The Taste of Fear
Maila, the library assistant, let out a hot gasp as her mind blanked out like a broken film. Serina blinked in surprise when Maila suddenly opened her eyes wide again. “What… what the hell just happened?” The flustered girl quickly scanned her surroundings, her gaze finally landing on the gloomy-looking student standing right in front of her—Serina. She tried desperately to piece together what had just occurred, but even the faintest fragments refused to surface. Serina’s usual gloomy aura had vanished entirely. Her hair was now swept neatly back, and those emotionless grey eyes regarded Maila with an icy chill that sent an unnatural, almost inhuman shiver down her spine. Gulping loudly, the lump in her throat constricted her airway as her heart began to race wildly. Her dry lips cracked apart, and she swallowed nervously, the sound echoing in her ears. Why did the atmosphere feel so different from the moment she had carelessly dumped the underground library chores onto Serina? No, it was even more unlike the way Serina had toyed with her body earlier. Trapped in this strange sense of déjà vu, Maila instinctively sought out the same bone-deep fear she had once felt. She recalled the empty-eyed undead-like monsters from the labyrinth. The terror she had experienced in their presence had been the pure, primal fear of death itself. And now, staring into Serina’s cold eyes, she felt that identical, suffocating dread coil around her heart. Her entire body curled in on itself. A low, bone-chilling terror rose from the soles of her feet, racing up her spine and slamming into the back of her skull. Just like those awful creatures in the labyrinth, her limbs began to shake uncontrollably, the fear swelling until it was impossible to contain. At that moment she had been surrounded by her classmates, fighting side by side. Now she was alone. Serina’s frozen gaze made her heart stutter, her body stiffening like a puppet whose strings had been cut. It was as if she could never escape the suffocating darkness of that labyrinth again. The moment their eyes met once more, Maila’s trembling intensified. She wet herself right there, unable to stop it. That was the pinnacle of her fear—feeling it so completely that her body betrayed her. “Wow. Did she just piss herself? The effect is seriously impressive.” “…Hic…” Serina looked down at her with a satisfied smile, clearly enjoying every moment.
***
Seeing someone shake and tremble while staring directly at me was delightfully entertaining. Turning the act of deliberately inflating fear into a hypnotic technique had made it look far more effective than the simple story of someone submitting out of fear. ‘It’ll come in handy later.’ Creating trauma and then triggering it might even make someone more susceptible to hypnosis. ‘With enough force, I won’t even need to be extremely compelling; she’ll obey my words.’ Watching Maila’s eyes fill with tears and her body tremble from release, I approached her from across the desk with a satisfied grin. “Hic…! Just a second… o-okay. I won’t file a report or anything…!” Though I had no idea how I looked to her, she clearly feared me with every fiber of her being. If she had already wet herself, why was she still so terrified of me stepping closer? I ignored her frantic struggles and reached out. “Hi… hiiick…!” Realizing I was about to touch her, Maila squeezed her eyes shut and started shaking violently. But I simply placed my hand on her head with a light tap. Since she had been leaning back in the chair, my height was naturally higher. I began stroking her hair like petting a well-behaved dog. Her choked gasps gradually slowed as she grew used to my touch, and her breathing finally returned to something almost normal. “M-Mistress… I’m sorry… I was wrong… Please forgive me.” With her head buried against my chest, sniffling loudly, she seemed to calm down somewhat. “Forgive? Forgive what?” “I-I just said something pointless about filing a report… Please forgive me.” At first she had spoken so casually, but now she was completely at my mercy. Amazed by how perfectly the hypnosis had worked, I lifted her chin so she would look up at me. “Hic…!” Meeting my eyes again, she whimpered with fresh terror. “Did I really do something wrong? Can you promise you’ll never do it again?” “Y-Yes! Yes! I promise! I’ll definitely promise!” Looking down at her trembling form, I smiled. “Then strip.” “…What?” She looked confused, thinking I had misheard, but I grinned wickedly and repeated myself. Maila’s expression turned dazed as she tried to gauge my mood. She feared me, yet her brain screamed to resist. I decided to help her make up her mind. A sharp slap landed on her cheek, leaving it faintly red. “Eh…? Wh-What?” “You’re not listening? You said you wanted forgiveness.” Grabbing her collar as she staggered in confusion, I stared straight into her eyes once more. Fresh tears welled up instantly, one after another slipping down her cheeks. Thinking she might need another slap to really break, I raised my hand again. Maila sobbed desperately. “I-I’m sorry…! I’ll do it! I’ll do everything…!” “If you obey, I’ll forgive you. So do it properly?” I wiped the tears from her face, then stepped back slightly. Maila stood on shaky legs, sniffling as she surveyed the library. Instinctively she checked for people, but there was no one around. “Don’t worry. I locked the door when I came in earlier. Everyone else probably thinks I closed early today.” I had locked the door the moment I cast the hypnosis, knowing it would complicate things later. Later complaints from Maila didn’t matter to me. Realizing she had no escape, she trembled between fear and shame as she slowly unbuttoned her uniform. I watched her strip like a show, licking my lips as the blouse and skirt fell away. Her flat, navy panties and bra—matching her hair—finally came into view. A faint wet spot had already formed on the crotch from her earlier release. “You’re not done yet.” “Ye… yes…” After a moment of hesitation, she swallowed hard and hung her bra on the chair. Then she slid her panties down, finally standing completely naked. She tried to cover herself with her arms, standing awkwardly. “What are you doing? If you’re naked, you should apologize. You said you wanted forgiveness.” “I-I’m sorry! I was rude and I’m truly sorry. I promise I won’t do it again.” The moment I finished speaking, she bowed her head, but that wasn’t what I wanted. “Is that all?” “…Yes?” “You wanted forgiveness, right? I assumed you’d at least kneel.” Looking at her with a bored expression, Maila immediately dropped to her knees and lowered her head. After about ten seconds, I lightly pressed my foot on the top of her head. I had no intention of using further violence; I had already shown her exactly how I liked her to act. Observing her trembling body, I continued. “Hmm. That’s enough. Just stay like that for a second.” Removing my foot, I circled around to stand behind her. I began to admire her body. “Actually, Maila. I don’t have any real grudge against you. There are plenty of students who hate me for no reason and bully me, but they all seem to keep their promises. You’re no worse than any of them.” ‘Plus, thanks to you I got to meet Evelyn too.’ As I circled her, I poured out the story I had never told anyone. The tale of someone who had clawed and fought just to stay alive in a dangerous world. Someone might call it “overdoing it” for that level of bullying, but being thrown into an isolated world with no allies was truly harsh. “Of course, there are exceptions… You’ve experienced something like that, haven’t you? Students who demand your body just because you’re common when they’re noble. You have quite the attractive figure, after all.” “M-Mistress… thank you…” A warm breath from the side of her hip made her body tremble again. She was slowly starting to heat up, but I kept talking. “It’s weird, isn’t it? I’ve been grabbed by ugly bitches and had their filth poured on me, but no one has ever tried to fuck me? How strange is that?” Thinking back, it made sense. Serina’s appearance and body were objectively beautiful. With the academy’s internal politics so tight, there should have been plenty of students who would see her as trash and lust after her. Yet no one had made any sexual demands. Of course, that was fortunate for me, but the uneasy feeling never disappeared. It felt as if someone was quietly watching over me while keeping a safe distance. “Sigh. Whatever. It doesn’t matter right now.” I moved behind her again, bent down, and brought my face close to her anus. The untouched pubic hair glistened with sweat and traces of urine. No, there was more. “Are you wet already?” “Hic…!” Carefully reaching out, I brushed her pussy. A cute little moan escaped her as the slick liquid appeared. It was clearly her love juices. Sensing she was fully ready, I helped her stand and pointed to the table used by the librarians. “Up there.” “T-There…?” Hesitating, she glanced at my eyes, then slowly climbed onto the table and sat down. I approached her again, stroking her hair in approval, and sat in the chair to watch her. “Now masturbate.” “…Huh?” “Touch yourself. Right in front of me. When you’re done, I’ll forgive you.” The memory of that day crashed back over her, and terror flooded through her once more.