Chapter 11. I don't feel like I'm doing anything, but things are moving along.

"So basically, you want me to treat her with maximum respect and act like she's a teacher?"

"Precisely, you need to boost her self-esteem. Do you enjoy receiving compliments? Or do you prefer being insulted?"

"Being insulted doesn't seem so bad either."

"Unbelievable."

Choi Yeon-ju made a disgusted face. But whatever. What can I do?

I'm the type who's up for anything if it gets me turned on. A mom-style woman who praises me for working hard and says 'good boy, good boy' is fine, and a bully girl who says 'suck it' is also fine. A tsundere character who goes 'Hmph... Hmph! It's not like I'm happy about it, okay!' is also fine. No, actually, as long as she has some kind of charm, anything is fine.

Wouldn't it be more cruel to force me to choose between the two?

Choi Yeon-ju seemed to think normal conversation with me was impossible. How did I know? Because she stopped reacting to my words and started explaining.

It was a shut-up-and-listen kind of thing.

"Praise makes even whales dance. Naturally, for a person, words from someone who is favorable toward you are bound to sound better."

"There's also a saying that what doesn't kill ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠you makes you stronger."

"...Can you please just shut up and listen?"

"Okay. Got it. Go on."

Choi Yeon-ju closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. It looked like she was trying to calm her anger. So I really can piss her off. I had basically opened up new possibilities.

"Hypnosis and gaslighting are actually not that different. It's just a matter of intensity that determines whether it's called hypnosis or gaslighting. For example, the essence is roleplay. Roleplay."

"Roleplay? Like in games?"

"It means a role-playing drama. You could even see it as an everyday play. You show me the image of a human scumbag and a fucking pervert, but you don't actually do that bullshit outside, do you?"

"Bullshit? That's harsh."

"I'd say it's rather mild. If I weren't under hypnosis, you'd be out looking for a lawyer right now."

"Uh?"

"Because the victim's tears would be evidence. Of course, even if you hired any lawyer, you'd end up in jail. I'm not an easy pushover. Speaking of victim's tears, if I weren't under hypnosis, I'm the kind of person who could use every bit of your body hair, dead skin, breathing rhythm, and even your heartbeat to create evidence that you sexually harassed or raped me."

Just hearing that makes my blood run cold. Seeing the venom in Choi Yeon-ju's eyes, it's even more amazing that it doesn't seem like pure bullshit.

"Anyway, I plan to continuously inject one role into Lim Seo-yoon."

"What role?"

"The role of seonsaeng-nim."

"Seonsaeng-nim? Lim Seo-yoon is already my teacher."

"Thinking that in your heart and having everyone around you treat her as one are completely different things. Let me give you an example."

Choi Yeon-ju pushed up her round glasses with her finger and opened her mouth.

"Suppose there are two teachers. One is a teacher who is usually respected by students, and the other is a teacher whose authority is openly ignored and challenged by students. If a big fire breaks out at the school and everyone needs to evacuate, which teacher would go back inside to save the students?"

"Naturally, the first one. The second one would probably say, 'Let them all burn this time.'"

"Exactly. If you're respected as a teacher on a daily basis, a sense of duty naturally arises. In truth, there's no need to do that at all. Their own life is precious. But the teacher defies their survival instinct and moves for the students who respected and followed them."

"I get it. So you're saying we need to make Lim Seo-yoon like that?"

"Even if not to that extent, just making her aware that she is a seonsaeng-nim will change many of her actions."

"And you want me to help with that?"

"Isn't that obvious? Who do you think is in a desperate situation here?"

"Me."

"Then you should shut up and do it, right?"

"Yes."

It was such a correct statement that I couldn't argue anymore.

Instead, I felt a burning sense of duty to work hard.

Huk.

Wait, is this also hypnosis?

"But isn't it okay if I don't go to work?"

"Think of it as the dignity of being 'the one and only.' Do you think the Association would stop me if I said I wanted to rest? If I quit the Association, they're the ones who would suffer. Same situation as you."

"Somehow I feel a bit closer to the Association."

"Enough jokes. Anyway, now you roughly understand what needs to be done, so that's enough."

"Yeah. But you know, Choi Yeon-ju, you're amazing."

I was genuinely in awe of Choi Yeon-ju. Honestly, I felt like standing up and giving her a round of applause.

When I pure-heartedly admired her, she made a reluctant face. Even though it was a sincere compliment, seeing her look at me like that hurt my heart.

"What's so amazing?"

"A seonsaeng-nim roleplay? That's amazing. So you know what gets me hard? Later, will things develop into the seonsaeng-nim teaching me something? Like, sex education?"

"...I have to admit, your mind is something else."

"Thanks for the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠compliment."

I'd say this was a pretty productive and amicable conversation. While waiting for Lim Seo-yoon to arrive, I learned a lot from Choi Yeon-ju, who was almost no different from a cat robot from the future.

Choi Yeon-ju was a connoisseur of getting turned on.

Lim Seo-yoon helped with Seong Byeong-jin's training while being much more nervous than the first day. Because Choi Yeon-ju, who shouldn't have been there, was watching their training while sipping black tea.

Normally, when the employer shows up, you pretend to work. Lim Seo-yoon was a woman who gave her best to teach Seong Byeong-jin even when Choi Yeon-ju wasn't around, but with Choi Yeon-ju present, she tried even harder.

Thanks to that, Seong Byeong-jin was the only one dying.

"Please save me...!"

"You can do more! Hwaiting!"

Screaming Seong Byeong-jin was overwhelmed by Lim Seo-yoon's burning eyes, which seemed to say, 'I believe in you. You're not a man who crumbles at this level!' Lim Seo-yoon's passion had crossed over into madness. There was no way rational words would work.

Choi Yeon-ju, for her part, was enjoying herself. Although she hadn't known Seong Byeong-jin for long, living with him in that short time had driven her to the brink of losing all faith in humanity. Watching the man who had hypnotized her dying before her eyes was quite a pleasant sight.

He was suffering like this, but as he said earlier, what doesn't kill him only makes him stronger. Choi Yeon-ju even liked that.

After all, he was the person she had to pledge her loyalty to.

Choi Yeon-ju's job was simple. Every time Lim Seo-yoon finished a set of exercises she had prepared, Choi Yeon-ju would stir her black tea and shower Lim Seo-yoon with explosive praise. Of course, the type of praise was meticulously calculated to avoid any mistakes.

"Lim Seo-yoon seonsaeng-nim really seems to be excellent at teaching students."

"Huh? Really? Hehe..."

"Of course. Byeong-jin-ssi probably thinks so too. That's why, even though it's a tough process, he's trying to follow along diligently, right?"

"...Th-That's right..."

Right now, the only person suffering was Seong Byeong-jin. His mission was simple: don't argue with Choi Yeon-ju's words and be completely positive. Thus, he had to help Lim Seo-yoon comfortably sink into the role of 'seonsaeng-nim.'

Because of that, even in a situation so painful he felt like dying, Seong Byeong-jin had to smile.

"I genuinely feel my body getting stronger. Your ability is amazing, seonsaeng-nim. Truly."

"My ability?"

Lim Seo-yoon tilted her head. Seong Byeong-jin realized his mistake. He quickly looked back at Choi Yeon-ju, who was glaring at him with eyes that said, 'Why are you talking nonsense?' Seong Byeong-jin quickly shut his mouth, and Choi Yeon-ju stepped in to explain simply.

"As Byeong-jin-ssi said. From Lim Seo-yoon 'seonsaeng-nim's' superpower to her teaching ability, there's nothing to fault. As expected, choosing Lim Seo-yoon-ssi was a stroke of genius."

"Ah! Ahaha... Thank you?"

Lim Seo-yoon smiled awkwardly and expressed her thanks. Watching her, Seong Byeong-jin let out a sigh of relief unseen by anyone. He glanced at Choi Yeon-ju again, and she was glaring at him fiercely while holding her teacup.

I'll keep my mouth shut.

Seong Byeong-jin made a zipping motion over his mouth at an angle Lim Seo-yoon couldn't see. Choi Yeon-ju nodded. Byeong-jin felt wronged but had no choice. He knew better than anyone that all he could do in this situation was just roll with Lim Seo-yoon's instructions.

The exercise continued for a while. Lim Seo-yoon happily worked Seong Byeong-jin to the bone under Choi Yeon-ju's premium praise, and Seong Byeong-jin, shedding tears of blood in his heart, cleared every task Lim Seo-yoon assigned.

Choi Yeon-ju stirred her tea with a teaspoon, and every time Lim Seo-yoon immersed herself in the training under the role of 'seonsaeng-nim,' she would break the immersion with a word of praise.

People have a habit of wanting to do something ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠even more when told not to. Even if it's not explicitly said.

Lim Seo-yoon, who had started to find the role of 'seonsaeng-nim' fun, wanted to unconsciously sink deeper into that role because Choi Yeon-ju kept breaking her immersion every time she tried to get into it.

It was an unconscious obsession with something hard to obtain.

All training ended at five in the afternoon.

Everyone was smiling happily, except for Seong Byeong-jin, who was lying spread-eagled on the living room floor, gasping for breath as if he were ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠dying.

Even though there were only two of them.

Choi Yeon-ju poured cool orange juice into a cup, handed it to Lim Seo-yoon, and gave her one final compliment.

"You've worked really hard. I thought the student might be too pathetic, but it's always amazing to see how different the results are depending on the capability of the teacher. And unlike when I'm involved, Byeong-jin-ssi listens well to your instructions, seonsaeng-nim."

"Oh, thank you for the compliment!"

Lim Seo-yoon, who received the juice, bowed 90 degrees at Choi Yeon-ju's flattering words. Then she beamed.

"At first, I was lost, but this is more rewarding and nicer than I thought! Thank you so much for following along well, Byeong-jin-ssi! I didn't expect it to be this enjoyable!"

"If the student follows well, the teacher can't help but enjoy it, right?"

"Exactly! That's exactly how I feel!"

"Come to think of it, Lim Seo-yoon-ssi seems to suit the role of 'seonsaeng-nim' quite well."

"Really!?"

Lim Seo-yoon laughed happily.

Seong Byeong-jin, watching her while collapsed on the living room floor, was inwardly amazed at Choi Yeon-ju's gaslighting. It was so subtle that if someone else heard it, they wouldn't even think it was gaslighting. She didn't use aggressive or intuitively repulsive words, but honey-sweet words that completely captivated the other person. She was practically a nine-tailed fox.

And even though he was sprawled on the living room floor, the two women were chatting without even glancing his way. It was utterly heartless.

But regardless of Seong Byeong-jin's feelings, Choi Yeon-ju only said this to Lim Seo-yoon.

"You should head home now. It's getting late. The bathroom is ready, so you can wash up first."

"Can I impose on you again today? I feel a bit sorry for using the bathroom every time I come."

"No, it's fine. Think of it as your own home and use it comfortably. After all, a 'seonsaeng-nim' can do that."

"Thank you so much!"

Lim Seo-yoon smiled brightly, expressed her thanks, and then disappeared in the direction of the bathroom.

And as soon as Lim Seo-yoon entered the bathroom, Choi Yeon-ju's cheerful expression instantly turned languid.

Seong Byeong-jin, watching her from his collapsed position on the floor, could only shake his head in disbelief.