The Terminally Ill Young Master is the Mad Dog of the Underworld - Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Awakening After 17 Years

In the pre-dawn light, I finally found myself cornered.

The encirclement was so perfect that there wasn’t even the slightest gap to escape through.

They must have planned to drive me here from the start.

“You bastards, did you think I’d be stupid enough to walk right into your trap? Get lost before I destroy every last one of you!”

I pulled out a jewel box from my chest and waved it threateningly at them.

The black-clad men surrounding me simply glared back silently, as if I hadn’t just hurled insults at them.

“Karzan, stop running already. This is getting tiresome.”

Ivan sighed as he stepped forward.

“Can’t you see there’s no way for you to survive, no matter what you do? You can’t be that foolish.”

“That’s exactly why I’m fighting back.”

“Fair point.”

Either way, I was backed into a corner now.

Though I was confident I could keep my head above water even if thrown into the ice-cold North Sea.

I quickly looked at my surroundings and said.

“Beautiful moonlight. I’m the type of man who goes mad under moonlight. Meaning I still have a fight left in me.”

I pointed my sword at Ivan.

“Ivan. Are you willing to sacrifice all your men? Is that how a leader should act? Why don’t you face me yourself? If you defeat me, I’ll offer my neck without hesitation.”

Of course, I wasn’t saying this because I thought I could win. In a direct fight with Ivan, I’d only give myself about a 40% chance of victory.

He was that strong.

While I was confident I wouldn’t lose in a fight to the death, apex predators of the plains don’t fight equals unnecessarily.

In other words, I was pretty desperate.

Against someone like that who even brought a mob of subordinates, I had no real chance of winning.

Still, wouldn’t fighting one-on-one give me better odds than being surrounded and beaten?

‘Taking him hostage would be even better.’

“Cut the nonsense.”

Ivan coldly replied to my desperate hope.

“You can’t possibly believe you could defeat me in combat with your guts spilling out. Are you planning to throw dirt in my eyes out of spite? If you’re lucky, you might manage to hold a blade to my neck and take me hostage.”

He was spot on.

‘Why is he so sharp? Ughhh!’

“Don’t feel too wronged. How many people have died by your blade? It would be shameless to claim injustice after spilling so much blood.”

“Of all people, you little fucker talking about shame? How absurd.”

Ivan waved dismissively.

“Farewell, Karzan. Struggle all you want until death.”

“You fool. I plan to struggle even after death.”

Ivan sneered.

“Haha. How exactly?”

“If I become a headless ghost, I plan to visit your bedroom every night and scream.”

“Interesting.”

“And if I’m reborn as a dog, I would run out of an alley and bite your balls off.”

“Truly a Mad Dog.”

Ivan responded disinterestedly while cleaning his ear.

“Though I suppose you won’t need to. Eventually, when you outlive your usefulness, you’ll die miserably like me. The same men following you now will be the ones to stick a knife in your back.”

I spat on the ground and cackled shrilly.

“Well, look at you, all high and mighty, only to end up like this. Pathetic! On your way out, why not have a drink of dear old daddy’s piss? I bet that’s exactly what the guy standing next to you is thinking!”

“…”

Ivan remained unfazed by my mockery.

“Nice poker face. You’re so calm. Then why do you lose so badly when gambling? Ivan, I’m going to give you some serious advice. You should just retire from gambling. You have no talent.”

Ivan waved his hand as if he was used to my barking.

“Shut him up. My ears are starting to bleed

Ivan glared at his subordinates.

“Yes, sir.”

“Don’t you want to hear it? You won’t be able to shut me up until You tear my mouth open and cut out my tongue.”

Ivan turned to his subordinates.

“You heard him. Give him what he wants.”

“Yes, sir!”

“Whoa now.”

Even I felt a chill from those words.

“Wait, wait. What are you going to do? Let me destroy this? Are you serious? Planning to die along with me? I don’t remember us being close enough to die together.”

“No need for you to worry about that. Even in this situation, your mouth keeps running like a river.”

‘If this continues, I’ll be completely out of luck.’

This wasn’t part of the plan. Despite how important this jewel box was, they had no hesitation about killing me?

‘They must have something up their sleeve. But what?’

I tried to deduce their intentions with my sharp intuition.

‘Ah.’

Could they believe I’m incapable of destroying it?

I’m cornered now. And Ivan, who had been chasing me with bloodshot eyes, was suddenly acting smug and relaxed.

In other words, they weren’t worried about whether I could destroy the item – they only cared about preventing me from escaping with it.

“Hehehe. Now I get it, you cunning bastard.”

I shrugged my shoulders and burst out laughing.

“How amusing. Have you finally lost your mind?”

“Ivan, oh Ivan.”

I waved the jewel box and asked.

“Do you believe I can’t destroy this? Are you that confident?”

“…”

Ivan smiled ominously.

“Still too clever for your own good. That’s why you’re dying.”

“The killer blaming the victim, you’re really a bastard, huh .”

“Shut up.”

Ivan pointed at me as if ready to tell the truth now that things had come to this.

“I’ll give you credit. You’re right.”

“I knew it.”

“So what? If anything, this is the worst possible situation for you.”

Looking at the jewel box, I asked.

“Just how strong is this thing? What’s it made of, adamantium?”

“That’s none of your concern. I’ll tell you one thing though – even an 8th-tier powerhouses would struggle to destroy it.”

Ivan smirked.

“Even Sir Amilcar couldn’t do anything about it. What could a street swordsman like you possibly do?”

“Amilcar?”

He was an absolute powerhouse known to everyone in the underworld. A name that always came up when discussing the kingdom’s top 10 masters.

In other words, the ‘Sword Of Dark King.’ If I escaped here, he would be the executioner leading the guards to hunt me down.

“Then I’ll have to break through that wall today.”

“Wahahahaha!”

Ivan and his minions doubled over laughing.

After being showered with insults like ‘crazy bastard,’ ‘knows no limits,’ ‘all talk,’ ‘lost his mind,’ and ‘worthless nobody’ I raised my hand.

“If you’re so confident, let’s make a bet. If I can’t destroy it, I’ll kill myself right here.”

Ivan showed his palm.

“Go ahead. This should be entertaining.”

Seeing how confident that little fucker was acting, this thing must be incredibly sturdy.

‘Looks like it has some protection magic cast by an 8th-tier Archmage or something.’

Anyway, those mages were a bunch of useless people their whole lives.

‘No choice then.’

It was do or die.

“Break!”

Clang!

When I struck the jewel box, a transparent blue barrier deflected the blade.

“Whoa.”

The recoil was incredible. I thought my wrist would snap.

“Pathetic. Is that it? Keep your promise and end yourself.”

“Shut up. I was just testing it.”

I closed my eyes and sank deep into my unconscious. Though my spine tingled at the thought of a sudden blade, fortunately, Ivan and his cronies seemed to be watching me with a grin.

‘I can’t break through this magic with my current strength. Then…’

I’ll have to borrow someone else’s power. I realized it was time to play my last gambit.

‘Years ago, I saw the corpse of a knight who had supposedly reached the state of invincibility with a sword.’

His body bore a wound that twisted like a vortex. It was a strange injury as if someone had pinched the entire flesh and twisted it clockwise.

I had long wondered about the principles of the wound but could never figure it out.

I arbitrarily named that technique that broke through invincibility with a sword ‘Spiral’ and studied it.

‘After thrusting the sword, you have to turn the handle to ensure the wound is torn open and the intestines are severed, leading to instant death.’

It was crude but that was my theory of its essence.

‘And another thing.’

There was a big shot of the underworld who died challenging a martial arts master who could defeat even the most heavily armored opponents with a single punch.

Rumors said that the challenger’s tightly-worn armor wasn’t even scratched, let alone broken. Yet the corpse was completely mangled.

‘Why didn’t the armor break? As if the attack passed right through it.’

I named this incomprehensible technique ‘Penetration’ and studied it. But naturally, I couldn’t replicate a technique I’d never seen.

‘I feel like I can do it now.’

Although my body was bleeding out and facing death, my mind was clearer than ever.

‘Think of the protective magic around the jewel box as armor.’

What if I penetrate past that magic and send shock waves inside? What if I compensate for lack of power by twisting the attack into a spiral?

I drew out my last bit of mana and wrapped it around my sword. The blade I held in my mind was unusually clear today.

‘Good. Something’s different today.’

It felt right. Some insight flashed through my mind.

‘Penetration and Spiral.’

Holding just these two concepts, I let out a battle cry pulled from deep within.

“Haiyaaah!”

“Look at this Mad Dog really went mad.”

The single sword strike accompanied by that roar caused something no one expected.

“Huh?”

“Eh…?”

Crack!

The beautifully gold-inlaid jewel box began to split apart with an intense flash.

“Ah.”

A deflating sound escaped Ivan’s mouth.

“Hehehehe. Hey, what do you make of this? It broke!”

Though the recoil was so strong it destroyed my wrist, I’m the type of man who laughs even louder at times like these.

“What was that about an 8th-tier powerhouse?”

Focus finally returned to Ivan’s eyes.

“Y-y-you crazy bastard!”

“It’s over. You’re all dead men. Even if you return alive, do you think he’ll let you live? At this point, you’d be better off joining hands with me and leaving the country.”

“Aaaaargh! Karzan, you son of a biiiitch!”

Ivan lost his mind and tore at his hair.

“Kill him! Kill hiiim!”

“Stand back. The great Karzan has broken through the wall today, and you’re all dead men.”

“…!”

Actually, I don’t know if that’s true or not. Probably not.

‘I just developed a technique for breaking hard things.’

My body had long been in tatters. Having an awakening doesn’t reattach torn organs.

But my words had their intended effect.

“You dare hesitate, you bastards?”

Ivan glared at his hesitating subordinates with bloodshot eyes and spoke through gritted teeth.

“Anyone who hesitates will have their head cut off and guts ripped out.”

“Wow, what a savage.”

Just as the enraged Ivan and his subordinates were about to approach—

“Huh?”

An enormous explosion erupted from the ominously glowing jewel box.

BOOOOM!

There wasn’t even time to feel pain. My body was wrapped in light and began to disintegrate.

‘Ah… what an absurd way to die.’

It was empty. In the end, I would die without ever truly challenging the fortress the Dark King had built.

‘I was too weak. The outcome of this fight was determined from birth.’

No matter how skilled wandering swordsmen might be, they could never match a noble-born Dark King who controlled the underworld.

‘If I had started with the same conditions as him.’

I wouldn’t have ended my life as an insect, desperately struggling only to be crushed.

‘Enough. Those are just excuses.’

But it was clear that I met this end because I lived in the shadows and could never see the true light.

What if I had actively reached out to the nobles instead?

At least I wouldn’t have met this end.

‘I should have been smarter. It’s too late for me to regret it, Karzan.’

I spent my life just going with the flow, hardly even noticing. So maybe it’s only right that it ends like this today.

‘…I’m tired.’

I quietly closed my eyes in regret and relief.

This was my death.

* * *

17 years have passed since then.

One morning, after struggling for several days with a high fever that suddenly struck him like a seizure, he finally woke up.

‘Limited Time Prince’ Allenvert suddenly realized he was the reincarnation of ‘The Mad Dog of Underworld’ Karzan.

“Wow, this is crazy.”

‘Maybe I just woke up from an insane nightmare?’

Young Master Allenvert rose from his bed and slapped himself hard across the face.

Slap!

“Wow, not a dream.”

That cleared his mind right up.

———