STM 179

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁣⁣⁣⁠⁣⁣⁠⁠⁣⁠⁠⁠⁠⁣⁣⁣⁣⁠⁠⁣⁠⁣⁣“Entry to the inner castle is prohibited without a special permit.”

I read the notice posted in front of the gates of Montaine’s inner castle and thought, “We are screwed.” At the same time, I briefly held onto the hope that I might be able to wriggle my way in using the pass I held in my hand. But that hope vanished as quickly as a soap bubble bursting.

“No, I definitely got in just fine with this pass yesterday. I wasn’t told I needed to get a new one.”

“It’s an order that came down this morning.”

The soldier at the gate replied coldly to the pleading protest. But the person trying to enter must have been in a real hurry, because this time they grabbed the soldier’s sleeve.

“But I have to deliver these inside the castle every day. If I’m even a day late, I won’t be able to do this work anymore…”

“If you want to get in that much, go get verified at the interrogation post and get a permit. If you don’t like it, stop complaining and step back!”

Even without the soldier pushing him, the pleading man turned pale and quickly stepped back.

It seemed the interrogation post was a place people feared a lot. We shouldn’t get dragged there and had our true identities exposed, so we should have backed off at this point, but I felt uneasy about doing so.

Just as I was hesitating, Tairok suddenly snatched the pass from my hand and walked forward. Huh? What are you doing? Startled, I chased after him and grabbed his arm.

“They said this won’t work.”

“But didn’t the informant specifically tell you to use this? Then just trust it and give it a try.”

No, we’re blocked. I can’t just blindly trust the informant… I couldn’t finish my protest. After all, I was the one who said the informant was trustworthy in the first place. But the informant could have made a mistake. Unlike me, who was hesitating because of that, Tairok headed straight for the entrance without hesitation. And, as expected, he was stopped.

“No. Go ba–”

The soldier noticed Tairok’s towering height and his voice trailed off. On guard, he gripped his weapon tightly.

“Have I ever seen you before?”

“No.”

It was a casual answer, but the soldier grew even more wary and took a step back.

“No? Are you sure?”

“Sure? Do I have any reason to lie about something like this?”

Plenty. But seeing him insist so shamelessly with that frame, the soldier frowned but flinched. He didn’t even care about the informal speech.

“What’s your name? And tell me why you’re entering the castle!”

“If I tell you, will you believe me?”

I felt a sense of déjà vu as I watched Tairok retort sarcastically. Ah, this is just like when we escaped from Borhumi Castle. Worried he might act on impulse, I quickly stepped in.

“I’m sorry. We’ll come back another time.”

I tried to pull Tairok away quickly, but perhaps being too submissive was a problem. The soldier immediately perked up and asked me.

“Who are you? Are you with him?”

Just then, Tairok chimed in.

“My husband.”

I flinched, and the soldier was stunned.

“If he’s your husband… then you’re his wife?”

“Yes. Our firstborn is already five years old.”

This time, I was the one who was stunned. Firstborn? We have a second one too? My wavering gaze met the soldier’s, which was just as shaken.

“How many kids do you have?”

Before I could answer “two,” someone else chimed in.

“Four.”

Without thinking, I looked up at Tairok, and he gave a sly smile.

“It’s all because you’ve been throwing yourself at me day and night.”

I wanted to grab him by the collar right then and there. But since the soldier was staring at me in shock, I had to deal with this situation first.

“I’m just very energetic.”

“……Yes.”

“So, could we maybe get through using the large family benefits?”

The soldier’s eyes narrowed again.

“Trying to wriggle out of this… No way. Hey, take these men and search them thoroughly!”

And so, we managed to get inside the castle as we’d hoped. The problem was that our destination was the interrogation room.

In the 29 years I’d lived on Earth, I’d gotten into trouble and caused my share of problems, but I’d never been to prison. And now, less than six months after arriving on Tubain, I was experiencing it.

But I didn’t feel wronged by this situation. I’d expected all sorts of difficulties from the moment I set foot here. It was just unexpected that my blood pressure would spike because of a companion.

“Nice.”

I pressed my face against the iron bars, scanning the situation outside, then slowly turned my head. What the hell is that supposed to mean? Despite my glare, Tairok leaned against the wall. He sat as comfortably as if he were in his own living room.

His gaze was fixed on my butt. If I’d known that guy was so relaxed just admiring my backside, I would’ve grabbed a shovel and started digging a hole in the ground. Not to escape, but to bury him.

“I suppose you’re enjoying this situation?”

“It’s just the two of us.”

For a split second, I found that nonsense romantic, then jolted back to reality. Shit, I need to get a grip.

“I guess you’d say something like that even if we were being fried together in the fires of hell.”

The corners of his mouth twitched. Is he holding back a laugh? As I narrowed my eyes, he asked seriously.

“Lu, there are no guards around. Shall we have some fun?”

I was so stunned I couldn’t even curse. If it weren’t for those twitching lips, I would’ve believed a sex-crazed spirit had possessed his body.

“We don’t have time for that. I have to meet the informant today. They are the type to step back the moment they feel danger, so we can’t waste time. We’ll just wait for an opportunity and break out.”

I was about to scan the area again when Tairok blurted out another carefree remark.

“Wait a minute. That’s the payment for the informant, right? They will find us on their own.”

Payment? I looked down at the bag I was clutching. When I was locked up in prison, I was naturally searched, and the gem inside the box was confiscated. Then the soldiers exchanged glances and took the gem with them before disappearing.

How fortunate that it wasn’t the most important thing. But the problem was whether the informant had seen me. Even if they had, it was unclear how they would find us, locked up in prison.

I held onto a sliver of hope, but even after waiting until dusk, not a single soul showed up. Just as I thought, “If this keeps up, I’ll really have to break out once night falls,” a soldier appeared.

“You lot, come out.”

“Are you letting us go?”

“Letting you go?”

The soldier snorted derisively.

“No, you’re off to hell now. The captain of Interrogation Unit 3 said he’ll be interrogating you personally.”

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While the atmosphere varied from family to family, Montaine Castle was the strictest and most tightly controlled. The fact that the interrogation unit occupied an entire building as big as the guard unit, and that a significant portion of it was a prison, was proof of that.

Are there really that many people to arrest? Or do they just beat anyone up first if they suspect they might have even a shred of information about Montaine? I disliked this place just as much as I did Borhumi, which had exploited its citizens.

And for a moment, I worried. Had they captured the informant too? I was the only one feeling tense. Tairok was completely relaxed. He treated the soldiers’ surveillance as if it were some kind of escort.

If things got bad, we could force our way out, but then there’d be no point in going undercover. Anyway, how exactly do they conduct interrogations?

Just as I was wondering if it would involve torture, we arrived at our destination. The door to the interrogation room, located in the far corner of the building, opened, and a soldier gave the order.

“Go in.”

I didn’t need to be told; I went in on my own… I followed Tairok inside, but my steps halted when I saw the man sitting at the desk.

An ordinary-looking man in his mid-to-late thirties. He was tall, but his lean build made him look more like a scholar than a knight. Though I’d never seen him before, I couldn’t take my eyes off him.

Clack.

The door closed behind us, and silence filled the room for a moment. The interrogator, seemingly uninterested in us, asked without looking up from the book he was reading.

“Where did you get this gemstone?”

Come to think of it, the gemstone the soldiers had taken from me was lying on his desk. Before I could say a word, Tairok looked around the room and answered.

“You tell me.”

Under normal circumstances, I would have been horrified and shouted, “What the hell are you talking about?!” but I was still too busy watching the interrogator to stop him. Just then, the interrogator slowly raised his head and looked at Tairok.

“You’ve used magic to change your appearance?”

Tairok’s lips curled into a smirk.

“You’re a skilled mage.”

A mage? Ah. So he can make people talk even without being a knight. More surprising than that, though, was hearing Tairok actually praise him as skilled.

Why would someone that skilled be conducting interrogations here? And judging by the fact that he was called a unit leader, his rank isn’t very high either. Just then, the interrogator turned to look at me.

“Answer me. Where did the gem come from?”

“……”

As I remained silent, confusion appeared in his eyes. I sensed Tairok’s gaze as well, perhaps he felt the same way, but it was difficult to explain my current situation to either of them. I was thoroughly confused right now.

Why was a massive, non-human entity clinging to the interrogator’s back?