Risk Level <4>: Girl
The living room looked like any ordinary family home. I sat at the dining table placed right in the center of it. I had no idea why I was lounging here instead of working, but...
"Here, open wide~ Aang~"
"...Aang."
A piece of cake that looked deliciously sweet was held out to my lips, as if urging me to forget my worries.
"...Good boy."
The cake slid down my throat, leaving a sweet aftertaste in my mouth, so I smiled back at her.
"Still, you shouldn't eat with it smeared on your face~"
She climbed onto my lap as I sat in the chair, wrapping her arms around my neck. After carefully setting the fork down on the table, she leaned her face closer to mine. When she tilted her head slightly, her long hair—dyed a pretty lavender—cascaded down like a curtain, blocking my view. Her sharp, seductive eyes, brimming with sensuality, demanded my attention, and soon our gazes locked—beautiful lavender irises meeting mine.
Then, without warning, she closed the distance.
"Chuu~"
"...!"
Not content with licking the whipped cream from the corner of my mouth with her lips, she flicked her tongue out as if to leave me wanting more, tracing my upper lip before pulling away.
"Hehe... Cute."
"...Haa."
The damp, soft touch of her tongue and her hot breath tickling my face felt so pleasant that a sigh of longing escaped me before I could stop it. But that wasn't the only thing making things difficult for me right now.
Her figure was anything but ordinary—voluptuous and seductive—and she was pressed right up against me. The soft weight of her thighs on my lap and her breasts resting against my chest made it a desperate struggle to keep certain parts of me from reacting.
...Something felt off. She had looked much younger the last time. This lewd body and that alluring, sharp aura... It was just like the Field Team Leader.
"Ah...?"
In that moment, a sense of dread washed over me for reasons I couldn't quite grasp. I suddenly realized this was something no one else should see.
"..!!"
Only then did the other odd details start catching my eye. The numerous surveillance cameras that wouldn't normally be in a regular home, and that black device attached to her pale neck...
"Go sit back in your seat. We're in the middle of a counseling session."
"Eung, but you... look like you're struggling?"
Instead of pulling away, she slid one arm down and began gently rubbing near my thigh. Feeling sorry for her, I still had no choice but to say it.
"Stop."
"Ugh?!"
The moment the word left my mouth, she clutched the black device on her neck and let out a pained whimper before obediently climbing off and sitting in the chair across from me.
Finally, a voice came through the in-ear.
"Oh, you broke free?"
"Ugh..."
"Not bad for day three. On the first day you were so deep into the kiss you just collapsed right there."
"..."
"By the way, I'm surprised. So Ung-ssi's type is that kind of vibe..."
There was a hint of displeasure—some discomfort—in the Team Leader's voice. It was probably because the woman in front of me gave off an atmosphere almost identical to the Field Team Leader's. According to the profile, she used her transformation ability to appear in whatever form I found ideal.
"Ahem."
Per her profile, her original appearance should have been visible on camera for the Team Leader to monitor, and a Risk Level 4 containment subject's room shouldn't look like a normal house. But this special space, created by the black-haired girl codenamed Founder, manifested exactly according to my perception. It seemed this was the favor the Team Leader had asked of her. To prepare something this bizarre in less than a day...
This small house was a virtual space built like a movie set inside her originally empty containment room, which had only contained a steel-framed chair and a single light. The reason it was a house right now was because that was how I perceived it. The abundance of surveillance cameras that didn't fit the setting, and the fact that I could actually eat the cake I'd brought in, were possible only because this space existed in reality. Since it was created using "a part" of her—an exception among most anomalies—abilities were restricted inside it.
Honestly, I didn't understand all the talk about exceptions, abilities, and restrictions. I just accepted it as fact. Still, the fact that all her restraints had been removed meant the safety verification had been completed to some degree... probably.
Above all, the black device on her neck was also one of that girl's creations. When I gave negative commands like "stop," "no more," or "don't," it inflicted pain on her. It felt like watching a shock collar for dogs, and while that stirred some guilt, I'd heard she'd sacrificed more than ten people in the previous shadow war incident alone, so I steeled myself.
"This... hurts."
After tasting the sting once, her appearance had changed again. This time, she looked small and young—the same form she'd had when I'd first tried to save her. Clutching the black restraint around her neck, she gave me a pitiful look. Whenever she wanted sympathy, affection, or to seduce me, she transformed into whatever form would best ensnare me.
Besides...
'Counselor, why are you hurting me...? It hurts so much, and I'm so sad... I just... wanted to be loved...'
Her inner voice always carried such genuine emotion that resisting it was incredibly difficult. She poured herself so completely into the lie that she even deceived herself, delivering a flawless performance. Comparing how I felt before and after learning that everything about her was a lie and an act, knowing the truth at least made it easier to keep my head straight. But if she was lying even to herself, then maybe the feelings she had right now were real after all. The thought left me strangely unsettled.
"Still, it's much better than when your hands and feet were bound, right?"
"Yes... Thank you so much."
Compared to being restrained with a muzzle, earplugs, and blindfold, she seemed to think her current situation was an improvement.
"Thinking about it, Ung-ssi basically already saved that girl... no, her."
Since counseling for a Level 4 containment subject had officially begun, the level of support and attention had increased. With the black-haired girl's help, this safe and comfortable counseling space had been prepared, freeing her from being stuck on a chair in a dark room. Of course, that also meant many management team members were watching my embarrassing display alongside the Team Leader, so the atmosphere was quite different from Harpy's counseling sessions. I couldn't help but feel tense.
"I don't know if I should call it fortunate... Honestly, I'm not sure."
"...Hmm."
There was a brief silence over the in-ear. Just as I started feeling a bit awkward and anxious, the Team Leader's voice came through again, sounding rather unpleasant to hear.
"Ung-ssi's mental fortitude is surprisingly fragile in some ways, yet remarkably solid in others. It's fascinating. Even when you're completely dazed, you recover and return to normal so quickly."
"Dazed..."
"Is it because you've lived among people while possessing the ability to hear their inner voices? Or maybe..."
Or maybe?
"The way you were with Harpy... Hmm, never mind."
If she was going to say it, she should finish. Cutting off midway only left me uneasy.
"Anyway, we'll end today's counseling here. This is the first time you haven't been completely drained and carried out."
"Haha..."
Session over for today—good news. I stood up from the chair, glancing at her as she sat there blinking with a posture that emphasized her delicate femininity, clearly trying to stir affection in me.
"Ah, are you leaving...?"
She reacted sensitively to my every movement, even wiggling her hips as if about to stand and follow, her face full of reluctance. Watching her like that made me wonder if even this was a lie. It was troubling.
"Yes. I have vacation tomorrow and the day after... I'll come see you the day after that."
"Sniff..."
"..."
Tears welled up in her lavender eyes. 'Please don't go... Being alone is so lonely...'
Of course, her inner voice was pleading for me to stay as well. Even though I tried to tell myself that sorrowful tone was a lie, it didn't feel that way, leaving me unsettled. Still, today's counseling was over. The fact that I'd managed to regain my senses midway was already significant progress.
"If there's any food you want to eat, let me know. I'll bring it next time."
It was something I'd said because she'd fed me the entire cake I'd brought.
"Ah... Then, if possible... if Counselor made it yourself... I think I'd be really happy..."
She put on a shy expression and gaze, carefully making the request. Did she mean she wanted to eat something I'd cooked myself?
"I don't know how to make many dishes..."
"I don't have any particular favorite foods... Is that okay?"
With those pretty, jewel-like eyes brimming with tears as she asked, it was hard to refuse. It wasn't the answer I'd expected, but I was the one who'd brought it up first.
"...Understood. I'll need to get permission first, but I'll see you at the next session."
"Yes, I'll be waiting for you."
She even gave me a bright smile in the end. Feeling unsettled, I headed for the front door and opened it. Beyond the door with its ordinary-looking electronic lock wasn't an apartment hallway or yard, but the solid floor of the containment room. When I naturally turned back to close the door, all I saw was a rectangular black box-like structure with nothing but a single door and no windows.
"Good work today."
As always, the Team Leader was waiting outside.