Page 156

(Walson)

In the stone-built cellar, the only source of light was a flickering candle on a stand.

"Ugh... Y-yeah, yeah, yeah! Ohhhhh!! Aha, ahh, ugh, ugh!" My feet thrashed about uncontrollably, my body convulsed violently, and incomprehensible cries of agony escaped my lips.

My hands were tied behind the chair, so all I could do was rock the sturdy wooden seat back and forth, struggling in a state of distress.

"Come on, don't say I'm not treating you well." The young man named who kidnapped me grabbed my cheeks roughly, forcing my mouth open. He then poured another vial of green liquid into my mouth.

"Ha... ah... ha... ugh..." After being fed the antidote, the pain in my body eased considerably, and the feeling of struggling to breathe disappeared. I took deep breaths of fresh air.

"Now, tell me, where did you get the 'Miracle Water'?" He said as he shook a vial of red liquid on the table, the liquid inside pulsating. It was a driving force of torturous suffering. Just looking at it, an overwhelming fear began to escape from my mouth in the form of screams.

"Ughhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!"

"Are you going to talk now?"

"Ugh... No... I won't tell you... geeeh..." Then, I was forced to swallow another vial of the liquid, and the cycle of excruciating torment resumed.

The interrogation had been going on for three hours.

"Still playing hard to get, huh... Well then, for the next half hour, you can watch the time tick away, have a quiet moment by yourself. Hopefully, by then, you'll give me a satisfactory answer." He then cast a time-counting spell on the table and then left the room.

Then, the door closed.

When the red dot on the [Mini-map] moved away from the room, I immediately sprung up from the chair. The ropes had long been burned by the piece of charcoal I had held in my hand.

I took out a dozen brick-made stone walls from my [Inventory] and started building a wall to seal the door, creating a three-meter-thick barrier. Simultaneously, I spit out a clump of dirt that I had concealed in my mouth.

That red liquid... or rather, the [Water of Cruelty]... that's how it was displayed in my status, is something that I have a solution for, after taking out a pill made of milk from my inventory and crushed it, I immediately swallowed it while still pretending to struggle after drinking the liquid earlier.

In other words, before the effects of the potion made me feel pain, I had already neutralized it.

Speaking of which, that bishop who cosplay as a sloth is seriously messed up! Torturing me continuously for three hours without getting bored? Do you have no fatigue? Even I'm getting exhausted from acting!

Well, but that idiot also didn't notice that I was acting, neither did the masked Wolverine. Both of those idiots fell for it completely. Tsk, it's a shame I didn't join the entertainment industry in my previous life. I might have had a shot at an Oscar, given how dedicated I am.

Now, let's summarize the situation. They brought me here to force me to reveal the source of the potion. Even though they resorted to torture, I heard the term [Miracle Water] mentioned several times during the process. It seems this was orchestrated by some high-ranking official.

Calling Grace to take me away won't work, I can't contact her at all. Whatever is blocking telepathy is working flawlessly within this building.

So, I need to analyze the enemy's situation. From what I have seen on the [Mini-map], there are about 20 red dots in this building. If I were to use that man level as a reference, they all fall between 60 to 70... something I can't handle on my own.

That means my best option now, on the underground fourth floor, is to escape. If this were Minecraft, I could just dig a tunnel to freedom, but this is reality. Given the building's construction technology, trying that could cause a collapse, and I might be squashed into a pancake.

Well, that's why I have to go for plan B: breaking through the ceiling and climbing upward. I have about half an hour, that stone wall likely won't hold for long in a magical world. So, I've set a small trap, consisting of pressure plates and TNT, along with some powdered sleeping mushrooms.

So, the next step is to make my way to the upper room. Considering the building's structure, each floor is more than five meters high, which means I need to climb my way up to the roof. It's less likely to be discovered there since it's a blind spot visually.

In other words, I've become an imitator of Spider-Man... I just lack the skin-tight suit and the cross on my chest.

Quietly opening a hole in the ceiling, I slipped inside, then climbed up to the ceiling again. The room was devoid of any furnishings, and judging by the dust accumulation, it hadn't been cleaned in ages... just like the cobwebs everywhere. It seemed no one had lived here for a long time.

Is this place just a temporary hideout they purchased just to capture me? They really think highly of me, huh?

Scattered red dots were wandering in the corridors on different levels, but that's all. It seemed they weren't searching the rooms. Since there were no structures above this room, I took advantage of the red dots leaving and quietly slipped into another empty room, continuing upward.

It's fortunate this is only a temporary base. If it were their main headquarters, it might have been loaded with traps... I speculate that their teleportation items can't transport them too far, and secondly, I'm just a [Villager] so they probably didn't expect me to be this prepared.

...

... Well, now I'm facing a problem.

I'm currently on the ground floor of this building.

This floor is different from the ones before it, much simpler in structure. It's a spacious lounge with thick stone brick walls and a wooden ceiling, about seven meters in vertical height. It looks like it used to be a bar of sorts.

And me? I'm clinging to the corner of the wall near the ceiling, staring at the exit dumbfounded.

The problem now is that there are ten fully armed individuals concentrated in this lounge, and because of that, I can't use a cross to knock on the wall. It's too loud and would undoubtedly draw attention.

Climbing over the ceiling to reach the opposite exit? It would be a good plan, but the issue lies in the fact that the roof of this building is too dilapidated. It definitely wouldn't hold the weight of a person.

So, the current plan is that I must climb over the beam in the middle of the room, meaning I have to crawl over the heads of the ten thugs, reach the small ventilation window, and then crawl out.

"Hey, do you really think that half-hour of tormenting the [Villager] will make him spill the beans?"

"I think it will. The effect of that new drug is quite potent. No one has been able to endure it so far."

Squeak— In the middle of the beam, I tensed my whole body due to the loud noise the wooden plank made. I didn't even dare to exhale.

I'm about to be discovered!

"What was that noise?" One of the men in black said.

"It's common to hear such noises in an old building. No need to worry about it. Right now, all we need to do is guard this place and watch for soldiers invading. This operation involves a direct attack on the military camp, so the risk of exposure is high. We need to be on guard to maintain the glory of the goddess."

"Yes!"

Phew! That was close! Okay, now I just need to crawl another ten meters and I would be good to go, and just as I was about to continue moving, a few cherry blossom petals floated by my eyes. And the beautiful sensation of freedom was embracing me... wait, cherry blossom petals?

Snap! When the sound of the beam breaking reached my ear, the sensation of free fall began to assault my senses.

"Master! Are you okay... huh??"

"... Walson, Aure just said... huh?"

"「「「Ahhhhhh!!!!!!」」」"

Due to the sudden increase in weight, their fall is inevitable, and the fall of three individuals alongside the wooden plank they were standing on stirred up the sand on the ground, and where they fell happened to be the center of those ten red dots.

...

...

...

Looking at the surrounding guards, I let out a shaky smile and waved my hand, then said. "Uh, good morning?"