TFJB 14

Chapter 14

Not even an hour had passed since I resolved to hold back my screams.

“Kyaaaaaaaah!”

I screamed at the top of my lungs. Something had rustled nearby, like it was passing by.

“Th- th- that’s definitely a ghost!”

I pointed toward the source of the noise, my face pale, and Kin looked at me as if I were pathetic.

“It’s not a ghost. It’s a rat.”
“B- but! It might not be!”

I tried to argue, but Kin pulled a dagger from his cloak and threw it with force. There was a sharp snap! followed by a thud, and the body of a large rat fell to the ground.

“You might be able to talk to the souls of the dead, but apparently you have no knack for distinguishing the soul of a living rat from that of a dead one.”
“……”

His pointed remark left me completely silent.

“We still have a way to go to reach the lowest level of the underground prison, where ghosts frequently appear. Stop whining and tiring yourself out, and just follow me.”
“Y- yes…”

I pressed down my fear as I followed him through the underground prison.

The prison was damp and dark. Though vast, the number of prisoners was not large compared to its size.

‘What kind of crimes must these people have committed to end up in the underground prison?’

I stared curiously at the prisoners sprawled on the floor, filthy and horrifying in appearance.

Even Sesma, who had helped forge currency—a major crime under imperial law—was sent to a regular prison rather than here. To be confined in this place…

‘They might have killed a hundred people or more.’

If the prisoners weren’t asleep, I could have gauged their crimes from their eyes.

After walking for a while through the underground prison, we reached a large stone wall.

‘A dead end?’

But Kin didn’t stop. He walked straight to the wall and placed his hand on it.

-Whuuuuum.

With a low vibration, the blocked wall split horizontally like the jaws of a beast. A door had appeared.

‘W- what is this?’

Frozen by the impressive display, I froze, but Kin urged me forward.

“It’s about to close. Hurry.”
“Ah, okay!”

I jumped through the entrance and asked Kin, “What was that just now? And where are we?”

“Didn’t the stars tell you?”
“How could the stars know about this rock?”
“This is the passage to the lowest level of the underground prison. That door just now can only be opened by me and the warden.”

Kin explained the situation more kindly than I expected.

All the doors in the underground prison were locked with magic and couldn’t be opened without the warden’s hand touching them.

For reference, only Lord Kin and the chief warden Raoul could open all the doors of the underground prison.

Unfortunately, Kin’s kindness seemed to end at explaining how the underground prison operated.

“But if people are placed in the lowest level of the underground prison… how terrible must they be?”
“Who knows.”

His lips sealed again, and I hurried to catch up.

As we exited the passage, the space ahead looked like a massive hall. Around the hall, about a dozen cells were arranged in a circle.

‘It looks like an upside-down zoo.’

There didn’t seem to be many prisoners. At first glance, there was only one person bound by the limbs to the wall.

“Not many prisoners here, huh?”
“The guards say there’s a curse here, so anyone imprisoned dies quickly.”
“W- what?”

I felt like I had just heard something terrifying.

While I was doubting my ears, a sudden harsh scream, like scraping metal, rang out from somewhere.

“Kyiiiin! It’s you! Kyiiin!”
“Kyah!”

Startled, I grabbed Kin’s sleeve.

He brushed my hand away as if shaking off dust and said,
“Ignore the barking of dogs.”

But that “barking” was filled with so much hatred it was impossible to ignore.

A man with wild hair shouted, veins bulging in his neck.

“Kyiiin! The demons of hell will tear your soul to pieces and burn it in fire!”
“That one seems very interested in Lord Kin…”
“The emperor will never forgive you! Kyiiiiiin!”
“Stop wasting time. Inspect this place.”

Kin pointed casually to a spot, as if the growls weren’t even audible. A reddish pool remained on the floor.

“This is?”
“The place where Raoul was attacked.”

I swallowed hard.

‘This is where Raoul’s arm was chopped off, right?’

Whether the culprit was a demon or a person, they were clearly a brutally skilled opponent.

‘But it’s okay since Kin is here. If things go south, I’ll just use Kin as bait and run!’

I tried to calm my pounding heart by thinking of Kin beside me.

I untangled my necklace and wrapped it around my hand. It was a necklace with a blue gem, something I had hastily bought at a black-market stall yesterday.

I usually don’t wear cumbersome jewelry like this, but today was different.

‘To fake being a psychic, you need the right deception.’

I closed my eyes and prepared to act.

“I’ll concentrate for a moment.”

Above Raoul’s pool of blood, I began swinging the pendant of my necklace like a pendulum.

‘Just swing a few times and if nothing feels right, I’ll quit for today.’

It wasn’t a perfect method, but there was no better solution. I had no choice but to buy time.

‘If something useful comes up, even by chance, that would be great.’

In an instant, strange letters flashed before my eyes.

“Probability hit!”

‘What does this mean?’

At that moment, Kin spoke to me.

“I’m not sure what trick this is, but it seems the claim about communicating with the dead isn’t entirely false.”
“…Huh?”

When I turned my head, I saw the pendant spinning in a strange, circular motion.

“What? W- what is this?”

I swallowed a scream at the horrifying sight.

If Kin hadn’t been glaring at me from the side, I would have probably thrown the necklace and bolted.

‘So scary!’

The pendant spun faster and faster, without me applying any force at all!

Whether I panicked or not, Kin assessed the situation and pointed in one direction.

“I think it means we should go that way.”

‘I know that, but there’s no way… ghosts, it’s definitely ghosts!’

I didn’t want to even imagine what might be at the end of this bizarre phenomenon.

My limbs shook uncontrollably. Seeing this, Kin narrowed his eyes.

“Can’t move while concentrating?”
“Y- yes! I can’t move at all! I can’t go there!”
“I see. Then this is what we’ll do.”
“Ugh! Someone help!”

A scream escaped my lips.

Kin lifted me up in one motion.

“P- p- put me down!”

Holding me securely, he made a threatening tsk sound.

“Keep concentrating. I’ll guide you in the right direction.”

‘I don’t need that! This is an abnormal situation! This is truly supernatural!’

I wanted to say it, but I couldn’t. Confessing could lead to a tragic punishment from Lord Kin worse than ghosts.

The pendant continued pointing in one direction. Kin set me down in front of a cell.

-Vibrate-

When we arrived, the wildly swinging pendant finally drooped onto the floor.

‘Eek, this really must be haunted.’

I quickly wiped the tears from the corners of my eyes.

“This seems connected to this cell. I’ll open it; check it out.”

Kin made a decision instantly and unlocked the cell door.

As expected, all doors opened easily with the lord’s touch.

“There’s no time. Finish quickly, then let’s go up.”
“I think you should help too…”
“I’m not a psychic. I’m just guiding you. You handle this.”

He urged me mercilessly. I swallowed my fear and cautiously explored inside the cell.

Every damp, moldy scrap of cloth I touched made my skin crawl.

‘Ugh… that wasn’t… a bone, right?’

Even though I grew up in rough streets, I hadn’t seen skeletons before.

I had no idea what I was supposed to find when suddenly—

-Rustle!

A hand shot out of a pile of smelly hay.

A ghostly white hand grabbed my wrist as if trying to pull me in.

It was cold and strong.

I screamed.

“Kyaaaaaaah!”

At the same time, the image of Raoul’s severed arm and the swinging pendant flashed before my eyes.

‘Ah, no. This is my limit…’

Don’t frighten a coward so much.

They might pass out.

Like this.

‘…I’m losing it.’

I clutched my pounding heart and collapsed.