“Lian… haaa…”

Hailla muttered, unable to control her trembling body. Despite repeatedly telling herself that he couldn’t have done such a thing, memories flooded in like a tidal wave — brutally vivid. Memories flooded in: Her crying beneath him. The man who licked her affectionately as if she were beautiful, even in that state. Shaking her head violently, she whispered again.

“No way. No way. No way…”

Squish.

Thick fluid slowly seeped out from between her legs. Time seemed to freeze as Hailla’s entire body went rigid. Still in shock, she sat up hesitantly and pulled back the blanket to check.

There they were — his unmistakable traces oozing out of her, confirming everything she had been so desperate to deny.

“Ah… ah…”

Fear, rage, denial and tears came in waves. Eventually, she simply stared blankly at the white fluid dripping down her thighs, repeatedly telling herself that it couldn’t be real. A sour, pungent scent wafted up to her nose.

‘Lian is a good person. He’s the only person who has ever truly loved and cared for me. He would never hurt me. So why did he?’

The truth she had believed in so firmly crumbled in an instant, crashing down on her. She didn’t know what to do.

But one thing was clear:

She couldn’t talk to Lian here; not in this place. He was a different person here. Hailla had come to that conclusion. If she was ever going to confront him, it would have to be somewhere safer and more open. If she argued with him here and he caught her again…

She might never get out.

Startled by her own thoughts, she gasped and covered her mouth. No matter what he had done, imprisoning someone forever sounded absurd and paranoid.

‘He just loves me too much. He made a mistake, but he’ll apologise later. He just didn’t want to lose me. Lian isn’t like that. He’s not… not like that…’

Hailla kept muttering to herself, as if she were losing her mind. Suddenly, she sprang to her feet, a single thought in her mind: I need to get out of here!

She had to keep her distance from Lian. She had no idea how many days had passed. She was deeply worried about Rethe.

“Ah… aah…”

The moment she stood up, she felt a sharp pain between her legs, as if she were splitting in two. Hailla leaned against the wall and took a few unsteady steps, but quickly lost her balance and grabbed a nearby cabinet, shaking it in the process. The vase on top of it wobbled precariously.

“No, don’t fall!”

It was clearly expensive. Despite her blurred vision, Hailla desperately tried to catch it, but her efforts were in vain.

There was a loud crash as the fine porcelain shattered. Hailla stared down at the broken pieces in dismay, then slowly sank to the floor. Up close, she could see how intricately it had been crafted. It was undoubtedly worth a great deal.

How much would it cost to replace?

Would this cause trouble for Lian?

Hailla began crawling towards the shards, carefully gathering them up. Then, suddenly, she realised that she didn’t need to do this. It wasn’t her fault. If it hadn’t been for Lian, the vase would never have broken.

‘It was all Lian’s fault. Lian. Lian…’

Hailla swallowed the sob that threatened to escape. The shattered porcelain scattered across the floor seemed to mirror her relationship with Lian: broken, fragile, and beyond repair. This wasn’t how she had wanted things to be between them. Not like this.

She slumped to the floor, staring blankly into space, silently asking herself what she was doing. She had no idea what to do anymore.

Then, the door opened smoothly.

“Lian.”

He said nothing, simply looking down at the woman crouched on the floor. Her cheeks were streaked with dried tears, her nape glistened with sweat and her n*pples showed clearly through the thin fabric of her dress — she wasn’t wearing underwear. His eyes slowly traced her body as if memorising every detail, then stopping on the hand clutching a sharp shard.

Hailla said nothing, her lips pressed tightly together.

He took a step towards her. She hurried to her feet, trying to create distance between them, but stumbled backwards. Lian caught her before she fell. His passing gaze felt cold and sharp.

“Hff!”

The arm around her waist pressed tightly against her lower abdomen. Using her other hand, Lian grabbed the back of Hailla’s head and kissed her. Hailla’s mouth opened at the sudden contact and a thick tongue licked her soft lips. It was a sticky sensation, carefully licking the soft inner mucosa and sucking in her saliva. Hailla could hear the sound of their tongues mingling.

This was clearly a s*xual kiss. She couldn’t even try to escape his embrace. He was holding her upper body so tightly that her ribs hurt, and gripping her hair so firmly that if he applied just a little more pressure, her scalp would be ripped off. She cried physiological tears because it hurt and she couldn’t breathe.

“Ugh, ahh, uh…….”

“Ah, sorry.”

Just as she was about to lose consciousness, Hailla managed to bite his lip and pull her mouth away. Blood dripped down his face, but Lian only smiled. The strange thing was that his eyes didn’t smile with him. Not at all. It was a look she had never seen before; it was as if a mask had been stripped away to reveal someone entirely different.

Instinctively, Hailla tensed her calves and took a step back. Her eyes darted to the door through which Lian had entered — she was certain he had come in that way. There was no time for second thoughts. Without hesitating, she shoved him with all her might and ran towards the door.

It wasn’t reason that drove her, but sheer, desperate instinct. The overwhelming need to escape.

Surprisingly, he staggered back easily, allowing her to slip past him. Gasping for breath, she reached the door and grabbed the handle.

Clink clink clink clink clink.

“Look, I knew this would happen.”

The arms that wrapped around her waist from behind felt familiar. But they did not make her feel warm at all. Soft black hair brushed against her neck. Lian rested her forehead against her curved neck. It was similar to the way a child would cuddle up to someone.

“You told me not to run in the house. You taught me that, remember?”

“Don’t do this. I need to go home. This isn’t my home…”

She tried to talk about Rethe, but quickly stopped. Any mention of her sister would undoubtedly anger him. Hailla held her breath and placed her hand on his, which was resting on her stomach. She closed her eyes tightly and reflected on his behaviour.

She also thought about why she had done this. It was also her fault for pushing forward so unilaterally. Hailla slowly stroked Lian’s large hand. A little while later, she felt something hard on her back and her whole body stiffened.

“Are you scared?”

He didn’t say anything else. Instead, he kissed Hailla’s neck and ear. When she didn’t respond, he lifted her slender body and carried her towards the bed. Hailla still didn’t dare resist the sensation of the hard object, so she remained silent. To be honest, she was really scared.

“You don’t have to be scared.”

“…….”

“It’s good for you too. Just…… enjoy it.”

He smiled affectionately, seeming sincere. Goosebumps ran down her spine. Lian lifted her up and carried her over to the bed, where he laid her down.

“Ahh……! I don’t like this!”

Her resistance wasn’t particularly threatening, especially since she had just got out of bed. Lian continued what she was doing regardless of how hard Halla hit her. Her cheeks were slightly flushed, as though she were a groom taking off his bride’s clothes on their wedding night. This scared Halla even more.

“You, you’re completely out of your mind. Ah!”

“Haha.”

She slapped him, hoping to shock him back to reality, but he didn’t even flinch. Instead, he glanced briefly at her reddened hand and muttered something under his breath.

Fuming, Hailla stared at her shirt, the buttons undone down to her navel. She tried to fasten them again, but Lian caught her wrist and held her flushed palm up as he stared at it intently. Then, without warning, he stuck out his tongue and quickly licked her palm.

The sensation was strange — soft, wet flesh dragging across her skin.

It wasn’t exactly unpleasant, just unfamiliar.

Where his saliva had touched her skin, a faint coolness remained as the heat faded, and that lingering chill only added to Hailla’s confusion.

***

“…Cute.”

Hailla stared blankly at her palm, looking genuinely adorable. The man tore off her light, fluttering dress with a loud rip and threw it on the floor. With the dress gone, only her underwear remained. Hailla gasped, horrified by the sudden exposure of her bare chest.

“Huh… hic!”

A wet, squelching sound echoed through the room. As if he couldn’t hold back any longer, Lian pinned Hailla’s hands down and pressed his lips to her br*ast. He nibbled her lightly pigmented n*pples, then sank his teeth into the soft flesh. Her well-shaped br*asts were repeatedly crushed and released in his mouth.

A sharp, tingling chill spread through her. Lian stimulated her with practised ease; his touch sent heat surging between her legs. Still overwhelmed and flustered, Hailla looked down at the top of Lian’s head. His face was buried in her br*ast and she could see the red marks covering her skin like embroidery.

“Ah, ugh… What is all this?’

As her voice trembled with confusion, Lian looked up. His lips were glossy, and he lazily licked them as he realized she had finally noticed the markings. Stroking his forehead with the back of his hand, he asked with a soft smile:

“Pretty, isn’t it?”

“……”

“I’ll mark you like that every day…”

The way he said it—with that dreamy expression—made her blood run cold. And finally, Hailla understood.

Lian hadn’t lost his mind because she told him they should break up.

He had always been insane.

Goosebumps crept across her skin. The fact that he could violate her until she lost consciousness—and then speak of it like it was something beautiful—left her terrified.

No matter how much Hailla had once loved him, there was no denying it now.

Something was deeply, horribly wrong.

She had to get out.