The Team Leader Who Only Bullies Me (7)
"Min-seok. You look beat."
"Huh? No, I'm fine."
"Fine my ass. A fit guy like you panting after barely unloading half the crates. What happened?"
"Just... Team Leader Yoo had me running some errands. Anyway, I can manage, so don't worry about me."
"..You really have it rough."
With my half-assed excuse, Uncle Choi—who'd asked after me—and everyone around shot me knowing looks. Nobody was clueless about how Yoo Seo-yeon pushed me around, so even if I looked more worn out than usual, they just figured she'd dumped some heavy lifting on me and let it slide. Back when I first started and she was really laying into me, I'd end up this wrecked pretty often. Of course, the fatigue weighing me down now was a whole different beast.
Seven rounds will do that to a guy.
Having plopped the utterly spent Yoo Seo-yeon on the floor and gotten one more off with her mouth had been the kicker. I hadn't noticed during, but once it was over and I caught my breath, exhaustion crashed over me like a wave. Still, I couldn't just bail on work outright, so I'd powered through—but my whole body felt like a soaked sponge, heavy and limp, and apparently it showed.
Thanks to the jacked-up physique I'd built learning from that gym rat junior in the army, though, I managed to wrap up the day even half out of it.
"At least it's lunchtime now. You heading straight to eat?"
"You guys go on ahead. I'll rest a bit and catch up."
No matter what, I'd eaten something, and Yoo Seo-yeon hadn't messed with me during lunch anyway. Not that I thought she'd try now, but screw it—I just wanted to rest. I pushed lunch back a little and headed for the break room when—
That same sharp, no-nonsense voice rang out, business as usual.
"Choi Min-seok."
"Yes..?"
Normally I'd have fired back without a second thought, but this time I froze and mumbled like an idiot.
No way, right?
No matter how vicious Yoo Seo-yeon was, she wouldn't be plotting revenge after what I'd done to her just an hour ago. I tried to convince myself, but anxiety gnawed at me anyway. When I met her eyes to check, she slyly looked away.
"..You haven't eaten yet, have you?"
"About to."
"Perfect. There's some work stuff to discuss anyway. Let's grab a bite together."
Not revenge, then.
Either way, she was the boss here at work. If she wanted payback, she wouldn't bother with something this roundabout—she'd just dump crap on me like always.
"Got it."
"Follow me."
I figured we'd hit some nearby spot, but instead she led us down to the underground parking lot. We crossed it and stopped in front of a gleaming, spotless car.
"Get in."
She fished keys from her pocket—beep-beep—and the doors unlocked with a click, lights flashing on. Made sense for a rich girl to have her own ride.
Foreign import?
I didn't know cars, but unlike the dusty heaps around it, this one looked pristine and pricey.
Yoo Seo-yeon slid into the driver's seat without waiting. I hesitated, then hopped in the passenger side.
"Anything you wanna eat in particular?"
"Nah. Wherever's convenient."
"Alright then.."
A smooth purr as the engine started, and we were off. She didn't chat, just focused on driving in silence.
Say something already.
It wasn't fear, exactly, but sitting quiet with the woman I'd wrecked an hour ago felt awkward as hell.
Twenty minutes later, we pulled up to a place that screamed upscale Japanese restaurant from the vibe alone. Hell, I wasn't even sure it was Japanese—the sign had some scribbled kanji, no Korean translation below, so who knew.
She's paying, right?
My wallet was already hurting from blowing cash on Kim Min-ah; otherwise, it'd be looking pretty sad.
Inside matched the exterior: pure Japanese aesthetic. A kimono-clad server ushered us smoothly to a private room. No clue what to order, so I let Yoo Seo-yeon handle it.
Even after the server confirmed and left, she sat quiet. Not ignoring me completely, though—her eyes darted anxiously, like she had something to say but was gauging my reaction. I broke the ice first.
"So. What's this about? You didn't drag me here just for lunch."
"..I wanted to check what you were thinking."
What was I thinking? Too vague.
"About what?"
"Like... what you're gonna do with me. What I should do.. that kind of thing."
"Nothing special. I didn't do anything to you. Just what you asked for, right? And I won't spread the video, so don't sweat it."
"Then me..?"
"Why ask me? I've told you—I don't plan on doing anything to you. If today's sucked, chalk it up to stepping in shit and forget it. Whatever you do in the break room from now on, I'll pretend I don't see."
Lie. Yoo Seo-yeon was too prime to toss after one taste. Even if I did nothing, the hypnosis I'd planted would have her crawling back soon enough.
Her eyes trembled at my words. No relief there—more like dread.
"If I want it..?"
"That depends on you."
What else was there to say? Nothing to demand from her right now. Nothing she had to offer, either.
"What... should I do..?"
"Dunno. Honestly? I don't like you much. You know why."
Her face drained white in an instant. All the shit she'd pulled to vent stress—natural reaction.
"S-sorry."
"No need. Just means you gotta behave from now on."
"...."
I didn't spell out how to behave. Hell, I'd only thought about toying with her freely—details were TBD.
"First off, drop the formal talk? If it bugs you, say so. I'll switch back."
"..Casual's fine."
"Keep it formal around others, though. Don't make it obvious."
"Yeah.."
No displeasure—her face even brightened now that I'd taken the lead.
"Alright, hit me with your questions. I heard from the others—you didn't just target me. You drove out every guy before me too. Why?"
"Th-that's.."
"I know you're a mess personality-wise. Be straight. Don't piss me off."
She flinched, glancing nervously. I already knew "stress relief"—any other answer, and I'd bench her for a week, regrets be damned. Luckily, she spilled honestly, unease plain.
"To relieve stress.."
"Stress relief, huh."
"Yeah.."
"What stress? Work can't be it."
As 2nd Team Leader, she just watched us work, nitpicked mistakes, and bullied me. Everyone knew splitting Logistics into Team 1 and 2 was just to parachute her in—Team 1 Leader handled all the real work anyway.
Yoo Seo-yeon slowly laid out her sob story. Her family's loaded (knew that). Partied hard in college, dipped into drugs, lost her parents' trust overnight. Parachuted into other branches, caused scenes, ended up dumped in Logistics.
Honestly? Zero sympathy—just pathetic.
"They stuck you in Logistics to keep you out of trouble, and your fix is bullying employees till they quit?"
"That's within limits, I guess. They hire guys who won't mind quitting anyway."
Me included. Made sense why they'd take a no-experience newbie like me on such sweet terms—this explained it better.
"Your parents know?"
"Probably. When I first got here, Team 1 Leader said to watch it or he'd report to them."
In other words: tormenting hires till they bailed was fine by her folks.
"You're trash."
"Sorry.."
"Whatever. Not mad."
Just curious. Most people at least try not to screw others over.
Lessons here.
With the Succubus System, I was already top dog over someone. Her, even.
That sparked a new question.
"I get your deal. But why cling to me? You've got money. Hook up with randos easy."
My hypnosis only piled up her lust when she saw me and made me pop into her head during solo sessions. Another guy would've scratched that itch—no scene like this.
"..Dad's finding me a marriage match. Told me to behave."
Makes sense. After the shitshow getting her here, defying them again? Tough.
"And.."
"And?"
"Other guys... don't satisfy me anymore.."
Her ears flushed crimson—lewd enough to get me hard on reflex.
Fuck. Down, boy.
Exhausted as I was, more now might flatline me when the next shipment hit. Perfect timing: the server swept in, arraying gorgeous sushi that looked too pretty to eat.
Unlike the puny rolls I knew, these were big, stunning beauties that grabbed your eyes. Food first—I popped one in.
Everything before was a lie.
More kept coming till I was stuffed. Fatigue and fullness melted my bones—no thoughts of sex or anything.