Guns and Wine

The human heart was complicated.

During the more than three hundred days and nights Kang De had spent on the deserted island, he had climbed to a high place and looked into the distance almost every day, hoping to see a ship or some sign of people.

Humans were social creatures, after all. Even though he had plenty of food and clothing on the island, he could not bear the loneliness that seeped into his bones. Sometimes he imagined and wondered what the civilization in this other world was like, what kinds of people and cultures it had, and what stories it held.

But when someone actually set foot on the island, he felt wary and uneasy.

What sort of people were they?

Were they pirates or merchants, good people or evil, for better or worse? What beliefs did they hold, and what were the moral standards of the faction they belonged to? These were all things he had to consider.

He had to prepare for the worst in everything.

There was some sense to the dark forest theory, especially in a situation like this. With no way to communicate and so little information, how could he make friends when he did not know whether the other side were stone-hearted exterminators or a bloodthirsty hive?

He had to approach them cautiously and stay on guard. He could not trust them too easily or rush in.

Kang De breathed steadily, urging himself to remain even calmer.

In fact, after his unique experience and a year of solitary life spanning two worlds, his mind was already sufficiently resilient and calm.

Besides, he was still in sage mode, and all his mental attributes had increased by at least thirty percent.

First, I need to deduce what I can about the other side.

Starting with the girl who calls herself Tina Terrariel.

Her beautiful face, her exceptionally well-kept skin, those priceless necklaces, earrings and rings, her highly refined curtsy, and her bearing.

She was clearly a woman of noble birth and excellent education.

Her clothes were suited for outdoor activity, but they had no pockets, and she had no cell phone on her.

There were no labels on her clothes, and the stitching was not the close machine stitching of a factory, but hand-sewn.

Also, judging from the faint outlines, she was not wearing a bra, but a corset-style undergarment.

That alone said a great deal.

She was dressed for outdoor activity, yet wore an utterly uncomfortable corset to bind her chest. There were only two possibilities: first, bras had not been invented in this world; second, the girl was a pervert with a tight-binding fetish.

Kang De thought it was probably the former.

Furthermore, she had been very interested in the iced black tea advertisement on the sun umbrella, very curious about the material of the food-stall plastic table, and had not recognized the solar panels hanging above the valley.

She had not recognized the bicycles and motorbikes in the shed either.

She had also been baffled by the diesel generator once it started and surprised by the bladeless fan that blew air on its own.

All her actions, expressions and reactions flashed through his mind one by one.

Tch.

It really is another world.

They haven't even had an industrial revolution.

A noble young lady.

Most importantly...

Machines that ran on their own, a rumbling generator, oddly shaped modern products and all sorts of electrical appliances with wondrous functions... the girl's reaction to them had been surprise.

She had shown none of the reaction a technologically backward native should have had on seeing modern products that were practically miracles.

That probably meant one thing.

Although her world did not have these things, it could achieve the same effects through some other means... so she did not find them astonishing, only curious about how they worked.

Kang De also thought of the black beasts on the island.

They looked like lions and tigers, with a ring of long feathers around their necks and wisps of black air rising from their bodies. One look was enough to tell they were no ordinary beasts. After one was killed and a crystal was cut from its heart, its remains would immediately turn to wind and vanish. Earth's biologists could rack their brains and still not explain the principles behind such traits and such a wondrous phenomenon.

There was only one explanation.

Fucking magic.

Warriors had battle qi, mages had fireballs, rogues had stealth, and priests had censorship mosaics.

Western fantasy, western fantasy.

That was most likely it.

Kang De pinched the bridge of his nose, growing more worried.

If my potential enemies are spellcasters who can hurl fireballs and ice spears...

I don't have enough firepower.

China was particularly strict about weapons control. He had only "borrowed" his few firearms from a cash-in-transit truck and a police station because he had had no other choice. Once he opened the white fog and returned to modern society, he would have to report honestly to the police station, have some tea and pork chop rice, explain himself and seek lenient treatment.

Besides, they were not particularly powerful firearms.

The shotgun was from the cash-in-transit truck. Its ammunition consisted of rubber rounds, which relied on stopping power and were unlikely to be lethal. He had found two pistols, one in the truck's driver's seat and one borrowed from the police station. He had also borrowed a submachine gun along with the latter. They had all been locked in secure gun cabinets, and he had worked up a sweat cutting, chiseling, prying and welding them open. It had taken quite an effort.

But he did not have enough ammunition.

Ultimately, given the level of public security in China, firearms were there just in case. One or two guns were enough for a police station's daily needs. If a really explosive major case arose, they would simply call in the armed police with armored vehicles. There was no need for ordinary officers to get into a shootout.

Ammunition had therefore always been his scarcest resource. Over the past year, Kang De had fired only eight shots in total, all at the most critical moments, and every one had turned the situation around. Old Wang had once taken him to a shooting range for basic firearms training. Besides, the crystals had continually strengthened his body, so even if his form was imperfect, he could absorb the recoil with sheer physical strength. He had never missed when firing at close range.

But that had been against black beasts.

If his intended enemies were human...

Close combat was out of the question.

How could a modern man like him cross blades with battle-hardened warriors from another world?

Although the crystals had greatly enhanced his physical abilities, he had received no combat training. He was in another world, after all, with no one to teach him, and he did not know how to practice. All he did was play and wrestle with the magical animals every day, sending them running in all directions. What good would that do?

He would be better off following the fine tradition of the terrifying upright ape and wiping out his enemies while they charged.

He did not have enough ammunition, so he had modified two nail guns.

Some shops in the shopping center were being renovated, so he had found toolboxes. Ammunition for the nail guns was relatively plentiful, and replacing their gas canisters was easy. They were just comparatively weak.

Besides those, he had another ranged weapon.

A crossbow.

It was an extra find from his great adventure at the police station. It was confiscated contraband that had been awaiting destruction along with other items, but the white fog had descended before that could happen.

Kang De had found quite a few good things in the contraband storeroom, including the crossbow, several regulated knives and so on.

More valuable still were several boxes of firecrackers.

And even more valuable... was a box of porn.

Damn it, heaven knew why educational films still came in that storage format these days. He had even gone out of his way to find a laptop with a disc drive for them.

"If those people are reasonable..."

Kang De chuckled. "Wouldn't that box of porn be enough to raise their favorability to unwavering loyalty..."

If those people are reasonable.

If they aren't, if they harbor evil intentions...

Kang De's gaze darkened.

He took off his coat and picked up the tactical vest from the weapons cabinet.

It was heavily modified.

Shotgun, nail gun, pistol, Molotov cocktails, homemade flashbangs, anti-wolf spray, throwing knives, stun baton... he attached them to himself one by one.

All his equipment slots, from one to nine, were filled.

His crystal-enhanced body could easily bear the weight.

Finally, Kang De strapped two fire axes to his back and held the last one in his hand.

The axe spun nimbly in his hand.

Before they had invented firearms or even bows and arrows, the terrifying upright apes had already run rampant across Earth, burning, killing and plundering. The first god-tier combat skill their species had invested in was throwing.

Kang De was very good at throwing.

When a person applied themselves seriously to something, their skill would improve by leaps and bounds, just like Kang De's calligraphy, his cooking and his throwing.

Throwing practice was what he had devoted the most energy to over the past year.

He was especially good with throwing axes.

Once he had put on the equipment he depended on for survival, Kang De suddenly laughed.

His earlier worries and unease seemed to have been swept away.

On him were weapons made for killing by legitimate industry and powerful tools he had modified himself. They came from another civilization, another world.

They gave Kang De boundless strength, confidence and a sense of security.

"Ultimately, negotiations... are a negotiation of strength."

"Rather than count on the other side having lofty morals and goodwill, it's better to rely on my own strength, make them fear me and make them ashamed of themselves... then they'll behave themselves."

He patted his cheeks and said to himself, "There's nothing to be afraid of."

Princess Tina sat beneath the sun umbrella, curiously looking around.

To be fair, it was actually rather strange.

Eyes in the sky and on the ground were watching her. These animals were simply too strange, but they did not seem to be a druid's contracted beasts...

And then there was...

"Kang De..."

She silently repeated the name.

A Cathayan.

Just what... were his origins?

During their brief encounter, she too had been observing him.

Although she could not understand what he said, she could gather information from many details. First was his short hair, which was uncommon among Cathayans. Second, his skin was in excellent condition and not at all tanned, and both his body and hair gave off an unfamiliar, pleasant scent. Perhaps it was some precious perfume.

As for his clothes, their style looked a little strange, but she had never seen the fabric before. Was it top-grade silk that the East forbade from being exported? He looked to be in excellent health. When he examined her, his gaze had passed over her rings and necklace, but his eyes had held only curiosity, without a trace of greed. That showed he did not regard them as anything special...

Wealthy, learned and polite. How long had such a man been in the Holy Seal Archipelago?

And...

She looked at the various objects in the valley.

Princess Tina, renowned for her extensive knowledge, had to admit in shame that she had never seen any of these things before, and they were so wondrous.

She only looked at them curiously, without touching anything.

That would have been too rude.

But... the knight commander and head maid must be very worried about me right now.

Although Mr. Kang De is a good person, we don't speak the same language. I can't tell him about my situation or ask him to take me back to camp. What am I going to do...?

We don't speak the same language...

Her expression shifted slightly, and she gripped something at her chest through her clothes. Perhaps...

No, I can't.

That's a terrible decision. Of course I can't do that. Things haven't come to that yet.

Just then, the door opened again.

The princess breathed a sigh of relief and quickly turned around, only to freeze.

The Cathayan named Kang De seemed to have changed his clothes. No, more than that, he had all sorts of objects, large and small, hanging from him. At first glance, he looked like the fully armed mage agents said to come from the City of the Firmament, though somewhat less sophisticated.

But what stood out most was his demeanor.

If the previous Kang De had been a sage free of desires, he was now a general with his edge on full display. The commanding confidence in his expression was enough to rival even that of mages who sought the mysteries of the world.

He brought over a plate.

It was piled high with food that gave off an enticing aroma.

The knowledgeable princess felt frustrated once again, because she still did not recognize a single thing.

I told you, I wasn't asking for food...

She picked up a thin golden slice that looked like a cracker and put it in her mouth.

So delicious!

About an hour later, the princess stood off to one side, her face red.

She even gave a little burp.

This damned Coca-Cola was so sweet and delicious!

As it turned out, no one could refuse a glass of ice-cold fat nerd happy water on a sunny afternoon.

Once she had eaten and drunk her fill, Kang De began another round of communication through gestures. To her delight, he finally understood her and agreed to take her back.

Mr. Kang De also packed some gifts, including wine she did not recognize, food she did not recognize, and Coca-Cola, which she had just become acquainted with.

That's wonderful.

The princess's spirits rose. She looked at the wondrous things in the valley thoughtfully. The captain had said repairing the ship would require additional materials and help. If Mr. Kang De was willing to lend a hand...

I hope I can return to the mainland soon...

The two walked out of the valley side by side. Just then, Kang De exclaimed and gestured apologetically to the princess, asking her to wait there for a moment while he went back to take care of something.

The princess smiled and nodded, making an elegant gesture for him to go ahead.

Kang De quickly returned to the valley and came to the warehouse, where several animals were waiting.

As he opened the warehouse's security door, he said to the gorilla, "Bring everyone and follow me. There might be danger, understand? Just like when we lured the black beasts into traps."

Ever since he had encountered the magical animals, he had been closest to the gorilla. Perhaps because of intelligence, the gorilla was also the one who understood him best and could even understand some complicated instructions.

"There are some things here. Hand them out for everyone to carry. Also, I've prepared a new weapon for you."

The iron door opened. A thick steel reinforcing bar leaned against the corner, its rust-spotted shaft marked with spiral ridges and a huge chunk of concrete still attached to its base.

Kang De pointed to something else. "Have the strong goose carry this. When the time comes..."

The gorilla nodded repeatedly.

Once he had finished giving his instructions, Kang De slowly breathed out and leaned against the doorway. His feelings had grown complicated, a mixture of excitement and apprehension that he did not know how to describe.

"After today, things will be different..."

He slowly smiled at the gorilla.

The gorilla tilted his head, seemingly not understanding, but reached out and stroked Kang De's face.

Kang De smiled.

He took out the notebook he carried and a pen, then wrote a sentence in today's diary entry.

"January 23. I brought guns and wine to visit the people of another world."

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PS1: This update is over four thousand Chinese characters again. Split it up and it would be two updates! There's another one tonight. Thanks for your votes and support, everyone, and please keep voting.

PS2: Not one of the people who guessed the plot got it right. (Pouts)