Chapter Thirty-Four: Interrogation

As the doctor lifted his head, he saw a handsome man slowly materializing before his eyes. Glancing behind, he barely had time to react before a massive club came crashing down on his head. And then—nothing.

When the doctor regained consciousness in a daze, he was being wheeled into an operating room. Before they entered, he caught sight of numerous photos on the wall featuring monsters, demons, and people in various uniforms.

He could hear voices nearby. “What’s up with this guy? The identification device can’t get a reading. If he’s human, we can’t even wipe his memory.”

Another voice replied, “Yeah, that is pretty strange.”

The first speaker said, “No worries, let’s wait for Dr. Bai’s results.”

Listening to their conversation, the doctor slipped into unconsciousness once more. When he came to again, his mind was foggy, and everything he saw seemed double and indistinct. Just then, a beautiful woman in a white coat approached.

Dr. Bai smiled. “Come on, be good now, time for an injection! Don’t be afraid, it won’t hurt a bit.”

She produced a syringe nearly as thick as a waist, almost as tall as a person, its needle glinting coldly. Terrified, he nearly fainted on the spot. As the needle drew closer, fear overwhelmed him and he blacked out.

When he woke again, he found himself dressed in a numbered uniform, photographed from every angle holding a placard, just like a criminal. After the photos, he was locked in a small dark room, ignored for a long while. When it seemed enough time had passed, Prince Xuan entered. Sitting at the interrogation table, the lamp was switched on, and with two sharp slaps, the doctor was jolted awake, still feeling lightheaded and short of breath.

Prince Xuan sat back down and asked sternly, “Name.”

The doctor clutched his head, struggling to recover.

Prince Xuan, growing impatient, repeated, “Name.”

The doctor looked at Prince Xuan, then around the room, saying nothing as he nursed his aching head.

“Name,” Prince Xuan demanded.

“Where am I? What are you people trying to do?” the doctor cried.

“Age. How long have you been in City M?” Prince Xuan pressed on.

“Were you the one who hit me on the head? Was it you? Was it?” the doctor snapped.

“So what if I hit you? I did it. You’re already at Supermarket 444. Why keep pretending?” Prince Xuan retorted.

“What nonsense is this? You think you can just hit people and kidnap them in a supermarket?” the doctor protested.

Prince Xuan, losing patience, barked, “What kind of monster or demon are you, anyway? Where are you from, what species, what class, what are you? Speak up, right now.”

The doctor said, “Little girl, you look rather cute—how can you do something like this? This is unlawful detention, you know that? Do you want to throw your life away?”

Prince Xuan sneered, “Oh? Are you threatening me? Neither the visibility laser nor the instant camera can capture your image.”

Prince Xuan flung a photo in the doctor’s face. The doctor jerked back, startled.

“What trick are you playing?” Prince Xuan demanded.

At that moment, Xiao Deng entered, sat down, and handed Prince Xuan a file.

“Dr. Bai’s examination is done. There’s no match for him in any of our records. The investigation center can’t find anything on him either,” Xiao Deng reported.

Prince Xuan pondered for a moment, then whispered to Xiao Deng, “Put him together with Huang Jiafei and see what we can learn about his origins.”

“Is that really okay?” Xiao Deng asked uncertainly.

Prince Xuan replied, “Do you have any better ideas?”

Xiao Deng shrugged. “Whatever you say—I’ll go with your decision.”