It seems that no matter what time or place, the technique of keeping prisoners awake during torture is always the same. The guy who had been wanting to beat someone up but couldn’t squeeze in just now, took the initiative to grab a basin of cold water and splash it on these two people’s faces.

“I’ll talk! I’ll talk! I’ll say everything.” The two men were clearly frightened by the crowd around them and immediately scrambled to confess.

“We are mercenaries from the Fire Phoenix Mercenary Group. We got lost during a mission, so…”

Hearing this guy’s lie, which wasn’t even at a beginner’s level, I raised my hand to stop him from continuing and said to a few of the hot-blooded young men nearby, “This brother here clearly hasn’t sobered up yet. You, you, and you! Drag him out and enlighten him a bit.”

“I confess~~~ I confess~~! Give me another chance, hero!” The lying fellow clung desperately to the weeds on the ground, but two strong young men each grabbed a leg and dragged him out of the yard. For the next ten minutes, screams kept coming from outside.

I smiled gently, leaned forward a bit, and lifted my chin slightly as I said, “Buddy! If you want to lie, I really welcome it. Just look at the excited expressions of the people around you—they’re clearly hoping you’ll lie. Go ahead, go ahead.”

Intimidation has always been more terrifying than actually using force. Once people start fighting, they rarely feel fear. On the contrary, before any action is taken, the psychological pressure can crush those with weaker nerves. The guy sitting in a puddle of foul-smelling yellow liquid beneath him was clearly one of those with poor mental fortitude.

“I confess, I’ll confess everything. We really are mercenaries from the Phoenix Mercenary Group. Some time ago, outside Rock City by the Forgotten Mountains, we raped a young woman while drunk. Who would have thought she was the city lord’s daughter? The city lord ordered our arrest. The Rock City lord is notorious for being a sadist—if he caught us, it would be a fate worse than death. All the city gates were locked down, and since the north gate connects to the Forgotten Mountains, we… to save our lives, we had no choice but to enter the Forgotten Mountains.”

“It was really just rape?” I narrowed my eyes and asked with a questioning tone. The villagers behind me cooperated by cracking their knuckles, looking ready to rush forward again.

“Murder… it was rape and murder…” The timid guy immediately whispered the truth after my intimidation.

“Kill these two scum!” “Burn them!” The villagers shouted loudly when they heard this. At this moment, the lying fellow was dragged back again. If I hadn’t seen the two young men who brought him back, I wouldn’t have recognized that this was the same guy who had just been dragged away.

These two guys in front of me weren’t strong at all, yet they managed to make it here alive. Calling it a miracle seems too light for them. After all, a miracle can happen once, but for them to survive all the way here—miracle? I don’t buy it. It must be that these two just happened to take a path with fewer magical beasts.

With this deduction, it means I have a chance to leave this tiny village of only a few hundred people! “Everyone quiet down…” I shouted excitedly.

Chapter 5 Illiteracy

“Honey, be careful on the road. I’ll be waiting for you at home.” Ashley said to me, sobbing and sniffling. At the village entrance, a big red banner read, “Warmly send off George Washington to the city for shopping!” Many villagers were banging on makeshift tools to see me off.

After yesterday’s interrogation, I finally managed to make these villagers understand the value of these two people. Raping and murdering the city lord’s daughter meant being wanted, which meant a huge bounty, which meant being able to exchange for all kinds of daily necessities. In a place where even toilet paper had to be washed and reused after use, there was simply no extra money to buy daily goods.

When the villagers learned they could exchange these two for supplies, their eyes lit up. But when they thought about having to leave the dangerous Forgotten Mountains, everyone’s excitement quickly faded again.

In this situation! I! Righteously stepped forward! After delivering a passionate speech, all the villagers—except my wife and father-in-law—unanimously agreed to my request. Think these guys are dumb? I think these guys…

“All right! Time for me to take these two dumplings on the road.” I pointed at the two guys behind me, who were tied up with only their heads and legs sticking out.

“Be sure to come back safely.” Ashley’s voice called out from far behind me.

Go back? What a joke! I finally have a chance to get into the city, and you want me to go back? Even if I wanted to, the beauties in the city wouldn’t agree!

The Forgotten Mountains—legend has it that magical beasts are everywhere, and even a falling meteor could kill several at once. I’ve been walking through these mountains with these two dumplings for a whole day, and haven’t even seen a single beast hair. I really wonder if they all caught x-flu and died off.

“Hey! I’m asking, how much longer do we have to walk?” I asked the two dumplings beside me irritably.

“Hero~~~ please, let the two of us go!” One of the dumplings knelt on the ground, banging his head as he begged me.