The Ultimate Punishment
I stared at my reflection in the mirror inside the Chamber of Desire, Room 402, carefully unwrapping the bandages and lifting my bangs. The wound that Natsuki Hana had kicked and torn open was completely gone, without even a scar. How was that possible? The stitches were gone too, and there wasn't a single trace of blood on the bandages.
No matter how I thought about it, the only conclusion was that this room had healed me. I'd felt strangely energized whenever I was inside here, and it clearly hadn't been my imagination. I never expected it would even heal wounds...
I gently rubbed the fresh skin where the injury had been on my forehead, then turned away from the mirror.
"...Why does it feel so empty? Master filled me up so completely, yet I don't remember any of it again... Everything that had built up inside me just... drained away without me knowing. What is this hollow feeling?"
"Wasn't that the whole point of the punishment you were getting?"
I turned around to see Kwon Noa sitting on the bed behind me, looking utterly dejected. She was staring at the thick semen still oozing from her pussy with a bitter smile. I sat down beside her, took a swig of cold water, and handed her the rest.
"Yes, that's true... Haah. Why did I, as a human, ever do something so stupid? What a pathetic bitch I was... Humiliating Master's friend just for money, then trying to cover up her death. I hate myself even more for resisting the glorious honor of becoming Master's Saintess..."
"Keep hating yourself like that. I still haven't forgiven who you were back then either. So the more you despise and loathe yourself, the more comfort it brings me."
The Saintess Kwon Noa and I openly poured scorn on her former human self. She smiled at me, the one who empathized with her regrets and self-hatred, finding validation from the man she loved.
"R-really?! Ahh♡ To think I can bring even this much comfort to Master's heart and body... Please keep using me however you wish. This mouth that dared insult Master's friend is nothing but a worthless meat hole meant to serve your magnificent cock, Master♡ Whenever you desire... Chuuulp...♡"
The selfish, materialistic greed I'd seen in Kwon Noa's old personality. I'd stolen the future from a woman who would have buried someone's death if it secured her own safety. A woman who could have killed for wealth and a glittering future had now offered that same future to me. Even though she'd been reduced to living as my slave, body and soul, she was panting with joy at the fact.
The sight of her licking her lips with that jade-green tongue before leaning her body against my shoulder, the way she pressed her exposed breasts against my arm while my seed dripped from between her legs—she didn't look like someone whose entire life had been taken from her at all.
I grabbed one of Kwon Noa's perfectly claimed breasts in my hand and lay back on the bed.
"Aang...♡ Master... If you want more, please..."
The woman lying beneath me spread her arms wide in welcome, narrowing her eyes in a seductive smile. Captivated by that bewitching gaze, I slowly lowered my head to kiss her—when suddenly—
Ziiing—
A short vibration made the screen of my phone, left by Noa's pillow, light up.
"Master? It looks like a message..."
"Yeah, but..."
I picked it up and checked. The sender was listed as Unknown Number. But the single photo and short sentence from this mysterious person were enough to make me bolt upright.
"M-Master?! What's wrong all of a sudden..."
"Mom... Dad..."
The cryptic message read: I will repay humiliation without fail. Below it was a photo of a familiar case. A silver attaché case packed full of 50,000-won bills. It was identical to the one my parents had carried away last night.
The only difference was the ominous red timer glowing beneath the stacks of cash. It was counting down from 24:00:00...
No way. It couldn't be. It wouldn't be...
My brain desperately tried to deny the situation to calm me down, but my body had already thrown on clothes and was sprinting out of the room and down the street.
About an hour left, huh.
"Those fucking bastards...!!"
* * *
"Please, please...! Pick up, damn it...!!"
"Master..."
I sat in the passenger seat of Noa's car that had followed me out, phone pressed to my ear. The long beeps ended in a disconnection message, and curses automatically flew from my mouth. Neither Mom nor Dad was answering. At this hour, Dad should have been home from work, and Mom should have been there too. Why? Why target Mom and Dad?
Had they figured out I was the owner of the mask? Was this a trap to lure me out using my parents as bait?
My mind raced through every possible scenario before discarding them. I'd been too complacent. I'd thought that as long as I was safe and undiscovered, everyone else would be safe too. But the opposite was also true—if I didn't know, they were all in danger.
I couldn't rule out the possibility that I'd already been exposed without realizing it. So why the hell had I tried to hide alone?
The agents from the Japanese branch hadn't only encountered me and Noa. Even if they were civilians, Mom and Dad had been there too. We couldn't ignore that.
"How much longer?"
"It's rush hour... Probably about thirty minutes..."
Thirty minutes. Thirty minutes might just get us there in time. I kept calling my parents in turns, clutching my head.
"Master, we're here!"
"....!!"
The thirty minutes that had felt like an eternity must have passed in a flash. I'd only lowered my head for a moment when the car stopped in front of our familiar apartment building. Without even saying anything to Noa, I blinked once and jumped out, breaking into a run.
There was no time to wait for the elevator. I whipped my burning lungs up eight flights of stairs. Rubbing my stinging eyes that were blurred with sweat, I sprinted to the end of the hallway, finally punched in the door lock code, and burst inside—
"Mom! Dad!!"
"Whoa, shit... You scared me. What the hell? Didn't you say you were staying at a friend's place for a couple days?"
I ran into Dad coming out of the kitchen with a water glass, looking startled. Without even answering his question, I kicked off my shoes and scanned the living room. The case. I had to find the case.
Mom came out of the bedroom at the sound of my frantic searching.
"What are you looking for in such a hurry?"
"Mom, the case...! What happened to the case those women gave us yesterday?!"
I grabbed her shoulders, scattering sweat droplets everywhere. Mom blinked, looking a little surprised, and her voice faltered. Dad stepped in, gently pushing my hand off her shoulder.
"You mean that money from yesterday? Dad gave it back. We left you at the hospital and saw those two women in the parking lot, so I returned it."
"Y-yeah. Your father gave it back. It was way too much money for us... We were scared to suddenly receive such a huge amount, so we only took it for your hospital bills. Why? What's going on, Wooju?"
"Haah..."
My legs gave out and I collapsed to the floor. They'd returned the case. So that message was...
No, none of that mattered. I stood up and pulled both Mom and Dad into a tight hug.
"Oh my, what's gotten into him all of a sudden? Honey?"
".........."
"It's fine, but why weren't you answering your phones..."
"Your mom was sleeping, and your dad was in the shower, you idiot..."
My parents patted my back with slightly bewildered hands. Today, I'd almost lost someone precious to me—just like with Jaehyuk—right before my eyes.
Natsuki Hana. Yumekawa Harumu. It was those two women. My mind, now calm and coldly rational, easily identified who had sent that message and photo.
The two women who had given us the case. One of them had taken a picture of the bomb inside it and sent it. No matter how things turned out, the fact that those two had wagered with my parents' lives wouldn't change.
"...I just remembered something and stopped by. Sorry. I'm heading out again..."
"Are you sure you're okay? The doctor said you could be discharged, but staying at a friend's place instead of coming home still seems risky, doesn't it?"
"I'm fine. Really."
Dad, who was usually so gruff, looked at me with unusually worried eyes. I forced a smile, waved, and left. I took the elevator down from the end of the hallway.
As I stepped out of the apartment building's main entrance on the first floor—
Ziiing—
Another vibration came from the phone in my pocket. This time it was a call, not a message. Unknown number again. Without hesitation, I answered and tried to keep my voice as calm as possible.
"Hello."
To think you'd come running in a single breath. Family really is precious, isn't it? Consider today's events as payment for daring to lay hands on the young lady's precious body.
"...Did you really think I wouldn't understand if you spoke in Japanese?"
You... You know Japanese? How?
The cold voice on the other end of the line was met with the same language. I didn't know how I could speak Japanese either. I'd never studied it properly; I'd only picked it up from watching anime. But I'd been able to understand everything this woman said since last night. Ever since that mysterious dream I couldn't even remember.
Well, if we can communicate, this will go quickly. Never forget the fear you felt today. The terror of nearly losing your family. Compared to the humiliation my young lady suffered when she knelt before you last night, it's nothing.
"...Did that Harumu bitch order you to do this?"
Do not casually utter the young lady's name, you insignificant monkey.
The once mature and icy voice now sliced into my eardrums like a razor-sharp blade. But it didn't hurt. It didn't scare me. Instead, blood was rushing to my head.
"From what you've said so far, it sounds like Harumu didn't order this. It was your own decision... That psycho young lady must have it rough, with a subordinate who handles things this poorly."
Say that again.
"What? That your work is fucking pathetic? Or that your young lady is a psycho?"
A deep sigh mixed with various emotions came through the speaker.
The young lady is currently very busy with her coming-of-age ceremony. I stepped in because we couldn't waste her precious time on the likes of you. And yet... what? You dare insult the other young lady residing within our young lady like that...
"..........."
You have just insulted someone from a world beyond your imagination. Before you can further defile the young lady Harumu's ears, I will deal with that sin myself.
I pulled the phone away from my ear and looked around.
"You're here right now, aren't you? Even if you're not in this apartment complex, you're somewhere nearby."
What are you talking about?
"It's obvious. If you weren't, how would you know I came home? You called the second I stepped out. Did you put a tail on me? And what was that about a world beyond imagination... So both you and that young lady are part of some organization?"
!! How do you—!!
"...I can never forgive you. There was a bitch like you before. Two of them, actually. They killed a friend who was like family to me. They were from the same organization as you."
Don't tell me... You bastard... You're the owner of the mask...!!
Her voice rose as she realized my identity. I rolled my eyes. Why reveal it? So this fucking bitch would get even more pissed off. She was about to say goodbye to her normal life and live one worse than a dog's.
"Found her, Master."
⟨ Soul Incineration ⟩
"Good. Then... bring her to me."
Noa's voice echoed in my head. I clenched the Room 402 keycard in my pocket and gave the order.
Damn it...! You son of a—right now...!
A red glint flashed from the rooftop of the building across the street, passing through my pupils. There was a clattering sound over the phone, followed by the dull thud of something heavy colliding. Then came the sound of two presences clashing fiercely before one collapsed with a heavy thump.
Haa... That was close, Master... This woman seems to be a sniper. No wonder her close combat was so terrible... If I'd been even a little slower, it would've been dangerous.
"Well done. Now bring her before me."
The voice that rang in my ear was Noa's. How the hell had that happened? Why was Noa there?
The moment I'd gotten into Noa's car earlier, she'd started signal detection using the equipment she'd left inside. After attaching a small device to my phone, she kept tracking while the signal stayed connected. While I deliberately dragged out the conversation, Noa pinpointed the transmission's location and launched a surprise attack. No matter how well-trained the agent was, a rookie whose career was far shorter than Noa's couldn't possibly counter a surprise attack from a Saintess.
Of course, the device on my phone could only detect the signal of an incoming call. We'd desperately hoped they would call or message first, but I never expected them to call back so quickly...
Natsuki Hana, was it? Her name didn't matter anymore.
Today, this woman had ended her own life because of her arrogance and that nasty habit of looking down on others from her high position—both hers and the young lady she served.
"...As soon as we get back, head straight to Room 402. I'm going to use Incineration, so doing it outside would draw too much attention."