Chapter 55: Extreme Mearsures For Extreme Results
Three full days passed.
For three days, the prison chamber became Ka’z’s entire world. Time blurred into an endless cycle of questioning, silence, pain and waiting. More than once he collapsed from exhaustion beside the prison wall, only to wake a few hours later, wash the blood from his hands, and continue exactly where he had stopped.
Food and was brought to him. Occasionally Za’r would quietly slip in to heal the worst of his own injuries before leaving without a word, her eyes unable to linger on what the room had become.
By the second day, none of the guards were willing to remain outside the cell for long. Every so often, Rok’s cries echoed through the tunnels before gradually fading into ragged coughing, only to begin again later. Even veteran hunters who had butchered beasts their entire lives found themselves quietly walking farther down the corridor whenever those sounds started. None of them could understand how a child barely two years old could witness such suffering without breaking.
Ka’z himself understood the answer.
Ever since arriving in Athedal, he had hunted countless creatures with his own hands. He had watched prey struggle for breath as life slowly left their eyes. He had seen friends return soaked in blood and had even nearly tasted death once. Somewhere along the way, the horror had stopped affecting him the way it once did.
Especially now. This was no longer about curiosity. Every answer hidden inside Rok’s mind determined whether Vaal’kor survived the coming war.
Compared to that, his own conscience came second.
By the third day, silence had replaced the screaming.
The prison chamber smelled of dried blood, smoke and damp earth. Pieces of shattered stone littered the floor where spells had struck the walls over and over again. Both Ka’z and Rok breathed heavily, exhaustion written across their faces.
Rok barely resembled the proud warrior captured during the raid.
His body bore burns, cuts, frostbite and bruises layered over one another until healthy skin had become difficult to find. His wrists were tied high above him to thick ropes secured around protruding pillars of stone jutting from the ceiling. Separate ropes stretched from each ankle toward opposite sides of the chamber, keeping him suspended and unable to properly support his own weight.
Every movement sent another tremor through his battered body.
Ka’z slowly approached him.
His own scales were stained from days of interrogation. Dark circles rested beneath his eyes and even standing had become tiring, yet his gaze remained steady.
There was no hatred in it. Only respect for this man who has struggled through his imaginative torture methods.
He stopped directly before Rok.
"You’re stronger than I expected," Ka’z admitted quietly. "Most people would have broken long before this."
Rok slowly lifted his swollen face. Even now there remained defiance inside his eyes. Ka’z closed his eyes briefly before letting out a tired breath.
What he was a out to do here now was something he would not wish on his worst enemy but he has been left with no other options.
"I wish this had ended another way."
His hand slowly descended and cold mana gathered around his fingers.
"Kryos."
A sharp wave of frost spread over one of Rok’s most balls, spreading across his cock and turning it into an ice sculpture.
Rok’s entire body immediately stiffened and every muscle locked. His breathing hitched violently before he finally let out a strained cry.
"You..."
His voice shook with fury.
"You monster... You’d go this far?"
Ka’z’s expression remained unchanged.
"For the people waiting outside this room... For my family and friends, I’ll go even farther."
His voice was calm while his fingers tightened slightly.
"Tell me what I need to know or I’ll keep going until there is nothing left of your pride."
Rok’s body trembled violently and his head fell forward.
"Just... Just kill me..."
His voice cracked.
"Please... Kill me..."
He struggled weakly against the restraints despite knowing they would never break.
Ka’z merely sighed. The sound carried genuine weariness.
"Stop forcing me to do this. "Tell me what I need. I’ve already promised your life. You don’t have to suffer anymore." He looked directly into Rok’s eyes.
Those words finally broke something inside the goblin. For three days, he had tried everything to take his own life. He had attempted to bite through his own tongue, he had repeatedly slammed his head against the stone whenever Ka’z loosened his restraints.
Each attempt ended the same way. Ka’z would heal him. Death itself had become something Ka’z refused to grant him.
Rok slowly lowered his head. The strength supporting his body disappeared.
"...Okay..."
His voice barely rose above a whisper.
"...Okay... Please... Just stop... I’ll tell you everything."
Tears mixed with dirt as they fell onto the stone floor.
Ka’z immediately released his grip and the frost disappeared. He instinctively stepped backward.
At that exact moment...
Ding.
[Quest: Uncover the Secrets of Runes]
[Sub Mission Completed: Defeat and Capture the Ashmork Battle Shaman: Boi]
[Sub Mission Completed: Interrogate Boi and Extract Every Piece of Knowledge Regarding Runes.]
[Sub Mission Completed: Interrogate Rok and Extract Every Piece of Information Regarding the Ashmork Village.]
[Reward: Path Of Array I Unlocked]
[Sub Mission Unlocked: Use all the knowledge to successfully protect Vaal’kor from the Ashmork invasion.]
Ka’z silently stared at the floating notifications and his brows slowly furrowed.
"No system points..." He muttered under his breath.
He had expected enough points to purchase another module before the war. Instead, the system had given him only knowledge.
Worse still, the next objective made it painfully clear that his next major reward would only come after surviving the Ashmork invasion itself.
That realization left a bitter taste in his mouth. Still knowledge was exactly what he had risked everything for.
Without another word, Ka’z drew his claw across the ropes. One after another, they snapped and Rok collapsed onto the prison floor in a lifeless heap, too exhausted to even catch himself. His limbs trembled uncontrollably as he struggled to breathe.
Ka’z quietly stood over him for several moments before planting Shiki beside himself. His amber eyes never left the battered goblin.
"Now, start talking."