This Might Sting
Minhi looked at the collar and blindfold in my hands and simply smiled.
"Come on, put them on already. They'll suit you perfectly, Oppa."
"M-Minhi…"
I genuinely could not understand why I had to do this. I could not understand why she would force me to throw away my dignity as a human being just to put me through something like this. The hand holding the blindfold and collar trembled violently.
"Oh dear, oh dear. Oppa, this is a punishment you're receiving because you did something wrong. Do I really have to do everything for you?"
Minhi snatched the blindfold from my hand and covered my eyes with it herself.
"Honestly, I do wonder how you'd ever survive without me… but well. That won't be a problem anymore, will it? Heh heh."
In the pitch-black darkness where nothing was visible, all I could hear was Minhi's whispering voice. Then she took the collar still left in my hand and fastened that around my neck as well.
"Alright. Time for your punishment, Oppa."
In the dark, with nothing to see, Minhi began stripping off my shirt.
"W-wait, Minhi—why are you taking my clothes off…?"
"Why? Because you're being punished, so of course they come off."
She answered without a shred of hesitation.
"I-I put on the collar and the… the blindfold like you said, so why do I have to take my clothes off too…?"
"What are you even talking about, Oppa? You looked like you didn't want to do it yourself, so I did every single thing for you."
"E-even so, this isn't—this isn't right, Minhi…"
The chastity belt. The blindfold. The collar. And now completely naked, without a single scrap of clothing—what exactly was she planning to do to me?
"What isn't right, Oppa?"
"Th-this just doesn't feel right, Minhi…"
"What doesn't?"
Something about it must have displeased her. Her tone grew colder by the second.
"A-at least a T-shirt… c-couldn't I keep one on…?"
"……"
In the darkness in front of me, Minhi only breathed for a moment, then let out a deep sigh. A soft clinking sound followed.
"Oppa."
"Y-yeah… Minhi…"
"What are you receiving right now?"
"P-pun… punishment… I'm being punished…"
"Right? You're being punished because you lied to me. Isn't that so?"
"Yes…"
The clinking stopped. Then Minhi held something near my ear and shook it so I could hear.
Slosh. Slosh.
"Want to skip the punishment and just take a shot instead?"
"A-a shot…?"
"Mm-hm. Just one easy little injection and we're done. Yeah… that might be better, don't you think?"
In the darkness where I could see nothing, only that sloshing sound reached me. I had no idea what kind of drug was in there, but I was certain it would not be good for my body. I began to tremble. Fumbling blindly through the dark, I grabbed Minhi's ankle.
"I-I don't want it. I hate shots. Please… I-I'll take the punishment. I'll just take it… p-please put that away…"
"Really?"
"Yes, yes… I-I'll just take the punishment. Please…"
"Alright. Since Oppa's asking so nicely, I'll make a spe.cial exception."
The sloshing near my ear stopped. Then I heard something being clipped onto my collar.
"Shall we go receive your punishment, then?"
"Y-yeah…"
Minhi simply began pulling on the leash attached to the collar, and I fumbled my way up from the floor in the pitch-black dark. Then the movement of the leash in front of me stopped.
"What are you doing, Oppa?"
"Uh… huh? What do you mean…?"
"I mean, what are you doing, Oppa."
"I-I'm receiving my punishment…"
"You're wearing a collar right now, and you're trying to walk around like a person?"
"Huh…?"
"Haa… This is exactly why I always have to stay right by your side. Who else is going to teach you everything from one to ten? Such a kind, loving little sister—where else would you find one…"
In the darkness where I could see nothing, I heard the crack of joints being loosened—
THUD!!!
A heavy fist slammed into my stomach. The pain was so overwhelming I could only collapse face-down onto the floor.
"Cough—cough—gghk—aaaaah…"
It hurt so much I couldn't breathe. It hurt so much… I genuinely wondered if my organs had been crushed. It hurt so badly that even tears wouldn't come.
"There. Now you finally look like someone who's being punished, Oppa."
Why was she doing this to me…? I could only clutch my aching stomach, but Minhi paid me no mind at all. She simply tugged the leash and started walking forward.
"Cough—cough—gghh…"
One hand pressed to my throbbing stomach, I could only crawl in whatever direction she dragged me.
Click. Click. Creeeak—
The house wasn't large. I had assumed she would just make me circle the living room, but Minhi clearly had other plans. I heard the front door open.
"Cough—cough… M-Minhi… I… I don't want this… I hate this…"
"That's one."
"I-I don't want it. Pl… please, Minhi…"
I didn't want anyone to see me like this. Minhi simply pulled on my leash, but I resisted.
"That's two, Oppa. One more time—just one more time—while you're being punished, if you say you don't want it, that you can't, that you want me to stop… then I won't go easy on you. I'll stick you with the needle right then and there."
She pulled on the leash again.
"Hurry up and follow, Oppa. Take your punishment for what you did wrong, and then we can eat."
The sound of gravel underfoot in the yard accompanied the relentless tug on my collar.
"……"
I could feel an unspoken gaze on me. I simply crawled out.
"Heeheeheehee~"
Minhi, tugging my leash, walked on with nothing but laughter and the crunch of gravel, dragging me along. Surely she wasn't planning to go beyond the yard… No. No, she wouldn't. She absolutely wouldn't…
In the darkness where I could see nothing, I could only pray that no one would witness me like this as I crawled naked across the gravel.
Woof! Woof!
Nureongi, the dog our parents kept loose in the yard, must have spotted us. From far off came the sound of barking and running paws.
Yelp—yelp—!
"You filthy mutt—how dare you run at my Oppa."
I heard Nureongi's pained yelps as it was struck, then the sound of it scrambling away into the distance.
"Ah, sorry, Oppa. You were in the middle of your punishment, weren't you? Something dirty tried to come near, so I took care of it. Don't worry."
"Ah… ah…"
The words rose all the way to my throat—why hit that innocent dog?—but right now I was nothing more than a powerless, weak human. I could only think, at least it wasn't me who got hit, and crawl wherever Minhi pulled the leash.
"I-it hurts…"
Crawling naked over gravel drove stones into my knees.
"Just bear with it a little longer, Oppa. This is all for your own good."
"Y… yeah…"
How was any of this for my own good? In what possible way was this for me? I should have called Mom or Dad even once before coming—just once, to ask if they were home. If I had, none of this would have happened.
"Ah, Oppa, wait here a second. I'm going to the bathroom real quick."
"O-okay…"
"I'll be right back, so stay still right here. If you take that blindfold off for no reason, I won't let it slide."
"Y… yeah. I'm being punished right now, so I won't take it off…"
"Awwww, that's my Oppa—my Junhui Oppa! You're finally taking your punishment properly. Of course you are. You're the Oppa I love more than anyone else in the whole world."
Minhi patted the top of my bowed head a few times, then disappeared with the crunch of gravel under her feet.
Darkness alone greeted me through the blindfold. Tension prickled through me at the thought that someone might be watching. If anyone saw me like this, they'd think I was some kind of pervert…
One minute.
Even after a full minute had passed, Minhi showed no sign of returning. I couldn't even hear footsteps. Could I escape right now? Even looking like this—like some kind of freak—if I asked someone nearby for help, I might still get free of Minhi's grip.
My heart hammered. The thought that I could run right this second took hold. Yes… run…
With trembling hands, I began to lift the blindfold covering my eyes. The fear that Minhi might suddenly appear multiplied the tension a hundredfold. My heart pounded roughly as I pulled the blindfold free.
Light flooded into eyes that had been dark for so long. I couldn't adjust at first, but soon the world came into focus. I could see Nureongi, trembling deep inside the doghouse, staring at me. And right ahead—a small wooden gate.
Th-there. If I go through there, I can get out…
Crawling over the gravel had left my knees a bloody mess, but I still planted my weight on my aching legs, stood up, and walked slowly forward.
"J-just there… if I can just get out…"
I can escape…
I crept carefully across the gravel, trying not to make a sound, and opened the low wooden gate that barely reached my waist.
"……"
The moment I stepped through, I saw Minhi squatting against the wall right beside the gate. In one hand she held a syringe. In the other, a vial of medicine.
"Came out, did you?"
"Ah… aaaaaah…"
At her words, I could only fall backward and sink to the ground. Minhi rose from her crouch, fitted the syringe into the vial, and started walking toward me.
"Hahahahaha. So you broke every single thing I told you earlier and crawled all the way out here?"
"N-no…"
"No? You took off the blindfold, stood up, and walked out here—am I seeing things? Is that it?"
"I… I'm not—I-I'm sorry. Pl-pl-pl-please… please… f-forgive me just this once, Minhi. Please… I-I won't ever do this again. I just… o-out of curiosity. Please…"
I dropped to my knees at her feet and wrung my hands together, begging desperately for forgiveness.
"Heh heh hahahahaha. Ahhh~ my sweet, lovely Oppa~"
Crash.
The vial in Minhi's hand—already empty of liquid—hit the ground and shattered. She stood there looking down at me with only the syringe left in her grip.
"My dear, dear, beloved Junhui Oppa!"
"U-uhh… y-yeah… Minhi…"
"Do you love me?"
"Y-ye… y-yes… I… I really love you…"
"Hahhhh~ Is that so? Do you mean it? You sincerely love me?"
"Y… yeah. I-I really love you. S-so… could you put that sh-sh-shot down…?"
Still laughing with that mad glint in her eyes, Minhi leaned in and gave my lips a light kiss.
Peck.
"Hooo…"
Then her expression slowly went blank as she looked at me.
"This is this, and that is that. You broke the punishment you were already receiving for doing something wrong, and then you tried to run away on top of it. That's on you, Oppa."
She stroked my cheek once, then slowly brought the syringe closer.
"Alright. This might sting."
And then Minhi, holding the syringe filled with that unknown drug, drove the needle into my neck.