"General!"

The soldiers on guard inside the black tower snapped to attention and saluted as Baiyi entered with Lian Ye.

"I said call me Admiral. Forget it. What about those two?"

"Report, General! Both are fully awake. The Warden interrogated them already."

"Tch. I hadn’t even started, and he jumped the gun. Did he get anything?"

At the mention of the Warden, Baiyi’s eyebrows lifted slightly. A trace of displeasure flashed in his eyes.

The soldier showed no reaction, continuing his report.

Most staff here knew Baiyi and the Warden didn’t get along.

"The imprisoned Sorcerer faced the Warden’s interrogation after waking. He refused at first, struggling hard. But under torture, he spilled everything he knew."

"Anything else?"

Baiyi listened while pulling a deep black cloth from behind. He blindfolded Lian Ye’s eyes.

"Dad… Dad?"

"Lian Ye, obey. Whatever you hear next, don’t remove the blindfold. Ignore it. Cover your ears too."

Hearing Baiyi’s serious tone—using his name, not ‘idiot’—Lian Ye sensed the gravity.

He quickly covered his ears, shut his mouth, and pressed tightly against Baiyi.

He saw and heard nothing, sticking close.

"Continue."

"Yes. The Sorcerer confessed fully. We checked his story: he was just an ordinary Sorcerer from a village outside the capital. A plague killed half the villagers. Forced by poverty, he came to perform for survival money."

"An ordinary Sorcerer? For survival? Bullshit!"

Baiyi shook his head in disdain.

Clearly, he wasn’t satisfied.

He’d seen that Sorcerer’s magic and puppets firsthand.

They were too eerie and lifelike.

"Dark Mages lie. Temporarily altering memories is basic for them. If simple interrogation worked, it’d disgrace the vile Dark Magic system."

Hearing ‘Dark Magic,’ Baiyi recalled the black puppets on Beast Rat Street, controlled by the Ghost Lady.

Stripped of self-control, they were like walking corpses—broken toys played with at will.

They wouldn’t even know when death came.

"But General, the Warden executed that Sorcerer."

"Huh!? What the hell did you say?"

Executed?

That bastard touched my prisoner without permission—and killed him on a whim!

Scum!

I’ll cut off his head!

"Who gave him the nerve to act for me!"

A growl rumbled from Baiyi’s throat. Overwhelming pressure filled the small space.

The nearby guard trembled, frozen in fear.

"Where is he…"

"R-report, General! He left yesterday. Special circumstances on the empire’s western border called him away."

Huh?

The western border?

Isn’t that the far west of Dreamland Continent?

I recall it’s closest to Wilted Leaves Continent, the Demon Kin land.

Though separated by a vast ocean—the Abyss.

But Wilted Leaves Continent folks could still cross.

Reassigning the Warden west means big trouble.

Demon Kin issues…

Tch, forget it.

Not my problem. I’m done with the front lines. I’ll ignore it.

"Lucky he ran. Or I’d skin him alive!"

Muttering angrily, he turned and picked up Lian Ye.

"I’ll check the other prisoner. That old pervert Warden didn’t touch her, right?"

Hearing Baiyi’s angry whisper, the guard shuddered, almost dropping his weapon.

"N-no! General, the girl just woke and asked questions. We ignored her—no reaction. We left her for your interrogation."

"Tch, smart not to let that pervert mess with her… Or you’d be meeting Death underground now."