Madman

Half-asleep, the excruciating pain in his limbs brought Samuel back to reality.

My mind is still a complete blank.

Feeling dazed and confused.

He heard someone singing.

The tone and singing were very strange, like a nursery rhyme.

"Dad."

"Why."

Why did the oil tanker explode?

"I did it."

Where did everyone go after the explosion?

They're all dead.

"I can't find the body."

"Turn to ashes."

"Then you're truly a genius!"

Such a singing voice.

The pronunciation of Cathay.

But I couldn't understand the lyrics.

Yet you could feel the joy and... madness of the singer.

"Mother."

"Why."

When will the Viscount explode?

"Let's wait a little longer."

When will his son die?

"Wait for me to come back."

Why wait until he comes back?

"Because the whole family is going to die—all—all—together—"

A man's voice.

The voice of an adult man.

Yet they imitated innocent children, singing adorable nursery rhymes.

It's a very funny thing.

They perform comedic acts that are completely incongruous with their appearance in order to win applause from the audience. They always appear to be smiling, but people don't know what they are really thinking. They always wear a mask.

Such a person is called... Joker.

Samuel Samuel's eyes widened suddenly.

He saw an unfamiliar ceiling, the room was lit and smelled of something burning. He tried to move but couldn't. All he could feel was excruciating pain. He managed to look down and saw that his hands and feet were pinned to a stone platform by sharp iron spikes.

Previous memories flooded into my mind like a tidal wave.

With pain, with despair.

Not long ago, he had calmly and slyly arranged the defenses of the manor, making foolproof preparations, waiting for the Joker's attack, waiting for reinforcements to arrive. He believed his plan would succeed. He couldn't think of any mistakes or oversights. Every corner of the manor was under surveillance, and the mages were watching the movements beneath the ground. No matter where the Joker appeared, he would be met with a fierce storm.

Then... the sky collapsed and the earth caved in.

When that enormous, unknown thing crashed down from the mountain, many people noticed something amiss and hurriedly took cover. Only Samuel and the mage Richard sensed the approaching extreme danger through their powerful intuition. They each used their life-saving methods and fled in panic, but it all happened too fast. The beast rushed down so fast, but it was far slower than the speed of death and destruction.

A terrifying shockwave, a massive wave of fire, and an incomprehensible and irresistible force roared forth, instantly shattering the elegant and exquisite manor villa, instantly killing all living people around it, tearing everything apart, blowing everything away, blood and sand mixed together, and debris swirled into the sky. Boundless streams of fire scattered and fell, as if the gates of hell had been opened.

Devastating.

Samuel and Richard, being the quickest to react and the strongest, fled desperately as the tanker truck came crashing down. They then used every means to avoid the most powerful blast and withstand the overwhelming impact and shrapnel. They survived, but were seriously injured.

And they felt bewildered, shocked, and even... terrified.

This is a power they cannot even imagine; they can only look up to it.

Richard's shield shattered, his mana depleted, and his spirit exhausted. His protective gear was destroyed. He collapsed to the ground, clutching his head and howling, shouting, "Which School of Blazing Flames Holy See mage has arrived! Who is casting high-level spells! I am a servant of His Highness the First Prince of the Empire!"

But Samuel knew who the enemy was.

He got a clear look at the giant beast that was charging down the mountain.

It was a steel construct he had never seen before, but it was very similar to the skeleton that had been burned to a crisp during the day. The townspeople said that the Cathayan had emerged from that self-propelled steel construct and set fire to the nailed knight, killing him.

He knew who did it.

The murderer who shattered all his hopes, wiped Glittering Sand Manor from the earth, leveled the Good Family's foundation, and killed all his hopes, efforts, wealth, and family.

It's the Joker, that Joker.

He felt the waves of fire rushing towards him, looked at everything burning fiercely, and let out a mournful scream, a desperate roar, and a pitiful wail.

Then, he fell to the ground.

Pretend to be seriously injured and exhausted.

Because he knew someone would come.

Someone has actually arrived.

He heard footsteps and caught a glimpse of a pair of boots out of the corner of his eye. Boots like these wouldn't be produced on the mainland. The Flame parted automatically around the person, who was walking towards them.

It's him, it must be him.

Samuel lay on the ground, feigning unconsciousness and serious injury, but the raging flames of anger drove his boiling battle qi to surge and gather Dou Qi within his body. At this point, the hatred between the two sides was irreconcilable, a hatred that could not be washed away by the waters of the world. Even if he fell into hell, he would forever remember and hate this irreconcilable enemy.

The intention was to perish together with him; when he approached, a sudden attack would strike, delivering a fatal blow.

You must kill him. You absolutely must kill him.

Samuel awaited his chance to die alongside the Joker, waiting for him to approach.

But he stopped.

Then he drew a crossbow from behind his back, fired, and the sharp bolt pierced the viscount's arm.

Samuel remained silent.

Then it's the left leg.

The Viscount ignores pain with hatred.

The next arrow pierced Samuel's groin.

Such an attitude was almost mocking and insulting, as if the viscount had seen through his disguise. The viscount roared and charged at the despicable Joker, only to be met with a shotgun.

The powerful stopping force sent him flying backward, crashing to the ground and extinguishing his last bit of strength.

Amid his defiant roars, the Cathayan calmly broke his arms and legs, even reaching out to pat his face. "Don't rush, don't rush, I'll get you out of the fire first, it's dangerous here."

Then everything went black before his eyes, and he knew nothing more.

When I woke up again, I heard the Joker singing.

He screamed and struggled, but he couldn't move.

Kang De stopped singing and turned around.

His smile was neither manic nor mocking, lacking the satisfaction of revenge or the pleasure of capturing his enemy. His eyes were calm, his face clean, and he appeared confident and polite, as if nothing in the world could make him bow his head. He simply observed the world with equality and curiosity.

He now looked just like Samuel had when he first met him on the docks.

He calmly asked, "Last night, Your Excellency stood atop your beautiful and exquisite tower, looking down upon us as if we were ants, commanding with ease and making plans with a smile. Did you ever imagine that things would turn out this way today?"

Samuel stared intently at him, his eyes bloodshot. "You ruined everything I had."

"The same to you."

Kang De responded without any emotion, "I could have... been a good person."

"Having come to this land, met you all, become good friends with your clever youngest son and your beautiful eldest daughter, and helped Goth through this difficult time together, some of my ideas and good things can be put to the test here..."

"It could have been like this."

"But thank you."

Kang De nodded to Samuel: "Thank you for teaching me a lesson at the cost of your entire family's lives and the legacy and foundation of the Good Family. I will forever remember everything you have done, and from now on I will never entrust my safety to the kindness of others. From now on I will believe that human nature is inherently evil, that loyalty and gratitude are only about the price, and that only power is the cornerstone of life."

"I will question the souls of all men, and from now on I will not be gullible, naive, kind, or merciful. From now on I will intimidate rather than befriend, instill fear rather than bestow grace. I will build a great mound of skulls, and your heads will be but a tiny part of it. This mountain of heads will tell the whole world one thing, tell every living being, tell them who I am."

"Until there are no more enemies in this world."

Samuel looked at him.

It seems they want to imprint Kang De's image firmly into their souls.

He sneered, "You killed us, ruining the Crown Prince's plans. He won't let you get away with this."

"What a coincidence," Kang De said. "I won't let him go either, Samuel. There's no need for hatred or sorrow, because you're not the only one whose family has been destroyed and whose foundation has crumbled. Everyone involved in this, everyone involved in the plot to assassinate the Goth delegation, regardless of their status, strength, or age, I will not let any of them go."

Samuel's eyes widened, then he burst into wild laughter, blood trickling from his mouth as he laughed.

"They won't let the eldest prince off the hook?"

He laughed loudly, "Do you know who the Crown Prince is? His Majesty's eldest son! He has the potential to become the future ruler of this country, the master of this continent! You Joker, how dare you..."

Kang De calmly said, "I said yesterday that I would kill your whole family, and you were all laughing then. And now?"

Samuel's laughter stopped abruptly.

Kang De looked him in the eye. "Now, look into my eyes, and I will tell you again: I will kill the eldest prince of the Human Empire to avenge the dead Goth People. If his men stop me, I will kill his men; if his vassals stop me, I will kill his vassals; if his empire stops me, I will overthrow that empire. I have the ability to do this, and I will do it."

Now, ask yourself, do you think I can do it?

Samuel wanted to laugh.

But I couldn't bring myself to laugh.

The concept of the Glittering Sand Viscounty cannot be compared to that of the entire empire.

The gap between them was even greater than the gap between a beggar in Glittering Sand Town and himself, a viscount.

If they can destroy the Good Family, can they really kill the eldest prince, or even destroy the empire?

That's the most arrogant thing you can say.

But then a thought suddenly occurred to Samuel.

The person in front of me... was neither lying nor exaggerating.

He genuinely and rationally believed that he was capable of doing all of this.

Samuel muttered, "Madman... you're a madman..."

Kang De said calmly, "Nonsense, of course I am."

Samuel watched all of this in fear.

He was originally filled with hatred and wished he could tear this Cathayan to pieces.

But now, looking at Kang De now, fear arose in his heart.

There was even a hint of regret.

He knew the person in front of him had completely gone mad.

From the murder at the docks to the burning of the city streets and the attack on the manor, he never directly confronted Kang De, but through the latter's cruel methods and unconventional strategies, he could deduce the latter's state: brutal, bloodthirsty, insane, and even mad.

But now, the Kang De before me is no longer insane, not at all.

Calm, composed, even indifferent, speaking with perfect logic, confident yet not arrogant, triumphant yet not carried away, completely devoid of any sign of madness or rage.

But inside, this person had gone completely mad.

Such a person is more terrifying than any madman in the world.

This monster was unleashed by Samuel himself...

His eyes began to tremble.

His lips trembled uncontrollably.

Kang De glanced at him, then walked to the side.

That's where Master Richard is lying.

Samuel strained his neck to see what the sorcerer Richard looked like. Richard's face was deathly pale, his expression terrified, but his mouth was gagged. His exposed hands and feet were covered in blood, as if they had been smashed inch by inch, and his body was even twisted, as if he had endured countless tortures.

Kang De patted his terrified face and said softly, "You were sent by the eldest prince, weren't you? I want to know some things about him. Can you tell me?"

Master Richard was not a tough person; on the contrary, he was very afraid of death and cowardly. He was terrified and tortured to the point of near death. Upon hearing this, he nodded hastily.

He's willing to tell you anything.

Kang De nodded and said gratefully, "Thank you."

Then, a light shone in the mage's eyes, his soul was crushed inch by inch, and endless fragments of memory transformed into a surging ocean, into which Kang De's inspiration flowed, wandering and searching.

Samuel watched all this in horror, his eyes fixed on Kang De as if they were a vortex that swallowed everything, until Richard disappeared from this world.

Then, a crimson Flame appeared in the hands of the Cathayan.

"This mage..."

He sighed, "He's a bit useless... no wonder Alex doesn't like him."

Kang De went to Samuel.

Samuel's face showed unprecedented terror as he stammered, "What are you doing! What have you done to him! How do you know his magic? Don't come any closer!"

"Shh..."

Kang De put his finger to his lips. "Don't be afraid, I will leave you with a whole corpse, otherwise, where will your eldest son, Lost, go to cry?"

"Actually, I don't hate you that much. In terms of hatred, you're second only to your sons. That Lost is responsible for Cleveland's death. I said it, I said it to Cleveland, that Lost would die in despair and wailing. I said it, and I will do it."

"Therefore, I have a bold... plan."

At this point, Samuel completely collapsed, ruled and shrouded by fear.

And then, an unprecedented, desperate wail erupted.

A long time passed.

Hannah slowly woke up.

Her eyes blinked, then suddenly widened.

He recalled his own situation.

She found herself lying on a stone platform with a bright lamp hanging above her head—a lamp that looked like a magic lamp, and several magic lamps were tied together, each of them a columnar object that emitted a bright, dazzling light from its head.

And there was someone sitting next to her.

It's... no, it's Kang De.

Hannah was filled with immense fear.

She wanted to plead, she wanted to struggle, but she found herself unable to speak, or even move her body—she wasn't bound, she was conscious, but she couldn't move.

In a flash, an idea crossed my mind.

She was poisoned, and...

"You've been poisoned by the Stone's Kiss. This poison was taken from your house when I delivered the roses. I took a lot of each kind. Master Richard, because he's preparing various medicines for His Highness the Crown Prince, knows about pharmacology. He can determine the properties of a medicine just by tasting it. I had him taste it all. It was really hard work for him. It was a pleasant surprise that he finally tasted this."

"This thing can cause a person to lose their sense of touch and pain for a very long time."

"You guys, really, you're hopeless."

"Such a valuable life-saving medicine, yet it's being used as poison."

Kang De sat down next to Hannah, holding a book, and talked as he read.

The cover was in Zhendan Language, which Hannah couldn't recognize. Her eyes scanned anxiously as she looked around and saw a plate next to the stone table with a row of items on it.

There were sharp daggers, strange pliers, a roll of gauze, a bottle of holy water, and other things she didn't recognize... strange and wonderful things.

Suddenly, Hannah felt an overwhelming sense of fear.

She didn't know what Kang De was going to do.

But it's absolutely not a good thing.

Kang De put down his book, nodded, and said, "That's about it. I've summarized my experience."

He put the book aside. "You must be wondering, but it doesn't matter. You'll soon find out what I'm going to do, Hannah. I still remember your laughter that night. You poisoned the sailors and watched them suffer, and you were so happy, so pleased. I could hear your laughter from far away. Since you enjoy making others suffer so much, I'll let you taste the same thing."

He pointed to a book lying to the side. "This is a technical book about anatomy and human body structure."

"I'm sorry, I really don't know this skill. My mom didn't teach me, and neither did Old Wang, so I have to learn it on the spot. The hygiene here isn't great either, but that's okay. If science isn't enough, magic will make up for it. Besides, all I need is for you to live until your older brother comes back."

"Let me show you around. This is a makeshift scalpel, this is a makeshift hemostat, this is gauze, this is the holy water you found at home, and this is some antibiotics..."

"This is something I made myself, a masterpiece I'm confident in—a bomb."

"I was afraid you'd be in excruciating pain, but your poison has been a great help. However, it also has side effects. You need to stay conscious and watch all of this happen. Don't be afraid, it won't hurt, it won't hurt."

Kang De picked up the knife and cut open Hannah's clothes at the lower abdomen, revealing the girl's fair and smooth skin. It was a beautiful sight, but Kang De's expression was very calm, more focused than a real doctor.

He looked up at Hannah and said calmly, "If you're scared, you can cry."

Under Hannah's terrified gaze, the sharp tip of the knife pressed against her smooth abdomen, but Kang De's hand trembled slightly, and the knife hesitated to fall...

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PS1: Second update, 5,000 words. That's all for today, 8,000 words. I didn't sleep well last night, so I'm not in good shape today. This chapter was written very slowly. I should go to sleep now.

PS2: And, I still want to emphasize that I know Kang De seems like a madman right now, but as I said before, if you have any questions, please read to the end of this volume before asking. Please trust me.

PS3: Tomorrow we'll deal with Lost, and at the latest the day after tomorrow, this volume will reach its final conclusion, the final event. Just as I promised you, you will see the light shining through the endless darkness, and witness the first step a mortal takes to become a hero.

PS4: Goodnight.