The room smelled faintly of soap and warm steam when Yuki stepped out of the bathroom. Her hair was still damp, drops of water tracing down her shoulders and back after the grueling day she had endured. Yuki wore the clothes that Alisa had prepared for her. The beautiful dress looked in contrast to her exhausted body.
"Sit here, Yuki."
Alisa, who had stayed behind in Yuki's room, patted the edge of the bed beside her in a gentle tone as soon as Yuki was out. Yuki obeyed quietly. As she sat down, Alisa helped smooth the wrinkles in her dress, then asked her softly to turn around.
From a small tin, Alisa took a cooling balm with a fresh mint scent and began rubbing it carefully onto Yuki's sore shoulders and arms. Her touch was so tender that Yuki felt no discomfort at all—only a quiet sense of relief spreading through her tired limbs.
"You should use this every night," Alisa whispered. "Otherwise, I'm afraid you won't even be able to move in the morning."
Yuki nodded. "Thank you, Alisa."
For a while, neither of them spoke. Only the soft sound of Alisa's hands moving against Yuki's skin filled the room, accompanied by the slow rhythm of their breaths. Then, after a brief silence, Alisa spoke again. Her tone is lower now, careful, almost hesitant.
"You know… I think you need to be patient a little longer, Yuki. Mr. Mikhail isn't the kind of man who lets people get close easily. But if he decided to bring you here, then there must be a reason for that. I'm sure he'll take good care of you."
Yuki smiled faintly, but the smile lacked any warmth.
"I'm not so sure," she murmured. "I don't even know why I'm still here."
Alisa lowered her gaze, guilt flickering across her expression. Her words had only made things heavier. She paused, then gently patted Yuki's hand.
"All right, don't think about it too much," she said, forcing a brighter tone. "Now, it's time for your language lesson! But if you're really tired, we can continue tomorrow."
Yuki shook her head, meeting Alisa's eyes. Despite the weariness in them, a soft light still shone there.
"It's fine. I still have strength left," she said. "I want to learn… so I can be useful to him. After all, I don't want him to regret bringing me here."
Alisa stared at her quietly for a moment. Beneath Yuki's determination, she saw a woman who was trying to survive after losing everything. The realization ached in her chest, but she couldn't let Yuki see that pity.
So she took a deep breath, burying the heaviness in her heart, and smiled again.
"Then, let's begin, Yuki."
***
That night, Yuki waited for Ivan to come.
The small bedside lamp flickered faintly, but her eyes stayed fixed on the door. She wanted Ivan to see how hard she had worked today—to know that she wasn't just some burden he'd dragged across the nation.
But as the hours slipped by and the hallway remained silent, her anticipation slowly turned into disappointment. Still, she fought to keep her face composed. She knew that if Ivan came and saw even a trace of disappointment in her, he would hate it.
"Sigh…"
When drowsiness finally began to overtake her, Yuki clung to a fragile hope—that perhaps Ivan hadn't come because he was busy. Igor and Alisa had told her as much in passing. In Russia, Ivan's life was far more demanding than it ever was in Japan.
"Maybe tomorrow… he'll come to see me."
Holding on to that small hope, Yuki finally closed her eyes. Fatigue pulled her under almost instantly, and within seconds, she drifted into a deep, dreamless sleep.
***
CREAK!
It was past midnight when someone opened Yuki's bedroom door. The cold outdoor air seeped into the room along with his presence. He approached silently. And Yuki, who was fast asleep, was completely unaware that a large shadow had stopped beside her bed.
"Yuki..."
Ivan—that figure—stared at her for a long time after calling her name in a soft voice. Yuki's face looked tired, but she was still unconsciously trying to smile even in her sleep. Something strange pressed on Ivan's chest when he saw that, something he didn't want to admit.
After a moment, Ivan's hand reached out to touch Yuki's cheek. Ivan enjoyed how Yuki stirred when she felt his touch. Slowly, his touch changed. His fingers moved from Yuki's cheek to her mouth, then he slipped his fingers into Yuki's warm mouth.
"Ungh..."
Yuki woke up for a moment, but she was too tired to stay awake at that moment. Yuki unconsciously tried to resist Ivan's fingers with her tongue. But when she did that, Ivan caught her tongue and played with it between his fingers.
"Engh!"
Saliva quickly came out, and that made Yuki wake up faster than before. Yuki's beautiful eyes opened for the second time. But this time, she didn't close her eyes again right away.
"Master..."
Yuki's gaze immediately lit up when she saw Ivan coming to meet her. Her voice sounded sweet as she called his name. Yuki smiled. When she did, she unconsciously bit lightly on Ivan's finger, which was still in her mouth.
"Ugh."
As a result of her action, Ivan pinched her tongue as a warning. Yuki's eyes looked teary afterwards. But when he saw that sad look, Ivan smiled and felt satisfied instead.
"Take off your clothes, Yuki."
Yuki nodded silently, then obediently took off her clothes. Occasionally, Yuki would also respond to Ivan's fingers by playing with her tongue. Ivan guided Yuki to sit down, then watched her remove the last layer of clothes on her body.
"Hm...."
The cold temperature in the room made Yuki shiver, but her anticipation was higher because Ivan was looking at her with satisfaction. Ivan finally pulled out what had been playing in Yuki's mouth. The wet finger moved down from Yuki's lips to the two supple balls that were freely exposed.
"Master..."
Yuki trembled even harder when Ivan started playing with her breasts. Her hands itched to move, but Yuki knew Ivan just wanted her to stay still like a doll. In that situation, all Yuki could do was push her chest forward and let Ivan play with her.
"Hng... Master..."
SLAP!
"!"
Yuki was fully awake when Ivan suddenly slapped her breasts hard without warning. The pain, especially in her nipples, made Yuki want to cry. However, she still did not complain, let alone back away from Ivan's treatment.
"Mas—"
SLAP!
"Hngh...."
Yuki tried to endure the pain when Ivan hit her breasts once more. Yuki tried to look down, only to see that both her nipples were perfectly reddened because of Ivan's actions.
"Ma-master...."
Ivan's smile became more apparent. He seemed completely satisfied after slapping Yuki's breasts twice. His finger gently rubbed Yuki's reddened nipples. Then, when he saw that Yuki's reaction was better than before, he withdrew his hand with satisfaction.
"Play with your own nipples, Yuki. And don't stop until I say so."
Yuki swallowed her saliva with difficulty. But in the end, her hands remained raised to play with her own nipples as Ivan wished her to do.