What the fuck just happened?

Viers remembered things were going swimmingly. He killed a lot of people, proving he was strong even when he was limiting his strength. He deflected a ballista bolt from one of the warmachines on the castle's walls, showing off his parry skills and sword quality. He Cut the Crap'd some guy wearing white that suddenly ambushed him, saying Three-headed something. Viers pressed the skip button in his mind and the man got bisected in reality. That guy managed to knock Viers' helmet off but Viers instantly covered his face with a bandana like a bandit, then he killed some more.

He wasn't blinded by bloodlust despite how contrary his actions might seem. He wasn't aiming to breach the walls of Grandia Castle on his own and he took note of the progress of his ally knights as he pushed forward. This was so that he wasn't singled out as the single most priority kill by the Empire, only a pretty strong individual, one among many, which was much better in comparison.

Then there was an explosion. Did a fighter jet shoot a missile in his position or something? Viers had his hands full defending using all of his resources.

Amidst the smoke, Viers saw that what fell wasn't some ordnance but a man. A Level 5 man, Rostov the Blanket.

Even with just about fifteen meters distance between them, Viers couldn't sense him. Viers heavily suspected it was the Empire's war general's ability, his 'blanket' at work.

"Hm... More people are alive than I thought. The Empire will make use of your sorry lives."

Rostov lifted Viers and many others with his mind like garbage sacks as he flew back to the Grandia Castle. Viers was too injured to resist. It didn't stop Viers from trying but his Victa was like clogged ice inside his body and Futon was in a similar condition. The Level 5 must have done something. From above, Viers saw the devastation that Rostov created on the Kingdom's vanguards.

That was how Viers ended up in the middle of enemy forces, as a prisoner.

Viers' indignation went through the roof.

Really, what the fuck?

He was just aura farming and grinding his skills in peace! Out of the blue, a Level 5 swooped in and attacked him? What were the allied Level 5s doing? You people just had one job: stopping the enemy's Level 5s. One job, shit heads! Did the Duke tacitly let this happen? Hoping the one who stole his daughter would die in the process and so ceased being his headache? As a genre-savvy villain, Viers couldn't brush off such a possibility.

If it were truly so, there would be a reckoning. A dead reckoning. A final reckoning!

And then, there's Rostov.

He was the Ten Tundras' newest member. He was supposed to be this arc's main antagonist. And then once he got defeated by the protagonists, he would say that he was the weakest out of the ten, the Kingdom is doomed, yadda yadda. After he croaked, bigger baddies came out. It was xianxia law!

And weren't big shots like him usually having knee disorders that made them always sit on their nice chairs, looking all important and shit while letting their underlings do all the work? This was only the first day of the battle but Rostov already acted maliciously. On the weaker younger generation, no less! How craven! How foul! This was just as if the Avengers movie got released after Iron Man I. Completely illogical.

Hey, scriptwriter! This Rostov character is going off script with his ad-libbing. He's destroying proper convention, I'd say. I protest! Only I get to do that! He's bugged. Debug him at once!

Alas, Viers' vexation remained unanswered. After Rostov dropped him and the others on the castle's grounds, they got thrown into the cells. Many were heavily wounded because of Rostov's initial attack but only minimal treatment was given, like simple bandages.

Viers was among the better ones; his injury from Rostov was not that severe because of his strength.

Now then. What to do...

The knights that were in his cell were either despairing or unconscious but not Viers.

His Victa was sealed so he couldn't cause trouble. The cell's enchantments and the handcuffs were the things that disturbed his Victa, reducing it to a trickle. His healing factor still worked because it was a bodily function. It had already healed his internal injuries. He let his external injuries remain as is to not cause suspicion. It was difficult, with how little Victa he could use.

He was ruminating on whether he should break out now. Rostov had better things to do than watch Level 3 prisoners. That said, if there really were multiple Level 5s in the castle, breaking out right now was suicide.

Viers couldn't take that risk.

"Ho, look at this chestplate. So strong and so light."

"Ha! This inventory item is stacked! How many gold coins are in here? Bwahahaha!"

Right now, he was watching the guards examining the prisoner's stuff. Before they got thrown behind bars, their belongings got removed. Of course Viers was not exempt from this. He was currently wearing rags.

He looted a lot. Seeing firsthand how he himself was getting looted was truly unpleasant. Some looters already got overwhelmed by greed but another man berated them to not steal or they will be given hell by the higher ups.

"Next stuff, next stuff. Hm, this batch seems to belong to another rich guy."

Now the vulgar men were moving to Viers' things.

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"This sword... Hmmp! Hrrnnn! Damn... I can't draw it."

"That's because you have noodle arms. Give it here. Hrghhh!"

"Tsk. You can't draw it either! What are you talking big for?"

"Heh. As if the likes of you guys can draw it."

The guards heard Viers' words and gave him nasty looks.

"Aaah, so these things belong to you, huh?"

"Too bad. It's ours now."

Forseeing the great battle ahead, Viers wore a set of high-quality equipment. Unfortunately, things took an unexpected turn. His gear that was fit for Level 3 peak was falling into enemy hands now. It made Viers' stomach churn.

Umikirimaru that Sakuya brought from the land of Yamato refused to be used by the unworthy. As to why it allowed itself to be drawn by Viers, he himself didn't know. After several attempts by the twenty guards, they lost interest in the sword.

After they finished examining his clothes and armor, they went for the crown jewel. A small box that was Viers' inventory item. Thousand Treasures Casket.

"Let's see what'chu got in here," a man with a scar on his lips said with a nasty grin.

"I wouldn't touch that if I were you," Viers flatly said.

"Hmph. Is it booby-trapped? Doesn't matter. We've got- Argggh!!"

"O-oi! What's the matter with you?"

The man who tried to open Viers' item suddenly dropped the box. Only gargles and pained screams came out of his mouth when he was asked. His hands blackened and rapidly spread to his body.

"Poison?"

"Worse. Curses," said another guard.

"You! Stop the curse at once!" A guard pointed his spear at Viers.

"Impossible. What can I do from here?" Viers said.

"Grrr! Damn you! Someone, call a healer!"

"Wuaaah! Look, Skarav is..."

"D-dead. Hiiih!"

Viers' inventory items contained a lot of important items. Key items that he couldn't afford to lose. The villain made sure to put multiple contingencies for all sorts of situations. In case someone tried to forcefully access his inventory item, it was laced with an extremely deadly curse.

The corpse looked like a pile of burnt charcoal. This was also the first time Viers saw the curse in action. As expected of a curse from a devil. Viers learned it from a member of the Gardener of Perfection, the cult that worshiped a Devil God related to poison and sickness.

"Told him he shouldn't touch it," Viers said.

"You bastard! How dare you!"

The Empire's soldiers were angered by the taunt. They were about to open the cell and beat up Viers. Viers was going to use the chaos to his advantage. Even with his Victa sealed, he wasn't afraid.

"What's this commotion!"

A female soldier put a stop to the mess.

"Commander Visla. Ma'am." The soldiers salute.

"Explain why there's a corpse on the floor!" Vimi said intensely.

Viers measured the new arrival. She had a Level 4 cultivation base, middle or high. A seasoned fighter too, from the way she moved. Someone he couldn't surpass at the moment.

Visla listened to the guards' story in complete silence. She then entered the cell Viers was in and punched him in the gut.

For Viers, who was like a Level 0 at the moment, the punch of a Level 4 was like a spear punching through his body.

Viers crumpled like a broken sand castle. She'd then spoke without empathy.

"I won't kill you. It's a waste of lives. There are better ways to spend it. Resistance and disobedience are only expected from fresh arrivals..."

Visla grabbed Viers' hair and yanked it so their faces were inches from each other.

"But I'll be looking forward to beating those out of you."

She'd then smack Viers' face to the floor. After a nasty sound, Viers passed out.

When he came to, he was in a familiar room with a throbbing bump on his face. His limbs were bound and he was lying face down on a wooden table. The impression he got from the room was that it resembled a medical chamber. There was someone wearing an executioner's mask in the room. Using tools such as knives and stakes, he was doing something to another prisoner's back who was bound in the same position as Viers.

Slave seals...

The masked operator was carving symbols on the prisoner's back, which was essentially a slave seal. The prisoner was under extreme pain while he was doing it primitively.

Viers' turn soon came. The operator worked on his back like he was carving furniture. However, Viers did not react. From the experience of three years of constant pain, Viers focused his attention elsewhere to distract himself from the pain. Spirit was stronger than the body and Viers' spirit was very strong.

Despite pieces of flesh and blood falling out from his back, Viers remained still like a rock.

Captured knights after knights were worked on. Some cried in pain, in disgust. Some tried to commit suicide from the dishonor. Viers noticed that the six in the room, including him, were all Level 4. His Level 3 cover must have been blown then.

After all six were finished, Visla entered the room.

"From now on, I will hold your leash. Go wild, for the Harkelan Empire."

Visla activated the slave seal one by one to assume control. Of course, the guy resisted.

"I wonder how long you'll be able to resist?"

Resisting caused extreme pain. Pain that could make a grown man cry. One by one, they gave up and let the slave-master connection be formed. Until one remained.

"I'm impressed. It's been five hours already. Your head must be made of rocks, Slave Six."

"I won't make it easy for you," Viers replied with a face full of sweat.

"No, you really don't," Visla stopped. The forming exhausted her too.

She then left the room. The other five had already been taken elsewhere. Viers was alone with the masked guy. Viers suspected he was a mute since he'd never made a sound.

After some time, Visla came back.

"So this is the stubborn fish?" Rostov said.

"Yes, Great Comrade," Visla replied.

"I see."

Rostov walked around Viers in a circle, like appraising an object. It allowed the bound Viers to look at his face. A young man with three-colored hair of red, blue, and white with a punchable face.

"A unique fish got caught in the net, hm? Lady Luck smiles upon me. Do you utmost, for my sake," Rostov said to Viers as if he'd seen through all of Viers' secrets.

While Rostov instilled himself as Viers' master through the magical crest, Viers said one thing to his face.

"I hate you."

"I don't care."

Rostov replied and the slave seal was formed. Viers' resistance that was able to hold a Level 4 like Visla at bay for hours was swept away by the Level 5's might.

After giving him the order to obey Visla, Rostov left again.

"Come on, Slave Six. It's a new day," Visla said.

And then, Viers stood on the battlefield once again. This time, he was on the side of the Harkelan Empire, along with his fellow captured Latias Knights.

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