office.
“Is it true the school is shutting down, Principal Frey?”
At the tearful voice, Principal Frey finally raised her head.
“Yes, Miss Seong.”
Standing before her was Seong Chohee, a young woman with large eyes that looked ready to spill tears at any moment.
Dressed in Western-style clothing, with her hair curled in the fashionable American style, she was quite beautiful.
Frey had met many Korean women, but Chohee stood out even among them.
She still remembered the first day they met clearly.
“I’m amazed. A Korean woman who learned English on her own to this level? How did you manage it?”
“There were foreign books in my house.”
“Your father must have been an interpreter.”
“…Yes.”
Impressed by her hard work, Frey hired her. And for the past three years, Chohee had taught the children faithfully without missing a single day.
Once the school closed, this young woman would lose her livelihood too.
“What will happen to the students who have nowhere to go? Principal, please don’t close the school!”
Seeing her worry more for the students than for herself, Principal Frey answered calmly.
“The Governor-General’s Office has made its decision. Since our students were found to be involved in the independence movement, there is nothing we can do.”
“But Principal—”
“I will be leaving here soon.”
“L-leaving?”
Chohee stared in shock.
It pained Frey deeply, but there was nothing she could do for the young woman now. Chohee would have to find her own way to survive.
So Frey bid her farewell.
“Yes, Miss Seong. I have one favor to ask of you. Will you grant it?”
“Of course.”
“Please don’t lose yourself to these times. Don’t let yourself be swept away. Survive. If you survive, spring will come someday.”
Swallowing her tears, Chohee nodded.
“Yes, I will, Principal.”
After losing her job at the school, Chohee felt as though the world had collapsed.
It hurt to lose the colleagues and students she loved, but an even bigger problem was money.
“At this rate, I’ll starve to death before the times crush me, Principal Frey.”
Sighing bitterly, Chohee plopped down near Sungnyemun Gate. Dust rose from the bustling crowds and carts rushing past her, clouding the air like her uncertain future.
“How is it possible that after searching for a whole month, I still can’t find work?”
Tilting her head back in frustration, she looked up at the blue sky.
“The weather’s nice. Too bad my heart’s full of storm clouds.”
She had searched tirelessly for work, wandering nearly every street within the city walls.
But every attempt ended in failure.
“What use is speaking foreign languages in a restaurant?”
“We just need strong laborers. Miss, look at those skinny arms of yours. You’d collapse carrying anything.”
No one wanted a Korean woman like her.
“The only people interested in her were swindlers and gisaeng house recruiters.”
“If you sell this jade to just three people, you’ll make money. Want to try?”
“You’ve got a pretty face. How about working at Hongeungak?”
She even tried complaining to her older brother.
“It’s alright, Chohee. Your brother will earn the money. Since things have come to this, maybe you should consider marriage? You’re already in your mid-twenties.”
But at his subtle suggestion of marriage, she fell silent.
With the country in ruins, what was the point of marriage?
Chohee already had all the family she needed in her older brother, Chihoon.
“Speaking of which, Oppa, you told me to meet you here this morning. Why are you so late?”
Just as she was growing tired of waiting, she spotted a familiar face through the crowd. A bright smile spread across her face immediately.
“Oppa!”
Her brother Chihoon, six years older than her, had the same large eyes she did.
But today, his expression was unusually dark.
Instead of greeting her, Chihoon grabbed her wrist and hurried forward.
“Oppa, what’s wrong?”
“Just follow me without questions, Chohee.”
A faint smell of gunpowder clung to his hand.
Her expression stiffened instantly.
“Oppa… what’s that smell?”
Chihoon didn’t answer.
Gunpowder… could it be from a gun? Anxiety swept over her.
No. That couldn’t be right. Her brother would never use a gun. He had promised not to get involved in dangerous idealistic things like the independence movement.
So the smell couldn’t possibly be from a gun.
“Oppa, where are we going?!”
Soon, Chohee found out. They stopped at Namdaemun Station.
The largest station in Gyeongseong, where trains traveled south to Busan and north to Sinuiju.
“Chohee, listen carefully.”
Looking tense, Chihoon pulled out a train ticket and a small note from his pocket.
“This note has an address on it. Stay there, and I’ll come find you.”
“Wait—where are you suddenly sending me?”
“Sinuiju. Hurry and take it.”
Sinuiju was a city at the northernmost edge of Korea.
Chohee blinked in confusion.
“Sinuiju? Why there? Oppa, what’s going on?”
“There’s no time to explain. The police searched our house. You need to leave now.”
“…What?”
The blood drained from her face.
{Search every inch!}
The voices of policemen from years ago rang vividly in her ears.
Then she remembered the officers dragging students away only weeks earlier for participating in the independence demonstrations.
The thought alone made her nauseous.
“The police? What do you mean? Why would they come to our house? We didn’t do anything wrong! Oppa, what happened?”
“There’s no time for this, Chohee. Every second counts.”
“Then explain it so I can understand!”
With trembling hands, she grabbed Chihoon’s sleeve.
But he pulled away.
“Get on the train first.”
“Not until you explain—”
“Hurry!”
Startled by his sudden shout, Chohee stepped back.
Gripping her shoulders tightly, Chihoon spoke.
“Listen carefully. I have something I must stay behind to handle. You just need to go to Sinuiju first.”
“What…? You’re not coming with me?”
Panic seized her.
“If we’re leaving, we leave together! How can I go alone? If the police really came to our house, you won’t be safe here either!”
“It’s alright. I have somewhere else to stay.”
“No, come with me!”
Despite her desperate pleas, Chihoon shook his head and dragged her resisting body toward the boarding gate.
Clatter-clatter, screech!
Even while being dragged along, Chohee kept begging him.
But Chihoon remained firm.
Forced by his strength, she boarded the train alone. Seeing him standing outside watching her, grief surged up in her chest.
“Oppa! You have to come on the next train!”
Standing by the window just before the doors closed, she shouted at him.
Chihoon waved and said something back, but the roar of the train drowned it out.
“…Promise me.”
At last, the train pulled away noisily from the platform. Chihoon’s figure outside the window grew smaller and smaller until he became nothing but a tiny dot in the distance.
“First class? Where did he even get the money for this…?”
Holding the ticket Chihoon had given her, Chohee made her way toward the first-class carriage filled with Japanese passengers.
Once she arrived, she understood why he had chosen first class.
Unlike the open seating in standard class, the first-class compartments were separated by partitions.
At least she could travel without attracting attention.
Her tension eased little by little.
Entering the compartment written on her ticket, Chohee quietly closed her eyes.
Maybe when she woke up, all of this would be over.
Or maybe her brother would be sitting beside her as though nothing had happened.
Just like always.
She must have fallen asleep.
At the faint rustling sound, Chohee slowly opened her eyes.
Outside the window stretched endless plains.
How far had they come?
Blinking sleepily, she looked around the compartment.
Then she had no choice but to cover her mouth in shock.
A strange man was sitting across from her.
