The Bunny Girl's Defiance
Rose returned to her room and collapsed onto the bed, falling asleep the moment her body touched the sheets. When she woke from her brief nap, the sun had already set and darkness pressed against the windows. The maids must have slipped in while she slept; they stood waiting as if they had never left.
“So this is what they want me to wear?” Rose remembered the order to work as casino staff. The tiny scrap of fabric on the bed was unmistakably a bunny girl outfit, accompanied by a rabbit-ear headband and wrist cuffs laid out with meticulous care.
The maids offered no reply. Their silence was more threatening than any words could have been. The head maid was gone, yet Rose felt the weight of her new reality with painful clarity. There was nothing she could do. All she could do was protect herself as best she could and obey their demands.
She shivered as she turned the meaning of “protecting herself” over in her mind. As a woman, that could only mean preserving her virginity. The realization that she was already thinking like a woman sent a wave of confusion through her. She forced herself to act tough.
When she picked up the folded bunny suit, its absurdly small coverage became obvious. It would leave most of her breasts exposed, barely concealing the vital areas, while the crotch was so minimal it would only just hide what mattered. Whatever. Virginity doesn’t mean a damn thing. Rose tried to stay casual, forcing herself to think like a man. She would rather die than let a man have her body, but she refused to obsess over her chastity like some fragile girl.
“Get out. I’ll wear what you want. But you’d better steel yourselves for what happens when this is over.”
Even the maids, who had always maintained expressionless indifference, fled as though escaping a predator. Rose’s killing intent had been that fierce.
“Haa…”
Alone at last, Rose stared at the bunny girl costume and hardened her resolve. If she allowed herself to be swept along like this, she would inevitably meet the ending the mod had prepared—the proud pirate empress Rose Black reduced to a mindless sow. She had to strengthen her will and carve out her own fate. The important thing now was not a moment of humiliation. She had no time to bury herself in bed like a weeping girl, obsessing over what had happened at the spa.
Rose stripped naked and stood before the mirror. Her goddess-like figure seemed even more radiant after the massage. With this body, she could accomplish anything.
She dressed piece by piece, then stood before the mirror once more. The reflection was even more obscene than when she had been nude. The wire in the top barely supported her breasts; it looked less like clothing and more like she was presenting them on an altar. The lower half was ridiculously narrow at the crotch, so precarious that any wrong movement threatened to expose her most intimate place. Every detail had been optimized to strike straight at a man’s heart.
Rose clenched her fists until her knuckles turned white. Now that it had come to this, she could only stay alert and endure.
A moment later the door opened and the maids returned. They brought the rabbit ears, tail, and cuffs from the bed, completing her outfit. As she walked toward the casino, every person she passed—man or woman—stared at her body. Not stolen glances, but open, captivated stares. The more they looked, the straighter Rose held her shoulders. If she began to shrink back, she would only fall into their trap.
The maids explained the etiquette expected of a bunny girl and the duties she would perform that day, but their words barely registered. She had no intention of listening carefully. The bunny girl heels were even higher and more unstable than what she usually wore, yet her body moved with surprising skill. The sway of her hips, however, was unavoidable. The motion made her look like a female in heat, and the guests openly savored the sight.
“Whoa, never seen that face before. New girl?” A sleazy-looking man approached with a greasy laugh just as she neared the casino floor. His eyes were glued to her exposed cleavage.
“What a masterpiece. Hiding a beauty like this—unbelievable.”
He stepped beside her and reached out without hesitation, aiming to grab her ass.
Smack!
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Rose slapped his hand away with brutal force.
The man stared at his wrist in surprise, then looked at the maids. “Feisty one, isn’t she? Total rookie. Some noble daughter sold for debt, maybe?”
He laughed as though amused, but kept his distance. Though she had only lightly struck him, the force behind her blow had been no joke.
“But you messed up. Just look at yourself. Better forget the days when you wore fancy dresses and were treated like a precious jewel.”
Still clutching his wrist, the man hurried away, clearly afraid of another attack.
“Miss Rose, as I told you earlier, you must show absolute obedience to the masters,” one of the maids said once he was gone. Her tone held no reproach.
“I don’t serve anyone as master.”
The original Rose Black would have chosen death over submitting to the protagonist or any other faction. The current Rose felt exactly the same. The idea of treating every man as her master was absurd.
The maid said nothing more and guided her deeper into the casino through the staff passage, avoiding the main hall and any further male guests.
Creak.
The flimsy waiting-room door opened to reveal bunny girls busily preparing for the night. Their faces were heavy with fatigue and boredom as they applied makeup or killed time with cigarettes. At first they paid Rose little attention, but after one proper look, their eyes locked onto her stunning features.
Their gazes, however, were nothing like the envious stares of men on the street. These were eyes filled with rivalry and jealousy—the look of predators facing competition for the same prey.
“Another newbie?”
“You didn’t seriously walk the streets dressed like that, did you? Must’ve been one hell of an initiation.”
Hearing their giggles, Rose realized her mistake. She hadn’t needed to change clothes back at her quarters. Too focused on refusing to be pushed around, she had overlooked something so obvious.
“You’re actually pretty cute. Great skin, too. Some young lady who’s never suffered a day in her life, I bet. So how did someone like you end up here?”
One of the bunny girls—who clearly held higher rank—approached and poked Rose’s breast with a finger as if prodding a filthy animal.
“What are you doing?”
Startled, Rose covered her chest and growled, but unlike the man earlier, this woman showed no fear. Instead, her followers gathered around her, forming a hostile circle.
“What am I doing? What are you doing?” Empowered by her supporters, the woman planted her hands on her hips. “Parading around the streets in that outfit will bring every man in the city running to see you. If you want to act like a whore, go to the back alleys. That place is crawling with girls like you. Don’t ruin our business.”
Only then did Rose understand the truth. The maids had dressed her as a bunny girl from the very start for a reason. She had been advertising the arrival of a new girl the entire way, and rumors about her must have already spread like wildfire across the city. The situation would clearly cause her problems.
Rose ground her teeth, swallowing her curses toward Mateo.
She refused to apologize like a fool. Instead, she shoved the woman’s shoulder roughly. The woman toppled backward with shocking ease and fell to the floor.
“Kyaa!”
It was a fragile, girlish scream—one Rose had never heard when cutting down enemies with her sword on deck. Her female sailors never cried out like that even when struck by blades.
Rose looked down at her with contempt. No one dared challenge her. It wasn’t strength that made her arrogant; she was simply a fearless novice. The fallen woman finally realized she wasn’t facing an ordinary young lady and began to tremble violently.
“That’s enough, Miss Rose.”
The door opened again and a man in a sharp suit appeared.
“Damaging the casino’s merchandise will only cause trouble for you as well, Miss Rose.”
The man—clearly the manager—openly referred to the bunny girls as products. Naturally, the same applied to Rose.
“Oh my, Mister Alex!”
The moment he appeared, the bunny girls swarmed him with bright, flirtatious smiles, as if nothing had happened. They bent low to offer him a view of their cleavage, linked arms with him, and subtly pressed their breasts against his forearm.
Alex handled their fawning with practiced ease and approached Rose.
“Captain Rose Black, I presume. The president gave strict orders to treat you with special care.”
When Alex politely stepped aside to let her pass, the bunny girls stared in shock. They looked at Rose as if seeing her for the first time. One even apologized in fear as Rose walked past.
“Miss Rose isn’t someone who belongs among the likes of them.”
As they walked down the corridor, Alex smiled in a way that suggested he wanted to win her favor. No man could keep his senses intact in front of her beauty.
At the end of the corridor stood an exceptionally ornate door.
“This is the VIP hall for our honored guests. I assume the maids explained the precautions?”
Alex asked just before opening the door. Rose didn’t remember any such explanation but nodded anyway. In this game, “honored guests” likely meant the rulers of the sea. This was an excellent chance to gather information.
When the door opened, warm, pleasant air wrapped around her chilled body, and a sweet fragrance filled her nose. The interior of the VIP hall was an entirely different world. The people gambling at the tables did not seem vulgar. The bunny girls attending them carried themselves with refined grace that went far beyond mere appearance.
As Rose followed Alex, the gazes directed at her felt different as well. The looks on the street had been sticky and crude, but these guests regarded her body as if appreciating a work of art.
“So this is the one.”
She was led to the bartender, who bowed politely as though he had been waiting.
“Tonight, Miss Rose, your job is to serve drinks to our honored guests. There’s no need to take orders. Simply carry the cocktails prepared by the bartender and offer them around.”
Rose nodded confidently. The task didn’t seem difficult, and the hall’s atmosphere was calm. The customers appeared high-class, and there were already plenty of elegant bunny girls drawing attention.
“Let’s give it a try.”
At Alex’s signal, the bartender placed a cocktail on a tray.
“Walk slowly and with elegance. You don’t need to force drinks on anyone. Present them politely to those who show interest.”
After Alex finished speaking, another bunny girl demonstrated how to hold the tray. Rose balanced it on her palm and began to walk. The high heels forced her hips to sway seductively with every step, and the white rabbit tail on her rear only emphasized her lewdness. She was aware of it, but all her concentration was focused on not falling. She had no choice but to keep swaying.
“Over here.”
As she passed a blackjack table, a man in naval officer uniform raised his hand politely. Rose felt, for the first time, that her value was being respected. She held out the tray.
When the officer took the glass and she turned to leave, he spoke.
“You’re very beautiful. I don’t recall seeing your face before. First day?”
Rose barely suppressed the urge to flee. She had been told that once a customer engaged her, she must remain until dismissed. Having learned the painful consequences of breaking the rules at the spa, she stayed and faced him.
She did not smile like the other bunny girls, nor did she lace her voice with coquetry.
“Yes.”
Her curt reply made the officer chuckle. “There’s a certain charm to the roughness, but it’s difficult to succeed that way.”
“I’m not doing this to succeed,” Rose snapped, frustration slipping out.
“Then why? It can’t be a hobby. Surely you’re not looking for a husband.”
The officer laughed heartily, then pretended to shrink back from her glare. No one seemed capable of imagining that she would one day become a pirate empress, one of the rulers of the sea. That fact irritated her deeply.
“Well done. You have real talent.”
When Rose returned to Alex, he smiled with satisfaction. Her own face, however, was filled with displeasure. Before releasing her, the officer had given her a gold coin as a tip—by slipping it between her breasts and pressing it deep with his finger.
She wanted to slap him, but memories of the spa and the head maid helped her swallow her revulsion. Rose pulled the coin from her cleavage and fiddled with it, troubled. A single Nostrum gold coin was no small sum. In terms of pre-possession Korean currency, it was worth around a million won. The officer had given a small fortune as a tip simply for playing along with his joke.
“Talent?” Rose muttered, confused. She hadn’t played along at all. She had ignored her duties as a bunny girl and shown open irritation.
“Ordinary things grow boring quickly,” Alex explained. “A sharp-tongued type like you must feel refreshing to them. But be careful. Once you cross the line of their patience, there’s no telling what they might do.”
Alex excused himself to attend to other duties, leaving Rose alone with the bartender.
“Don’t frown so much. Make another round. I don’t know what brought you here, but it’s certainly better than the floor below.”
The bartender handed her a beautiful green cocktail with an understanding look. Rose decided that if she had to spend time here anyway, she might as well focus on the work. She took the tray and moved among the guests.
But she had underestimated the situation.
“Eek!”
Crash!
Rose twisted away in shock as she walked among the guests, sending the cocktail crashing to the floor. She didn’t even glance at the shattered glass. Instead, she glared at the men who had been behind her.
Someone had just stroked her ass.