Chapter 80 - An Ordinary? Morning
"Master... has she left...?"
I realized Hayoung, who'd been sleeping next to me, was gone, so I asked Seoyoung.
"She left a while ago, didn't she? I thought it was a dawn flight?"
...Is she some kind of crazy monster with infinite stamina...?
We had sex until dawn—is that even possible?
I'd naturally assumed she would have delayed her flight or wouldn't have been able to wake up.
But... to think she caught a dawn flight perfectly fine... I always thought Hayoung wasn't normal, but... in a way, I found it impressive.
"But... Minseo-ya..."
Seoyoung's gaze shifted, becoming unusual as she began to lean her face right in front of mine.
What now... this is making me anxious....
Taken aback by how suddenly she leaned in, her face right in front of mine with that strange look in her eyes, I gulped and said,
"W-why..."
"You seem to be paying a lot of attention to Hayoung-eonni lately, huh? It feels like you've gotten closer than before, too-"
Seoyoung interrogated me, sending a deep, playful gaze my way.
Her hand was already resting on my thigh, and the distance between us was so close that Seoyoung's breath touched the tip of my nose.
"I... it's not like that... we fell asleep so late at dawn... I was just worried...."
I couldn't meet Seoyoung's eyes as I answered.
But what I said wasn't an excuse; it was the truth.
We fell asleep late, so I asked because I was worried... but somehow...
Hearing Seoyoung say we seemed closer made me self-conscious, and I felt embarrassed.
".....You know I'm staying with you for three days, right...?"
...Speaking with soft breaths, Seoyoung's deep gaze seemed to tremble slightly as she gently stroked my thigh.
...
......
......
And... a strange atmosphere flowed between us as we faced each other.
"...."
No voice came out.
I had to answer... but far from answering, only faint breaths leaked out.
Seeing Seoyoung staring at me intently with only five centimeters of distance between us—I felt like my breath was being stolen away.
It wasn't the feeling of being breathless from fear or terror...
Seoyoung's strange aura was what made me feel this way.
Her pupils, trembling for no apparent reason....
Her red lips that looked infinitely soft...
Overall, she had a cute face with deer-like eyes and delicate features... but contrasted with her red short-cut hair, it made her even more charming.
With her... right in front of my eyes like that... I suddenly found myself unable to speak.
Gulp-
As I couldn't say anything and just swallowed hard-
"Aren't you... going to answer?"
With a sweet... and gentle voice, Seoyoung's pupils wavered as she asked once more.
"..Yes.."
I thought Seoyoung, asking so softly, looked cute for some reason.
Is she really the person I knew before..?
When all sorts of thoughts filled my head-
Chu-
Seoyoung suddenly pressed a soft kiss to my lips.
Feeling the soft texture of Seoyoung's lips, I was so surprised that my pupils dilated.
"If you know, that's enough. Let's go eat."
Seoyoung's face pulled away, and she got up from the bed.
Still unable to recover from the lingering sensation of the kiss, I answered with my face slightly flushed.
"I... I want to rest a little more right now...."
"Who told you to rest? Eat first, then rest. Hurry-"
The cute side of Seoyoung I saw a few minutes ago was nowhere to be found, and she had returned to her usual, easygoing self.
Whoosh-
Just like Hayoung yesterday, Seoyoung picked me up in a Princess Carry.
"...Se-Seoyoung-nim! I get it, so... I'll walk myself!"
I shouted urgently, embarrassed that the maids might see... but Seoyoung, looking as if she were enjoying it, held me tight and left the room.
Ah... she was originally this kind of person....
I regretted thinking Seoyoung was cute even for a second and squeezed my eyes shut in anticipation of the impending shame.
Actually, compared to the humiliation of being seen by the maids while naked, wearing a leash, crawling around, or being gang-raped, a Princess Carry was nothing in comparison....
But for me, shame was an emotion I could never seem to get used to, no matter how often I felt it.
In the end, with the maids casting envious glances at Seoyoung, Minseo and Seoyoung arrived at the dining room.
'At least it's better than being naked... phew...'
My face was slightly red, but I thought it was much better than the previous, worse situations.
"Today's~ dish is..... Braised Beef Short Ribs~"
With a particularly excited voice and a bright expression, Seoyoung opened the lid of the dish containing the braised ribs.
Steam rose up, revealing the appetizing chunks of beef, well-coated in red sauce.
Gulp-
I clearly thought I had no appetite until just a moment ago....
Seeing the mouth-watering visual of the Braised Beef Short Ribs, my stomach seemed to automatically let out a growl-
".....Wow.... crazy..."
Along with a reflexive exclamation, I couldn't take my eyes off the juicy Braised Beef Short Ribs.
"How is it? Looks delicious, right?"
"Yes... the chefs here are definitely amazing at cooking. They made it look incredibly delicious this time, too."
Thinking about how I had eaten almost every meal here, I recalled the memory that every meal I ate here was delicious.
'Is this level of cooking normal for a mansion..? Doesn't one meal cost hundreds of thousands of won?'
I was unnecessarily worrying about what I would do if Hayoung asked me to pay for my food expenses.
"Seoyoung-nim, I'll eat well....."
Shaking off the pointless worry, I looked up at Seoyoung... but her expression was unusual.
..Angry....?
Upset..?
Seeing her expression, which felt like a mix of these things, I pondered if I had made a slip of the tongue.
With a bit of cold sweat....
'What... why is she like this...? What did I do wrong...'
"This dish... I made it. To feed you...."
Seoyoung said with a tone of being thoroughly sulky... and looked at me with a gaze of disappointment.
Ah......
Only then did I understand why she had that expression, and I hurriedly started to smooth over my slip of the tongue.
"Ah... no... I meant the food looks so good that it's as if a chef made it... I've eaten so many meals here, if I couldn't distinguish the food you made, wouldn't that mean you made it really well... haha.."
I watched her reaction with an awkward laugh, trying to gauge the atmosphere.
.....
"...Is that so?"
Fortunately, my smooth-talking seemed to work.
At my words, Seoyoung quickly relaxed her expression and beamed as if she were in a good mood.
"Hmm... alright, try it."
Seoyoung portioned the Braised Beef Short Ribs onto a plate for me.
I blew on the piping hot rib, took a bite, and the tender meat melted away, while the spicy and sweet sauce felt exhilarating.
"This is truly the best! I think you're the best cook among the executives."
Of course, I hadn't eaten food cooked by the other executives yet... but I added a bit of exaggeration to put Seoyoung in a good mood.
"Really? Eat up, our Minseo~"
Seoyoung's mouth curled up endlessly at the praise, and she stroked my hair.
She was a very easy person to read. This person named Lee Seoyoung.
Whether she was angry, sad, or in a good mood, all those emotions were written all over her face.
Suddenly, a question began to arise.
The reason she treats me well.
Is it... because she cherishes me as a slave..
Or... is it out of the affection from when we were fellow executives in the past.
Or maybe... does she still have... feelings for me.
"Phew... I'm full.."
Having deliciously mixed a bowl of rice with the sauce from the ribs, I was so full I felt like I might burst.
This might be the most satisfying lunch I've ever had...
"What are you going to do now?"
"First, I'll wash up... um..."
"I'll be in the office, so wash up and come here. I'm bored."
Seoyoung said, looking at me with soft eyes.
"...Yes...."
When I turned on the shower in the bathroom, a stream of warm water sprayed onto my body.
Swish-
"Phew...."
With a sigh, I started to organize my thoughts.
I have to spend these three days with Seoyoung.
I want to spend them without any trouble, but... just looking at the gaze Seoyoung had earlier, that seemed impossible.
It would be best to avoid Seoyoung somehow... but I couldn't defy her words.
I had no choice but to look for an opportunity and slip away.
Because I have work to do.
That work is exactly.... Seo Jiyu. The spy whose affiliation I don't know. My goal is to uncover her identity.
It's a shame I haven't run into her even once since I saw her last time... but if I look, I'll find her.
I need to use the recording function on the MP3 player... to find out which organization she belongs to...
Will she talk easily? There's no way she'd just spill that classified information.
Still, the only possible method is... to utilize the fact that I am currently a slave... and although it's a bit shameful... I have no choice but to use my body.
I've never tried to seduce or charm anyone in my life... but this was a time when it was desperately needed.
"Phew... I hope I can get results within three days.."
I clenched my fist tightly and muttered to myself.
Creak-
"I'm here.."
I carefully opened the office door and poked my head in-
"Oh. Come in."
I saw Seoyoung, wearing glasses, typing away busily on the keyboard.
Is she a bit busy?
I sat on the sofa in the office and watched Seoyoung.
Even though she was dressed casually in a hoodie and dolphin shorts, Seoyoung, focusing on her work with her glasses on, exuded a different kind of charm.
So she has a side like this too...
She's working harder than I thought.
I thought she would just dump all the work onto her subordinates..
"Why, do I look cool?"
Perhaps sensing my gaze as I stared blankly, Seoyoung stopped working, approached me, and sat down next to me.
"Ah... yes... I've never seen this side of you, Seoyoung-nim.."
"I do what I need to do when it's time."
Seoyoung smiled broadly and draped her arm over my shoulder.
"Seoyoung-nim... you seem to be good at many things... cooking, and sports too..."
"I've always had the mindset that I should do what I want to do. I became a mafia member because I wanted to."
As she spoke, she began to pull her arm draped over my shoulder closer to herself little by little-
Because of that, my arm began to touch Seoyoung's soft chest.
It was an oversized hoodie, so I didn't feel it excessively, but I was slightly conscious of it.
Seoyoung continued to speak.
"Not just what I want to do..... I've always lived getting what I want, too. Me."
And at some point, the look in Seoyoung's eyes as she started to stare at me began to turn serious little by little-
"...Yes.."
I chimed in to her words... but I felt a sense of crisis for some reason.
"Kang Minseo."
"Yes..."
At her behavior of saying my name seriously, I started to feel tense for a moment.
Why are you doing this... again....
Her serious expression and tone, quite different from earlier, made me extremely nervous.
".....Do you remember when I confessed to you in the past?"
Twitch-!
At Seoyoung's words, my body flinched.
Along with the confusion as to why she was bringing this up suddenly, my pupils began to shake slightly-