C159
"Anything is fine. If you spill everything you know, I'll send you back to prison nicely."
Lucas remained silent. His brain was racing.
Lucas, who joined the Parrot Thieves Band rather than the Parrot Mercenary Band, did not have much loyalty to Marsha. Therefore, it was easy for him to confess what he knew.
However, confessing here meant that he would not be able to leave the deep underground prison until he died of old age.
"How about making a deal?"
"A deal? What kind of deal?"
"I'll tell you everything about Marsha. In exchange, reduce my sentence. If you just let me out before I die, I'll give you the information you want."
"Ha..."
Sakiri looked at Lucas with a dumbfounded expression. Then suddenly, he burst into loud laughter, stamping his feet.
"Hahahahaha!"
The desk toppled over with a bang. Standing up abruptly, Sakiri screamed as he approached.
"What a madman! Do you even know where you are?"
He lifted his foot and kicked Lucas, knocking him along the chair. Even then, as if his anger still yet appeased, he stomped on the fallen Lucas.
But this time, Lucas was desperate.
Either way, if he died this way or that way, it was all the same. If you do not achieve the desired results here, his life will eventually end.
“Kick me! Kick me all you want! I will never talk! So let's make a deal!"
Sakiri's kick stopped abruptly.
Why are all the bad guys so shamelessly brazen? If they didn't want to go to prison so badly, they shouldn't have committed crimes in the first place.
"Aah, this is driving me crazy."
Sakiri calmed his breathing and turned away.
Even in a state of fear, Lucas closely observed his figure. The fact that the kicking stopped meant he was conflicted. If he held on just a little longer, it seemed like a window for conversation would open up.
However, contrary to his expectations, Sakiri opened the door to the interrogation room and gave a chilling order.
"Hey, deactivate the magic restraining device here."
The magic restraining device is different from anti-magic. It was a technology that prevented the activation of magic from the outset.
Of course, it was also a type of magic, but there weren't many thieves in the world who could disrupt a magic circle designed by first-class archmages.
Lucas swallowed dry saliva. He must not show fear. It was clear that Sakiri was also making a last-ditch effort. If he just get over this hurdle, someday he would be able to return to the world.
Sakiri waited calmly. After a moment, there was a sound as the air settled with a woof.
Lucas couldn't tell what had changed, but Sakiri seemed lighter, tilting his head as he approached.
"Tell me everything you know about Marsha. If you remain silent or perjure yourself, you will be overwhelmed by unbearable terror."
"I, I won't tell. I will never tell."
Sakiri didn't care and held out his hand to Lucas. Then he calmly closed his eyes and murmured what seemed like a spell.
"As one who judges, I command that words answer words. The scale of truth belongs only to you.”
Lucas' complexion turned as pale as a corpse.
He was mistaken in thinking that the man was an ordinary investigator. Sakiri was one of the many people who should never be touched.
"Damn it all!"
10 minutes have passed since then.
"Aaaaaaaah!"
A ripping scream echoed through the interrogation room.
Lucas was almost out of his mind. Even when he had undergone amputation surgery, it hadn’t been this painful.
"I get it! I'll talk! I'll tell you everything, just please stop this!"
The moment he screamed, the pain vanished as if it were a lie.
Lucas, crumpled in a corner of the interrogation room, looked up at Sakiri crouched in fear.
"It's your choice. If you want to be comfortable, spill it out willingly."
Lucas resigned himself. Neither silence nor lies were tolerated.
In front of Sakiri's magic, 'The Scales of Truth,' any criminal was bound to confess the truth.
“Marsha is smart. And she doesn’t make mistakes. She pretends to be falling behind while exposing all of the opponent’s long-term plans. But she never employ tricks that would make herself hated."
"Typical con artist’s tricks."
“Keke, con artist? No, she is not a con artist. Do you know what’s scary about her? It’s not that she lies to deceive someone. It’s that her whole life is a lie. You won’t be able to catch any of her tricks.”
“Hmm, I understand her tendencies. But with just that, the intelligence wouldn’t be this jumbled, would it?"
Sakiri propped his chin and sunk into thought. Then he suddenly thought of one possibility.
Others might not know, but he was certain. He knew why the intelligence was inconsistent.
"Could it be? Is she possibly…"
"Yes. She is a human being of the same kind as you.”
Relieved that he wouldn’t suffer anymore, Lucas spoke with emphasis.
“Marsha… she’s a rule eater.” (규정외식자. For now, I don’t know whether this is a term or just stating. For now, I’ll use rule eater.)
* * *
Shirone analyzed her by any means possible. But he couldn't figure her out. She was a person with a completely different personality from the people he met in his entire life.
"You don't mind… I kill you?"
“Huhu, yes. You hate me, don't you? So you can kill as much as you want."
Shirone thought no more. If he couldn't find an answer anyway, he just stuck to his beliefs.
"If Yuna is safe, then I have no reason to fight you."
A faint smile cracked at the corners of Marsha's lips.
Then, as an aggressive Spirit Zone poked him, Shirone immediately cast Teleportation.
'What?'
Shirone was bewildered. His Spirit Zone vanished suddenly, and Teleportation was undone.
At that moment, the roar of Sound Cannon passed by, and his eardrums felt like they were burning with fire.
Unable to withstand the shock, Shirone rolled on the ground, and Rian exclaimed in surprise.
"What? Why is Shirone acting like that all of a sudden?”
Sound Cannon compresses sound waves, so the sound doesn't spread haphazardly. Therefore, his friends who were away only heard a high-pitched scream.
“That’s Sound Cannon. A type of sound magic. But the problem isn't that."
Tess agreed with Amy's words.
"Right. Shirone got hit."
A dark shadow fell over Amy's face. It seemed that Shirone had tried to evade with teleportation, but just before the magic could activate, his photonization was undone.
"It's not just about getting hit. It was stolen."
"Stolen? What was stolen?"
Amy could tell through synesthesia. The moment when Marsha sucked in Shirone's spirit zone like dew.
"Perhaps... mental power."
"That's impossible. How can one steal someone else's mental power?”
Amy hurriedly walked towards Shirone.
Class-A criminal, Clay Marsha.
If the guess was correct, that woman was an extremely dangerous person.
“Shirone! Be careful! That woman is an Rule Eater!"
Shirone jerked his head up. Due to the power of Sound Cannon, both ears were wet as if bleeding, but his Indestructible Diamond's mental strength was still intact.
"This is… Rule Eater?"
“Oh my, you know about Rule Eater? You guys are really amazing. It's said for a reason that the longer the strap of the bag, the better."
Mage develop numerous magics every day, and the association registers them as regulated magic.
However, there are magics in the world that can never be registered, and those are Rule Eater.
The omniscience of Rule Eater is unique.
This is because the omniscience is composed only of the mage’s blind ideology, not actual facts that everyone knows.
In short, they were mage who could create their own rules and force them upon others.
Shirone recalled the story about Rule Eater he had heard during Sienna's lesson.
“Omnipotence is faith. The reason why the speed of photons can be classified into four types, the temperature of flames can change, and plasma can be created even at medium temperature is because the mage's omnipotence supports the omniscience behind it."
Sienna wrote the word ‘Rule Eater’ on the blackboard.
The appearance of the unfamiliar word caused a stir among the students, but she continued the explanation without care.
"But in the world, there are those who use omnipotence for personal ends. In other words, rather than supporting the omniscience, it distorts the omniscience itself. The magic used by such people is called Rule Eater.”
"Teacher, I don't quite understand?"
"Let me explain it now. Everyone, what is my profession?"
“Of course, you are a teacher.”
"Right. I am a teacher. So, shall we begin now? Is there anyone among you who doesn't think I'm a teacher? Raise your hand.”
Naturally, no student raised their hand. It was impossible. Knowing the fact that someone is a teacher and then denying it was a contradiction.
"This is precisely the characteristic of the mind. Unlike the body, when a concept enters the mind, it does not push it away. However, it is absorbed and forms a new mass."
Sienna raised her finger as if to emphasize.
"In essence, the thoughts of others can be applied to someone else, and in fact, all thoughts that make us who we are have been obtained from others. Now, I will demonstrate a Rule Eater.'"
Sienna stepped down from the podium and looked straight at the students.
"All of those who think of me as a teacher will die."
The students murmured. Because Sienna's words were so serious, some students tried to deny her, but in the end, it was impossible.
The mind does not accept denial. It only changes.
"Teacher, is this... for real?"
"Don't be surprised. I was explaining the mechanism. I am not Rule Eater."
Sighs of relief erupted from the students.
Sienna adjusted her glasses and went up to the podium again.
"Of course, in reality, it is not this simple. No 'Rule Eater' can inject a fundamental concept to kill people. Even 'Rule Eater' magic is, after all, magic. The principle of equivalent exchange always applies."
A male student raised his hand.
“But there really could be someone like that, right? I mean, someone who believes that the rule you mentioned just now is valid for equivalent exchange—a crazy person, that is."
"Of course, there is a possibility.. But magic is a product of reason. A person with such a disturbed mind wouldn’t be able to handle magic in the first place, and even if they did exist, their magic wouldn't affect you."
"Because it can't even penetrate the mind." (“정신에 침투조차 못하기 때문이군요.”)
That's right. Therefore, 'Rule Eater' practices come with considerable restrictions and costs. For example, you could create a rule like this. Anyone who thinks of me as a teacher must use honorific language with me."
“Ei, that’s natural.”
"Yes. And this is the scary part of 'Rule Eater' practices. Just as you accept this as obvious, 'Rule Eater' make it natural by instilling their own rules into others. So, what if it were like this? Anyone who thinks of me as a teacher must be attracted to me."
"Haha! Isn’t that obvious too?”
The children laughed heartily. Sienna continued without minding them.
"Anyone who is attracted to me must obey me unconditionally."
The children's laughter gradually quieted down.
"Those who obey me must die in front of me."
Silence fell in the classroom.
"This is one of the techniques of Rule Eater, which is a constraint. Expand the rule by placing several constraints. Where there is a leap in logic, you connect it to omnipotence. Because you truly believe in it, such things happen. So once you're caught, you can't escape."
The sound of someone swallowing could be heard. Is there really such magic in the world? If it were true, this was a mage one would never want to encounter.
"But the real reason why 'Rule Eater' is so tricky is not because of the constraints, but because of the costs. I said earlier that you can't kill someone with a fundamental concept, but if there's a cost involved, it's different. I'll demonstrate it right now. Anyone who doesn't think of me as a teacher will die."
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Tags:
Infinite Mage (Novel)