Joo Seunghyuk loaded me into his car. Then, without saying a word, he started the engine.

I wanted to ask where we were going. But with the black mana swirling around him and the cold, murderous energy that made it feel like he could kill me at any moment, I couldn’t speak at all.

The luxury sedan pulled into a private residence.

The house, overall, had a dark gray tone—modern and sleek in design—but it carried a strange, ominous air.

And instinctively, I knew exactly where we were.

The place where Kim Jun, the main bottom of Swamp of the Guide, was imprisoned all winter break—his social existence destroyed, locked away forever.

And the place where the villainous sub bottom, Lee Yeonsu, was killed by Joo Seunghyuk.

This was Joo Seunghyuk’s house.

***

‘The moment I step inside... it’s over.’

My instincts were screaming.

You must never, ever enter the obsessive yandere’s house.

As I desperately searched for an escape route, Joo Seunghyuk got out of the car and yanked me by the hand.

“J-Joo Seunghyuk hakwoo-nim...!”

“I told you to drop that f*cking ‘hakwoo-nim’ crap.”

“Sorry—augh!”

He didn’t even give me a chance to explain. He just dragged me by the hand straight into the house.

Just like the original novel described, the entire interior was pitch black.

So people really do paint their walls black...

Not just the walls and ceiling, but the furniture, appliances, clocks—every bit of decor was jet-black.

It was a textbook obsessive yandere’s house.

The deeper I went inside, the more scenes from the original novel began flashing through my mind.

This was where Kim Jun was tied up... over there, that rod was used for that, and at that pillar—

My blood ran cold as increasingly hardcore 19+ scenes surfaced in my memory.

No. I have to get out of here somehow.

But before I could even make a move, Joo Seunghyuk slammed open the door to the innermost room.

A large room with a pitch-black bed. The bedding was black too, of course.

Was he planning to throw me on that bed like in the novel? Or maybe, since I wasn’t Kim Jun, just kill me outright?

I shouldn’t have told Jihoon-hyung I was okay. I should’ve had him call the Center or at least send someone.

Of all days, I had changed into my guild uniform, so I didn’t even have the self-defense tool the Center gave me.

I always carried it—but the one time I really needed it, it wasn’t there.

Blinded by fear, I couldn’t see anything. Joo Seunghyuk tightened his grip on my wrist.

I squeezed my eyes shut.

Was I going to die here? Or get thrown on the bed?

But he kept walking. Joo Seunghyuk’s destination wasn’t the bedroom—it was the bathroom inside the master suite.

The bathroom, too, was all black. Just standing in there sent chills down my spine.

Suddenly, I started thinking of horror movies where the victims are murdered in bathrooms.

Even the voice of the killer from that one crime film echoed in my mind—saying it’s easier to clean up bodies when they’re killed in the bath.

“I’m sorry.”

I finally managed to blurt it out through dried-up lips.

But Joo Seunghyuk didn’t hesitate—he shoved me into the bathroom.

I slammed against the hard tiles and slumped to the floor.

“Ugh.”

A groan escaped me involuntarily—and then cold water poured down over my body.

It may have been March, but the weather was still sub-zero. My whole body felt like it was freezing solid as ice water rained down on me.

But the cold wasn’t the real problem.

It was the mana swirling around Joo Seunghyuk—seething with murderous energy.

“Lee Yeonsu, you must think I’m a joke. Thought I was some idiot just because I was nice to you?”

When were you ever nice?

Even while trembling in the face of death, I still felt unfairly accused. But the yandere before me was too terrifying to argue with.

I immediately dropped to my knees. The hard tiles hurt, but that didn’t matter right now.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to deceive you. It’s just... the academy prohibits part-time work, so I couldn’t be honest. I’m really sorry I lied about the group project.”

“You think I’m mad because of that lie?”

“Th-Then why...?”

“You played with me.”

When did I?!

The unfairness intensified. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

As if Joo Seunghyuk is someone you can just mess with!

But I couldn’t argue—memories of the countless rooms I passed still haunted me.

Which one had Kim Jun been locked in? Which one was Lee Yeonsu killed in?

“No. I didn’t. I would never.”

I did my best to gently correct the obsessive yandere-nim.

“You cheated on me.”

“Cheated...?”

“If it wasn’t cheating, then what was it?”

His eyes flashed cold and sharp.

This scene felt familiar.

In the novel, when Kim Jun tried to guide the sub-lead Park Geonwoo, Joo Seunghyuk had gone berserk—accusing him of cheating.

But that was because Seunghyuk knew Kim Jun liked the sub-lead, and his possessiveness exploded.

I was just a sub bottom. Why was I getting the main bottom treatment?

“It was just a jo—”

I almost said “job,” but stopped myself.

[“Joo sunbae-nim, it was just a guiding session. Whether I guide Geonwoo sunbae or not is none of your business!”]

That’s what Kim Jun had said in the original—and ended up imprisoned and sexually abused for it.

Even if I wasn’t the main bottom, I had no reason to take chances.

“I’m sorry.”

Instead of saying anything like Kim Jun did, I just bowed my head and apologized.

“Every time you use honorifics that don’t even fit, I get pissed off. Are you doing it on purpose?”

“N-No! I swear!”

As I shook my head, his hand grabbed the back of my neck—and his lips crashed into mine.

His tongue pushed roughly into my slightly open mouth. Cold water dripped from his tongue into me.

My body stiffened from sheer tension. He tore off my black hood and ripped open my white shirt. The clear buttons scattered across the floor.

He’s going to devour me. Tie me up to the shower and torment me for hours.

The scenes from the novel flooded my mind, sending me into panic.

Swamp of the Guide wasn’t just your typical R-rated novel. It was extreme hard-corruption.

The content warning literally said:

This novel includes non-consensual acts, confinement, training, SM, and tool play. Reader discretion advised.

The reviews were full of baffling comments like “A cozy dumpster fire.” No one could tell if it was praise or a complaint. It was a terrifying novel.

Getting dragged into a novel like that was bad enough—but now I was getting shoved into the actual dumpster.

Maybe it was “cozy” for the main bottom, but for me, it was a freezing hell.

Tears fell from my eyes.

That’s when Joo Seunghyuk pulled back—and turned off the water.

He wiped my cheek with his thumb.

“Why are you crying?”

“......”

“Is it because you’re sad you didn’t get to hold hands with that other bastard?”

Each word was low and chilling.

I tried to hold back my tears, feeling like something truly terrible would happen if I didn’t—but that only made the tears fall harder.

“I said, why are you crying?! Don’t make me repeat myself!”

Is he mad that I’m crying? Or that I made him repeat himself?

Either way, I couldn’t provoke him any further.

“Do you hate me? Is it because I kissed you?”

“N-No, it’s not that—it’s just... the shirt...”

“What about the shirt?”

“I... I borrowed it from the guild. If the buttons are torn like that, I’ll have to pay for it...”

There was no way I could say the truth. I looked down at the buttons scattered across the tiles and made up whatever came to mind.

“...That’s worth crying over?”

“I have to replace the shirt, and pay for the broken door too, and I won’t even get paid today... I really need the money...”

At first, I was just rambling. But the more I talked, the more the sorrow welled up.

I’d planned to buy my little sister Jisoo a tablet for her senior year with the money I earned today.

I also wanted to get a little something for my parents, and for Minsu and Kyungsoo.

But now, thanks to this crazy obsessive yandere, the plan was ruined.

And not just today’s job. After this massive incident, all future gigs were probably gone too.

Changwi paid quite well for a small guild. It wasn’t as much as the big corps, but the rates were high for its size, and payments were fast.

They also protected my identity and offered surprisingly good security for a small operation.

Where else was I going to find a gig like that?

The more I thought about it, the more hopeless I felt.

“Don’t cry.”

I bit my lip to try not to cry like he said. But the more I resisted, the more tears came out.

“What the hell do you think you did right, crying like this.”

“I’m sorry. I don’t want to cry... it’s the buttons...”

No matter how unfair or bleak it felt, I didn’t dare blame Joo Seunghyuk. I clutched the torn shirt and searched for buttons that had rolled away.

“Fck! I’ll buy you a whole fcking button factory—just stop crying!”

I flinched and recoiled at the shout—but Joo Seunghyuk pulled me back, wrapping his arm around my waist.

I trembled in fear.

Then, unexpectedly, he turned the shower back on. I braced myself, expecting another icy torrent.

But warm water poured down over me instead.

He patted my back. The way his hand gently moved along my spine was surprisingly comforting. So much so, it was ridiculous.

I was in a predator’s den, in his very arms.

But because he didn’t seem like he’d kill me right now, I relaxed.

And the tears, too, finally began to subside.

Still... what the hell is going on?

“J-Joo Seunghyuk hakwoo-nim...”

I couldn’t hide the confusion in my voice.

“If you call me ‘hakwoo-nim’ one more time, I’ll shut ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) your mouth myself.”

Shut it—how? Was he going to cut out my tongue?

He seemed less angry now that I’d gone back to formal speech—but his words were too chilling for me to feel safe.

“I won’t say it again...”

Honestly, I didn’t want to say anything at this point.

But watching what Joo Seunghyuk was doing, silence was impossible.

“Hey, Seunghyuk-ah...”

“I like when you call my name.”

“R-Really?”

“Yeah. I like it.”

“Th-That’s good... but, uh... why are you undoing my buttons...?”

He was now unfastening the remaining buttons on my shirt, one by one.