"Well... that's good. Cutting off her delusions is the only way to solve the problem completely."
Mrs. Cunningham was a ruthless character. She had prepared a red-hot branding iron, one of the ten ancient tortures. Years of disfigurement had twisted her mind.
She wanted her enemy's daughter to taste the pain of disfigurement, just as she had. Mrs. Cunningham found it satisfying to think about.
As the branding iron turned from black to brown and then to bright red, Mrs. Cunningham cautiously approached Eliana, who was still bound.
"Tell me... who is that man?" Mrs. Cunningham demanded with a menacing look.
"Madam, there is no man. I have been framed," Eliana said, well aware that she couldn't escape the branding iron at this point.
In the Cunningham Family, where they treated her like fish on a chopping block, she would be willing to endure punishment herself if it meant protecting Dylan from being exposed. Eliana took a deep breath. She knew she was done for, and her relationship with Dylan was over.
She could feel the temperature rising around her, but the branding iron had yet to touch her face.
When she opened her eyes once more, she was met with the familiar cold and stern face of Dylan. He had stepped in to stop the branding iron.
"Son, what do you mean? I was going to punish this wretched girl! She's a sinner, and she's been causing chaos in the Cunningham Family!"
"Mom... what has she done wrong?"
Dylan looked at the red-hot branding iron. Even if it was a piece of metal, it would surely burn through skin and flesh.
"This slutty girl has kept a man in her room. When I asked her who he was, she wouldn't say. See for yourself." Mrs. Cunningham handed the photos to Dylan.
In that instant, Dylan understood everything. The so-called "wild man" they had been talking about was, in fact, himself.
The nights he had spent with Eliana had become another reason for her to be condemned.
"She's already been beaten like this. Let it go," he said.
"Cousin, are you protecting her? She hasn't even confessed who the man is. By letting Auntie release her like this, is that fair?" Rose's words put Dylan in a difficult position once again.
Rose knew that the man in the photos was him but made it impossible for him to intervene. Dylan glared at Rose with anger in his eyes.
"This is the Cunningham Family, it's not your place to speak..."
"I know I'm an outsider, but I'm still a relative of the Cunningham Family. What do you mean by protecting this girl, Cousin? Is there something between you two?"
"That's enough, get out..." Dylan was furious, and in front of Mrs. Cunningham, he slapped Rose to the ground.
"Son, what are you doing? You hit your cousin for this wretched girl?" Mrs. Cunningham was also angry.
"Mom, this is the Cunningham Family, and no one can meddle in our affairs..." Dylan said, staring at Rose with a hint of killing intent in his eyes.
"The Randle Family owes us too much. My face, and even your father's life, were ruined because of the Randle Family. It wouldn't be excessive even if I disfigure her face now, and if I kill her, it would still be justified..."
Mrs. Cunningham recalled all the hatred she had harbored, and she couldn't wait to destroy her enemy's daughter.
"No... please, no..." Eliana's face turned as pale as a sheet. She couldn't escape this time.
The branding iron grew closer, and she could even feel its scorching heat.
Until the red-hot branding iron was pressed onto Dylan's skin, emitting white smoke and a sizzling sound, leaving everyone present stunned.
Eliana had never dared to hope that Dylan would do anything for her, especially considering their complicated relationship and her status as the daughter of his enemy.
"Son... what are you doing?"
Mrs. Cunningham was utterly dumbfounded. She never imagined that Dylan would use his own body to shield Eliana and endure this pain.
"Mom, stop searching. The man in the photo is me," Dylan admitted, not only enduring the physical pain but also acknowledging the relationship with Eliana that should never have existed.
With a clatter, the branding iron, stained with Dylan's flesh and already faded, fell to the ground.
Mrs. Cunningham was on the verge of spitting blood. For a woman who had lost her husband and had a psychologically distorted appearance, nothing was more emotionally exhausting than her own son being involved with the daughter of their enemy.
"My good son, you are truly my good son. You actually..."
"Mom, this is my responsibility. Don't make things difficult for her anymore," Dylan said, enduring the burning pain in his chest as he walked towards Eliana and helped her untie the ropes.
At that moment, Eliana was also in a daze. Without the support of the ropes, she weakly collapsed into the man's arms, her trembling hands touching the burns on his chest caused by the branding iron.
"Dylan, are you okay?" Eliana's tears welled up. She had never dared to imagine that the man who had used her as a means of release would protect her like this.
"I'm fine. Let me take you to apply some ointment..."
In front of his mother and the entire Cunningham Family, Dylan carried Eliana away.
This unexpected turn of events took everyone by surprise, including Eliana herself.
She had always believed that she was just a plaything to him, a means of release, and even considered herself the daughter of his enemy, believing that he took her as another form of revenge.
But today, the man stood in front of her, bearing the scalding branding iron for her. Even though her heart was an icy fortress, it began to waver and melt.
Eliana had been taken away in a brutal manner, and the room was in complete chaos.
He held her, and there was nowhere to step.
"Could you put me down? I'll get some ice for you..."
Eliana knew that his burns were more severe than her whip marks.
She freed herself from his embrace, fetched some ice, and carefully helped him remove his clothes. On his well-defined chest, there were fist-sized burns that looked painful.
These burns were the result of him bearing everything for her, and Eliana's heart ached. Tears flowed once again.
"Are you undressing me skillfully now? It seems like you've thoroughly studied my body?" Dylan's voice was teasing, not wanting her to blame herself too much, especially since all the suffering she had endured today was because of him.
"What are you saying?" Eliana stopped crying, but her face was flushed with embarrassment.
Suddenly, Dylan embraced her, but not as forcefully as before, as there were many whip marks on her body.
"Does it hurt a lot?" His voice became magnetic and gentle, even his embrace was gentle, as if he was afraid of causing her any pain.
"Don't tease... I'm not in pain. But what about your wounds?"
"I'm sorry I came back late."
"Huh? What?"
Eliana was surprised. He apologized to her, which seemed like a dream.
"You are my woman, after all. I shouldn't have let you endure all this," Dylan said, his mood incredibly complex.
“Your women?”