Chapter 190

At the northeast corner of Green Shade Cemetery.

Silhouettes gathered before a brand-new tombstone.

A black-and-white photograph was affixed to it, depicting a jester-like figure with a smirk that seemed to mock fate itself, or perhaps, sneer at its injustice.

Pepper Potts stood solemnly in front of the open grave, waiting for something. If one looked closely, they could see a hint of moisture in her eyes.

Before long.

Eren, Tony, Happy, and a young priest from St. John's Cathedral carried a black coffin containing a handful of ashes, walking over from a short distance away.

The sides of the funeral procession were densely packed with mourners.

The line stretched from the entrance of Green Shade Park all the way to the deep northeast corner of the cemetery.

Extending over a thousand meters.

They were dressed in solemn black attire, standing in silence along the path, bidding farewell to the casket as it proceeded forward.

Among the tens of thousands attending the funeral,

Most were residents of Harlem.

Upon learning that the hero who had saved them—"Joker"—was having his funeral at Green Shade Cemetery today,

These people had gathered early in the morning to attend the ceremony.

To pay tribute to the hero who had sacrificed his life to save them.

Eren and Tony, carrying the coffin, walked at the front of the procession.

Even without using spiritual vision,

Eren could clearly sense the sorrowful and heavy atmosphere around him.

Seeing the solemn expressions and mourning faces of the crowd on both sides of the road,

He felt a twinge of peculiarity.

Back when Joker Eren had intervened in the catastrophe of the writhing worms in Harlem, his goal was simply to disrupt the blood sacrifice for the evil god's ritual.

Saving people had barely crossed his mind.

Of course, his actions had inadvertently saved many lives.

At the time,

Neither Eren nor his Joker persona had given it much thought.

And because of that,

Eren never expected that after his doppelgänger's "death," so many people would voluntarily come to see him off.

This was truly an unintentional seed bearing unexpected fruit.

However...

If these people knew that the "hero" they were mourning—the one who had "sacrificed" himself to save them—was not actually dead,

Would they be angry enough to flip open that coffin?

After Eren, Tony, and the others carefully placed the coffin containing the ashes into the grave,

Father Pierre from St. John's Cathedral read a eulogy for the "deceased" Joker Eren.

Everything proceeded in an orderly manner, under the weight of the solemn and heavy atmosphere.

As the sound of earth being shoveled echoed in the air,

The black coffin was slowly buried, inch by inch.

Once the grave was filled,

The mourners who had come of their own accord to pay respects to the "hero" Joker

Stepped forward one by one, bowing deeply before placing their flowers beside his grave.

A hundred meters away from the Joker's burial site,

With his exaggerated clown makeup removed, his face altered, and disguised as an ordinary person,

Joker Eren watched from afar as people laid flowers upon "his" tombstone.

Silently, he pulled down the brim of his magician's hat.

The experience of watching "his own" funeral was... quite "interesting."

With a chuckle, Joker Eren casually turned away and walked toward the cemetery exit.

Blending into the crowd, he disappeared.

Not long after he stepped out of Green Shade Park,

A black Audi pulled up steadily in front of him.

As Joker Eren opened the car door and slid inside,

The vehicle started up again, smoothly leaving the cemetery.

...

Inside the black Audi.

On the driver's seat, Bucky, his left arm fitted with a prosthetic limb, glanced at Joker Eren in the back and asked,

"Boss, how does it feel to attend your own funeral?"

Joker Eren looked up at Bucky, smirking, "Oh? Are you getting that good at using your persuasion ability now? Practicing on me, huh? You sure you're not just eager to become a witch?"

Bucky had long since pledged loyalty to him,

So Joker Eren didn't bother hiding the next step of the Witch pathway from him.

Not long ago,

After taking down Kingpin, while sorting out the aftermath and consolidating Kingpin's criminal empire with Bucky,

Joker Eren had revealed to Bucky what lay beyond the "Instigator" sequence.

He still vividly remembered—

When he told Bucky that the next stage after "Instigator" would turn him into a Witch, meaning he would biologically become a woman,

Bucky's face went through a full spectrum of colors, an expression so complex it could only be described as a chaotic mix of emotions.

He had even pointed at Eren's face, nose red with anger, and cursed, "Fuck you."

What Bucky had wanted was a fresh start, but not in this way.

Joker Eren had merely shrugged in response to his outburst.

Let him curse all he wanted.

After all, any man learning that he was going to physically transform into a woman in the near future.

Would probably have the same reaction.

So let him vent.

It wasn't like Eren was losing anything over it.

It wasn't like Bucky could actually fuck him, right?

...Wait.

It was said that every person who transitioned into a "Witch" developed an extraordinary allure.

If Bucky really did turn into a Witch

And used that charm to seduce him,

To complete that so-called "curse" on him,

Then wouldn't that mean...

Joker Eren could actually get fucked by Bucky?

At that thought,

The mocking smirk on Joker Eren's face froze instantly.

His gaze toward Bucky suddenly turned wary.

Meanwhile, in the driver's seat,

Bucky, who had just barely managed to avoid choking to death on his boss's earlier remark,

Suddenly felt a shift in his Instigator potion digestion.

The information feedback from the potion suggested…

Bucky suddenly felt something strange.

It seemed that his previous remark had truly stirred something in his boss's heart—an underlying emotion and even a flicker of malice. The thought alone made his usually unfathomable boss briefly consider killing him.

And since his boss was far stronger than he was…

The moment his words were deemed a successful provocation by the potion, his Instigator potion was instantly digested by a significant degree.

The sensation of his strength growing immediately washed away any lingering annoyance over Joker Eren's earlier taunts.

After all, the question he had just asked…

Had been a deliberate attempt to squeeze a little power boost from his boss.

With that in mind, Bucky deliberately adjusted his expression.

With a tone that carried a hint of anticipation, he said, "I've thought about it, and honestly, becoming a Witch doesn't sound so bad."

"Back when Hydra controlled me, I did a lot of terrible things. Even after regaining my freedom, I've lived with guilt. Agreeing to help you take down Hydra was, in a way, my attempt at redemption."

"If one day, I truly transform into a Witch, and if by then we've successfully crushed Hydra, maybe that will be the day I completely say goodbye to my past and embrace a new life with a fresh identity."

"Come to think of it, I've been looking at some women's fashion lately. I wonder what I'll look like if I do turn into a Witch... I don't even know if the clothes I picked will fit me then..."

"If I really do become a Witch, boss, how about I be your secretary?"

...What the fuck?!

Joker Eren, who had already been on high alert due to his previous thoughts about Bucky's strange remark, completely lost his composure.

That trademark Joker grin of his? Yeah, gone.

The hell do you mean, "be my secretary"?!

Get the fuck away from me!

With his mind deeply attuned to "Meditation," Joker Eren could clearly feel that Bucky had used his Instigator ability while speaking.

That final line about being his secretary?

It was nothing more than an attempt to stir up malice within him, to provoke him into lashing out.

And Joker Eren could pretty much guess what Bucky was up to.

No doubt, the bastard was trying to manipulate his emotions, spark a conflict, and get beaten up—all in the name of speeding up his potion digestion.

To think that Bucky had taken an ability meant to provoke others into committing bloodshed and chaos and flipped it around to provoke himself into getting beaten up for power gain.

Joker Eren had to admit… it was somewhat impressive.

He wasn't sure if this method would actually work, but the creativity alone deserved some recognition.

Not that he minded.

If Bucky could grow stronger faster, that meant Joker Eren would have a more capable subordinate sooner.

As long as things didn't get too out of hand, he didn't mind playing along.

Worst case? Once Bucky fully digested the Instigator potion, Joker Eren would beat the shit out of him as payback.

However—

Under his Mental Perception, Joker Eren could tell Bucky wasn't joking.

The man who had previously flipped out upon learning that his next stage would turn him into a Witch…

Was no longer resisting the idea.

In fact, he had even started actively browsing women's fashion.

That was what sent chills down Joker Eren's spine.

He wasn't sure whether this was a side effect of the Witch pathway's potion subtly influencing Bucky's mind over time…

Or if Hydra's torment had twisted his psyche beyond recognition, sending him down an unhinged path.

Either way—

Joker Eren wanted no part of it.

Waving his hand frantically, he hurriedly said, "No, no! I don't need a Witch as my secretary! If you've got time to pull this shit on me, why don't you go back to instigating those hopeless gangsters in Hell's Kitchen? Get them to kill each other instead!"

"At least thinning out that scum is actually useful to us."

"Hmm…"

Bucky, who hadn't received any potion feedback this time, glanced at Joker Eren through the rearview mirror, his gaze filled with an unreadable emotion.

"What a shame."

Lately, Joker Eren had been making full use of his Meditation-enhanced mind power.

He had hypnotized and brainwashed a portion of Kingpin's elite criminal underlings, converting them into his own high-tier disposable forces.

However, as the former underground emperor of New York, Kingpin's empire was massive.

Among his ranks were plenty of unimpressive thugs—cowards who preyed on the weak but had no real skill.

These worthless lowlifes had lost all restraint following Kingpin's death.

And they had gone completely feral.

Not just in Hell's Kitchen—

The entire city of New York had seen a massive surge in crime over the past few days.

With no one left to keep them in check, gangsters and criminals had been breaking into stores and homes, looting, rioting, and constantly engaging in shootouts.

At first, it was just Kingpin's old men venting their frustrations through reckless crime.

But soon, more and more gangs caught wind of the chaos and joined in.

And the city's instability exploded overnight.

The past two nights, as soon as the sun set, New York had turned into a living hell of robberies, assaults, and shootings.

Even with the entire police force mobilized, the NYPD was struggling to contain the chaos.

Compared to the overwhelming wave of criminals, their numbers were simply too few.

Joker Eren didn't particularly care about the city-wide madness.

But Hell's Kitchen belonged to him now.

And he wasn't about to let a bunch of useless trash turn his turf into a playground for their degeneracy.

So, over the past few days—

While Joker Eren had been hypnotizing and converting new subordinates,

He had also sent out Bucky, now a fully-fledged Instigator.

Bucky's task? Sow discord among the gangs.

Fuel their greed, ignite their bloodlust, and push them to slaughter each other.

All while helping him digest his potion.

Of course, instigating a bunch of low-level criminals was nothing compared to provoking Joker Eren himself.

Which was precisely why Bucky felt disappointed.

Seeing Bucky's regretful expression,

Joker Eren, wary of this increasingly unhinged man, decided to distract him with something bigger.

And so, he dropped a bombshell.

"By the way, I just got some news. Your dear old buddy, Steve Rogers—"

"He was dug out of the Arctic ice not too long ago."

"And most importantly—"

"After being frozen for seventy years…

He's still alive."

(End of Chapter)

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