Chapter 8

The air seemed to freeze, and Benedict felt a chill that pierced straight through his heart.

He had already accepted that Mikaela didn't love him, that she saw him as nothing more than a substitute and never trusted him. He'd never imagined she'd personally order someone else to assault him.

Behind him, the man breathed through his open mouth. His foul breath washed over Benedict.

Terrified of what might happen next, Benedict instinctively protested, "You can't do this to me..."

Mikaela looked at him as though he were nothing more than an insignificant insect. "Are you scared now? You still haven't apologized for pushing Benjamin down last time."

Tears still glistened in Benjamin's eyes, but there wasn't a trace of fear in them.

Suppressing his triumphant smile, he spoke leisurely. "If you want your apology to mean anything, you'll have to get on your knees."

Benedict pressed his lips tightly together. In the end, he slowly lowered himself to his knees.

"I'm sorry. Please forgive me. Please let me go."

The wounds on his knees hadn't fully healed. Waves of sharp, prickling pain spread through them, striking straight at his heart.

Mikaela held Benjamin in her arms, watching Benedict's miserable state with casual indifference before curling her lips into a cold smile.

She sneered, "You may have apologized, but you still deserve to be punished. If you dare to provoke Benjamin again, you'll have to pay the price."

At her signal, Isaac leaned toward the man and whispered something in his ear.

The man nodded obsequiously. "Don't worry. I'll take care of it."

Benedict's heart sank to his stomach. He struggled desperately to escape. To his dismay, the man seized his ankle and dragged him back like he was a rag doll.

The man's clammy hands traveled up his leg. As the door closed, Benedict saw Mikaela walk away without even looking back. He also saw Benjamin's triumphant smile.

Benedict's heart, which had long since been broken beyond repair, was now completely swallowed by despair.

He would disappear from this world in just two hours. Why did they have to drag him into hell and make him suffer such anguish? Why couldn't they just leave him alone?

Benedict struggled against the man desperately. At first, the man seemed to enjoy tormenting him. Gradually, his breathing grew heavier, and his hands roamed around in an increasingly brazen way.

When Benedict's resistance irritated him, the man struck him hard across the face.

The blow left Benedict dizzy. A metallic taste of blood flooded his mouth. Unable to push away the man's massive body, he could do nothing but repeatedly call for help from the system.

[Host, I consulted my superiors just now. Given the emergency, I've obtained special authorization for you. As long as this body dies, you can leave this world ahead of schedule.]

Benedict glanced at the open window and forced himself to calm down.

He steeled himself and said breathlessly, "Don't... rush. I'll take my clothes off myself. I promise I'll... make it more enjoyable for you."

Suppressing his disgust and humiliation, he forced himself to act as though he were willing to cooperate. The man panted heavily, apparently intrigued by the suggestion. To Benedict's surprise, he loosened his grip.

Benedict then gathered the tattered remains of his shirt, pretending to begin undressing as he slowly backed away. The moment his back touched the window frame, he threw himself backward with desperate resolve.

His entire body plunged from the 23rd floor.

"Would it hurt to fall from such a height?" Benedict wondered.

He was terrified, yet a faint sense of relief surfaced in his heart. No matter how much it hurt, surely it couldn't hurt more than all the pain Mikaela had inflicted on him, time and time again.

At least it would finally be over.

As he fell, the wind roared past his ears.

Strangely, the stars in the night sky seemed brighter than ever.

Benedict remembered the day Mikaela had proposed to him. She'd held him in her arms as they watched the fireworks and gazed at the stars. Over and over, she'd called him "Benny", telling him he was the most precious star in her life.

But they'd all been lies.

From that moment on, they would belong to different worlds and never have anything to do with each other again.

Just before he hit the ground, he seemed to hear Mikaela's hysterical scream. He vaguely heard the system exclaim that her affection level reached 100%, and that he had completed his mission.

Benedict thought it was impossible. He knew it was nothing but an illusion.

Following a loud crash, the star was no more.

Benedict closed his eyes, welcoming darkness and rebirth.