Chapter 79
Chapter 79
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: uly
Chapter: 79
Chapter Title: Father's Shadow
-----------------------------------------------------------------
“Christine, this is your father.”
Her mother called her not by her Korean name, but by a Western one that suited her father’s nationality.
She had been called that name since she was very young, to the point where she had all but forgotten her Korean name.
“…Hello.”
“…….”
Her father was a curt man.
He lived in a grand mansion in America and had plenty of money.
So it made sense that her mother, who had only shared a single night with him, had desperately pushed to introduce her to him.
That was the day she first met her father.
She went from living in a rundown, cramped house to residing in that massive mansion.
The reason it was possible was because her father’s original wife had recently died in an accident.
A spot had opened up beside her father.
And it just so happened that her mother was raising Christine, who carried her father’s blood.
There had been no children between the original wife and her father.
If there had been, they too would have died in that accident.
“…Are you coming home late again tonight? …Yes, I understand.”
Christine’s mother often took phone calls with a gloomy expression.
Sometimes she would get angry, other times she would weep sadly.
The reason was easy to figure out.
Every time, her father’s clothes carried the fresh scent of a perfume she had never smelled before.
Even young Christine understood why.
It was only natural, after all.
She herself had been born from a encounter just like that between her mother and father.
In her eyes, her mother had done nothing wrong.
Her mother claimed she hadn’t known he was married.
In her eyes, her father was trash.
He had raised her in luxury with his wealth, but she had never once felt any love from him.
“Men can’t help it, dear. That’s just how they are.”
One night, sleeping beside her lonely mother.
When Christine asked about it, her mother replied with sorrowful eyes.
Her mother’s expression that day was seared into Christine’s memory as a vivid imprint.
And then one day.
Her mother began visiting somewhere diligently once a week.
Her mother’s face, clutching her hand tightly as they headed there, looked happy.
All the countless people there looked happy too.
She later learned it was a church.
And even later, she realized it wasn’t just any church.
The reason they had been so kind to her mother.
Was because her father was rich.
In particular, the man who always shouted loudly in front of the crowd would sometimes slip into a room with a young woman.
Each time, Christine’s mind recalled her mother’s words.
‘Men can’t help it.’
It disgusted her.
After that, she felt a deep aversion to men in general.
So as soon as she became an adult, she left for her mother’s homeland to study abroad.
She no longer wanted to see her mother’s sad face or her father reeking of perfume.
And then.
The world ended.
In a hotel in Korea where she often stayed, she fled with a terrified face and ran into a beautiful woman.
That beautiful woman turned out to be a beautiful corpse.
Dressed in strange clothes like a wedding dress, she overpowered Christine in an instant and bit her on the nape of the neck.
And Christine gained the ability to wield mysterious powers.
Powers like a miracle.
Faced with it for the first time, Christine.
Smiled happily for the first time in her life.
。 。 。
“Cult Leader, …Cult Leader.”
At the strange voice calling her, the Cult Leader stirred from her hazy mind and slowly opened her eyes.
Before her eyes as they opened was a man kneeling on one knee.
‘Did I fall asleep…?’
Having someone stroke her hair felt quite pleasant, and the Cult Leader enjoyed it.
It seemed she had dozed off while the slave in front of her was drying her hair.
‘Even so… falling asleep while a man touches me.’
Awakening from sleep, the Cult Leader felt a strange emotion.
Normally, just having a man nearby would put her nerves on edge—she’d feel nothing but discomfort, let alone sleep.
But recalling the time when that male slave had been tending to her hair, it hadn’t been like that at all.
Instead, she had felt a cozy, warm sensation she had never experienced before and drifted off to sleep just like that.
“Cult Leader, if it’s alright with you, may we proceed to the next step?”
Lost in a daze, the Cult Leader heard Lee Seo-ho ask carefully.
And at his cautious, gentle smile, she gazed at him for a long while.
Then extended her hand slightly.
“Then, if you’ll excuse me.”
Afterward, Lee Seo-ho skillfully tended to her hands.
“……Ah.”
When his hand first touched her left hand’s nails as he began manicuring them, the Cult Leader flinched and her shoulder trembled.
‘…How long has it been since a man’s hand touched mine?’
The Cult Leader thought, staring at Lee Seo-ho’s focused face.
She had hated men since childhood.
That was why she had attended girls’ schools from middle school through high school, even college.
Having her skin touch a man’s so directly like this was probably the first time since elementary school.
‘…It’s different from a woman’s. So firm, so rough….’
Feeling Lee Seo-ho’s touch, the Cult Leader thought.
Men truly were pathetic.
Unnecessarily firm hands, savagely rough.
But.
Contrary to her thoughts, somewhere deep in her heart, she felt a strange attraction to that savage sensation.
Unbeknownst to herself, the Cult Leader blushed as she watched Lee Seo-ho concentrate on her hand care.
His face was a bit intriguing.
Until now, whenever she faced a man, her father always came to mind, filling her with disgust.
But for some reason, looking at this slave before her didn’t bring that disgust.
Instead, along with a ticklish sensation in her chest.
Even though his features weren’t particularly handsome, she found herself drawn to his face.
The Cult Leader didn’t know what that emotion was.
She couldn’t comprehend it at all.
Like someone who had never tasted sweetness in their life encountering it for the first time.
Unable to recognize it as sweetness.
“Next, we’ll move on to your feet.”
“…Yes, ……ah.”
Lee Seo-ho lifted her foot onto his knee and carefully grasped her smooth calf with one hand.
Even in his delicate touch, the strength of a man was evident.
It felt like every sensation in her body was concentrating on the leg he held.
Then, as Lee Seo-ho carefully tended to her foot, he spoke.
“Your feet are beautiful too, Cult Leader. Incredibly soft and clean—it’s amazing.”
His voice, low and resonant like a man’s.
As it echoed in the quiet room, the Cult Leader suddenly felt her heartbeat grow louder.
“I don’t recall permitting you to speak.”
“…I’m sorry. I got lost in your beauty and spoke without thinking.”
She wasn’t really upset.
She had simply blurted it out in embarrassment at his sudden voice and words.
Each time she heard his voice, a strange emotion welled up in her, and it strangely drew her in.
The Cult Leader turned her head and replied.
“Fine. …It would be a hassle to grant permission each time, so I’ll specially allow you to speak while attending me.”
“Thank you, Cult Leader.”
However, even with her permission, Lee Seo-ho said nothing more afterward and silently focused on her care.
At that, the Cult Leader slightly furrowed her brows.
‘…Well, there’s not much to talk about anyway.’
He was merely a male slave.
She had no topics to chat with him about.
‘But still, I specially permitted it.’
As she received his service, the Cult Leader felt displeasure for the first time.
It was different somewhere from the disgust she usually felt around men.
‘Don’t people usually say something? He could’ve kept up the compliments from earlier.’
Men truly were foolish.
She had gone out of her way to permit him to speak, and yet he said nothing.
‘……Should I ask him something?’
The thought briefly crossed her mind.
And soon, the Cult Leader carefully shook her head to dismiss it.
For some reason.
Starting a conversation herself here would hurt her pride.
‘There’s still plenty of service time left anyway.’
He wouldn’t stay silent the whole time.
She could respond appropriately then, and this stifled feeling would fade.
Thinking that, she quietly waited.
But a moment later.
“Then, I’ve finished up, so I’ll take my leave. Good night.”
“……Pardon?”
Lee Seo-ho finished tending her feet, carefully stood, and bowed to her.
“Wait a moment.”
“…Is something the matter?”
“No, there’s still more service left, isn’t there?”
One final part of her routine remained.
After relaxing in a warm bath, she ended with a light massage to drift off sleepily.
The final massage was left.
And at her words, Lee Seo-ho replied with a troubled expression.
“…But Cult Leader, a man like me touching your skin directly is still….”
“……Ah.”
Certainly, unlike manicuring hands and feet, a massage involved entirely different areas and extent of skin contact.
But if it ended like this, only a nagging unease would linger, leading to unpleasant sleep.
So the Cult Leader looked down at Lee Seo-ho disdainfully and replied.
“Hmph, a man like you is no different from this chair anyway. Does anyone nitpick like that when sitting on a chair?”
At her confident words, Lee Seo-ho made an “oh no” face and hurriedly bowed his head.
“I’m sorry. I’ll prepare right away.”
Lee Seo-ho turned his back at once and moved to fetch the oils and such needed for the massage.
And with his back to her.
He wore a sly smile.
‘This is turning out more fun than expected…?’
His original plan had been to seize the chance tonight and assault her.
Using Hwang Hana to pull the other maids and guards away from this room, then wait in her bedroom.
If she refused service, assault her on the spot; if she allowed it, assault her midway through.
But.
‘Permitting me to speak… and even ordering a massage?’
That was completely unforeseen.
She who had built the Hwangmae Church’s doctrines on rejecting men should hate them more than anyone here.
So even if she allowed service, he had expected clear signs of displeasure.
Yet the Cult Leader had permitted even casual flattery from him.
Surprised by that, Lee Seo-ho had tested her by working silently without a word, then tried to leave without lingering.
But she had stopped him and even ordered the massage.
‘This Charm Eye is doing big things.’
No matter how he thought about it, he couldn’t find any other reason.
And since an unexpected opportunity had arisen.
Lee Seo-ho had no intention of letting this delightful chance end with mere rape.