CH 9

I tried to loosen my hand with a stiff face, but it didn’t budge.

“Undo this.”

“Will the library be better? It’s where you spend most of your time these days.”

Neither physical nor mana worked.

“Untie this!”

Ozworld looked pleased with my furious reaction.

“Jiwoo’s reaction always makes me feel rewarded.”

A madman. A dictator. A disgusting bully

The helplessness that engulfed me evaporated like a drop of water in front of a huge fire.

Instead, what filled me was anger close to hatred.

Again, I was accustomed to hating myself, and I realized I didn’t have to.

I couldn’t believe the man who put me in the gutter showed up just in time.

‘Should I say thank you for this?’

However, I didn’t intend to express my hatred hastily.

Because I was nothing more than a trifling creature to this man.

A trifling creature needed to behave accordingly.

This man seemed to enjoy my hatred and fear.

He had a dirty twisted personality.

I decided to relax my posture and get properly escorted.

“Go to the library.”

Ozworld tilted his head, hummed, and raised a corner of his mouth.

“Yes, Jiwoo.”

We walked down the hall like a couple.

Every time Ozworld appeared, the time of reality seemed to stop.

People were all frozen as if they were in a paused video.

It was a scene with a creepy sense of disparity because it was too unrealistic.

Did I flinch my hand without realizing it?

I felt Ozworld’s gaze touch my hand for a moment and then fall away.

He asked with a smile.

“I’ve transferred the knowledge from a dimension where sorcery has developed, you seem quite pleased with it.”

Magic was the most interesting topic these days.

But I didn’t give a particular reaction.

“It’s so so.”

I didn’t want to utter even one word of satisfaction about this possession.

I changed the subject.

“I have a question, how many levels of channel ratings are there?”

“There are five ratings in total, from bronze to diamonds. Every time the channel rating rises, the maximum sponsorship amount also jumps 10 times.”

‘So, you’re telling me the Silver Channel can be sponsored up to 1,000 coins.’

It would be 1 million coins even if the rating went up to the diamond level. It was the maximum amount of sponsorship.

How can I collect 1 billion coins and buy a wish ticket with that?

“Is there ever any BJ who bought a wish ticket?”

When I asked suspiciously, Ozworld replied in a no-nonsense tone.

“Of course. Every BJ I chose earned 1 billion coins and bought a wish ticket. You’ll do the same.”

It was an encouragement that I didn’t appreciate at all.

Then Ozworld paused and looked down at me diagonally.

“Are you used to the possession now? You’re pretty active.”

It was unpleasant to see the eyes that were locked in deep as if he was trying to penetrate my innermost thoughts.

I spoke as calmly as I could.

“I need a billion coins.”

Ozworld moved forward again with a twisted smile.

“That’s a good thing. Looking at you today, it looks like you will grow quickly. You’re also showing a very rapid growth..”

He had complete confidence in his choice.

The unshakable self-confidence in the deep blue eyes was so strong that it twisted my stomach.

I turned my gaze to the front and changed the subject.

I didn’t want to receive this man’s criticizing gaze anymore.

“The Constellations seem familiar with the memes used on Earth, how is that possible?”

“Some of them are translated for your understanding and some of them actually use a lot of Earth’s memes. Because it’s the civilization with the most advanced media content.“

When Ozworld’s explanation came to an end, our steps stopped, too.

It was because we had arrived at the library.

“Shall we go in?”

Screech.

The door that hadn’t been oiled in time opened wide with a faint noise.

At that moment, the force that had been imposed on me disappeared and I was able to be separated from Ozworld.

I quickly stepped back.

“It’s disappointing if you immediately run away as if you’ve been waiting for it.”

As if stimulated by my actions, Ozworld approached me step by step at a slow pace.

“I just don’t have anything else I want to ask.”

I staggered backward.

Soon, the books piled up on the table behind my back caught me.

Clatter!

Books that had been roughly stacked in one place spilled onto the floor.

This man was huge.

Moreover, even though he was wearing a suit, I could see that his body was trained for a threat.

He was a person who awakened the instinct of the prey.

I became nervous.

“If you have any business, tell me.”

There was no way that I, who was not an actor, could do something like excellent acting.

The longer I spent with Ozworld, the more difficult it would be to hide my true feelings.

“Business? There is no such thing in the first place.”

‘Then why did you show up?’

“As a channel manager, it is my duty to check on Miss Jiwoo frequently. And, usually, because I want to.”

What?

Whether that question reflected in my eyes, Ozworld answered.

“BJs usually want to get along with me, the channel manager. Don’t you, Miss Jiwoo?”

It was time for me to answer yes.

It certainly was, but my lips hardly opened.

Ozworld’s eyes narrowed after seeing my hesitation.

“I guess not.”

At that moment, I instinctively opened my mouth.

“I’m afraid of you.”

I put down everything I had tried to hide and brought out the inside of me that felt like a disgrace.

“I don’t know if I can trust you. …That’s all.”

It must be obvious that the backstory added like an excuse was a lie.

But Ozworld didn’t bother to point that out.

Instead, he tucked my hair behind my ear and said softly.

“You still don’t realize where you are, Miss Shin Jiwoo.”

His fingers crossed my ear and came down the jawline to the nape of my neck.

“You and I don’t trust and rely on each other.”

“…”

“You’re a toy. Miss Ji-woo.”

Ozworld gently pressed the pulse there with his fingers.

“Don’t forget your role. If you want to be loved.”

Damn you.

Ozworld checked the time and clicked his tongue lightly.

“I’d love to deal more with you, but I’ll have to go back. The advertisement is unintentionally long.”

Thud!

As the cane hit the floor, I felt the weak static electricity that I had felt before.

It was a signal that time had stopped.

“From now on, I’ll call you Theresa. You’ll understand your situation better.”

“…”

“See you next time.”

Ozworld kissed me lightly on the cheek and left.

It was meant to be a greeting, but it was so unpleasant that I wanted to kill him.

I scrubbed and wiped my dirty cheeks. My skin became red and sore from the friction, but I didn’t stop.

My eyes were glued to the place where Ozworld disappeared.

‘If there’s a way to break you down, I’ll never hesitate.’

* * *

“Donovan.”

Donovan, the butler, bowed his head slightly at the Duke’s gentle call and waited for him to continue his words.

Raul wasn’t a big fan of cigars.

But when he had something to think about or when he was in a bad mood, he would snip off the tip of one of them and light it.

Usually, it was Theresa who caused the empty spot in the cigar case.

It seemed it was the same today.

“Have I been so indifferent to Theresa?”

“That’s not true. You’ve always tried.”

Raul breathed out a faint sigh of smoke.

His eyes stared at the smoke hovering in the air for a moment.

The deep gaze was directed at the smoke, but he seemed to be looking beyond it.

“I thought I was never wrong, Donovan. But today when I looked into her eyes… Strangely enough, my heart sank.”

Raul recalled the bright and fragrant scene of the dining room decorated with flowers blooming in the greenhouse.

In it, his eldest daughter, who was sitting calmly like never before.

These days, Theresa had been a little strange.

He thought she would use her power, as usual, to confirm that she was the real Princess Squire, not Libby.

Is it the calm before the storm?

For that reason, Theresa was still as quiet as a mouse.

“I wondered if it was a new way to scratch my inside.”

Theresa had been doing everything that a rotten child would do, such as hunger strikes, chipping away, and running away to get what she wanted.

“But something’s wrong. It’s so different from before.”

He was like an empty river who had never contemplated anything.

Humans without the ability to think were no different from animals which only had instincts.

Beyond redemption.

It was the stigma Raul had put on Theresa a long time ago.

“She’s 22 years old now, right?”

“…Yes, she’s 22 years old.”

Raul could hardly forget the moment when Theresa said it was her birthday.

Empty eyes. Dry face. Muffled voice.

Like a sinner confessing a terrible crime.