Chapter 8
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 8
Chapter Title: Papa's White and Sticky Formula
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Cheok Yunhwa's current state could be summed up in one phrase.
'I'm insanely embarrassed, but insanely happy.'
The first thing Seungbin handed her, calling it therapeutic equipment, was an adult-sized diaper and baby clothes.
The moment she heard that, humiliation and shame naturally flashed through Yunhwa's mind.
'I'm in my thirties now!'
She wasn't married, but more importantly... she wasn't some little girl; these were clothes that made her look like a baby.
To wear something so cute it bordered on infantile in front of the second man she'd ever met?!
...Fine.
Even conceding a hundred times over, she could chalk the baby clothes up to a fantasy.
In truth, due to her harsh family environment, Yunhwa had never properly owned pretty clothes or cute toys as a child.
Maybe because of that, her room was still piled high with stuffed animals, and she'd often pause in front of the kids' clothing section at department stores.
Honestly... she did want to try wearing them.
But.
No matter what, a diaper was a step too far—a diaper!!!
That was a whole different genre!
It wasn't just crazy; it was deliberately snapping the last thread of sanity.
'Diapers are for babies when they poop, right?!'
For her to wear one at her age, and as an S-Rank Hunter, no less?!
It was absurd.
...But.
What if this man, her counselor... had seen right through her?
Yunhwa suddenly fell into a dizzying delusion.
The 'special' videos she watched to relieve stress, the ones featuring people in diapers doing baby play with those peculiar tastes....
Could he have figured it out and done this on purpose?
Rationally, she should refuse.
But at that moment, instinct—not reason—was rising in her mind.
In the end, she resolved to become the baby in a diaper she'd dreamed of her whole life, in front of this man with his kind, papa-like face.
"Shall our Yunhwa have some milk?"
"Awoo... waaaah!"
She couldn't even speak anymore.
Because right now, she was a baby.
And with a pacifier in her mouth, all that came out were cute baby cries like "awoo."
But it was strange.
Her mouth was blocked, yet she felt even happier.
She definitely felt embarrassed, but her mind buzzed with electric thrills, floating blissfully.
Her lower body even felt weak, like she might wet herself in the diaper with that dizzying sensation.
And beyond her gaze, her sturdy papa was warming up formula.
In a real baby bottle, no less.
'This isn't right... this is the line we absolutely can't cross...!'
She clung desperately to that final line, barely holding onto her sanity.
But at that moment.
"Oh, and since our Yunhwa is a big baby~ I'll add a special sauce to make the formula extra yummy~?"
"Wha...?"
Sauce?
What was that?
As Yunhwa tilted her head while sucking on her pacifier, Seungbin teasingly tossed out a hint.
"Wanna guess? Hint: it's a white and sticky sauce~."
"...!!"
Her pride as a top hunter?
Screw it.
At those words, Yunhwa's thighs trembled.
'White... and sticky... sauce?!'
No matter how she thought about it, it had to be that.
The thick, precious sauce a man squeezes out himself—the legendary stuff you had to taste at least once before dying.
The special something mixed into milk in those baby play videos she watched.
"Ta-da~ The answer is 'condensed milk'."
"...Fuck."
"Huh, what?"
Papa, you wanna die?
What the hell did I do wrong...?
Formula is originally baby nutrition food.
By nature, it's bland and tasteless to adult palates.
So if an adult tries to drink it?
A rejection reaction is only natural.
That's why, after some thought, I found a 'reference material,' and in it, they mixed in a bit of condensed milk to offset the blandness.
In a... pretty niche AV.
I never thought referencing that baby play scene would cause this much trouble.
"Bu... abububu...!"
She'd clearly switched back to 'baby mode,' but those eyes were still murderous.
It was obvious what she meant.
'I hate Papa. Die.'
The problem was... she was the kind of woman who could actually kill someone like me in a fit of rage.
No matter how much she was mimicking a baby, she was still Korea's strongest S-Rank Hunter.
If Yunhwa got too immersed and playfully swatted me as a baby would... my body could pop like a balloon and fly away.
So, pondering how to soothe this overgrown, threatening baby, I made the best judgment I could as both a doctor and a papa.
"Oop-oop~ My baby~ Papa was wrong~ Forgive me~."
"Bubububu...."
"Here comes a yummy formula missile~ Open wide~ Whoosh~!"
Babies are stubborn and love apologies by nature.
I exploited that instinct to match her mood, gently removed the pacifier from between her lips, and carefully poured in the warmed formula.
...Suck, suck, suck.
Her eyebrows were still furrowed, but her mouth was eagerly sucking on the bottle.
Seems like the bit of condensed milk worked wonders.
But that wasn't the end of the problem.
Her trauma ran deeper than I'd imagined.
Simply feeding her something tasty wouldn't fill the void.
So after some thought, I pulled out the next scenario I'd prepared solely for this therapy.
"Agoo~ Good job eating, baby~! Now, shall Papa do some 'rock-a-bye'~?"
"B-bubu...? Bububububu?!"
Yunhwa's eyes went wide in shock.
Of course, even that reaction was entirely as expected.
She wasn't a real baby, after all. No matter how much he was playing papa, for a man she'd just met to suddenly scoop her up and rock her?
It was blatant boundary-crossing.
The bottle was still in her mouth, but her face started flushing red, and her eyes soon spun wildly.
At this rate, in five seconds she'd spit out the bottle and firmly say, "No, that's really not okay!"
...No.
That wouldn't do.
This was therapy.
Role-play therapy, and Yunhwa was playing the 'baby' role.
Which meant?
Babies can't talk.
The moment she spoke, immersion breaks.
Immersion breaks, and the therapy becomes pointless.
So I acted immediately.
Swoosh!
"B-babyu?!"
The bottle in her mouth nearly shook out as I silently scooped her up and lifted her effortlessly.
...Me, Kim Seungbin.
Despite appearances, in this reversed world, I'm a 'sturdy man' who exceeds the average.
Unlike the typical guys just gaining belly fat on male support funds, I hit the gym daily, focusing on 'lower body' like a real man.
400 on the big three is baseline, body fat under 10%.
With that build, lifting a 60kg adult baby one-handed is no sweat.
That's right.
This is the true dignity of a papa.
I carefully cradled Yunhwa in both arms and rocked her gently, just like a real baby.
"Whee~ Our Yunhwa~ Doesn't this feel good~?"
"Byubyubyu...."
"Hahaha~ See? Feels good, doesn't it, baby~ Good girl~."
At first, she looked worried about throwing her back out.
But surprised at how easily I lifted her, Yunhwa stared at me with a confused face that soon softened into relaxation.
Like a real newborn, she entrusted her body to me, focusing only on sucking the bottle.
And on that face... there was unmistakably a glow of happiness.
Was it really that good?
Shiver...
"Hm?"
Suddenly, she trembled slightly in my arms, blushed, and hid her face behind the bottle.
Yet she kept making baby cries like "bububu..." to the end, holding the role-play.
But.
Why did her lower half—the diaper area—feel especially warm right now?
Were diapers supposed to get warm like that?
I pondered briefly, but it felt like peering into the abyss, so I decided to ignore it.
The conference room of Korea's Four Great Guilds.
The three guild leaders gathered there today, as always, united by one common goal.
To take down Cheok Yunhwa.
One of them, a white-haired old woman with a cast on her arm, still felt the pain and stroked the broken spot before slamming the table with a thud.
"Goddamn it! They said she'd weakened! But what the hell is this? She's still a total monster!"
At her agitated shout, the woman next to her in traditional hanbok started to speak but nodded and shut her mouth instead.
Truth be told... even she broke into a cold sweat thinking about yesterday's 'incident.'
The Hunter Association's top-floor counseling room.
This was the place where, anywhere in the world, 'nation-level' hunters ended up as a last resort before being scrapped.
Once a symbol of glory, now a dumping ground for has-beens.
Just the fact that Cheok Yunhwa was in there proved she was already broken, so they'd believed.
They could finally devour her.
But reality?
...They got properly wrecked instead.
"Just my arm? If she'd really torn my head off that day, I wouldn't even be at this meeting."
"...Damn it."
As the mood tilted toward giving up on revenge and all that, the guild leader with a clean appearance but snake-like sharp eyes quietly spoke up.
"Everyone, are you saying you're giving up now?"
"Give up? Look at my arm! Want yours broken too before you snap out of it?"
She smirked at the grumbling guild leaders and narrowed her eyes.
"That's why this is perfect. Haven't you realized this is the golden opportunity?"
"Opportunity...?"
"Look. That bitch Cheok Yunhwa—we even touched her guild members, and all she did was what? Broke one arm and called it a day?"
The reason she framed it as an opportunity was simple.
"If we'd pulled that shit on her in her prime? Would it have ended like that?"
"...No, we'd be bloody messes getting dragged around."
"But now? She can't even use her full strength, has to watch her doctor's mood, and breaking one arm is all she manages. That means she's done for!"
"I-is that so?"
"Yeah... She didn't look normal. Which means it's our chance!"
At those words, the conference room's atmosphere shifted subtly.
Eyes dimmed by vengeful frustration began gleaming with sinister madness once more.