Monsters in His Heart

Wenchuan District, Tai River Hospital.

After asking at the lobby service desk, Fang Cheng carried an exquisite fruit basket and took the elevator to the third floor.

This hospital was privately run, with a small floor area and only five stories.

But the environment was elegant and quiet, and the decor was extremely tasteful.

It lacked the noise and bustle of a large public hospital.

Along the way, he encountered more medical staff than patients, and their attitude was exceptionally friendly.

If not for the smell of disinfectant filling the air, he might have thought in a daze that he had walked into some luxury hotel.

"The people who can stay here should all be rich, right?"

Fang Cheng looked around as he searched for Majima Goro's ward.

He passed through a corridor and around a corner, and finally discovered a VIP special-care ward in a particularly hidden spot.

At this moment, two burly men in black suits and sunglasses were standing outside the door.

They looked like bodyguards hired by Majima Goro.

Fang Cheng walked up and politely stated who he was and why he had come.

Yet he was still stopped outside the door.

The two bodyguards seemed extremely indifferent. They appeared not to understand the language of Xia Country, nor did they go in to inform their employer.

They merely raised their hands in silence, making a gesture forbidding entry.

Fang Cheng was slightly startled, then shook his head, set down the fruit basket, and turned to leave.

He had not expected Majima Goro to put on airs even bigger than a celebrity...

At this moment, someone inside seemed to hear the commotion, and a woman's voice came out.

"Let him in."

Fang Cheng's footsteps paused. After considering it, he chose to stay after all.

Once he entered the ward, he could see that it was a very spacious suite.

Not only was it fully equipped with all kinds of medical and nursing facilities, the decor also leaned toward a warm, homey style.

Sunlight shone through the wide glass windows, leaving not the slightest oppressive atmosphere.

Majima Goro lay on the hospital bed, his whole body wrapped up like a mummy.

In particular, there was also a thick ring of white plaster around his neck.

A young woman in a floral dress was keeping watch by his bedside.

That was Majima Goro's fiancée, named Cui Xiuying, a woman from Xia Country.

After yesterday's round of misunderstanding and communication, Fang Cheng could be considered acquainted with her.

"Sorry. I hit too hard yesterday."

Fang Cheng glanced at the ward's environment, then opened his mouth to apologize.

He picked up the fruit basket and placed it on the table at the side.

Cui Xiuying bent down and lowered her head, saying a few things by Majima Goro's ear.

Although Majima Goro looked quite miserable, he was very clearheaded.

Then he replied:

"It's fine. I was the one who made the request."

While speaking, he could not help glancing sideways at his fiancée standing beside him, afraid she would blame him.

It seemed that after deliberately sending her away yesterday, he had secretly sparred with Fang Cheng, only for the situation to still be discovered.

Cui Xiuying, however, did not say anything too impolite, and her manner was still dignified and proper enough.

She invited Fang Cheng to sit, then brought over a cup of water and handed it to him.

Fang Cheng thanked her and accepted it with both hands.

During their small talk, he also gained a general understanding of Majima Goro's current injuries.

Multiple fractures across his body, and severe contusions to the muscle tissue.

The most serious part was his neck, which had been fixed in plaster.

Fortunately, he had not suffered any internal injuries.

The attending doctor happened to come over to carry out a postoperative examination and assess his condition. He would need to stay in the hospital for observation and treatment for at least a month.

Majima Goro, however, felt fairly good about himself, and even his mental state seemed healthier and more cheerful than usual.

His words were utterly unconcerned, as if he had long since grown used to it, and he even shouted that he wanted to go home to recuperate right away.

Only after Cui Xiuying scolded him a few times did he obediently close his mouth.

It had to be said, this guy's physique really was different from ordinary people.

Or perhaps it should be said that he had reached the level of "Non-Human"...

The thought lingered in Fang Cheng's mind.

After the doctor left the ward, he immediately spoke up.

"Mr. Majima, may I ask you something, if you don't mind?"

Fang Cheng's tone paused, his gaze faintly carrying a sharp edge as he stared at Majima Goro.

"What school of karate is the martial art you practice? How could your muscles swell up in battle and turn you into that strange form?"

This question was the main reason Fang Cheng had specifically come to visit him.

The moment he said this, Majima Goro and Cui Xiuying, the engaged couple, both looked somewhat unnatural.

It seemed to touch on something hard to speak about.

Just as Fang Cheng felt disappointed, thinking he would not get to the bottom of it, Majima Goro suddenly gave a soft sigh and smiled bitterly.

"It's no wonder Mr. Fang is suspicious. This matter is so bizarre that I'm afraid it can't be explained in just a few words..."

He did not immediately explain the reason. Instead, his eyes darkened, as if he were recalling certain unbearable past events.

Although Cui Xiuying tried to dissuade him, he still waved his hand, then slowly began telling Fang Cheng the whole story.

Majima Goro was born into a very traditional samurai family in Wakayama Prefecture, East Sea.

His grandfather had once been one of the promoters of the East Sea Karate National Tournament. He possessed the special skill of knocking down a bull with a Knife Hand, and could be considered a respected martial arts master.

Influenced by his family environment, he had loved martial arts since childhood, tirelessly studying all kinds of techniques and vowing to become a fighter who poured his youthful passion out in the ring.

Unfortunately, because his physical foundation was weak and his talent was not high, by the time he was eighteen, he was only qualified to take part in some amateur competitions.

Meanwhile, a cousin of his from the same generation in the family had already successfully advanced to the national tournament and become a rising star in the media's eyes.

Bearing the halo bestowed by his grandfather, Majima Goro trained from dawn to dusk every day, yet his performance still looked like that of trash.

He had no choice but to change his dream and enter university to study in the literature department.

However, it was also during his time at university that he met his current girlfriend, Cui Xiuying, an international student from Xia Country.

He had originally thought that would be his life: plain and ordinary, marrying, having children, and spending the rest of his days that way.

Then one day, he happened to meet someone who called himself a Pharmaceutical Company Representative and said that the company was researching a new type of drug.

This drug could stimulate the pituitary gland into secreting a mysterious hormone, continuously strengthening physical ability until it finally broke through all kinds of human limits.

Although Majima Goro was somewhat doubtful and hesitant, he still could not suppress the ambition in his heart.

After seeing some actual cases, he ultimately signed a confidentiality agreement with them and took the risk of participating in the so-called Phase III Drug Trial.

Facts proved that the drug's effects were far better than Majima Goro had expected.

He threw himself back into physical training and stepped onto the competition stage again.

His match record then improved rapidly. He successfully broke into the national tournament and knocked out opponent after opponent in the ring.

He even received an invitation to the World's Top Mixed Martial Arts Tournament and was called the "Tiger of Wakayama" by the East Sea media.

For a time, fame, money, and praise came flooding in, leaving Majima Goro somewhat intoxicated by it all.

But behind glory, there were often secrets that could not be spoken of.

His body began to show some abnormalities.

First, his hair fell out in large patches. Then he would often have nosebleeds, and his heart would suddenly palpitate.

The changes were far from limited to that.

Most fatal of all, Majima Goro developed an incredibly strong dependence on that drug.

He needed regular injections to suppress the inexplicable anxiety, anger, and hatred that arose inside him.

It was as if a terrifying monster had parasitized his heart.

It constantly devoured the original warmth, humility, compassion, and other good qualities he had possessed.

As long as his state of mind became even slightly poor, that monster would grow restless.

Sometimes, when he could not hold back, he would buy a jar of insects, slowly drown them, then crush them one by one.

If he did not vent like that, he worried that he would reach his hand toward his own people.

Majima Goro was afraid he would completely lose his reason. He had tried to quit the drug, but it was simply impossible.

And so it slowly continued, gradually accumulating.

Until one day.

He finally could not hold back... and released the monster in his heart.