Magic Gems Gourmet

Chapter 263

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ED: LonelyMatter

Chapter 263 – Regret, Anguish, Responsibility, and a Little Sense of Accomplishment

Meanwhile, as the commotion at the port ended with a decisive victory for Ain’s side, Lili’s subordinates arrived at the scene.

They captured the three men in robes and used magic tools to restrain them.

They carefully checked their mouths to ensure that they could not harm themselves.

This was, of course, a precaution to prevent suicide or the use of the flames.

After that, Ain and Lili headed to a certain place, the Strohm branch of the knights’ headquarters.

The knights were surprised to see the crown prince and his entourage arrive so early in the morning. However, upon seeing the situation with Ain and the others, they followed orders without question.

The order was to use the stone jail in the basement of the headquarters.

The dungeon extended three floors underground, and Ain and the others went to the lowest level.

“Hey, Ain-sama? Why are we splitting up into groups of one and two?”

Dill asked.

When they arrived at the headquarters, Ain had given special instructions.

One of the men in robes was to be confined to the lowest level, and the other two to the level above.

This seemed very strange to Dill.

“…I just wanted to be a little mean.”

“Mean?”

“Yeah. Well… I’m going to do something that I don’t want others to see. Now, Dill.”

Ain smiled wryly and cleared his throat.

“Could you keep watch upstairs and make sure no one enters the second and third basement floors? We must avoid any information leaks.”

“Ha!”

Dill followed the instructions and climbed the stone stairs leaving Ain and Lili behind.

Lili sighed.

“It’s a common interrogation tactic. I suppose it’s also to check their skills…”

“Oh, you figured it out.”

“…Well, I’ve been working as a secret agent since they picked me up as a child.”

With that, she distanced herself from Ain and leaned against the wall.

“I’ll move immediately if anything happens. Is that okay?”

“Yeah. That would be a big help.”

As expected, Ain’s plan was to interrogate the man.

He would use the same power his sworn enemy had used.

“…Will you wake up soon?”

He asked the robed man inside the cell.

His hands and feet were bound with magical tools, and he sat on a wooden chair in the middle of the cell.

He remained looking down, still unconscious.

“Should I wake him up?”

Lili asked, taking out a short sword.

“Hahaha… It looks like he’s up to something, so I’ll do it myself.”

“…I understand.”

But how was Ain going to wake him up?

As Lili looked at him in confusion, Ain slowly sat down on the stone floor.

It was too late to wonder what the crown prince was going to do, yet she couldn’t take her eyes off him.

“Get up.”

In that instant, a strange pressure, like a strong wind or an earthquake, spread throughout the third basement floor of the dungeon.

Lili, who was behind Ain, sensed danger and opened her eyes wide, her breathing coming in heavy gasps.

“The World Tree of… Gluttony…”

The words slipped out, but Ain didn’t hear them.

He must not forget that he was once a demon lord who let his power run wild.

He now possessed overwhelming power, enough to use it freely.

What Ain showed was something like a fighting spirit.

It was not a trait that could be displayed by humans or other races, but rather, the true power that only Arche and the others could stop by joining forces.

“What… was that…?”

“I told you to wake up. I’m glad you woke up early.”

“Y-you…”

The man in the robe woke up.

“I have a lot of questions. But right now, I’m angry. I’m angry about what happened in Roundheart and about the red fox. I’m angry enough to compare it to those things.”

“What are… you talking about?”

“This is why I’m doing this. You attacked me even though Krone was there. Honestly, I’m not just boiling with rage. Right now, I’m doing my best to suppress the power within me.”

Ain smiled innocently, but his anger was clearly visible in the bulging veins on his temples and the way he clenched his fists.

His veins bulged, and his hands clenched tightly.

This was not tension, but a sign that he was consumed by intense anger.

“I don’t enjoy torturing people or feeling dark emotions. That’s why I decided to take action this time.”

“…”

“Can you tell me what you wanted to do?”

The pressure that hit the man was even stronger than when Ain said, “Get up.”

His tone was calm, but the World Tree of Gluttony dwelled in his eyes.

If he lost control, that power would envelop everything.

However, the man did not open his mouth.

He may have tried to speak, but he just stared at Ain, his lips trembling slightly.

“At first, when I heard about the criminal organization and the dragon cult, I didn’t intend to take such action.”

A sense of responsibility had begun to sprout within him.

As the crown prince and a lord, he resolved to exercise more self-restraint than before.

“I’ll say it again. You tried to hurt Krone. That means you could hurt the people I care about, too. That’s why I’ve done what I’ve done.”

“Ah… ah…”

“I’ll ask again—can you tell me your purpose?”

With sweat beading on her forehead, Lili gazed at Ain’s back and muttered to herself.

Come to think of it, Ain seemed surprisingly calm, considering he was attacked while Krone was there.

But that didn’t mean he had forgiven them. He had simply suppressed his anger until today.

That’s how she understood it.

That’s the kind of man Ain was.

He got angry not about what was done to him, but about what was done to his friends and the people he cared about.

“There’s no way… I would tell you… Would I…?”

Hearing the man’s reply, Lili was impressed.

He resisted so well under pressure.

Ain seemed to share the same thought, looking at him with a puzzled expression.

(Even if I tortured him, he’d never talk.)

Lili thought the same thing. He was incredibly tight-lipped.

Despite being a failed religious person, his strength of will was astonishing.

“I see. Well, there’s nothing I can do about it, then.”

Then, Ain stood up and sighed.

The man felt relieved, as if he had won. However, Ain approached the prison cell while watching him out of the corner of her eye.

“In the old days of Ishtalika, there was a heroic king. He unified the continent and stopped the demon lord Arche’s rampage.”

Everyone in this country knew the story.

“Who was the greatest? Who enjoyed it the most? It should have been her—the beast that toyed with the demon lord Arche’s heart.”

“…Her…?”

“You don’t know, and you don’t need to know. I don’t plan on telling you, so don’t worry about it.”

The man frowned and thought, “You said that yourself.”

But so what? He looked at her with a puzzled expression.

“If you can resist, I’ll think of another way. So…”

He took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and looked down.

“Let’s begin.” It was ironic, but he would use it to get information.

When Ain raised his face again, the man was taken aback once more.

“Those… your eyes…”

They were a color he had never seen before.

They were so dazzling and sweet that pure gold would pale in comparison.

That was the last thought he had.

The next moment, Ain’s words burned through the man’s brain like a drug.

“I want to hear it one more time. Can you tell me your purpose?”

Lili, standing behind Ain, closed her eyes in frustration.

She felt powerless over the situation she had created and clenched her teeth tightly.

◇ ◇ ◇ ◇

“Sorry to keep you waiting, Dill.”

A few minutes later, Ain went upstairs with Lili.

He greeted Dill, who was waiting upstairs, and gave him instructions in a tired voice.

“No, not at all. But… Ain-sama, you look tired…”

“…I’m a little tired. Could you take over the rest of the questioning with Lili?”

“Eh, sure, no problem. Where are you going, Ain-sama?”

“I’m going to rest upstairs. I’m sorry for leaving it all to you.”

It was rare for Ain to look tired.

He was often seen looking physically tired from training with Marco, but right now, he seemed mentally exhausted.

Concerned, Dill exchanged a meaningful glance with Lili and nodded at her signal.

“Understood. We’ll take care of the interrogation. Please get some rest.”

“Yes, I’ll leave it to you. … Oh, Lili-san? I released my power, so I think the man from earlier will wake up soon.”

“Oh, I see. Understood. Just leave it to me.”

Ain replied, thanked her, and left the staircase, exiting the prison cell.

He walked down the hallway and out of the guard room, throwing himself into the morning sun and cold air.

Then, he was left alone, feeling uneasy, and his head was spinning.

“Ugh… Was this the right thing to do?”

He had done the same thing as Anon.

Using her power to forcefully extract information weighed heavily on his heart.

But he also felt that it was the right thing to do.

Above all else, Ain’s goal was to protect those who were important to him.

To do so, it was crucial to extract information by any means necessary.

“My mental state… Well, I don’t feel contaminated. My body feels fine, too.”

There were no abnormalities whatsoever. In the first place, it was unthinkable that this situation would cause Ain to go berserk.

“Ugh, I feel dizzy. But—”

If he was just feeling sick, he could still protect the people and those he cared about.

There was no greater happiness than that.

He must not lose sight of his priorities.

He must not forget what’s important now or the people he must protect.

“I didn’t get much information, but I guess we’ve taken a step forward…”

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