Seongguk – Interrogation

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-Creak. Creak.

The brazier scraped against the floor, making a grating metallic sound.

Lucas gathered his torture instruments and stopped in front of the prison cell.

-Thunk.

He gripped the doorknob.

But he couldn’t bring himself to open the door for a long time.

“Ha… I’m going crazy.”

Right now, Lucas was hesitating to go into the cell and face Lena.

‘What on earth is she enduring all this for?’

Clearly, every time the whip lashed out, there was an unmistakable fear in her eyes.

So Lena wasn’t someone who enjoyed the occasional pain.

Brutal torture that a young woman could never endure.

Lena had endured the hell he inflicted on her with sheer willpower.

Even with the absurd provocation to do more.

Usually, people who make contracts with Demons or volunteer as spies spill everything with just a little torture.

They didn’t join hands with Demons because they had some noble purpose.

They just wanted to fulfill their ugly desires in exchange for betraying humanity.

‘Ugh… In, Inquisitor, I’m… innocent.’

Lena was definitely different from those guys.

Besides, she kept making the ridiculous claim that ‘His Holiness the Pope framed me.’

‘Ha. His Holiness the Pope framed an innocent person?’

There were testimonies and witnesses, yet she was spouting such nonsense.

A false accusation of assassination was as good as killing someone. It was that serious.

“Ugh…. What a disgrace.”

To be swayed by the words of a spy.

It’s been a while since I’ve done this, so I keep making strange mistakes.

Lucas calmed his mind, opened the door, and went inside.

“You’ve finally come. Judging by what you brought, are you going to brand me with a hot iron this time?”

“You know me well.”

-Whoosh.

Lucas picked up the red-hot iron from the brazier and slowly walked towards Lena.

“It’s one of my favorite tools. This one will hurt a lot more.”

“Ugh….”

Lena flinched at the heat of the iron as it approached.

“Scared? If you confess now, I can stop here.”

Lucas secretly hoped that Lena would confess now.

Of course, Lena’s reaction remained unchanged.

“This could be resolved if the Inquisitor believed me. I’ve said it before, but if you don’t trust me, you can keep going as much as you want.”

Eyes.

Those eyes.

Lucas had been doing this for years, so he believed he could tell if someone was lying just by looking at their eyes.

Lena’s eyes held only the truth.

That part kept shaking Lucas’s heart.

Reason and all the evidence said that Lena was trying to assassinate the Pope.

But his intuition was shouting that Lena was innocent.

Interrogation is never easy.

But it had been a long time since he felt this troubled.

If he wrongly caused an innocent person to die, the guilt would be indescribable.

If it really was a false accusation….

‘Get a grip.’

You know how cruel Demons and spies are,

How easily they spew lies,

So why are you having these thoughts?

Lucas couldn’t believe he had even entertained such doubts for a moment.

When Lucas first became an Inquisitor, he sometimes made mistakes because he was too soft-hearted with women or young people and couldn’t interrogate them properly.

In the end, he couldn’t extract the information he needed, and he couldn’t stop the incident.

After that, he vowed never to be fooled by them again.

This case isn’t even without evidence. There are clear testimonies.

The only thing bothering him was Lena’s confident attitude.

“Um… are you going to do it suddenly this time too?”

“Huh?”

Lucas, lost in thought, looked at Lena, who was slightly opening her eyes and examining him.

“I was wondering if you were going to try to brand me at an unexpected time like before. That’s a bit scary.”

Lena had squeezed her eyes shut in fear, and when nothing happened for several seconds, she tried to check the situation.

“…Okay. I’ll do it now if you want.”

-Swoosh.

Just as the iron was about to touch Lena’s body.

-Thump. Thump.

Nothing is going right.

“Haa….”

In the end, Lucas sighed, put down the iron, and went outside.

“Who is it?”

“Inquisitor Lucas.”

When Lucas came out at the sound of the knock, an unexpected figure was standing there.

‘His Holiness the Pope?’

To come here suddenly without any notice.

Lucas, who had been having some disrespectful thoughts about the Pope, worried that it might show on his face.

“Ahem. Greetings. What brings you here….”

“The only reason I would come here is for Miss Lena inside. Is there something wrong? You don’t look well.”

“No, it’s nothing. I was just pondering how to proceed with the interrogation.”

“Haha, I always trust Inquisitor Lucas’s skills. So, how far has the interrogation progressed? It seems like you’ve made quite a bit of progress.”

The Pope’s gaze was directed at the bloodstains on Lucas’s clothes.

“I’ve conducted various interrogations, but… she still hasn’t opened her mouth. She keeps saying it’s a false accusation. I’m sorry. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen such a stubborn one.”

“Oh dear. It’s not Inquisitor Lucas’s fault. I know your skills well. It’s just that Lena is not someone who will be easily broken. She conceived an unimaginable plan to infiltrate The Hero’s party and actually carried it out.”

The Pope comforted Lucas and patted him on the back.

“…Thank you.”

Lucas was touched by the Pope’s gesture of acknowledging his hard work.

For someone like this to falsely accuse an innocent person.

That couldn’t be.

The position of Inquisitor is one that most people fear and avoid.

Yet the Pope always trusted him, the Inquisitor, and treated everyone in the temple with respect.

“May I go in and check for a moment?”

“Of course. But it might be a bit unpleasant to see….”

“That’s alright. There are some things I need to discuss with Miss Lena separately. Would you mind waiting outside for a moment, Inquisitor Lucas?”

“Are you sure you’ll be alright alone? It could be dangerous.”

“You don’t have to worry. She’s hardly in a state to lift a finger, is she?”

“That’s true, but….”

In reality, there was no element that could be dangerous to Lena at all.

In the end, Lucas nodded at the Pope’s request.

“Alright. Then I’ll wait outside.”

“Good. This is a top-secret conversation, so you must not come in.”

**

-Thump.

The Pope went into the prison cell alone and closed the door. Then he gave a light greeting.

“Nice to meet you.”

“…Pope.”

Lena, dangling from the chains, was obviously not in a normal state.

Fingers that were completely broken and could never be used again.

Numerous whip marks on her back.

Her entire body was covered in blood and sweat.

“Miss Lena, are you alright? You’ve suffered a lot. It would be easier if you gave up… why did you do that?”

The Pope smiled gleefully as he admired Lena’s beautiful appearance.

“Me give up? That will never happen.”

“You still have fire in your eyes. And you’re speaking so well, it seems the torture wasn’t enough.”

-Swoosh.

The Pope picked up the iron from the brazier and waved it around.

“This should shut you up a bit.”

“Ugh… do you think the answer you want will come out of my mouth if you do this? If I ever get out of here, I will never let you get away with this!”

The Pope’s hand, which had come closer, slowly stroked Lena’s cheek.

“You seem very angry from the way you’re talking.”

“Wouldn’t you be angry if you were me?”

-Clang!

Lena shook her body, and the Pope stepped back lightly. “Haha, that’s a meaningless resistance.”

“I’ll get my revenge. I’ll make you pay the price for your sins!”

Lena’s eyes, looking at the Pope, were filled with hatred.

“I’ll be looking forward to your revenge. So, where should I brand you first?”

“Do whatever you want. If I die, Jade won’t let you get away with this.”

“Hmm…. Should we start with the stomach?”

-Swoosh.

“Ugh….”

Lena squeezed her eyes shut at the increasingly hot heat.

“Well, you’re already battered enough, so there’s no need to add more.”

-Thud!

Suddenly, the Pope dropped the iron he was holding on the floor.

“The Hero will be coming soon.”

Lena’s eyes widened at the words the Pope spat out.

“Ja, Jade is coming?”

“He came to me this morning to argue about the case. Saying that there’s no way Miss Lena would do such a thing. But when I explained the truth to The Hero, he eventually gave up refuting it. Instead, he asked to meet Miss Lena. Saying he wanted to hear from the person involved.”

“The truth? You mean your ridiculous script. What lies did you tell Jade and Annie?”

“So, about that… Miss Lena shouldn’t say nonsense to The Hero, right?”

-Swoosh.

A cube-shaped box popped out from the Pope’s chest.

It was that Artifact that had shaken Lena’s mind.

“No, surely not that again?”

Lena trembled as she recalled the pain from that time.

“Miss Lena’s mental strength was impressive. She shook off the suggestion in just a few minutes last time. It almost messed up the situation. But you’re very tired now, so it’ll be difficult to resist.”

“…You’re despicable. Can’t you handle me properly without borrowing the power of a tool? You have too little ability compared to your ambition.”

‘Such a cute provocation.’

Even though you’re so terrified.

The Pope could clearly see the fear inside Lena.

Lena was hoping he wouldn’t use the Artifact.

The Pope gave Lena a benevolent smile.

“Haha, it’s no use provoking me. It’s foolish not to use the resources you’re given. And the fact that I’m using the Artifact means I’ve assessed Miss Lena as a dangerous and remarkable person.”

“Do you think I’ll lose to that kind of tool? I’ll definitely endure it and reveal your truth.”

“Oh, I’d be really surprised if you did.”

The Pope held the Artifact in front of Lena’s eyes.

-Ooooong.

The surface of the Artifact gradually opened and began to emit light.

“Shall we give it a try?”