Ch.127Chapter 127. Wise Prison Life (2)

“Ugh… ugh…”

A splitting headache pounded in my skull.

I frowned as I opened my eyes.

How did I end up unconscious…?

“Huh?”

Just as I was about to press my hand against my throbbing head, I felt a chill run down my spine at the strange sensation.

My arm was gone.

Well, my left arm being gone made sense since it had malfunctioned and been removed, but my right arm was missing too.

“What?”

And not just that, but my right leg, my left leg too…

I was lying on the bed with all my prosthetic limbs detached.

What is this?

What on earth…?

“Ah.”

Only then did I start to remember what happened before I lost consciousness.

I had lifted Cuss’s skirt and discovered a strange organism.

That long thing, almost like a tail, was definitely attached to Cuss’s behind…

My memory ended there.

Right after that, I had to pass out from some inexplicable, intense pain.

I think I might have heard Jinsoo’s voice faintly.

“Kack?!”

When I struggled to move, I felt strong pressure on my neck.

After being thrown back and gasping for breath a few times, I looked with my eyes to see…

“What, what is this?”

There was a collar.

A collar extending to my neck.

The end of the collar was very firmly tied to the corner of the bed.

What is this, really?

Have I been kidnapped?

I needed to call Jinsoo first.

“Tapper. Call Jinsoo.”

-…

“Tapper. Turn on voice recognition mode on the phone.”

-…

“Tapper?”

“It’s useless.”

“…!”

Just then, the door creaked open and light poured in.

Though I couldn’t see clearly due to the backlight, I immediately recognized the voice.

“Jinsoo!”

“…”

“J-Jinsoo… sir…”

What’s wrong with that man?

Why is he making such a sorrowful expression?

At first, I thought he had come to rescue me, but soon I began to understand the situation as I checked the scenery outside the door.

The familiar living room came into view.

This room was none other than the master bedroom of Jinsoo’s house.

The reason I hadn’t recognized it immediately was because of the soundproofing material plastered all over the walls, reminiscent of a recording studio.

Jinsoo was the one who had made the room like this.

Then it must have been Jinsoo who removed my limbs and tied me up here.

It was also Jinsoo who knocked me unconscious and broke my phone…

Unbelievable, or rather, facts I didn’t want to believe kept being thrust before me.

“J-Jinsoo. What kind of play is this? I’m confused because you’re doing this so suddenly without any discussion, hehe.”

“Juliane.”

“It’s a bit, no, very perverted… But it’s okay. I can accept it if it’s you, Jinsoo. But let’s agree to talk about these things beforehand instead of suddenly doing this.”

“Juliane.”

“And the electric shock was a bit too much. It even broke my phone.”

“Juliane. I broke it on purpose.”

“…”

I was at a loss for words.

My lips trembled.

This man wasn’t joking around.

He wasn’t playing with me to satisfy some perverted desire.

He had really cut off my contact with the outside world and imprisoned me out of necessity.

“There, there must be a reason for this. Tell me something.”

“You should know that well, Juliane.”

“Really? I don’t know at all.”

“You do know, Juliane. Think about it carefully.”

Jinsoo said with a slight smile.

Ridiculously, even in this situation, I felt reassured seeing that smile.

By the way, if there was a reason for this, it could only be that one thing.

That thing connected to Cuss’s behind…

At first, I thought it might be a tumor or some disease, but looking at the current situation, its identity was clear.

Either infected by an alien life form, or an alien life form itself…

“Have you remembered now?”

“No. I really don’t know. This isn’t funny, Jinsoo. Let me go. If you let me go now, I won’t be angry.”

For now, I had to pretend not to know.

That way, I could create at least a small possibility of being released.

As I twisted my body and groaned as if my neck was uncomfortable, I saw Jinsoo flinch.

He’s a man who loves me, and whom I love.

Could he just stand by and watch me suffer?

“Hah… Juliane.”

Jinsoo approached with a deep sigh.

Did he finally believe that I didn’t know anything?

Whether it was memory loss due to the electric shock or not seeing properly under the skirt due to the angle, there were many excuses.

As if understanding this, Jinsoo approached me with an apologetic expression and grabbed the collar, then—

“Hnngh?!”

He tightened it even more.

Ah. It’s suffocating…

I can’t breathe well.

“If you’re going to keep playing dumb, I’ll tell you. You lifted Cuss’s skirt. Is that right?”

“…”

I slowly nodded.

Jinsoo’s face was so close, threatening me with his questions, that he seemed unfamiliar and frightening, and I couldn’t find my voice.

“And you saw what was inside. What did you discover there?”

“I-I-I don’t know…”

“You found a black tail. Am I right?”

“…”

I shook my head.

I’ve never seen that thing.

And I won’t see it in the future either.

“You did see it, Juliane. The tentacle of an alien parasitic organism.”

“Ah…”

I’m doomed.

There’s no way out of this now.

Funnily enough, what came to mind then was the kidnapping response protocol I had learned at work.

Protocol number one: Don’t provoke the kidnapper.

“Are you stupid, Jinsoo? Why are you telling me this yourself? Until just now, I was only at the stage of speculation. You could have just made up some excuse like I saw wrong, or it was an implanted machine!”

Damn it.

I was doing exactly the opposite right now.

But what could I do when I suddenly got so upset?

This could have passed quietly without all this fuss, but Jinsoo had escalated the situation.

“Would you have believed that, Juliane? Would you have just said, ‘Ah, I see,’ and left it at that? Wouldn’t you have tried to peek under Cuss’s skirt again while she was sleeping to examine it more closely?”

“…”

My mouth shut.

I definitely would have done that.

“You don’t take people’s words at face value, Juliane. You have the personality to dig into things until you get to the bottom of them when you suspect something, like when you cleared my false accusation.”

“Well, that’s true…”

“That’s why I confined you. Because you would inevitably reach the truth. I needed to tie you up before that happened.”

“I won’t tell anyone. I won’t report it, I’ll just keep it to myself. Cuss is going to be my daughter, why would I do something troublesome? Don’t you trust me, Jinsoo?”

“No. I don’t.”

My heart sank.

Realizing that there was no room for negotiation, I felt choked up.

Then, kidnapping response protocol number two crept into my mind: Don’t try to threaten the kidnapper.

“What, what are you planning to do now? We only have three weeks. Are you thinking of hypnotizing me or erasing my memory in those three weeks? The moment we pass those three weeks, the Ministry of Justice will notice something’s wrong with me and call the police. What will you do then?”

Ah. I’ve really messed up.

I’m doing everything I shouldn’t do.

Somehow, things seem to be getting more and more tangled, and tears started to well up.

“I wonder. What should I do?”

“What?”

“Should I kill you with my own hands, Juliane?”

“Ah…”

“I don’t like that idea. I don’t want to cause the death of someone I love. Once is enough for that kind of experience. So what should I do? You tell me, Juliane.”

The situation that had only felt vaguely threatening now became fully clear.

Even the remaining calmness disappeared, and fear began to surge.

This was the most dangerous type of kidnapping.

Not a kidnapping to achieve a goal, but just an impulsive one.

A kidnapping where even the kidnapper himself doesn’t know how to release the hostage.

There was no rational thinking in this whole process.

This man was still contemplating how to deal with me.

“Let’s, let’s talk first. Remove this collar… and return my prosthetic limbs…”

“That’s not possible. If that were the case, why would I have plastered all this soundproofing material? You’ll have to live confined here for the time being, Juliane.”

“…”

What am I supposed to do…?

This situation was so unfair and frightening that I felt like crying.

I wouldn’t normally lose my composure like this.

Maybe it’s because the person standing in front of me, the one who confined me, is Jinsoo, that my emotions are out of control.

“I won’t tell anyone. Really, Jinsoo. Really. Let’s just go back to how we were. Okay? The three of us sitting at the table eating meals… eating pizza while watching TV… the three of us hugging and sleeping together. Jinsoo. Please trust me, please.”

I fell forward and begged while crying.

Various thoughts about Cuss kept coming to mind, but for now, I suppressed them all and pleaded with Jinsoo.

To let me go back to when I didn’t know.

To forgive me for having curiosity without thinking…

“Juliane.”

“Uuu… sniff…”

Jinsoo wiped my cheek with his hand and then licked a tear.

Then he grabbed my waist and sat me upright again.

Jinsoo was always weak to tears.

Maybe he’ll really let me go now.

“I’m sorry. Right now, it’s hard to believe anything you say.”

“…!”

Ah.

Even my last hope was shattered.

Tears flowed endlessly.

Jinsoo just sat beside me and continued to wipe away my tears.

Kidnapping response protocol number three: Never stop thinking positively.

Sadly, I was breaking all the protocols.

“Sob… ah… uh… why… whyyy…”

“Indeed. Why? Why did it come to this?”

What did I do wrong?

Why do I have to suffer like this?

You said you loved me.

Just yesterday, you said you couldn’t live without me.

You said let’s get married.

So why are you doing this?

Unable to express all of this in words and just shedding tears, Jinsoo came closer and hugged me tightly.

Ridiculously, that pressure felt good…

For a moment, forgetting the frustration of not having arms and legs, I entrusted everything to Jinsoo’s large frame.

Just then, through the open door behind Jinsoo’s shoulder, I caught a glimpse of Cuss passing by.

“C-Cuss! Wait a moment!”

“Oh. Are you going to meet Bella?”

“Yes. She said she’s waiting in front of the house.”

“Have fun.”

“I will, Jinsoo.”

“Cuss! Cuss! Say something to Jinsoo! Please!”

“Juliane… I’m sorry.”

“…”

Cuss, who had been staring at me blankly, eventually turned her back.

Even that retreating figure disappeared as Jinsoo closed the door.

I stopped crying and was left in a daze.

“For now, Juliane, you can’t go anywhere for three weeks, and you can’t meet anyone except me. It’s a bit romantic. Just the two of us. It’s almost like we’re on a honeymoon.”

“Ah…”

“I’ll be in your care for three weeks. I don’t know what will happen after that either…”

Jinsoo’s bitter smile was foretelling the future for the next three weeks.

I could see a future stained with regret, despair, pain… and pleasure.