Vows and Bullets
Chapter 27: Doubts

Chapter 27: Doubts

"A dragon, huh? That’s fine. After all, I’m not just a simple tiger. I can survive anything—even a fire."

I slapped his hands away, and a soft chuckle escaped his lips.

"Not when the fire is strong enough," he replied.

"You’ll only know once you test it out. But then again, you might regret it."

"You really don’t back down, huh?"

"Never. Especially when it comes to my family."

"Good to know we’re the same in that area. Touch my family, and you’re dead."

Great tension surrounded us. I could feel the gravity of his words, and he obviously could feel mine. I didn’t know his whole ordeal, but I was right to hate him from the start. He’s not just an evil dragon—he’s a cunning snake and a sly fox, all in one. I could never trust everything he said or did. After all, he’s too good at faking it.

"I’ll make sure to keep a close eye on you, Agent Helios."

"You can expect the same from me, Agent Selene."

’Right. I could never be swayed by his acts. At the end of the day, this is still a mission. I should be wary of everyone around me, even my partner.’

Knock! Knock! Knock!

"Ye-Ji’ya, Eun-Woo’ya, are you still not done?" mom asked from the other side of the door. "I want to see it, too. You can flirt later at home. In case you have forgotten, I’m here, too."

Agent Helios quickly reverted to his Eun-Woo persona and opened the door for my mother with his fake smile.

"Sorry about that, mother. I was too stunned to speak when I saw her. Then we ended up chatting and forgot the time."

"I knew it, ha-ha-ha," mom replied. Then, she turned to me and gasped. "Oh my, that looks amazing on you!"

She hurried to my side and checked out the gown, running her hands through the fabric, the embroidery at my back, and the folds of the skirt.

"This wedding gown is a masterpiece! Just look at all the details! And these beautiful gems attached to it like dews on a flower—how wonderful. The designer did an amazing job."

"Indeed, madam. It’s too bad she’s not around at the moment since they have an event onshore, but she’ll be glad to hear your compliments. We’ll make sure to relay them to her."

"Thank you, dear. These gems, though, are they... real diamonds?"

"Yes, madam. There are a hundred pieces, around 1 to 3 carats each, as Mr. Eun-Woo ordered. He wanted the dress to be not too heavy for Ms. Ye-Ji since she likes comfortability in what she wears, but at the same time, elegant and luxurious enough to show how much he values his bride-to-be."

"Indeed," the other staff seconded. "That’s why our chief designer made the dress in a way that maximizes both comfortability and effortless beauty. And to highlight, the diamonds were placed on spots where it would shine when light touches its surface, creating a sparkling effect for the bride."

"Oh my! Just how much did this dress cost? Million won? (money currency in Korea) Billion? It’s gorgeous, but—" mom blurted out and turned to Eun-Woo. "Aigoo, you’re spoiling my daughter too much."

"It’s nothing, mother. If she’d allow me, I’ll buy her all the dresses that she likes in the whole world. Not just dresses but everything she likes."

"Aww..."

Everyone was in awe of his sweetness.

’Tsk. I want to puke so bad, but I have to hold it in and smile like a lovestruck lover. Sweet, my ass. For all I know, he’s planning to auction that wedding gown for a higher price once all of this is over.’

Acting my part, I inched near him and gently brushed his cheeks with my fingers.

"Eun-Woo, I told you I don’t need much. Just spending time with you is enough."

He held my hand back and kissed its palm—the same hand I used to hold the knife earlier, which he now kept in his pocket. His eyes gazed warmly at me.

"In that case, let’s do both, hm?"

"Alright."

Soon enough, we ended our visit to the bridal boutique. The next stop was the wedding venue, which was another luxurious place, but we didn’t stay long since it was near lunchtime. After eating, we met with the wedding planner’s agency—I didn’t even know there were such agencies.

We spent the rest of the afternoon there talking about the wedding details such as motifs, which flowers to use, who the caterers would be, the invitations, gifts, where the honeymoon would be, and all those complicated wedding stuff. Mom and Eun-Woo did most of the talking. I simply agreed to everything they suggested. What could I possibly know about weddings? I never even imagined being a bride since I’m too busy. Who would’ve thought that I’d be a bride one day? Or at least act like one?

After hours of talking and going here and there, the day finally ended. The last stop was dinner with mom since we won’t be able to stay for the night again. We needed to go back to the base and report our progress. The new devices we would be using would also be arriving, and we need to pick them up. I’m looking forward to trying them out.

While the rest of the day unfolded itself, my mind flew off somewhere—stuck on the conversation we had earlier. The mission was already complicated enough, being the S-rank mission it was, and it just so happened that there’s a whole lot more going on beyond the surface.

Mythos... Agent Helios... and Kraken...

He was right when he said I didn’t even have an inch of doubt against Mythos. I blindly believed their core values and goals without questioning anything. But then, he might be deliberately saying that to make me doubt them when there’s nothing to doubt.

There’s so much more I didn’t know. I didn’t want to be involved in whatever was happening amongst them, but... could I still avoid it? Or was I too late?