Chapter 80

Chapter 80

Upon hearing the male servant named Nasuo speak up to this point, Kane and Ning Chan both tensed. Who knew that such a viper had been slithering right under their noses, yet no one had noticed anything amiss?

Earlier, when the effects of the drug wore off, Charlie stubbornly refused to tell the truth. Ning Chan had him tied up and thrown into a pitch-black room to "think things over."

After glancing at the findings brought by his subordinates, Ning Chan turned to interrogate Nasuo. Since this man often followed Charlie around, he must know something, right?

"Your master has already confessed, saying all those things were done by you. Though he knew about them, you threatened him with his family's lives, so he didn’t dare speak out. Do you admit to this? If so, sign here and press your fingerprint, then await the snake pit punishment. You know what that is, don’t you? You’ll be thrown into a pit of snakes, hundreds of them gnawing at you. Don’t worry, none of them are venomous—you won’t die right away. As for your family, they’ll also be punished for withholding information."

Ning Chan shook the rattle drum in his hand, its *rat-a-tat* sound cutting through the dazed state Nasuo was in.

Nasuo stared at the swaying drum, his heart feeling as though it were being squeezed. "W-what things? I’ve been working honestly—I haven’t done anything!"

"Do you really think so? He has evidence proving it wasn’t him and has fingered you. If you think you’re innocent, can you provide anything to prove it?" Ning Chan took one look at Nasuo’s pale face and darting eyes and knew he was lying.

The *rat-a-tat* of the drum was like the Reaper’s scythe, making Nasuo feel as though he were swallowing knives instead of saliva.

"I had no grudge against them—why would I hurt them? I only followed the third young master’s orders to find people. I never laid a hand on anyone!" Nasuo, now panicked and convinced his master had pinned the blame on him, couldn’t spare a thought to judge whether Ning Chan’s words were true or false.

He hadn’t done those things—he couldn’t be blamed! He was just a servant, just following orders!

And even if he was somehow involved in those deaths, his family had nothing to do with it—they knew nothing. Dear gods, the second child’s rattle drum was in this man’s hands—he had no idea what had happened to them now.

Hearing Nasuo’s tearful plea, Ning Chan shook the drum once more before slowly setting it down under the man’s frenzied stare.

"Then tell us the whole story in detail. As for who bears the main responsibility, we’ll decide after hearing it. And don’t even think about lying—once we compare testimonies, if we find out someone lied, the punishment will be worse."

Nasuo, now convinced that missing this chance would doom him completely, dared not lie. With tears streaming down his face, trembling, he carefully recounted all the evil deeds his master had committed.

The king and the pope were both here. Offending his master was still better than offending *them*.

Besides, everyone who had heard the gossip sheets knew how fiercely the king hated evil. Hadn’t the mistreatment of servants by their masters dropped sharply these past two years?

Though he didn’t want to admit it, Nasuo knew he had been wrong in those matters. But what could he do? He could only wish the king had come sooner—he hadn’t been born in a better time.

Nasuo didn’t even dare hope for his own life to be spared. He only wished that after hearing his explanation, these two would be willing to let his wife and children go.

As Nasuo spilled everything he had helped Charlie do, he missed the change in Ning Chan and the others’ expressions.

"Go investigate Mi Rui’s situation—see if it matches what he said. And bring Linda’s uncle here as well," Kane called Fa Bo, who had rushed over upon hearing the news, and gave him a few orders before returning to the room to continue listening to Nasuo’s confession.

Earlier, Nasuo had mentioned that Linda had been captured on his orders, and Mi Rui had disappeared around the same time. They had even spread rumors that Mi Rui couldn’t afford the bride price Linda’s uncle demanded, so he had eloped with her.

"Were they captured or killed?" Ning Chan thought of the young couple, who had finally been on the verge of a happy life, only to meet such a cruel fate. It was truly a shame.

"They were captured—they might still be alive. Just a few days ago, I heard my master say he saw Linda and that she bit him." Nasuo didn’t dare omit any details, frantically searching his memory for anything that might lessen his punishment.

"Do you know where they met?" Finally hearing a glimmer of hope, Ning Chan’s eyes lit up, itching to save them right away.

Faced with Ning Chan’s urgency, Nasuo cowered and shook his head. Recently, whenever Charlie went out, he hadn’t taken anyone with him.

After a few more questions, Ning Chan confirmed that he had squeezed all he could from him and had no choice but to give up. He ordered the man imprisoned until the matter was resolved, after which the magistrate would determine his sentence based on the circumstances.

"So, are you willing to talk to us now? About when you were fourteen, about your fiancée Linda, or about *Xiyuan Palace*?" With Fa Bo’s intel in hand, Ning Chan returned to the interrogation room where Charlie was being held. The man had just been hauled out of the dark cell, his legs weak and his will shattered. Ning Chan gave him a deceptively mild smile.

The sight of that smile froze Charlie’s blood.

He was wrong—kindness and gentleness had nothing to do with this man. This was a devil, one who knew even better than he did how to torment and terrify people.

No wonder that domineering, extraordinary king spoke softly in front of this man, adopting the posture of a knightly protector. He must have been thoroughly subdued by this devil!

If Maifeipu and Harry could rise from the grave to hear Charlie’s thoughts, they would surely give a thumbs-up in agreement.

"You already know everything, so why bother asking me?" Charlie hung his head listlessly, utterly baffled as to how he had ended up in such a miserable situation.

If only he hadn’t taken that miracle drug today, if only he hadn’t lost his mind and blurted out those words, if only he hadn’t run into these two—none of this would have happened.

He’d hidden so well—no one should’ve noticed him.

"That attitude of yours… tsk, looks like you didn’t get enough time in the dark room. Since you think there’s no need for questions, let’s just make a small cut on you, then apply some medicine to prevent your blood from clotting and your wound from healing.

Let you feel your blood drip away bit by bit, how your life slowly slips away. Don’t worry, it’ll be slow—you’ll get to live a good while longer."

When it came to torment, the post-apocalyptic era had far more tricks than this age. Though Ning Chan wasn’t particularly fond of such things himself, having traveled widely, he had naturally seen much.

Some things he’d seen still gave him nightmares.

There was a saying after the apocalypse: "More terrifying than zombies are humans."

After seeing those scenes, Ning Chan found the saying quite accurate.

Now, even with just basic methods, it was enough to "enlighten" these fools.

At Ning Chan’s words, Charlie’s head jerked up, his eyes fixed on the man before him, wishing he could faint on the spot.

What a vicious idea—this was meant to make him beg for death but deny him it!

Charlie considered biting off his tongue to end it. Given what he’d done, he was dead anyway—might as well make it quick.

Catching Charlie’s suicidal urge, Ning Chan cracked the whip across his face. Vines burst forth, sealing his mouth shut.

The vine’s tiny thorns pierced his lips and tongue, drawing blood.

"Don’t think suicide’s an escape with me here. As long as I’m here, even if you bite off your tongue, I can reattach it." Seeing the terror in his eyes, Ning Chan stalked toward Charlie, gripping the whip, then lowered his head to meet his gaze, delivering a calm "reminder."

Staring into those dark green eyes, Charlie’s limbs went numb with cold.

The vines in his mouth broke off from the whip, falling onto his knees. He watched as the thorny vine slowly bloomed a small white flower, then turned crimson from the blood seeping from his lips.

Ah, he’d forgotten—this man was the Pope, a divine envoy wielding holy power. The life and death of an ordinary man like him were entirely beyond his own control.

"Whatever you wish to know, as long as I know it, I’ll speak honestly." Charlie hung his head, staring at the little "red" flower on his knee, his will broken.

Once they’d wrung all they needed from him, Ning Chan let out a long sigh and ordered Charlie to be locked up, awaiting trial alongside Naso.

Looked like the execution grounds would stink for days.

"Fa Bo, round up the patrol teams. You’ll lead them later—don’t tell them where they’re going. Only give the order once we arrive. No one leaves the group, not even to shit—they’ll do it in their pants."

Failure after failure had worn Kane’s patience to nothing. He had promised Ning Chan to bring peace and stability to the people, yet some insisted on opposing him—were they courting death?

Now that they had a lead, he’d see for himself what was really going on.

Kane stormed off with Ning Chan, pretending to head back to the palace—but at the corner, they veered off, mounting the horses Fa Bo had brought and galloping toward the location Charlie had revealed.

As they neared the site, Kane and Ning Chan dismounted, hid the horses in the woods, and donned the ghillie suits Ning Chan had mentioned. Concealing their figures, they crept closer to the bustling area, then climbed a tall tree, each taking out a telescope to observe carefully.

Damn—watchtowers, a maze-like garden, a sacrificial temple, and beast cages. They had really gone all out with the setup.

Ning Chan and Kane couldn’t see inside the sacrificial temple, but in the beast cage, a gaunt tiger was chasing two people. The blood on the tiger’s muzzle was a mystery—the two victims looked ragged but unharmed.

Outside the cage, a crowd waved something in their hands, laughing and jeering loudly.