My Pov
The three of us have arrived at the entrance to the location where I will be going.
Two female guards are already seen guarding a staircase leading to the underground with only an iron bar as a barrier. The stairs appear very deep because I can only see darkness from the outside.
When I, Emilia, and Sascha came closer, the two guards immediately saluted, and without any further ado, one of the guards reached into her pocket, took out the key and opened the door with the iron grilles.
When the metal door opened with a loud 'clank' sound, I was the first person to walk through it, followed by Sascha, and then Emilia came in last.
Without looking back, I could tell they were both a little tense when they entered this place, but after seeing me descend through these dark stairs, especially Sascha, who looked wary but immediately followed me without thinking.
Emilia, who was in the very back, wanted to follow my lead but was still hesitating a little bit. When she realized that she had no other option, she continued to descend the stairs but did not relax her guard in any way.
The stairs that lead to the underground look eerie and chilly in fact, they look so cold that it makes me feel more comfortable than outside.
But I guess I'm the only one who enjoys the time the three of us spend together because Emilia and Sascha try to be as close to me as possible, and I can feel Sascha's hand that occasionally tries to grab my hand, but I avoid it and slap her hand every time Sascha approaches.
"ouch"
"aww"
"Sascha, can you shut up!"
An aggravated voice could be heard coming from Emilia, standing in the back and trying to warn Sascha.
"mmmh"
The longer it went on, the more strange Sascha's voice sounded, but the only response I could muster was a grin whenever I heard it.
Then, when Sascha's hand tried to approach me once more in the darkness, I pinched it with all my might until I heard a loud scream.
"ahhhhhhhh"
"hiiiiiii" When Emilia heard Sascha, who was in front of her, scream, it caused her to also scream, while I, who was in the front, let out a small laugh.
"Hey, Hadrian, how much further are we going to have to go down these stairs?"
Emilia, who appeared to be about to cry, asked in a trembling voice.
"We've arrived," I said.
After that, the scene in front of me changed, as if I had passed through a thin bubble, to a long white hallway with a statue of a soldier in black armour lined up neatly without leaving the slightest space between each statue.
The staircase that the three of us walked on earlier appeared to be in the dark, but the passageway we are in now appears to be very bright, resulting in a peculiar shift in the atmosphere that occurs whenever new people visit this place.
"what exactly is this place?" Sascha, standing behind me, shouted in surprise, and Emilia, standing in the back, also shouted, but this time she pointed to the stairs that we descended.
"What a powerful magical shield." But then Emilia became irritated and looked at me. "How could I have missed this place right beneath the palace all this time?"
At the bottom of the stairs that we had already traversed, there was a very thin and transparent wall that served as a dividing barrier. However, for some strange reason, it could be easily crossed, creating the illusion that it served to separate unholiness and holiness with this passage.
"If you weren't so rigid and spent your time practicing all the time, I might have taken you here when we were kids."
I said it with a sarcastic smile, but then I continued walking towards the end of the hallway, which didn't take very long, and I opened the only door that was there immediately.
When I opened the door, the room appeared to be in the same condition as a typical basement. It was pretty large, with grey stone walls and floors, and I could see the cells.
Emilia and Sascha, standing behind me at the time, had expressions of surprise on their faces, and their gazes appeared to be trying to take in every aspect of this room.
Beginning with the cells already there and adding a magic lamp to each one for illumination, the two of them could observe the inmates inside the cell block.
However, the average prisoner they saw had terrified expressions on their face, and their hands and feet were chained to the wall. These prisoners varied greatly, but most of the existing cells were occupied by men.
Their eyebrows rose slightly when they saw the cell room, which was packed with children under the age of 15.
These children appeared bewildered and frightened, their bodies seemed weak, and when Emilia and Sascha looked at them, the children's eyes appeared to be anticipating something.
"Come here quickly." Emila and Sascha walked over to me, who was standing in front of another cell. They were both startled awake by my words and ignored the poor children they had seen earlier.
"It appears that this is the cell." I said, closing my eyes for a moment, and soon opened my eyes when I heard the sound of a door opening from the other side of the room.
The sound of the door opening was followed by the appearance of three women dressed in white robes. Each of their faces was concealed by a mask with an engraving depicting an emotion.
"Young master, and also princess, please accept my welcome." The one in the middle of the three individuals was the one who spoke, and while she was bowing, she spoke in a soft voice and a very soothing tone.
"Did you take good care of him all this time, Smiley?" I told the woman in the middle.
The fact that she wore a mask that depicted a smiling expression led to her Smiley's nickname. Yes, it was as simple as that.
still in a soft voice, Smiley said. "Certainly, young master." but then, with a sigh, Smiley walked over to open the cell door, she added. "At the beginning I was in trouble because he tried everything to kill himself several times, but then he became obedient now... hehehehe..."
After hearing the "clank...clank" sound of the iron bar door opening, a man who had been sleeping inside woke up with a terrified expression on his face.
His hands and feet were bound with iron chains, but these were no ordinary iron chains. Along the sides of each link was engraved with a magical spell.
Because of the magic spell engraved on the iron chain, the person bound to it lost the ability to absorb and release energy into the body, rendering them incapable of using magic.
And if that person wanted to break that chain with a forceful hand, it would be a waste of time because, at the very least, that person should have a high level and a status that focuses on power.
Me, Emilia, and Sascha followed Smiley into the cell. Meanwhile, the two girls who had come with Smiley earlier stood guard outside the cell.
Smiley approached the middle-aged man and said, "Young master came to see you." The man's face became even more terrified as he watched Smiley approach.
However, after that, I said, "I don't want to waste time, tell me what you know, and depending on your response, you can be free."
This time, my face became expressionless and cold, and my red eyes looked intently into the eyes of the middle-aged man.
The middle-aged man responded in a shaky voice while displaying a confused expression, "I don't know why you brought me to this place."
"And additionally, this woman... she continually torments me each and every day... yes, each and every day... she consistently comes and torments me..." It appeared as though the middle-aged man had completely lost his mind before he burst out laughing hysterically.
"Hahahahaha...hehehha... I wasn't anticipating it to end in such a way... hahahahahahaha... excuse me, please... let me go... I'm just a regular guy out here exploring the world, so please don't judge me too harshly."
Emilia and Sascha, standing behind me, responded with raised eyebrows and surprised expressions when they heard the response of the middle-aged man. It was as if the man had turned into a broken doll.
I wasn't overly surprised by this guy's response, despite his body appearing to be fine now and free of any injuries. However, I am certain that Smiley healed him after torturing him on multiple occasions.
"Cut off his legs and arms," I sighed to the Smiley, "I don't have time to hear his blabbering." Hearing my order, a smiley approached the middle-aged man slowly while saying something. "Too bad your acting didn't work. I forgot to tell you that young master is crueler than me, so enjoy."