How a Snake Swallows Its Prey

“I fully understand that your situation is difficult.”

Hope crept into his chest at those positive words. Hae-jun snapped his head up, which had been drooping toward the floor. He waited desperately for the answer that would come from the man, clinging to a sliver of expectation as thin as a needle’s gap.

“But I fail to see what that has to do with me. Do you have some beggar’s mentality? Demanding what you don’t have as if it’s your due.”

In the span of a single second, the face once filled with hope flushed bright red.

“If I had judged that you would succeed with my marketing money behind you, Lee Hae-jun, then I wouldn’t have to watch you grovel like this, like some idiot’s mess.”

“…I’d like to make another proposal.”

Hae-jun’s eyes calmly settled. The man, with an expression of annoyance, had been about to press the call button, but his fingers lightly drummed over it instead.

“Would you become my sponsor?”

Their eyes clashed in the air. The man, who had lifted his finger from the button, leaned back into the sofa as if to hear more.

“How about we contract as a relationship of exchange? You and me, trading benefits.”

Hae-jun, who had just offered to sell himself, felt a wave of self-loathing so intense he clenched his fists until they turned white. But he couldn’t hold out any longer.

“Lee Hae-jun.”

The man’s voice, leisurely drawn out, echoed through the room colder than the air conditioner’s hum.

“Are you filming a drama now? Did you think I’d be moved and accept, just because you say that with a look of great determination? On what basis?”

Hae-jun, who had laid everything on the line, quietly gazed at Mujin. Working in this place where bodies were bought and sold, he had come to realize many things he hadn’t known before—the dark and grotesque sides of the world, how human instincts were expressed.

That was why Hae-jun belatedly understood the meaning in the man’s eyes when they had met before. The kind of heat that had permeated that gaze.

“You seemed to… like me.”

Mujin’s lips curled in surprise, a slight smile forming. His gaze was now clearly more interested, as if he were enjoying an amusing situation.

“If you accept, I’ll do my best. I’ll work hard so I won’t disappoint you.”

Hae-jun cursed this maddening situation—not only was he offering himself, but he had to plead for an acceptance. Yet he couldn’t give up.

“Won’t disappoint me, is it? Are you prepared to accept whatever sexual preferences I have? Whether it’s sadistic acts, bondage, being lent to a third party, or even gangbang—are you aware that you can’t refuse?”

Hae-jun didn’t answer, his fingers clenching tightly. The hard calluses under his nails collided, spreading a creepy sensation.

“Frankly, you have a face I’d like to see cry, Lee Hae-jun. The taste of your hole is uncertain, but judging by your ass, it might be fun to f*ck.”

Mujin’s gaze began to travel down Hae-jun’s body, entangling him like a cunning snake. A sudden eerie feeling made him cold.

“Fine. If you want it that badly, I’ll be your sponsor. But the contract is conditional on you implanting a microchip—a radio-frequency identification device—engraved with my name as owner, into your body.”

Before Hae-jun could even swallow the bewildering relief at the positive answer, a strange condition was added.

Microchip? Engraved with this man’s name? Was he talking about a pet registration chip? What the hell?

“I have strong possessiveness and jealousy over what’s mine. I’m narrow-minded enough that I can’t stand to see my dog run away on its own or wag its tail in another man’s arms.”

He wanted to implant his name in me? Was this man insane?

Hae-jun instinctively stepped back, as if to escape the hand reaching for him. But Mujin moved forward just as much and extended his arm. Hae-jun reflexively closed his eyes, and his senses sharpened as breath flowed into his ear. The man’s hand, which had pressed Hae-jun against the wall like a trap, grabbed his chin. Hae-jun was dragged forward without resistance. Mujin, who had looked down, now faced him, his expression softening as his lips curved.

“How about it, Lee Hae-jun? Do you still have the will to do your best so I won’t be disappointed?”