Bzzz, bzzz, bzzz, bzzz—
The thick blood pulled into red lines at the tip of the needle, which were then instantly injected into the skin by the vibrating head. Tiny beads of blood seeped from the skin, only to be wiped away by Maki with a tissue.
"I'm telling you, when blood is tattooed into the body, it has no color on the surface."
Maki wore a mask, chatting with Yuno Gasai while concentrating on her work. "The finished product will only leave a faint, barely visible scar."
"Is it still okay even like that?"
"The blood will just be absorbed; what's the point of the tattoo? You won't be able to see it at all."
Maki stared intently at the continuously moving needle tip, chatting casually.
Yuno Gasai lightly bit her lower lip, frowning... this tattoo artist's hand was indeed heavy.
The awkward location was also quite fragile and delicate; visible beads of sweat broke out on the girl's forehead.
"It's a meaning only I know," Yuno Gasai replied. "Is it enough?"
She was slightly worried.
If this wasn't enough, she would have to wait until next month.
Maki looked at the test tube, then at the pattern, estimated for a moment, and nodded.
Since the patterns were all lines and characters, the machine was loaded with a single liner needle throughout the process—compared to rows of magnum needles, a single liner needle obviously hurt more.
"You're one of the few girls I've seen who can endure this." Maki was finishing up, concentrating on tracing those strange characters, afraid that a single slip would miss a corner or a line.
"Actually, it hurts quite a bit."
"Yuno is a very resilient girl, right?" Maki said suggestively. "What does your family do? You're a rich young lady, aren't you?"
Maki began to probe; for what was to come next, figuring out the background was the most important step.
The girl in the black camisole looked naive, blurting out her entire family background: "My father is the president of a small company, and my mother used to be a teacher, but she left to start her own private school."
Maki smiled and said nothing.
As expected, that guy Fujimoto has a real eye for people.
A bit of money, no influence... they could have some fun in a bit; maybe their travel money was sorted.
"Alright, that's it. Take a look."
Maki held up a mirror for the lying girl so she could see the pattern on her chest.
After the other nodded, Maki pointed to the full-length mirror.
"There's a large mirror over there; go see for yourself."
The tattoo artist applied transparent Vaseline to the tattooed wound and wrapped it in film. Then, she gave instructions to the girl standing there stiffly with her hands raised.
"In four or five hours, remember to take a shower and use a towel to wipe away the tissue fluid from the wound," she said with a smirk, her words carrying a deeper meaning. "Wash it well."
The girl didn't look into it further; she nodded and ran to the full-length mirror to admire the pattern.
She didn't notice Maki, nearby, hunching over and quietly slipping out of the tattoo room.
The entire pattern was complex and dense, like a sharp-angled spiderweb woven from lines—surrounding the gaps in the web were countless tiny, crowded characters.
With the rise and fall of her chest, the bright red pattern didn't fade away as Maki had said; instead, it became even more vivid.
The crimson lines flowed slowly... the dark red web connected into a flower that was slowly reviving.
Where is everyone?
Yuno Gasai finished putting on her top and buttoned it up, only to find the female tattoo artist had long since disappeared.
Did she go out?
Thinking of Fujimoto Matsu still waiting at the door, Yuno Gasai picked up her bag and diary and pushed open the door.
Then, she froze.
In the living room, Fujimoto Matsu was shirtless, with a wide white cloth band wrapped around his waist.
The tattoo artist Maki was smiling on the side, holding a handheld dv camera, filming Yuno Gasai.
"Eh??"
The strange scene left Yuno Gasai a bit stunned. "Um... excuse me?"
"Smile! Female lead!"
Maki squatted on the sofa, picked up an empty cigarette pack nearby, and threw it at Yuno Gasai!
The cigarette pack hit her head with a 'thwack', making the girl stumble.
"Ever been in a movie? Even if your family has money, you probably haven't had a chance to participate in a shoot—well, today you do!"
Maki jumped off the sofa, pulled Fujimoto Matsu close, and gave him a deep kiss, the DV still pointed at Yuno Gasai.
"Let me introduce to our female lead, today's male lead: Mr. Fujimoto Matsu! Ta-da!" Maki said loudly. "Clap! Come on, clap!"
Yuno Gasai stood there blankly, watching the woman with the handheld dv approach her, and then a slap landed on the back of her head!
Slap!
"Clap! Clap! Can't a rich young lady even clap?!"
The woman shoved the camera into Yuno Gasai's face, her playfulness finally turning into something sinister.
The girl, whose head had been struck, was dazed; she shrank back in fear, placed her diary on a side table, and cautiously began to clap.
The sound was so soft it was barely audible.
"Can you be a bit louder? Don't you like today's male lead?" Maki took another step, continuing to pressure the hesitant girl.
Yuno Gasai immediately raised her hands again, clapping with all her might—this weak appearance made Fujimoto Matsu burst out laughing: "Say it, 'Please let the male lead start ravishing—me,' how about it? Like you can't wait, or maybe add 'impatiently'?"
The two of them discussed and weighed their lines, completely ignoring the girl who was about to cry.
"Then say, 'Please come and ravish me quickly, I can't wait!' Then show some anticipation, you have to look expectant."
Maki nodded in decision, only to find the girl behind her looking pained, tears welling in her eyes.
"What, so useless. Hey, aren't you very rich?" Fujimoto Matsu lit two cigarettes and handed one to his girlfriend.
The woman took it, put it in her mouth, and looked Yuno Gasai up and down.
"You haven't had any experience yet, have you? Don't worry, Fujimoto Matsu is very capable! Super capable! I'll film a dreamy one for you, or do you want something more realistic?"
"Don't worry, it won't be posted online—as long as you pay a little, just a little bit of money. Then, we won't see each other again, and look, nobody will know what happened."
Maki pursed her lips, gesturing for Yuno Gasai to look at the drawer next to her.
The girl's hand shook as she pulled it open.
Inside was a drawer full of photos and memory cards; the images in the photos were unbearable to look at.
"Fujimoto and I are both people of our word; he gets his pleasure, and I get my money. And you—well, you at least get to experience perfect service..."
Maki's DV recorded Yuno Gasai's expressions at every moment, watching her go from disbelief to terror, and from terror to despair; the girl even began to radiate a certain numbness—that sudden shift in feeling made Maki almost manic with excitement!
"More, give me more expressions, that feeling of unease! Yes, that's it! Hahahaha!" The woman laughed hysterically... the next moment, her eyes became vacant, and her body went stiff.
A long sigh.
A few seconds later, Maki directly tossed the recording DV to Fujimoto Matsu, not even caring if he caught it, and without looking back, rushed into the bathroom at the other end of the living room, slamming the door shut.
Fujimoto Matsu caught it with a smirk, raised it again, and aimed it at the helpless Yuno Gasai.
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