Lesson #2: The Oath Above Blood
I was in the lab with the Doctor, crafting a bow for Yuria. Or rather, it was nearly finished, and she had asked for my help as a consultant. “The bowstring is all that’s left… What should we use for it?” The Doctor wore a troubled expression. It looked like the funds I had pulled from the company and given her every month had finally run dry. That made sense. Creating a truly excellent bow required pouring in expensive materials, so it was only natural they had been exhausted.
“We should use Polymus. It’s the most perfect material currently in existence. There’s no way you wouldn’t have considered it, Doctor… Has the money run out?”
“That… to be honest, yes.”
“I’ll wire more over.”
“No, we can push it to next month.”
“We need to finish it quickly. We never know when a monster might appear. Do you really want to send Yuria out there with nothing to protect her?”
“…You’re right. Thank you, Song.”
I answered with a bright smile. After stepping outside, I contacted Marcela and instructed her to withdraw an appropriate amount of funds. When I returned, I told the Doctor, “It should be deposited by tomorrow.”
“Thank you. I mean that.”
“It’s nothing. We’re close, after all… The work must be exhausting, right?”
I spoke as if we shared something special and casually placed a hand on the Doctor’s shoulder, giving it a few light pats. She didn’t show any strong reaction. Yet somewhere beneath the surface, she felt an unconscious discomfort. It was an instinctive response, born from the way her deceased husband still occupied the deepest part of her heart and the profound love she had held for him.
“It’s not that exhausting. How has Sehwa been lately?”
I withdrew my hand from her shoulder and scratched the back of my head. “Same as always. She does nothing but complain every day.”
“It must be because she finally has someone she can truly rely on. I used to do the same with my husband all the time.”
“Your husband didn’t rely on you, Doctor? That’s surprising… What kind of person was he?”
“Well… It’s difficult to pin him down with a single description. He had many distinctive sides… Still, he was a dignified man.”
The Doctor’s face clouded over with longing. She fiddled with her wedding ring, lost in thoughts of her husband, before catching herself.
“If he were still alive, the two of you would have gotten along wonderfully. It’s a shame he never got to see it.”
“You… never had children?”
“I’m infertile, so we never did. We tried, but it never happened. Anyway, Song, do you happen to know who Yuria is seeing?”
It’s me.
“I don’t know much about it. Why do you ask?”
“It’s just… if Yuria is only seeing someone casually, it might become difficult to charge her Device if they break up.”
She’s worrying over nothing. I was going to corrupt her completely and keep her by my side forever.
“You should speak with her directly.”
“We aren’t close enough for me to pry into her personal life yet… Enough small talk. Shall we get back to work?”
“Work? We can’t make the bowstring without Polymus… All the other equipment and consumables are fully prepared. I’ve even finished inspecting the fighters, transports, and rescue vessels. What else is there? Should we clean the lab?”
The Doctor glanced around at my words, then lightly tapped her own forehead. “When I don’t have a machine in my hands, I feel restless… I must be losing my mind.”
“That’s called work addiction. You need proper rest. Let’s head back together.”
“I’m fine. Going home just means being alone…”
“Come on, get up. At least have a drink with me.”
“A drink?”
“What are you going to do here with nothing left to work on? The deposit will take a while, and I have time today as well… Let’s relieve some stress. How about it?”
The Doctor hummed in thought. Her eyes held clear reluctance, but because I had helped her multiple times, her hesitation ran deep.
“Later… Let’s do it later. I’m not really in the mood today.”
“Is that so?”
“It’s not because of you. If I drank today, I’d only think about my husband. But let’s definitely drink soon. I promise.”
Hmm… Mentioning her husband was a misstep. Well, these kinds of trial and error were necessary. I decided not to push and simply backed off. Shrugging my shoulders, I said, “Understood. Then I’ll head out. Contact me once you obtain the Polymus.”
“Will do. Thank you.”
The following evening, I waited for Yuria on Handae Street. It wasn’t long before I spotted her running toward me from a distance, clutching coffees in both hands and breathing hard. Today’s outfit… hot pants that generously revealed her voluptuous legs. Paired with a white shirt that faintly showed what lay beneath… She had grown quite provocative.
Drawing the eyes of everyone around her, Yuria reached me and panted heavily. She was pretending to be out of breath even though she wasn’t tired at all.
“I’m sorry… I’m late, aren’t I?”
“Where were you that you’re only showing up now?”
“Ah… I mixed up the time… I only realized after buying the coffee.”
Lying so casually right after meeting Yu Seunghyeon. Good. Keep it up. Once your relationship with him develops further, I’ll make sure to catch the two of you together.
“Just hand over the coffee.”
“Yes… Here you are.”
I naturally took the cup that belonged to Yuria and wrapped my lips around the straw, taking a slow sip.
“Please forgive me…”
Yuria apologized with lowered lashes while I continued drinking without a care. I gave a vague nod.
“If you had been even one minute later, I would have left. I’ll overlook it this time.”
“Thank you… Should we walk around a little first?”
“You just ran all the way here. Catch your breath first.”
“…Yes…”
Yuria’s eyes darted everywhere, scanning the entire street. Are you afraid Yu Seunghyeon might see you while he’s on his way home from work? Don’t worry. He’s already back at his studio apartment by now.
Her restless fidgeting was genuinely amusing. After a moment, she tapped her own thigh and asked, “Um… Jihyeok-ssi, where are we going today? I don’t have to return home until the day after tomorrow.”
She’s making the first move. The previous encounter must have felt exceptionally good.
“What about Mr. Kim Taegon? Won’t he worry?”
“It’s fine.”
“Ah, speaking of Mr. Kim Taegon… You…”
When I trailed off, Yuria anxiously licked her lips. “What is it…?”
“Never mind. Get in the car. I’ll tell you when we arrive.”
“Ah, yes…”
The place I brought Yuria to was a modest detached house in Uijeongbu. It sat in a quiet residential area with beautiful scenery and few people—an ideal spot for walks. The kind of cozy home a retired businessman might live in.
After parking, I told her to get out. Once we entered the house together, I tossed the car keys onto the sofa.
“Where… are we?”
Yuria’s voice trembled as she looked around. She seemed to have already guessed the purpose of this place.
“We’ll meet here from now on.”
Yuria’s expression seemed to say I knew it as she asked, “Did you… buy this place?”
“That’s right. I purchased it quite some time ago. I thought about it before our trip—that it would be nice to use this as our own space.”
Even though I had openly declared my intentions, Yuria didn’t show any intense reaction. She simply hesitated.
“…..”
“Do you have any complaints?”
“Ah, n-no… Of course not… Haa… W-wait a moment…!”
When I stepped closer, Yuria retreated. Though she appeared tense, anticipation gleamed in her eyes. I planned to surprise her soon, but there was something I needed to handle first.
“I met Mr. Kim Taegon yesterday.”
“Why…?”
“For business, obviously. He told me he fought with his daughter.”
“…..”
“Why did you fight? Was it because of the fishing trip?”
Yuria pressed her lips tightly together, clearly unwilling to answer. But when she saw my stern expression, she sighed and spoke.
“Yes… I wanted to be with you, Jihyeok-ssi… but Dad wouldn’t let me go, so I got angry.”
“Aren’t you still a child? Are you going to ignore what adults tell you?”
“B-but last time, Jihyeok-ssi… you said I only have to listen to you…”
“So you’re going to ignore your blood-related father, the one you finally met after so many years?”
“That’s not what I meant…”
“How rude.”
“I said that’s not—”
“Hup!”
Yuria gasped. I had reached out and firmly seized her chin. Fear instantly flooded her eyes. This was a completely sealed space where no one could enter, and the lights were barely on, leaving it dim. The atmosphere felt entirely different from the hotel full of guests, causing Yuria to tremble violently.
“You did well.”
“…?”
Confusion filled Yuria’s gaze. She had expected punishment after being called rude, yet I suddenly praised her.
“I-I did well…?”
“Yes. You did very well.”
“…..”
“You’ll continue doing so in the future, won’t you?”
“Huuu…”
Thud! I lightly tapped her cheek just like I had at the hotel. Yuria let out a sharp “Hyaak!” In a tearful voice, she said, “I… I also have to listen to Father properly…”
“To your father? Of course you should. Just make sure you prioritize my words even more.”
“…..”
Thud!
“You’ll do that, right?”
“Hic…!”
Yuria was on the verge of tears. I offered a generous smile. “You literally just said it yourself. That you only need to listen to me.”
“T-that was…”
Were you about to say it was just a lie to avoid upsetting me? You won’t dare. Yuria swallowed hard and finally gave a small nod.
“Yes…”
“Then you’ll place my words as your highest priority?”
“I will… I already am…”
“Say it with your own mouth. Swear it.”
“I…”
She hesitated. But as my expression slowly grew darker, she swallowed once more and quickly spoke.
“I… Yuria Elenar… swear that I will prioritize Jihyeok-ssi’s words above my father’s words…”
A thrill ran through me. The moment even her father—the person she cherished most, the one who had reincarnated from beyond the galaxy—fell beneath me. The ecstasy was almost unbearable. Of course, if an actual choice presented itself, she wouldn’t blindly follow my words. Yuria had not yet fallen far enough to coldly abandon her own blood. Still, forcing her to utter the oath aloud had achieved my goal. Her psychology was slowly shifting, and it would continue to do so. Though the vow had been coerced by fear, she would carry it in her heart from now on. Once her submissive tendencies deepened and her corruption progressed meaningfully, she would swear it again with genuine sincerity just to earn my reward. That was enough.
“You did well.”
“Huuu…”
A single tear slipped from Yuria’s eye. It was undoubtedly because she felt guilty toward Kim Taegon.
“Since you did something so pretty, I suppose I should give you a reward.”
“Th-thank you…”
“Because you accomplished something difficult, I think I’ll give you a special reward today.”
“A special… reward…?”
I led Yuria into the bedroom, turned on the light, opened the closet door, and showed her what was inside. While sniffling and peering in, Yuria’s eyes widened.
“Th-this is…”
The closet contained an array of SM tools. From a collar with a bell to bandages, paddles, nipple chains, fingering condoms, bondage ropes, an electric whip, and even a rotor holder designed to be worn like panties with a vibrator inside. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say every BDSM item on the market was present.
Look at them carefully and remember them all. You can use them on Yu Seunghyeon later.
“J-Jihyeok-ssi…”
I walked past the trembling, ashamed Yuria, took out the bell-adorned collar, and held it up in front of her.
“Come closer.”