Criminal Law

The room fell into a long silence.

The four Dragon Lords each sank into thought as an uneasy atmosphere spread through the air.

If the Platinum Dragon Lord had been defeated by some player hidden in this world, what did that mean?

The fact that the opponent could easily defeat the Platinum Dragon Lord meant they could defeat them even more easily.

What they faced would be an existence more cautious and more powerful than the Eight Greed Kings.

"Deciding to block the news was the right choice."

The Diamond Dragon Lord broke the silence.

"At least until we learn the other party's purpose and Platinum's whereabouts, we cannot let the outside world know that Platinum is gone."

"But how long can we hide it?"

The Obsidian Dragon Lord countered.

"Though the Council State is merely Platinum's experiment, it is not devoid of clever people."

"It does not need to be for long."

The Blue Sky Dragon Lord took over.

"We only need to delay until Platinum returns."

"What if..."

The Worm Dragon Lord's voice sounded again, carrying a strange tremor.

"What if he cannot return?"

No one answered. The air fell into deathly silence.

The Platinum Dragon Lord was the Dragon Emperor's son and currently the strongest being among dragonkind. If even he could be silently eliminated, then...

"Impossible. Even if Platinum could not win, escaping would not be a problem for him."

The Diamond Dragon Lord spoke with absolute certainty.

"He was probably ambushed and injured too badly, so he hid himself because he was afraid we would laugh at him."

"Haha, if that is really the case, I will have to mock him thoroughly."

The Worm Dragon Lord's laughter was awkward and forced, utterly devoid of mirth.

"Platinum will give you a brutal beating."

Hearing the Obsidian Dragon Lord's words, the Worm Dragon Lord actually seemed quite expectant.

"It is fine, if I still get the chance for him to beat me up..."

Novas Aetir, Second Floor, Eternal Day Arena.

Although quite a few demi-humans kept as expendable resources were imprisoned here, they were far too weak to qualify to enter the underground grand prison known as Tartarus.

And today, it welcomed its first guest—the Platinum Dragon Lord, Tsaindorcus Vaision.

Tartarus, built specifically to house powerful beings, was constructed entirely from magical metals. It contained a great number of magic arrays that suppressed the enemy's attributes, as well as legendary and even divine-class items to prevent prisoners from escaping.

The Platinum Dragon Lord's limbs and tail were bound by massive chains, while his enormous mouth had been stuffed with an item resembling a bit, preventing him from breathing dragon breath and from harming himself.

The Skinning Demons used enchanted, razor-sharp knives to break his scales and flay his skin.

The stripped skin and dragon scales were processed on the spot into blank scrolls and dragon-scale armor.

Afterward, healing spellcasters treated him, and the process was repeated.

Gokusai Kaibi sat on a stool nearby, lightly tapping the table before her with her fingers. There was a trace of displeasure in her crimson eyes.

"Lord Amon is far too merciful. For such a great criminal who dared to repeatedly refuse and even insult the Supreme Beings, mere flaying was not enough—yet he even ordered magic to be cast to lessen the pain."

But this had been an order personally issued by Lord Amon Nicola, and Gokusai Kaibi could not refuse it.

"That is right. Such a heinous madman should use his own blood and wails to atone for his sins."

As a crisp, ethereal voice sounded out, the prison gates opened, and the snow-white Pandora walked in.

"Tch, why are you here..."

Gokusai Kaibi stopped halfway through, quickly realizing something.

"Your secretary Moon has gone over as well. Who is following Lord Amon now?"

"It is Rita Rossweisse."

Pandora walked over and sat opposite Gokusai Kaibi, giving her the answer.

"That girl..."

After receiving the answer, Gokusai Kaibi pursed her lips in displeasure.

Although everyone in Novas Aetir got along quite harmoniously, the disparity between poor and rich still made Gokusai Kaibi unconsciously gesture at her chest.

Though Lord Amon had shown that he greatly liked her body, as a woman, she still cared somewhat about her figure.

Damn dairy cow!

Gokusai Kaibi thought indignantly.

"Don't mind it. After all, our appearances were meticulously crafted by Lord Amon. Since you and I have figures like this, it means he likes them very much."

Pandora poured herself a glass of water and began comforting her "senior."

"I know that, but..."

Gokusai Kaibi lightly slapped the table, then turned her head and took a deep breath before continuing.

"You didn't come all the way to Tartarus just to comfort me, did you? What is it? Go on."

Pandora had no intention of continuing the subject either.

"I wanted to ask how the extraction of the Platinum Dragon Lord's memories was going. Roughly how long will it take to get the answer Lord Amon needs?"

"Well..."

Gokusai Kaibi frowned. Her pink lips parted, and only after a long while did she answer somewhat dejectedly.

"The Platinum Dragon Lord's mental resistance is too strong. I probe him with Memory Manipulation once every two hours, but most of what I get is useless knowledge."

"Getting an exact answer from several centuries of memories will depend on luck. If we're lucky, it'll take about a week. If we're unlucky—"

Gokusai Kaibi thought for a long time before finally holding up two fingers.

"Two years."

"Two years?"

Pandora set down her glass, her white eyelashes trembling faintly.

"Lord Amon actually has to wait patiently for two years?"

"I know."

Gokusai Kaibi bit her lower lip, a trace of unwillingness flashing through her crimson eyes.

"But he's the Platinum Dragon Lord, a true Dragon Lord. Even with his attributes suppressed and his power sealed, his mind remains one of the strongest fortresses in this world."

Gokusai Kaibi did not know that, as a dragon capable of wielding primordial magic, the Platinum Dragon Lord's soul could connect to the "world," naturally granting him nearly unbreakable mental resistance.

The fact that she could obtain the memories she wanted within two years was already only possible because, as a level-one-hundred mental-type magic caster, she far surpassed the norm.

She turned to look at the giant dragon bound in chains.

The Platinum Dragon Lord had stopped struggling.

Those vertical pupils that had once gleamed like gold were now dull and lifeless.

The Skinning Demons worked expertly over his body, cut after cut, slice after slice.

Sharp enchanted knives slipped in from the edges of his scales, precisely separating skin from muscle. Their movements flowed smoothly, as though they were processing an ordinary piece of livestock hide.

Every time a blade passed over him, the dragon's body trembled faintly.

But there was no roar.

No wail.

Not even a sound emerged from that enormous mouth sealed by a "gag."

Only those eyes remained, fixed stubbornly toward the ceiling, as if gazing at some distant place beyond reach.

"His willpower is strong."

Gokusai Kaibi gave an objective assessment for once.

"It isn't just a matter of mental resistance. Even under this kind of torture, his consciousness remains highly vigilant. Every time I invade his memories, I run into a great many 'trap memories'—false, misleading pieces of information."

"The wisdom of dragons..."

Pandora murmured.

"That's right. A true Dragon Lord who has lived for centuries couldn't possibly not know how to protect his own memories."

Gokusai Kaibi sighed.

"So I can only filter through them bit by bit, peeling useful information away from those insignificant daily memories. This process can't be rushed."