How to Stop the Villain from Going Crazy
Translator: Fuyu
Chapter 34 - That scary, burning look in his eyes could melt the wax (2)
After the nurses found out he looked different from ordinary people, he would be their target when they had nothing to do. They would take off his mask and force him to appear in front of everyone.
That sort of feeling was the same as being cut a thousand times.
The nurses would use various methods to force him to speak and then mockingly laugh at his voice.
"If you're not a lunatic, how can you have a face like that, but still sound like that? You were born abnormal."
"You're sick."
"You'll lose control one day."
He didn't lose control though. Step by step, he carefully planned and escaped the mental asylum without losing his sanity.
The mental asylum didn't have much, but it had plenty of books donated by rich people. In order to swallow their family assets, the rich spared no efforts to send the family members into the mental asylum. They donated money and books and improved facilities in an endless stream under the misplaced expectation that doing so would help them escape judgment for their sins after death.
However, except for the bibles, the other books fell into the shadows and were covered in a layer of dust. No one turned their pages.
Ironically, he learned far more in the mental asylum's reading room than under the custody of his parents.
After he escaped from the mental asylum, he went to many places. He traveled all over Europe and learned many skills: composing music, ventriloquism, performing magic tricks, and playing a variety of musical instruments.
He also learned the art of killing people with a rope in India. The locals called it Punjab lasso.
Finally, he settled down in the Mazandaran Palace.
The Shah regarded him as a confidant and profusely praised his cold-blooded and ruthless killing methods. He also handsomely rewarded him for his renovation of the palace.
He had a terrifying talent for architecture and turned the palace into a horrifying maze filled with mechanisms.
The palace was full of traps, secret passages, and trap doors. The Shah could come and go like a ghost. He could suddenly appear in one place and just as suddenly disappear. No one knew where the Shah was hiding.
Those were the days when he came the closest to living like a human. That lasted until the Shah began to fear his intelligence. The Shah worried that he would build an ingenuous palace for another monarch. Thus, the Shah ordered for him and all the laborers that worked under his orders to be put to death.
A Persian that he had helped rescued him, but he didn't dare to keep him by his side and handed him over to the circus manager. The Persian hoped the circus could help him escape from Persia.
At this time, he stopped talking because words couldn't change anything. People only wanted to hear what they wanted to hear and see what they wanted to see.
Most importantly, every time he spoke, he would hear the nurse's voice echoing in his ears.
"If you're not a lunatic, how can you have a face like that, but still sound like that? You were born abnormal."
His appearance was a disgrace and so was his voice.
Although Poli never commented on his voice, she would get goosebumps every time he spoke. She was a person afraid of death and would be willing to fawn over anyone in order to survive.
There was no need to show her mercy.
That day, she thought he had left, but he was still in the room. He was right behind her with a sharp dagger in his hand. He could strike her back at any moment.
The next moment, she suddenly took off her shirt and pants and put on a long printed dress.
Even though he already knew she was a girl, the impact of the scene was beyond his imagination.
She was so white. It was like a white wave pouring into his eyes.
His first reaction was to look away, but he saw her everywhere. Her white knees, her white calves, her white ankles, and her white toes.
An indescribable emotion rose in his throat. His heart was violently beating and that uncomfortable feeling came again. His scalp felt numb, his eyes swollen, and his hair stood on end. It was as if he had swallowed a shadowy, satiny liquid. Even his heartbeat felt sticky.
At first, he thought he held back on killing her because he saw something that he shouldn't have. However, as time went on, she never revealed those white parts, but he still didn't do anything.
She lacked vigilance, and anyone could follow her.
When she went to the theater with Boyd, he wanted to kill her, but for some reason, he ended up cutting off Boyd's finger instead.
Perhaps, there was no reason. Even before her, he didn't like people that chased after fame.
During the past several days, he played with her like she was a prey that had fallen into a trap and was desperately struggling until she had no space left to retreat.
He kept thinking that he would kill her tomorrow, but he always put that off for the next day.
After a few days, he finally made up his mind. Sooner or later, he would kill her, so why not do it now?
He approached her from behind, coldly watched as his shadow engulfed hers, and gently slid the dagger across her white neck.
Boyd had also touched her neck.
She was so defenseless. Anyone could touch her fragile throat.
This discovery made him… angry.
For a few seconds, his desire to attack was like boiling water that rushed through his veins and made an impatient rustling sound in his ears.
However, when he saw her fear, panic, and cold sweat, his first thought was to hug her.
Whenever she felt scared, she would hug him.
He thought she had been successfully domesticated. No matter how extreme the situation was, she would use hugs and kisses to appease him.
And yet, when he really wanted to kill her, he was the first one to react with a conditioned reflex.
T/N: Extra part to thank Panda93 for their review.
Translator Ramblings: I like how the author had Erik approach Bo Li from behind this time. Erik is already very, very scary. To only see his approaching shadow must be beyond terrifying. The crippling fear of the unknown is too daunting to overcome.
I think the author did a good job setting up a smooth progression that leads to Erik hugging her out of instinct even though he intellectually believes that she would never want to be touched by him.