Introduction to ML's sad life to justify his actions starts now

I saw it more as : he is in control and could do much worse if he wanted.

The same thing, doesn’t make this ok

No, it's not the same thing at all ? You think the author want to make the character less of an asshole by showing some sort of caring. I think the author want to show how calculating and controlling he is. How is that the same thing ?

I mean he did r@pe him instead of hitting him harder, that's so much better

We know ML is calculating since the very beginning. In this instance, especially with the introduction to ML's sad backstory, we are entering a redemption arc or sth. The bodyguard literally said that he could hurt him more seriously if he really wanted to, I don’t think this really shows how calculating he is. If he was calculating he would never hit MC on the face, he would hit him where it could be hidden.

I'm starting to see why you guys think it's part of a redemption arc

You may be right, but for now we're both speculating, I'll wait until we're undeniably in a redemption arc to judge it as such. I don't want to assume bad writing when there's so little to go on. I didn't understand it as such and that's enough for me to give them the benefits of the doubt.

Oh we are in a redemption arc alright, just not a very good one. Lol

He wasn’t hitting him to injure him, but to overpower him. By making the victim feel physically powerless and vulnerable, the abuser ensures their obedience. Many abusers deliberately avoid anything which can leave lasting marks or hit their victims in places that aren’t usually visible to others. It’s not about reducing harm, but reducing the likelihood of other people noticing, or recordable evidence.
The SA was for a similar purpose of establishing dominance. He wants to start pimping Sihyeon out, so he’s likely trying to desensitize him to sa towards that end. And let’s be honest, most so called redemption arcs for characters like this are
1. Tragic backstory to explain/justify abusive and toxic behavior
2. Them suddenly catching feelings, leading to an abrupt stop of the anbuse/violence
3. The victim also catching feelings and magically forgiving everything to be with them
I’ve barely ever seen a character arc where an abusive character legitimately realizes that they were wrong, repents in any way, takes responsibility for their previous actions, or respects the wishes of the victim after the fact. Authors think that if the victim forgives everything (no matter how little sense it makes objectively, or inline with their personality), so will the readers.