The Expired Beloved

The protagonist is in high school. Even though he grew up in an orphanage, no one dares bully him, because he is the pampered darling of a group of rich young heirs. If he wanted a star from the sky, those second-generation scions of the arrogant upper class would compete to bring one to him.

The protagonist was always grateful and eager to repay their kindness. When their yacht met with an accident, he reacted quickly at the crucial moment and saved everyone. But he became a vegetable himself, remaining in a coma for a full ten years.

When he woke up, his former friends were nearing thirty, and all of them had begun lives of their own, each more colorful than the last.

Young Master 1 and Young Master 2's families were arranging a marriage alliance, and the two had recently moved in together.

Young Masters 3, 4, and 5 fought until they were bloodied over a minor celebrity.

Young Master 6 hid his identity and started an ordinary romance with a poor, pure-hearted girl, enjoying himself immensely every day.

Young Master 7 was a notorious playboy who left a trail of broken hearts everywhere. Now his own household was in chaos, so he simply hid away in the remote mountains.

Young Master 8 seduced a married woman, and her husband broke his leg. He was currently recovering.

Young Master 9's father had died, but he had started playing a game of “you run, I chase” and “domineering pursuit” with his widowed stepmother, determined to become the world's most dutiful son.

Ten years ago, back when they were students, their friendship with the protagonist was at the center of everything for all of them, including the protagonist.

Ten years later, the protagonist had not changed, but everyone else had acquired their own love and hatred. The place he occupied in their lives had become smaller and smaller.

The protagonist, once jokingly called the group's darling, had always been as passive as outsiders imagined. When the young masters' enthusiasm faded, so did his importance.

The protagonist became someone who no longer fit in. Time had widened the class divide beyond measure. He couldn't join in their conversations, and the young masters had little patience for him. After just a few words, they would head off to deal with their own affairs.

The protagonist was saddened to drift apart from his friends, but he knew that was how things usually went, and could only adjust his mindset.

Until, at a group gathering, he overheard someone say lazily through a door, “He should've stayed a vegetable. Waking up only makes things awkward and unpleasant for everyone.”

The protagonist didn't quite understand, but he knew the speaker meant he was an eyesore. Friendship was his entire life. He couldn't bear to leave his friends, but he did anyway.

As soon as he left, everyone went mad.

Creeps, humiliating pursuers, fetishists, control freaks, foot fetishists, cuckold fetishists, psychopaths, delusional obsessives, people with split personalities, Oedipal types... The protagonist had only vaguely known that his friends were not as kind as they seemed around him.

But when all those bastards stopped hiding their flaws and exposed every dark, negative side of themselves, they swept him straight into a violent maelstrom.

“You shouldn't have woken up.” As the protagonist stared in disbelief, someone said those words again.

A desire that had been suppressed for years, vast and overwhelming, rooted deep in the bones and trembling, brushed past his ear. Its warmth should have been scorching, yet it made his whole body go cold with fear.

Back in their youth, none of them had fully understood their feelings. But as they matured, those rotten young masters had long since learned what the drumbeat of their hearts meant.

And now that bright moon had no family or teachers, had abandoned his studies, was all alone, completely cut off from society, and was within their reach.

With a face that beautiful and a scent that drove every living thing wild with obsession, he was always looking at them with affectionate indulgence. It was as if he'd pasted a label on himself saying, “I'm delicious. Please have a taste.”

Who could resist claiming such a prize for themselves?

The young masters, who now held their families' power, wealth, and connections, gathered around the protagonist once more, but no longer under the false pretense of friendship.

Blurb backup saved on 2025.7.13

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