An Unexpected Guest
"Tsk. Tsk. Shluup."
That was the sound of Lee Haerin sucking my cock.
She dipped her head slightly, leaving the crown of her head facing me. One hand stroked along my shaft while the other fondled my balls. I sat perched on the edge of the bed, gazing down at the scene below. She knelt between my legs, working diligently.
With one hand I tidied her hair as she bobbed, and kept up my conversation with Jin Bora.
Jin Bora's texts were blunt to the point of shamelessness. Just as Lee Haerin had predicted, I seemed to be the target this time.
I relayed the message to the slave currently attending to me.
"She says."
"Fyah."
Lee Haerin wiped her mouth and looked up at me. Her expression was sour. She'd worked hard on her knees even though her jaw ached, and apparently it bothered her that I seemed so indifferent. I patted her head the way you'd reward a clever slave. The slave did not appreciate the reward.
"So the talk went well, huh."
"What's with you? That's not like you."
"I mean, did you know I was your type?"
"You offered yourself, didn't you?"
"That's… well, yes, but…."
I was sitting on the bed with my back to Lee Haerin, who lay collapsed behind me. Right about then, another message from Jin Bora had arrived, and just as I was about to reply, Haerin came back to her senses.
"Because it put me in a good mood…."
She said, averting her eyes.
"And… it's kind of fun, too. My jaw hurts, though."
With that, Lee Haerin, a smile on her lips, gently stroked my cock.
I scooped up that adorable slave, tossed her onto the bed, and—
"Kyaa!"
Lee Haerin squealed and scrambled to cover herself. Then I left Jin Bora's text on read and enjoyed my morning sex with Haerin.
Jin Bora was waiting for Shin Gaon's reply.
What's going on? Why did he suddenly stop answering….
After about ten minutes of waiting, she clicked her tongue once and sent another text.
Don't tell me he's with that bitch right now?
Jin Bora had watched Shin Gaon's stream. It was partly because Ha Jun-seok had blabbed at the meeting about forming an alliance with Slave, but more than that, she wanted to see for herself whether that Lee Haerin — whose face everyone in the country recognized even half-hidden — had really shown up on that shady broadcast.
Always giving me pointers like she's so smart. I bet she loves trading her body for gear. Well, the gear IS that good, I'll give her that.
Jin Bora leaned back on the sofa and mulled it over.
"Fashion of an Exercising Woman"? Ridiculous name for a costume, but it boosts combat power by five hundred. Hmm… Haerin probably got hers for free with her body, right? Why can't our puppy make things like that?
She'd been born that way — that was how Jin Bora thought of it.
She believed in talent, birth, and bloodline. A father who was a partner at a famous law firm, a mother who'd won Olympic gold as a national athlete. Jin Bora was born of those two. From early childhood, her parents spoke to her as if it were a decree: You were born to do great things. They named every possible future — politician, athlete, professor. And she had the talent to match the expectations, too.
But everything went sideways when she met Lee Haerin in middle school.
If only that fucking girl hadn't existed.
Now she was free of her parents' gaze. Even after awakening, they refused to support her. Honestly, studying had never suited her. Good genes were a mask she wore — a mask that could be ripped away at any moment. Meeting Haerin had simply pulled it off sooner.
Ugh, why does everything have to be such a shit show?
Jin Bora stared at the chat window with inferiority festering in her eyes.
This time, too, she'd lost to Lee Haerin. In grades, in sports. She'd even lost in art. Jin Bora loved fantasy the way a mage might — in other words, she loved games. That caused friction with her parents, and she walked what you might call the delinquent's path. And while she was at it, she bullied Haerin. Her stress was nothing to sneeze at.
What would that girl know about men? She always strutted around with that pissed-off look on her face — I bet she's never even held a guy's hand. So of course she just sells her body instead.
Jin Bora couldn't stoop to Haerin's level, but she was certain that seat belonged to her, and no one else.
Meanwhile our current 'wallet' is completely useless these days. I've milked him for all he's worth. It's about time to throw him away.
She was thinking of her boyfriend, Park Chan-woo. A chaebol scion who'd started dating her for her face alone, then ended up on his father's blacklist. That gave him an irrational obsession with Jin Bora, who came from a similar world. Jin Bora utterly despised men with no composure — men who couldn't do anything on their own. Fortunately, he was rich, so she played the girlfriend and kept him company.
They'd been together since first year of high school — five years this year. They still hadn't even held hands. She knew exactly what she was worth.
"Oh my. Bora, you're here early?"
The guild office door opened and the Celebrity healer, Cha Shin-hye, greeted her.
"You're early too, unnie."
Jin Bora said it without so much as a glance.
"Want some coffee?"
Cha Shin-hye smiled, used to this, and pointed toward the lounge. Jin Bora nodded.
"You got it~"
Cha Shin-hye headed for the lounge. Jin Bora, pretending to look at her phone, let only her eyes drift upward to watch her.
She's genuinely an idiot, which makes her easy to use. Is it because the puppy brought her in? The two of them are exactly the same kind of moron.
Jin Bora scrolled the Tower Gallery, looking for a serviceable dealer. The dealer she actually wanted had already climbed past the 10th floor.
Tch. Do I really have to party with that girl? And fucking hell — wearing those trashy clothes? Does she even have to stream?
Jin Bora hated it with every fiber of her being, but there was nothing to be done. She hypnotized herself: she only had to endure it once. Once they reached the 10th floor, she could dump Haerin and find a new dealer. The Celebrity party was lacking nothing but damage.
Jin Bora sipped the coffee Cha Shin-hye had made her and waited for the other two. They arrived precisely on time. Ha Jun-seok, as always, plopped down next to Cha Shin-hye and started prattling. Park Chan-woo, after five years, finally seemed to have given up on her — he took a seat on the sofa, far away from hers. Lately he seemed to have some other girl, judging by the way he burned money. Each of them believed the other had been the first to let go.
Ha Jun-seok pulled attention to himself with a dopey grin on his face.
"I formed an alliance with that Slave guy. What do you think?"
Jin Bora had heard this story so many times her ears were calloused. She just crossed her legs and kept scrolling the gallery. Ha Jun-seok kept sneaking glances at her, and Jin Bora noticed every single one.
That bastard got his ass kicked all through school, and ever since awakening he acts like this. Honestly I want to beat him bloody. Does he think he's the lead in some delinquent webtoon?
And with his protagonist complex flaring, he treated Cha Shin-hye beside him like a fish already caught and landed.
Why is everyone in our guild such a mess? I'd love to pluck that airhead unnie out and ship her off to Slave.
Even Jin Bora had to admit that Cha Shin-hye was sweet to a fault.
She was letting Ha Jun-seok's pointless rambling go in one ear and out the other when—
"But he's really going to lend us gear? Is he insane? He's just going to hand it over?"
Park Chan-woo said, puffing up his pride at Ha Jun-seok.
"That's what he says. We even signed an alliance contract. The Tower will enforce it if anyone breaks it."
Apparently the resident bully no longer frightened Ha Jun-seok; he waved a hand as if to say, whatever. Park Chan-woo snorted with a hollow laugh and rose from his seat.
"Where are you going?"
Jin Bora asked without looking up from her phone.
"Since when do you care."
"Just don't cause any trouble."
Park Chan-woo muttered a whatever and left the office. As Jin Bora had said, the reason they still couldn't land a dealer was Park Chan-woo. A tanker who hated getting hit, constantly falling back or dodging attacks. Every dealer said the same thing: I can't deal trusting a tank like that.
"Bora."
Ha Jun-seok called out, taking the seat beside her. Jin Bora was furious down to the roots of her hair, but after exercising monk-like patience, she chose to ignore him.
"So… you saw the stream, right? The gear promo video."
"Yeah."
Ha Jun-seok cleared his throat and looked away awkwardly. Jin Bora nearly gagged from disgust.
"Are you going to be okay? I hear Slave takes point when we climb. And the gear is… well, a little less than gear-like? You want to be careful?"
A headache bloomed behind Jin Bora's eyes, and she pressed her forehead hard. She hadn't known words could inflict brain damage like this. If he was that worried, he should never have accepted the alliance. Did he just want to see what everyone wore, then?
"Oh! You mean we have to wear that Shin Gaon… sir's gear?"
Cha Shin-hye said, covering her mouth.
What's got her worked up this time? She's twenty-six — surely she's not going to play dumb.
"What do we do… The alliance terms say we have to wear Slave's gear."
Ha Jun-seok said. Then, feigning a cough, he ran his narrow eyes over Cha Shin-hye's body.
"You're a church believer, unnie, so they shouldn't put you in anything weird…."
"But the party comes first! Surely it won't be anything too, um… indecent?"
Cha Shin-hye said, cheeks flushing.
Jin Bora stood up, wanting nothing more than to leave that instant.
"Where are you going?"
Ha Jun-seok asked.
"Out."
Jin Bora walked out of the office without looking back.
Ugh, my head. When is he ever going to reply? Insufferable.
She hated this office, too. The four members of Celebrity had awakened at roughly the same time, and Ha Jun-seok, who became the blacksmith, was the first to propose a guild. Park Chan-woo opposed it at first, then changed his tune once he heard rumors of an awakened climber reaching the 10th floor. Jin Bora judged that running these idiots was better than joining some random guild and wading into their politics.
The problem is they're even bigger morons than I expected.
Jin Bora regretted it. She was still looking for a rebound even now, but that damn coin was the issue. She could barely afford durability repairs.
Ha, shit. And I have to go where Haerin is?
Then Jin Bora looked on the bright side.
The two of them must have fucked and sucked every way by now. So wouldn't the play be to steal Shin Gaon for myself?
An excellent idea, she decided, and nodded to herself.
And right on cue, the message arrived.
Jin Bora checked the clock.
Ten o'clock. I should make Haerin climb to the 5th floor first. Ha, she'll be busy enough catering to a bitch with a rotten temper.
Jin Bora curled her lips into a sneer. She had time to burn. So she decided to go home and sleep. The morning had stressed her out far too much.
I was waiting at the guild. It was noon.
I hadn't expected her to reach out first.
That wasn't how it went in The Great Tower Method. Jin Bora had been nothing more than Extra Number One, a prop to elevate Lee Haerin, so I hadn't anticipated this. The moment my conversation with her ended, the message came.
Ding.
The guild door swung open. A brown-haired woman stepped inside.
"Hello."
Cha Shin-hye greeted me in a soft voice.
"Hello, Ms. Cha Shin-hye. That was quick."
"Yes. I finished my errands earlier than I thought…."
Cha Shin-hye looked around the guild interior, and her eyes went wide.
"Interested?"
She hesitated a moment, then answered quietly.
"Yes…."
With my sales smile in place, I ushered her deeper inside.
