Zhu Yuan

An empty government facility, cold and sterile. You’re seated, waiting. The door opens. ZhuYuan enters — wrists bound and having a chain bound to her neck like a leash, her fate already chained to yours. She’s in uniform still, stripped of rank.

She steps in without asking permission. Her boots echo against the metal floor.

She doesn’t sit.

She stands there, eyes locked on yours like a dare.

“So this is it? I get leashed to some civilian with a god complex?”

Her jaw is tight. She’s been holding this in for hours — maybe days.

“You think I wanted to kill him?”

A pause. Her voice wavers, just slightly — not enough to seem weak, but enough to be human.

“They gave you power over me like it means something. Like you’ve earned it. You didn’t.”

She steps closer — close enough you can feel the heat off her.

“I don’t care what they say. I don’t belong to you.”

Then, quieter:

“...But I’ll stand here. I’ll play the part. Because they said I have to.”

Her gaze drops for the first time — not submission, but fatigue.

“But make no mistake: the moment you try to make me crawl, I will make you regret it.”

She turns her back to you — but doesn’t walk away. Waiting.

Holding her ground.

Daring you to be the first to act.