Episode 12
“W–Where is Callisten?”
“Over there.”
Alexis Rainier pointed toward another wardrobe in the room.
He was smiling, looking as if he were playing a prank on me.
That’s when I realized it.
He was lying to me again, and I was once more being toyed with by him.
“Um… do I put this on?”
“Yeah.”
So I changed the subject.
Alexis was holding out a white evening dress, clearly expecting me to actually wear it.
“Oh, and.”
He went back to the wardrobe and took out a pair of shoes, a negligee, and even a corset, handing them to me.
“You took all of these?”
“Yeah. I told them to take off everything you were wearing that day.”
“My goodness…”
I knew the deputy director favored Alexis quite a bit, but I didn’t think he’d tolerate something this rude. Then again, Alexis was the most successful esper in the institute right now.
“You’ll wear it, right?”
“…Yes.”
When I answered with a sigh, he broke into a wide grin and turned his back.
Slowly, I took off my lab coat. I removed my pants as well, and perhaps because the room was a bit cool, my skin prickled.
After putting on the negligee, I tried to tighten the corset.
“Ugh…”
There was no way I could put on a corset by myself. Everything I knew about them came from dramas or books.
No matter how much I squirmed and struggled, my waist wouldn’t tighten properly, and the strings kept slipping from my fingers.
“Why are you making weird noises?”
“Th–this thing…”
He slowly turned his head, then widened his eyes.
“The strings?”
“You’re supposed to pull them tight, and when there’s no gap, tie them.”
“Pull them?”
“Yes.”
“If I pull, your waist will snap.”
“J‑just… don’t use strength… please pull slowly.”
If he helped me the way other people did, I wouldn’t just break my back — I’d probably die a horribly painful death.
“How gentle?”
“Like you’re holding tofu.”
“So… no force at all.”
“…Yes.”
When I answered honestly, he grinned again, clearly amused.
The negligee felt slightly see‑through, which made me embarrassed.
He stepped closer and grabbed both strings of the corset. Then he really did begin pulling them gently.
My breathing gradually became tighter, and whenever I sucked in a sharp breath, he would loosen his grip, making it easier to breathe again.
“Th–that way, you won’t be able to tighten it properly…”
“You keep making strange sounds.”
When I glanced back, a strand of his slicked‑back hair had fallen forward. He let go of the strings briefly to brush it back. When our eyes met, he smiled, and I hurriedly looked away. The moment he grabbed the strings again, breathing became difficult once more.
“Do you really have to wear this?”
“If I don’t, I can’t wear the dress.”
“I see.”
He said that and began tightening the corset again, more slowly than before. Breathing was still difficult, but thanks to his care, it gradually became manageable.
“Do you bathe every day?”
“…Why do you ask?”
“You smell nice. Like blood, but sweet.”
My attention went to the wound on my hand that Felix had caused. The one he’d torn open.
“Ah…!”
As he pulled the corset tight and tied it, his breath brushed the back of my neck, making me flinch.
“Are you always this sensitive?”
“…No.”
“Only with me?”
“…No.”
At that, he pulled away as if disappointed — thankfully.
He stepped back and handed me the dress again, looking at me with shining eyes, as though he truly wanted me to wear it. I had to stop myself from sighing.
“That.”
“Yes?”
“You can’t put that on by yourself either.”
“Ah…”
He was right. The dress had buttons all the way down the back — far too many.
I tried to put on as much as I could alone, but he was staring so intently that it made me uncomfortable, even though I was already wearing both the negligee and the corset.
“Um…”
“Yeah.”
“Alexis‑nim.”
“Alex.”
“Yes… Alex.”
“Mm.”
Only then did he turn his body toward me. He clearly wasn’t clueless — he just didn’t feel the need to care.
I stepped into the white evening dress, lifted it up, and slipped my arms through. I did as much as I could, twisting awkwardly to reach the buttons on my back, but it wasn’t working.
“I’ll help now.”
“Yes.”
He turned around properly this time and came up behind me, beginning to fasten the buttons. I pushed my hair forward and held it tightly out of the way. Every time his fingers brushed my back, I shrank reflexively from the ticklish sensation.
“You look like a scared rabbit.”
“Ah…”
In the institute, rabbits were mostly used for experiments and then discarded. His words felt like he was saying he’d kill me once I was no longer useful.
“I’m not going to eat you.”
“…Yes.”
I tried hard not to react to every touch, but it wasn’t easy. Ticklish was still ticklish.
“A‑are you done?”
“No.”
Even when I asked anxiously, he continued at an unhurried pace. As he worked upward from my waist, it felt even more uncomfortable.
I wasn’t sure how long I endured it.
Eventually, he finished fastening the last button and withdrew his hands.
“All done.”
“Yes.”
Once he stepped away, I let go of the hair I’d been holding and let it fall down my back.
“Look this way.”
“Yes.”
I turned as he told me to. His eyes widened, and with an oddly innocent expression that didn’t suit him at all, he smiled.
“Feels like a waste to break you.”
“…Pardon?”
“When we destroy the institute, I’ll let you live.”
“Ah… th‑thank you.”
“But I won’t keep you alive forever.”
“…Yes.”
Strangely, his words didn’t bother me. After all, if Callisten went berserk, I’d die anyway.
“But still.”
“…”
“If I feel like seeing you again, I might let you live.”
“Yes.”
He stood right in front of me, staring. I knew better than to avert my gaze. Turning your back on a beast meant death.
“I’ll fix your hair to match.”
“Yes.”
When he suddenly grabbed my hand, I flinched and pulled away. He tilted his head and tried again, so this time I grabbed his hand first to avoid dodging.
“Hahaha.”
“…”
“Are you acting like this because I said I’d kill you?”
“Ah… um…”
“That’s strange. Holding hands makes me not want to kill you.”
Saying incomprehensible things, he led me to the bed and sat me down. Then he stood behind me again, closer than before, making cold sweat prickle on my skin.
“The scent you have.”
“Yes…”
“It seems to come from your hands.”
“I see.”
I clenched my injured hand tightly, trying not to let any scent escape.
He brushed my hair again, then began braiding it gently. After twisting the braids together, he tied only half of it and let the rest fall.
“Want to look in the mirror?”
“…Yes.”
He seemed eager to show me how well he’d done.
When I stood before the mirror, a woman I hardly recognized was reflected there.
She looked like a painting — a flawless face with no harsh angles. Dressed properly and with her hair done, she looked graceful, like a deer.
That made her feel even more like a stranger.
“Your hair is really pretty.”
“Yeah.”
He smiled again with that mismatched innocence, clearly pleased by the compliment.
“Oh.”
“What is it?”
“Come to think of it, I didn’t take the necklace and earrings the deputy director was wearing.”
“They’re probably expensive. I don’t think he’d give them to you.”
“Do you like things like that?”
“…Ah, um…”
“Got it.”
With that, he turned and strode toward the door.
“You can’t leave this room without me, so behave.”
“W–Wait, Alex! Where are you going?”
“To get a necklace.”
“P‑please wait…!”
“I’ll be back.”
Ignoring me completely, he closed the door behind him.
Left alone in the room, I felt an unexpected sense of relief.
I must have been so tense that I’d forgotten to breathe. When I looked down, I saw crescent‑shaped nail marks dug into my palm.
They must have formed while he was fastening the buttons behind me.
If they’d gone in just a little deeper, they might have drawn blood. Maybe that was why he said I smelled like something — because I was on the verge of bleeding.
Maybe… my ability.
They said even useless A‑rank abilities eventually manifested.
What if mine was the kind that made me delicious prey?
“No…”
The thought was too hopeless to deny.
“Ugh…”
Just then, a strange sound came from the wardrobe Alexis had said Callisten was in.
Startled, my body stiffened as the noise came from inside.
“Mm…”
It sounded like someone in pain.
Without thinking, I walked over and opened the wardrobe door.
And inside—
There was something enormous.
