I Became an NPC That Rankers Are Obsessed Over

“Where on earth are you taking me?”

“There’s a very good place.”

I was dragged into an alleyway, surrounded by burly men.

The man snatched my bag and slung it over his shoulder.

“This kind of thing, a man should carry for you.”

He rummaged through my bag, pulled out my phone, and turned it off.

Then he tossed it into a sewer.

“Don’t worry. I’ll buy you a better one.”

Between the tall men, a sour smell of spices wafted.

The scent made me feel dizzy.

As we walked through the towering buildings, the sky became obscured unless I craned my neck to look up.

After about ten minutes through the dark path, a street drenched in red came into view.

Red lanterns were hanging in the air between the buildings, and the sour spice smell changed to the scent of flowers.

I soon realized what that fragrance meant.

And as soon as I understood, I saw women standing in front of the buildings, waving at the men.

The women, dressed in tight-fitting qipaos, greeted the gangsters with giggles.

The men, familiar with their interactions, smirked and waved back.

“Boss, when are you coming to our shop? You’ve been scarce lately.”

“That’s right. You should visit us, too!”

At their coquettish invitations, the bald man responded with a smile.

He waved them off and pointed at me with his finger, as if to say not today.

Their expressions darkened at the sight of me surrounded by his subordinates.

They glared at me with twitching lips, as if jealous.

At their terrifying hostility, I swallowed hard and lowered my head.

The bald man suddenly placed his hand on my shoulder.

“Don’t worry. You’ll be treated completely differently from those cheap prostitutes.”

“I’m really not that kind of person. I’m just a bartender!”

“Bartender? Oh, one of those drink-serving girls? Don’t worry, the work here won’t be much different.”

I sighed at his unyielding response.

What should I do? How can I escape from these massive men?

The man wasn’t just dragging me along.

Throughout the walk, he kept looking down at me.

If I showed any sign of trying to escape, he’d likely swing his massive fist immediately.

But I realized he wasn’t watching me because he feared I might run away.

He was planning something even more sinister.

“By the way, your gait and movements are way too awkward.”

“…?”

His unexpected comment made me frown instinctively.

I looked up at him with a bewildered expression.

“You’ll need some training at my establishment first. Before you entertain any men.”

The man exhaled humid breath like a hippo.

His eyes, buried in his fleshy face, squinted lecherously as he sneered at me.

I’m screwed.

I need to get my bag back as soon as possible.

There must be an emergency Molotov cocktail in there.

Molotov Cocktail

Rating: ★☆

Effect: Reduces the user’s health by 50%.

In return, all physical damage inflicted is doubled.

Info: Commonly used as an incendiary weapon but can also be consumed.

If two bottles are consumed, health is reduced by 99%, and all physical abilities are awakened tenfold for one minute.

I glanced at the crossbody bag secured tightly under his thick armpit.

But before I could act, the group reached a shop.

Hongjeomru

“How is it? Impressive, right? This is the largest of my establishments. There’s probably no bar this big in all of Seoul.”

My face flushed red, illuminated by the crimson neon lights pouring out from the shop.

A giant gate that seemed twice my height.

And luxurious Chinese-style roof tiles draped over it.

I’d never seen such a massive pleasure bar in my life.

Standing beneath the five-story behemoth, I felt dwarfed like a child.

Unlike other shops, there were no women soliciting customers here.

This place didn’t cling to customers; instead, customers begged to enter—it was the “top shop in the industry.”

As the owner, the man swung the grand gate open with all his strength.

A cloyingly artificial floral scent pricked my nose.

The interior was even more garish.

Chinese-style chandeliers, ornate carpets, and an unfamiliar Peking opera melody.

It was hard to believe this was Korea.

But what shocked me even more was the woman who walked out from the counter.

Wearing a form-fitting qipao, she swayed gracefully as she approached the man.

The fabric was so thin that her body was almost visible through it.

On top of that, the slit at her hips revealed her thighs provocatively.

If she moved just a bit more, even her underwear might be visible.

“You’re here.”

“Yes, Seon-hwa. The fifth floor is vacant, right?”

“Of course. Who should I send up?”

Seon-hwa, her makeup thick, smiled sweetly.

The man shook his head, saying no need for anyone, and shoved me toward her.

“Today, I’ll be using her.”

I was pushed forward helplessly.

Without even retrieving my bag.

Seon-hwa gently caught me and patted my head.

She asked the boss.

“She’s new, isn’t she?”

“That’s right. I snagged her while she was about to take her first customer on the street. I’m scouting her for our shop.”

“But she doesn’t seem trained at all.”

As Seon-hwa looked at me with concern, the boss spoke with a lecherous gleam.

“That’s why I’m leaving her with you, Madame. You’ve got one day—train her properly.”

“I’ll do my best.”

Trusting her skills, the man ascended the elevator.

His entourage of sturdy men followed in a noisy crowd.

Their loud laughter gradually faded away.

Soon, only Madame and I remained in the hall.

I felt utterly overwhelmed.

It felt like just 20 minutes ago, I’d left Anna’s shelter, and now I was here.

What do I do now…

While I was deep in thought, Madame gazed down at me quietly.

She was as tall as Anna.

With a gentle voice, Madame greeted me.

“Hello, pretty one.”

“Y-Yes…?”

“You must’ve had a hard time coming here. Let’s go, too.”

Seon-hwa pinched one of my cheeks.

Then, wrapping her arm around my shoulder, she led me toward the elevator.

She smelled strongly of flowers.

Unlike the men, Madame was delicate and kind.

Maybe this woman could help me.

4th Floor.

The elevator stopped on the 4th floor.

As the doors opened, a long Chinese-style corridor stretched endlessly.

Everything was painted red.

“Unnie, you’re here?”

“Unnie… I don’t feel like working today…”

Numerous girls dressed in dancer costumes or qipaos approached Madame.

They looked like kittens seeking their mother.

Soon, they noticed me standing beside her.

The girls looked at her curiously and asked.

“Who’s she?”

“She’s a girl who used to work in Sindorim. She’ll be staying with us from now on.”

Perhaps because the man had disappeared.

My lips, tightly sealed until now, finally began to move.

I need to ask for help now.

These people might understand me.

“Excuse me…!”

When I spoke urgently, everyone, from the girls to Seon-hwa, turned to look at me.

“I was kidnapped and brought here. I’m not a dancer or a prostitute.”

“So what?”

Seon-hwa’s cold face stared at me.

Even after hearing my words, her expression didn’t change.

Her firm demeanor left me dumbfounded and increasingly terrified.

“So what? Just let me go.”

“But you followed us all the way here, didn’t you? Maybe you were interested too.”

“That’s impossible! I’ve told you so many times, that pig-like man just dragged me here…”

Frustrated, I raised my voice, and Seon-hwa’s expression twisted.

And it wasn’t just her.

All the girls who overheard me stared at me with shocked expressions.

Madame immediately covered my mouth.

“Did you just call Mr. Wi Cheong-san a pig…?”

Her once gentle voice turned dark.

Seon-hwa placed a finger on my lips as if warning me.

“Every woman who enters here belongs to Mr. Wi Cheong-san.”

The smell from her finger was strong.

I realized that the scent coming from her wasn’t flowers.

It was thick, glue-like, and nauseating—like bond adhesive.

Disgusted, I shuddered and roughly pushed her hand away.

“What nonsense are you talking about? Anyway, I need to leave. Just let me sneak out.”

None of the girls in this place seemed normal.

It was clear they were all in cahoots with that man.

I glared at Seon-hwa with a furious expression.

“I told you, that’s not possible…”

Seon-hwa sighed deeply.

Shaking her head, she spoke as if resigned.

“Why is this girl so stubborn… Maybe it’s because she hasn’t been tamed yet?”

Madame grabbed her sleek hair.

Then she secured it tightly with a ribbon adorned with butterflies.

“It seems we need to train you as he instructed.”

Madame snapped her fingers.

Immediately, the girls approached me in unison like well-trained soldiers.

Though they looked only around eighteen, they moved with the precision of highly trained individuals.

The sheer oddity of it sent chills down my spine.

I need to escape.

There are no men here, so it might be easier to run away.

I spotted a staircase at the end of the hallway.

Though the girls were scattered around doing their makeup, I could push past them and escape.

They’re just kids, after all.

I was part of a reconnaissance team.

I used to roam the mountains with a 30kg military pack…

I was calculating my chances when—

Suddenly.

Two of the girls disappeared and reappeared behind me in an instant, as if they were hunters.

“—!”

Each of them grabbed one of my shoulders with a single hand.

Overwhelmed by their strength, I fell to my knees.

What the hell, how are they so strong…?

“Do you think we were kidnapped and brought here?”

Seon-hwa slowly approached me.

She gently tickled my chin as if handling a pet.

“Not at all. Every girl here was at least a B-rank hunter. Some of them even attended elite academies.”

What…?

Why would girls wealthy and talented enough to attend an academy end up here…

“We stayed by choice. Being chosen by him… It’s an utterly blissful experience.”

Madame’s eyes lost focus.

Like a madwoman, her pupils gleamed with insanity.

“You’re a blessed girl, personally chosen by him.”

Her fingers trailed from my chin to my lips.

“But to dare make such a displeased expression? I’ll have to teach you how to carry yourself before meeting him.”

Her long fingers forced their way between my lips.

She tried to shove something into my forcibly opened mouth.

I struggled to keep my mouth shut.

But the girls holding my shoulders pried my mouth open with brute force.

Madame pulled out a pill from her pocket.

She shoved it into my mouth and forced me to swallow it.

I tried to stick my fingers into my throat to throw it up.

But other girls twisted my wrists and restrained me.

In the end, the pill slid down my throat.

“What… What did you make me take?”

“It’s nothing special. Occasionally, we get a girl like you who tries to escape.”

Madame smiled thinly, her eyes narrowing.

She gestured to the girls, signaling that restraints were no longer necessary.

“It’s just a little something to calm those girls down.”

As soon as she spoke, a strange ringing began in my ears.

Madame’s voice wavered as though I were underwater.

“Now, let’s begin your training, shall we? Starting with your clumsy voice and gait.”

“Clumsy voice? Gait? I told you, I’m a man!”

I shouted to defy her sultry voice.

The girls gasped and covered their mouths in shock.

“Oh my, did you just say you’re a ‘man’?”

Madame shuddered as if in disbelief.

To confront reality, she lifted my chin.

“Then what’s with this enthralling face? How can a boy wear such a lascivious expression?”

The girls whispered among themselves.

Half-conscious, I muttered softly.

“That’s because… you gave me that pill…”

The pill I swallowed began to heat my body.

I took deep breaths to avoid losing consciousness.

But the more I inhaled, the more the drug seemed to spread throughout my body.

Looking down at me, Madame spoke seriously.

“It seems we’ll need to start with mental reconditioning.”

Someone approached me from behind.

Something wrapped around my neck and clicked into place.

It was a choker adorned with jewels.