Why'd you do it, Ji-Woo?

Levi Summers

Levi sat in his oversized armchair, his eyes darting nervously to the clock on the wall. Each silent tick seemed longer than the last. The morning sunlight filtered through the blinds, casting long, thin shadows across the furnished living room before him. He drummed his fingers on the armrest, a restless rhythm that showcased his anxiety.

He could feel the weight of anticipation pressing down on him. Any moment now, Ji-Woo would arrive for their daily meeting. Levi's breath hitched at the thought. Not just because the sight of the woman always triggered his deepest anxieties but because of memories of Lauren from the previous night.

'A true coward would never have gone and gotten **** like you did. It's always the quiet ones who are the sadists, huh?'

Levi shook his head, remembering how he had attempted to counter her argument by saying he was trying to save everyone. Which only made the memory of Lauren laugh. 'Like you're saving Ji-Woo? She told me how you're avoiding her. Admit it, you're creaming yourself thinking about her being eliminated!'

Levi slammed his fist on the armrest. It wasn't true. He hated Ji-Woo, but he wasn't a monster. No one deserved to go through the elimination process.

'John deserved it,' an intrusive thought voiced, replaying another of Lauren's words.

'How many tears have you shed for Jezebel? Do you even care that one of your classmates is gone forever? No, of course not. It must have been so empowering to get back for all the pain she caused you.'

"It doesn't matter. There's nothing that can be done about him, Levi argued aloud. "And I'm trying my best with Ji-Woo. But I can't just... get over it!"

At this, a different memory replayed in his head: Elena confronting him by the pool about Ji-Woo. 'Ji-Woo is a wonderful person. She didn't do anything to deserve your disapproval. You're being selfish. What your dad did was his own choice. She had nothing to do with it. It's not fair for you to blame her. You just need to get to know her.'

Levi scoffed. He had been going over their conversation a hundred times and still didn't know what to take from it. Why did Elena even bring it up? Was she right? Was it possible that he was being selfish and that it was so blatant that even his only friend could see it?

In any case, both Elena and Lauren had somehow made the upcoming encounter even more anxiety-inducing than before.

Levi jumped in his chair as he heard the door open from down the stairs. The clicking of Ji-Woo's heels on the steps as she approached followed. 'Just keep it together,' Levi told himself. 'All I need to do is get her over zero VP. Stop being childish and do what you need to.' He nodded in resolve as he looked over to the stairs.

Said resolve shattered the moment he saw her.

"Hello Mr. Summers," Ji-Woo greeted with an uncanny smile, while pressing her notes against her chest in a way that drew the eye to her cleavage.

Levi instinctively wanted to return a similar greeting, but the words died in his mouth, so he just nodded.

Seeing he wouldn't say anything to her, she walked over to a table and began making his coffee. After several minutes of silence, she strutted over to him with the mug and her notes. She attempted to walk in a way that bounced her bra-less chest while not spilling anything. As he arrived, Levi nodded once more, and took the cup.

“Let me know if it is to your liking, sir.” Both winced at the usage of the last word. Ji-Woo then 'accidentally' dropped her pen onto a red sofa perpendicular to him.

"Oops, clumsy me," she cried, and reached for it, only to push it deeper beneath the cracks of the mattress. "My, it's really stuck down there," she added. She then mounted the sofa, bent over to look into the crack, her rear pointed in Levi's directions. She could fee her skirt riding up, and knew that her panties and bottom of her ass cheeks were being exposed through her nylon.

Picking the pen up, she glanced back, only to see that Levi had been averting his eyes the entire time. To be fair to him, it wasn't due to a lack of effort. He was trying to look at her, but every time he saw her, his flight instinct kicked in, and his eyes darted away.

Ji-Woo her tongue in annoyance. 'Damn it. Were you even TRYING Elena?' Sighing, she concluded her charade by taking the pen, and sitting on the sofa.

She cleared her throat. "This will be the second of our daily meetings to prepare you for your duties as Master today," Ji-Woo said, paraphrasing exactly as her job pamphlets expected her to say. "Please let me know if you want a reminder of what these meetings will entail."

"No thanks," Levi responded, finally speaking. Ji-Woo took this as a small victory.

Ji-Woo opened her folder. "You only have three events today. Azure will hold a morning kickoff in the dining hall at 10 AM sharp as always. While it is usually 30 minutes, my notes specify that it may go an additional fifteen, as Azure intends to speak more about the challenge." Both shuddered at this, though Ji-Woo tried to remain professional. "Breakfast will also be in the dining hall, which has already been opened. Would you like me to pencil in some time to eat after our meeting?"

"Sure, please, uh, schedule 30 minutes for it," Levi replied, leaning into the pretend boss-employee dichotomy. He found that doing so helped him think of her as a nameless secretary and not the source of his anxiety.

Ji-Woo turned to her second page. "As we have been repeatedly reminded, the challenge is at 1 PM. The location and duration will be revealed at the previously mentioned kickoff. Though you are not competing in it, you must attend."

Ji-Woo added, with a tremble, "I will, of course, be unavailable during that time."

Levi felt a pang of empathy through his discomfort. "I'm sorry," he muttered, but it was too soft for her to hear.

Ji-Woo continued. "After the challenge, you will be free most of the day until 7 PM, when you have your date with Sophia Maoulin."

Levi looked up, finally making eye contact. "Sophia?"

"Yes," Ji-Woo nodded, glad he was interacting with her. "Mrs. Maoulin added her name to the waitlist yesterday."

Levi felt an unexpected wave of relief. He didn't know Sophia well, but after the absolute nightmare his date with Lauren had been, an evening with her sounded like paradise. Though, he was surprised she volunteered, considering their last interaction ended with her fleeing.

Ji-Woo closed her folder. "That's it for your set activities. However, I am at your service if you wish to schedule an event during your downtime. Similar to yesterday's pool party."

"I'll let you know," Levi replied.

Ji-Woo leaned forward. "Also, if you want me to organize other contestants, I can do that."

"Ok."

"And I can relay messages to them, should it be useful to you!" she added loudly.

"Oh," Levi said, realizing she was trying to get him to give her a task. "I promise I'll tell you if I think of something," he said, nothing coming to him. "I guess I'll see you at breakfast then."

Ji-Woo stood up and bowed her head. She turned to leave, giving Levi a sense of relief that the conversation was ending. While he hadn't gotten her any points, he had at least managed to not make things worse. There would still be time to get her the one point she needed.

Ji-Woo took a few steps, but then stopped. "Listen, Mr. Summers. I was hoping we could clear the air," she offered.

'No! Oh god no!' Levi panicked.

"I'm aware I was rude last time, and that you hold… justified resentment towards me for... prior actions on my part." Ji-Woo explained. "It breaks my heart to hear that they caused you years of pain, and I feel I owe you an explanation."

'Please stop talking about this!' Levi silently begged.

"I didn't know you well at the time. Your father always spoke about how much he loved you, of course, but I do not believe we ever actually spoke."

'Shut up. Shut up. Shut up.'

Ji-Woo willed herself to cry. "But that's no excuse. I'm ashamed that I didn't consider how much pain someone so young must have been going through. Please believe me when I say that that it was never my intention to traumatize you."

Levi clenched his fist. "Whatever."

"I'm serious!" she emphasized. "Please believe me. If I had met you, known you, I swear I would have done things differently to stop you from getting hurt."

"Fine, I forgive you," Levi lied, just wanting her to go away.

Ji-Woo knew he wasn't being sincere, but she still took it as a positive step. "Thank you. I hope that I can prove my..."

"But what about my mom?" Levi heard himself blurt out before he could stop himself.

Ji-Woo blinked several times in confusion. "I beg your pardon?"

Levi looked her in the eye. "You said you would have avoided hurting me if you knew me. But you knew my mom, right?"

Ji-Woo's eyes narrowed. "Through social events, yes."

All of Levi's sense were telling him to back off, but he couldn't hold it back anymore. "Did you try to keep her from getting hurt?"

Ji-Woo pressed her lips together, trying with all her strength to hold in the irritation. She had plenty of thought about Levi’s mother Jenny, but she knew she’d lose a hundred points before she listed even half of them. “Of course I never meant to hurt her,” Ji-Woo said through a **** smile.

Levi’s eyes narrowed, her response telling him all he wanted to know. "Ok," he said dismissively.

Ji-Woo could tell there was nothing else to say. She nodded once more, took her notes, and went down the stairs. To her dismay, she saw her VP hadn't changed at all.

Levi buried his face into his hands, exhausted. All he wanted to do was crawl back into bed. Still, he couldn't help but feel a tiny bit proud of himself for keeping it together as well as he did.

So it was to his dismay that when he heard Ji-Woo's heeled footsteps once more as she came back up. "What do you..." Levi began, but cried out in shock as he saw that she had unbuttoned her top, and was flashing her tits at him, with a look of self loathing and desperation plastered on her face.

Flashed the Master: +6 VP

Horrified Him: -50%

"LEAVE!" Levi shrieked, jumping to his feet. Once again, Ji-Woo could feel her legs being taken over, and she was **** to strut out of the tower in an exaggerated swagger. As she passed the scoreboard again, she let out a sigh at relief to see she was, at the very least, out of the negatives.

Levi didn't move until he heard the door at the bottom of the stairs close, and waited several seconds to be sure she wasn't coming back. He then took his coffee, went to the sink, and poured it out.

---

Tomoko Nakaya

Tomoko yawned as she joined Sophia and Kaitlyn in gathering around a silver door. She was still in her pajamas. After she had been awoken by Elena and ensured the latter that she had no idea where Ji-Woo was, Sophia had invited her to join them in their new investigation.

Of course, the door was the second in a series of "secret doors" hidden around the castle. As Sophia had demonstrated the previous morning, a new one would unlock every 24 hours. The last time, it had been a greenhouse, and the three women couldn't help but take a moment to speculate.

"Anyone want to make any bets?" Sophia asked.

Kaitlyn sighed, not really in the mood for games. Her worry about the upcoming challenge was too great. "Who the hell knows? Though considering Azure, it's probably a strip club or something."

"Oh man, I hope so," Tomoko smiled. "Clubbing's just what I need to blow off steam." The other two exchanged a look at this, and Kaitlyn couldn't help but let a smile break through her worry.

With a collective breath, Sophia reached out and turned the handle. The door swung open with an eerie groan, revealing a sight that made all three women gasp in unison. They were standing at the threshold of an empty tavern. Like before, its size defied the dimensions that should have been possible. Dimly lit chandeliers hung from the ceiling high above, their flickering candles casting long shadows across the polished wooden floor. Rows of empty tables stretched before them, each adorned with intricately carved chairs. A long bar, lined with stools, stood at the far end of the room, its surface gleaming as if it had just been polished.

"OH HELL YEAH!" Tomoko cheered, her every footstep echoing into the cavernous space as she rushed in. "I haven't had anything to drink since I got here!"

Kaitlyn, by contrast, took a more cautious step inside. "I wouldn't drink that. It might be **** or something."

"We've been eating the castle food the past few days, and it's been safe," Sophia offered. Despite the incredible ambiance of the tavern, the girl couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed. She always hated **** and how it made her feel. Still, she couldn't help but imagine how awesome it would be to run a D&D session here.

Having already made a full lap around the tavern, Tomoko approached the front counter so she could get a closer look at the dozens of bottle labels.

"Hello," Alison said dryly, appearing out of thin air when Tomoko reached it.

"Gah!" the three women expressed shock at her sudden appearance. Tomoko said, "A little warning before you do that!"

Alison tilted her head. "Warning you would require appearing in front of you regardless, defeating its purpose."

Sophia laughed as she and Kailyn joined Tomoko at the counter. "What are you doing here?" Kaitlyn asked.

"My duties on this show have been expanded. I will offer my assistance in fulfilling this room's function if required," Alison explained in her usual indirect manner.

"You're going to be a bartender?" Kaitlyn asked, rephrasing words.

Alison nodded. "Since humans expect someone to pour liquid for them in such venues, yes."

"Awesome!" Tomoko cheered, pulling up a chair. "What ya got that's stiff?"

"It's nine in the morning," Sophia reminded her. This only made Tomoko laugh.

"You also have a challenge in a few hours," Kaitlyn added.

"Oh yeah," Tomoko replied, her smile fading. She spent a few moments debating the matter before finally giving in to reason. "I guess not now, then."

The millisecond Alison heard that her services wouldn't be needed, she vanished.

---

Elena Mendez

The princess had her arms crossed in agitation, watching the entrance to Levi's tower like a hawk. Finally, the door opened. Ji-Woo was in the process of buttoning up her shirt as she stepped out, and Elena saw a flash of her nipple, but she didn't care.

"There you are," Elena shouted, marching to her.

Ji-Woo's heart sank at the voice of the princess. Pretending she didn't hear her, she took a sharp right, striding out to one of the castle's gardens.

"Hey!" Elena hollered again, picking up her pace and confronting her outside.

Ji-Woo stopped and glanced at her, trying to keep her face neutral. "Ah, hello, princess. Can I help you?"

"Tell me! Tell me you didn't do it!" she shouted in her face.

Ji-Woo feigned ignorance. "I'm afraid I don't understand."

"Did you screw me over?!"

Ji-Woo burrowed her brow in simulated confusion. "Why would you even ask such a thing?"

Elena pointed a finger in the secretary's mug. "Then explain last night! I was obsessed with you at dinner, and you didn't react. Because you knew, DIDN'T YOU!"

"You're talking nonsense," Ji-Woo replied dismissively and strode past her.

However, Elena grabbed her wrist. "That's not a no!"

Ji-Woo slapped her hand away. "Damn it, of course I didn't control you!"

Elena let out a shrill chuckle. "I never said control!"

Ji-Woo's eyes widened. "I... I assumed that's what you were implying," she improvised, but Elena wasn't taking it.

"I knew it! I KNEW IT! What the hell did you do to me?!" Elena demanded.

Ji-Woo strained desperately to find an excuse. But after a beat, she realized it was futile. Throwing up her hands, she admitted, "Fine! You win! I used one of Jezebel's cards to make you endorse me."

The confession only made Elena angrier. "Why would you do that?!"

Ji-Woo massaged her left temple. "Mr. Summers won't talk to me. You saw it yourself yesterday morning. Surely, you understand I had no alternative."

"So, made me into your ****?!" Elena asked in disdain.

Ji-Woo was aghast by the indictment. "I didn't make you a ****. I just made you say a few nice things, that's all. Compared to what Azure has done to you, that hardly seems..."

Elena cut her off with laughter. "Are you seriously comparing yourself to Azure? Like that means anything?!"

Ji-Woo sighed. "You're taking this too seriously."

Elena saw red, her outrage rivaling that of her Amazonian counterpart. "How the hell am I supposed to take it?! You violated my brain!"

"Stop exaggerating!" the secretary snapped back. "You were inconvenienced at worst. I'm trying to save my life. You should be jumping to aid someone in need."

Elena turned up her nose in revulsion. "I'm not the selfish one here!"

"Of course, you're not. It... I... I had ****." Ji-Woo threw up her hands. "What were my options? You're the only one he trusts! You saw what happens to those who can't survive this game."

Elena sneered. "Of course I did! All of us did! But you don't see any of us mindscrewing each other!"

"You don't understand!" Ji-Woo bellowed. "You're not in any danger!"

"Of course I am!"

Ji-Woo pointed her finger in the teenager's face. "No, you aren't! The Master already likes you! You're tied for first! You can outlast this without even trying! Meanwhile, I'm doing everything I can and am barely staying afloat!"

Elena wasn't moved. "If you wanted help so bad, you could have just asked instead of stabbing me in the back!"

"You already demonstrated you were unwilling to assist me," Ji-Woo reminded her. "Yesterday, you took Levi's side in our meeting, encouraging his grudge against me!"

"And because of that, you think it's okay to exploit me without asking?!"

"I couldn't ask! What if you said no? Then you would know exactly what was happening when you suddenly became nicer to me!"

"¡Dios mío!" Elena cried, throwing up her hands in disbelief. "Are you listening to yourself?! That's worse! You're telling me you didn't ask so it would be easier to lie about it later!"

Ji-Woo took a step back. "That's not what I meant."

Elena closed the distance. "No, that's exactly what you meant! I can't believe you! You know, even after everything you did to my friend, I still wanted to give you the benefit of the doubt. But you're just as vile as he thinks. You don't care about anyone but yourself!"

"I'm trying to get back to my husband!" Ji-Woo argued.

"You mean the one you stole?" the teenager snarled.

That hit a nerve. "I won't apologize for falling in love! And frankly, I am sick of that misogynistic accusation!"

"Screw you! I swear if it was night time I'd tear your damn head off!" Elena threatened, pantomiming the decapitation with her hands. "You'd better pray I don't come for you in your sleep!"

Elena turned her back on her, marching back towards the castle.

"Wait!" Ji-Woo called after her. Elena halted but didn't say anything. "You're not going to tell him, are you?"

Elena turned her head. "Is that a joke? Of course, I'm going to!"

"You can't!" Ji-Woo shrieked. "He's just barely started to talk to me!"

Elena grinned. "You should have thought of that before enslaving me!"

A look of panic erupted on Ji-Woo's face before she managed to hide it behind a calm demeanor. "Fine," Ji-Woo sighed, trying her best to sound diplomatic. "What do you want?"

"Huh?"

"As his secretary, I can see and influence his schedule," Ji-Woo explained. "I can put you in an advantageous position or collect information on your behalf."

The teenager felt sick. "Are you seriously bribing me? Not everyone can be bought." With that, Elena continued her stride towards the castle entrance.

"No, wait! Please! I beg you!" Ji-Woo screamed, her methodical facade shattering completely. Running up to her, she fell to her knees, bowing before the princess. "I'm sorry! Please, you can't! You can't tell him!"

Elena shifted to look down at the display as tears of terror fell down Ji-Woo's face. "The challenge is hours away! There's no time left! It's a **** sentence if you tell him! Please! Spare me! SPARE ME!"

Elena silently looked down at her for a long while, conflicting emotions battling in the princess's heart. For the first time in her life, she wished she could muffle out her own empathy. Let her be selfish for once and hurt the one who wronged her. And yet, as she watched the pathetic sight in front of her, her insufferable conscience grew ever louder.

"I'll wait until after the challenge to tell him," Elena muttered.

Ji-Woo's eyes brightened. "Thank you! Oh god, thank you so much!" She got to her feet and reached out to hug her, but Elena held up a hand.

"Don't touch me! From now on, you stay the hell away from me. And if I ever catch you pulling this kind of crap on me, or anyone else, I swear I'll spend every BP I can to make sure you regret it."

"Yes," Ji-Woo shuttered. "Yes, of course."

Elena marched off, calling back, "But if I were you, I'd be an adult and tell him yourself before I do tonight!"

Ji-Woo gulped as she watched the princess enter the castle, out of sight.

---

Levi Summers

Levi rushed down the halls, hoping there would still be time for him to eat breakfast. It had taken him a bit to pull himself together after his meeting with Ji-Woo, and now there was only 15 minutes until the 10 AM kickoff.

As he rounded the corner, he saw a thin, dark-haired girl leaning against the wall whom he didn't recognize. She wore a black shirt that seemed too big for her, along with jeans. She looked over at him with an aloof expression, making him stop in his tracks.

"Yo. We need to talk," the stranger said.

"Oh. Okay. Uh, nice to meet you," Levi greeted.

The girls' eyes narrowed. "It's Olivia."

"Oh, OH! I'm sorry!" he expressed in shock and embarrassment.

Olivia rolled her eyes. "Whatever."

"Uh, what do you need?" he asked.

Olivia shifted herself away from the wall and approached him. "Listen, this curse is a real pain in the ass," she explained, pretending as though it were just an annoyance. "So I need your help fixing it. I know I beat you off yesterday, but I think you have to penetrate me for it to count."

Levi blushed, both from the topic and by how blunt she was about it. "You don't mean right now, do you?"

Olivia chuckled. "We have the stupid kickoff to go to. Unless you want to fuck on the table in front of everyone."

"No!" Levi clamored.

"I know. It was a joke."

"Oh, right," he laughed nervously.

Olivia observed him, noticing his discomfort. "Did you lose your virginity yesterday?" she asked out of nowhere.

Levi did a double take. "What?! No!"

"Ah," Olivia expressed, turning her eyes away in thought. "I see. So maybe you should do it with another girl first."

"Huh?"

"The host bitch said the first person who fucks you gets a bonus multiplier," Olivia reminded him. "I'm in the first place, so another chick might benefit more from the boost."

Levi wasn't sure how to react. "That's... uh... thoughtful of you."

"I'm just trying to be practical," Olivia shrugged. She then narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "You are trying to save everyone, right?"

"Of course I am," Levi countered.

"Well, try to get it done before five tonight," Olivia said. "That's when I shrink, and I'll probably blow away if I let it happen again." She added, "Just bump nasties with someone, and then come find me."

"I... uh... okay." was all Levi could manage.

"Solid. Thanks," Olivia expressed, with the casualness of two people who just planned lunch. She turned and walked to the dining hall, Levi following behind her.

---

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