* * *
“I wonder if humans simply cannot understand a simple instruction to only speak when spoken to.”
Leviathan looked down at Hayden as if he were a worthless bug.
Even though Hayden’s hair was being pulled, his face still showed a sense of being wronged.
Leviathan’s eyes narrowed. In fact, Leviathan couldn’t understand why Hayden felt mistreated.
Who was the one who did well at first but eventually became lazy?
It was the sacrifice.
According to Riffle’s report, Lucifer had skipped dinner and kept this thing by his side all night.
As Beelzebub—who has the sharpest sense of smell among the lords—had said, the scent of Lucifer still clung heavily to him.
There was no doubt he had received Lucifer’s seed. It was irritating that instead of being grateful for receiving such precious seed, the human only complained about his own unfairness.
‘I don’t know why he kept something like this all night.’
Leviathan was a demon born from the sin of envy and jealousy.
Since he was the lord who received that sin most strongly, his jealousy was beyond words.
He didn’t particularly have affection for the sacrifice or want to sleep with him, but thinking that Lucifer had tasted this body first made him feel naturally jealous.
Therefore, Leviathan sought a logical reason for why he hadn’t taken this sacrifice first.
The sacrifice gave the impression of being thin and small overall.
If left alone, he looked like he would die quietly without anyone knowing.
His face and clean skin were okay to look at, but his body didn’t seem like it would be fun to touch.
“Le… Leviathan-nim…”
Leviathan, who had been judging him in his head, snapped out of it at Hayden’s tearful call and lightly let go.
Hayden let out a ragged breath and collapsed to the floor.
‘Right. Since he is worthless, I cannot give him my precious tool. Especially not to a human.’
Thinking of it that way made his unpleasantness fade a bit.
Thinking that the arrogant Lucifer had desired a lowly creature that he himself wouldn’t even look at actually made him feel better.
“Ha…”
Originally, he intended to just give a proper punishment and send him away.
But now that he felt better, he was willing to educate this stupid sacrifice.
Because of Lucifer’s hasty decision, the education of the sacrifice—which Riffle should have handled—became the responsibility of the lords.
Since the other lords wouldn’t educate him properly anyway, Leviathan had no choice but to step up.
Leviathan didn’t know that if Hayden had heard those inner thoughts, he would have been very happy.
Leviathan stepped on Hayden’s thigh with his neat shoe.
Hayden, who was kneeling and trying to catch his breath, froze in surprise.
He tried to get up instantly, but his leg wouldn’t move.
It was just one foot placed on him, but it felt as heavy as lead.
The pressure felt like it would burst all the muscles in his thigh.
“Ugh, ugh…”
“Be happy, Hayden. I have an educational method that suits you.”
Leviathan’s educational philosophy was simple.
Repetitive learning.
No matter how stupid or lazy someone is, there is nothing they can’t learn if you drill it into them repeatedly.
At least, that’s what Leviathan thought.
Leviathan took his foot off Hayden’s thigh and tapped the floor.
As light-blue magic spread, four snakes crawled up from the ceiling and floor of the office and pulled Hayden’s limbs tight.
Hayden struggled violently as he was pulled into the air in an instant, but the snakes had already become shackled restraints, pressing down on his limbs.
“Wait, let go…!”
Despite Hayden’s struggle, the crest did not activate.
The punishment of the crest only reacts to actions and words regarding the owner or those included by the owner.
Since the opponent was Leviathan, the crest would not trigger.
Therefore, Hayden struggled as much as he wanted, but it didn’t do much good.
When the cold surface of the iron shackles touched his skin, Hayden twisted his body in panic.
“What are you going to do to me…!”
Falling into extreme fear, Hayden screamed without even thinking about using polite speech.
Leviathan only fixed his dull, sunken eyes on Hayden without offering any explanation.
Leviathan took something out of thin air and swung it lightly.
The sound of it cutting through the air was clear. Hayden’s body flinched hard.
“My education has a few rules. Only answer what is asked, and answer immediately. Endure the sounds that dirty my ears. Do not forget what I have taught you. I believe you can remember at least this much. If you use your stupid brain well, I’ll make sure it doesn’t interfere with your next tasks.”
The tone was polite, but the content was not.
Hayden’s light purple eyes confirmed the object in his hand.
“Now, then. Let’s re-teach you the attitude a sacrifice should have.”
It was a riding whip.
A riding whip, with a flat piece of leather at the end of a thin stick, was commonly used for horses.
Seeing an object that he usually only saw used by coachmen or riders, Hayden blinked busily and ran his tongue along the inside of his mouth.
‘As expected.’
It was a jackpot.
Seeing a familiar tool after a long time, Hayden looked at the whip in Leviathan’s hand with welcome eyes and thought quickly.
How can I get him to hit me more?
What path should I take to get more punishment?
Hayden, falling into a different kind of worry than others, clenched his tied hands and made a decision.
Yes. Since he is the Lord of Envy, it would be best to provoke that part.
If he shows that he already has experience with corporal punishment, the highly jealous Leviathan will try to change what someone else has already engraved to suit his own taste.
Plus, if he shows fear toward the punishment, Leviathan might try to make him perceive the punishment as something that feels good.
Coincidentally, there was someone in his memories who used to beat ‘Hayden’ whenever they met.
Slide. Flinch.
Leviathan pressed the end of the whip against Hayden’s neck.
A chill spread where the leather of the whip traced a line down from his neck.
From the Adam’s apple to the collarbone tensed with nerves, the center of the chest covered by cloth, the white skin of the belly, and down to the lap barely covered.
Leviathan wore a faint sneer.
Every time the whip brushed a spot, the tied body flinched.
It was quite a sight to see him so scared when he didn’t even know what the whip was going to be used for.
He probably never used it for this purpose in his life.
Hayden, who had turned pale with fear, asked in a suppressed voice.
“What on earth are you…?”
“Again.”
Leviathan swung the whip lightly.
Hayden’s body jolted as the whip cut through the air and landed sharply on his white skin.
Hayden bit his lip instantly, and a blocked groan echoed from deep in his throat.
“Hhp!”
A red mark rose on his snowy-white side where the whip landed.
It took only a second for the red lash mark to be engraved on the white skin that looked like it had never been beaten.
Hayden, who couldn’t speak for a moment due to the stinging pain, struggled as the pain grew and his eyes soon filled with tears.
“Wait, wait a moment…”
A wrinkle formed between Leviathan’s brows.
How many times has the sacrifice opened his mouth without permission?
He had told him several times already, yet he couldn’t even remember that.
It made him feel foolish for having internally praised the human’s work skills earlier.
This sacrifice was only slightly better than the previous one.
Whish!
“Haug!”
Without a word, Leviathan swung the whip again and struck Hayden’s thigh.
Because his limbs were tied and his legs were spread apart, the thick flesh of his thigh was pressed firmly and then rose again.
“Under no circumstances should a mere sacrifice treat their master comfortably.”
“Huu, stop…”
Leviathan walked in a circle around Hayden.
The sound of his slow footsteps echoed loudly like a time bomb’s timer.
Having already been whipped twice, Hayden gripped the chains and grew tense, not knowing when or where the next strike would come from.
“It is the duty of a sacrifice to bow their head to their master and fulfill their assigned tasks.”
“Hu…”
The moment his shallow breath scattered like mist and his white belly caved in.
Crack!
“Ugh! Mmp, huuuu…”
As the sharp touch of leather lashed his exposed back, his bound body lunged forward.
A strange sound—a mix of a scream, a groan, and a sob—kept escaping Hayden’s mouth.
“Do you understand?”
“Mmp, hik…”
When Hayden didn’t answer, Leviathan’s hand moved again.
* * *
