20 minutes had drifted by since my confession and, as expected, I was found guilty, and the capital punishment was His Honer's final verdict.
Wait... just wait.
I know that sounds like the worst-case scenario, but here's the catch: as Commander Gal put it at the time, if I were not to confess in court, then regardless of the result of the trial, I would definitely be transferred to Mazi International Prison, where I would be put to death some way or another.
They wouldn't just let me live or leave.
But now, with my confession, I would without a doubt be transferred to Mazi Grave to await my execution on the seventh day. And this prison just happened to be under the jurisdiction of Commander Gal. So he, as he promised, would find a way to rescue me and break me out of prison.
Such a good man, going above and beyond to help me despite knowing that his reputation was on the line if things were to go astray.
Seated inside the carriage of the military police, I let out a sigh. My hands were in handcuffs, and on either side of me were two officers who looked rather serious and, a bit nervous, I would assume.
Hmm... did my confession stir fear in them?
Recalling what I had said, it did seem plausible. That I was a killing maniac. Worse still, I was, in their eyes, a freak. So I was literally quite different from what they were used to dealing with.
I was pretty sure the screaming civilians with posters outside the carriage felt the same. After all, in their eyes, I did kill, possibly, their acquaintances or family.
So this is the price of my freedom, huh? Being viewed as a killer. How am I to make friends afterward?
The sound of the harness snapping and the snort of the horse dispersed my thoughts almost immediately.
And so, after winding for a good twenty minutes through the evening sun and speeding for another forty, the carriage finally came to a halt.
I looked outside the window, and unlike the other places, this one had no protesters or civilians.
The only thing in sight was a long concrete bridge stretching from where the carriage stood to an enormous black building erected on land covered in black ash.
The building, being the only structure on the black ash, was enclosed by a metallic fence that bore countless glass shards on top as well as along every part of the wall.
Ishi...
I could have sworn that as I looked a bit more, I saw some flesh and blood clinging to the glass shards.
"That's your destination, freak..." the officer on my right sneered, clearly reading my nervous expression.
I, however, remained silent, save for looking at his full-figured frame and smiling.
He cursed under his breath and appeared to grip his rod tightly.
Just then, the one on the left, possessing a lean build, looked at him and shook his head, disapproving of his intent.
The full-figured officer hissed and turned his face away.
That's right. Behave yourself.
I relaxed in my seat as the carriage drove slowly across the bridge, careful not to fall into the pitch-black abyss on either side.
As the carriage stopped, I was brought out, and the prison up close looked even more terrifying.
And just as I had seen from afar, there were indeed traces of blood and remains of flesh on the shards that mottled the black wall.
I reeled backward before I felt a shove from behind, quickly followed by a mocking voice.
"This is what happens to fools who think they can escape or break into the prison. For prisoners who enter, none leave. This is their grave. Mazi Grave."
Then he laughed.
"Well, for you, you'll be dead in seven days' time. So you won't have to endure all the labor and torture... oh, what's this? You're trembling?"
I gaped.
Indeed, I was.
His words were cold and cruel. Didn't this man know I was just a kid?
Luckily, before he said another word—one which might have made me reconsider my actions—his comrade walked over.
He held my shoulder.
His hand felt warm, yet quite brittle.
Then, after a pause, he said in a low tone,
"I wish you good luck."
Turning to see if this was truly an Anger Emontarion, I found a face that bore a strong resemblance to that of Snappy.
But this one was younger and quite more radiant. The only thing that degraded his looks was his demeanor.
He was low in spirits.
Very low, to be frank.
I wanted to ask if the two were related, as well as what could be troubling him. Alas, the acknowledgment of my current position led me to wave off the idea.
In the next second, I even felt guilty that the officer before me would live without knowing what truly killed his possible relative.
In the end, I just gave an appreciative smile.
After a few seconds, he returned it too.
Then, as I turned to leave, he gradually tightened his grip on my shoulder.
Not in a manner that was violent, but one that seemed to beg me not to go any further.
He spared a glance at his chubby friend, who was conversing with the carriage driver, then dropped his haggard eyes back onto me.
For a good twenty seconds, he just stared, possibly trapped in his own thoughts.
Clank!
Just about then, the sound of the double doors to Mazi Grave opening tore through the ensuing silence.
I turned to find five Emontarions armed with a variety of weapons coming out.
They were clad in tight red military attire that bore an imprint of flames, and concealing half their faces were black porcelain masks.
They looked very scary, and scary they were, for the five were none other than the Voldmoth Elite Five.
A group of soldiers who had built a legacy of thwarting any threat that befell the Kingdom of Voldmoth.
The Hitter was once their leader before he unexpectedly resigned.
Till this day, I wonder why he did so. What could be cooler than being loved by almost everyone?
I had always fantasized about meeting all the Elite Five of the top Four Kingdoms, but not like this.
Not as a threat society thought they had failed to stop.
Simultaneously, the young officer behind me abruptly removed his hand, and he, together with his comrade, saluted.
A while later, I was walking through a dimly lit corridor, and with me were the Elite Five.
Their presence alone made the prisoners in the cells on either side keep quiet.
None dared approach the bars.
As we reached the end of the corridor, a double steel door opened.
The room, illuminated by a lamp, was empty and quite small.
Stepping in, the door automatically closed, and then it began to descend downward with a slow creaking sound.
After a minute or so, amid the eerie silence, with my head lowered to the ground, I saw one of the members of the elite unit unclench his fist.
Simultaneously, yet quietly, a small dagger slipped from his sleeve and into his hand.
He was in front of me and had long red hair, distinguishing him from the four that stood on either side of me.
Slowly lifting my head, I saw him looking over either shoulder a good number of times.
What is going on here?
With a thought, i summoned the colourful screen and opened the Target Scan tab.
[ TARGET SCAN
Species: Anger Emontarion
Grade: 2
Current Emotion: ?????... Blood... ]
The colorful interface without warning disappeared.
I immediately grew petrified , suspecting that he was about to kill me now.
No, that does not seem logical, right?
Because if he were trying to kill me—which is quite understandable due to the backlash the Elite had been getting for failing to protect the civilians of Pitu—he wouldn't need to be secretive about it.
The Elite had always been known to do things harmoniously, for that matter.
More to it, this was, after all, their leader, Captain Benu.
Thus, planning to kill me was not the reason for his odd actions.
Still, he did have killing intent, and puzzlingly enough, it was most certainly directed toward his own...
My eyes lit up, and just about then, Captain Benu spun with his arm, landing a devastating elbow that caused the two on my right to lose their footing.
Before I could even process anything, a blood-soaked, glistening dagger loomed above me and tore through both of the member's necks.