20

"Ugh…"

As soon as I awoke, a faint groan escaped from my throat. Perhaps it was a side effect of passing out. I felt as if my head were clouded with fog.

Slowly lifting my heavy eyelids, I began to take in my surroundings. The sound of water meeting land, and the cries of free birds echoed around me.

"…The sea?"

What came into view was an expansive beach and the white sand stretching along its edge.

This was a drastically different environment from my last memory.

'I was definitely in the forest…'

As my mind gradually cleared, I slowly began to recall what had happened before I lost consciousness.

I remembered struggling to break free from Athena's grip, her hand pressing down on my head, and then, I blacked out.

Piecing together the situation, I realized I had been overpowered by her.

Well, I hadn't really expected to win against her from the start.

'Even the protagonist at the end of the novel couldn't handle her, so what could I do?'

To face her, I'd probably need someone like the Demon King on my side.

I shook off such pointless thoughts and tried to assess the situation by moving my body.

"Huh?"

My body wouldn't budge.

I glanced around, examining my condition. My arms were outstretched to the side, my knees were buried in the sand, and golden mana seemed to envelop me, as if restraining me.

"Urgh…!"

No matter how much strength I applied, the golden mana didn't even flinch.

Eventually, I gave up trying to break free, and that's when I heard a voice from one direction.

"You're awake?"

Following the voice, I turned my gaze and saw her.

She stood tall and proud, like the radiant sun shining brilliantly in the sky.

"Athena…"

She approached me and placed her hand gently on my forehead.

"Are you hurt anywhere? I did check, but just in case."

The nerve of her.

The one who put me in this state was none other than her, and I couldn't help but feel exasperated at her audacity.

"Is that really something you should be asking?"

As I glared at her sharply, she merely smiled as if she found my reaction adorable and stroked my head. I tried my best to shake her hand off by moving my head, but the mana restraining me blocked any resistance.

"Heh… This won't be easy to break. It's a spell I crafted with great care. You're surprisingly strong, you know?"

"And where is this place?"

The scenery was as beautiful as something straight out of a movie, but perhaps because it didn't match the current situation, it all felt eerily out of place to me.

"The last place felt too cramped. I thought a more open view would be better. Do you like it?"

Like it or not, I wanted to ask why she was doing all this to me.

But since I didn't think she would give me a proper answer, I decided to cut straight to the point.

"…What do you plan to do with me?"

"Are you curious about why I tied you up?"

When I wordlessly confirmed her question, Athena nodded and asked me again.

"Hera, do you know what a master-servant contract is?"

"A master-servant… contract?"

"Yeah. It's proof of eternal loyalty to one's master, and it allows the master to hold the servant's leash."

I don't know. Such a spell had never been mentioned in the novel.

There were a few characters who appeared as slaves, but this 'master-servant contract' was something I had never heard of.

Understanding my silence, Athena continued her explanation.

"It seems you don't know. Anyway, there's one condition that must be met for the contract to be successfully completed."

She caressed my cheek as if handling a precious treasure and continued.

"There must be mutual consent for the contract to be properly fulfilled."

"In that case, you can't do it with me. I have no intention of becoming your slave."

I flashed a sly smile at her.

Athena, who seemed to have expected my response, nonchalantly ignored my words and said,

"Then, what do you think happens if you execute the contract without mutual consent?"

Execute the contract without consent?

'Wouldn't it just become null and void?'

But her tone suggested otherwise.

"…What happens?"

With a darkened expression, she made a gesture as if something had burst in her hand.

"Your heart explodes, and you die."

"Uh?"

Her calm yet terrifying words sent chills down my spine.

Dying from a heart explosion? Is she trying to scare me?

"Each person's body naturally accumulates mana over several years."

She approached me as I lay unable to move, gently rubbing my stomach as she continued to speak to herself.

"When forming a master-servant contract, the master processes their mana and inserts it into the servant's body. Then the servant accepts the mana as part of themselves."

"When the master's and servant's mana become one, the master can control the servant with their magical power anytime. But if the servant rejects the mana that entered their body?"

She asked me, but there was no way I could respond.

She chuckled and clapped her hands together as she continued.

"Just like how cells fight off foreign bacteria. Your mana and the external mana start to clash. If your mana is stronger than the external mana, it's not a problem. But if the opposite is true…"

"And if it's the opposite..?"

"Then the external mana will eventually cause your heart to burst."

"Ugh.."

Terrifying. The thought of my heart exploding? I never wanted to experience something like that.

For someone like me, who suffered even from minor illnesses, it was beyond imagination.

"Are you trying to kill me..?"

I asked her in a slightly defeated voice. She smiled brightly, her face flushing slightly.

"Oh my, how adorable, Hera!"

She ruffled my hair as she spoke.

"Don't worry. I'm different from others. I can ensure you won't die. But…"

Her smile slowly faded from her face.

The kindness she had shown vanished, replaced by a stern, commanding look.

"It will hurt like you're dying."

"Wait… hold on… ugh?!"

Athena suddenly forced my mouth open and shoved her hand inside.

She pushed her fingers down my throat.

"Gah?!… Urgh…!"

I felt the urge to vomit rise from my throat, but I suppressed it. I could sense something crawling into my body.

When she finally withdrew her hand from my mouth, a transparent string-like thread connected her hand to my lips, like a spider's web.

"Cough..! Gasp..! Ugh.."

I gasped for air, desperately trying to regain my lost breath.

After a few deep breaths, my chest slowly began to calm.

When I regained my senses, I immediately shouted at Athena.

"What the hell are you doing!!!!"

As I glared at her with murderous intent, she answered more seriously.

"I'm really sorry, Hera. I didn't want to make you go through this. But I want you that badly."

"You… You really!! Do you think people are- Gah?!!"

Thump.

Suddenly, I felt as if my heart had dropped to the ground.

Something unknown was happening inside my body.

'What… what is this…'

My body began to heat up, and a throbbing pain started in my chest.

The small pain quickly spread throughout my body-

"Ugh?!"

Soon, an unfamiliar pain engulfed my entire body.

It felt as though small flames were spreading, burning me from the inside out.

I gritted my teeth, hoping the pain would soon disappear.

But as time passed, the pain only grew stronger.

The expanding agony felt like hot lava melting my internal organs.

"AAAAAHHHHHH!!!!"

I screamed in torment, and Athena grabbed my face with both hands, pulling her face close to mine.

"Hera. The moment you accept me, this pain will disappear."

Athena said something, but the pain that felt like my entire body was going to explode made it impossible to hear anything.

"Aaagh!!!!!!!"

My heart pounded and throbbed as if it had gone mad.

It wouldn't have been strange if it had exploded at any moment.

Something unknown seemed to be holding my heart together, preventing it from bursting, but the pain continued endlessly.

"Ha…"

I had no idea how much time had passed.

My throat was no longer able to make any sound.

My rationality had long since vanished into the void.

'I want to die…'

As the unbearable pain continued, my mind screamed for death.

Why do I have to endure this pain?

What did I do wrong?

I was just an ordinary person who liked novels.

I don't want this.

I don't want this. I don't want this. I don't want this. I don't want this. I don't want this. I don't want this. I don't want this. I don't want this. I don't want this. I don't want this. I don't want this. I don't want this. I don't want this. I don't want this. I don't want this. I don't want this. I don't want this. I don't want this. I don't want this. I don't want this.

I want to die.

I don't want to die. Save me.

Someone… please help me…

My mind was falling apart.

As my thoughts became more and more limited, I desperately longed for release from this terrible pain.

And then, through my hazy vision, I saw a single light.

Golden eyes glowing warmly like the sun.

Athena.

If it's her…

As much as I hate it, if it's her…

If it's her, maybe she can pull me out of this pain.

A slave.

She told me to become her slave.

She's the one who threw me into this hell, but right now, she's the only person I can rely on.

I hate her so much it feels like I'll die, but if she leaves me now, I feel like I'll never escape this pain.

"I… I don't want…"

The original work?

What meaning does the original work have?

The contents of the novel no longer help me at all.

If I can just get out of this place, it doesn't matter what happens.

Even if I become her slave.

I strained with everything I had to speak, forcing out a voice that barely came.

"I… I'll do it… a slave… please… help me…"

And then.

"Mas…ter…"

As soon as I finally uttered the words, the pain disappeared as if it had all been a lie.

The pain that had tormented me so violently became a warm sanctuary that embraced me.

"Huh…?"

As the pain vanished, the magic that had bound me was lifted as well.

As my body collapsed forward—

"You really went through so much, Hera. This will never happen again."

She pulled me into her arms, embracing me warmly.

She began to gently pat my back as if to say I'd done well.

In her comforting embrace, I…

"Hu…huuu…huek…."

In the relief from the pain, and with the pent-up bitterness that had built up, I began to sob uncontrollably in her arms.

The harder I cried, the tighter Athena hugged me.

Why is it?

As much as I hate her and want to push her away, her arms feel so comforting.