The ruins of the Vistro manor grew eerily quiet, like waiting for something awful to happen. The smoke from where lightning struck drifted up, and the burned ground in the garden stopped sizzling. Right in the middle of all the mess, the Marquis stood straight. The healing elixir had finally healed his bones and closed the worst of the wounds. Even so, his fancy robes were torn to pieces and stained with blood.
He didn't seem beaten at all. He looked like someone who'd finally lost their mind.
The Marquis let his head drop, his shoulders shaking in a weird, steady way. Then, he coughed, a dry, raspy sound that turned into a loud, crazy laugh that echoed all over what was left of the courtyards.
