Chapter 1

The indecent noises from the next room started again.

At first, I thought it was the landlord with some woman. But that day, when I came home from school, I saw him leaving our apartment, his face flushed with satisfaction. That’s when I realized—it was my mother and him all along.

Well, if that’s the case, shouldn’t the landlord’s sexy daughter be mine now?

Might as well all live shamelessly together…

My name is Ethan Roland. I’m 22, an international student in Japan. My mother moved here to take care of me.

We weren’t well-off, but luckily, our landlord, Vincent Lowell, was also from our home country. He helped us a lot. All I knew was that he had a daughter named Sophia Valentine.

To get into the University of Tokyo’s graduate program, I studied late into the night, hoping to make my family proud someday.

That night, as I burned the midnight oil, it was already half past eleven.

I stretched, exhausted. The night was dead silent.

Then, suddenly, soft moans drifted from next door—low and breathy one moment, high and desperate the next.

A man’s rough panting mixed in. Meanwhile, I was struggling with a math problem, my mind already fried.

I knew exactly what those sounds meant. Sex. Obviously.

I shoved cotton balls into my ears, but it didn’t help. The noises slithered past my eardrums, straight into my pulse, making my heart pound.

I was a young guy, full of pent-up energy. Those sounds wrecked my focus completely.

The noises didn’t stop. If anything, they got louder, more intense. Then it hit me—wasn’t that Vincent’s room?

Vincent was the landlord. Single. So who was the woman?

The sounds coiled around me, hot and suffocating. My throat went dry. If this kept up, I wouldn’t sleep at all tonight.

I couldn’t afford distractions—not now, when I needed to study. Steeling myself, I crept out of my room and headed next door.

If I explained the situation, surely Vincent would understand. He wouldn’t want to ruin a promising student’s future, right?

Outside his door, the sounds were clearer. Through the crack, I caught a glimpse—and froze.

The face I saw made my stomach drop.

Since when was my mother involved with Vincent? My raised hand hovered, unsure whether to knock.

Then someone tapped my shoulder from behind. I nearly yelped.

Sophia stood there, finger pressed to her lips. “Don’t say a word,” she whispered.

She pulled me into her room and shut the door. Only then did I really look at her.

A tight white pencil skirt hugged her curves. Beneath it, sheer stockings clung to her long legs. Black stilettos with diamond accents made her even more alluring. I swallowed hard. Sophia had grown even more stunning.

I forced myself to look away, my pulse racing.

Sophia smirked. “So, little brother. Saw what’s going on between your mom and my dad?”

I didn’t know how to answer. Or what she meant.

“Sophia, what are you—”

She laughed. “Watching them like that… Doesn’t it make you hungry?”

When I stayed silent, she stepped closer. “I don’t believe a guy like you can resist.”

Her hand brushed against me—

I jolted. “Sophia, don’t—” But it was too late.

The moment she touched me, a wave of pleasure shot through me, unlike anything I’d ever felt.

Sophia chuckled. “Look at you, all jumpy. Like I’m going to eat you alive.” Her fingers lingered. “Though you are… impressively built.”

She tilted her head. “Your face is all red. Still a virgin, huh?”

Her next words sent heat straight to my core. “Why not give your first time to me?”

“Sophia, stop joking around.” My voice came out strained. My body burned for more, but she pulled away.

“Fine, fine. I’ll let you go—for now.” She winked. “But next time, I’m taking that innocence of yours.”

As she ushered me out, disappointment curled in my chest.