When the hearing resumed, the atmosphere had changed. What had once been a room filled with people determined to remain neutral, others watching simply for their own clout or professional interests, had turned into a crowd where the majority now held undisguised contempt and barely concealed gloating toward Calin.
Although Calin had seemingly calmed down, her eyes were red, her face ashen, and her demeanor frightened.
The jury concluded the hearing and read the verdict, confirming that the surveillance footage was authentic and had never been tampered with.
The verdict also took into account the other crimes Calin had committed, including the attempt to drug Shin Keir, harassment, defamation, unauthorized access and digital theft of private legal documents for malicious purposes, the attempted murder of Yeri Zhi, and more.
As for Master Ricci's case, although he was incapable of filing a lawsuit himself, the footage was enough for the jury to determine that Calin was guilty of second-degree murder with intent, resulting in his fatal condition of coma.
"This isn't right! You can't just file a case based on one piece of evidence!" Sergei protested. "Besides, the Ricci family is under mafia law. If there's a case, this matter should fall under their jurisdiction for them to handle!"
Hearing that, Calin clung to his words like a tiny glimmer of hope.
"I request a retrial! The surveillance footage should never have been included or used to influence my verdict!" she shrieked.
Another commotion erupted as people began stirring, scolding and insulting the two of them.
The judge, having clearly had enough, ordered security to arrest anyone who caused further trouble.
Then came the sentencing.
The judge convicted Calin on all charges and sentenced her to twenty years in prison.
Upon hearing the sentence, Calin felt as though every bone in her body had melted. She slumped in her wheelchair, looking utterly defeated.
The audience cheered as though the verdict had anything to do with them, although many remained unsatisfied, having expected her to receive a life sentence.
As for Sergei, he had been correct about one thing. His father's case did fall under mafia jurisdiction.
Moreover, aside from the surveillance footage, there was no other substantial evidence that could definitively establish Sergei as Calin's accomplice.
He later argued that he had been so shocked and terrified by Calin's actions that he had merely pretended to remain calm in the footage.
"Ahhhhhhh!"
Calin suddenly screamed again, turning hysterical.
Twenty years?!
She was going to spend the best years of her life, her youth, in prison?
By the time she got out, she would already be old and completely out of touch with the world.
What kind of future would even be waiting for her then?
Calin couldn't understand what exactly she had done wrong or how she had ended up being scorned and branded a criminal.
Wasn't Yeri Zhi still alive? Wasn't Shin Keir unharmed? And wasn't her father still breathing?
Yes, she might have said too many harsh and vile things. She might have done things that were hurtful.
But weren't they all still okay?
Was it really so wrong to fight for what was rightfully hers? For what she deserved?
As these thoughts came crashing down on Calin, she became more and more convinced that she was being punished simply because she was a well-known figure. Simply because she had offended Shin Keir, and simply because the justice system was corrupt and biased.
Everyone was bullying her.
"I'm the victim! You're all bullying me!"
Silver handcuffs clutched around her wrists as Calin struggled against them.
"I am Calin Ricci! Who do you people think you are?! Do you believe my dad could ruin you with just a wave of his hand?!"
The people around her frowned.
Had she gone mad?
The very father she was so proudly using as a threat had been harmed by her own actions and was still lying in the hospital.
Amidst all this, Madam Ricci remained in a daze, as though her soul had already left her body.
Ever since she had watched the footage, it had become impossible for her to snap out of her shock.
It wasn't merely because her children had harmed their own father. Everything that had happened had become too much for her to process.
The family she had once been so proud of and called home, their status and reputation, everything they had built over the years... it had all collapsed around her.
After all, she was a socialite who had never experienced hardship or endured such an ordeal before.
Security dragged the hysterical Calin away when she saw Yeri.
Immediately, she screamed even louder, pointing at her as though she were seeing her for the first time.
"It's her! It's her! What method did you use to swap us?!"
Calin suddenly clung to a nearby chair, her expression completely deranged.
"I understand now! You're all being fooled! No, we're all being fooled! She's the one who did all of this! She's the one who used some kind of dark magic against me! I remember now! Hahaha!"
Yeri "..."
She was almost certain Calin had lost her sanity.
"Open your damn eyes and see the truth! She's the one copying me! She planned this for a long time! I request a facial recognition scan! She definitely had plastic surgery to look like me!" Calin continued, crying and laughing at the same time as she accused Yeri of stealing her face. "She needed me to be convicted to bury the truth that I am the real Yeri Zhi!"
Yeri "..."
"Want me to fix her again?" Shin asked.
Yeri shook her head, it was no longer worth it.
"You said yourself she doesn't have the mental fortitude. Besides, convincing herself that she's me sounds interesting."
Shin glanced at her.
For some reason, he suddenly recalled Jewel's satisfied expression every time she transformed a plant into crimson.
---
The verdict dominated the news and social media from that day onward, with netizens endlessly debating Calin's complete breakdown.
Even her once-devoted fans, who had previously flooded every comment section to defend her, seemed to have disappeared.
Whether they had finally abandoned her or were simply too afraid of getting doxxed, no one knew.
With Calin's matter put behind them, although the public had yet to show any intention of moving on, Yeri's mind was no longer on it.
Bang!
Thick piles of books were dumped in front of her as Elder Madam Keir gave her a stern look.
The old matriarch was no longer confined to a wheelchair, but she could only walk around with the help of a cane.
"As the future Young Madam and wife of Shin Keir, I expect you to follow the clan's ironclad rules and never forget your manners and etiquette," she said, looking at Yeri with a skeptical expression, as though she doubted she would learn quickly. "Normally, I'm the one in charge of this matter, but my health can no longer support it. So, I hired a tutor to ensure you're taking these lessons seriously."
Yeri was dumbfounded.
Surely this old woman was intentionally making things harder for her.
There were even more books here than she had ever been given as a high school student.
Even back in the demon realm, she didn't recall having lessons like this. Or was it simply because those demons knew better than to force her to learn?
"Big sister!"
Xati suddenly appeared at the door and rushed over to hug Yeri.
"Where have you been all this time? Why did it take you so long to visit me?"
Before Yeri could respond, Elder Madam Keir hurried over and separated them.
"Xati, the adults are discussing important matters. You can't just barge in like that. Besides, it's rude not to knock on the door."
"Great-grandma is right," Xati said cutely. "I want to join. What are you playing?"
Elder Madam Keir sighed helplessly before patting his head affectionately. "My dear Xati, this isn't for children. Yeri has to learn these lessons because she will soon be entering the family."
"Oh? Then that means I have to learn too."
Elder Madam Keir glanced at Yeri before saying with obvious schadenfreude, "You're not an outsider. You'll have different lessons."
Yeri wasn't the least bit upset.
If anything, the way she saw it, Xati seemed to have the old woman completely wrapped around his little finger.
"Uhm, I actually just came here to visit Xati. Can we do this some other time?" Yeri asked.
Elder Madam Keir immediately gave her a displeased look, but Xati had already begun flipping through the books, effectively distracting her.
"Household accounting, expenses, and ledgers?" Xati read aloud. "Isn't this something a butler or governess should do? Why does Big Sister have to learn this?"
He flipped through a few more pages.
"Besides, this is clearly from five years ago."
Elder Madam Keir was speechless.
But then Xati began pointing out discrepancies and making comments about numbers that most adults wouldn't even understand.
Her eyes widened in shock.
Yeri was equally alarmed. After all, Xati was supposed to be only five years old.
"Xati..." She quickly called out.
But Elder Madam Keir looked as though she had just discovered a new continent as she grabbed Xati excitedly, practically glowing with pride.
"My great-grandson is a genius! A prodigy!"
She hugged him even tighter.
"I knew you inherited the Keir family's genius genes! Your dad was already adept with numbers when he was your age."
"Which dad?" Yeri blurted out unintentionally.
Elder Madam Keir immediately gave her a scolding look.
"You! Watch your mouth, and don't listen to the nonsense you hear outside. You're the future matriarch. Don't be a bad influence."
"Big Sister is right, Great-grandma. Which dad?" Xati asked curiously.
The old matriarch froze.
She turned toward Yeri as though she had indeed discovered a bad influence and was about to unleash another litany of scolding when there was another knock on the door.
"Is Xati here?"
Tristan entered, and beside him was Sean. "Look who I brought here..."
Sean politely greeted the two adults before waving excitedly at Xati.
"Ah, it's the noisy brat," Xati muttered to himself but Yeri heard him.
Elder Madam Keir, however, had already forgotten what she wanted to say to Yeri. She excitedly began telling Tristan about how much of a genius his son was.
Tristan's mouth twitched.
Anyone else would have been skeptical, or perhaps even terrified, about the matter.
But Elder Madam Keir was looking at Xati through such a thick filter of affection and favoritism that she couldn't be bothered to question whether any of it actually made sense.