Chapter 27: The 9 Floors of the Prison

  Soon, Justinian, Aldona, and Franciscus found themselves inside the chamber of the mountain's ruler, Eusebius.

  'Is this another illusion?' - Justinian looked around grimly.

  The chamber looked rather unusual. Instead of the ostentatious staging typical for devils, human pragmatism dominated here. A simple desk, typical of diplomats' offices, and a few oak chairs with a tea set.

  The decor was completed by various historical telescopes hanging from the ceiling.

  “Before we begin with anything else, there is a message to relay.”

  Eusebius’s tone shifted slightly as his gaze focused on the youngest of his guests.

  “Franciscus, your uncle is currently visiting the Voivode’s estate. He would like you to meet him there.”

  “Then I shall do so right away,” the child replied calmly.

  “Outside, I have already assigned a few of my men to escort you.”

  Franciscus bowed formally in acknowledgment.

  As he was leaving the chamber, Justinian watched him closely.

  ‘Was it just my imagination?’

  For a brief moment—so brief Justinian almost doubted himself—the always-composed child’s hand trembled. Then it was gone, replaced once again by perfect demonic composure.

  He was pulled from his thoughts by the loud voice of the ruler.

  "I heard you've already managed to stir up some trouble," Eusebius said bluntly.

  His voice didn't seem angry, more amused.

  Aldona, as an adept from the mountain, felt guilty for the commotion.

  "It's my mistake. I should have warned our guest about the situation," she apologized with her head bowed.

  The devil sitting behind the desk waved his hand dismissively.

  "No, it's alright."

  He observed the human, searching for any signs of reaction to what he had seen earlier. Justinian's actions were understandable to him. Now the boy seemed disturbed and lost in thought.

  'Evidently, Felix knocked the anger out of his head...'

  Feeling the powerful devil's gaze upon him, the young man, after a brief hesitation, decided to ask:

  "Was the human suffering I saw real?"

  Eusebius looked him in the eyes and smiled inwardly. Then he cleared his throat and asked in a serious tone.

  "And what will you do if it is?"

  This was also the question the boy had been asking himself for the last few minutes. How should he act in such a situation? He believed in justice and was disgusted by the very thought of turning a blind eye to someone's suffering.

  'But what am I supposed to do?' - After all, he was just a novice cultivator, without great powers or special importance. - 'I barely survived the earlier encounter, what chance do I have of freeing these people?'

  Did that mean, however, that he should pretend nothing was happening?

  'Am I to participate in the pilgrimage and simply ignore this torment?' - the very thought filled him with disgust. - 'Besides, it's not in line with the character I cultivate... I've always prepared myself to fight to the last breath!'

  These dilemmas were clearly reflected on his face, and Eusebius, already having information about the young man and his rather unique way of cultivation, was inwardly very pleased. Finally, he laughed out loud.

  "Hahaha, don't be so serious. They are real people, but they deserved their fate. They are criminals who committed wicked deeds, either in the human world or here."

  Justinian's eyes widened at these words, and he took a deep breath. Even if he didn't trust the devil's words, the situation was still more favorable for him than a moment ago.

  Then, an idea struck him, and with a glint in his eye and some hesitation, he addressed the ruler of the mountain:

  "Could I speak with these criminals?"

  Eusebius nodded.

  "I see no reason to forbid you. In fact, overseeing these wretches has usually been the purpose of the pilgrimage for representative adepts to my domain," he said, gesticulating like a typical man in a tavern.

  Justinian smiled and bowed low in a gesture of thanks. After settling the organizational matters, he left the room. The devil himself exchanged a few more words with Aldona in private.

  "You should accompany this man while he tours our mountain. We don't want any more misunderstandings like before," he said in a casual tone. - "Do a good job, and I will aid your cultivation."

  Saying this, he drew a few symbols in the air and cast a spell on his adept, which made her feel her fatigue disappear.

  Of course, the young noblewoman was very excited by this - after all, this was exactly the order she had hoped for and she would have gladly done it even without the offered reward. Soon, she too left the room, leaving Eusebius alone.

  He, thinking about what had just happened, smiled slyly.

  'Eh, girl... you are too naive,' he thought.

  Aldona led Justinian to the guest grottos carved into the mountain specifically for special visitors.

  "Is this an authentic item from the human dimension?" - Justinian asked, frowning as he looked at an old wooden sign with the word "HOTEL" on it.

  His companion, blushing slightly, nodded.

  "The lord of the mountain is very interested in human customs, and many things on the mountain are arranged in your fashion."

  The boy was slightly surprised by these words, but eventually, he nodded.

  Each grotto was equipped with a bed with clean linen, a magical tap for washing, and... disposable hairbrushes.

  "The energy in these grottos is particularly rich, which allows for more effective cultivation than usual," Aldona explained before saying goodbye.

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  After bidding her farewell, Justinian sat down with his legs crossed and began to contemplate the events of the past day. The biggest problem, aside from the complicated matter of the people imprisoned here, was related to the situation with the mountain's representative adept.

  'He struck without paying much attention to me, and I only recently regained feeling in my hand...' - he analyzed with concern.

  There was no doubt that his own weakness put him in a terrible position and ultimately led to the situation he had once feared.

  'If I'm too weak now... what if an opportunity for revenge arises and I can't seize it?'

  He still remembered the words of Ignatius, who said that someone at the foundation Establishment level was in the tomb.

  'So what can I improve now to avoid today's crisis in the future?' - he wondered.

  Finally, he placed the saber he had previously won in a duel with Aldona's father in front of him. It was now completely devoid of energy and, apart from its rich craftsmanship, was as useless as any other metal weapon.

  'Could trying to increase my distance with it help?'

  He pondered this question for a moment and finally shook his head.

  'Months of training with Rudnicki taught me a fighting style typical for devils, but mastering such a weapon satisfactorily will likely take a long time... Plus, the opponent was much faster.'

  Analyzing the "fight" from the beginning, he came to the conclusion that he had previously missed that his Iron Right Hand had served as a shield in this duel, which was very valuable.

  'Even with that observation... it doesn't solve my problem, after all, I almost died...'

  Ultimately, he saw no other option than to try to develop his own power. After the episode in Ukuun, he had already reached the fourth mark of Ki Gathering, but as he had brutally learned, it meant little in the grand scheme of things.

  'I hate my weakness...'

  He began to contemplate the dilemmas he had encountered on this mountain with his Ledger of Transgressions and Redress.

  The rest of the night passed like this, during which he made no breakthrough. However, he did come up with an idea regarding establishing his own concept of justice in the situation with the prisoners.

  The next day, he and Aldona went to visit the prison.

  Rumors of his arrival spread across the mountain like wildfire. This was amplified by the fact that devils naturally liked to spend their time being idle and talking nonsense instead of doing honest work.

  "The representative adept of the Emptyhead has arrived on our mountain!"

  "Apparently, he wanted to free the human criminals and use them to conquer us!"

  "I heard he came to take us, the she-devils, for his harem, but the venerable Felix thwarted the villain's plans!"

  The comments, spread by sensation-seekers, outdid each other in drama and foolishness. Of course, this made all the devils wait with bated breath for news of what tricks this human would resort to to achieve his nefarious goals.

  'Eh... they could stop staring at me like that,' - Justinian complained inwardly, traversing the mountain paths where crowds of onlookers watched him.

  Everyone was just waiting for him to start some conflict.

  When he reached the place, the village based on illusion seemed just as sinister to Justinian as it had yesterday when he first learned its true horror.

  "The prison is inside and has several underground floors."

  The boy nodded, and then they both entered the bakery building, from which a wonderful smell of freshly baked bread emanated. Inside, however, there was no food, but... a prison filled with wailing people.

  They were placed in several parallel cells, and many of them uttered moaning groans:

  "Food..."

  "I'm so hungry..."

  "Where the hell is the bread?!"

  Justinian turned pale at this sight, and shivers ran down his spine. Taking a deep breath, he looked questioningly at Aldona.

  "These are immigrants who broke infernal laws and pleaded ignorance. For the duration of their sentence, they are magically fed, but they feel hunger the entire time, intensified by the smell of bread."

  The girl knew that this sight could be difficult for a human, so she placed a hand on her shaken companion's shoulder.

  "Are you alright?"

  He remained silent for a moment and finally shook his head.

  "I want to see all the floors."

  The noblewoman nodded, and so their journey through the entire complex began.

  Along the way, they met devils who were engaged in cultivation here and in describing the behavior of the "test subjects," as they called the humans.

  'Should they really suffer like this?' - the boy wondered, looking at the increasingly terrible scenes on the subsequent floors.

  On floor minus three, people wallowed in freezing slush, lashed by falling snow and a rain of filth. A giant, three-headed dog, whose very gaze inspired unimaginable terror, watched over them.

  'But... doesn't this remind me of something?' - he thought, frowning, as he descended lower.

  On floor minus seven, where violent people were condemned, some suffered in a desert where the sand seemed to burn, and the air was filled with swarms of fire. Others drowned in a river full of blood, and when they tried to surface, devils shot at them with bows.

  "Are you sure you want to see this?" - Aldona asked, seeing his face grow paler and paler.

  "Yes," he answered shortly.

  The last level, which tormented various kinds of traitors, was the conclusion of Justinian's visit to the prison complex. The boy, after what he had seen, was completely dejected, and after saying goodbye to Aldona, he went to the hotel to think over the terrible situation he found himself in.

  "What can I even do?" - he asked, almost tearing his hair out.

  The truth is that the immensity of human suffering he had witnessed shocked him to the core. He wanted to help these unfortunate people somehow, but he didn't have the strength to even dream of it.

  This, reasonably speaking, forced him to ignore the matter, but his heart rebelled at the mere thought of such cowardice.

  'Is this how my path is supposed to look, that I repeat the mistakes of others and am strong towards the weak, yet cannot even make a peep when people are suffering around me?!'

  Just as in the past, he felt he was at an important crossroads, which would decide the character of his cultivation. Would he still stick to uncompromising justice above all else?

  'Or maybe I should just accept that my powers will never allow for the world I dream of?'

  This was something he spent long hours considering. He felt that his connection with people was so powerful that he couldn't let it go, and at the same time, he couldn't change the devils' system.

  Finally, as a new day dawned outside and the chirping of birds could be heard, Justinian made an important decision.

  'Time to visit the ruler of the mountain.'

  After preparing himself mentally for the meeting, he gritted his teeth and went to Eusebius.

  The devil greeted him with a smile and seemed to have been partly expecting this visit.

  "How can I help you, representative cadet?"

  The young man looked at him seriously, with determination in his eyes, and went straight to the matter that lay on his heart:

  "I would like to conduct an investigation into the people imprisoned here."

  The ruler initially frowned, clearly not very receptive to the idea.

  "And why should I agree to that?"

  The request was, of course, rather troublesome, especially considering the importance devils attached to their reputation. By coming here and proposing an investigation, the boy was essentially questioning the authority and truthfulness of the words of the ruler of the Mountain of Research and Development.

  'Good thing he didn't throw me out immediately...' - Justinian sighed inwardly, taking it as a good sign.

  He intended to take a risk, trusting that through the months spent in hell and even having a certain image of the infernal fiends from the teachings of the great order of the church of justice, he knew what the inhabitants of the cursed dimension cared about.

  "I can offer you games," he said with conviction, looking the ruler of the mountain in the eyes.

  Eusebius raised an eyebrow, surprised by this turn of events.

  "Meaning?"

  "In human society, prisoners who behave well can seek to have their sentences reduced," he explained.

  The devil, given his fascination with humans, was of course familiar with this custom. However, he did not see its application to the current situation. Meanwhile, his guest continued:

  "We will interrogate the prisoners and confront their testimonies with what we know. If we confirm their innocence, referring to the custom I mentioned, we will release them."

  "And what about the opposite situation?"

  Justinian looked at him with determination.

  "Then we will harshen the conditions of their punishment."

  The ruler of the mountain thought for a moment about the proposed idea. The facts were that his prison had long been close to overflowing, and in reality, he did not need so many convicts for research.

  The incentive of a trial and harsher punishment for misbehaving cases also sounded like good fun.

  'Perhaps my adepts will even include this for extra points in the annual satisfaction survey of the mountain's operation?'

  Eusebius was a decisive devil and quickly decided that this was an idea worth implementing. With a certain reservation, however.

  "I agree. But I have two conditions," said the ruler of the mountain. - "First, for the duration of the trials, you will assume the form of a devil."

  Justinian nodded enthusiastically. He saw no reason not to agree to this.

  "And second, a spell verifying their truthfulness must be maintained on those being interrogated," he finished with a smile.

  The young man standing before him frowned.

  'The idea is right, but can I trust that the devils will cast the kind of spell they say on these poor people?' - he wondered. Finally, he gritted his teeth and proposed his own version of this condition.

  "Is it possible for such a spell to verify the truthfulness of everyone in the entire room?"

  The ruler of the mountain thought for a moment and ultimately had no objection. In his opinion, this would only make the spectacle more interesting.

  Thus, the games were approved, which led to... the devils perceiving Justinian as one of the most diabolical figures in the entire 66th dimension of hell!