Justin sneered, raising his foot and kicking me hard. "You ought to stop trying to fool me with that nonsense of yours! I don't know if I'll get what's coming to me, but every bit of pain you're feeling right now is retribution for what you did to Ruby!"

He coldly commanded the bodyguards, "Go rip the scales off her body, one after another."

I could feel the cold iron tongs clamping onto my scales as they ripped them off, sending searing pain through my whole body. I grew lightheaded from the agony as I constantly went in and out of consciousness.

Justin remained unmoved as he watched me struggle in agony.

Ruby simply took out her phone and started a live stream right in front of me. "Do you guys see this? Here's the mermaid who actually tried to seduce my husband! She's going to be taught a lesson today!"

In that instant, the viewer count on the live stream skyrocketed, with the comments section filled up with morbidly curious remarks.

"I never thought a mermaid would be a homewrecker. Is it true that a mermaid's tail is edible?"

"Can those scales be preserved as specimens?"

I lashed out with my tail, trying to slap the phone out of her hand.

Justin plunged a knife hard into my tail before I could even reach her hand. "You never learn, do you? How dare you still try to intimidate Ruby!"

He twisted the blade in my flesh and said, "You ought to know that my mother returned to the city and won't be back anytime soon, so no one will be able to save you this time, Celeste! You'd better remember this pain well! I'd like to see if you dare to try and get close to me again!"

Ruby suddenly chimed in, saying, "I heard that a mermaid's Sacred Heart Scale can cure any disease, Justin. Is that really true? I want one for myself…"

Justin's eyes immediately brightened. "I'll get it for you right away, honey."

I lay prone on the ground, shaking my head desperately; after all, merfolk possessed two Sacred Heart Scales, and since I had already given up one to save him, I would surely die if I were to lose this last one.

Justin remained indifferent. He took the iron tongs from the table and slowly walked toward me.

I jerked violently as he used the cold iron tongs to grab the scale on my chest and tore it off. I couldn't help but scream out loud as the agonizing pain erupted through my body.

Justin continued tearing off one scale after another since he was unable to locate the Sacred Heart Scale, causing blood to gush from the injuries and quickly pool on the ground.

He suddenly furrowed his brow, a brief look of reluctance appearing in his eyes.

"Do you feel sorry for her, Justin? If you've really caught feelings for Celeste, I won't blame you. I'll just step aside and let you two be together!" Ruby looked at Justin, her eyes bloodshot.

Justin grew flustered and, without a second thought, removed the final scale from my chest.

I let out a heart-wrenching scream from the searing pain.

Justin didn't even spare me a glance as he pulled Ruby into his embrace to comfort her. "What are you saying, honey? You've always been the only one in my heart. How can she ever compare to you? I'll do anything for you as long as you're not upset, Ruby."

Ruby snuggled into his embrace, a cruel glint passing through her eyes. "If that's the case, I want you to drain her blood right in front of me and then send her to the research institute. I'll believe that you actually mean it once you do that, Justin."

"I'll do whatever you want, Ruby," Justin said, nodding without the slightest hesitation.

I lay on the cold ground, my entire body trembling uncontrollably, while my eyes remained locked, dead on him. I noticed that Justin's face had already taken on a pallid, ashen color—an obvious sign that he wouldn't live through the day.

Just as the tip of his blade was about to sink into my chest, the door was suddenly kicked open with a thunderous crash, and a figure stormed in like a gale.

Upon catching sight of my wretched state—covered in blood with my scales ripped away—Diana nearly passed out. She then bellowed, "You freaking brute! What exactly have you done? Do you know that torturing and killing a merfolk carries a curse? You are going to destroy the Gunter family!"

Justin's face was brimming with contempt. "You're getting old and senile if you actually believe in this superstitious nonsense, Mom!"

He pointed at me as I lay dying on the floor. "I'm merely teaching that bitch a lesson since she made Ruby cry! You ought to know that the whole mermaid curse thing is nothing but a total hoax—"

He realized with horror that the skin all over his body was suddenly cracking open and leaking droplets of blood before he could finish speaking, sloughing off to expose bright red flesh and muscle. He collapsed flat on his back the very next second before he could even cry out.