"Today, I’ll teach you the rules of the Hastings Tribe myself!"

The man pulled a leather belt from his waist and lashed it down on me again and again.

Pain wracked my body and I trembled uncontrollably. My chest, already aching from the fall earlier, felt as if it were being crushed, making it impossible to catch my breath. Weakness overtook me and I couldn’t even muster the strength to speak.

"Freddie, take it easy. Don’t beat her to death."

“Yes, we paid the matchmaker half a pound of gold in exchange."

Listening to their conversation, I immediately thought of my cousin's boyfriend.

When I got in the car, I heard him talking on the phone, telling the other party that he would definitely deliver the goods on time.

Thinking back now, the "goods" he mentioned must have been me.

I never expected my cousin to have such a boyfriend.

I had no idea what had happened to her now. Was she safe?

"If you don’t believe me, you can call Albie and ask him. I also have photos of us together on my phone…"

From the way they spoke, I could tell that Albie held a high status among them. I thought that if I could just prove my relationship with him, they would let me go.

But before I could finish my sentence, a heavy slap landed across my face.

"You still dare to call our young leader by name? I’ll beat that filthy mouth of yours shut!"

"This woman is cunning. She’s just trying to get her phone so she can call the police."

Three slaps landed hard on my face in quick succession.

I felt my teeth loosen from the impact, the metallic taste of blood spreading in my mouth. My head spun, my whole body throbbed with pain and it felt like my insides had been shattered.

Even though I was filled with grievances, I didn’t dare say another word.

These men were ruthless.

"Lock her in the pigsty. She’ll behave by tomorrow," the leader ordered.

Two men grabbed my arms and dragged me toward the pigsty.

The place was cold and drafty, reeking of pig waste. I collapsed in a corner, trembling uncontrollably in despair.

I endured until the dead of night when all the lights around me finally went out.

Crawling out of the pigsty, only one thought consumed me. I had to escape.

But I had barely run a few meters when a bright beam of light suddenly fell upon me. Moments later, the entire tribe erupted with the sound of blaring horns.

Within less than a minute, I was completely surrounded by a group of Hastings Tribe men.

Some wielded axes, others gripped long sticks, their fierce eyes locked onto me with murderous intent.

"I told you this woman was cunning! She actually dared to sneak away in the middle of the night!"

"No worries, just follow the usual process."

"No matter how stubborn a woman is, she won’t last past the third trial. By then, she’ll either be broken or lose her mind and once that happens, she’ll obey."

I had heard Albie mention the old, cruel traditions of his tribe before. Among them, he had specifically talked about the so-called ‘Three Trials.’

Without outright killing them, they had devised some inhumane methods to force foreign women to stay and submit.

They did it all because, without women, there would be no future for their people.

The first trial was soaking in itch water. The itch water was made from a toxic plant. Once it touched the skin, it caused rashes and unbearable itching.

The second trial was cactus torture. The woman's body would be pierced with sharp cactus spines until she was covered in them. She had to remove the thorns herself, except for the ones on her back, which remained, causing constant pain. It was both a physical and psychological torment.

The third trial was the cycle.

For ten days, the men of the tribe were free to enter and leave the woman’s room at any time, day or night. A doctor would examine her daily until she became pregnant.

"No, please… I beg you!" I knelt on the ground, bowing over and over, pleading desperately.

"Begging now? It’s too late!" Freddie sneered, gripping my chin tightly as he shined a powerful flashlight directly into my eyes.

The blinding light burned my vision, forcing my eyes shut as tears streamed down my face.

"I want to see your young leader! Let me see Albie!" I sobbed, clinging to my last hope.

"You really don’t give up, do you?" he scoffed. "Fine, our young leader will be back tomorrow. By then, you’ll get your wish. But the real question is… will you even survive the Three Trials until then?"

Before I could react, rough hands grabbed me and in the next second, I was thrown straight into the itch water pool.

I never expected them to start the Three Trials so quickly.

The water in the pool was a murky green. Within just three seconds of being submerged, an unbearable itch spread across my skin.

At first, it was just my hands. I scratched lightly and the skin immediately turned red.

Then, my arms started itching. When I rolled up my sleeves, I saw a patch of angry red rashes spreading across my skin.

Before long, the rash had taken over my entire body, especially my face. The itching was so intense that I could barely keep my eyes open. My face swelled up like a bloated pig’s, unbearably itchy and painful.

"Hahaha! Look at her! Doesn’t she look just like a mother monkey?"

Loud laughter erupted around me.

Desperate for relief, I writhed against the ground, trying to ease the itching. My nails tore into my skin, leaving deep scratches and streaks of blood across my face.

But none of that mattered anymore. My body was unbearably itchy.

After three hours of relentless scratching, the red rashes finally began to fade, but I was completely unrecognizable. Clumps of my hair had been torn out, leaving a bald patch on my scalp.

Now, a burning pain covered my entire body. I dropped to my knees, desperately bowing to the men surrounding me.

"I was wrong! If you want money, I’ll give you anything! Please, just stop torturing me! I’ll do whatever you say!"

I couldn’t even begin to imagine how much worse the next two trials would be.

At first, I had hoped to hold on until Albie returned. That was my only chance of survival. But now, I wasn’t sure I could last that long.

"Haha, let me tell you something about our tribe’s rules. Once the Three Trials begin, they can’t be stopped under any circumstances. It’s been our tradition for a hundred years. You should’ve behaved from the start. You brought this on yourself!"

A man spat in my face before ordering two others to throw me into a pile of cacti.

"Ah!"

My agonized screams echoed through the valley.

Countless tiny thorns pierced my skin, each one like a needle stabbing into me. The searing, relentless pain spread across every inch of my body, making me feel as if I were about to lose consciousness.

I staggered out of the cactus patch, but with every step, sharp spines embedded deeper into the soles of my feet. Cold sweat dripped down my back from the unbearable pain.

Collapsing onto the ground, I started pulling the thorns out one by one. My hands trembled as blood and tears mixed, dripping onto the dirt below.

The pain was constant and sharp enough to torment but never enough to kill. It was a slow, calculated form of psychological torture.

The Hastings Tribe men stood around me, watching like spectators at a cruel show. Some burst into laughter, while others mocked me with jeers and insults.

Just then, Freddie’s phone rang.

He glanced at the caller ID and his expression immediately tensed.

“Sir, you’re back? You’re already at the entrance? I’ll come meet you right away.”

Was it really Albie?

Relief surged through me. I was finally saved.

I lifted my head, a glimmer of hope flashing in my eyes.

But the next second, Freddie’s foot smashed into my face.

“What are you looking at? You really think you’ll get to see my young leader? Dream on!”

“You lot, take her to the room. Time for the third trial!”

The men around me grinned with excitement, rubbing their hands as they stepped closer.

“No! Please, just let me see him. I beg you!”

But they ignored my desperate pleas. Two of them grabbed me, one on each side and dragged me toward the house.

“Albie! Albie, help me!” I screamed with all my might, hoping he would hear me.

One of the men driving me forward struck me with a brutal elbow to the ribs. Pain exploded in my chest and my vision blurred as strength drained from my body.

I couldn’t even speak anymore.

The two men threw me onto the bed and the cactus spines still embedded in my back dug deeper into my skin. A sharp, searing pain nearly knocked me unconscious.

Through my haze of agony, I suddenly heard a familiar voice.

“Did someone just call my name?”

A spark of hope ignited within me. I whipped my head toward the doorway, my eyes filled with desperation.

There he was, Albie, standing just outside, frowning at his phone.

“You must’ve misheard, Sir. No one would dare call your name so casually,” one of the men beside him said smoothly.

“Oh, by the way, Sir, why didn’t you take the helicopter back this time?”

Albie let out a sigh. “I had a fight with my girlfriend. I went to the train station to apologize, but I couldn’t find her. Her phone’s been off, too.”

Albie went to the train station to find me?

I parted my lips, struggling to make a sound, to tell him I was here. But the brutal elbow strike from earlier had left me barely able to breathe. I could feel the damage deep inside, my body so weak that no words would come out.

"You’re in a relationship, Sit? That girl must be extraordinary," the bald man flattered him. "Next time, you have to bring her back to the tribe so we can meet her."

"Mhmm," Albie responded absentmindedly. "I was planning to introduce her to everyone during the New Year, but I made her angry."

"By the way, Uncle, prepare the helicopter for tomorrow. I don’t want her spending the holidays upset. I’ll go straight to her home and apologize."

He sighed. "Judging by the time, she should have arrived home by now."

Weakly, I reached out, desperate to tell Albie that I wasn’t home. I was here. He couldn’t leave. If he did, I would die in this place.

But no words came. Only silent tears fell, drop by drop.

I couldn’t just sit here and wait for death…

If Albie left, all hope would be lost.

"Al… Albie!”

I mustered every ounce of strength left in me and screamed his name.

He turned his head sharply, but before his gaze could find me, the door slammed shut.

Pain crashed into me again as fists and feet rained down mercilessly.

"You stubborn wench! Even like this, you still won’t behave? Let’s see how much more you can take!"

I collapsed onto the floor, my vision blurring. In the corner of my eye, I caught sight of a brick lying against the wall.

Reaching for it with the last of my strength, I barely grazed its edge before a heavy boot came down hard on my hand, crushing it against the ground.

"Aah!" A scream of pain tore from my throat.

"What was that?" Albie's voice came from outside the door.

The door creaked open.

"Nothing, Young Master," one of the men quickly said. "Just a disobedient wild boar. The helicopter is ready. You should go find your girlfriend."

The room was dark. My battered body was hidden behind two burly figures, blocking Albie’s view entirely.

As he turned away, my heart sank into despair.