“Perhaps Belinda has some kind of special forbidden curse on her, which allows her to completely block the interference of those mental magic tools.”
Erich was visibly taken aback, seemingly not expecting Ain to arrive at the exact same conclusion as him.
It seemed the kid's extensive reading had actually paid off.
“My thoughts exactly, but we haven't been able to detect the presence of any forbidden curse.”
Ain nodded in agreement.
“This only goes to show that relying solely on magic tools is just a waste of manpower and resources. If we want to pry out useful information, we must employ other methods.”
Erich, of course, knew this.
But when facing a prisoner who was completely immune to mental magic tools, their emotions and will were under the absolute control of their own mind.
Under such circumstances, attempting to pry open their mouth with words alone was far more difficult than a standard interrogation.
This was precisely why he had made no progress so far.
Noticing the slight, relaxed smile on Ain's face, Erich asked, “Do you have a way?”
“Of course. That is exactly why I am here.”
“Arbiter Sevis is currently occupied with official duties and could not make it in person, so he shared the method with me.”
“Our urgent priority is to ferret out the mastermind behind the illicit substances and eliminate them entirely. That is our true duty as members of the Prosecution Office, is it not?”
Erich pondered for a moment after hearing Ain's words. Then, his expression shifted instantly. His previous coldness melted away, replaced by a warm, welcoming smile, and his attitude became exceptionally friendly.
“You are absolutely right. Safeguarding the academy is our true mission. Because of this, we must achieve a breakthrough in this case as quickly as possible.”
“If you don't mind, I can lead the interrogation for you.”
Ain returned the warm gesture with a smile of his own.
“Then I shall trouble you to handle it, Arbiter Erich.”
“It is no trouble at all. Right this way.”
Erich gestured for them to follow as he walked toward the depths of the interrogation rooms.
“Wait...”
Seeing Ain about to follow, Rosalind quickly reached out to stop him.
Erich's sudden change in attitude made her instinctively sense a hint of danger.
Besides, when had her master ever told him about any interrogation methods or details?
Rosalind had no idea what had actually transpired back in the office.
Ain did not offer much of an explanation. Instead, he gently took her slender hand in his and led her along as he kept pace with Erich.
At the same time, a voice meant for Rosalind's ears alone drifted over.
“Don't worry.”
...
Erich, of course, was not doing this to safeguard the academy.
Those high-sounding words were merely a ploy to deceive Ain.
If Ain failed to extract any useful information, Erich could seize the opportunity to accuse Sevis of employing incompetent personnel.
Having an inexperienced lowerclassman serve as a Swordbearer—and one who turned out to be completely useless at that—would provide him with the perfect excuse to spread malicious rumors about Sevis.
If Ain actually managed to extract key information, Erich could take credit for the breakthrough and steal the fruits of his labor.
No matter the outcome, he stood to benefit.
Erich continued to plot in his mind, a smirk playing on his lips.
Students were indeed far too naive.
Without experiencing the harsh realities of the world, how could they possibly know how many undercurrents lurked beneath the surface?
Soon, the three of them arrived at the interrogation room where Belinda was being held.
“Lord Arbiter.”
The student guarding the door immediately stood at attention upon seeing Erich, bowing deeply in respect.
At this moment, Belinda was strapped to a specialized chair. Her school uniform had been replaced with a white prison outfit.
Ain and the other two watched the small room through a magic barrier.
Inside the room sealed off by the barrier, another uniformed student stood opposite Belinda.
The student pulled several items out of an evidence bag.
A small vial of residual potion with unidentifiable ingredients, a hand-drawn map with marked locations, and an unsigned letter.
“These were all hidden in the secret compartment of your drawer.”
He tossed the letter onto the table, adopting an overbearing posture.
“Don't play dumb! Tell me, what does the 'next batch' mentioned in the letter refer to?”
Belinda glanced at the items displayed on the table. The corners of her eyes crinkled slightly, and a knowing smile played on her lips.
“Are these really all my things?”
Belinda almost burst into laughter.
“You already had me verify the inventory list of confiscated items earlier, and this letter certainly wasn't on it~”
“Did you simply forget to include this letter that appeared out of thin air on the list?”
“O-Of course!”
The student was clearly lacking confidence, his voice faltering.
Ain understood immediately. This guy's interrogation technique was far too green; he was the textbook definition of a rookie who had never seen real action.
“As for the next batch...”
Before Belinda could finish, Erich deactivated the magic barrier and called the student out of the room.
He couldn't bear to watch any longer either.
“I'm sorry, Lord Arbiter. I...”
“It's fine, Luke. Leave the rest to him.”
Erich patted Ain on the shoulder, his face full of feigned anticipation.
Luke also glanced at Ain. Seeing the student uniform Ain wore, he roughly deduced his identity.
He was probably a newly recruited student just like him, right?
“Here, take this.”
Ain was somewhat puzzled as he looked at the exquisite box Luke handed him.
“What is this?”
Erich explained, “It's a Tier 3 magical tool. With just a slight infusion of mana, it makes your voice more emotionally persuasive.”
“Simply put, it makes it easier to catch the suspect off guard during questioning.”
Ain waved his hand dismissively.
“No thanks. It doesn't seem very useful.”
Erich's eye twitched uncontrollably.
This was a magical tool he had used ever since he first stepped through the doors of the Titan Prosecution Office. Not only him, but everyone who had ever used it gave it rave reviews.
Yet, when it came to Ain, it was dismissed as 'not very useful'?
He was almost laughing out of sheer exasperation.
Oblivious to Erich's shifting mood, Ain walked up to Belinda and pulled a deck of Cards of Canal from his pocket.
During the walk over, he had discreetly manifested the cards and slipped them into his pocket.
Ain was in no hurry to speak. Instead, he unhurriedly drew the cards and began laying them out on the table, one by one.
“Cards?”
Outside the barrier, Erich watched Ain's actions in disbelief.
Is this really the method Sevis came up with?
Expecting a Junior Divination Scholar to peer into a suspect's deeply buried secrets?
He had thought Sevis making an exception to recruit an undergraduate student as a Swordbearer was already the height of absurdity, but he never expected something even more outrageous.
If it were a true Diviner, Erich might have been inclined to believe it to some extent.
But pinning the entire hope of solving the case on such airy-fairy mysticism? Erich swore he could never have conceived of an interrogation technique so utterly ridiculous.
Having laid out all the Cards of Canal, Ain rested his hands on the table and stared coldly at Belinda.
“Let the interrogation begin.”
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