"W-What are you going to do?"
Inoue watched Wada Saki turn pale and retreat, finally tearing off his mask of pretense.
He spread his hands, his smile growing increasingly twisted as he steadily cornered her, cutting off her escape.
Letting out a frivolous whistle, Inoue seemed to thoroughly enjoy the feeling of playing with his prey with such ease.
"What are we doing? Isn't it obvious? We're going to do something adults 'love' to do."
"Sigh, if you had been sensible and cooperated, I would have taken it slow to spare you some suffering."
He spoke slowly, deliberately torturing Saki and letting her sink deeper into fear.
As he spoke, he reached out toward Saki's cheek.
Slap!
"Don't touch me! You bastard, and to think I actually trusted you!"
Inoue looked at the reddened back of his hand. Instead of getting angry, he grinned and cracked his neck.
"Yo, you've got quite the spirit. Feisty girl."
"It seems gentle persuasion isn't going to work now."
"But since you 'trusted' me so much, it's not too late if you put these clothes on, stay quiet, and let us 'train' you properly."
"I'm not wearing that! Keep it for yourself!"
Saki timed her move as Inoue approached, stomping hard on his foot before spinning around to bolt for the door.
"Aaaah!!"
Caught off guard, Inoue screamed in pain, hopping on one foot.
Saki immediately seized the opening and ran for the exit.
But before she could take two steps, she slammed into a body as hard as a wall—it was the Dark-skinned man.
Without her noticing, he had silently blocked her escape route, standing as immovable as an iron tower.
Saki even stumbled back a few steps from the impact.
The man remained expressionless as he reached out with a thick arm and pinned her down.
"Let me go! Help!"
Saki struggled desperately, kicking wildly, but in the face of such an absolute strength gap, all resistance was futile.
"So noisy."
Fujino pulled out a roll of tape from somewhere, swiftly tore off a piece, and roughly slapped it over Saki's mouth, cutting off her cries for help.
Then, he used a rope to bind Saki's hands tightly.
Having finished, Fujino shoved her into a corner of the room as if discarding an object.
Saki fell heavily onto the cold floor. With her mouth taped, she could only let out helpless whimpers.
Her wrists stung from the friction of the rough rope, and tears welled up uncontrollably.
She curled up in the corner, watching the three men gradually approach, her body trembling incessantly with fear.
The air seemed thick with a suffocating pressure; for the first time, she realized how terrifying men could be.
"Since you're unwilling to cooperate, let's just get straight to the point."
"Anyway... doing it by force is quite 'exciting' too, isn't it?"
Inoue's hypocritical gentlemanly image had vanished, leaving only naked malice, like a beast driven by desire.
The dark-skinned man also grinned. "Looking at this reaction, it's your first time, right? Don't worry, we're much better than those little boys at the academy. We'll make it 'unforgettable' for you."
"It's normal to be scared the first time. It'll hurt a bit at the start, but after that... it'll be pure pleasure, hahaha."
Hearing the unrestrained humiliation, Saki felt that in their eyes, she was nothing more than a disposable toy. Intense regret and bitterness flooded her heart.
[I'm such an idiot! How could there be such a good deal in this world! What was I thinking, letting money blind me!]
[Natsuhi... Natsuhi was right, there's no such thing as a free lunch... I really should have listened to her...]
[At least... at least she didn't come with me... at least she won't be dragged down by me...]
The warnings her best friend Natsuhi gave her when they left school seemed to still echo in her ears, but she might never hear her voice again...
——————
Bang! Bang! Bang!
A violent pounding on the door exploded like thunder, shattering the suffocating atmosphere in the room.
"Hey! Is anyone there?!"
A somewhat low-pitched shout came from outside the door.
The three men, who were on the verge of succeeding, were all stunned. The dark-skinned man grabbed Inoue and lowered his voice to a whisper:
"What's going on? Did you lead the cops here?!"
"Impossible! She was alone when she came!"
Inoue hurriedly pulled up the surveillance on his phone. The screen showed only a single figure with a hat pulled very low.
"It's just one person... can't see the face, doesn't look like a cop."
"Go check it out."
Interrupted at the critical moment, Inoue walked to the door with an impatient face and growled:
"Who is it?! Beat it!"
Outside, Natsuhi, who was speaking while pinching her nose, felt her heart tighten. She had acted out of desperation, knocking to interrupt as soon as she heard something was wrong inside.
Her mind raced, and she had a sudden flash of inspiration:
"Uh, checking the water meter! Open up!"
"Water meter? Who checks the water meter at this time? We're busy, get lost!"
The plan to sneak in by pretending to be property management had failed.
Sensing the person inside was about to leave the door, Natsuhi clapped her hands in anxiety and stopped caring about the consequences.
"Open... UP!!"
Her hands clamped onto the door handle like hydraulic pliers. She suddenly exerted force from her core, mobilizing her entire body's strength—
With a "thud," the entire glass wall vibrated, making an unsettling noise.
With her enhanced physical fitness and the explosive techniques etched into her genes from her past life, she actually created such a terrifying commotion.
(Though she knew this electronic-locked glass door couldn't be forced open by human strength alone, the noise she made was enough to intimidate those inside.)
"Hey! Hey! Stop pulling! It's an electronic lock! I'll open it for you, alright?"
Inoue had never seen such a display. For a moment, he even thought there was an earthquake. Just who was outside?
To keep the door intact, he had no choice but to open it—otherwise, the person outside might actually tear the door down.