The Cruel Beast’s Desire - Chapter 20

“I’ve brought your meal.”

Startled by the sudden voice, Hayeon snapped out of her daze.

Perhaps because she hadn’t been here long, most of the people she saw were strangers, except for Madam Lee. However, the person who brought her meal seemed to know at least something about Hayeon.

She was scanning Hayeon with eyes that were more probing than wary. The woman with sharp eyes placed what she was holding on the table.

“Yes, thank you.”

Hayeon offered a polite greeting, but the woman’s gaze was fixed on the food she had brought in the morning.

“You haven’t had breakfast yet.”

“Ah…”

She hadn’t felt like eating and planned to eat later, but she hadn’t realized so much time had passed.

“You must have lunch.”

It wasn’t said out of concern. Her tone was clearly laced with annoyance.

“Yes, I will.”

Reluctantly, Hayeon replied that she would eat. Only then could she be left alone in peace again.

After the employee who brought the meal left, Hayeon sat down at the table. She had no appetite, but she picked up her spoon, intending to force herself to eat.

“Haa…”

Unable to bring herself to touch anything, Hayeon put down what she was holding. After taking a sip of water, she got up from her seat.

Then, she prepared to exercise according to the schedule given to her by Yoonjae’s secretary. She changed into her workout clothes, grabbed a bottle of water, and went out into the garden.

“Let’s run… Running is the best on days like this.”

It was a sunny afternoon, and the warmth was more than pleasant; it was almost hot. There was a treadmill in the exercise room, but on a restless day like today, running outside felt better than being cooped up indoors.

After warming up with some light stretches, Hayeon started running slowly.

It was a well-manicured garden, but the atmosphere was terribly bleak.

Hayeon ran and ran until she was drenched in sweat. After running for about an hour, she was completely out of breath. When Hayeon arrived in front of her quarters, a guest was waiting.

The man who had introduced himself as Yoonjae’s secretary greeted her with a slight bow and an expressionless face.

“Haa, hello.”

Hayeon greeted him, panting, and picked up the bottle of water she had left in front of her quarters. The secretary waited in silence until she had finished drinking the lukewarm water.

Hayeon wiped the water that had trickled down her mouth with the back of her hand and asked.

“You came because you had something to say, right?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

Even though it was just Hayeon and the secretary in the garden, he didn’t speak. Sensing his hesitation, Hayeon went inside her quarters. The secretary followed quietly, his gaze carefully examining the table.

“You haven’t eaten your meal?”

“I didn’t have an appetite.”

“That’s a problem. I told you to adhere to the schedule, and you signed it, Ms. Kang Hayeon.”

Hayeon carefully recalled the contract terms she remembered. Among the many words she had read, the only thing related to meals was to eat according to the diet.

It wasn’t like she had ordered delivery here, and among the things Hayeon had brought, there was nothing to eat besides clothes.

“I didn’t eat anything else. I just didn’t have an appetite, so I didn’t eat.”

“You skipped two meals, breakfast and lunch.”

“Are you… perhaps…”

“Yes, Ms. Kang Hayeon, you recently donated blood. It’s a time when you need to consume plenty of nutrients and fluids.”

She had suspected it, but Yoonjae’s secretary was now standing before her because she had skipped meals. He was pointing out her mistakes like a teacher scolding a naughty child.

“You should refrain from excessive exercise… You just ran at a fairly fast pace for about an hour in this scorching sun. It could have led to dehydration.”

She had nothing to say. Strangely, she felt more suffocated than when she had been running at full speed.

“You overworked yourself and got sick after donating blood, didn’t you?”

Since Yoonjae knew about it, it was only natural that his secretary knew as well. She felt extremely uncomfortable, as if her entire life had been exposed.

“That wasn’t intentional. I’ve already recovered, and this level of running is fine.”

“That’s not for you to decide, Ms. Kang Hayeon.”

“Haa.”

There was no reasoning with him.

“If there’s an urgent situation where a blood transfusion is needed, it would be a problem if you’re not prepared.”

That was what he really wanted to say.

The idea of being a tool to save someone else’s life made her feel so dirty. And yet, she had to get used to this kind of treatment.

Hayeon let out a hollow laugh as she felt the blood in her body turn cold.

“Yes, you’re right. I didn’t fully understand my place.”

“The Executive Director wants a smooth partnership.”

A smooth partnership, he said.

To treat her so openly as a tool and then put it into words. She almost blurted out how disgusting he was.

Hayeon still didn’t have the confidence to put food in her mouth and chew, but she approached the table out of spite.

“The food will be brought back with a new menu.”

“It was brought just a little while ago. I’ll just eat it.”

“You’ve expended a lot of energy. A menu to replenish your strength will be brought soon.”

She felt like livestock being fattened up.

She thought she just had to eat the food they brought, but it didn’t end there.

The employee who had brought the food earlier entered Hayeon’s quarters with a strange man.

“Ms. Kang Hayeon, this is the doctor in charge.”

It was a brief introduction.

“I don’t need a doctor.”

“That’s not for you to decide, Ms. Kang Hayeon. And as I said before, you must make every effort for a smooth partnership.”

It wasn’t just cooperation; she had to make an effort.

Could there be a more perfect slave than this?

Hayeon wordlessly slumped down on the sofa. The doctor, who had to be faithful to his job, immediately approached and gave her a brief examination.

“You have some symptoms of dehydration. You should refrain from strenuous exercise for the time being and eat a protein-rich diet.”

It was the most common thing she had heard while frequenting the blood donation center for seven years.

“I’m recovering.”

“Do light running a month from now. And avoid hot afternoons like today.”

The person was different, but the nagging of doctors and nurses seemed to be the same.

Hayeon nodded as if she was annoyed, and the doctor packed his bag. Around that time, freshly made food was set on the table again.

It was supposed to be food to replenish her strength, but it looked simple to Hayeon.

“Please eat.”

The doctor and the employee left, but Yoonjae’s secretary remained standing there.

“Yes, I’ll eat, so please go.”

“I’ll leave after I see you finish eating.”

It was already uncomfortable to have a meal with someone she didn’t like, but to have to eat alone in front of him. She felt like she would choke even if she just drank water.

If she insisted here, it was clear that the time they spent together uncomfortably would only be prolonged.

If there was one thing she learned from today’s incident, it was that she had to give up quickly in order to have the smooth partnership they wanted.

Hayeon sighed softly and got up from the sofa. She felt dizzy for a moment and staggered because she had overexerted herself in her weakened condition. Hayeon sat back down on the sofa.

“I’ll call the doctor again.”

“No, I really don’t want to.”

Contrary to her expectation that he would ignore her, the secretary waited quietly.

“It’s because I got up suddenly. I’ll be fine if I move slowly.”

“Yes, I understand.”

Fortunately, the secretary also conceded a step.

When the dizziness subsided, Hayeon slowly got up. As she carefully sat down at the table, an unexpected dish was set before her.

It was chicken noodle soup in chilled broth.

Around this time of year, before the full heat of summer arrived, Hayeon always had a poor appetite. At such times, Hayeon would go on a bike ride to a chicken noodle soup restaurant near Paldang.

The moment she saw the noodles filled with chicken in a light yet refreshing broth, Hayeon swallowed hard.

Her stomach, which hadn’t eaten anything but water all day, was clamoring.

At this moment, the secretary was a nuisance.

“Um, this is my favorite food. What I mean is… I want to eat my favorite food comfortably.”

“Then, please do so.”

For some reason, the secretary readily stepped aside. As soon as the secretary left, Hayeon’s hands and mouth moved busily.

It tasted a little different from what she ate at the restaurant, but it was the first time in a long time that she could really enjoy her meal.

After drinking all the broth and putting down the empty bowl, a smile naturally spread across her face.

“Haa… I feel like I’m going to live.”

Hayeon also diligently took the nutritional supplements that the secretary had left behind.

Now that she felt like she was going to live, the stray thoughts she had been putting off came to her. Thinking of the man who had left so many marks on her body that she couldn’t even go to the swimming pool that only the owner of this house used, she couldn’t help but sigh.

“Tae Yoonjae…”

It was a name she had become quite familiar with.

She felt frustrated because she didn’t know when she would encounter him again.

She couldn’t say that she had completely fallen for him just because she had sex with him once.

In terms of the number of times, it wasn’t just once, but it was an unstable relationship that could end with this one time. In order to completely seduce Yoonjae, she needed to have a more intimate relationship.

Even if it was just a relationship where they only mixed bodies. She had to be able to touch his body at any time.

Right now, she didn’t even know when Yoonjae would come home. At least, they had to be at a point where they could exchange information about what time he would come home. She had to completely break down his guard to get to that point.

She never knew she would miss Madam Lee this much.

Her chatter contained a lot of information about Yoonjae, in addition to the effect of passing the time.

Hayeon was eagerly waiting for Madam Lee’s return.

That night, it wasn’t the Madam Lee she was waiting for, but someone else who was standing in the garden in front of Hayeon’s quarters.

Hayeon was about to go to the living room to get a drink when she made eye contact with Yoonjae through the window.

Support The Cruel Beast’s Desire