Rabbit Hole Share House! (14)
Her head felt like it was floating, light as a feather. The whole world seemed to glow and sparkle with impossible brightness. It was as if she had finally obtained the one thing she had longed for and forgotten for so long. Overwhelmed with emotion, Botal Rabbit pulled the “someone” before her into a tight embrace.
“Colossus… Colossus! I love you♡ I love you so much…♡!!”
-Slap! Slap!
Tran Van Bao rocked his hips while nestled in her arms and slapped Botal Rabbit’s cheeks again and again. The impacts meant nothing to her. Her body was tough enough to emerge unscathed even after a direct hit from an eight-ton truck. But that did not mean her senses had dulled. She could endure it, yet the shock remained a shock. Each stinging slap drew a startled “Ah! Ah!” from her as she shook her head.
“So mean…♡ Hngh♡ Hic♡!! Heuk♡!!”
-Squelch, squelch, slurp♡
Her glossy hair spilled across the white sheets like waves. The way those silken strands swayed with every toss of her head created a mesmerizing contrast. Tran Van Bao swallowed hard, seized a fistful of her hair, and slammed his hips forward even harder.
Creak. Creak. The old bed springs groaned in protest. Plap. Plap. The wet sounds repeated with mechanical rhythm. Through the half-open door, the silhouettes of the two figures tangled and shook. As if they no longer cared who saw. Or perhaps they wanted someone to see. Or maybe they were silently begging for someone to burst in and stop them. Their bodies were joined as completely as their twisted desires, though none of that mattered anymore.
“This alone cannot prove Chrome Fist’s crimes. The word ‘chrome’ does not exclusively refer to him.”
Dr. Wilhelmina let out a long sigh.
“This was not manufactured for civilians.”
“…What?”
“It was made to be worn by superhumans. By heroes. That ring is still attached to the victims’ clitorises. Do you know why? Because it cannot be removed. It is a semi-permanent piercing.”
Heroes possessed regenerative abilities far beyond those of ordinary people. Most could not even wear ordinary earrings. The flesh would close over the hole the moment the earring was taken out, forcing them to pierce the same spot again and again. Therefore, “hero-grade” piercing accessories were almost always designed to be permanent—earrings, nose rings, tongue studs, lip rings, eyebrow bars. Once they went in, they stayed. They were built to withstand the violence of superhuman combat without bending or breaking. Heroes were immune to ordinary infection or inflammation anyway, so there was no fear that a small ring would cause the piercing site to fester.
“Removing it would require excising the clitoris itself. That is not a procedure we can perform without patient consent, and the object is not immediately life-threatening, so our professors ultimately gave up on surgical removal.”
Dr. Wilhelmina straightened her back and tapped the desk with her fingertip.
“There is one more thing. That object conducts ‘magic power.’”
“…An enchantment?”
“Most likely. It is not a particularly powerful artifact, but it confirms the item was designed for superhumans.”
“Then why… give it to civilians?”
“Who knows? It could have been a display of dominance. Or a quality test before attaching them to heroes. No one can say for certain.”
Dr. Wilhelmina spoke in a detached, clinical tone. But as Iron Colossus listened, his mind was already moving in a different direction. It was not unusual for a manufacturer to stamp its own brand on its products. The letters engraved on the ring—[chrome]—could simply mean exactly that. A form of brand marketing to show that they supplied high-quality goods. In other words, this was…
“Not for show.”
“Pardon?”
“It is a brand label on merchandise.”
Most of the women who had disappeared after falling into the hands of Chrome Fist and Tran Van Bao had yet to be found. The situation strongly suggested human trafficking. To guarantee the product’s value when selling them—or rather, to protect the manufacturer’s brand value—they had been marked. Like sewing a large logo onto a luxury handbag. A preliminary step toward establishing themselves as a premium supplier in the sexual slavery market.
“Thank you for the data. It was helpful.”
“This alone is not enough to arrest Chrome Fist.”
“I know.”
“Then… what will you do now?”
“If evidence is insufficient, secure a statement.”
“The victims are in no condition to give statements… Iron Colossus? Iron Colossus!”
-Screeech.
-Bang!!
Iron Colossus did not wait for Dr. Wilhelmina to finish. He kicked his chair back, stood, and strode out of the examination room.
The words seemed to linger beyond the closed door.
Two pale legs wrapped around his waist and squeezed tight, as if afraid to let go. Sitting on the drenched sheets, Tran Van Bao realized the moment had come.
“Yes…♡ Yesss…♡ Hngh, haup♡ Mmph♡”
-Smooch, slurp, sluuuurp♡
The kiss stretched long and sticky. Botal Rabbit’s insides were so hot and wet that Tran Van Bao shuddered as if he were melting. Soon his cock twitched and jerked. Spurt. Splurt.
“Haa… haa…!!”
Tran Van Bao smiled in satisfaction and gently sucked on her neck. When she trembled at the feeling of his semen flooding her, he cupped her breast tenderly and whispered.
“Mmm…♡ Haa. Hngh♡”
“Request…?”
Tran Van Bao pulled away from the dazed, flushed Botal Rabbit and retrieved a small box from his belongings. The box clicked open. Inside, nestled like a wedding ring, lay a single tiny hoop. Far too small for a finger. Too singular to be an earring. A silver ring.
One hand on the wheel, Iron Colossus deftly manipulated his phone and tossed it onto the passenger seat. The ringtone played for a moment, then a click sounded and a voice came through.
“Hm? Iron Colossus? What’s the matter?”
“Nightsight. Urgent. Is Chrome Fist’s location currently being tracked?”
“Well, we’ve been keeping an eye on him… Hmm. Of all times…”
“What is it?”
“He moved toward Incheon Port. You know Blacksmith? A-class villain. Does the name ring a bell?”
“Shanghai Guild?”
“Yeah. That smuggler bastard.”
The sudden name made Iron Colossus fall silent for a moment. Why that name now…? In that instant, a spark of insight pierced his mind. Scattered fragments of information rushed together, racing toward a single conclusion.
Branding women on their most intimate parts before delivery. Tran Van Bao. Chrome Fist. Blacksmith of the Shanghai Guild…
If Tran Van Bao lured the women and turned them into merchandise, Chrome Fist attached his brand and handled first-stage distribution, and the smuggler Blacksmith received the goods and sold them on foreign markets…
The four civilian victims whose whereabouts had never been traced after disappearing. The scent of Chrome Fist that had lingered in Thunderbird’s office. The threat Chrome Fist had made to him a few days earlier.
Hurry before I find you.
If that warning had become a threat to him… If it had forced him to rush the “certain person” into being turned into merchandise…
“Nightsight.”
“Hm?”
“Did Chrome Fist go alone? To Incheon Port?”
“Uh… no? The hood was pulled low so I couldn’t be sure, but the build looked female… Yeah, probably a woman. Not that it’d be news that the bastard sells women.”
“When was this?”
“Today. Just now, actually. It’s… let’s see. Three o’clock now, so it was a little before two?”
“Meet at the harbor.”
“What? What? Right now? Hey, you idiot! What are the two of us supposed to do there?! The Shanghai Guild bastards are crawling all over the—!!”
Iron Colossus ended the call before Nightsight could finish and immediately dialed another number.
-Ring ring ring, ring ring ring…
The line kept ringing. He narrowed his eyes at the screen.
He hung up and tried another contact. Still no answer.
Iron Colossus listened to the endless ringing tone and slammed his foot down on the Wrangler’s accelerator.
-VROOOOOOOM!!
-Vrrrrrr… Vrrrrrrrr…!
The phone that had fallen to the floor buzzed and skittered across it on its own. The room was a mess—damp, glistening sheets, crumpled tissues and trash scattered everywhere, discarded clothes. Heavy footsteps approached the door.
-Thud. Thud.
A man stopped before the wide-open doorway and drew a deep breath. The room had been left completely exposed, not even tidied. He carefully picked up the phone rolling on the floor.
Beyond the background photo of a playfully smiling woman forcing up the corners of a stoic man’s mouth, the number of missed calls and the time blinked. When the screen went dark, a pair of burning blue eyes reflected on the black glass. Eyes heavy with shadow.
“…”
His gaze dropped. The eyes that had been rapidly scanning the room locked onto a small black box in the corner. He picked it up. Inside, the sponge bore the clear imprint of where a ring had once been seated. The indentation was too small for a finger ring. Too singular for an earring. The exact size and shape left by a silver hoop. When he flipped the box over, he found a tiny engraving on the back.
[BS]
“Blacksmith.”
The man muttered.
“Chrome Fist.”
He took one last look around the room, turned on his heel, and spoke the final name through gritted teeth.
“Goblin.”
-Crunch!
The box shattered helplessly in his grip.