Chapter 47
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 47
His eyes opened.
A refreshing feeling spread through his entire body. For the first time in a while, it was a pleasant morning.
Unlike recently, when he’d always woken up feeling stiff and sluggish somewhere, today a sense of rejuvenation enveloped him.
He glanced to his side, but the small warmth that was always there was gone.
Ah.
Dokyun finally understood why his body felt so good.
Eun-ah isn’t here.
It made sense he’d feel refreshed. The girl who always clung to him in his sleep, crushing him all night, was absent.
Suddenly, the events of the previous day flashed through Dokyun’s mind.
Her disorder, the other personalities, Go Eun-chae, Go Eun-seol.
After listening to her story and she had gone to the bedroom, he had tidied up and then gone to sleep.
He remembered that she seemed to be a fast sleeper; she had already been sound asleep when he returned to the bedroom.
He also recalled feeling a sense of awkwardness, as her posture—lying perfectly straight on the bed—was so different from Eun-ah’s.
As his thoughts continued, his mind slowly cleared. Deciding he couldn’t stay in bed any longer, Dokyun pushed strength into his limbs and slowly sat up.
“Ughhh…”
He stretched, feeling the senses in his body awaken.
Dokyun twisted his waist from side to side, shaking off the last vestiges of sleep and reviewing his schedule for the day.
Today…
He had to go outside.
The reality of it, which hadn’t quite sunk in while he was listening to her story, was now beginning to hit him.
I’m going outside.
For nearly two weeks, he had been trapped inside this house with no promise of when he might be able to leave. The fact that he was actually going out felt surreal.
He tried to play it cool, but he couldn’t help the flutter of excitement in a corner of his chest.
Feeling his heart pound with pleasant anticipation, Dokyun got up, opened the closed bedroom door, and stepped out. He saw her sitting on the sofa, sipping coffee and reading a book.
She glanced at him for a moment before her eyes returned to her book.
It was Go Eun-seol.
He had wondered if another personality might emerge overnight, but it seemed that, just as she’d said, the others were firmly under her control.
“Good morning.”
“Right.”
As Dokyun approached the sofa and spoke, a short reply came back.
Just as an awkward silence began to fill the space, her lips parted once more.
“Wash up and come out. We’re eating out.”
“Ah, yes.”
She stated her business plainly and went back to ignoring him.
Watching her, Dokyun found it hard to believe this was the same person who had spoken so much yesterday. He soon concluded that this curt demeanor was likely her usual self.
Most of what she had said the day before had been out of necessity. Her attitude toward him had been one of indifference from the start, so this made more sense.
Having reached his conclusion, Dokyun didn’t say anything more and headed for the shower.
For a moment, he felt that this situation was strange. He wondered why, and soon found the answer.
It’s been a while since I’ve showered alone.
For the past two weeks, Eun-ah had always stayed within his line of sight, watching him. This applied to every part of his life—eating, sleeping, and washing—without exception. He had naturally assumed that today, too, she would be showering with him.
A hollow laugh escaped from between his teeth.
Funnily enough, it seemed his body had already adapted to her.
I need to get a grip.
Was he still half-asleep? He knew he had to be on guard, that this woman was not someone he could let his guard down around, yet his body was still searching for traces of Eun-ah in her.
Then again, maybe it was understandable.
Dealing with another personality in the same body wasn’t a common experience. It wouldn’t be easy to get used to.
Dokyun shook his head, clearing his thoughts, and entered the shower to begin washing.
It felt strange to shower without drawing the curtain, without being conscious of another person next to him. But he quickly pushed the feeling aside, finished his shower, and came back out.
As he exited the shower room, he saw her sitting in the same position as before, still reading her book.
“I’m done.”
“Your clothes are ready in the dress room. Put them on and come out.”
Her tone was a command.
She didn’t even spare him a glance as she spoke. He felt a surge of irritation at being so blatantly ignored, but it didn’t seem like something worth making a fuss over. He walked past her and headed to the dress room.
He knew where it was, having found it before.
Dokyun walked quickly to the dress room and opened the door. Just as she’d said, a suit was laid out in the middle of the room.
He approached it and saw that it was a suit of remarkably high quality.
He wondered when she had prepared it. As his eyes fell on the brand name, a sound of surprise escaped his lips.
“Whoa…”
It was a famous brand, one that even he, a man with little interest in fashion, recognized.
As far as he knew, it was a luxury brand whose ready-to-wear suits cost several thousand dollars apiece.
She must be loaded.
First the 5 billion won, now this suit. Go Eun-seol was a woman who spent money freely.
His jaw hung open for a moment. Then, thinking he might as well enjoy it, Dokyun quickly changed his clothes.
The suit fit his body perfectly.
It was clearly worth the high price; the way it clung to his body felt incredible.
He turned his gaze to the full-length mirror in the corner of the dress room and saw his reflection, clad in a stylish suit.
He looked different from his usual self. He looked good enough to have earned himself at least a 0.1 boost in narrative plausibility.
Money really is great.
So this was why people indulged in luxury.
He felt a little smug. As he stood there, smiling at his reflection in the mirror…
…Wait a minute.
Suddenly, a fact he had overlooked until now struck him.
How did she know my measurements?
A chill ran down his spine.
Given that these clothes were already prepared, he had to assume she’d had the suit ready before she even kidnapped him.
She definitely said…
She had said she was involved in the process of finding and preparing for him.
That meant she had thoroughly investigated him during that process, right down to his exact measurements.
His eyes narrowed.
S-scary…
She was a truly terrifying woman.
Just then, as he was trembling in fear, the closed door opened and she entered the dress room.
“Are you ready?”
“Ugh!”
Startled by her sudden entrance, Dokyun jumped. He glared at Eun-seol and spoke in a gruff tone.
“Hey, you can’t just barge in like that!”
Meeting his sharp gaze, she paused, her eyes scanning him from top to bottom. Then, she let out a smirk and replied.
“It’s not like you’ve got anything special to see.”
Throb.
Her tone was one of clear dismissal.
Her words trampled all over his male pride. He was about to fire back a retort when she spoke first.
“If you’re ready, let’s go. I want to get some fresh air.”
Dokyun watched her turn and walk away, feeling his insides boil with rage. But he couldn’t bring himself to say anything and simply followed her out.
Her back, walking ahead of him, was so infuriating that his fists clenched tightly.
Just you wait…!
A day would come when he would repay this humiliation.
*
Her voice came from ahead of him.
“What are you doing? Keep up.”
She was rushing him, but he had no time to care.
The sight before Dokyun’s eyes was that shocking.
What the…
A mansion.
The space outside the front door was, quite literally, large enough to be called a mansion.
His guess had been half right and half wrong.
He was right that the front door wasn’t the end of the house. Beyond the door with its reversed lock was a living space twice as large as the one he had been confined to.
Where he had been wrong was…
It wasn’t a high-rise building.
The mansion had multiple floors, but the space he had been living in was on the first floor.
Suddenly, something she had said came to mind.
—It’s good to think, but if you overdo it, it becomes a delusion.
Tch…
He felt a little embarrassed. Maybe she was right. Maybe he had been indulging in excessive delusions.
“Hey.”
“Coming, I’m coming.”
Her irritated urging came again, and Dokyun gave a half-hearted reply as he hurried after her.
Soon, they stepped out of the main entrance, and a garden that looked twice the size of the mansion itself came into view.
Hah…
It was a ridiculously large house.
As Dokyun stared at the overwhelming sight with a dazed expression once more, Eun-seol clicked her tongue and snapped him out of it.
“Tsk, get a grip and follow me.”
“Ah, yes.”
He followed her for a short while until she led him to a warehouse that was clearly a garage.
As she approached the entrance and fiddled with something, the garage shutter began to slowly rise.
When the shutter was fully open, the scene revealed was something Dokyun could only believe was a dream.
“Wow…”
A dumbfounded gasp escaped his lips.
Inside the garage, eight cars were parked in a neat row.
What was astonishing was that every single one of them was a luxury model worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.
“The keys are inside, so just pick one and bring it out.”
The words were delivered while Dokyun was still staring blankly.
Hearing her, he turned to look at her with a stupefied expression. She urged him on again.
“I said, bring a car out.”
“I’m driving?”
“You want me to?”
She was so naturally making him her chauffeur.
If she were to ask if he minded… there was no way he would.
How many men in the world disliked cars? And these weren’t just any cars.
Every one of them was a high-end model that always came up when people talked about their dream cars.
However, that was only a joy if it was your own car.
“What if I get in an accident? The insurance won’t even cover it.”
“It’s covered.”
She was even prepared for that?
In that case…
His heart began to pound.
Now that he had her confirmation, there was no reason to hesitate.
His gaze returned to the garage.
They were all magnificent masterpieces, but one in particular caught his eye.
You… I choose you…!
His long-held dream. A car he thought he’d never even get to sit in for his entire life.
The sleek, red body made his heart sing. The weightiness from its low profile drew him in.
He walked toward it in a daze and placed his hand on the handle, a thrill running through him.
Click—.
He opened the door, sat in the seat, and started the engine.
Vrooom—.
The roar of the exhaust vibrated through the air. The sound, rumbling as if it would swallow him whole, made his chest swell with excitement.
Let’s go… Let’s go, my Porsche!
He slowly released the brake, and the car moved forward.
Even at a slow speed, the mere feeling of the car advancing made his heart burn.
This is sex!
That’s right. This was true sex.
After driving for a moment, he pulled out of the garage and stopped the car at the entrance. She opened the passenger door and got in.
“I’ll put the destination in the navigation, so just follow it.”
Watching her operate the navigation system, Dokyun asked one last question.
“Are you sure it’s insured? Don’t blame me if there’s an accident.”
“…Right. The insurance is taken care of.”
The insurance is.
Her slightly delayed response and the qualifier, “the insurance is.” On top of that, the way she subtly avoided his gaze.
Suddenly, a wave of anxiety washed over him.
“…Excuse me?”
“…”
“Eun-seol-ssi?”
Eun-seol, who had been steadfastly ignoring him and avoiding his eyes, finally sighed at his persistent gaze and questions.
“…He’ll be pretty pissed if it gets scratched.”
It was a cryptic statement, but he could guess that the ‘he’ she was referring to was one of Eun-ah’s other personalities.
“He’s obsessed with this kind of stuff. He’ll throw a fit if it gets even the slightest scratch.”
“…”
As she continued, Dokyun maintained his silence and glared at her. She added another explanation.
“But don’t worry. Just don’t scratch it.”
It was an irresponsible thing to say.
“…You drive.”
“No.”
“I’m telling you to drive.”
“I said no.”
Watching her stubbornly refuse, Dokyun realized one thing.
Go Eun-seol. This woman didn’t know how to drive.
The way she furtively avoided his gaze and stared out the window was awkward. The fingertips of her crossed arms were twitching.
“You don’t know how to drive, do you?”
Whip—!
Her head snapped toward him.
Her eyes wide, she spoke in a threatening tone.
“Cut the bullshit and drive.”
Flinch.
Her glare was fierce.
It was a murderous look that made him shrink back instinctively.
He had tried to poke at what he thought was a weakness, but the backlash was severe. Dokyun quietly turned his gaze to the front and pressed the accelerator.
Gently.
Very gently.
The excitement he’d felt moments before vanished, and the empty space was filled with tension.
He didn’t know what kind of person this personality he hadn’t met yet was, but from the way she described him, one thing was certain.
If I scratch this, I’m so fucked…!
He had to return this car to the garage safely, without a single scratch.