*Top-oriented
At the end of the world stands a notorious asylum.
Spirit tamers make their living by subduing souls and controlling minds. They conquer spirit companions with force, then make them submit through affection.
The leader of the spirit tamers, the nightmare of countless patients, is the asylum's director. They say his bone whip makes knees buckle, his methods are cruel, and his temper is savage.
The director sits on the windowsill, swinging his legs as he admires the night view. His short silver hair glints in the light, and a red ribbon winds around his neck, concealing a wound stitched shut with wire.
Not far away, a white lion curls up and sleeps quietly.
That is the director's spirit companion, an adorable big cat nourished with his life and flesh.
Several kinds of people approach the director.
Some patients fawn over him, hoping that once he is pleased, he will show mercy and let them leave the asylum alive.
Some spirit healers soothe him: long-term, short-term, temporary, or lifelong.
Some spirit tamers approach him, hoping to obtain the asylum's secrets or advance their own interests.
Without exception, they all end up submitting to him, vying for a glance or begging him to bestow punishment or reward.
As if under a spell.
Important notes:
1. Main character is a top and a heartthrob. Not 1v1; includes a romantic rivalry and one-sided crushes. The final pairing is chosen by readers and ends 1v1. The bonus chapters feature a parallel-world ending.
2. Dark and disturbing content warning. Includes angsty physical abuse, the shou doting on the gong from the shou's perspective, and a gong who is not sexually inexperienced. Please respect the author's x/p fanwork and check the tags if it's not for you.
3. The story is set in an imagined future. The sci-fi worldbuilding is the author's own, so don't overthink it.
Theme: Peaceful times don't come easily. Someone is always bearing the burden for us
