‼️This chapter contains disturbing scenes involving coercion and sexual assault that may be distressing to some readers‼️
A thin layer of dew clings to the windows of the Sapphire Blue Palace tonight. Tonight, the entire Koravel is once again drenched in rain.
However, the Valcaria city looks like a sea of light when viewed from the height of a 50-story building.
The atmosphere inside feels cold, but the dim light from the candles on the dining table looks warm when viewed from the outside. However, this is not the case for the two people sitting in front of it.
The clinking of spoons and forks is the only sound echoing in the large, spacious room.
Rafaello and Lovita eat in silence.
No one seems to want to start a conversation since 30 minutes ago.
Lovita is wearing a casual blouse that Rafaello gave her this afternoon. Meanwhile, Rafaello is wearing a black shirt that fits his athletic body perfectly.
Everything seemed expensive—the silk blouse, the food, the room adorned with luxurious items. Lovita realized that Rafaello had changed so much, not only in terms of his social status, but also in terms of who he was as a person. The Rafaello of the past and the Rafaello of the present seemed like two different people.
Lovita, who had been looking down at her food, which she had barely touched, slowly raised her head. And began to speak.
"Rafe..."
The man looked at Lovita after she called his name—a name that used to be her special nickname for him.
Lovita swallowed hard.
Rafaello's gaze was sharp, as if judging and condemning her at the same time.
"So you still call me by that name. What's going on?"
Rafaello returned to focusing on the food in front of him.
"What happened right before graduation? I heard you had an accident? I kept looking for you, but no one knew where you were."
Lovita asked Rafaello, her eyes glistening in the candlelight that illuminated her face.
There was a long pause.
Rafaello wiped his lips with a white napkin next to his plate. He stopped what he was doing and sighed softly.
"You know the answer better than anyone else."
Rafaello answered Lovita's question sharply without looking at Lovita, who had been staring at Rafaello's face all this time.
"I really don't know what you mean, Rafe.... Why do you keep saying things i don't understand?"
Lovita cried, feeling frustrated by all this. There were many things she didn't know all this time. But why did Rafaello say it as if Lovita knew everything?
"Stop crying. Don't lie to me again with your tears. I won't be fooled again."
This time Rafaello looked at Lovita coldly, without any tenderness. His words pierced Lovita's heart.
"I never lied to you, i was always honest with you. Always, Rafe."
Rafaello laughed coldly, his expression dismissive.
"You know what? Besides being a liar, you're also good at pretending to be an innocent woman. Men can be fooled by your face. But you're just a dangerous snake."
Lovita was shocked, unable to believe what she had just heard.
"...W-What?"
"You ruined my appetite. Now i'm your boss, and you dare to ruin my appetite?"
"I-i'm sorry."
Lovita bowed her head in apology, tears still streaming down her beautiful face.
"Listen carefully, Miss Carter... As long as you behave yourself and don't make me angry, you will be paid more than what is written in the contract."
"I'm sorry... but not everything can be bought with money. I'm fine—"
"The proof is that you can be bought with money."
Rafaello cut Lovita off sharply.
Lovita's chest felt like it was being pressed by a hard object. It was tight and painful.
Rafaello took a glass of wine, then walked slowly toward Lovita, placing the glass right in front of her.
"Drink it. It will make you stop trembling."
"Thank you, but i'm not trembling."
"It's an order. Not an offer."
Rafaello spoke again, his voice higher and more painful than before.
Lovita remained silent. She stared at the thick red liquid in front of her. Slowly, she picked up the glass. Then she swallowed it little by little. It tasted slightly bitter. Just like her feelings at that moment. But the bitter taste of the wine calmed her a little.
She looked at Rafaello, who was still standing in front of her with a cold stare, his body straight but looking tired—the man who used to be so gentle had now turned into a frightening, cold shadow.
"Rafe... but, really... I don't know how to fix something that i don't even understand," she said softly.
Rafaello tensed again.
"You don't need to fix it. You just need to remember it."
Then Rafaello stepped away, picked up the remote from the table, pressed a button, and all the windows automatically closed with thick black curtains. The lights of Valcaria city disappeared.
Now only the two of them remained, along with the muffled sound of the rain.
"Lovita Carter... I want you to feel what it's like to lose your self-respect."
Rafaello said with a cold, expressionless face, devoid of emotion. His gaze changed, becoming more cruel.
Lovita stared at him, unable to believe what was coming out of Regef's mouth, her eyes watering but her voice steady.
"...What? What do you mean?"
"Take off your clothes," he said flatly.
"No, Rafe. Please don't do this. I'm really sorry."
Lovita pleaded, her voice cutting through anyone's heart who heard it. But not Rafaello's. His heart was covered in hatred.
"I said take off your clothes or do you want me to hand you over to that old loan shark?"
Lovita remained silent. She was too shocked by what Rafaello had ordered. Tears streamed down her face. Her feelings were like being sliced by a sharp knife.
"So you'd rather i hand you over to that old loan shark. He'll go further than what i'm doing now, just so you know."
Immediately after saying that, Rafaello took his cell phone out of his pocket. He appeared to be calling someone whom Lovita believed to be John Cage—the loan shark who had dealt with her father the other day.
"I'll do it!"
Lovita shouted, looking terrified. This made Rafaello stop what he was doing. He put the phone back in his pocket then.
"I'll do whatever you want, just don't hand me over to him."
Lovita cried, as she had no choice but to do what Rafaello ordered.
Slowly and hesitantly, Lovita unbuttoned her blouse one by one with trembling hands and tears streaming down her face. Meanwhile, Rafaello just watched her with a blank expression.
A moment later, Lovita's top was completely off, leaving only a black bra covering her beautiful upper body.
Rafaello's expression doesn't change at all. It was cold and flat. Meanwhile, Lovita felt her pride had been trampled on. Her heart was broken. Rafaello's cruel desire has been fulfilled and he has successfully in his goal—to make Lovita lose her self-respect.
Rafaello then turned his gaze to the large window, which was already closed.
"Put your clothes back on. I have no interest to touching Victor Drexler's used items,"
He said to Lovita as he walked away.
Lovita laughed bitterly, mixed with tears.
The automatic door closed slowly behind him.
Lovita stood in the middle of the room, now only lit by a soft lamp in the corner. She didn't know when the candle on the dining table had gone out.
She cried silently. She clutched her clothes and held her chest as if an invisible sharp knife had pierced it.
Outside, the rain continued to pour down on the Valcaria city.
And behind the walls of that luxurious penthouse, Rafaello leaned back, staring at the empty floor. His hands trembled—not because of anger—his desire to take revenge on Lovita had been fulfilled. He can do anything to that woman just with the words that came out of his mouth. But for some reason, his chest felt heavy.