Ken hesitated for a moment before crawling out through the opening his Centipede Totem had led him to after a long, tense trek into the dark depths of the unused drain. The opening had formed from a recent indentation on the roof of the drain, providing just enough gap for a grown human to worm their way through it.
The other side of the opening turned out to be a dozen feet wide chamber. A rechargeable orb chandelier hung from the ceiling, giving the room enough lighting for him to see.
His out-of-control centipede disappeared into a puff of smoke, leaving his face colored in soot. Coughing painfully, Ken pulled the rest of his body from the hole and stood up, expecting another unfavourable surprise.
The chamber appeared to be an interrogation cell, and the person he wanted to face the least in his bold venture was seated right across him on the chair of the interrogator. Between them stood a thick metal table adorned with an Impressive assortment of torture instruments.
Goblin Duke Roshoka gestured rather gently at him to take the other seat. Staring at his greenish-grey face, Ken assessed the situation in his mind for a while before shuffling over and plopping on his designated chair.
Now eye-to-eye with the Super Rank Goblin, Ken suddenly sensed a wave of deja vu, the feeling of familiarity stunning him for a brief second. Huh...
"Confess," The heavyset Goblin said in a rumbling voice. "Leniency is still an option. You know how to earn it, human."
An ambiguous smile formed on Ken's lips slowly. The Duke had turned out to be a more formidable opponent than he had assumed. The situation reminded him of the elaborate battle plans he used to resort to while dealing with the Ultimate Rank Maestros throughout the realm.
"I didn't expect the legendary Duke to use interrogation methods as crude as this," he said with an infuriating drawl in his tone. "Leniency is something desired by he who has surrendered. Have I? Don't think so."
Roshoka's grey lips pulled back into an equally confident smile. Leaning closer over the table, he put up a fist in the air and extended one finger. The thick, ashen claw at its head gleamed as sharp as the scalpel laid out on the table.
"And I expected more wisdom from someone who dares to break into my prison. Surrender is a choice, but I'm giving you none. This is a submission, and you appear quite clueless about it."
"Fill me in with the clues, then, wise Duke," Ken said obsequiously. For some reason, his reply triggered an involuntary look of caution to cross the Duke's face. After a brief stretch of silence, the Goblin began to speak.
"When you decided to infiltrate this prison, you must have prepared a few backup plans in case you are caught in the act. I know the defenses of Shamrock City better than any living being, and I can predict what routes a miscreant like you would choose.
"Firstly, it is easy to sneak inside the core city as long as you have some connections with those corrupt aristocrats living there. The city guards aren't infallible to greed either. And inside the core city, there are a handful of places where the lightest attack can cause irreparable injuries, nurseries, storage buildings, hospitals, resource hubs, to name a few. These are great for creating diversions and chaos.
"Secondly, the outer city is much less protected and not particularly valued by the elites here, myself included. I acknowledge that. So it's easy to predict that destruction would find them as soon as all officials get busy trying to remedy the situation inside the core city. Due to the higher density and volume of population here, the damage will be much more severe by the time help arrives.
"Thirdly, if you're the person who instigated the parasite and his clan against me, you must be aware of what the incident on Capera River implicates. So I don't doubt that you know the location of some of my hidden resource storages. You'll definitely attack these to weaken my army.
"Fourthly, the walls would be left with very little protection by the time your initial assaults succeed. If you can attract commoners to the entrances and instigate them to storm the core city in desperation, the chaos will be beyond anyone's control.
"And finally, if none of these blackmail materials earn you your freedom, you will perhaps fabricate a tight story with an element that would interest any Super Rank Creature such as myself. It should have something to do with the Ultimate Rank, correct?"
.
Roshoka's palm was now open wide, five fingers and five claws extended fully, still as a carving in the air, but no less threatening than a savage predator anticipating a meal.
Ken put up his hands in a motion of surrender, his expression unsightly. "More correct than I could have ever been in your shoes. In fact, I didn't even think of some of those weaknesses. It is incredible that you managed to predict almost all of my plans... Almost as if you've seen them play out before."
And for the briefest second, Roshoka's outstretched claws shook. Ken's countenance reverted back to a casual, positive look, not a trace of fear left.
The goblin Duke scanned him up and down as if seeing him properly for the first time.
"A low-level mage shouldn't have a perception so accurate. Was that a guess?" He said in a marveling tone.
"Guess the answer yourself. But I should warn you, wise Duke, don't reveal your trump card so easily! That Epic Grade Divination Spell should never be shown off like this, especially in front of your opponents."
Roshoka's face grew gloomier. After a pause, he said, "An enemy who won't leave my grasp alive is not an enemy I need to be so cautious with. Since you understand that I used divination spells to predict your plans, I should also warn you, wise mage, that in my divination, I saw your miserable death. It happened right here, under my claws to be more exact."
Unperturbed, Ken asked, "Did your divination tell you who won, though? Sure, I died, you lived, but who was the winner in this little contest of ours?"
This time Roshoka's silence lasted far longer.
"In the end, we both lost," he replied honestly. "But I came out knowing how you snuck your way to your pyrrhic last stand. And I have ensured that you won't get away with it now."
Ken leaned over the table with a conspiring expression. "And I know how to sneak my way past a Divination Spell too. I came here ensuring that you won't be able to predict the most deadly plan I've arranged. After all, no divination in this wide world can predict the outcome of an exercise of free will."