A sharp ding echoed as my phone lit up with a notification. "Five million dollars has been credited to your account."

I shot upright like a fish flipping off a dock.

Victoria looked at me. "That's your compensation."

Honestly, she was heartless, but she never hesitated when it came to money.

Since she was paying, I wasn't exactly in the mood to argue about her slicing off a piece of my skin.

Not that I was obsessed with money or anything, but the original Tyrell's family had fallen from grace. They went from rich elites to broke overnight. His wallet was more barren than a desert.

After transferring the money, Victoria went straight to the next ward to be with Luke.

Staring at my account balance, I instantly felt alive again. I decided to use the compensation to discharge myself from the hospital and start enjoying life.

As I passed by Luke's ward, I saw Victoria feeding him soup. That display of tenderness and consideration was a side of her Tyrell had never seen.

Yeah, of course. Luke was her treasure. Tyrell was just trash.

Whatever. We were getting a divorce anyway.

Half an hour later, I arrived at the most luxurious club in the city.

"Get me eight pretty ladies. Remember, black stockings only. I have no interest in any other attire."

Soon enough, eight strippers arrived. My mood lifted instantly.

They were all stunning. Nothing like Victoria and her frigid, stony expression.

I leaned back while they massaged me, rubbed my shoulders, and even put on a strip show.

"Sir, let me pour you a drink."

"Sir, come catch me."

I was drowning in comfort, completely losing myself.

Thinking back to my old delivery days, I almost cried. I used to swear I'd make one million dollars one day and live like a king.

I guess my dream had finally come true.

But just as the women were stripping themselves, I caught sight of Victoria.

Wasn't she supposed to be with Luke at the hospital? Why was she here?

If she caught me like this, she might actually break my legs and my manhood.

There was nowhere to hide, so I could only watch her walk closer.

When our eyes met, her expression darkened like a storm ready to explode.

I gave a stiff, awkward smile. "What a coincidence."

Victoria snapped, "Tyrell, are you trying to die?"

What a double standard. She could cheat on me, but I couldn't even unwind a little? And it wasn't like she even loved me. So, why was she tying me up like that?

Luckily, I'd seen worse situations. I steadied myself fast. "Why do you think I'm here doing this? You should know better than anyone else!"

I put on my best performance, clutching my chest like I was in pain. "It's all because I wanted to make you jealous! Victoria, did you ever love me? Even a little?"

Meeting my expectant gaze, Victoria replied coldly, "No."

I suppressed the heartache and pushed away the strippers in my arms. "You can stop now. All of you, leave."

The eight women were confused but still walked out.

Victoria clearly believed every word. She thought I'd done it all just to get her attention.

"Tyrell, stop wasting your time. I will never love you."

Perfect. I didn't want her anyway.

At that moment, her secretary approached. "Ms. Gibson, Mr. Tanner is waiting for you in the private room."

So, she was here for business. This workaholic.

Victoria glanced at me coldly. "Go home. Don't embarrass yourself out here."

"Fine."

For money, a little humiliation wasn't a big deal.

As I walked out of the club, I noticed a sharply dressed woman standing nearby. She looked familiar.

After a moment, I remembered her.

That was Eliza Collins.

Eliza was the vicious female supporting character of this novel. Having harbored a one-sided crush on the male lead, Luke, for years, she was obsessed with claiming him for herself.

Later on, she even tried to team up with Tyrell to break up Victoria and Luke. Her ending in the book? Predictably miserable.

I wasn't looking for trouble, so I pretended I didn't see her.

"Tyrell," Eliza called out to me.

I blinked. "Yeah?"

She asked, "Are you and Victoria really getting divorced? I thought you loved her."

Loved her? Victoria cheated so boldly, and I wasn't the same pathetic cuckold the original Tyrell was.

"Of course, I love her," I replied.

But I loved money more.

Two billion dollars for a divorce? That kind of deal didn't fall into your lap twice. Only an idiot would stay chained to Victoria.

I pressed a hand to my chest, putting on a pained expression. "But she doesn't love me. I have no choice. I'll let her go."

Eliza shot me a long look.

After all, everyone knew that Victoria had treated me like trash, yet I still acted like she was the love of my life.

Feeling like I might slip up, I quickly made an excuse and left.

Back at the villa, I happily went into the kitchen and prepared a spread for Victoria.

The dishes were all biological warfare. One bite could probably shorten her life by a few years.

When Victoria came back, I wiped nonexistent sweat from my forehead and said softly, "Dinner's ready. I made your favorite scrambled eggs."

Since the divorce wasn't final yet, my "devoted husband" act still had to hold.

Victoria didn't even look at me and went straight upstairs.

The butler, Tobias Bradford, tried to comfort me. "Mr. Griffin, don't be upset. Ms. Gibson probably already ate outside."

Like I cared.

"Clear the table. Have the kitchen prepare butter-baked lobster, king crab, truffle and potato gratin, foie gras and caviar pizza…"

I rattled off 12 dishes without blinking. After some thought, I added, "Oh, and a bottle of '82 Lafite."

Tobias froze.

After all, I had become a completely different person the moment Victoria left.

After eating like royalty, I went upstairs and happened to see Victoria stepping out of the bathroom.

She must have just stepped out of the shower. Wrapped in a bath towel, her skin was supple and radiant. Her figure softly curved in all the right places.

It was no wonder the original Tyrell was so hopelessly devoted to her. She was a true femme fatale.

Victoria tightened the towel and looked at me in annoyance. "Tyrell Griffin!"

I shrugged. Even if she looked good, it didn't matter. Beauty was just another kind of trap.

The following days were simple. I spent money every single day, shopping until my hands hurt. If I didn't burn through her money now, I might never get the chance again.

When the mandatory waiting period ended, I immediately dragged Victoria to finalize the divorce.

Once the divorce certificate was in my hand and I confirmed the two billion dollars had arrived, I turned to Victoria with a grin. "Thanks for the money, ex-wife. Hope you two have a happy life and a house full of kids."

Victoria froze.

Watching me hum happily like I'd won the lottery, she gritted her teeth. "Tyrell, drop the act. Even if you beg me to remarry you one day, I won't give you the time of day."

Oh, please. Even if I had to die, I wasn't giving that money back.

I waved her off and left.

I was rich now. Time to head back to the club and enjoy myself surrounded by beautiful slippers.

But before I even reached the club, something slammed into the back of my head, and darkness swallowed me.

When I woke up, I was in an abandoned factory. Next to me was another man tied up like me. He was well-dressed and handsome.

I recognized him instantly. That was Luke.

The male lead and I had been abducted together!

I didn't need to think to know that this was definitely the doing of one of Victoria's enemies.

But I didn't remember this scene from the book at all. This system was seriously trying to kill me.

I turned to the tattooed man nearby. "Hey, you got the wrong guy. I'm innocent."

What was the point of abducting me to threaten Victoria? She didn't love me. Besides, we just got divorced. She couldn't care less about me.

The tattooed man slapped me hard. "Shut up!"

Annoyed by my noise, he yanked a sock off his foot and shoved it into my mouth.

I gagged at once.

Suddenly, noise came from outside.

The door burst open, and Victoria walked in alone. "How much do you want?"

The tattooed man held up a finger and said, "You can only save one of them. The choice is yours."

Of course, she'd pick Luke. Damn it. Was this the end of me? I'd barely enjoyed my two billion dollars.

What a scam!

Victoria glanced at me, a flicker of hesitation crossing her eyes.

"I choose Luke. Let him go."

I wasn't the least bit surprised. The last shred of hope I'd been holding onto finally withered away.

The kidnappers didn't argue. They took the money and released Luke immediately.

Victoria helped Luke up. Before leaving, she glanced back at me. "I'll come back for you."

I really didn't get her. If she actually wanted to save me, why didn't she just bring enough cash to ransom us both? Of all the times to be a cheapskate, she picked this one.

After they left, the tattooed man stared at me. "This one's in good shape. Probably worth a lot if we sell his organs."

I went cold.

Great. By the sounds of it, they were planning to strip me for parts and sell me off piece by piece.

That was a fate far worse than death!

As I panicked, someone suddenly shouted outside, "Fire! Get out!"

The next second, a deafening explosion ripped through the air. The blast sent me flying.