In Kankdar at night, the Church's prison ship, Fire Punishment, belonging to the Inquisition, was docked at the harbor pier. Inside the cabin of the Fire Punishment, within a narrow, long, and rusty corridor, Inquisitor Clifton was walking quickly, accompanied by two attendants. Their destination was a locked iron door at the end of the corridor.
Upon reaching the iron door at the end of the corridor, Clifton personally took out the key and opened it. After the iron door was pulled open, what appeared before him was a steel grate. Behind the grate was a man bound by shackles all over his body, wearing a thin prison uniform, covered in small wounds and bloodstains, and looking terrified. He was Kid, one of the guards of the Adus delegation.
Upon seeing Clifton suddenly appear before him, the imprisoned Kid's face showed a clear look of fear, and he instinctively shrank back a short distance. Clifton, after a cold glance at the prisoner before him, slowly spoke.
"Priest Hank Kid, colluding with the Savior Sect otherworld, attempting to assassinate the Baruk Royal Palace in broad daylight, with irrefutable evidence witnessed by all. Do you have anything else you want to say..." Hearing Clifton's words, Kid immediately shivered and then quickly said.
"No, I didn't want to assassinate anyone! I was controlled! I didn't know anything at the time. I was somehow controlled by others while I was sleeping, and only woke up to know what happened! Please investigate clearly, your Excellency Inquisitor!"
With a panicked tone, Kid shouted at Clifton, while Clifton continued to speak indifferently without changing his tone.
"Controlled by others? Heh... Many prisoners try to use such excuses to quibble about the crimes they've committed when they come to us. How can there be so many Extraordinary abilities in this world that can control others at will? You say you were controlled, do you have any evidence? Without evidence, those are all excuses!"
"I..."
Hearing Clifton's words, Kid wanted to say something to explain, but the words he wanted to say were stuck in his mouth for a moment, not knowing how to say them. Indeed, he had no evidence to prove that he was not controlled, and his actions of attempting to assassinate seemed real in the eyes of others.
Seeing the bewildered Kid before him, Clifton's mouth curved slightly upward. Then he took a step forward and continued to speak oppressively to Kid.
"If you can't produce evidence, then you colluded with otherworld assassins. This is undeniable. You also know what the consequences are for a saint church warrior who colludes with otherworld."
"Colluding with otherworld is... a capital offense..." Looking at the approaching Clifton, the terrified Kid said with a trembling voice. Clifton, who seemed very satisfied with his expression, nodded and then continued to speak.
"Yes, colluding with otherworld is a great blasphemy against the Lord, even more serious than colluding with heretics, and is an unforgivable sin. Once convicted, there is no room for defense... I came to Kankdar this time, and in addition to the immediate investigation authority, I also have immediate trial authority and immediate execution authority. This Fire Punishment also has the function of execution, Priest Kid, do you want me to take you out now and let you choose the method of execution?"
With a hint of dangerous tone, Clifton spoke to Kid. For other delegation guards, Clifton still needed to interrogate them, but for Kid, who had directly attempted assassination, Clifton could sentence him to death without even a trial. It could be said that Kid's life and death were completely in Clifton's hands.
Hearing Clifton's words, Kid's panic intensified, and he suddenly began to tremble uncontrollably. His eyes widened, and his expression became distorted. Due to the fear of death, the emotions in his heart intensely echoed, and finally burst out, unable to bear it any longer.
"Spare my life, Lord Inquisitor! Please spare my life! I'm really not an otherworld! I really don't want to die! Please spare my life! As long as you can spare me, I'll do anything you want! I'm willing to do anything!"
Under the threat of death, Kid's emotions completely collapsed. He cried, shed tears, and humbly begged Clifton. Clifton looked at Kid before him, pretended to think for a moment, and then slowly said to Kid again.
"Actually... there is a way for you to live. Although you colluded with otherworld and attempted to assassinate a prince, bringing great negative influence to the Church, since your assassination attempt was stopped in time and you didn't act in the end, if you actively cooperate with my investigation and make amends, there is still a glimmer of hope for redemption now."
Clifton continued to speak to Kid. Hearing Clifton's words, Kid quickly said.
"Cooperate... cooperate! I will absolutely cooperate, your Excellency Inquisitor, I will absolutely cooperate fully with your investigation."
Seeing Kid's performance, Clifton couldn't help but nod. Then he leaned slightly forward towards Kid before him and continued to speak.
"Alright, then now, Priest Kid, you should confess well. Confess who else are your accomplices? What other targets do you have besides Prince Mazhar? What is Sister Vanya's status within your group of otherworld corruptors? Was your assassination plan designated by her?"
Facing Kid, Clifton directly asked a bunch of questions. Hearing Clifton's words...
"Sister Vanya... uh... this..."
"What? You don't want to talk? I advise you to be more pragmatic and confess everything you know. As long as the others are caught, you will have made a contribution. Now you can only firmly establish this contribution to save yourself, so I still advise you to think carefully, think well, and be pragmatic... confess what should be confessed..."
With a hint of meaningful tone, Clifton said to Kid. Hearing Clifton's suggestive words, Kid's heart finally became clear. He immediately knew that Clifton wanted him to give false testimony. Clifton clearly wanted to frame Vanya, but it seemed he lacked some key evidence, so he needed his testimony.
What Clifton wanted now was for him to identify Vanya! To identify her as the mastermind of everything, regardless of whether she really had anything to do with the otherworld. As long as he identified her, she would definitely be involved. As long as Vanya, as the leader of their group of "otherworld," was sent in, then he would have a chance to survive by relying on his contribution!
"Your Excellency Inquisitor... as long as I confess the leader, as long as I expose the corruption of the delegation, will I be saved?" With a slightly expectant expression, Kid asked Clifton this question. Facing Kid's words, Clifton nodded and promised again.
"Of course."
"Alright... alright! I'll report... I'll confess! I'll confess everything!" Kid said loudly like this. Facing Clifton, he planned to confess what the other party wanted to hear according to the other party's ideas. Facing Kid's performance before him, Clifton's mouth curved slightly.
"Your Excellency Inquisitor, I confess to you! Our entire delegation, in Adis, was corrupted by the otherworld... Uh..."
Just as Kid was about to say something, he suddenly paused, his body trembled slightly, his eyes rolled back, and after making a strange sound, he fell to the side. But at the critical moment before falling, he suddenly straightened up and looked at Clifton before him with his usual expression.
"What's wrong with you?"
Seeing the slight abnormality in Kid just now, Clifton immediately asked. At this moment, Kid looked at Clifton with a silent gaze, and then responded with a slight gasp.
"Huff... huff... Nothing, your Excellency Inquisitor, let me continue to confess. Where was I just now?"
"You just said that the entire delegation in Adis was corrupted by the otherworld..." Clifton slightly narrowed his eyes and reminded Kid, who then spoke with understanding.
"Ah, I remember now, let's continue. Yes… we were corrupted by the otherworld in Adis, and then from Sister Vanya to us, we all resisted this vile corruption and fought bloody battles with the otherworld. We not only repelled them in belief! We also repelled them physically! Our actions also infected Shadi, the general of the Revolutionary Army in Adis, making him determined to break away from the otherworld and let Adus return to the embrace of the Lord. Soon after, he will announce this exciting news to all saint church followers!"
With a hint of determination in his weak demeanor, Kid spoke directly to Clifton. Listening to Kid's confession, Clifton's face immediately sank. Obviously, the content of this confession was greatly beyond his expectations. Based on Kid's previous performance, he should never have given such a so-called confession at this time.
Suddenly, a faint golden light appeared around the edges of Clifton's pupils. He stared at Kid in front of him with extreme seriousness and spoke in a stern tone.
"You are being controlled, who is it?! Who is controlling your body! Come out!"
Clifton shouted angrily at Kid and quickly scanned Kid's body using Extraordinary detection, attempting to discern the Extraordinary traces on him and determine what method was controlling Kid, but he was unable to see any valuable traces. There seemed to be no externally attached Extraordinary abilities on Kid's body.
"Controlled? Heh… Your Excellency the Inquisitor, I just said I was controlled when I attempted the assassination. You said you needed evidence. Now you are inexplicably saying I am controlled, so where is your evidence? Didn't you say it yourself? How can there be so many Extraordinary methods in this world that can control others… Are you just making excuses for your own incompetence?"
"You…"
With obvious sarcasm, Kid spoke directly to Clifton. Listening to Kid's words, Clifton was directly angered, his fury rising. Just as she was about to increase the intensity of her Extraordinary detection, Kid suddenly fell to the side and directly fainted in front of Clifton.
"Open the door! Examine him carefully! See if there are any Extraordinary traces on him, don't miss any item marks, any strange anomalies!"
Spraying saliva, Clifton pointed at Kid inside the cell and shouted loudly. Following Clifton's words, his attendant beside him immediately opened the cell door and began to examine the unconscious Kid's body, while Clifton watched from the side.
The examination lasted for a while. Kid was stripped naked on the spot in the prison, and every part of his body was examined thoroughly. Even his mouth and nose were not spared, and the inside of his abdominal cavity was confirmed using Extraordinary methods. However, no strange Extraordinary traces or items were found, nor were there any foreign objects inside his body, only scars all over his body.
Clifton, who was continuously using Extraordinary detection, looked at Kid who was being searched. After watching for a long time, he couldn't figure out why. In his helplessness, he could only order the search to be abandoned. After re-securing the unconscious Kid, he chose to leave. On the way out, he kept frowning, pondering the scene just now. The fact that nothing was found on Kid made him extremely puzzled.
'Could it be… that kid wasn't actually controlled just now, and his willingness to confess according to my wishes was just to play a trick on me?
'Hmph, I thought he was a pushover, but I didn't expect him to be as stubborn as the other guards, not only stubborn but also very nasty… Is that little Sister so attractive? These guys are willing to die without giving in for her?
'If that's the case, then I'll see how long you can last!'
Thinking this, Clifton quickened his pace forward. Now, he had to formulate tomorrow's interrogation plan.
...
Meanwhile, on the other side of Kankdar, Dorothy was sitting on the balcony of her hotel, gazing into the distance in the dark night, towards the direction of the port and pier.
"Truly resorting to every means, this Inquisitor. Fortunately, I left a backup on those people, otherwise the situation would have been troublesome."
While drinking coffee and enjoying the night view, Dorothy muttered. At this moment, she was closely observing the situation inside the Fire Punishment without using the miniature Corpse Puppet to infiltrate. The eyes she was using were precisely those of the envoy group guards currently imprisoned in the Fire Punishment, including Kid.
After the battle at Baruk Royal Palace, the envoy group guard team suffered heavy losses. Of the survivors, except for Kid, who was suspected of desertion, the others were seriously injured and were treated with all of Vanya's strength.
Since these people would likely follow Vanya for a while longer, and considering there might be monitors among them from factions different from Vanya's, Dorothy, just in case, instructed Vanya to be careful when treating these guards. Using the method of flesh and blood reconstruction, she implanted Dorothy's puppet mark into their internal tissues.
Using blood vessels, nerves, or muscle fibers, the puppet mark implanted deep within the body through guided treatment is extremely concealed, often located between the skin layers. Not only is there no trace on the body surface, but it also cannot be detected in places where things are hidden inside the body, such as the stomach and intestines. The puppet mark has no Extraordinary traces when not activated, and after activation, Dorothy can also transmit the protection of the ring of concealment to the puppet target through conduction, allowing the puppet target to achieve Extraordinary concealment without carrying any "Shadow" items. This is an impossible phenomenon in the common understanding of Extraordinary.
Originally, all the envoy group guards, except for Kid, who had minor injuries that barely required any Spirituality to treat, were implanted with Dorothy's puppet mark. On the day of the assassination, while subduing Kid, Vanya, following Dorothy's instructions, immediately treated his minor injuries that hadn't fully healed and also implanted the puppet mark. Therefore, when Clifton interrogated Kid just now, Dorothy could know what was happening there through Kid's own perspective.
Upon seeing Kid being persuaded by Clifton and intending to directly accuse Vanya and other members of the envoy group, Dorothy decisively took action, transmitting an electric current to directly stun the already weak Kid, and then immediately took over Kid's body using the puppet mark, saying those words mocking Clifton, and hand-in-hand helped Kid create the image of a loyal person, thus resolving this crisis.
'Although this crisis has been resolved, the problem is still there. As long as that group of people is being tortured by the Inquisitor, there will always be a time when their defenses are broken. And my Spirituality is limited, I cannot infinitely use my abilities to confront the Inquisitor.
'Therefore, while those people can still hold on, the urgent priority now is to find the evidence that Awei mentioned and completely overturn the judgment bureau's suspicions.'
Looking at the moonlight in the sky, a hint of solemnity appeared in Dorothy's eyes. Then she began to think seriously about where she could find the irrefutable ironclad evidence that would leave the Inquisitor, whose stance was extremely biased, with no room for argument.
Looking at the moon, Dorothy considered many plans and finally locked onto one direction.
"It seems that to resolve the current situation, I still need to go find those people from Baruk…"