Chapter 33: Interrogation? What a Joke! (3/3)

**** BONUS CHAP****Thanks for the votes! ^_^v

They were taking so long so Josh simply lied on the table again. It seemed like they had designed the place to be as uncomfortable as possible, but that was all trivial for Josh. Compared to sleeping in the Tower and getting disturbed by bloodthirsty monsters…this was perfect!

He was awoken by the sound of the door opening again. Then came both interrogators from before. Josh couldn't help but find this quite sad. Sometimes more didn't make it better as the welcoming event in the Tower had proved.

The man approached and slammed the table before sighing: "Josh, right? Do you know how cases work in this place?"

That was a rhetorical question, right? The man kept going.

"There are many levels of interrogation. The first one is a calm and peaceful talk with us. We try to end it with only that. BUT! That is only possible if you cooperate. Now, should you be stubborn and keep withholding information, your case will change hands. Let's just say the alternative is far from pleasant if you catch my drift. I wouldn't want to be in your shoes. At all!"

"Calm and peaceful talk? That's why you were shouting so much, right? Then again you visibly quieted down since then. You clearly deserve some mention for the fastest improvements. Do you guys have a best-improved employee of the month wall or something? Ah, but showcasing this guy's picture in the hall may be a tad…yeah better not."

The man's face changed. Honestly, how could he not even control his expression?! That is when the woman tried to come back to the topic at hand.

"It may be fun now to quip jokes, but you won't like what will come after for sure. This is your last chance!"

"I like how vague this all sounds. So mysterious! Schrodinger interrogators, maybe they are real, maybe they aren't."

"Do you think we are playing here!?", she continued.

"Yes? No? I mean you both have very serious expressions, but the dialogue sounds like a joke. What's with these mixed signals?"

The man simply signaled her: "Well, we tried. You'll soon understand the saying you reap what you sow kid. Good luck, you'll need it."

That is when they both walked toward the door.

"Wait! Wait, guys!" Josh stopped them, noticing the small smile they were harboring. "Can I get some popcorn!"

"….." *CLANG* They angrily left slamming the door shut.

What, they couldn't even afford popcorn?! Josh noticed they hadn't tried the friendly approach at all. Would it have killed them? Such a shame.

He was excited about the prospect of dealing with an actual professional. Would there even be one? They were probably calling their superior asking for instructions at that very moment. Josh was expecting the wait to be even longer but surprisingly they came back relatively quickly.

They were both harboring a smug smile. Their newfound confidence seemed the stem from a third individual following them. The man was steady-looking with sharp features. A man Josh had seen before, except this time he was wearing a stylish white jacket. He really seemed to love white.

Josh had to stop himself from bursting into laughter. Especially when the lady subserviently went: "He's all yours Sir, please work your magic!"

The man came forward: "Josh, is it? Are you aware of who I am? I am the S rank Healer, Ronan from <Draconic>. Let's just say you have two choices now. Either you can confess or I can beat you up, a lot."

"Pretty sure you aren't allowed to use violence on a suspect, am I wrong?"

"No! You are perfectly right! But don't worry! When you'll exit this place you won't have any injury whatsoever!" The way he smiled made his intentions obvious. Well, he was probably faking in this case.

The middle-aged man chipped in excitedly: "Show him the video! Show him the video!"

Then they brought a device with a screen in front of Josh. Then, they played the video of a man getting burned repeatedly and getting healed right after. It was extremely harsh. But what was even harsher was the cinema without the popcorn!

The interrogator exclaimed proudly: "How is that! See, I told you it was better you deal with us!" His voice radiated assurance. He was convinced Josh was about to crack.

Josh found it laughable how they had gone out of their way to bring Ronan in here. He was probably passing "by chance" and had somehow been recruited by these two. So much for a secure government facility. Both of them were looking at the healer with stars in their eyes.

Would they cough blood if they learned of Josh being an ally of <Draconic>? Josh's reaction to the footage was to ask:

"I have a question. Can you use this spell to produce infinite meat with only 1 chicken? If yes you could singlehandedly end world hunger. Also, did you ever need to use such a spell to eat human flesh while stuck on a Floor? You know from running out of rations."

Ronan answered pensively. "Infinite chicken is easy. The issue is actually getting good ingredients, ones that can give food buffs. These are only found as drops in the Tower. As for the human flesh I've yet to taste that thankfully."

"Shame." To which the spectators were flabbergasted. How was he not freaking out?! How was Josh so calm! They clearly were overwhelmed by his nonchalant attitude.

That is when Ronan took control of the situation "Give me 10 minutes with him. He'll talk. Ah, but I'll need two things. First, disable the cameras. Second, get a cleaner ready."

They gulped audibly before nodding excitingly and leaving.

"Let me just check if they really …" Ronan took out a small device from his pocket that flashed a few seconds before going quiet. "Yep, no cameras...or mics. So, how the Hell did you end up killing a man already? Also couldn't you have done it in the Tower instead?"

"Kill? I have no clue how he died. He was alive and the next second we were out with him dead." Josh shrugged.

"Hey, I'm on your side remember! Stop the bullshit! Else I'll really torture you!"

"Oh? Feel free to try it." Was Josh a masochist? Nope. But he was curious to see the worst that the healer could do.

Ronan was now looking at him with a disbelieving expression. Everyone was afraid of him, but not this newcomer?! "Are you sure? You'll probably regret it!" There was a hint of concern in his voice with the other part being excitement.

"Sure, should we bet? Whether I can endure it or not?"

"Hahahaha. Perfect! I'll bet 10k Credits. How about it?"

"Afraid I can't follow on that one. I can do 5k.", Josh admitted.

"Perfect you bet 5k and I'll bet 10k! Now you better not regret it!"

Ronan made his signature heavy staff appear. Then he gave a very light blow. KACHA, the seemingly light tap shattered the metal table and the chain linking Josh to it altogether. With a smile, Ronan then aimed at Josh directly.

A light tap later, Josh could feel his ribs getting crushed, the bone shards digging deeper into his body. His whole chest area was completely caved in. A very mortal strike, yet one that Josh allowed. He somehow trusted the man because of his gut feeling. This was but a test.

A holy light later Josh was as good as new. Then started a beatdown that made the previous one look like a walk in the park. There was lots of crushing and blood spilling everywhere. Josh could feel his clothes getting heavy with blood and sticking to his skin, at least what remained of it.

It lasted a solid 10 minutes. That is when the other two entered the room. They couldn't help but be horrified upon seeing bone fragments and blood spread out all across the floor, walls, and…ceiling?! Josh himself was a mess. He was so bloodied that his eyes could barely be seen. That horror increased when he casually looked at them smiling: "Sup!"

The lady was shaking: "W-what happened? D-did he confess?"

To which Ronan simply replied: "Turns out he seems innocent, I don't know how to say that but…you guys really screwed up on this one. I'm really glad I'm in an S-Rank guild, I'll be fine haha."

The two opened their mouth in astonishment before losing all color. That's when they understood that their career was over. They had closed an eye to such insane torture while on duty. They were actually just trying to scare Josh and believed Ronan was on the same page.

That is when Josh simply smiled at them: "How the tables have turned, am I crazy, or is your fate in my hands?"

They shivered once more. Then the man simply started kneeling directly: "Please forgive me! I didn't think it would come to this! I was just trying to do my job! Please I need to pay for my son's schooling!"

"Schooling? Isn't education affordable?"

"He joined <Climber High>, a new Climbers-only school. One that has many renowned teachers showing them the ropes while slowly ascending the Tower."

Yeah, that would be expensive. Just the Tower entry fee would likely bleed a family.

"Talk is cheap, what can you offer me concretely?"

"I'll come to your help as long as it's not for a crime! I'll put in a good word if you come back here too! Whenever and in the future too!"

"Sure, I'll let you off the hook."

That is when the lady exclaimed! "I can do that too! I'll help and…"

"Nope, that was his deal. As for you let me see…" Josh felt like teasing her a bit. "How about becoming my maid? Haha". Seeing her gritted teeth and hateful expression there was no way she would accept.

"F-fine! I-I'll do it!"

Then came a moment of silence. Honestly, Josh himself didn't know quite how to handle the situation. He didn't even have his own place. Well, he would use her for now at least.

"Alright, go buy me some clothes. Cool-looking ones. Also, get us some water in here so I can clean myself." Josh couldn't exactly leave half-naked and soaked in blood, right?

That is when he turned toward the smiling Ronan. "I believe you owe me 10k Credits haha!"