※ This chapter contains depictions of coercive sexual activity and other trauma-inducing material. Please take caution in reading.

Even after that day, nothing changed between Kwon Yido and me. Summer ripened further, but our relationship remained frozen in a merciless season. He continued to ignore me, and I gave up begging for his attention.

For several days after taking him in my mouth, I couldn’t touch hot food. My throat was so swollen I could barely speak, though thankfully I had no reason to converse with anyone. Luckily, meals were prepared with food that went down smoothly, and desserts were usually ice cream.

Time passed quickly, and the swelling in my throat subsided. That incident didn’t repeat itself, and still I watched Kwon Yido from a distance. I was so unsettled by the quiet days that I found myself wishing, in a twisted way, that he would use me again.

It felt as if my thinking had been damaged. I knew what he had done to me was violence, and yet—even so—I wanted some proof of existence, some reason to remain. In place of the broken fence of family, I desperately hoped for another false shell.

Would life continue like this? Every day, shut up in my room, I thought only of such things. Why didn’t Kwon Yido cast me out? And if not, was I simply to wait endlessly until the day he finally abandoned me?

My only faint hope was that I might still be of some use to him. Just as my father had used me to the end, maybe Kwon Yido intended to keep me until then as well. # Nоvеlight # And if so, at least until that time came, I would not be expelled from this house.

It was one day, just after I had eaten the lunch prepared by the head chef and was about to return to my room. I hadn’t even finished two spoonfuls before leaving the kitchen, when Kwon Yido—who had gone out early for work—returned home. The moment I saw him, my body froze. But without giving me a glance, he went straight upstairs.

He came back down after about five minutes. He had changed out of his earlier suit into a pitch-black one. He often wore muted tones, but today he looked as if he were heading to a funeral.

“Kwon...”

Kwon Yido-ssi.

But I couldn’t call out. Once again, he passed me without turning back. Why did that retreating figure cling to me so? Recently, I saw only his back, and yet now, that neat, steady stride pierced me with loneliness.

“......”

I heard the sound of him leaving the house. At the same time, the food I’d eaten rose up in my throat. My chest sank heavily, my insides twisted.

I rushed to the bathroom on the first floor. Clutching the toilet, I tried to retch, but what poured out wasn’t vomit—it was tears.

“Hhhk...”

The sobs burst out uncontrollably. Since that day, I hadn’t cried, but now the tears wouldn’t stop, as if my tear ducts had broken. Each time I thought of Kwon Yido’s back, I saw the face that once smiled at me alongside it.

“Snff, hhuk...”

What was I supposed to do? I knew something had gone wrong, but I had no idea how to set it right. I had always lived in the same way—how could I suddenly find another?

If I could, I wanted to turn back time. Yet even if I returned to the past, I knew I wouldn’t find a wiser answer. With a stupid, powerless head like mine, I would never change anything.

“...Hhh, hhuk.”

I wished he would resent me instead. That he would get angry, scold me, torment me like that day.

For the first time, I realized how much more terrifying uncertain emotions were than open hostility. Time kept flowing, until even the feelings Kwon Yido and I once shared grew blurred. Knowing I could never hold that warmth again made it all the more excruciating, as if my bones were being carved out.

For a long time, I sat in the bathroom venting my grief. I cried until my head spun, until I couldn’t even lift a finger, sprawled weakly on the floor. I don’t know how much time passed, but suddenly my heart dropped.

“...Hhhk.”

It felt as if my lungs were being crushed flat. A strange floral scent rose thickly in the air. Heat surged low in my belly, and pheromones burst out of me, uncontrollable.

“Hhh...”

It was a heat cycle.

***

Whatever orders Kwon Yido had given, the staff paid little attention to where I was. They no longer spoke to me warmly as before, nor did they look after me. They only prepared my meals mechanically and cleaned my room when I ate.

“Hhhk, haa...”

So, no matter where I was, no one would come looking. Which meant, at least until dinner, I would remain collapsed in the bathroom like this. Ah, how disgraceful I’ve become. That was my only thought as I gasped for air.

Then I heard voices outside. At this hour, the only one who might visit was surely Kwon Yido. Realizing this, I used the last of my strength to haul myself upright.

“...Haa, haa.”

Anyone else would have called it foolish. For the reason I wanted to go to him was to beg—that if it came to it, I would rather spread my legs. Better to be rejected that way, if it meant I could feel his warmth once more.

“Because there’s still something I want to receive from you...”

But when I reached the front hall, the one entering the house was not Kwon Yido. He, too, wore a black suit, and barked irritable orders at the staff. A man who resembled not Vice President Kwon Sangmi, but her husband, Lee Seokin.

“Huh?”

“......”

“What the fuck—if it isn’t that unlucky bastard Kwon Yido’s omega.”

It was Kwon Ijeong.

Despite his gentle features, his face was twisted in a sharp scowl as he looked me up and down. He waved the staff away as if annoyed, then strode toward me.

“Jung Sejin? That was your name, wasn’t it.”

“......”

Why was he here? A primal sense of danger gripped me. I tried to stagger back, but even that failed.

“...Hhh.”

Kwon Ijeong grabbed my arm. I meant to push him away, but no strength entered my hand. When I pressed against his chest, it only looked like I was leaning into him.

“Wow, your pheromones...”

He trailed off, then pulled me into his arms more tightly. His expression was still confused, but then, as if realizing something, he let out a short laugh.

“Ah... so that’s it?”

“Let me g—let go of me...”

“Fuck, leaking pheromones like that—what’s with the act?”

A grin spread wide across his face. He held my limp body close, then glanced at the staff. I wanted to signal them for help, but I couldn’t even open my eyes properly.

“Hey, where’s this kid’s room?”

I was dragged upstairs, practically hauled along. Even without being dominant, an alpha was still an alpha—he held me up with ease. I tried again and again to wriggle free, but in the grip of heat, my body had no strength to resist.

“That bastard, really—got married and still shoved you in a corner.”

“Haa, haa...”

“Just hold on. It’ll be better in a bed, right?”

Opening the door, Kwon Ijeong’s voice dripped with sleaze. He went on about how at least he had manners, how unlike his brother he’d make me satisfied. Just hearing it was enough for me to imagine what would happen next.

“No—no, please...!”

The door clicked shut, and instinctive horror shot up my spine. I shoved him away and stumbled deeper into the room. I scrambled for my phone, to call Kwon Yido, but sluggish as a turtle, I was far too slow.

“Fucking useless omega...”

“Ah!”

My hair was seized. It was nothing like the grip Kwon Yido had once used. My phone fell to the floor as Kwon Ijeong threw me down and pinned me beneath him.

“You should’ve said no earlier, when the others were still around.”

“No, stop... let me go...!”

“Then at least learn to control your pheromones. Fuck, you’re so obvious.”

Before I could think, my pants were ripped away. My underwear followed, and Kwon Ijeong sneered openly at my already damp groin. He spread me out on the hard floor, prying my legs open to stare.

“Thought you’d cool down once stripped, but... look at this color, fuck...”

“Let me go... don’t, don’t...!”

I resisted with everything I had, but he didn’t hear me. No—he probably thought my uncontrolled pheromones meant I was seducing him.

“Yeah, struggling a little makes it even hotter.”

“No, stop... ahh—!”

“Ha, this is a first...”

His hand crept along my thigh. Like an insect crawling, it slid down, forcing apart the legs I had desperately clenched together. At the same time, something pressed against me.

“Ahhh...!”

It felt like being split in two. My walls, tightened by fear, were pried open by his thickness. It was gut-wrenching agony, but Kwon Ijeong ignored it, thrusting into me roughly.

“Ah—ahh, hhhk...”

I thought I might die. It was nothing like when Kwon Yido had taken me. Then, at least, pheromones had dulled me somewhat. Now, even in heat, my body refused to open.

“No, stop—it hurts, ahh...!”

I struggled instinctively, trying to push his shoulders away, kicking my trapped legs. Deciding I was too much, Kwon Ijeong clamped a hand around my throat.

“Fuck, will you stay still?”

“Khkk—”

An alpha’s strength far surpassed that of an ordinary man. He wasn’t even dominant, yet compared to me, an omega, the gap was insurmountable. My chest crushed tight, I clawed his wrist with my nails.

“...!”

Smack! The sound rang out. My vision flashed, my head spun. Kwon Ijeong had struck me across the face with brutal force.

“Ah...”

“Useless bastard.”

His cock slipped free, and my vision blurred further. Dizzy, unfocused, I could barely keep my eyes open. With an irritated grunt, he flipped me over, pressed between my shoulder blades, and forced himself back in.

“Ahh—!”

The taste of blood filled my mouth. From the slap, from biting my tongue to stifle screams.

“Hhhk, hhhk...”

Spit dribbled from my open mouth, streaked with red. With my head shoved into the floor, his foul breath seared my ear.

“...Ha, so you did sleep with him? But your hole—feels like a fucking virgin.”

“Ahh, hhhk...”

“Pathetic—ahh, making me waste strength...”

There wasn’t a shred of pleasure. Only pain, only despair—enough that death felt preferable. I tried to crawl toward the phone on the floor, but he crushed me down without effort.

“Ahh, no, stop—hhhk...!”

His cock rammed into me like a sharpened blade. My throat wasn’t strangled now, but I still couldn’t breathe. Each surge of pain made me claw the floor, until blood welled under my fingernails.

“Slutty bastard... see? You’re squeezing tight, you must like it.”

“Hhhk, ahh—!”

“Your pheromones... haa, perfect.”

He pressed his nose to my neck, inhaling. His pheromones flooded over me, threatening to drown me. My body gave no answer—only more retching rose.

“Please... no, hhkhh...!”

In the end, I gagged violently, stomach churning. Nothing came out, only sour bile in my throat. He ignored it, thrusting on with practiced ease.

“Didn’t expect much, but...”

“Ughh, hhkk...”

“Fuck... so damn tight...”

Thrust! His cock tore through my insides. Tears poured down endlessly, gagging broke out again and again. Burying himself to the hilt, Kwon Ijeong exhaled, laughing.

“So this was the gift Kwon Yido meant...”

“......”

The words hollowed my mind. Even the waves of pain ceased to register. Only that one sentence repeated over and over.

“...Ah.”

He had said it was a gift from Kwon Yido. It was he who handed me over to his brother. Because I was no longer of use? Because he didn’t even want to touch me anymore, so he left me to someone else?

“Should’ve been like this from the start.”

Hopelessness consumed me. The will to resist plummeted. Perhaps pleased by my stillness, Kwon Ijeong smirked, thrusting deeper.

“Ahh—hhk...”

“Haa, fuck...”

I felt his nose rubbing into my nape. I should have shuddered with revulsion, yet my mind was empty. Only the thought that Kwon Yido had abandoned me, that it was truly over, drowned everything else.

“Hhhk...”

Was this what it felt like to have one’s heart ripped out whole? The breaking inside me hurt far worse than any pain of the body. Tears fell ceaselessly, my breath caught as if something inside was broken.

“...Khkk.”

Deep inside, he began to swell. My raw insides stretched taut, splitting with pain. And yet, the thought of escaping him didn’t even occur.

Finally, Kwon Ijeong released inside me, his knot locking tight as he poured thick semen deep within.

“Haa...”

“Hhhk.”

“Haa... would’ve been easier if you’d just behaved from the start.”

His hand pressed against my belly, as though to feel himself lodged within. He chuckled, sickeningly.

“Doesn’t matter if it’s his kid or mine, it’ll be the same...”

An omega’s chances of conception varied by dominance, cycle, and whether knotted. I was far more dominant than Kwon Ijeong, but in heat, with a knot, anything could happen.

“Shame, I’d go again if I had time.”

He pulled out slowly, smearing against my ass. From the torn entrance, thin semen dripped, trailing down my thighs with streaks of blood that even my blurred eyes could see clearly.

“Let’s do this again sometime, yeah?”

“...Hhh.”

It felt like the end of everything. Not because of the assault, but because it had been arranged by Kwon Yido. Because the last scraps of hope I’d clung to had been ripped away.

Kwon Ijeong quickly adjusted his clothes and left the room. Through the half-open door, I saw him walking away. And for some reason, that image overlapped with Kwon Yido leaving me behind. The reality that I’d been abandoned hit me fully.

That was why. Why I resolved I had to escape this house. Why, even in a body beaten like this, I couldn’t just lie there.

I forced myself upright and crawled to my phone. Torn clothes snagged at my knees. The screen was cracked, but thankfully it still worked for calls.

Brr, brr—as the dial tone rang, I prayed again and again. Please answer. Just once more—help me this once.

The line clicked, and at that instant, despair gave way to a familiar voice.

—...Young Master?

“Ah...”

Was it relief, or sorrow? Having someone to reach for was fortunate—and yet, that it was the very man who had abandoned me filled me with hollow grief.

“Please... help me.”

—......

“Please, help me.”

Even to my own ears, my voice was pitiful. Broken, rasping, trembling. After a long silence, just as I let out a shuddering breath, Mr. Kim finally answered.

—...I’ll come for you right away.