Chapter 154: Time Stop (3)
Chapter 154: Time Stop (3)
Pshhh— Phssshhh!
The moment the time stop was released, I let out a lewd moan and came pathetically. I had been driven to the brink of madness wanting to climax for so long that it was an especially ridiculous finish.
Perhaps it was a psychological reaction, a reward for the effort I’d spent holding back my voice. Or maybe I’d subconsciously resolved that I had to feel even better to make up for the wait. Meanwhile, the villain—my former classmate and the time-stop ability user—stood there watching me as if he hadn't just been digging around inside my pussy a second ago.
Seeing him act like he had no idea what was going happened was strangely infuriating, but I couldn't point it out. If I called him out for making me like this while pretending otherwise, I’d be admitting that I was conscious while time was frozen.
"Haa... Ah, haa...♡"
As my grand squirting show concluded with a faint stream spraying from my pussy, the culprit flinched and stepped back. On the other hand, the other reverse bunny waitresses, who were my "colleagues," rushed over to me in concern.
"A-Are you alright?"
We didn't always work together, and I was technically undercover, but they still viewed me as one of their own. I didn't know the details, but since this was a place where sexual favors were openly traded for a price, similar incidents had likely happened before.
Even though this was a casino where you could touch the reverse bunny staff to your heart's content if you paid, they seemed to think that forcing a public climax in front of so many people was going too far. Since they occasionally dealt with wealthy guests with twisted tastes, they assumed I’d stepped on a landmine and came to help.
"Excuse me... Sir, may I ask for your name?"
"It's Kang Young-hoon."
Even while gasping for breath, I committed those three syllables to memory. When I wasn't thinking about it, I couldn't remember his name no matter how hard I tried, but hearing it now brought it back instantly.
Kang Young-hoon. We weren't close, but I knew he was subtly bullied back in school. I’d tried to look out for him in my own way, but I ended up dropping out mid-semester after becoming a Magical Girl, so I hadn't heard anything about him since.
‘I thought he’d be doing well, at least.’
It was surprising enough that he was on this ultra-luxury cruise ship that only the elite of the elite could board, and even more shocking that he’d gained the power to stop time. The fact that he’d used that power to become an executive of the Villain Association was beyond baffling.
To be honest, I was still in a daze. From what I remembered, he wasn't the type of guy bad enough to become a villain. Given the nature of time manipulation, he could have made a fortune just using his powers normally; I couldn't fathom why he’d joined the Villain Association.
‘Come to think of it, the Hypnotist and the Beast Tamer didn't do what they did just for money or status either. Is there some other goal? Something more fundamental than just eliminating me as a variable or messing with heroes.’
Of course, there was no way to know right now. My immediate priority was to clean up this absurd situation where I’d just squirted in public and ensure Kang Young-hoon didn't realize I was a hero.
It would be ideal if I could subdue and capture him alive, but as I saw with the Beast Tamer last time, executives of the Villain Association always seem to have a backup plan to escape at a moment's notice.
‘I had him right there, and he vanished in the blink of an eye.’
I wouldn't get greedy. I’d watch him a little longer. It definitely wasn't because I enjoyed being tormented while pretending not to feel anything during the time stop, or because I wanted to experience it one more time.
...Seriously, it wasn't. Really.
"Ah, Mr. Kang Young-hoon. It seems this is your first time at this casino. Even if there was mutual consent, this is a public space used by others, so please refrain from such loud acts..."
"I didn't do anything, though?"
"Pardon?"
"I'm saying there was no 'consent' or anything like that."
Young-hoon frowned, looking genuinely aggrieved at being cornered by the employee's questions. However, the waitress in the reverse bunny outfit looked even more dumbfounded by his response.
"Are you saying you put her in this state without any agreement? Sir, even if we provide sexual services in suggestive clothing, doing this by force without respect is..."
"No, no, that's not what I mean. Why are you framing an innocent man? Let me tell you exactly what happened. I didn't do a thing. This lady just walked up to me to guide me, and then she suddenly pissed herself and came all on her own."
"...What?"
"You're accusing the wrong person. Don't ask me, ask her. Or ask the people around us."
The reverse bunny waitress who had tried to help me out of kindness looked at me with a bewildered expression. But I didn't even need to answer to clear her confusion. Everyone in the casino had already forgotten their gambling and was staring our way.
"I saw it too. That young man really didn't do anything."
"Yeah, the waitress just started stumbling on her own and then suddenly made those strange noises..."
Of course, none of them had been conscious during the time stop like I was. This meant they only saw me walking normally before the time stop was cast, and then suddenly climaxing and moaning the moment it was released.
They didn't even remember it as two separate scenes like I did. To them, it must have looked like one continuous, seamless sequence. Since they didn't see what happened in between, there was no reason to suspect Young-hoon. In their eyes, it looked like the guy hadn't even laid a finger on me.
"...Is that true?"
"Ugh, uuu... I think I'm just not feeling well. I'm sorry for causing a scene..."
Once I admitted it, the waitress who came to help couldn't do anything more. She still seemed suspicious of Young-hoon, but there was zero physical evidence. I shuddered again, realizing just how broken the time-stop ability was.
‘If he used that for something other than just groping girls, the heroes might have already...’
Since we were classmates, he was the same age as me—twenty. And judging by what he’d said earlier, it seemed he didn't know about this power back in school. That meant he hadn't had a long time to master his time-stop ability.
I had to be grateful for that fact for now. If he truly knew how to use his power to its full potential, he would have tormented me in much more insidious ways.
For instance, he could have repeatedly cast and released the time stop at short intervals to bait me into making a mistake. Or he could have faked releasing it to trick me.
‘Wait, faking it?’
As that thought crossed my mind, a wave of anxiety washed over me.
I hadn't noticed it earlier because I was so desperate to climax, but thinking back, something felt slightly off. I had climaxed in response to the signal of Young-hoon snapping his fingers. Naturally, I assumed the snap was the trigger to release the time stop.
‘He definitely acted like he was wrapping things up.’
But looking back now, there was a very subtle lag between the moment he snapped his fingers and the moment time actually resumed. A microscopic difference that no one would notice unless they were hyper-focused. However, I didn't think this was intentional on Young-hoon's part.
‘He seemed unskilled in using his power.’
I was the same way when I first got my Magical Girl powers. There was a slight delay between the moment I decided to transform and the actual transformation. It wasn't like that now that I was experienced, but back when I was a novice, the power didn't manifest the instant I willed it.
If Young-hoon had a slight delay while trying to release the time stop, and I—unaware of that delay—had reacted a fraction of a second before time actually resumed... It was only a split second, maybe 0.1 seconds, but there was definitely a sense of dissonance.
‘I hope... I'm the only one who felt that dissonance.’
It was definitely strange, but it was the kind of thing only someone incredibly sharp would notice. I could only pray that Young-hoon hadn't realized it like I had.
"If you're not feeling well, why don't you take a break?"
The reverse bunny waitress offered me a kind, concerned suggestion. But I couldn't answer immediately. It was dangerous to let him find out I was an Irregular who could resist time stops, but it was also a waste to let Young-hoon go just like this.
Moreover, Young-hoon seemed to have taken a liking to me. Enough to use his powers to grope me the moment he saw my body. It would be a shame to lose this lead.
If I played my cards right, I might be able to get useful information about the Villain Association. I could even follow him to his bedroom and subdue him while he was sleeping and vulnerable.
"If it's not too much trouble, why don't you continue guiding me? I've taken quite a liking to this lady. I'm willing to pay a generous tip, too."
"Well, if that's the case..."
Just as I thought. Young-hoon didn't seem to want to let me go either. He’d mentioned that he enjoyed watching a woman climax spectacularly the moment time resumed after he’d finished playing with her; it seemed he was quite satisfied with both my body and my reaction.
‘The next step won't just be groping; it'll be penetration.’
Gulp. I swallowed hard without realizing it. I might be able to stay quiet during foreplay, but if it went as far as actual sex, there was no way I could keep from making a sound. At least, it was impossible for me.
"I understand. Mr. Kang Young-hoon, I'll... guide you...♡"
My legs were still shaking from the aftereffects of the climax. But I accepted his proposal and stood back up. I was still far from okay, but I forced a smile and squeezed out some energy.
"He-hehe... For the sake of the guest, I've made a miraculous recovery-pyong...♡!"
When I even added a bit of aegyo, Young-hoon let out a small smirk. Every time I looked at his face, memories of our school days resurfaced, pushing my shame to its limit, but I had no choice. I had to endure for now.
"Good. It's my first time here, and I like that the staff all have such excellent service spirits."
"Ah, thank you..."
"But I've been curious since earlier—why are all the employees wearing bunny girl outfits?"
"Oh? Ah, to be precise, this isn't exactly a bunny girl outfit, it's a reverse bunny..."
Freeze.
A sudden silence fell. My Magical Girl reflexes immediately picked up on the change.
In the middle of Young-hoon's question and my answer, the voices of the dealers and guests, the clinking of chips, and the soft music playing in the casino all vanished simultaneously, leaving only absolute silence.
My body stiffened, and I couldn't even turn my head or move my eyes. Having felt this constriction for the second time today, every nerve from my head to my toes felt like it was on edge.
I stopped speaking as well. In this situation, there was only one reason for the world to suddenly go silent.
"Ah... This is tricky. I feel like the timing was slightly off just now too... Is it just my imagination?"
I felt goosebumps break out on my arms. Young-hoon was doing exactly what I had feared.
I’d thought it would be terrifying if he tormented me by repeatedly stopping and starting time to bait me into a mistake, and I’d been relieved that he wasn't doing that—only for that relief to be shattered in an instant.
‘Wait, wait... This is really dangerous. If he keeps repeating this, I'm bound to make a mistake eventually...!’
If he freezes time while I'm in the middle of speaking, I have to stop instantly. It was no different from a game of "Red Light, Green Light." The moment the seeker catches me, it's a guaranteed Bad Ending.
‘...A Bad Ending?’
But as the heroine of an adult game, one must observe every Bad Ending—being defeated, harassed, and humiliated. Was it just my imagination that I could already see what kind of ending awaited me?
A hint of the Defeat Addicted hero's ecstasy seeped into my forced smile.