Chapter 235: Interrogation in the Basement
Ryan stepped through the dungeon portal. The bright magical light of the teleportation enveloped him for a second before leaving him back on the grounds of his own village.
Upon exiting the dungeon, he was greeted almost immediately by the usual elf guards who zealously watched over that entrance.
Surprisingly, the atmosphere outside was one of immense calm and normalcy. All the previous massive chaos caused by the heavy commotion of the wild wyverns and the holy knight’s capture had already completely dissipated.
There was no curious inhabitant left present, expecting any new commotion or danger in the surroundings. Noticing the enormous tranquility of the place as he advanced along the path, Ryan let out a soft sigh.
"It seems Alicia took care of everything very quickly," Ryan muttered to himself with evident approval.
He recognized the excellent work and the great capability of his loyal wolf assistant in calming the crowd and restoring order in his territory. Without stopping his walk toward the center of the village, Ryan raised his right hand.
He gave a soft tap with his mana-covered index finger directly to the small earring dangling from his ear. That delicate metal functioned as his new long-distance communication relic with his espionage network.
Almost immediately, the earring emitted a soft buzz and a familiar voice whispered very clearly into his earlobe.
"Did something happen, Krai?" Beatrice asked from the other side, using her leader’s fake name out of a habit for security.
"I want you to return to the village early tomorrow morning, you and Rose," Ryan ordered with his deep voice, getting straight to the point. The demon spy stayed silent for a brief second, processing the sudden retreat order.
"Rose is not with me at this moment," Beatrice replied, maintaining her soft and calm tone of voice.
"But since you need it to be early tomorrow morning, then there will be no problem looking for her to return together."
Beatrice took a short pause before continuing with her doubts.
"What do you want me to do with the rest of the spy group?" Beatrice asked, waiting for instructions regarding the elves and demi-humans infiltrated in the capital.
"They will remain there in the city," Ryan indicated, keeping his gaze fixed on the stone path.
"Meet with their leaders before leaving to secure the chain of command. If there is important last-minute information, you will notify me directly upon arriving here."
"Alright, I understand. I will prepare everything," Beatrice stated confidently, accepting the directives without hesitation.
"One more thing," Ryan added before she could cut the energy flow from the magical relic.
"Be very careful on your way back. Surely, you will encounter enemies on the road. Avoid being seen by them and avoid fighting at all costs." Ryan thought about the church’s increased security on the continent’s main routes.
"Do not worry about that, Krai. I will do exactly what you ask of me," Beatrice said with a very soft voice to reassure him.
After confirming that the message had been received successfully, Ryan cut the connection and lowered his hand.
He kept advancing with steady steps toward the stone residence that contained the basement. That was the exact place where Alicia should have the holy knight woman chained and ready for the interrogation.
’With their return, the combat party will now be complete,’ Ryan thought, evaluating his preparations.
’We already verified that the relics work properly over a long distance. And considering what happened the last time I had the holy knights in front of me, I highly doubt this woman will give me anything useful,’ he reflected.
Church members were usually very fanatical and stubborn when it came to giving up classified information.
’But even so, I must try to get something out of her,’ Ryan concluded.
Before Ryan finished completely analyzing his options for the interrogation, the atmosphere beside him changed suddenly. The humidity in the air began to form and condense into a single spot very quickly.
And in the blink of an eye, Ivis’s figure appeared walking right beside him.
"Ivis," Ryan said without stopping his march, noticing the dragon woman’s magical appearance on his right side.
"Yes?" She answered naturally, turning her face to look directly at him.
"I want to ask you a favor," Ryan said very seriously, stopping his steps completely in the middle of the path.
He approached the dragon woman, closing the distance between them.
Ryan stopped for a moment right in front of her, leaned forward slightly, and whispered a few words directly into her ear. He kept his voice very low to make sure no one else in the village could hear his sudden plan.
"Are you sure about that?" Ivis asked, pulling away a bit after listening to him carefully, with evident surprise in her pupils.
"Yes," Ryan stated immediately, nodding his head.
"Even that way, I don’t think the outcome will change too much right now, but it will suit us much better in the future," Ryan added to her question.
Ivis did not immediately respond to her ally’s unusual proposal.
She stood looking at him in silence for a few seconds, evaluating the possible consequences of that hidden action.
Finally, she let out a long, heavy sigh.
"Well, if you are so sure about doing this, I will not oppose it," Ivis accepted, dropping her shoulders a bit.
"I believe even my lady Ophelia would agree with this method. Although I will not say anything to her for now."
"I appreciate it. I suppose I am going to owe you a huge debt for this," Ryan said, acknowledging the weight of the favor he had just asked.
Ivis looked him up and down and replied with a small, sharp smile appearing on her lips.
"Of course you will. I will make sure to collect that debt when the time comes," the dragon woman said with satisfaction.
Then, both of them resumed their walk through the village in complete silence.
After a few minutes, they arrived in front of the solid wooden door of the residence that holds access to the basement. Just as they were standing at the main door, about to enter, they heard rushed footsteps behind them.
Mirian, along with Helen, came running down the path to catch up with them before the interrogation began. Ryan made no comments about the two heroines’ arrival and simply opened the door.
And the four of them entered the dark residence together, submerging themselves in a much colder and tenser atmosphere. The party began to go down the narrow stairs in silence, hearing only the echo of their own boots.
Upon reaching the bottom of the deep, torch-lit basement, they found what they were looking for. There stood Alicia, maintaining a firm, serious, and completely vigilant posture.
And right in front of the wolf assistant, the holy knight woman was sitting on the floor, heavily chained to the wall.
Ryan approached the prisoner with slow steps, letting his presence fill the small, damp room.
"Your Majesty," Alicia announced immediately, giving a deep and respectful bow upon seeing her king arrive.
"This person is... the king?" The holy knight woman murmured with a weak and raspy voice.
The prisoner looked up with great difficulty, watching Ryan’s dark figure with evident confusion and fear in her eyes.
Helen wasted no time and moved forward quickly, passing by her leader’s side.
The black-haired warrior planted herself right in front of the chained woman, looking down at her with enormous superiority.
"You had better answer clearly everything Ryan asks you," Helen said with a highly cold and sharp voice.
"Ryan?" The wounded girl repeated, her eyes wide open upon hearing that name. She looked at him with much more detail, scanning his dark clothes and his intimidating posture.
"Are you the demon... Ryan?" The prisoner asked with a trembling voice, shrinking back against the cold wall.
’What do you mean demon?’ Ryan thought, furrowing his brow upon hearing such an exaggerated title come out of the enemy’s mouth.
Even if he had done very bad things to the church in the past, literally calling him a demon was already somewhat excessive for his personal taste.
Ryan faked a brief cough to clear his throat and ignore the annoying comment.
And then he spoke with his deep voice, getting straight to the matter that interested him.
"My subordinate found you traveling toward the nation of Kallistia," Ryan began to say coldly.
"What exactly did the holy knights go there to do?" He asked, fixing his eyes on the woman’s scared face.
"An S-rank knight, traveling alone with an A-rank like you."
She did not answer Ryan’s direct accusation immediately.
The prisoner pursed her lips and looked away to the ground, trying to maintain her loyalty to the church despite the heavy chains.
But Helen shot her a murderous glare so intense that it seemed to completely freeze the air in the basement. And it seems the woman’s brain suddenly remembered the terrifying power of the heroine who had captured her.
Because the prisoner began to tremble slightly, appearing to have a very noticeable fear of the black-haired girl.
"Wait... I will tell everything, everything I know," the woman said hurriedly, surrendering to the unbearable physical and mental pressure of the place.
"As you said, I am only an A-rank knight."
The prisoner swallowed hard with much difficulty, feeling the gazes of the entire party on her.
"And the S-rank person I accompanied on that journey," the woman continued with a weak voice.
"He was the vice-captain of the third division of holy knights," she said, keeping her gaze pinned to the ground.
Then, the woman looked up slightly, staring at Ryan with an expression of pure resignation on her dirty face.
"We were heading to the nation of Kallistia for only one reason..."