Chapter 73 - INTERROGATE

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Jieun use her homemade bombs and throw them near all the bandits even though one of them is just lying stiffly there.  The bomb was only used to intimidate and distract them.  And it turns out it works.

Their leader who pinned Mia on the ground was shocked by that and continued to release his grip.  He getting up fast and looking at Jieun at that moment with a strange look perhaps because he had never seen such a thing. 

Mia took the opportunity to continue launching her attack now while he is distract.

"Waterspout!"

Mia uses her power to make a formation of the water cycle around the man's head to the neck.  Drowning him in there.  She could hear the man scream in there, but his voice is muffled by the water now.  She is too furious now to care. 

After she is satisfied, she stops her attack and the man, who is now dizzy, tries to breathe again.  Without waiting for the man to recover, Mia then kicked and punched the man in a series of non-stop until finally the man became limp and fainted on the ground now.

Meanwhile, Jieun is now watching a bandit who tried to attack her with his earthly power earlier, now howling because his eyes were penetrated by soil debris due to the bomb, that broke a bit of ground there.

Jieun make a little snort there after seeing his behavior.  While the other one from earlier was lying there and not moving.  He is not death is he?  Makes Jieun wonder.

Sigh a little.

"Guess I'm quite lucky this time." Jieun said to herself after looking at her enemy that are not really strong there.

Mia then approached Jieun at that moment.

"Are you okay?"  She asks when she is the one that have it tough there.

"I'm fine.  What are we going to do with them now?"

"Let's tie them to the tree first.  That one..."  Mia pursed her mouth pointing at the person lying stiffly.  "Let's interrogate him."

With that, Jieun followed Mia's orders and began to pull the two weak bandits together to a rather large tree there.

"This one is an earth user.  He probably can get out easily."  Jieun telling Mia.

"It's fine.  He will still struggle anyway.  This rope is the special one as it will  follow the power of the people who use it.  They are an earth and wind user, so if a water user uses it to them, they need to find someone that is also water user to free themselves. "

"Also that is your bloodline specialty?" Jieun take a guess.

"Exactly."  Mia is confirmed, looked proud there while finishing tying the two people. 

Then, together, Jieun and Mia went to the frozen one earlier, pull him to get closer to the other two.  What they cannot believe is he is now screaming in fear like they are the one that threaten him. 

"Please don't.  Please don't kill me!"  He said while starting crying there.

"Kneel with both hands on top."  Mia said in cold voice there while Jieun is blinking looking at the man antic.  Too weird!

Listening to the command, the man continued to do so.  He clearly didn't want to find any problems with them again. 

Right at the time,

"Sister in law!  Mia!" 

Haru is calling even though he is still far away but his loud voice come first there.

The two girls each now looking towards the voice direction.  All the six princes are now there.  Panting with worried face.  But after looking that the two is in a in good condition, while there are other people who have been badly beaten there.  They got some idea of what just happen actually.  They all breathed a sigh of relief now.

"What happen?"  Leo, who is the third one that come there asked, while walking closer along with the other princes.

Ethan and Eun-Woo were the first to get there, but they each not yet asking anything instead approached their respective wives.  For confirming, see if they are injured or not.

After Mia and Jieun told them everything that just happen, Ethan began to interrogate the one that was kneeling on the ground now.

"Your name and where did you from?"

"Ben.  I'm coming from the Solitude Village.  A small village in the summer region.  I swear I didn't want to hurt anybody but I just... just desperate.  I need money to save my mother who is sick.  And... this is just my second time following them to become bandits.  And... Argh!"

He didn't have time to finish his words, then because Eun-Woo kicked the man's stomach that Jieun had injured it before with the knife.  Making him scream in pain there.

"Just answer the question!"  Eun-woo said fiercely. Even make Jieun that looking at the interrogation flinch a little after hearing that, as he never once showed that side of him to her.

"That's what people say when they got caught in action. But to your knowledge, the first time isn't that easy. The second time you think that you can do it. After that you're going to be worse because you're already feeling the excitement." Syaoran said in a rather scary tone there. His mysterious mood suddenly materialized.

Ben there only able to bow his head.  Know for sure that the words are true.  He is now aware of the mistake.

At the time, Ethan call his power.  His hazel eyes now turns violet.  After knowing the enemy name, he started to use one of his 'psychic' ability now.   

Ben is now become startled seeing this, but his eyes are like drowning now after he, looking into Ethan's eyes then.  While searching for his past, Ethan start to  asks him.

"Do you know what happens in the village?"

As if in a trance, Ben is talking, responding to the question, but seems like he is unaware of his real situation.

'It's like he is being hypnosis', Jieun said in her mind while observing what was going on.

"Most of the people in the village are sick because of the bad smell that suddenly appears.  After that, one by one people get sick, especially the elderly.  The treatment given by the shaman is very expensive, but it really works.  It can cure the disease.  But after recovering in about a week they will get sick back again."  Ben explained.

"He is telling the truth.  What he said before, also the truth.  His mother is one of the elders there who is affected by the disease."  Ethan said informing others then he returned his focus to Ben again. 

"Do you want to know something?"  Ethan ask Jieun that seem like too engrossed in her mind right now.

"Uh...  The symptoms?"  Jieun use the opportunity well even she never though Ethan will ask her that. 

"What are the symptoms?" Ethan asks Ben again.

"People will vomit, dizzy, lifeless and there are red spots on their bodies that are itchy.  Some even bleeds because they can't stand scratching all day and night.  The serious stage is when they can even see the evil ghost flying all over the village.  There's some that have already died too.  The shaman says its a curse.  Curse has come to the Solitude Village because of our sin.  So we need to make a sacrifice.  A lot of money is needed for the sacrifice. "

Jieun then frowns a little when hearing all the symptoms.  She is pretty sure that it can be cured if they go to see a physician.  Why shaman even comes into the picture?  But, she can't said anything about the flying ghost.  Doesn't know if it really existed. 

"What kind of sacrifice?"  Ethan continue to ask. 

"Shamans say that during a full moon, they can make a ritual to send the evil away.  But all people in the village must provide some gold, money also food that is expensive to be present to the demon.  Demon that make the curse. "

All the six princes, Jieun and Mia now looks at each other.  They seemed to feel that something is weird with the story.  It was as if something else was going on there.  It not just a simple 'sickness' or a 'curse'. 

"It feels like something is off.  But, whatever it is, we need to see by ourselves to know more.  Enough that for now Ethan." Ray finally speaking as their team leader.

In an instant, Ethan snapped his finger in front of Ben's face and the man continued to wake up from his delusion.  Looked around for a while before fainting to the ground.

"We need to wait for 15 minutes for him to get up.  After that, we will start our journey."  Ethan said based on his experience.  All that, feeling his 'power' usually get up around the time.  And also, Ben will come with them now.

"Stupid."  The bandit, who was tied up there, looked at Ben with small eyes as fragments of soil were still in his eyes, cursing, after seeing everything.  He really didn't like that weak Ben is in his group from the start. 

While, the bandit leader that seems to be dreaming there,

"Ah... your skin is so smooth little girl... Let me touch you more..."  He is saying that with his eyes still close and even dare to smile. 

Hearing the words coming out of the man's mouth made Mia even angrier.  As she is the one that the man touch before.  But before she can do anything,

Dushhh Dushhh  Dushhh...  The sound of punches and kicks began to be heard there. 

Ethan acted fast by thrashing the man with all his heart.  He was not as usual, who was always quiet among all the princes and not using violence.  Makes Mia blushes a little there..  Satisfied.