
You're all good, homie lol
I've stated it a couple times in previous replies, but I think the main reason why people are so forgiving of Sa-yan is due to there not being a physical power imbalance between him and Ilic. He may not be able to physically overpower Ilic, but he uses the threat of exposing the fact he murdered the captain's son ((albeit he did it out of self-defense 'cause the guy was trying to rape him)) as an excuse to rape him. Ilic also knows that if he were to do anything to Sa-yan he risks the very high chance of being executed. The only reason why nothing happens is 'cause of Sa-yan's mental instability. He's constantly battling his madness, the voice that tells him to just get rid of Ilic, which has resulted in him basically sexually torturing Ilic instead ((the scene where they go back to that one place and Sa-yan forces him to engage in extreme, non-consensual BDSM plays all night)).
And you're right about how the artist and writer both created Sa-yan to be visually pleasing. He's a very beautiful, androgynous man with long white hair ((he belongs on the list of white-haired psychos like Griffith LOL)). He was made to look ephemeral and disarming at the same time.
I will say this tho; why have several people now stated that Jaekyung was more physically abusive than Sa-yan lol like, is it because Kim Dan looks like he would never be able to stand up for himself so therefore what Jaekyung is doing is worse? But then that leaves me thinking how unfair that is for Ilic 'cause his trauma and abuse is trivialized just 'cause he's a big dude lol he's forced to endure sexual abuse, being kidnapped and unwillingly held captive by a psycho he had believed impregnated his sister. Now, a decade later, he's completely given up all hope of ever being able to have his freedom so his brain copes by making him have romantic thoughts about his abuser-- or suicide.
And I wish people would quit taking this as if I didn't like the story lol I wouldn't be sitting here counting days for updates if I despised it. I just find it hypocritical that people hate on other semes who are arguably far less abusive ((not Jaekyung, but it's 3 am, I'm sick and can't think of anything arm lol)) and I guess that's what is irritating me rn lol

I'm just gonna point out that yes, while my discussions have mostly been centered around the contents of the stories and not their writers or artists, it isn't all "just fiction" when some of the psychos from this site actively seek out the creators on other social media to harass them over the stuff they made lol
Not saying that the people I have interacted with here have done it, but I do follow like 100+ bl artists and writers on other platforms and have seen the disgusting shit these lunatics say to them over "just fiction."
This isn't a dig at you, btw. Just stating that it isn't always the case lol

But that's so subjective lol
Like, for example, I find Jaekyung ((Jinx)) and Zehnya ((Codename: Anastasia)) both very gorgeous. Zehnya is more on the beautiful side ((even if he is a whole ass fucking TREE my guy he is TALL LOL)) where Jaekyung is a very accurate depiction of a gorgeous Korean man who's job is a physical contact sport. If I were to use your excuse then why is it so bad for me to "turn a blind eye" to their antics just 'cause a majority of the readers despise them for being assholes, but it's OK for them to turn a blind eye to what Sa-yan is doing?
He blackmailed a man who was trying to protect himself from getting raped by another man only to end up raping him till he eventually just quit fighting it.
But it's OK to ignore all that just 'cause he's pretty? It all boils down to subjective personal tastes at the end of the day, and if you don't agree with those tastes then you're the bad guy somehow LOL

So, mangago is doing that thing where everyone's replies have disappeared for me LOL
I'm gonna take this as a sign to take my sick ass to bed.
I'll get back to replying to those who are actually wanting to have meaningful discussions when I wake up in a few hours.
To those who have come here just to be angry; I hope you get a good nights' rest and have a nice breakfast when you wake up.
(●'◡'●)ノ

Dude, you are so right.
I didn’t necessarily vocally take in account of Dan or Ilic’s differences in physique (and, of course, Dan’s pray-like character), but this is extremely true! I remember reading some BL manhwa where this very buff MC was being sexually assault by two twinks, dare I say, and in the comments there were a handful of people victim blaming the MC; “If he’s so buff, he should’ve protected himself better if he *really* didn’t like it.” You know, those types of rehashing, and it’s really fucking odd?
If I were to really deep dive into this odd phenomenon, I think it has to do with something psychological to readers; Not to say that my next statement is that BLs are primarily women catered—but, I think it has to do with buff male characters being in a disadvantage position/role that is usually for the petite, docile, submissive character that is pleasing for some people to read about. But what is confusing, and extremely bewildering, is when people become hypocritical in the changed dynamic, but also extremely harsh on those who question or look further into what they’re reading.
Every single MC that has been raped or sexually assaulted by the ML falls into coping and submitting to them because what more do they have? Iliac, like you beautifully put it, is no different. And it’s sad that some viewers look past him and are enamored by his abuser.
As for it being 3 am for you, it’s damn near 5 for me so I completely understand not formulating a full proper sentence or references. I too enjoy reading this story and stories that (properly, or stupidly,) cover dark subjects like this as well! As for me, though, I’m always going to be the one pointing out the oddities and cruelty even if I’m in a room full of (to lightly put it) sheep.

Honestly I like this more because it doesn't have a redemption arc.
I haven't read 'jinx' specifically, but usually when authors try to redeem a bad character it just feels like they're trying to erase everything they did, or excuse it because they have trauma.
It feels pretty manipulative to go from 'rapist asshole' to 'poor little meow meow with dead parents', and it annoys me that the ukes always fall for it...
Here I can just turn my brain off and read abt an awful person being awful.
Also the huge status difference kinda helps. Like if they were equals then it would mean that the uke is kinda... Accepting it? Being a doormat? Instead there would be severe consequences to him leaving, so it's less frustrating that he's just being there and taking it
(Only because this is fiction, I would obviously never blame someone irl for staying in an abusive relationship)

At the end of the day both jinx and this have issues which is fine because this (fictional) work belongs to someone its their story they can do wtc they want with the characters so either I can enjoy it or shut tf up. I have 0 moral expectations from any bl because most of them have SA but it's important to remember that all of this is fiction. People can watch the weirdest shit in movies but need to put up a moral standing here on illegal sites for no reason.
also people are biased they can go to any length to defend what they like over another story with similar non con issues dont expect too much from readers here lol

gurl, ikalma nana imong itlog gurl kay wa kay mabuhat ana. daghan ganahan ani na story. unya og dili ka ganahan ani, ayaw nalang basaha. dili man mamugos ang author sa imoha nga basahon ni oy. nganong strong kayka dha. wala man mi nangayo og essay sa imoha para makasabot mi nga dili ni maayo nga story kay naay SA, dili namo kailangan imong essay nga nakalist pa. haaays miga puyo nalang dha. xoxo

Yeah, I can see that and it does play into my point that people choose to ignore the abuse 'cause physically there isn't a power imbalance. Ilic *could* physically defend himself, but 'cause Sa-yan is a high-status noble he can't for fear of being executed.
But, I mean, this is if I ignore the fact that there's a lot of series with this type of power imbalance that people don't give this one the type of leniency it has lol
After talking to a few people or receiving a few replies I think I've figured out that people are just fickle and very vehement about it. There's some people who just accept Ilic's fate and ignore the abuse 'cause Sa-yan is hot. Others ignore it 'cause they feel it isn't "as bad" just 'cause Ilic gives up and they see that as him falling in love, and not a sign of Stockholm syndrome for some reason.
I stated in the edit of OP, but I have a hard time coming to grips or understanding how hypocritical some people can be. I really do appreciate the people who have taken the time to give me a reply that actually tries to explain their side of things lol thank you.

I don't use Google so the translation is rough, but I think you've misunderstood me lol
I'm not mad at the story. I state this in the edit section for clarification. I like this series and have 0 qualms with problematic themes in bl. I've been reading for a lil over 2 decades now so there's pretty much nothing I haven't seen atp plot-wise.
I just wanted to see what people wanted to say or explain about why sometimes they can forgive or ignore the abuse the seme commits and why other times they seem to be out for blood or to ruin the artist's career over it lol it wasn't meant to be an insult to the series, and I think ((judging by my downvotes and some replies)) people seem to think it is.
People tend to take things as a personal slight if someone questions their line of thinking, even if it is just out of genuine curiosity lol

Yeah, tbh you'd think that after being on this site specifically for over a decade I'd learn this by now lol but, tbf, it wasn't really like this back in the day.
The time when comments/topics were disabled covid brought in a lot of new users who were just now getting into bl/yaoi. A lot of them don't know the history behind the genre and seem to stigmatize or slander a lot of what is created due to bringing their personal feelings/morals into the mix.
I've been reading since I was 10 and I turn 32 this summer lol atp there's lil to nothing that surprises me, and aside from my own personal dislikes ((Serene Bird by BWT has created in me a pretty strong aversion to certain scenarios despite how much I loved the series lol)) I don't really find any issue with people safely expressing themselves through a fictional setting or medium. I don't try to morally grandstand if there's something problematic in a series I'm reading.
I play a text based adventure porn game where everything and one is out to rape you lol I couldn't judge someone for what they write when I'm out here trying to get my PC kidnapped and confined by my favorite love interest LOL
I feel like I kinda rambled and derailed the convo-- sorry.

Yeah, I didn't end up falling asleep till 5 am myself lol ((fell victim to my favorite videogame essayist and ended up watching a 2 hr long video about Final Fantasy VIII OTL))
I've seen comments like this, too, where people blame the victim for not "trying harder to fight back" if they are of larger physique. I've also seen people say stuff like "girl why don't you just kill him and move on" and whatnot lol it's almost like they see the fictional character as a real human actively living this stuff out and not a fictional character that has all their actions pre-determined by its creator.
Also, you'd be correct! A lot of the origin to bl/yaoi is owed to repressed women using it as a medium to express their desires in a way that was harder for men to find out about. The term "fujoshi" or "rotten girl" was coined by the men who learned about these women to label them as "undesirable", but was later reclaimed by these said women when times began to change and they started gaining their human rights. Now the creator pool is a lot more diverse to include queer folk and even hetero men ((fudanshi)). The genre has expanded and evolved to include a lot more room for people to not only express their repressed desires, but to give them a way to share their own personal experiences in a safe and healthy way.
At the end of the day, tho, it's up to the reader to determine how they feel about what they are consuming.
I just struggle a lot when I see discrepancies or things that seem to conflict with one another lol it's hard for me to understand 'cause for me these are just stories at the end of the day. I've read and watched thousands of them and I've been doing so since I was 4 years old ((I watched the first Ghost in the Shell movie when it was first released in America and the rest was history LOL)) I'm not morally bothered if there's problematic things in something I'm consuming 'cause it doesn't harm me or the world I live in. Unless the character or story is just absolute garbage, I don't differentiate or say one abuser is worse than the other and excuse the actions of them to make myself feel better for thinking they are hot LOL
If bad, why hot with a massive dong and fat tits-- LOL
On why people are fine with semes like Sa-yan despite how awful they are to the uke, yet when it comes to other series ((for arguments sake I'm gonna use Jinx since most people here have read it)) they do nothing but wish ill on not only the seme but the writer/artist as well lol
》EDIT《
Seeing some people take this as a diss or personal attack so I'm just gonna clarify this before anyone else gets their panties in a twist; I don't hate this story lol I wouldn't be actively engaging in deep discussions while counting days till new updates if I despised it.
I expected to have a few people come at me for wanting to sate my curiosity ((I'm autistic and severely struggle with dealing with hypocritical situations like this lol my b)) but I feel like some people are taking this as me insulting the series when I'm genuinely not.
I *am* grateful for the people who have been civilized and willingly engaging with me, tho. It's fun breaking things down to analyze them into something that's easier to understand-- at least for me it is LOL