CHAPTER ONE :The Auction of Shadows
The smell of sweat, fear, and cheap perfume clung to the underground hall like a suffocating curse. Seo Hana blinked against the blinding spotlight that illuminated the center of the makeshift stage. Chains clinked against her bruised wrists, and though her body trembled, her eyes remained defiant.
"Ladies and gentlemen," the auctioneer announced with a sickening grin, "our next item is... rare merchandise. Untouched. High-class lineage. Starting bid, fifty thousand."
Laughter erupted from the darkened seats, mingling with murmurs of men and women hiding behind silk masks and power suits.
Seo Hana's lips parted to scream, to protest, but the gag pressed too tightly against her mouth. She wasn't just another desperate girl—she was Seo Hana, daughter of the mighty Seo Group.
Correction—former daughter.
Her step-sisters had seen to that.
Sold like an object. Stripped of everything—her name, her dignity, her life.
She scanned the faces, but the shadows shielded them. Until one man stepped forward, bidding higher than the rest. His figure was cloaked in designer black, his voice smooth like silk soaked in venom.
"Two million."
Silence fell. Even the depraved audience dared not outbid the stranger.
"Sold."
The auctioneer's hammer struck like a gunshot.
Hana's knees buckled. She wasn't bought—she was claimed.
As guards dragged her off the stage, the man approached. His face remained hidden beneath the mask, but his whispered words sent ice through her spine.
"You have no idea, little heiress... how long I've waited for this."
Her heart froze. Who... was he?
But before she could process the threat, darkness swallowed her whole.
The last thing she heard before she passed out was the sound of his laughter—low, victorious, and terrifying.