Chapter 99

“Now, Tina, say ‘ah~’.”

Lillian smiled softly and extended a fork.

Hesitating at the corner of my mouth, I slowly parted my lips.

A bite-sized piece of tart entered my mouth.

As the tangy freshness of lemon and the sweet softness of sugar spread across my tongue, I felt strangely uplifted.

I guess the saying that eating something sweet when you’re feeling down really does help.

“Hehe, is it delicious?”

Lillian asked quietly.

Her gaze felt warm.

I no longer avoided Lillian’s eyes.

After all, even if I tried to escape, she would persistently follow me. What was the point of running?

“Yes… unnie.”

I nodded timidly.

Hearing that, Lillian’s face turned slightly red, and her eyes sparkled.

Without a moment’s hesitation, she hugged me tightly.

“I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you.”

“…”

Her whispers echoed incessantly in my ears.

“Now I understand why Tina is so popular among the young ladies. Who could resist such a lovable Tina?”

With eyes gleaming with an eerie obsession, she gently stroked my hair.

“Of course, from now on, Tina belongs only to me.”

I could feel her sticky, clinging obsession tightening around me. Just yesterday, I would have pushed her away fiercely, but strangely, I didn’t feel like showing strong resistance now.

After all, resisting would only hurt me.

“Are you thirsty? I’ll give you some water.”

Lillian picked up a glass of clear water. But instead of handing it to me, she took a big gulp herself.

She approached me with a bright smile.

Still unpleasant.

But all I could do now was open my lips and let her slowly pour the water onto my tongue.

Slurp—slurp—

“Ah, uh… huh…”

There was nothing I could do to resist in this room.

My arms and legs were tightly bound by thick shackles. Even if I could break free from these chains, there was no way I could escape Lillian’s presence surrounding this room.

I let go of my pride.

Doing so, Lillian no longer tormented me excessively. She simply poured out her affection in her own way.

‘…Just 100 more stamps, and I can leave this place.’

If I receive two stamps a day, I should be able to leave this hellish place in about two months.

Of course, that’s assuming I obediently follow Lillian’s words.

“You’re unusually docile today. Is something wrong?”

I kept my mouth shut and avoided her gaze.

“Are you feeling unwell?”

Lillian’s eyes filled with concern. The strange atmosphere from earlier disappeared, and she placed her hand on my forehead with genuine worry.

A pure white light flashed briefly, and a warm energy spread from her hand.

The warmth seeped into every corner of my body, spreading gently.

“Hmm… It doesn’t seem like you’re sick. Are you okay, Tina?”

Why?

Even though my aversion to her still lingered, I hesitated to curse at her face like before.

*[No matter what disgraceful things Tina does, I will love her until the end.]*

Those words had been endlessly swirling in my head since yesterday.

It’s hard to believe. Now, and in the future, it will remain so.

Reality is not a fairy tale.

The promise of eternal love is nothing but a sweet lie anyone can utter.

Nothing is eternal. Especially intense emotions—they only lead to steeper cliffs.

Like a once-burning flame extinguished by a faint breeze.

If love were truly eternal, my biological father wouldn’t have left my mother.

If love truly never disappeared, my mother wouldn’t have looked at me like a monster.

Her gaze was always cold and eerie, and that memory has haunted me to this day.

But would Lillian be any different? The words she’s spouting now must also stem from a temporary desire.

Caught in a craving even she can’t control, it’s just empty words wasted on her own whims.

I’m not foolish enough to believe such words.

“Tina, your hand.”

As Lillian extended her palm, I calmly placed both hands on hers.

Lillian smiled faintly, stroking my head, then looked at me with determined eyes.

“Tina, is there something you want?”

“…Something I want?”

“You’ve been so well-behaved today. If there’s something you want, I’ll grant you one wish.”

“….Then.”

“Of course, anything that harms your body or involves leaving my mansion is off the table.”

I wanted to ask if I could die here, but Lillian firmly cut me off with an iron tone.

I bowed my head, pondering for a moment. What could I possibly do in this situation?

But fortunately, there was one thing I had wanted to ask Lillian.

“…I want to wash.”

How long had I been trapped in this dark prison?

In this place without a clock, I couldn’t tell if days or weeks had passed.

From the first day I woke up in this prison until now, I had never washed my body.

The inscription Lillian had placed on me purified the waste inside my body with a mysterious power, but it couldn’t wash away the dirt and foreign substances clinging to my skin.

The unpleasant stickiness on my skin tightened around me. The sensation went beyond mere discomfort, reaching the peak of irritation.

‘I want to wash.’

My head felt heavy, and my body slumped weakly, feeling heavy and sluggish.

Moreover, the spot where I was sitting was where I had urinated yesterday.

Lillian said that the liquid was holy water, but to me, it still felt like waste expelled from my body.

“Washing… is that not allowed?”

My voice grew thinner. A deep longing welled up from within.

Lillian stared at me for a moment, as if caught in some thought. But soon, she shook her head vigorously.

“I’m sorry, Tina. You must have been very uncomfortable. I was too careless.”

She approached with a faint smile, gently embracing me, and her hand tenderly stroked my hair.

“Let’s go together. I’ll wash you.”

Her words froze my heart for a moment.

“…You’ll wash me?”

“Of course,”

Lillian looked down at me with a smile.

“Washing your pet is the owner’s duty, right?”

Her words seemed calm, but a strange possessiveness lingered within.

Thinking about it, it was only natural.

In this place, I couldn’t even feed myself. There was no way she would allow me to wash alone.

And going into the bathroom together wasn’t a big deal.

After all, she had already seen me urinate. What was there to be embarrassed about?

It wasn’t uncommon for women to share a bathroom.

Mother… no, Artasha and I had occasionally shared the bathroom too.

It’s not like Lillian harbors any sexual desires for me like that psycho Mardian, right?

All Lillian wants from me is absolute submission as her pet to achieve her revenge.

So, this could just be considered a same-sex bath.

“I should have the water heated. I’ll prepare some incense and decorate with flowers.”

Lillian’s voice was slightly higher than usual, tinged with excitement. She hugged me, her face faintly flushed, and planted a short, soft kiss on my forehead.

“Wait a little. I’ll tell the maid to prepare the bathwater.”

“…Okay.”

Lillian left with a gentle smile, and silence filled the room again.

Alone in the space, I quietly slid my hand under my skirt.

“…Ugh.”

Despite the time that had passed, the underwear covering my private parts was still damp.

How uncomfortable it must have been to spend the day like this. If Lillian hadn’t allowed me to bathe, it would have been truly miserable.

But washing my body in warm water would make me feel better.

Bathing was one of the few hobbies I had in this world, so I thought it would lift my spirits a bit.

And the fact that I could leave this suffocatingly gloomy space, even for a moment, excited me.

After a few minutes, the firmly closed door opened, and Lillian appeared with a bright smile.

“Tina, it’s about time to go.”

Lillian approached right next to me. In her right hand was a round leather strap.

Lillian took out a key from her pocket and began to unlock the restraints on my legs and arms one by one.

As the cold, heavy restraints fell away, my arms and legs, which had felt endlessly heavy, regained their freedom.

A sense of liberation, as if I could fly, spread throughout my body.

For a brief moment, I thought that living with this sense of liberation might not be so bad after all.

“Tina, instead of the restraints, you’ll have to wear this.”

Lillian put the key back in her pocket and held out the round leather strap in front of me.

The leather strap, spread open by Lillian’s hand, clearly intended to be worn around the neck.

Upon closer inspection, it looked like a dog collar.

No, it was a dog collar.

“Tina, don’t misunderstand.”

Lillian showed me the center of the collar.

In the middle of the black leather collar was a transparent gemstone emitting a faint, colorful light.

“In case that being inside comes out and torments Tina.”

“…Do you know about my friend?”

Come to think of it, she had spoken as if she knew about her before.

How does she know?

My childhood friend came with me from a past life. How could a mere game character know about her?

Could it be that Lillian, being a saintess, instinctively senses something?

“Tina, remember. That person is not your friend. She’s a very bad and evil being.”

Lillian looked at me with serious eyes.

Her pink eyes seemed to pierce through me, and the rebelliousness I had suppressed began to surface.

“…What do you know?”

She was the one who stayed with me when I was alone.

In that cramped single room, where I barely survived day by day, she always comforted me with a bright smile and a warm voice.

“I know, Tina. You must consider that friend more precious than anyone else. That must have been her plan all along.”

“….”

“It’s okay. I’ll make sure Tina can’t live without me. I’ll help you forget about that wench.”

Lillian placed the collar around my neck, tightening it just enough not to choke me.

Then, she stared at me for a while, her eyes slightly shimmering as she stroked my head.

“…Tina, you’re really dangerous. Showing me such a lewd look makes it hard to resist.”

“Huh?”

I was taken aback by the sudden comment.

What did I even do?

The situation was absurd, with the person who put the collar on me saying such things.

“Shall we go wash now?”

Lillian stood up and extended her hand.

I had a lot to say, but I silently took her hand and stood up.

I just wanted to wash.

I wanted to escape the damp feeling of the cloth clinging to my lower body and wash away all the dirt in my hair.

I held Lillian’s hand.

She placed her hand around my waist with a faint smile and slowly led me out the door.

Just as we were about to leave this suffocating space.

The door opened from the other side, not by Lillian’s hand, but by someone else.

And the person who appeared was someone I never expected.

“…Lady Viviana?”

Long, flowing black hair.

Between them, amethyst eyes glimmered faintly with a brilliant light.

Viviana stood at the door, staring intently at me.

“…Princess?”

Lillian was equally flustered.

Viviana shifted her gaze from me to Lillian, then with a faint smile, swiftly pulled me from Lillian’s embrace.

“Eek!”

A high-pitched sound escaped my lips.

Instead of Lillian, Viviana’s broad arms embraced me.

Viviana’s embrace felt firmer and stronger than Lillian’s slender frame.

“I’ll wash Tina.”

Her voice didn’t sound pleased.

Viviana, with her eyes lowered, spoke to Lillian.

Lillian stared blankly at her empty hands, then frowned as she looked at Viviana.

“…What did you say?”

For some reason.

The atmosphere between the two didn’t seem very friendly.

---