As Tasa regained consciousness, she felt sharp pains in the back of her neck.
Damn, these women were ruthless. He opened his eyes and tried to move, only to find his hands tightly bound behind his back and his feet shackled to the legs of two chairs.
"He woke up."
"Your name?" A figure stepped forward, tilting his chin. "I advise you to keep your word—otherwise, you'll be a corpse in the moat tomorrow." Tasa blinked. The woman before him wore a veil and was shrouded in a long robe, clearly unwilling to reveal her true appearance.
"Tasa," he replied truthfully, while quietly surveying the surroundings.
The room was narrow, its walls lined with dust-laden plaster statues—some fully carved, others clearly left unfinished. The accumulated dust had turned the statues a dull grayish-brown, as if this place had been abandoned for ages. With no windows to see the sky or tell time, the only light came from an oil lamp mounted on the wall.
"From Dragonfall Ridge to Silverlight City, you've been tirelessly searching," the woman said coldly. "What brings you here?" "It's not me seeking you, but the Guild of Mutual Aid." "What is the Guild of Mutual Aid?" "A witch organization like yours. I'm here to spread their message." "Nonsense!" she snapped. "I don't know where you got that name, but the Guild of Mutual Aid is in Sea Breeze County, far east. Do you think we'd believe a random name?" The woman drew a dagger from her waist—Tasha recognized it as the same one she'd used before. "I'll give you one last chance. Don't test my patience!" "I'm telling the truth!" he said in a suppressed voice, barely able to shout. "They originally planned to find the Holy Mountain in the Desolate Mountains. Now they've not only found it but also settled in Border Town. Their demonic symptoms have vanished. They want to rescue more witches. I swear I'm not lying!" "Then why did they target you?" "Because I helped them. When a Guild of Mutual Aid member was surrounded by the Church and Inquisition Army, I distracted the pursuers. Their mentor is called Hakkara, along with Wendy and Shujuan. They sent me here!" The masked woman fell silent for a moment, tucked the dagger into her waistband, and moved behind him. Soon, Tasha heard two murmurs from behind.
The fledgling thought to himself, these two were quite adept at using underhanded tactics, but their interrogation skills were utterly novice.
The most taboo in interrogation is granting only one choice. If no answer is obtained, it may easily drive the interrogator into a dead end—whether to execute or not. Execution would forfeit the possibility of obtaining intelligence, while non-execution would amount to failing to fulfill the threat they themselves had stated. This would severely undermine the interrogator's authority, and the effectiveness of future threats would be significantly diminished.
If he were to conduct the interrogation, he would undoubtedly begin with finger torture—cutting off a finger for each lie told, making even a misjudgment of no consequence. The threat of 'keeping one's word 'would rapidly break the enemy's psychological defenses, and untrained individuals would find it exceedingly difficult to endure such interrogation.
By feigning terror and making a show of being overwhelmed, they leave the other party in a state of doubt, while simultaneously revealing their inability to discern whether they are lying.
The information from the Kharaqar, the Holy Mountain and the Congregation is authentic and reliable, which will further strengthen the credibility of their intelligence.
Before long, the masked woman reappeared before him. "When did they arrive in the Western Frontier?" "Two or three months before the Demon Moon, after winter ended, they returned to the town and claimed to have found the Sacred Mountain." "How many of them?" "About forty? I'm not entirely sure. Apart from Hakkara, the other witches rarely show up," Tasa decided to add more leverage. "Have you heard of the Serpent Demon Hakkara? Her ability is to summon the Magic Power Serpent, a creature called' Nihilism 'that can instantly neutralize any poison. I've seen it with my own eyes—it's truly God-like." "You don't even fear witches?" The woman's tone sounded somewhat puzzled.
"Why fear? The witches of the Guild of Mutual Aid are... beautiful, not vicious beasts with fangs and claws. They've never harmed ordinary people. If I were afraid, I wouldn't have traveled so far to help them spread the word." "What if someone goes to Border Town? How do we contact them?" "Some can sense Magic Power. The witches will naturally come looking for them once they arrive." "Shadow, what do you think?" The masked woman looked up behind him.
"I don't know," said Witch, known as Shadow, hesitantly. "Maybe we should wait for Sister to return before making a decision. She'll know what to do." "...Alright," she nodded and found a relatively clean chair, sitting down in front of Tasa.
"Who is the elder sister?" "The guide," the masked woman's tone softened considerably, likely because of the phrase "not afraid of witches" that had deeply moved her. "She will take us away from here." "Where to?" The other party shook her head and remained silent.
"You're not a Witch from Silverlight City, are you?" Tasha pressed. "Your accent doesn't sound like a capital city dweller. Silverlight City is so close to the capital that locals take pride in mimicking its accent." She hesitated for a moment. "I... come from the South." Witches from across the kingdom had gathered here, and soon the Guide would lead them away... Tasha thought to herself. Undoubtedly, this was another Witch organization recruiting members, just as the Guild of Mutual Aid had done before. But where were they headed?
Just then, footsteps were heard outside the house.
"Sister's back!" Youying exclaimed. As the wooden door creaked open, Tasa held his breath in anticipation.
"Is he the one who's been spreading rumors through underground channels?" The newcomer's voice was mature and steady. "What did you find out?" "He seemed to be telling the truth," the masked woman said, outlining both the inquiry and her own perspective. "Without deep ties to the Gongzhu Society, he wouldn't have such precise knowledge." "Well, that's true," she said, moving past Tasa and standing before him. Unlike the masked woman, she had no facial coverings—her long black hair cascaded to her waist, and she appeared to be in her mid-twenties. Her most striking feature was her eyes: Tasa noticed the golden rim around her pupils, which made her star-like eyes clearly visible even in low light.
Tasa had seen many witches by Your Highness's side, yet this woman's appearance still ranked among the most extraordinary. A scar running from her left eyebrow bone down to her cheekline didn't detract from her beauty—it only added a chilling edge. From the moment she laid eyes on her, Tasa knew this was a warrior through and through.
"If the Holy Order truly discovered the Sacred Mountain, they shouldn 't have sent anyone to spread this news," she shook her head. "It would only draw the Church's attention. If they don't leave Border Town soon, they'll face dire consequences." "Then... what should we do?" Shadow asked.
"The ship will arrive at midnight today, and there are other witches aboard, so you must leave now," she said without hesitation. "I'll escort you to the ship. As for the Guild..." The black-haired woman glanced at Tasha, who was tied to the chair. "Please tell Tilly I'll arrive later, and perhaps bring her more companions." "You're going to Border Town with him?" Shadow exclaimed in surprise. "But what if this is a trap..." "Then he'll only end up killing himself," she said with a faint smile, her words brimming with confidence.