Chapter 1 Attempted Murder

"You're a terrible father. I hate you! "Those awful people say that mom was a disgraceful bridesmaid who had an affair with you and secretly had me. They want to scar mom's face and drown her in a pigsty. "It's so high up here, and I'm so scared! They also shoved a lot of gross stuff into my mouth. Ugh! I'm going to die. I'll never see you again, Dad." The cleanup phase has commenced on the battlefield in Wintermere, and beneath the monument, a man stands proudly. He is none other than the youngest medical commander in Wintermere, Marcus Crawley! At that moment, Marcus received an unexpected call. "Daddy, Mommy's phone only has your number. Mommy said my daddy's name is Marcus, and my name is Lily." The little girl's voice quivered with suppressed sobs as Marcus frowned, his lips tightening into a straight line, while he listened to the intermittent voice on the other end of the line. "I scavenged for months to fix this old phone ... " Clearly terrified, her voice shook with fragmented sentences: "Daddy ... Daddy, it's so high up here, they ... they want to push me down. Daddy ... the people chasing me are getting closer! Daddy, I'm so scared ... Can you come get me and take me home ... "Ah!" A scream echoed through the phone, followed by the dull thud of something heavy hitting the ground. The sound hit Marcus's heart like a hammer blow through the receiver, a hard-to-describe pain spreading through his body, clutching at his organs. Then, the phone went silent! No more sound followed! The little girl's voice had been soft and fragile, as if she were only five or six years old, yet filled with urgency and fear. Marcus's heart felt like it was being squeezed by a vice, each twist bringing more pain. If he wasn't mistaken, the little girl had been pushed from the crane! "Mr. Crawley, we've uncovered something critical," Maxwell said urgently as he approached. "The woman that spent the night with you five years ago wasn't your fiancée Clara. It was actually a woman named Sadie Sugarman, Ms. Sadie. "You were under the impression that Clara was your betrothed, which led to a mix-up that ultimately founded the billion-dollar titan Eternity Group; meanwhile, Clara has inadvertently pushed Sadie to the edge of despair for the last five years! "Moreover, Sadie bore you a daughter, Lily Crawley." Lily? Marcus was taken aback, as though his mind had just been blown wide open. The young girl he had just spoken to on the phone was named Lily! She was, in fact, his own daughter! Who would dare to harm his daughter? Who would make her shed tears like that? He abruptly recalled Lily mentioning she was atop the crane at the construction site during their call! The crane was fraught with danger. How on earth did she end up there? She must have been coerced! How dare they! At that moment, something in Marcus snapped, his gaze turning sharp as blades, radiating a fierce desire for retribution. "Head back to Netherwood immediately and locate Lily!" Marcus's voice thundered uncontrollably, "I need to see her as soon as possible!" Maxwell expressed his concerns, "But tonight, there's a grand celebration banquet with all the notable personalities from Wintermere attending." "Call it off!" His fists clenched in determination, the veins on his forehead pronounced. He spoke three decisive words that brooked no argument. The very thought of the celebration and the inconveniences, none of it mattered to him in the least compared to his daughter's welfare. "Understood!" Barely three minutes had passed when the plane touched down. Maxwell got a message. "Mr. Crawley, there's been a major development." Maxwell's hands shook as he presented the photograph! He was anxious about how Marcus would react upon learning about it. The anticipation was unbearable. Marcus, seizing the moment, grabbed the photograph from Maxwell with urgency. The moment Marcus's eyes met the image, he was profoundly disturbed. It felt like an impending disaster was on the horizon. His contributions in Wintermere were unparalleled, earning him the title of The First Medical King of the World thanks to his exceptional medical prowess. Adorned in the Divine Phoenix robe, he had been a saviour to at least tens of thousands in Wintermere. Regardless of their status or power, everyone was compelled to refer to him respectfully as Mr. Crawley. Whenever a soldier from Mandoria was in need, Marcus would travel great distances to offer his medical expertise. Many had pleaded for his assistance, willing to sacrifice everything for his help. But now, his daughter had been pushed off a crane on Trash Peak, and her life was hanging by a thread! The hospital didn't even try to save her. Instead, they were demanding he sign a body donation form?! His daughter, whom he had never met, was now lying in the cold morgue, covered in blood from head to toe. How could anyone oppress a five-year-old girl? Were those people even human?! No! He needed to get back to Netherwood! He had to see his daughter immediately! Marcus was determined to return to Netherwood at all costs, ready to turn the entire city upside down if necessary. Netherwood. In the dim morgue beneath the Trash Peak, several doctors gathered around Lily, exchanging hushed remarks. "The heart looks promising, could fetch around seventy to eighty thousand dollars." "Careful with the corneas. They're quite valuable." "The bone marrow's worth fifty to sixty grand. Let's extract it quickly." The head doctor was visibly excited. Little did they know their actions at this moment would spell disaster for all of Netherwood! "Boss," exclaimed a doctor, caught up in the moment, "she's still breathing! She's gripping something tightly in her hands like it's precious." The lead doctor in the white coat ignored her, remarking, "What could be precious to her? She's Sadie's daughter. They've been scraping by on Trash Peak. Someone's crossed them this time, so it's our gain." With a gesture, he directed a nearby man to bring a damp cloth. Without hesitation, the man covered Lily's mouth with it. "Oh, she's still alive? Let's make her stop breathing!" Curled up in pain, Lily's survival instincts kicked in, and she began to struggle desperately against the cloth, smothering her breath. "Help ... help me." Her blood-stained hand weakly reached out, attempting to push away the suffocating hand, tears streaming down her face uncontrollably. Despite her agony and terror, she managed to whisper faintly, "Daddy, Daddy will come back. Please, let me go; Daddy will appreciate that." The doctor's response was a deranged laughter. "Hahaha! Your daddy? You don't have one! Now, die and show your gratitude to us!" With that cruel proclamation, he brandished a surgical knife, glaring fiercely at Lily's fragile form, and struck down. Lily's eyes widened in despair, her final word, "Daddy," barely escaping her lips as darkness enveloped her. Bam! A thunderous noise echoed through the air. The iron gate of the hospital shattered as if punched by a colossal force. A man with a frightening visage who seemed to emerge from the depths of icy hell strode forward, exuding an aura of chilling menace. Marcus materialised at the entrance without warning. In the next instant, his gaze fell upon the little girl lying on the cold metal bed, drenched in blood. It was his daughter—a revelation after years of ignorance and separation. Yet here she lay, surrounded by these fiends in a tainted room, on the verge of being dissected. Agony twisted his heart, and a primal roar erupted from his throat: "How dare you?!! What are you doing to my daughter?!!" The skies themselves seemed to tremble and darken in response to his fury.