"I don't understand what you mean," Yuki said softly.
Igor's faint smile carried no warmth as he spoke again.
"You're not stupid, Yuki. The boss saved you from that brothel because he's still interested in you. But how long do you think that interest will last? A week? A month?"
And then he leaned closer, lowering his voice to a dangerous whisper as he continued his words.
"You know that his interest will fade when you are no longer pretty and attractive. And when that happens... he could throw you away like a piece of trash."
Yuki fell silent. His words struck a chord she couldn't ignore. Deep down, she knew he was right. With her status, she was nothing more than a plaything—a temporary amusement that could be discarded the moment Ivan grew bored. And when he finally abandoned her, she would be stranded far from home, with nowhere to run. In that distant land, being cast aside by Ivan would be no different from dying.
"But I can't just stay here," she murmured, her voice trembling. "I ran away from the brothel. If they find me—"
"Ah… you don't need to worry about that."
Igor cut her off before she could finish, raising his hand to his head as if miming a gun.
"Boss killed your owner, and I took care of the rest. Most of them are now sunk in the sea. Do you want to see them?"
Yuki stared at him in disbelief. That kind of information wasn't meant to be shared with outsiders—especially not with someone like her. Yet Igor showed no sign of regret. The ease with which he spoke, the casual tone in which he admitted to murder, told her that Igor was a high-ranking, untouchable member of Ivan's group.
"Didn't you see the news?" he asked, tilting his head when Yuki was preoccupied with her own thoughts. "The red-light district burned to the ground. It's gone now. You don't have to fear being hunted anymore."
He then shrugged, feigning disappointment. "It was a fun place while it lasted. But when my boss gives an order, it's absolute that we can't do anything about that."
When Igor stopped talking, the silence that followed was heavy. Igor turned to look at Yuki, who was still silent. However, he knew that her eyes showed conflict. At that moment, Igor knew he had managed to shake Yuki with just his words.
"So," Igor said at last, tilting his head toward her. "Does that make you feel better?"
Yuki said nothing. Hiroshi's death had been something she wished for—an end to the man who had kept her caged for so long. With the destruction of the brothel and his network, she should have felt free.
She could now live like a normal person. Walk under the sun without fear. Breathe air that didn't reek of smoke and cheap perfume.
Even so—
"You could even go back to your sister," Igor added casually. "She's still alive, you know."
The mention of her sister made Yuki's breath hitch. Her fists clenched tightly in her lap. She still remembered the night she was taken, the time when the desperate Yuzu had screamed her name, crying and struggling while trying hard to prevent her from leaving. Yuzu had always been kind to her. The thought that she was still out there, alive, sent a painful warmth through Yuki's chest.
If she returned, Yuzu would welcome her. They could start over, free from their parents' cruelty. Maybe, just maybe, they could finally live the life they'd once promised each other.
"…Why are you doing this?" Yuki asked at last. "Why would you help me? You barely know me."
Igor chuckled lowly, but there was no humor in it. "Don't misunderstand. I'm doing this for my boss as well. He's our leader. But lately, he's been making reckless decisions because of you."
His tone sharpened with disdain after that.
"When he beat that man, Takawa—the one with influence here—and when he killed Hiroshi… none of that was part of the plan. We could have eliminated them cleanly, without setting half the district on fire."
Everything had spiraled since Ivan's obsession began. And as his right hand, Igor saw it as his duty to correct his boss' mistakes.
The faint amusement drained from Igor's face, replaced by cold severity.
"As our leader, he cannot afford such weakness," Igor said. "If you go back with us, dissatisfaction will spread among ourselves. People will whisper. They'll question him. Some will turn against him."
He took another step closer. When he didn't smile, his face was so intimidating that Yuki unconsciously held her breath.
"Even if you don't die because Boss likes you, you will die because of the dissatisfaction of the people who support him. When that happens, you will only cause greater friction within our organization."
He leaned in slightly, his voice dropping to a near-growl. "So I'm not offering you a choice, Yuki. I'm commanding you—before I'm forced to handle things in my own way."
The weight of his words pressed down on her like a blade at her throat. His gaze was ice-cold, the look of a man entirely capable of killing her without hesitation.
"Three days," he said flatly. "Spend these three days with him if you want, but that's all I can allow."
He turned to leave, his boots heavy against the marble floor. But halfway to the door, he paused. Without facing Yuki, his voice cut through the silence one last time.
"Alisa knows nothing of this. Don't breathe a word to her. I know you're smart enough to understand what I mean."
Igor wanted Yuki to keep quiet and act normally in front of other people. Yuki understood, but she couldn't stop frowning when she thought about Igor's earlier offer.
As Igor reached for the door, he added one final remark, his tone colder than ever.
"Three days. That's how long you have to decide what kind of woman you want to be."
And with that, Igor was gone—leaving Yuki in the echoing quiet of the penthouse, her trembling hands clenched into fists, her heartbeat roaring in her ears.