episode_0115

#115. Heart

『The door opens.』

Two elevators headed for the Heart Floor. One of their doors opened.

Chaerin cautiously stepped out, scanning her surroundings. The internal facilities required security clearance to pass, but since it was a glass door, she could easily see inside.

The sound of shoe heels, conversations of staff in suits, and the buzzing of a multifunction printer mingled together.

…An office? An office…?

Chaerin looked up again at the floor she had exited on. This was indeed the Heart Floor.

As she stood bewildered, the security device disarmed, and the door slid open quietly. Standing there was Cha Joohee, wearing a graceful suit skirt.

“…Unnie?”

“I was waiting for you, Chaerin-ah. It’s been a while since we last met, hasn’t it?”

“Why are you here, Unnie? …Where’s Chaebin Unnie?”

“Madam Ju isn’t here. She’s busy, that person. She manages so many people…”

Cha Joohee narrowed her eyes and smiled faintly. True to her former idol status, her charming eye-smile stood out, but Chaerin knew well what kind of person she was.

A former high school delinquent. She entered a large agency by chance, backed by a sponsor. Coincidentally, that sponsor was connected to Midnight, so even when her past was revealed, she retired without major controversy.

Outwardly, she operated a million-subscriber Yoontube channel, but secretly, she became Namgeon’s exclusive maid, receiving daily education on proper demeanor.

“What is this place? Why is there suddenly an office?”

“Well… Midnight is a corporation, too. It does corporate work.”

“That would be done by Holdings and the hotel management. Tell me straight. Who are those employees, and what do they do?”

“Oh, how scary… Anyway, you’re just like your older sister. I was going to explain everything anyway. Come in.”

The office scenery was something Chaerin had only seen in movies and dramas, but she felt an inexplicable sense of incongruity.

The age range of the people drinking coffee and staring at monitors seemed strangely young. Most of the employees didn’t even look to be in their mid-twenties.

She soon understood why.

“All the employees here are trainers. At the same time, they’re floor managers, and higher up, they serve as hoteliers. You’re starting to get the idea, right?”

“All of them…?”

“Yes. Their detailed work varies. The employees at that end are responsible for slave auctions, that side for VIP site management, that side for aphrodisiac manufacturing, those people for facility management…”

Chaerin was momentarily speechless, looking at these young people who seemed as ordinary as herself.

A moment later, elevators outside the office arrived one after another, and trainers in their uniforms disembarked. They scattered into the changing rooms in an orderly fashion to change into suits.

“Everyone, take a 30-minute break and then switch shifts. Good work.”

They, men and women alike, had well-toned bodies and handsome looks, and wore golden rings on their ring fingers.

“…So? What’s the reason for showing me this scene?”

“You’ve always wanted to bring Midnight down, haven’t you? It’s to let you see how the underground operates first. This place already functions completely separately from the hotel.”

Past the conference room, a lounge area including a pantry, restrooms, bathrooms, and training rooms followed along the corridor. Joohee guided Chaerin to the aphrodisiac manufacturing room at the very end.

“Nothing special, right? That’s all there is. Oh, and inside this passage, there are private offices for the managers. They’re called Madams on other floors, but here they’re called Managers.”

Chaerin glanced inside the passage. The nameplate of the office located deepest inside caught her eye.

【Manager | Ju Chaebin】

“The operation of the hotel’s underground is virtually entirely handled by Manager Ju… that is, Madam Ju. She’s practically the uncrowned president, so to speak. Hmm… But, it seems the Manager has been looking for a successor recently. For about… half a year now.”

Chaerin found it puzzling. A manager position could simply be taken over by another competent employee. But Joohee shook her head.

“—It has to be a woman just like Ju Chaebin herself. Only someone who can bear all the secrets of the hotel’s underground can sit in that position. What would a mere employee like me know about confidential information anyway?”

Questions still remained. Why was Ju Chaebin seeking a successor? Despite being a young manager in her mid-twenties.

Even though Chaebin was her own sister, Chaerin hadn’t been able to meet her since Chaebin left home, so Chaerin knew nothing.

“The people mentioned as potential new managers are… you, Ju Chaerin. And Choi Dohyeok Oppa, and a friend named Baek Jiyeon.”

“…Wait a minute. What…?”

Baek Jiyeon…?

“Dohyeok Oppa refused. He’s already a manager in facility management. And that Oppa has amazing artistic talent. All the training rooms, for example, were designed by him.”

“B-Baek Jiyeon, what about her…? Why is that name coming up?”

Joohee wore a faint smile. She didn’t know Baek Jiyeon directly, but she knew Doyun, Jiyeon’s boyfriend, and Chaerin who liked Doyun, quite well.

When she was working as Namgeon’s maid in the hotel penthouse, she had seen Doyun and Jiyeon visit the Master directly. She didn’t know much else, but she knew about half of their preferences.

She had met Doyun again later during the training session for his older sister, Doha. Seeing Doyun already become a willing netorare masochist slave, Joohee couldn’t stop smacking her lips.

“Well… it’s a bit complicated, I don’t really know. There was someone who held that position before Manager Ju. What was her name… L-Lee… Ah… I don’t know. Anyway, I heard a complicated story got tangled up recently. I only heard that she was suddenly demoted…”

“So… so…! What’s the point!”

“The former manager and Baek Jiyeon are mother and daughter.”

Ju Chaebin already knew that the former manager, Lee Hyeyeon, had a daughter. Chaebin firmly believed that the daughter would have the same inclinations as her mother.

Meanwhile, Chaerin felt like she could grasp the relationships surrounding Jiyeon, but they remained just out of reach. She felt like she knew who Joohee was referring to, Lee Hyeyeon, but she wasn’t sure.

She knew Lee Hyeyeon herself, but she didn’t know that Lee Hyeyeon’s daughter was Baek Jiyeon.

“…I understand for now. Even if they offered me the manager position, I wouldn’t take it, but anyway, Baek Jiyeon won’t either. She’s normally a diligent kid, not the type to sit in a position like this.”

“—No. Baek Jiyeon said she would. Just a short while ago, she came to look around the Heart Floor with the Manager-nim and accepted on the spot.”

—————————————————

………….

Chaerin took the elevator and easily exited the basement. The time she had spent trapped felt like a dream.

‘Baek Jiyeon will be the manager? …That’s unexpected. Well, then it’s fine. Clean and simple…’

‘Do you really think so?’

‘What are you talking about? Hasn’t Chaebin Unnie been keeping an eye on Baek Jiyeon all this time? If you really look at her, she’s a fox…! She stole Doyun from me…! Always pretending to be innocent, but actually the manager position too…’

‘No, not that. …Why she tried to hand over the manager position at this timing. No one knows that. Not Dohyeok Oppa, not even Chairman Nam.’

“I’m really starting to feel bad. What’s so special about Baek Jiyeon…”

As she hastened her steps, she briefly looked back at Midnight. The deep darkness seeping beneath the modern, sleekly constructed hotel.

Doyun, who had become a slave, was still in Spades. Chaerin still hadn’t given up on Doyun. She planned to rescue him as soon as possible.

Thus, a day passed. Chaerin tried to get Doyun out through Dohyeok and Joohee, but failed.

Another day passed. She visited Doyun’s house without a plan, but for some reason, no one was there.

Finally, on the third day, Chaerin received a short message from Chaebin.

「Looks like I won’t be able to see you for a while. Take care, Chaerin-ah.」

“You’re always unable to see me, so why contact me about something like this…”

She thought little of it, but belatedly realized. If it truly wasn’t important, she wouldn’t have contacted her in the first place.

………….

………….

That night. For some reason, a fire broke out in the Midnight Holdings building. The news only reported that the fire had been extinguished, with no additional information.

Chaerin tried calling her sister, but only the long ring tone continued.

—————————————————

Hyeyeon Auntie, Jiyeon Mistress, and I got out in front of her house. It was already dawn, and our eyelids were heavy with fatigue.

“…Stay and sleep, Doyun-ah. It’s an order.”

At my Lady Mistress’s single word, I immediately complied. Hyeyeon Auntie said nothing until she entered the house.

While I changed clothes in the room, faint voices could be heard from outside. My Lady Mistress was asking about the recent incident.

Who were those people who suddenly poured out? They seemed to hold a great grudge, was something going on?

Then Auntie answered very politely.

It was retaliation. Revenge for everything that had been taken.

I couldn’t understand all of it. But I generally understood. The person who sacrificed herself to bring down Namgeon was none other than Ju Chaebin, who had dragged us all into hell.

Coming out of the room, I checked Hyeyeon Auntie’s《Character Info》first. Her Fate Resistance, which was 19%, had now increased to 35%.

It was the butterfly effect caused by her inner thoughts, which I had seen through《Fate Selection》.

Next, I looked at my Lady Mistress’s《Character Info》.

《Character Info》 1. Name: Baek Jiyeon 2. Age: 19 years old 3. Gender: Female 4. Hobbies: Watching animal videos, pilates 5. Height: 174cm 6. Three Sizes: B92 / W57 / H91 7. Fate Resistance: 30% 8. Sexual Preferences: Masochism, Netorase, Netorase Report Play, Netorare (Strong) 9. Erogenous Zones: Tongue (57%), Nipples (42%), Oral (29%), Vagina (27%) 10. Penalties [Locked: 1] ⓐ Excessive Libido: Easily aroused and sensitive, difficulty controlling sexual desire. ⓑ Blind Devotion: Devotion to a loved one even at the cost of self-sacrifice. Strongly affected by Fate Resistance. ⓒ Fate Bond: Shares destiny with the most strongly connected individual. ⓓ Phallic Worship: Decreased resistance to partners with larger genitalia. Can increase the rate of Fate Resistance decrease. ⓔ Diamond Alpha Ring: A token of subjugation worn on the left ring finger. Fixes the individual’s destiny. (Deactivated) 11. Inner Thoughts (Remaining checks: 1) ⓐ Hong Doyun: …. ⓑ Namgeon: …. …[Currently unviewable items]

“H-How…?”

Why was her Fate Resistance only 30%? She was with me all this time… Serving as a slave, being fucked by the Mistress with a dildo, climaxing like a complete female…

A-And besides… She even asked me to marry her earlier…

“Hmm~? What are you looking at so much? Let’s just sleep tonight, and find out what happened tomorrow. …Okay?”

She pulled me tightly into her arms. I tried to see her inner thoughts, but soon fell asleep, feeling her warmth.

As only soft breathing filled the quiet room.

The night was already passing.

………….

………….