NT - 6

Time was chopped up into jagged pieces, slipping away unevenly.  

Hae-soo’s fever refused to break, lingering stubbornly. Since being dragged out of the taxi and brought back to this room, her condition had only worsened. Her memories here were fragmented into three parts: gasping in pain, watching Seo Hae-seung tend to her as if caring for her, and ultimately, their bodies entwined in acts she couldn’t escape.  

Seo Hae-seung’s lust writhed like maggots feeding on her suffering. It was a vile craving that drained her vitality. No wonder her recovery was sluggish—this torment was relentless.  

Cough. Each fit sent sharp pains rippling through her body.  

She could no longer tell whether the agony came from the flu or the excessive force he subjected her to. When she lightly touched her throat, a hoarse groan escaped involuntarily. Seo Hae-seung had an obsessive fixation on her neck during their encounters. His cruel grip would strangle her breath, blurring her vision until it swirled hazily before snapping back into focus.  

“Ugh... I’m sorry, Hae-seung, please, don’t...”  

Each time, Hae-soo found herself pleading desperately, even though she’d done nothing wrong. Her trembling hands flailed like leaves in the wind as she poured out apologies she didn’t understand. Tears drenched her face, distorting her features. She knew her labored breathing only fueled his arousal, but fear overwhelmed her, leaving her powerless.  

The most terrifying part was how, even after choking her during sex, Seo Hae-seung would reluctantly pull away as though unsatisfied. It was as if he believed this wasn’t enough to satiate his desires.  

If Hae-soo’s neck was a mess, so too were Seo Hae-seung’s forearms. Her nails had left raw, swollen marks all over them, wounds that never seemed to heal. Yet he acted as though they were mere scratches from a playful kitten, showing no concern. Even when her nails dug deep enough to draw blood, he remained unfazed.  

Beneath the covers, her hand crept out hesitantly, fumbling toward her neck.  

It hurts…  

A muffled whimper lingered on the tip of her tongue, unheard by anyone. Her trembling fingers brushed against something—the necklace. The one Seo Hae-seung had placed around her neck the night he revealed his true nature.  

She had tried to escape countless times since then. But strangely, every attempt ended with Seo Hae-seung catching her before she could leave the hotel entirely. Once, she had hidden deep within the emergency stairwell, curled up in a secluded corner among cleaning supplies, yet he still found her. Like a ghost, he tracked her down, dragging her back to the origin of her hell with relentless determination.  

“This necklace…”  

Her suspicions bubbled up, erasing each hypothesis until she arrived at a plausible conclusion.  

There must be some kind of device embedded in this necklace—perhaps a GPS tracker. Otherwise, there was no way Seo Hae-seung could locate her so quickly in such a vast hotel, especially when she hid like a mouse.  

Countless failed attempts to remove it flashed through her mind. For some inexplicable reason, the clasp wouldn’t budge. Judging by the faint groove where the lock should have been, it seemed custom-made, requiring a special tool to dismantle.  

Ssshhh.  

From afar, the sound of running water echoed.  

Seo Hae-seung was in the shower. Hae-soo stirred on the bed but froze mid-motion. Despite her wobbling legs, semen gushed out between her thighs. With a face on the verge of tears, she pulled the blanket over herself to wipe away the sticky, milky fluid. No matter how much she wiped, it kept flowing endlessly, making her stomach churn with nausea.  

After carelessly tossing aside the soiled blanket, she scanned the room frantically. Anything would do. She shoved her arms into a sweater, ignoring the red handprints still visible on her skin, and forced her legs into pants. The sound of the shower continued uninterrupted as she reached the door.  

Despite repeated failures, she couldn’t stop trying to escape. Hae-soo simply couldn’t accept this situation, and as long as she had any strength left, she wanted to keep fighting.  

Click. She opened the door quietly.  

The hallway lights were unusually bright, causing her to squint.  

“What is the matter?”  

Hae-soo froze at the sight of unfamiliar figures. Two men in neat suits stood before her, earpieces tucked into their ears. She stared blankly, caught off guard.  

“...Who are you?”  

The two exchanged glances before stepping in front of the door, blocking her path.  

“Please go back inside.”  

Her body felt heavy, like soaked cotton, as she turned back toward the room. The door closed behind her with a hollow thud. Standing motionless like a stone monument, Hae-soo slowly turned at the sound of movement behind her. Seo Hae-seung, freshly showered and drying his wet hair with a towel, noticed her standing by the door. His casual gaze asked, What are you doing here? That nonchalant attitude made her blood boil.  

“You... Are you planning to lock me up here?”  

His hand paused mid-motion as he stopped drying his hair. Dropping the soft hotel towel onto the sofa carelessly, he approached her. With each step closer, the pounding of her heart reverberated louder against her ribs. The tension gripping her now was unmistakable proof of her growing fear—a fear she had never felt from him before.  

“Lock you up? Why would you say something so hurtful, Hae-soo?”

“Why did you post bodyguards outside?”  

“Because you keep trying to leave without my permission.”  

Permission.  

The absurdity of the situation was so overwhelming that Hae-soo couldn’t even muster a laugh. But the vivid memory of her repeated failed escape attempts only reinforced the bitter reality she was trapped in. Seo Hae-seung tapped the necklace around her neck, as if to remind her how futile her efforts to run were.  

She clenched her trembling hands tightly.  

“I can’t stay here forever, Hae-seung.”  

Seo Hae-seung’s gaze sharpened as he looked at her pale, drained face. The mere idea of Hae-soo distancing herself from him—even just in words—elicited a clear flash of displeasure.  

“Why not?”  

Hae-soo bit down on her lower lip. Already raw and torn from suppressing moans during their encounters, the tender flesh stung sharply under her teeth. The realization that there wasn’t a single part of her body free from pain pushed her further into despair. Her frustration sharpened her mind, bringing clarity amidst the chaos.  

“I have to go to work. You know I’ve already missed several days since I was supposed to start.”  

“Work?”  

Seo Hae-seung smirked, dismissing her excuse as laughably trivial. Faced with his blatant ridicule, Hae-soo ground her molars together, biting hard on the inside of her cheek. She struggled to maintain a calm exterior, though every fiber of her being screamed otherwise. The feverish haze clouding her mind made this lie feel flimsy even to her own ears—but it was the only justification she had left for trying to escape. No matter how implausible it seemed now, she had no other grounds to stand on.  

“Why bother with something like that, Hae-soo?”  

Even when she had reported going for a job interview, Seo Hae-seung had responded similarly over the phone. But the emotions behind his words then and now were drastically different. Now, his tone carried an unmistakable implication: he wouldn’t tolerate her leaving his side for such trivial reasons.  

Hae-soo released her bitten lip and swallowed the saliva pooling in her mouth.  

“You know why... Because of my debt. I don’t have time to waste here.”  

“Ah, that.”  

His reaction—like something had just occurred to him—sent her heart racing in an unsettling rhythm.  

“Don’t worry about it. I’ve paid it all off.”  

“...What?”  

“Who was it again? Manager Lee?”  

Seo Hae-seung’s hand rose to stroke her cheek. Though she instinctively wanted to recoil from his touch, she remained frozen, focusing instead on his voice. It didn’t take long for her to recognize who he referred to.  

“I settled everything through someone under him. All the money owed in your name has been cleared. And since those thugs were notorious for illegally hiking interest rates and tormenting people, I even added extra payment to make sure they’d back off completely.”  

“...”  

“So, that issue won’t bother you anymore.”  

It felt like having her soul ripped out. Why? Why would you do this, Seo Hae-seung?  

An indescribable sense of futility and suffocation gripped her, paralyzing her fingertips. But the paralysis lasted only briefly. In truth, there was no time to act dazed. A surge of panic rushed over her like a cold torrent.  

For once, Hae-soo reached out first, grabbing Seo Hae-seung’s forearm firmly. His eyes flickered downward, observing her grip with mild interest.  

“Why… why did you pay it off?”  

Her suddenly lucid mind quickly erased confusion, replacing it with visible bewilderment. She wasn’t sure if she was convincingly portraying the intended emotions, but with no way to retreat, she could only push forward.  

“Why did you pay off my debt?”  

“What’s wrong with paying it off?”  

His tone, adding a casual “between us,” was almost dismissive, light to the point of carelessness.  

The massive debt that had buried Hae-soo’s family and tormented her for years—it was nothing more than pocket change to Seo Hae-seung. Her already fragile confidence shattered completely, replaced by a suffocating wave of anxiety threatening to consume her whole.  

Still clutching his arm, Hae-soo lowered her gaze. Her vision blurred with tears as despair surged forward, relentless and overwhelming. Her tear ducts had long since escaped her control, spilling freely without restraint.

“I wasn’t talking about the job because of that person, Hae-seung.”  

“...”  

“It really was because of my debt. So... even if the circumstances have changed, the fact remains that I still need to pay it back. Even if it’s to you now.”  

If she couldn’t convince him here, it was over.  

With bodyguards stationed outside, there was no telling what lengths Seo Hae-seung might go to in order to keep her locked up. Her stomach churned with self-loathing at the thought of being indebted to him, but if his ‘permission’ was the only way out, she had to find some excuse—any excuse—to justify her actions. Whether fortunate or unfortunate, her lingering jealousy of his wealth and the fragile pride it had once fueled became her sole argument.  

Seo Hae-seung knew.  

He knew all too well how much she hated relying on him. The card he’d given her freely? She’d used it only once, at the pharmacy, clinging desperately to whatever scraps of dignity she could salvage.  

Even so, asking to work off her debt to him felt like such a flimsy pretext that unease gnawed relentlessly at her. A tear dropped involuntarily from her bowed head. At first, she had intended it as part of an act—but somewhere along the way, the tears became real.  

Seo Hae-seung gazed down at her trembling figure.  

She seemed unaware, but her small, delicate frame shook like a leaf in the wind. The Hae-soo he remembered was different from the one he’d seen these past few days. Though not always confident, she had never been this cowed. She was skilled at containing her emotions rather than letting them spill over.  

But now, cornered and desperate, she wore her feelings openly, spilling out uncontrollably like water through cracks. It was as though she were trapped with no way out. While he didn’t mind tightening the leash to ensure her focus remained solely on him, pushing her too far risked breaking her completely. Lately, she seemed as fragile as a flickering candle in the wind, teetering on the edge of collapse.  

Perhaps giving her a little breathing room wouldn’t hurt. After all…  

Seo Hae-seung gently lifted her chin. The gemstone embedded in the necklace sparkled under the light. The thought that she was always within his grasp filled him with satisfaction, rippling through him like a quiet tide.  

“Alright, fine.”  

As he wiped away the wetness from her cheeks with his hand, her face—so small it could fit easily in his palm—flinched instinctively. Despite pleading so earnestly, she now looked utterly bewildered by his sudden compliance. Seo Hae-seung kissed her lips repeatedly, finding her salt-streaked expression endearing.  

“But you’ll work where I choose.”  

“...”  

“No other place is allowed.”  

His touch was tender, almost affectionate, yet his voice was firm and unyielding. There was no room for negotiation; any misstep would result in the immediate withdrawal of his permission. The blade hidden behind his kindness cut deeper for its subtlety.  

Hae-soo nodded, struggling to suppress the waves of emotion crashing inside her. Watching her, Seo Hae-seung smiled brightly, like a flower swaying in the spring breeze. One person fought back tears while the other couldn’t contain his smile—a stark contrast between them, their emotions severed like broken fragments despite standing face-to-face.  

Hae-soo thought it was a strange picture indeed.  

────────────  

The slanted sunlight bathed the interior in warmth, creating an unusually cozy atmosphere. The rays were so clear that even individual particles of light floating in the air seemed countable. Inside, smooth, flowing melodies blended seamlessly with the elegant decor, classical music enhancing the sophisticated ambiance.  

“Hae-soo, Table 3.”  

The sound of her name snapped her wandering attention back into focus. Carefully balancing the dish to avoid disturbing its pristine presentation, she began walking toward the table.  

After successfully completing the service and returning to her station, she noticed a woman standing nearby. Was her name Eunji? Or Minji? She couldn’t quite recall, so she refrained from initiating conversation.  

“Hae-soo, hi.”  

But the woman greeted her first.  

Taken aback by the overly familiar tone, Hae-soo awkwardly nodded in response. From what she vaguely remembered during introductions, the woman was her age, had entered university last year, and was currently working part-time after finishing her semester.  

Her forgotten name came back when another employee called out, “Eunji, did you serve Table 12?” Ah, Eunji. Hae-soo mentally repeated the name, determined not to forget it in case the woman spoke to her again.

It was nearing the end of lunchtime, so there were fewer customers inside. With no more serving tasks to attend to, Hae-soo stood beside Eunji, holding a dry towel to wipe down the remaining water droplets on the glassware.

“Is the work manageable?”  

Eunji, who had started working here three months earlier, seemed naturally sociable and often struck up conversations with Hae-soo, who tended to be quiet. Hae-soo glanced sideways as she wiped the surface of a glass. The job Seo Hae-seung had “allowed” her to take was none other than at the hotel’s restaurant—a glaringly obvious choice of location. It was clear he intended to keep her within the hotel even if he let her out of the suite. Being confined there felt like being reduced to nothing more than an animal, only able to eat and sleep. The memories of choking under his grip were ones she desperately wanted to erase, yet they lingered painfully in her mind. Worst of all, those moments weren’t just memories—they were still happening.  

“...More or less.”  

“You’ve been working here for about two weeks now, right?”  

“Yeah.”  

Hae-soo gave a curt reply before focusing her attention on scanning her surroundings.  

Having escaped the prison-like suite, she knew she needed to seize any opportunity to break free entirely. But it wasn’t going to be easy. As expected, the guards stationed outside her room were specifically assigned to monitor her—and this included while she worked. Even now, as she busied herself with her tasks, they stood vigilantly by the entrance.  

Nor did she feel safe inside the restaurant. Suspicion gnawed at her constantly; she couldn’t shake the feeling that someone among her coworkers might have been planted by Seo Hae-seung. It could be the manager—or even Eunji, who had approached her so casually.  

Her unease refused to settle. She suspected she was still being watched, even here. After days of dealing with Seo Hae-seung’s relentlessness, she understood how meticulous and calculating he could be. If she hoped to seek help without him finding out, careful observation and patience would be crucial. Acting rashly risked losing even this fragile excuse for freedom.  

“Hae-soo, your next serving task.”  

At that moment, the nearby manager called out. As Hae-soo took the large dishware into her hands, Eunji winked encouragingly, saying, “Once you finish that, things will quiet down a bit. Good luck!”  

After completing the task and returning, Hae-soo noticed something odd about the atmosphere among the staff. Still relatively unfamiliar with most of them, she cautiously asked Eunji—the one person she’d briefly exchanged words with earlier—if anything was wrong.  

“Huh? Oh, apparently a VIP guest just arrived.”  

“A VIP?”  

“Yeah. Normally they only come in the evenings, but I guess today’s different... The manager looked really surprised. I’ve never seen him flustered like that before.”  

Hae-soo glanced toward the inner section of the restaurant where they pointed but quickly lost interest. She had heard there was a VIP room further inside, separate from the main dining area, but since she was assigned to work in the hall, it didn’t concern her directly.  

“Hae-soo.”  

As she suspected, the manager suddenly called for her. When she turned, he gestured for her to come closer. As soon as she approached, he turned and began walking briskly somewhere, expecting her to follow. Quietly trailing behind him, Hae-soo stepped carefully in his shadow.  

“I’d like you to handle serving in the VIP room today.”  

“...Me?”  

Puzzled, she followed him into a spacious room. Though surrounded by walls on three sides, one side featured a transparent window, giving the space an open, airy feel rather than a closed-off one. Instead, it exuded a secretive coziness. The elegant table patterns and art-gallery-worthy frames decorating the walls lent the room a refined charm.  

“Executive Director, my apologies for keeping you waiting.”  

Her eyes locked with the seated man—an intense gaze, sharp like a predator ready to strike. Unconsciously, Hae-soo slowed her steps.  

“We hope you enjoy a pleasant time here.”  

It was none other than Executive Director Seo Mu-won.  

The manager disappeared abruptly after delivering his polite greeting, leaving Hae-soo—who had been assigned to the hall—bewildered and unsure of what to do next. Moments later, someone knocked on the door. A gilded trolley laden with luxurious tableware was wheeled in. Without hesitation, the employee handed it over to Hae-soo and promptly left.

On her first day of work, Hae-soo had vaguely listened to the manager’s instructions about various tasks. She remembered hearing that VIP servers were expected to stay in the room until the guest left, ensuring everything ran smoothly—from serving food to running minor errands. At the time, she hadn’t thought much of it, assuming such responsibilities wouldn’t fall on her.  

Lost in thought, she suddenly felt the sharp prick of a piercing gaze and quickly moved to begin serving.  

The man before her was no different from the last time she’d collided with him while fleeing Seo Hae-seung—impeccably groomed hair, a perfectly tailored suit without even a single button undone. Today, he wore thin black-rimmed glasses, perhaps having come straight from a business meeting. The bluish tint of the lenses only heightened the severity of his gaze, making it feel all the more cutting.  

Fortunately, the serving went smoothly.  

Hae-soo retreated to a corner of the room, clasping her hands tightly together. Seo Mu-won’s dining manner was as precise and elegant as his appearance. His movements were deliberate, almost aristocratic, as though he were performing for an audience. There was something fundamentally different about him compared to Seo Hae-seung—though they shared blood, their essences diverged sharply.  

The room was filled with a heavy silence. He made barely any noise while eating. Unsure where to direct her gaze, Hae-soo repeatedly shifted her eyes cautiously.  

Seo Mu-won, Seo Hae-seung’s older brother. It seemed unlikely that he had summoned her here without purpose, yet his demeanor remained unnervingly quiet. This ambiguity made him difficult to read. Moreover, recalling how he had turned a blind eye to her suffering in the past only deepened her unease.  

Despite the discomfort, time continued its relentless march forward.  

Seo Mu-won finished his meal just as his phone rang. After briefly listening to the call, he set down his knife and fork and took a sip of water. As Hae-soo absentmindedly watched his prominent Adam’s apple move, the chair scraped back abruptly.  

His shadow stretched fiercely across the floor. Even the mere act of standing radiated dominance. Hae-soo clenched her fists tightly, overwhelmed by the mounting tension. Standing near the door, she couldn’t tell whether he was approaching her or simply heading toward the exit.  

His steps, initially seeming indifferent, halted unexpectedly at a moment she didn’t anticipate.  

A deep musk scent wafted around her, subtly irritating her nerves. Seo Mu-won’s gaze fell upon her face like a burning slash. The tips of his polished shoes, which had been angled diagonally moments ago, now pointed directly at her—though she hadn’t noticed the shift. A concentrated wave of tension surged through her scalp, rippling through her entire body.  

“…!”  

Hae-soo gasped audibly when Seo Mu-won’s hand brushed against the neckline of her turtleneck sweater. His fingers casually caught the thin fabric, pulling it down slightly to expose her nape—a gesture so natural it might have been mistaken for a breeze. But to Hae-soo, it felt anything but. Her already rigid limbs stiffened further.  

Seo Mu-won’s eyes fixed intently on her exposed nape, mottled with bruises that refused to fade.  

“My younger brother’s habits…”  

His breath warmed the skin of her neck, despite his cold, frosty demeanor.  

“Still as filthy as ever, I see.”  

Before Hae-soo could process why his breath felt so unbearably hot, Seo Mu-won traced the bruised area lightly with his fingertip. Unconsciously, her spine shrank inward. It was strange. Compared to Seo Hae-seung’s suffocating grip, this touch should have felt trivial—almost ticklish—but instead, it choked her somehow. Or rather, her breathing no longer felt like her own.  

He stroked her nape gently, as if caressing a delicate flower petal, then withdrew his hand. By the time Hae-soo mustered the courage to look up, he was already wiping his fingers with a handkerchief, his expression utterly indifferent. The habitual way he cleaned his hands, as if brushing off dirt, flattened something inside her chest.  

Curiosity? Disgust?  

She couldn’t pinpoint which emotion governed his actions—or perhaps both coexisted within him.  

“Until next time.”  

With those parting words, Seo Mu-won exited the room.  

Left alone, Hae-soo spent a long time pondering the meaning behind his visit.  

────────────  

“Hnn…”  

A fragile moan escaped between her lips, teetering on the edge of breaking. Hae-soo had long since given up trying to grope at the invisible forces pressing down on her, focusing instead on alleviating the pressure tightening around her throat. She instinctively tried to push away Seo Hae-seung’s hand squeezing her windpipe, but every movement caused the leather straps binding her wrists to the headboard to dig painfully into her skin. Her struggles soon became feeble and restrained.  

“Aah, hnn…!”

“Haah...”  

The man’s rough, labored breathing rained down on her from above. Hae-soo curled her body inward, trying to escape the pain that wracked her trembling frame. Sensing her reaction with predatory precision, Seo Hae-seung moved his hands over her nape like a pianist performing an intricate piece. But unlike the elegance of music, his movements were cruel and vicious.  

The pressure on her throat tightened further, constricting her already choked airway. Hae-soo’s moans fractured into short, staccato gasps.  

“...Hae-soo.”  

Seo Hae-seung sighed her name as though lost in a dream too beautiful to be real. His hazel eyes shimmered with a hazy, almost intoxicated glow, betraying how deeply he was immersed in the sensory overload their sex provided him.  

Stripped bare, her wrists bound to the headboard by leather straps, blindfolded, and impaled on his erection, Hae-soo looked impossibly fragile—and achingly beautiful. Her current state was the result of deliberate, calculated steps. It had started when she kept pushing him away or frantically trying to expel his semen after they finished. Annoyed, he first tied her hands. Then, finding her attempts to avert her gaze strangely unsettling, he covered her eyes as well.  

Now, here she was—completely at his mercy.  

And yet, despite everything, Hae-soo still resisted, albeit feebly. Her hips squirmed instinctively, mimicking an urge to flee. When he grabbed her pelvis to steady her and forced himself deeper inside, her small, delicate body trembled violently, as if struck by sparks.  

“Ah... so beautiful. Truly.”  

He tilted his head toward her pale neck, which he had squeezed relentlessly moments before. Licking the fresh bruises forming under his fingers, he savored them like melted chocolate. The sensation of the bruised skin being pressed spread a dull ache through the surrounding area. As Hae-soo shuddered in response, the hole gripping him clenched tightly around his shaft.  

Seo Hae-seung pushed his lower body harder against hers, resuming slow, rhythmic thrusts. His reddish-purple cock, veins bulging grotesquely, slithered deeper into her narrow passage, grinding against her insides like a snake devouring its prey. He licked the nape of her neck where his handprints remained vivid, then moved upward to capture her lips. As his tongue brushed against hers, Hae-soo obediently parted her lips, surrendering in a way that felt disturbingly docile.  

At some point, her resistance during sex had dwindled significantly.  

There had been a day when her thrashing had been particularly violent. In his carelessness, he had failed to regulate the force of his grip, nearly causing her to faint. She had cried out in terror, close to hyperventilating, and the act had come to an abrupt halt. Thankfully, he had retained enough rationality to stop, but it left a mark on both of them.  

Afterward, Hae-soo seemed to carry a trauma, resisting minimally during their encounters. In turn, Seo Hae-seung tried to exercise more control while choking her.  

“Hnn... damn, it feels so good...”  

Even so, the raw stimulation of watching her suffer left him helplessly teetering on the edge.  

In the world of BDSM, there were countless ways to derive pleasure from inflicting or enduring pain—from nipple clamps and spanking to animal roleplay and whipping, ranging from soft to extreme levels. Seo Hae-seung had witnessed these acts firsthand at clubs he occasionally visited in the past. Yet none of them held his interest.  

His preferred method—the one that sent electrifying jolts of pleasure coursing through him—was breath control. By choking his partner and cutting off their airflow, he could render them utterly helpless.  

It was, in his mind, a breathtakingly beautiful act. With just a single grasp around the throat, he could immobilize someone completely, sending him into fleeting moments of ecstasy.  

But therein lay the problem: Seo Hae-seung lacked restraint. Though he intellectually understood the danger—how easily this act could lead to death—the sight of someone gasping and struggling under his grip ignited a fire in his brain, filling it with dark cravings.  

While BDSM was predicated on mutual consent, such principles did not apply to Seo Hae-seung. To him, consent stripped the act of its allure. What he craved was pure, unadulterated pleasure born from genuine suffering.  

As evidence of this, he rarely established safe words during play. Even basic rules within the BDSM community failed to bind him. This disregard stemmed from one source: his privileged upbringing, where wealth and power granted him access to anything he desired.  

This toxic combination of arrogance and depravity defined him.  

Had it been anyone other than Hae-soo, things might have ended disastrously. On several occasions, he had barely managed to regain his senses in time, loosening his grip only because it was Hae-soo beneath him. The thought of losing her entirely sent sharp pangs of panic stabbing through his chest.  

That night, gripping her trembling ankle, he drove his rigid arousal deep into her slick, yielding warmth. The sensation of her wet hole stretching excessively, clinging to him with every thrust, was maddeningly arousing.  

“Ugh... hnn...!”

Thanks to the thorough attention he had given earlier, her inner walls clung tightly around him, creating an almost unbearable sensation. Seo Hae-seung licked Hae-soo’s cheek slowly, thrusting deeply into her with each powerful stroke. By now, he had learned exactly how to angle his penetration to elicit the most vulnerable reactions from her. As if proving this mastery, a faint moan escaped her lips—”Hnn, ah, ah...”  

Just as he leaned in to claim her trembling lips fully—  

Ding.  

The sound of the doorbell rang out sharply.  

Hae-soo, who had been sinking into the soft mattress under his weight, flinched involuntarily. Seo Hae-seung paused mid-motion, as though suddenly recalling something he’d forgotten.  

“Ah, they’re here.”  

Muttering softly, he withdrew his body backward, pulling out completely. His cock slid out of her stretched folds, leaving behind only a faint tingling sensation that made her chin quiver slightly.  

Surprised by the sudden absence of his warmth, Hae-soo curled herself into a tight ball. Blindfolded and unable to see where he had gone, all she could do was wriggle her bound wrists against the leather straps cutting into her skin. There was no way for her to untie them herself, so she lay there helplessly for a moment until the sound of the door opening and closing reached her ears.  

If the doorbell had rung, someone must have arrived.  

Who could it be?  

Blindly blinking beneath the mask, she strained her ears. Soon, heavy footsteps echoed nearby. It had to be Seo Hae-seung returning after stepping away from the bed. That was logical—he wouldn’t leave her like this for long.  

And yet, an eerie chill crept up Hae-soo’s spine.  

It had to be Seo Hae-seung, didn’t it? But her suppressed senses rebelled, planting seeds of doubt in her mind. Meanwhile, the approaching footsteps stopped somewhere close by. Hae-soo stiffened, instinctively drawing her bound hands closer to her chest.  

Someone was there.  

The silence pressed down on her, accompanied by the unmistakable feeling of being watched. It should be Seo Hae-seung—it had to be. If it were him, he would have already climbed back onto the bed. So why wasn’t he moving? Who else could it be?  

This was the first time anyone had visited while she stayed in this luxurious, secluded room. With Seo Hae-seung momentarily absent and her vision blocked, she felt utterly disconnected from reality. Her heightened anxiety spiraled out of control without any sensory input to ground her.  

What if Seo Hae-seung had briefly stepped out, and someone else had slipped in before the door closed?  

The thought struck her like lightning, and her legs began thrashing wildly atop the bed, as if drowning in water.  

The idea of someone standing far away, watching her naked form, sent a wave of unease coursing through her. Had she been clothed, the gaze might have merely been uncomfortable or puzzling—but she was completely bare. Worse still, her nerves were raw and hypersensitive from their recent activity. Every stimulus felt amplified, even something as intangible as a lingering stare.  

Each time she felt that gaze brush over her exposed thighs, her fingers curled tightly, and her waist trembled uncontrollably.  

“Wh... who’s there...?”  

Her voice was barely audible, trembling with fear. Summoning what little courage she had left, she called out again, but no answer came. The pit of her stomach churned with dread, rotting away with every passing second.  

“Hae-seung... ah...?”  

She raised her voice slightly this time, but her vocal cords, abused relentlessly, cracked painfully. Her throat burned, and her toes curled nervously. Her struggles against the sheets grew more frantic as she tried to escape the bed.  

Pressing her thighs together tightly to shield herself, Hae-soo twisted her bound wrists desperately, trying to loosen the restraints.  

Suddenly, the bed dipped beside her. Before she could process it, the presence that had seemed distant moments ago was now alarmingly close. Goosebumps erupted across her skin.  

“Ugh!”  

Before she could calm her racing heart, a forceful hand flipped her onto her back. Her wrists twisted painfully, causing her to cry out as the leather straps loosened slightly. But before she could use her freed hands to steady herself, a firm grip seized her lower abdomen, dragging her further across the bed. Still lying face-down, she felt something press insistently against her wet, unprepared opening.  

“Aah...!”

Her knees, pressing into the sheets, trembled uncontrollably. Her arms, still bound and aching, couldn’t support her upper body, leaving Hae-soo’s face buried in the mattress while her pale buttocks remained raised high in the air.

A savage force pressed down on the back of her head, slamming her face harder into the bed. Unlike the choking sensation she was used to, this suffocation came from being crushed against the sheets. A muffled, strangled cry escaped through her clenched lips as her face was brutally mashed between the blindfold and the fabric beneath it. The sharpness of the sensation made her skin prickle with pain.

In that position, wet, forceful thrusts battered her sensitive insides, each collision sending waves of raw intensity coursing through her body.  

“Ugh, mmph, hnn, hah...!”  

Her overstimulated inner walls throbbed painfully with every brutal impact, releasing gushes of slick fluid. Something warm trickled down her thighs. Desperately twisting her head to free her face from the suffocating pressure, Hae-soo gasped for air, her voice trembling as she whimpered into the sheets.  

“Hnn, who... ah, Hae-seung...? Mmnh...! Ah...!”  

The thick fog of suspicion swirling inside her refused to dissipate, layering itself over her fragile certainty that it had to be Seo Hae-seung. Yet doubt and fear gnawed at her relentlessly, chilling her to the bone.  

Was this really him?  

As far as she knew, he didn’t act like this during sex. He had never been so ruthlessly single-minded, focusing solely on penetration without any of his usual calculated restraint—or obsession.  

“Ahh! Haa, uhngh...!”  

Before she could process further, her arms were yanked backward forcefully. Her upper body lifted off the bed, suspended helplessly in the air like a horse rearing under the pull of its rider. This unnatural posture forced their bodies even deeper together, intensifying the friction. Whoever’s rigid shaft was inside her now drove forward with relentless vigor, causing her breasts to sway violently with each thrust.  

“Hnn, ha, ah, ugh, mmnh...!”  

The piston-like motion left no room for her to catch her breath; her lungs burned as if they might collapse. This wasn’t how Seo Hae-seung usually positioned her. He always craved contact with her neck—his hands gripping, squeezing, obsessing over her throat. But in this position, his hands couldn’t reach her neck. That unfamiliarity scratched at her mind, unsettling her further.  

“Ah, ah...! Ugh, nngh, haa, aaah!”  

The blindfold covering her eyes grew damp with tears. The thought that this stranger might not be Seo Hae-seung—that someone entirely unknown was violating her body in such an intimate way—burned her eyes with unbearable heat.  

“Stop, ah, please stop, I beg you, hng, aahn...!”  

Her hoarse pleas only seemed to spur him on, the pace of his thrusts growing more frenzied. Her hands flailed uselessly in the air, pale and trembling, clutching nothing but empty space. Meanwhile, her mind sank into darkness, overwhelmed by panic and despair.  

Yet despite everything, her body betrayed her. Forced arousal ignited within her, refusing to subside. If anything, the brutality only heightened the unbearable itch deep in her lower abdomen.  

“Ugh, haa...! No! Hae-seung! Please, urggh!”  

Seo Hae-seung was bad enough—but whoever this person was now felt infinitely worse. The searing heat spreading inside her felt grotesque, something she wanted to claw out with her fingernails.  

The shame of responding physically to a complete stranger cut her apart emotionally. Her already fragile psyche shattered further under the chaos of conflicting sensations. Somewhere along the way, even her conviction that this had to be Seo Hae-seung dissolved into uncertainty.  

“Hnn, ah... aaah...!”  

The relentless pounding grew faster, deeper, until finally, the man’s erection slammed hard against her cervix. Each vertebra in her spine stiffened as her trembling knees struggled to hold her up.  

“Ahhhk!”  

At the peak of her climax, her entire body shuddered violently, coinciding with the pulsating twitch of the cock buried inside her.  

Hae-soo convulsed uncontrollably as wave after wave of orgasmic spasms wracked her limbs. She could do little more than gulp for air, her chest heaving unevenly. When the grip on her arms loosened, her upper body collapsed limply onto the bed like liquid spilling over. As she lay there, disheveled and gasping, a heavy shadow loomed over her back.  

She flinched instinctively at the sticky sensation brushing against her skin.  

“It’s me...”  

A deep, husky voice rippled into her ear, smooth yet laced with satisfaction.  

“Did I scare you? Were you calling out for me because you were afraid?”  

It was Seo Hae-seung’s voice.  

Beneath the slightly strained timbre lay a faint undertone of smug contentment.

“Who else but me would do this to you?”  

The reason for his satisfaction became clear almost immediately.  

He had been thrilled by her panicked cries for him, calling out his name as though it were a lifeline. He must have even endured waiting outside the bed just to witness her distress. It was an incomprehensible effort on his part—but then again, nothing about Seo Hae-seung made sense anymore. Yet, Hae-soo lacked the energy to scold or question him. She simply lay there, limp and lifeless, like someone on the verge of collapse.  

Seo Hae-seung gently turned her over, removing the blindfold before lifting her off the bed. Carrying her to the nearby sofa, he sat down and positioned her on his lap. The sudden shift from lying to sitting caused the semen pooled inside her to trickle out. Her sore, stretched opening throbbed uncomfortably, but she lacked the strength to adjust herself and remained silent instead.  

“There, open up.”  

Still dazed from the aftershocks of their encounter, Hae-soo stared blankly as something was suddenly thrust toward her face. Her vision, blurred from being blindfolded for so long, struggled to focus—but the sweet aroma reached her nose first.  

After blinking several times, she realized it was chocolate cake. When her lips failed to part willingly, Seo Hae-seung forced the fork through the gap, leaving her no choice but to accept the bite.  

“You like this kind, right?”  

His tone carried an air of certainty, as if there could be no other possibility. He smiled smugly, dimples carving deeply into his cheeks. Once upon a time, seeing that familiar face recounting things he knew about her brought comfort. Now, it only felt grotesque and unbearable.  

Seo Hae-seung continued to act as though they were still inseparable friends—a notion that now seemed utterly revolting. How could he pretend they shared any semblance of camaraderie after everything he’d done? He had raped her at will, confined her here with his wealth, and controlled every aspect of her life. He was no longer the warm, close friend she once knew.  

Thus, his casual references to what he “knew” about her felt like twisted clay—ugly and misshapen. Their bond as friends had shattered beyond repair, yet he clung stubbornly to the illusion of their former connection. Why did he insist on remaining in that role when it no longer existed?  

“Here, take another bite.”  

Her lower lip stung slightly where the fork had pressed too hard moments ago, but Hae-soo obediently opened her mouth anyway. Like a mother bird feeding its chick, Seo Hae-seung diligently delivered another piece of cake.  

Though the sugary remnants melted sweetly in her mouth, Hae-soo couldn’t taste much of anything. Despite this being her favorite type of cake, today it only served to further suppress her already nonexistent appetite.  

Still, something in his overly bright eyes unnerved her. To avoid provoking his displeasure, she forced herself to chew mechanically.  

“How’s work treating you?”  

“Huh...?”  

Before she could fully swallow the food in her mouth, a violent cough erupted. Her strained vocal cords, worn raw from earlier screams, struggled to produce sound without difficulty.  

Seo Hae-seung reached for a glass on the table and brought it to her lips. Carefully, Hae-soo sipped the lukewarm liquid—it tasted faintly of black tea, its fragrance lingering on her tongue.  

Once the coughing subsided, the table came into clearer view. A full-sized chocolate cake, seemingly untouched, sat neatly beside an elegant teapot arranged on a pristine tray. It looked freshly delivered, as though ordered from somewhere high-end. Only then did Hae-soo realize the purpose of the earlier doorbell ring.  

“I meant your job at the restaurant.”  

“Yeah, it’s manageable.”  

Seo Hae-seung immediately adopted a disappointed expression, clearly hoping she’d complain so he could coax her into quitting and staying with him instead. Ignoring his manipulative ploy, Hae-soo took another sip of tea rather than reaching for more cake. Each swallow left a sharp, bitter tang in her throat.  

Speaking of the restaurant, a memory suddenly surfaced.  

“What? Me as a VIP server?”  

“That’s right. From now on, you won’t need to work in the main hall—you’ll go straight to the VIP area. I explained the manual to you on your first day, remember? If anything’s unclear, feel free to ask.”  

The manager had dropped this bombshell unexpectedly. For Hae-soo, it was disastrous. Working in the main hall had been her chance to interact occasionally with other employees, hoping to identify anyone who might not be one of Seo Hae-seung’s spies. It was her slim hope of finding help—and now that opportunity was gone in an instant.  

“But why the sudden change...?”  

“It’s an order from above. I don’t know the details either. Maybe someone liked how you worked the other day.”  

If that were true, it only deepened her confusion.

That day, Hae-soo had served only one person in the VIP room: Executive Director Seo Mu-won. After he left, her duties consisted solely of tidying up the empty room before leaving for the day. She hadn’t even interacted with him beyond standing silently in the corner like a statue while he ate.  

Of course, if she were to take the manager’s words at face value, it was possible that Seo Mu-won had been pleased with her service—but the likelihood of that seemed infinitesimally small. There had been no meaningful communication between them to suggest such an outcome.  

All she had done was stand stiffly in the corner, watching as he dined.  

“Why are you so tense? It’s common for staff to rotate between the main hall and VIP rooms. Don’t worry too much about it. From what I saw, you handled things calmly and did well.”  

The manager patted her shoulder reassuringly, oblivious to her inner turmoil. His words weren’t a request for her opinion but rather an announcement of a decision already made, leaving Hae-soo no room to protest or object.  

A sudden thought flickered through her mind after returning to the suite where she stayed with Seo Hae-seung.  

“Hae-seung.”  

“Hmm?”  

“Did you... by any chance...”  

The unspoken question lingered on the tip of her tongue—Did you ask your brother for this? But it dissolved into nothingness before she could voice it. Upon reflection, the idea seemed implausible. Seo Hae-seung would never go out of his way to help her maintain her part-time job; if anything, he preferred complications over convenience.  

Was this truly just a random rotation of staff assignments?  

“No, never mind.”  

Seeing her trail off, Seo Hae-seung gave her a bland look, clearly uninterested in pursuing the topic further. Hae-soo set down the now-empty teacup, having sipped it absentmindedly until it was gone. As she shifted her upper body, the metallic sensation of the necklace around her neck reminded her of its presence. The constant bruising on her nape made even its touch feel irritating.  

Fiddling with it distractedly, she glanced at Seo Hae-seung. Since their earlier session had satisfied him and he appeared to be in a decent mood, she mustered the courage to speak—a rare occurrence these days.  

“Hey... Could you... take this off for me?”  

She gestured vaguely at the necklace around her neck.  

“Why?”  

“I don’t usually wear necklaces, so it feels itchy and uncomfortable...”  

If she admitted outright that it hurt, Seo Hae-seung would likely revel in it. Still, she knew full well that he wouldn’t grant her request regardless of her reasoning. But desperate times called for desperate measures—even a slim chance was worth trying, especially given how obediently she’d behaved under his control recently. Perhaps he might consider it, just once.  

“Hmm.”  

As expected, Seo Hae-seung looked utterly disinterested. Her fragile attempt at courage crumbled under his indifferent gaze, leaving her chest hollow and dry. His fingers brushed lightly against the necklace before letting go, murmuring, “It looks pretty on you.”  

Hae-soo struggled to suppress the instinctive irritation rising within her at his casual dismissal. He soon lifted his eyes from her neck and met her gaze, smiling gently as though amused by some private joke.  

“I’ll remove it for you... in a month.”  

“Huh?”  

“Can you wait until then?”  

“I suppose I can... but—”  

Though she had been the one to ask, his response caught her off guard. It wasn’t the satisfying answer she’d hoped for. Why a month? What did he mean by that? Her suspicious gaze searched his face, but all she found was an enigmatic smile playing on his lips.  

She couldn’t help but wonder what hidden motive lay behind that smile. Yet, fearing that saying the wrong thing might cost her even the tentative promise of freedom in a month, she clamped her mouth shut tightly.  

Seo Hae-seung reached out and cupped her chin, pulling her into a kiss. Ever since earlier, the sight of her slightly parted lips had stirred a craving within him—to suck on that delicate tongue teasingly visible between them.  

He indulged himself fully, drawing her tongue into his mouth with a wet slurp. Hae-soo’s slender frame twitched involuntarily in his arms. The hand that had been steadying her waist began to wander lower, tracing circles over her abdomen. As her breaths grew heavier, escaping through her parted lips, his fingers naturally drifted downward, slipping between her thighs as though it were preordained.  

Hae-soo rolled her darkened pupils aimlessly before finally closing her eyes, surrendering to the inevitable.

She was gradually becoming desensitized to the lessons of resignation.