Kkami and Amta's Surprise Attack
After finishing the piercing on Jia's left nipple as well, Dohyung left the room and returned to the basement. As she followed him back, Jia mulled over his instructions again and again, determined not to forget a single word. I must complete every task Master gave me. And... I will escape from here!
What Dohyung had told her was simple. First, she was to monitor the other captives and prevent any of them from escaping. Second, she would be responsible for managing and educating all three—Jiseon, Taehyun, and the last to be taken, Eunji—until each was molded into a flawless slave for him. Third, once all three had fully fallen and suffered as slaves, he would deem Jia's atonement sufficient and release her, sending her back home.
The first task was effortless for Jia. She had already stopped Jiseon once before when the girl tried to escape the basement. Even if she had done it only to avoid punishment, the result was the same: she had prevented someone else from breaking free. Acting as a watchdog came naturally to her.
The real problem lay in the second and third conditions. Managing and educating them was one thing, but turning them into perfect slaves was another matter entirely. When she considered whether Jiseon, Taehyun, and Eunji could truly be broken that completely, even Jia found herself tilting her head in doubt.
But... I can't give up! I will escape from here! I'll go home no matter what!
Like the saying "If you can't do it, make it happen," this was not something Jia could simply abandon. A sweet future of freedom waited at the end of it all. Giving up because it seemed impossible would be far too bitter a loss. Besides, Dohyung had promised that once he released her, he would do nothing more. That promise meant he would not leak any of the videos shot during her time in the basement, nor would he drag her back for any reason. He had even sworn he would not take her life after letting her go.
Jia, for her part, had declared to him that once outside she would never breathe a word of what happened here until the day she died. In truth, with both her body and mind already shattered, her desire to escape far outweighed any thoughts of revenge against Dohyung. There was always the chance that once she recovered outside, her feelings might change—but Jia shook her head fiercely and told herself she would never do anything so foolish. Experience had taught her that provoking Dohyung again would bring her nothing but ruin.
Whether it's me or Jiseon, the way he can kidnap even Taehyun and Eunji so easily means he possesses some kind of power or influence I don't know about... Rather than risk angering Master once I'm out and getting dragged back here, I'd be better off keeping my mouth shut and living quietly until I die.
Swearing to herself that she would escape no matter what it took, Jia continued crawling on all fours toward the basement. Reading her thoughts from the side, Dohyung found it so amusing he nearly burst out laughing. He was greatly looking forward to the day when Jia, clinging to an impossible hope, would watch that hope shatter and plunge her back into despair. He wanted to see how she would react when she realized she would never truly leave.
Besides, he had no intention of giving this talk only to Jia. Over time he would create private moments with each of the other three and offer them the same faint possibility of escape, planting seeds of hope. That hope would become the driving force that kept their minds from completely breaking in this hellish place.
"Well, we're home now, aren't we?"
Having reached the basement corridor, Dohyung murmured while gripping Jia's collar. Though she dreaded returning to the place he called "home," Jia knew she had no choice and kept crawling. When they reached the door, Dohyung ordered her to remove her blindfold and stand. She rose obediently.
The moment he unlocked the basement door and pushed her inside, Jia—who had been watching from behind—froze in shock. Jiseon and Taehyun, who should have been inside, were nowhere to be seen.
"Hmm? Where did these two go…"
Dohyung grabbed the doorknob and stepped in to check, only to be greeted by a startling scene.
Bang!
A chair slammed into the back of his head the instant he entered. The metal frame struck his skull with brutal force. The impact sent Dohyung pitching forward, and Jia nearly toppled backward in shock at the sight.
"Ha… ahaha… We finally did it!!"
As Dohyung collapsed, Jiseon emerged from behind the door, shouting with triumphant joy. She still clutched the chair she had just swung into his skull.
"Not yet! We have to make sure he's dead!"
Taehyun burst out after her, lifting both the chair Jiseon held and another one high overhead before smashing them down onto Dohyung's head with all his strength. Following Taehyun's lead, Jiseon began raining blows on the fallen man without mercy. They knew this level of attack might not be enough to keep him down, and if he stood up unharmed, both of them were as good as dead. Having seen too many movie protagonists fail to finish off killers, Jiseon joined Taehyun in viciously beating the prone figure.
"Die! Die, you fucking bastard!"
"You dog-shit motherfucker! Just drop dead already, you piece of filth!"
Jiseon and Taehyun kept hammering away. Jia stared at the scene in a daze before scrambling to her feet and rushing toward Dohyung's fallen body. She seized Jiseon's arm, trying to stop her.
"Stop it!! What are you doing to Master?!"
"What? You crazy bitch…"
Irritation flared in Jiseon's eyes at the sight of Jia blocking her. She shook her arm violently, throwing Jia to the floor.
"Are you actually insane? You're still calling this bastard Master? If we kill him right now, we can all get out of here. Wake up, Lee Jia!"
Jia flinched at the words, her mind spiraling into chaos. She knew Jiseon was right—if they took Dohyung down now, they could escape immediately. But the terrifying risks if they failed were almost too horrible to imagine. She was torn between the two choices.
The situation before her eyes was unmistakably a crisis for Dohyung. Taehyun was still attacking him relentlessly, and Jiseon glared at her with open hostility. If this were a movie, it felt like the scene where the villain finally falls and the captives achieve a happy ending by escaping together.
So Jia made her choice.
"…Stop…"
"What?"
"I said stop it!!"
Jia shot to her feet and hurled herself at Jiseon. Jiseon was genuinely startled by the sudden charge. She had expected Jia to join her after hearing the truth, not attack her instead. To Jiseon, it looked as if Jia had truly gone mad.
Dodging the incoming Jia was not difficult. Jiseon sidestepped lightly and drove her foot hard into the other girl's stomach. Her physical ability had always far surpassed Jia's, and even after being held captive and resting for so long, her background as a taekwondo national representative made dealing with Jia child's play. The only reason she had never rebelled against her before was the switch Dohyung had given Jia. In a real fight, Jiseon had always been confident she could win.
"Keuk!"
Kicked squarely in the gut, Jia tumbled backward. Jiseon walked toward her with an expression of utter disbelief.
"Can't you read the situation, you stupid bitch? This is our one golden chance to escape! And you're choosing that bastard instead?"
"Ugh… Master… don't attack him… cough!"
Jia clutched her aching stomach and shouted at Jiseon in a trembling voice.
"Lee Jia, you've completely lost your mind after spending all that time with him, haven't you? Is this what they call Stockholm syndrome? Then you can die with him, you crazy whore!"
Jiseon's rage boiled over at the sight of Jia—who had suffered alongside her—still defending Dohyung. Unable to contain her fury any longer, she lifted the chair high above her head to strike Jia. Jia squeezed her eyes shut and crossed her arms, trying desperately to block the blow.
Just as the chair was about to crash down on Jia's head—
"What… the…?"
The chair suddenly stopped in mid-air, inches from Jia's skull. Jiseon's eyes widened as she saw a hand gripping the chair, halting its descent. In that instant, instinct screamed at her that the situation had gone completely to hell.
"Wow… I never expected Kkami and Amta to prepare such a lovely surprise event for me."
A voice Jiseon never wanted to hear again flowed into her ears. A voice she had believed she would never have to listen to again. Slowly—agonizingly slowly—Jiseon turned her head to look at the person who had stopped her attack.
There, as naturally as if nothing had happened, stood Dohyung. He was smiling, holding the chair effortlessly in one hand. The sight made Jiseon release the chair in pure terror. She whipped her head around to check on Taehyun, who had been attacking Dohyung moments earlier.
"U-ugh…"
For some reason, Taehyun now lay on the floor, groaning in pain.
"H-how…"
Jiseon could not believe what she was seeing. She had been certain the first blow to the back of his head had been a perfect, lethal strike. From years of taekwondo training, she knew exactly how dangerous a solid hit to the occipital region could be. That was why she had swung with the full intent to kill. Yet Dohyung looked completely unharmed. There wasn't a single scratch on him. It was as if they had never attacked at all.
Dohyung casually tossed the chair aside. It clattered loudly against the floor, making Jiseon flinch and fall backward in fright.
"Now then… why don't you explain exactly what you were trying to do? Our cute little… Kkami?"
"A-ahaha… t-that is…"
Jiseon had no idea what to say or how to act. She only knew, deep in her bones, that she was in extreme danger. The thought of rebelling against Dohyung never even crossed her mind anymore. Living in this basement had taught her brutally that unless she could knock him out with a perfect surprise attack, she stood no chance.
"Then… I suppose you need to be punished, don't you?"
Seeing Dohyung's smile, Jiseon could only tremble in silent terror at the dark future awaiting her. Dohyung chuckled, clearly amused by her reaction. He was already wondering what sort of punishment to give this time.
Of course he had known Jiseon and Taehyun were hiding behind the door, waiting to ambush him. Blocking or dodging their attacks would have been child's play. But he had chosen not to. He had deliberately taken every blow.
He knew their attacks could never harm him. After surviving the other world, his body had grown strong enough to withstand direct hits from monsters without dying. Mere human strength could not even leave a mark. More importantly, he had wanted to create this exact situation—the justification to inflict punishment on them.
Giving them random physical and mental torment every single day was too easy. Dohyung knew that would make his revenge feel hollow. He refused to cause pain without reason. He did not want their minds to break too quickly, turning them into empty dolls. His true goal—his greatest pleasure—was to make them live out their painful lives fully conscious until the very end.
Watching Dohyung smile at Jiseon, Jia let out a quiet sigh of relief. She had been terrified that agreeing with Jiseon's words and attacking him might drag her into the coming punishment. Of course, there was still a chance he might punish her for failing to control the other two. But at least, she hoped, it would not be as severe as what awaited Jiseon and Taehyun, who had directly assaulted their Master.
No matter what happens… I will not betray Master… I'm different from them…!
Dohyung turned and looked at the fallen Jia.
"Our Nabi, you did quite well. I thought you might join them in attacking me, but instead you tried to stop that rampaging little Kkami. I was almost touched."
Hearing his praise, Jia quickly rose and pressed her forehead to the floor in a deep bow.
"N-no, Master! It was all because of this worthless slave's poor management that Kkami and Amta dared to think of attacking you! I am truly, deeply sorry! Please punish me as well!"
Even as she cried out her apology, Jia prayed desperately inside. Please don't punish me. A gentle hand stroked her head.
"No. Our Nabi will be excluded from this punishment. Even I am not such a demon that I would force punishment on you for something like this. Get up now and help me clean up."
"Ah… Yes, Master! Thank you!!"
Jia was genuinely overjoyed. She felt so happy she wanted to run around in circles. Dohyung, too, believed it was right not to punish her this time.
"Now… what kind of punishment should I give…?"
Dohyung slowly approached the trembling Jiseon, savoring the delightful thoughts of the torment to come.