Time slipped away quietly, countless days and nights flashing by like a white colt. The Garganta gradually closed.
Finally, Aozaki Reiji stepped out of the dark, damp cell.
Bambietta paid a heavy price for her arrogance and learned a bloody lesson.
As for Aozaki Reiji, he was immersed in the joy of acquiring a new toy.
At this moment, a strange feeling welled up in his heart, as if "Heaven and Earth exist with me, and all things are one with me."
This feeling gave him a deeper understanding of the world, and he felt that even his own evolution had improved.
As for Bambietta, she was currently in a state of mental blankness.
Just as Roka had said, Bambietta had no resistance to Aozaki Reiji whatsoever.
Under Aozaki Reiji's severe torture, Bambietta only lasted less than half an hour before her psychological defenses were shattered.
Not only was her sanity completely discarded, but she also became abnormally excited on her own accord.
Under Roka's guidance, Aozaki Reiji also obtained what he wanted.
Although most of the information was not much different from what he knew in his previous life, there were still some unexpected gains… including some hidden moves left by the Wandenreich.
Aozaki Reiji carried Bambietta and slowly walked through the cold dungeon, finally stopping before a tightly closed cell door.
He opened the door and mercilessly threw the eyes-eyed Bambietta inside.
With a dull thud as the door closed, Bambietta woke up.
She touched her hair and struggled to get up from the cold floor.
The scene before her gradually changed from blurry to clear.
She saw a woman with long green hair.
The woman had a table full of lavish dishes in front of her, and her face was beaming with a happy smile that shouldn't exist in such a place.
"Candice, why are you perfectly fine and living so comfortably?" Bambietta demanded loudly.
Candice, who was sitting on the bed and feasting, came back to her senses.
She awkwardly scratched her head and hesitated, musing, "This…"
Her brain was working rapidly.
How should she put it?
Should she tell her that she couldn't even last half an hour and was tricked into spilling everything, thus avoiding severe torture?
And then she was even rewarded by the enemy for her excellent performance?
Candice couldn't help but feel her face flush and her heart pound.
She absolutely did not want anyone to know about this.
Don't I, Candice, need to save face?!
Moreover, the woman in front of her was Bambietta, who she had always been at odds with.
No, she couldn't lose face in front of her.
So she cleared her throat and said, feigning composure, "What, looking at you, it seems your situation hasn't been so good lately, you must have suffered a lot, right?"
Candice had a smug expression, completely lacking any self-awareness as a traitor.
Bambietta's expression subtly changed, revealing an unnatural blush.
She cautiously glanced at the tall man behind her and stammered, "I… I'm living quite happily… no… it's quite good."
After speaking, she unconsciously lowered her head, not daring to look at Candice's suspicious gaze again.
Candice looked at her suspiciously, her heart full of questions.
This woman's clothes were tattered, almost to the point of being indecent.
How could this be considered good?
Perhaps she was just putting on a brave face in front of herself, unwilling to admit defeat, which is why she was so stubborn?
But then, what was with the sincere smile on her face? There was even a sense of genuine happiness!
Candice truly couldn't understand.
Just as she was deep in thought, a large hand suddenly landed on her head, gently stroking her smooth long hair.
"Damn it! Which bastard dares touch my hair, I'm going to…" Candice angrily turned her head, ready to teach the other party a lesson.
But when she saw that familiar face, her angry curses immediately stopped short.
"What were you just going to say? What are you going to do?" Aozaki Reiji asked with a slight smile, his hand still stroking her hair.
"Nothing… nothing," Candice replied softly, deflating like a punctured balloon, lowering her head.
"Not only is the hair color similar, but even the texture is very much like Nel's," Aozaki Reiji seemed to be reluctant to let go of Candice's hair, gently stroking it as he mused.
Candice's eye twitched fiercely.
You're touching my hair, but you're thinking of other women?
Pah, you damn scumbag!
Candice's heart began to waver, should she resist?
All the Quincy in the Wandenreich knew that her hair was the most precious thing to her!
However, when she looked up and met those eyes filled with playful amusement, a sense of helplessness couldn't help but rise in her heart, and she ultimately abandoned that unrealistic idea.
"You're really fierce," Aozaki Reiji smiled slightly, seemingly not angered by Candice's attitude.
"Alright, don't just stand there, get ready, we're leaving here immediately," he said indifferently.
"Leave?"
"…We're free? We can go back to the Wandenreich?" Candice asked, somewhat disbelievingly.
Could this guy actually be a good person?
A surprised smile appeared on Candice's face, and her heart, which had been in despair, instantly ignited with hope.
She never thought that things would come to this point, and there would still be a turn for the better!
"Free?" Aozaki Reiji scoffed, as if he had heard the biggest joke in the world.
"Why would I release you? I'm just moving you to a different place."
After all, the underground training ground was ultimately just an entertainment venue, not a good place to detain prisoners.
Leaving them here was merely a temporary measure.
Sure enough, this man was a complete and utter villain!
Candice's smile instantly froze, and her mood plummeted again.
Aozaki Reiji looked at Candice's expression and couldn't help but find it a little amusing.
This woman truly couldn't hide anything.
Whatever she thought was written all over her face, no wonder she could only last half an hour against Roka…
Thinking of this, Aozaki Reiji's lips curved slightly upward, revealing a playful smile: "If I give you freedom now, do you dare to go back?"
Hearing Aozaki Reiji's words, Candice subconsciously replied, "Why wouldn't I dare?"
However, as soon as the words left her mouth, she immediately realized she had said the wrong thing, and her face turned very ugly.
She realized that her previous answer was utterly foolish.
Bambietta, who was beside her, also cooperated perfectly, looking at Candice with an expression as if she were looking at an idiot.
That look seemed to say, "Are you stupid?"
Leaking information about the Wandenreich was an act of betrayal against the Empire and absolutely unforgivable.
But let alone such an unforgivable crime as betrayal, even just defeat was a crime punishable by death in the Wandenreich.
And they were captured because they lost to Aozaki Reiji, so going back would surely be a dead end.
If the Empire knew they had leaked information, the situation would be even more severe.
Even if they were executed, their Souls would not find peace.
Although they had never seen His Majesty the Emperor awake, judging from the strict laws enacted by the Wandenreich, one could imagine how cruel and tyrannical His Majesty the Emperor's methods were.
The incompetent must die, the defeated must die.
Even if one accidentally offended His Majesty, one must die!
For traitors like them, the death penalty might just be the beginning.
But what was the point of hiding here and living a few more years?
When His Majesty awakens, if he uses Auswählen on them… Although as newcomers to the Wandenreich, they hadn't personally witnessed that power, they knew its general effect.
Thinking of the future they might face, Candice and Bambietta became worried.