Viers walked like a sinner about to face his retribution. The karma of his past misdeeds was coming back to demand justice. The underground prison was cold and dark. Grandia Caste was a very old castle; The shadows seemed to tell the misery that happened here in the time long past and near.

When he arrived at the torture chamber, not unlike the one where he was branded by the slave seal, the aide of Rostov who accompanied Viers spoke.

"So, Slave Six. Ready to say goodbye to your tiny bird? If you answer my questions, I'll tell the bonesaw to be gentle. If not... hehehe."

The sound of the masked bonesaw repairing his equipment was the only sound in the room. Sobs and painful wails from other parts of the dungeon could be heard sporadically.

"Start with your Artes," the officer, whom Rostov called Markel, extended a white orb at Viers. "Inscribe all of your Artes into this, starting with the sword slash from this morning."

Viers just looked into his eyes.

There were six people in the room. The masked torturer or bonesaw, the same guy that carved the slave seal on his back yesterday, Markel, and four guards that stood by the only door.

"Come now. Your skills do not have to die with you. Your legacy can live on as part of the intellectual wealth of the Harkelan Empire. Who else are you going to pass them to? You won't be able to have children pretty soon," Markel said with a face full of fake sympathy. "While we're at it, tell me some info about the Latias army. Their composition, notable Pathseekers, and so forth. Hurry up. I've got better things to do."

Viers' silent gaze was all the answer he'd got.

"...I don't like your eyes." Markel took a knife from the table. "I'll remove them and feed them to the dogs."

Viers sighed. "All right. I've run out of patience. Underoos!"

With the ferociousness of a fluffy angry kitten, Futon emerged from Viers' mouth and shared his lightning every person in the room except for his master.

Before Viers got captured, Futon snuck into Viers' body as practiced. Sure enough, the badge where Futon usually resided was taken but by that point, Futon was no longer there.

Viers had a superb anti-detection ability, Mystic Star Shroud Arte from Aletro. It basically made everyone under Level 9 see only what Viers wanted them to see. Therefore, not even Rostov was able to see Futon inside his stomach. Viers thought the gimmick was pretty good, enabling him to bring deadly contrabands like Futon or his brother Faiya for this and that.

Even captured and enslaved, Viers had his ways. He had already matured as an MC. He had too much time to grow, too many hidden aces up his sleeve after all the journeys he'd gone through. As an avid power fantasy reader, Viers knew how dangerous such a being was to the universal balance.

The elemental patiently bid his time as a hidden trump card. When his master, his parent, was turned into a slave, Futon's anger almost exploded but Viers told him to wait. Finally, Futon's master gave the go-ahead and Futon unleashed the lightning he had refined inside his body since Viers' capture at the Harkelans.

The red lightning outlined in black fried the Harkelans from inside and out. Futon's lightning was usually yellow colored. The more powerful version was the blue lightning, then purple lightning. This red and black was something even above that.

The torture chamber went alight with electricity. All targets suffered Futon's imperial wrath. In the middle of the electric current, their bones were showing. The only one still alive after three seconds was Markel, he was a Level 3 peak Pathseeker but that only made Futon focus his lightning on him. As a Rank 3 elemental that was close to becoming Rank 4 under Viers' tutelage, Futon was in no way weaker than Markel.

In fact, Futon surpassed Markel in every way.

Viers watched the super-charged water vapor of death utterly decimating Markel. It reminded him of the time when he caught a big insect with an electric fly swatter on Earth. He just kept pressing the button, prolonging the tzet-tzet sounds that he liked. Soon, smoke came out of the dead insect.

The first time happened when Viers was a child, and he still did it after he became an adult. Therefore, Viers thought he must have had a killer instinct even back then. Small wonder he grew up fine.

Futon was not a fly swatter. He was a fearsome nature's wrath, no matter how cute he looked, but Markel might as well be an insect in front of him.

"Okay, okay. That's enough. Thank you, my boy. You saved me," Viers said in a room with the smell of ozone and burnt flesh.

Futon gave him a hug with his armless body and Viers reciprocated with genuine affection. Since Futon was going all out, even the elemental was momentarily drained.

"Fuu?"

"I'm okay. You did well. It's time we get out of here."

Viers was still in danger. He might be able to endure torture and some things but he had a line in the sand. Rostov and Markel had crossed that line.

Hmph. Not so tough now, aren't you?

Viers used the hammer on the torture tool assortment to smash Markel's head. It didn't matter that Markel was a dead corpse; there was no such thing as overkill. Then he plucked his soul and the other five. Their souls went straight to Tartarus, the darkest part of Viers' soul prison. Visla's soul was already waiting there.

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The torturer who carved the slave seal on his back, Visla, and then Markel, these three would experience special treatment from Viers. No one messed with the villain and got a peaceful death. Not if he had anything to say about it.

There was a reserved cage with Rostov's name on it.

"Fuu Fuu?" Futon asked what Underoos meant.

"No idea. I heard someone say it in the past for a spider reveal. It was pretty good. Well, now we've gotta get out of here. I'm counting on you, buddy."

"Fuu!" Futon nodded.

Viers got three priorities: escape the castle with his life intact, recover his things, and removal of his slave seal, in that order.

He was working on the first while searching for the second.

The equipment of the ones in the torture chamber was too broken for Viers to use because of Futon, so he got no loot. He took Markel's inventory ring just to be safe. Badly charred but perhaps still openable later.

Due to how isolated the place was, Viers gambled that Futon's power usage went undetected from the outside.

He stealthy exited the door, looking for other guards. He found none. With measured steps he wandered trying to find the exit. Because of the slave seal, his ability to use Victa was very limited so he was quite weak. He was also unable to harm the Harkelan soldiers. If the guards found him, he was doomed.

Futon was a blessing in these circumstances. Unlike him, Futon wasn't affected by the slave seal. Thank god Futon went into his stomach.

The place was a maze, so finding an exit was quite difficult. He traced the way they brought him but strangely enough, it became a dead end. Very weird.

As he made way towards the aboveground, he stumbled upon other cells. There were other occupants inside. Were they captured Latias knights like him? At any rate, most were already dead or mad from torture.

Viers wasn't a hero, so he let them be. He was still in quite a predicament himself. He did not want to have baggage.

He wanted to soul search Markel or the others for answers but he had so little usable Victa that he was unable to, not after capturing their souls. But Viers had no regrets.

Did they have some sort of key that allowed them to get out of this place that Futon turned to ashes? How unfortunate. I'd prefer to be out of the dungeon before the guards find out Markel is dead and start searching. But if I cannot find the exit, there's not much I can do...

Viers continued to wander. He found more cells and more prisoners but no guards. Was there a shortage of manpower because of the war outside? Highly likely, which was good.

"Hey, you! You're out? Please, let me out of here!"

"Shhh! I'm trying," Viers replied. "Know where the exit is?"

"No, sorry," the man said. "Just let me out of this cell then I'll help you."

"I've got no key and no Victa. Can't open these cells. Sorry. I'll try to help once I'm free."

"No, no! Let me out now. Please, I can't stand being in here a second longer!" The prisoner pleaded.

"...Sorry."

"Wait! If you don't free me, I'll scream and tell the guards that-"

A nail of lightning pierced his head.

"Idiot."

Viers scoffed and navigated the darkened corridors once again. It was bigger than he thought. Since he had no direction and Futon had no idea either, he got lost.

Damn it. Why does it look like I'm going deeper into the dungeon?

The cells in this area were a bit different, few in number but more powerful. Probably for important people.

"You don't look like an imperial."

"It's because I'm not," Viers replied to the sudden voice that called him from inside the cell. "Know how to get out of here?"

"Yes. Right after exiting the border of this place, walk forty steps to the right and then turn left at the second intersection. Keep walking until you find a torch. If it's red, turn right. If not, turn left. Continue until you find a skeleton then wait until a corridor opens. Enter the bloodied corridor and during this part, you mustn't look behind. Next is..."

Viers kept listening to the long instructions, still unsure if the man that looked like a homeless man was telling the truth or making shit up.

"When I entered, it wasn't this complicated."

"Exiting has different rules, unless you possess the key."

"And how do you know all this?" Viers asked after the man finished.

"As the lord of this castle for half a century, I naturally know."

"...What's your name?"

"Delmar Acre."

The name matched. This was the hero of the Latias Kingdom. A Level 5 that stalwartly guarded the border from foreign incursions. Duke Valentine thought this Delmar guy was able to hold the castle until he arrived.

Apparently not.

Viers looked at the man more thoroughly. They talked for a bit. Delmar said that he had been utterly cripled as a Pathseeker, the Empire wouldn't tolerate a healthy Level 5. The only reason he was still alive was that they were trying to extract intel from him.

"But no matter what, I'll never betray my country."

"You opened up pretty fast to a stranger. I might be an imperial in disguise."

"Perhaps," Delmar said calmly.

"...I need to go. Do you have any requests if you truly lead me to the exit?"

"Yes. Take my life, if you would be so kind."

Viers didn't immediately answer.

"I'm beyond saving, young one. Better kill me now before they concoct something that I cannot resist. There are no absolutes in the Path of Power after all."

"Do you have any regrets?"

"None."

"Truly? Last chance."

"...I have no family or friends left. But I wish to see Grandia Castle returned to Latias hands, not the grubby hands of the Harkelan. To make right of my last failure."

"Consider it done."

A lightning flashed in the darkness and so ended the life of a patriotic Level 5.

Viers followed Delmar's guide and exited the dungeon.

He carried one more soul with him.

Viers smiled as he saw sunlight, however dim it was from the snowy clouds.

Attention Harkelans, Slave Six is out... He is OUT!

He was still on the castle premises. Everyone seemed busy. Orders and explosions were sounding left and right. The fighting was still going strong, and no one paid any attention to him. He was in the belly of the beast.

Viers smelled a golden opportunity and lots of blood.

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