That night, Annie came home past midnight, carrying the scent of another man's cologne on her. She pressed herself against me, her hands wandering over my body as if nothing atrocious had happened that afternoon.

A wave of nausea rose from my stomach. I grabbed her wrist and asked coldly, "Didn't you want a divorce? When is it happening?"

Annie paused, then let out a soft, dismissive laugh. "What, are you jealous? It was just for show—a little bit of fun. Why are you taking it so seriously?"

I shook her hand off. "Then leave me out of your fun. I'm done."

Her voice shot up an octave. "You're done? Luther, have I been too nice to you? You used to tolerate this just fine. Why the sudden change?"

That was because I no longer had to.

Faced with my silence, Annie softened her tone. "Alright, let's stop fighting. I promise you, Hudson will be the last one. I'll come back once I get bored. We'll settle down, have a kid, and live happily ever after. Cool?"

Wow. How shameless could she be? Who would even talk like that?

A harsh car horn suddenly blared from the street below. Annie's expression shifted instantly. She didn't even take the time to change out of her robe before snatching up her phone and hurrying downstairs.

"Alright, alright… I'm coming…" I heard her murmur into the receiver.

I stood by the second-floor window and watched her sprint out of the villa, ducking as she slipped into a flashy red Ferrari.

The last trace of attachment I held for her vanished the moment I looked away.

The next day, I went straight to the tattoo studio. I gathered all the design sketches I had worked on over the years and stacked them neatly on my senior apprentice's desk.

"From now on, Zach, you'll be running the studio."

Zach Young had been with me for five years—long enough to handle things on his own. He looked at me, his eyes reddening. "Where are you going, Mr. Clarke?"

"Just taking a break for a while," I said, patting his shoulder. I didn't offer further explanation.

The wind chime at the door jingled. Hudson was back.

The moment he stepped inside, he dropped to his knees in front of me. "Luther, please remove the tattoo for me."

He tilted his head up, his young, handsome face full of desperation. "She held me all night, crying, saying this tattoo is her personal mark. She begged me on her knees not to remove it…"

His voice choked, and his hand subconsciously brushed his hip. "But every time I remember she has a husband, I feel like a homewrecker! I must get it removed before I can look at myself in the mirror again!"

I couldn't tell if Hudson was acting or genuinely trying to cut ties with Annie. Regardless, it was clear she loved him. Annie had always been obsessed with her career, rarely displaying her feelings.

I remembered the time I had an asthma attack and nearly died in our bed; she had been indifferent, telling me to "just drink some warm water" before hanging up.

Now, all her patience, tenderness, and even her humility were being gifted to another man.

Honestly, I felt nothing. I was already numb from all the pain.

I was about to turn Hudson down when the system's voice rang out again.

[Alert: This is a mandatory quest. You must accept."

I closed my eyes, knowing there was no way to escape. "Fine. Get up."

I led Hudson into the procedure room and focused entirely on the work, removing the ink bit by bit. If I had to admit, he had excellent skin, and he healed fast. By the time I finished, there was almost no trace of Annie, aside from some slight redness and swelling.

"All done," I said, setting the tools down. "Don't get it wet for three days, and apply the ointment on schedule."

Hudson thanked me profusely and left.

I thought that would be the end of today's drama, but the real climax came in the dead of night. I was in the middle of a deep sleep when a sharp, stinging pain slapped across my face, jolting me awake.

Annie stood over the bed, her face like a mask of ice. "You disgust me, Luther."

Before I could even process Annie's words, two bodyguards burst in, yanked the covers off me, and hauled me upright.

"Let go of me!" I shouted, struggling with everything I had. "What the hell are you doing, Annie?"

Annie simply cast a cold, piercing look at me and ordered, "Take him away."

In the dead of winter, nearly bare-chested, I was dragged out of the villa like a discarded carpet and shoved into a car. The vehicle sped through the night until it pulled up at the city's most expensive private hospital.

Inside a VIP suite, Hudson lay weakly on the bed, hooked up to an IV. The moment he saw me, his eyes grew red and teary. "Annie, he did this on purpose! He's jealous of me! The laser settings were too high! He burned my skin!"

He sobbed. "Now, the doctor says my wound is seriously infected… Will I be scarred forever?"

Annie held him close, her eyes cutting into me as if I were a monster. "You've gone too far, Luther!"

I suppressed the rising nausea in my chest and bit back coldly, "All the equipment I used was thoroughly sterilized, and the laser settings adhered to protocol. There is no way the removal caused that. He's framing me."

Annie knew my character well enough that a flicker of hesitation crossed her eyes. Hudson noticed it instantly. He snatched the IV bottle from the stand and hurled it at me.

A dull thud echoed through the room. The glass bottle hit me squarely between the eyes. Stars exploded in my vision, and blood instantly smeared across my face.

Annie gasped and lunged to Hudson's side, anxiously checking his hand. "Are you crazy? You could've hurt yourself!"

He cried even harder, shoving her away. "And you're still defending him! I knew you cared about him! Annie, we're done! I'm breaking up with you now!"

He bellowed as he swung his legs off the bed, making a show of trying to storm out.

"Alright, enough!" Annie cooed, clutching him tightly and whispering in his ear, "I'll make this right, okay? Stop being mad."

She patted Hudson's back soothingly, then turned to me, speaking as if I were her sworn enemy. "As you can see, he's devastated. You'll have to take the hit this time, Luther."

With that, she gestured to the bodyguards outside. "Break his right hand. Consider it an apology to Hudson."

My eyes snapped wide. I was known in the industry as a master tattoo artist. By giving that order, Annie was destroying my entire livelihood.

Two bodyguards stepped forward, one on each side, pinning me in place. I struggled and shouted with all my strength, but it was futile. One of them ultimately seized my right wrist.

From the hospital bed, Hudson shot me a triumphant look.

"No… N-No…"

My voice trembled with terror, but no one cared. A second later, a searing pain erupted from my wrist. The sound of a bone snapping echoed through the quiet room.

My right hand hung limply at an unnatural angle. Agony blurred my vision. My body went into spasms until I could no longer hold myself up. The next thing I knew, I collapsed onto the cold floor.

The system's voice arrived at the perfect moment.

[Primary Torture Quest: Bone-Shattering Agony—Completed. Countdown: 23:58:10]

"Hang in there, Luther," the system added. "Everything ends tomorrow."

Hot tears rolled down my cheeks. I was almost at the end.

Seeing the extent of my pain, Annie finally showed a flicker of impatience. She frowned and waved her hand dismissively. "Alright, that's enough. Take him next door to get it bandaged. Wouldn't want him to die here."

The bodyguards obeyed, hoisting me up. However, once we reached a blind spot for the surveillance cameras, their expressions darkened. Instead of the clinic, they dragged me toward a storage room in the basement parking lot.

"What are you guys doing?" I asked anxiously.

Seeing the fear on my face, they grinned maliciously. "You'll find out soon enough."

One of the bodyguards shoved a foul-smelling sock into my mouth. Then, he pulled out a stun baton and jammed it between my thighs.

I jolted upright, my muscles spasming uncontrollably, but the gag swallowed my screams. After they hit me with the current a few more times, my vision went dark, and I finally passed out from the agony.

In a hazy daze, I heard the two of them talking.

"This guy actually dares to compete with Mr. Brown for a woman. He found out he was Annie's husband long ago. He only went for that tattoo removal to put on a show.

"And that so-called infection? He did it to himself. It was all a setup to make Annie destroy her own husband. Subtle, but deadly."

So, it had been a trap all along.

I didn't know how long I had been out, but a bucket of icy water eventually shocked me awake.

One of the bodyguards kicked my face. "Good. You're not dead. Mr. Brown wants to send you a little gift. He said to make your death count."

They roughly wiped the blood off me, taped my mouth shut, and strapped a silver mask over my face. Then, they shoved me into a waiting car.

The moment we got out of the car, a cluster of bright neon signs at a hotel entrance caught my eye.

"Fall and Rebirth: Global Live Charity Gala."

My heart hammered against my ribs. Before I could even process what was happening, they forced me into a tattoo chair. A dozen high-definition cameras were pointed squarely at my back, streaming live.

Annie, the CEO of her fashion empire, was seated in the front row, dead center. She held a glass of champagne with practiced poise, laughing and chatting with the business elite.

Hudson stepped onto the stage, picked up a tattoo machine, and flashed a brilliant smile for the cameras.

"Ladies and gentlemen, let's give it up for our brave volunteer model! All donations raised tonight will go directly to children in need. Now, let's witness the pinnacle of art together."

From the audience, Annie watched with clear interest, whispering her thoughts to the person beside her. "Young minds sure are different. Hudson's idea is incredibly bold."

Her companion replied, equally impressed, "Yeah! Where did they find this model? He has a remarkable build and a gorgeous back!"

At that, Annie's gaze landed on the red birthmark at my waist. She froze for a moment, then shook her head and scoffed. "He's okay. Compared to others, he's still far from perfect."

With a sharp, mechanical buzz, Hudson started the machine. I was pinned firmly to the chair, paralyzed by terror. The sharp needles, without any ink, pressed directly into my back, performing a brutal dry-run "tattoo".

My body convulsed in pain. This forbidden blood-tattoo technique was agonizing. The needles sliced through my skin at high speeds, using my own blood to trace the design.

Hudson worked with relentless focus, carving Annie's massive signature onto my back, one stroke at a time. I couldn't stop shuddering, muffled groans escaping from beneath my mask.

Annie heard the sound and looked over. She stared at me for two seconds, then turned her attention back to Hudson, her eyes filled with admiration.

The world around me began to dissolve. All I could see was the bright red countdown in front of me.

Ten, nine, eight…

…

By the time Hudson finished his final stroke, my back was a mangled mess. He lifted his glove, slick with blood, and bowed to the crowd like a virtuoso finishing a masterpiece.

Thunderous applause erupted. Annie stood and clapped the loudest, her eyes glinting with pride.

At that moment, my body—drained by blood loss and searing pain—hit its limit. My heart clenched sharply. The medical monitors began to scream.

On the giant live screen, my electrocardiogram showed a flat line.

[Quest complete. Exiting protocol.]

I finally heard the electronic voice I had been longing for. For the first time, the chaotic world around me crumbled into silence.