Death Game: Starting as a Trickster, Pretending to Be a God

Chapter 815: Inside the Black Prison

Under the Inquisitor's leadership, Lin Yu, Fish, and Raymond entered the inner chambers of the Tribunal of Heresy.

The elderly Inquisitor personally led them through the Tribunal's main hall, heading deeper into the building's interior.

Things were progressing smoothly enough, though one thing caught Fish and Lin Yu off guard...

[Fish: Why is the Inquisitor himself personally escorting us?]

Fish used the [Social] panel to message Lin Yu—back at the inn, under Kui's social expert guidance, all five members of this [dungeon] without core stance conflicts had added each other as friends.

Seeing Fish's message, Lin Yu replied helplessly.

"I don't know either. Let's just take it step by step."

Fish's message popped up again quickly.

[Fish: If it comes down to fighting on Tribunal turf, even inside the Black Prison against a major city's Inquisitor, I could definitely win—but I might not be able to protect you fully.]

Reading Fish's message, Lin Yu nearly lost control of his expression.

[Schreiber: Sis Fish, I don't think we're at the point of unnecessary violence yet... There might still be room for negotiation.]

[Fish: I'm terrible at negotiating! I should've brought Phoenix instead!]

[Schreiber: I'm not great at it either... but maybe I could give it a try?]

After calming Fish down, Lin Yu sighed inwardly and looked toward the Inquisitor ahead.

Their eyes met at that exact moment.

A warm smile spread across the Inquisitor's face.

"Your Excellency Schreiber, if I may ask... why do you believe the Barrier in the sky is connected to the 'Black Prison'?"

"Whether it's heretics or dark races imprisoned in the Black Prison, their mana has been completely sealed. The anti-magic field there cuts off almost all Mana Streams, leaving only one passage usable by Tribunal personnel. They couldn't possibly have orchestrated anything."

The Inquisitor's question dripped with deliberate obtuseness.

"This old fox is definitely up to something."

Lin Yu, catching the almost willfully foolish nature of the question, kept his smile plastered on and offered a reply so simple it bordered on suspicious.

"I trust the Lilee Tribunal's work and your expertise, Inquisitor. The dark species locked in the Black Prison certainly couldn't have conjured a Barrier above Lilee City—but I suspect the Mastermind behind this Barrier might be after something inside the Black Prison."

"So observing and interrogating the prisoners here might yield some clues."

Lin Yu had no idea what game the Inquisitor was playing, but based on their two interactions and the man's probing attitude, he could confirm one thing...

Given the [Golden Cross Medal] in his possession, the Inquisitor was clearly wary of him.

So Lin Yu didn't mind playing up the mystery angle.

"Staying mysterious" was the easiest performance of all—just withhold information and avoid revealing obvious thoughts or intentions, and the other party would fill in the blanks themselves.

After all, it only required "staying" the course.

Sure enough...

Despite Lin Yu's shallow-sounding answer, the Inquisitor clearly didn't believe it but chose not to press further.

He simply smiled and pointed toward a tightly locked door at the end of the hallway ahead.

"That door leads down to the Black Prison... Aside from myself, only three keys exist in the Tribunal—one with the deputy Inquisitor and two held alternately by the two captains of the daily rotating squads."

"Due to current staffing shortages, only two guards remain inside... Let's head down and take a look."

With that, the Inquisitor opened the locked iron door, revealing a spiral stone staircase descending into darkness.

A wave of cold, damp air rushed out from behind the door. He twisted a knob on the wall, activating some magical mechanism, and crystal stones embedded in the masonry lit up, illuminating the stairs and dispelling some of the gloom.

But the wet, chilling atmosphere didn't diminish much.

Fish frowned. "This place really is creepy."

She followed the Inquisitor and stepped inside first.

The group descended the stairs, taking some time to reach the bottom—where another locked iron door awaited them.

Two Tribunal members stood guard in stern silence, snapping to attention when they saw the Inquisitor arrive with guests.

"Inquisitor, your orders?"

The Inquisitor smiled. "No specific orders. I'm just escorting Your Excellency Schreiber in for an investigation... He suspects there may be clues about the Barrier above Lilee City within."

At his words, both guards snapped to full attention again.

"Understood!"

They simultaneously pressed their palms against the identification arrays on either side of the door, and the massive iron portal slowly swung open.

The door's thickness alone was wider than a man—more like two colossal iron ingots cast in place than a proper door!

Using mana to operate it as an automatic door was probably because the door would be impossible for human strength alone to open.

"Please, Your Excellency Schreiber."

The Inquisitor made a gesture, then stepped through first.

Beyond the door... Lin Yu saw row after row of damp, freezing cells.

Narrow corridors lit by mana-powered crystal stones cast faint, cold light, revealing prisoners covered in wounds, barely clinging to life.

Most were emaciated, withered shells of humanity.

Not only were they locked in cells, but their hands and feet were pierced with chains inscribed with magical circuits, further suppressing their already-sealed mana.

It seemed inhumane—but in the Night Valley Realm, every criminal locked in the Black Prison was a heavyweight with at least a dozen lives on their hands. The Tribunal of Heresy dealt almost exclusively with heretics and demon-worshipping fanatics.

This brutal treatment was almost deserved.

Raymond recognized some of the filthy, barely-human figures.

"That one... was the Grand Bishop of the Cult of Original Sin."

"Ah, and that's the mad sorcerer who tried to 'summon a demon.' I forget his name."

"I thought all the 'Blood of Impurity' members had been executed... didn't expect three still alive here."

As Raymond narrated and they pressed forward, Lin Yu and Fish both noticed a problem.

"Inquisitor, why aren't there any dark races imprisoned in this Black Prison?"