The Bottom Dweller's Path Begins
I sent my reply to Im Jun-sung.
"-Got it. When and where exactly should I head?"
He answered right away, as if he'd been waiting.
"-I'll let them know you'll be able to start work tomorrow. Right now they're short on people, so they're swamped."
"-Yeah."
Watching Im Jun-sung reply with that fake warmth like we were close friends, I sneered and let my lips curl.
"Yeah, you're definitely planning to throw me the dirtiest job possible."
It was the same back in high school.
He'd made me scrub the filthy bathrooms with my bare hands, and if I refused, fists and kicks would fly.
I hadn't expected things to be any different now.
After graduation, he'd kept bullying me like this, pretending his call was out of kindness.
I unlocked my phone and opened Im Jun-sung's Starsta page.
I found the wholesome family photo he'd posted there before.
Right in the center stood two women.
The first one that caught my eye was Im Jun-sung's mother, Kim Kyung-hee.
Her body was built like it could explode, even though she was in her mid-forties.
A tight silk dress with a deep cleavage, the curves of her hips bursting right through the fabric.
She wore the mask of a refined lady, but she was pure instinct, the ultimate vixen.
And next to her stood her older sister, Im Da-eun.
A youthful face contrasted with overwhelming physical proportions.
Smooth collarbones visible beneath the off-shoulder top where her shoulders were completely bare.
Full volume and a waist so impossibly narrow it defied belief.
A haughty gaze that hit a man's instincts dead on.
I soaked in every detail of the two women.
How could I steal both of them?
How could I use the ability I had?
My mind raced faster than ever.
I swallowed hard.
The thought of destroying the unfair world Im Jun-sung had enjoyed made my chest pound like crazy.
I swallowed the dry spit in my throat and slowly dragged my finger across the screen, tracing their faces.
If I took both of them as slaves, how much money would I make?
The photo didn't show their grades, but I knew they had to be high-ranked.
These two might even be enough to wipe out my debt.
***
The next day.
I woke up early.
I had to be at the aesthetic center by nine, so I rushed through my morning routine.
"Sweetie, come home safe and sound. Keep up the good work! Fighting!"
With Mom's bright, clueless cheers, I left the house.
I took the subway, got off after three stops, and right there was the ad board for Raon Aesthetic Center.
"Your only measure of proven honor is her grade!"
A beautiful female model holding an A-rank proof certificate.
The phrase "managing assets is soon proving your own honor" slammed straight into my chest.
"Good."
I clenched my fist tight.
This was it.
Time to escape poverty and start walking the revenge path.
I stepped out of the subway entrance and walked straight toward the massive building right in front of me.
The aesthetic center seemed to occupy the entire building.
At the first-floor lobby, the female receptionist at the desk asked me.
"Welcome. How can we help you? Would you like a portfolio consultation?"
Her eyes flicked to the brochure on the desk, and I naturally followed her gaze down.
-1st floor: Lobby and reception
-2nd floor: Asset management and portfolio consultation rooms
-3rd/4th floors: General asset development facilities
-5th/6th floors: Special class development facilities
When I looked back up, the receptionist was silently asking if I wanted the consultation room.
"Ah, I'm not a client. I was told to start working here today."
"Really? We actually received that message. See that door over there behind the reception desk? Go in there. After today, you can enter through the back entrance of the building."
She smiled brightly and pointed at one door.
STAFF ONLY
I bowed and pushed the door open.
The hallway stretched long, and after a few steps, a small lobby appeared.
The automatic door connected to this lobby was probably the back entrance she'd mentioned.
"Mr. Han Jae-young?"
I turned around and saw a cold beauty with sharp eyes staring at me.
A slightly unbuttoned white shirt.
The navy H-line skirt that hugged her body tightly right up to her knees.
The slender waist that fit perfectly in her hand, and the sleek line of her hips below it, clearly visible through the fabric.
Black stockings stretching straight down from the hem of the skirt, highlighting her smooth legs.
A jawline sharp as a blade, topped with silver-framed glasses.
Even her voice seemed to freeze in the chilly gaze that could kill you.
It felt like a mouse freezing in front of a cat.
And above her head floated the grade status window.
Name: Min Cha-eun
Grade: B
Job and Hidden Use: Aesthetic Center General Manager / Asset Manager
Potential Grade: A
Owner: Raon Aesthetic Center
'She's a company-owned asset.'
Then.
An odd message appeared before my eyes.
[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]
You've confirmed an asset's status five times.
The ability to unlock hidden uses is now available.
"?!"
I stared at the message with wide eyes.
Min Cha-eun's status window changed instantly.
Name: Min Cha-eun
Grade: B
Job and Hidden Use: Aesthetic Center General Manager / Asset Manager
Hidden Use: Secret Female
Potential Grade: A
Owner: Raon Aesthetic Center
I swallowed hard.
General Manager.
A B-rank elite asset.
Her proud exterior hid a vile and dirty use that was now visible.
'Mom, those three women I saw on the street, and the manager herself... five confirmations. That's why I got this power.'
It was ridiculous to think this was just my imagination now.
Behind those cold glasses, that gaze that looked at me like a bug, a vulgar instinct was hidden.
It made my blood boil.
"Mr. Han Jae-young?"
Min Cha-eun's thin eyebrows twitched slightly.
Her eyes were cold as she looked down at me with her chin raised.
"Don't tell me you can't hear me? You seem to be skipping the part where you answer."
A voice like a blade.
But in my eyes, she was no longer just a cold woman.
She was just a broken female body that could kneel at my feet anytime.
I held back the laugh trying to escape my throat and pretended to lower my waist.
"Sorry. I got lost in your beauty without meaning to..."
"...No flattery."
Min Cha-eun's thin lips hardened into a sneer.
She flicked my chest with the file folder she was holding and turned away coldly.
The slender neck that looked ready to snap under her silk blouse and the sharp hip line came into view.
"Come. I'll show you where you'll be rolling around starting today."
Every step made the thin skirt stretch tightly around her hips and ass, driving me insane.
I followed quietly behind her, already imagining how I'd bend that rigid waist of hers.
I rode the elevator with her.
It descended deep underground with a heavy rumble.
The moment the doors opened, a thick, pungent smell of disinfectant hit me along with the damp air.
Min Cha-eun walked down the dark corridor without hesitation.
The walls were rough, damp concrete, nothing like the fancy lobby above.
The sharp click of her high heels echoed through the narrow underground hallway.
She stopped in front of a heavy iron door at the very end.
"This is where you'll be working starting today, Mr. Han Jae-young."
The heavy door opened to reveal a narrow, gloomy cell-like room.
Moans and wet whimpers leaked out occasionally.
"This is...?"
"The special management zone."
Min Cha-eun lightly pushed her glasses up with one slender finger.
"In simple terms, it's the waiting area for assets that have fallen too low and are waiting for disposal."
I remembered hearing that private companies like this handled assets because the government couldn't manage them all.
I hadn't expected the Raon Aesthetic Center to do the same.
Min Cha-eun's cold voice carried no warmth at all.
"The job is simple. Clean the waiting room, serve meals, and assist with managing the assets' hygiene."
The corner of her thin mouth twisted mockingly.
Her words weren't aimed at me... but at my pathetic situation.
She clearly saw it as the end for anyone who worked here.
Her eyes held nothing but mockery and contempt.
"The young master asked me to look after you especially. Said you were the kind of person who belonged at the very bottom. Hoo."
I forced myself to ignore Min Cha-eun's eyes.
It was time to lower my head and wait for my chance.
But my mind was already churning with calculations.
How would I unlock that hidden use and make her kneel at my feet?
That was the key.
My gaze moved past Min Cha-eun's long legs to the figure crouching in the corner of the cell.
Shoulders reduced to skin and bones, hair in disarray.
Name: Choi Su-jin
Grade: F
Job and Hidden Use: Disposal-pending asset
Hidden Use: Blind Sex Slave / Exclusive Sadistic Toy
Potential Grade: B
Owner: None
Only a thin t-shirt covered her body on the damp concrete floor inside the cell.
Beneath the yellowed, discolored fabric of the shirt, her emaciated body was clearly visible, every bone showing.
Beneath that, her bare pussy and pubic hair were exposed because she wasn't wearing any underwear.
It was obvious she had been completely abandoned by her owner for a long time.
"Here, the cleaning supplies are over there. Clean this place up properly."
When I turned toward where she pointed, I saw the cleaning tools.
"Just in case, don't touch the disposal assets."
The corner of her mouth curled up in a mocking laugh.
"Ah, if you're that starved you really have to, make sure you wear a condom. Even if you catch an STD, it won't count as an industrial accident. You suffer all alone. Hoo."
While she was speaking, she let out a laugh at her own joke and headed toward the elevator.
"Finish up and come report to the second-floor manager's office."
