Whack! Whack! Whack!
"Talk or not? Talk or not? Talk or not?!"
"I..."
Whack! Whack! Whack!
"Talk or not? Still not talking? If you still don't talk, I'll keep hitting!"
"Stop..."
"Well, well! Quite the tough talkers, then don't blame me for getting rough!"
In the alley, two masked individuals were hanging upside down in the air. Stelle, brandishing a small whip, lashed out with a series of whacks. Meanwhile, Dan Heng and March 7th were verifying more detailed information about the Underworld with Natasha. Everyone had their own tasks to attend to.
"Phew... You two are real tough guys, I admire that!"
Gasping for breath, Stelle threw aside the small whip. Right in front of the two masked individuals, she pulled out a thick baseball bat and menacingly gestured with it. "Since you won't respond to gentle methods, I'll have to get rough!"
"You better think carefully. A big stick like this coming down—you might not be able to handle it!"
The eyes of the two masked individuals were filled with terror. They desperately tried to say something, but unfortunately, their necks had just been whipped, and now they couldn't make a sound.
If only you'd give us a chance to speak!
"Rules are meant to be broken!"
Stelle raised the baseball bat high. The energy bursting from within her lifted the hem of her clothes. In the eyes of the two masked individuals, this scene was no different from a demon from hell!
"Talk or not?!"
"...Don't—"
Thud!
The baseball bat heavily struck the ground, leaving a fairly deep dent. Stelle put down the bat somewhat frustrated. "...You guys are something else, still not talking even after that."
The two masked individuals were nearly scared out of their wits. Seeing that Stelle hadn't gone for the kill, they finally breathed a sigh of relief, still trembling with fear.
"Dan Heng! March, I'm useless, wuwuwu. I asked for so long, and they still won't talk."
Stelle went to the two of them with a tearful face, seeking comfort. Seeing this, March immediately pulled out her Cloud Piercer. "It's okay, I'll help you!"
The two masked individuals: ??? Don't come over here!
It's not that we didn't want to talk! It's just that you accidentally hit our vocal cords!
Just as March 7th was about to personally step up and resort to torture to extract confessions, Dan Heng reached out and stopped her, shaking his head slightly. "Forget it, March. If they've received professional training, beating them like this is a waste of effort. We might as well think of another way."
The two masked individuals: Yes, yes, yes! We've received professional training. Beating us is useless!
"Hmm... then is it possible that Stelle wasn't harsh enough?" March 7th thought for a moment and said, "Look, Stelle is so kind and cute, how could she bear to be ruthless with them?"
The two masked individuals: ???
What nonsense? Where do you see that this guy is kind and cute? Didn't you see how enthusiastically she was whipping us with that little whip just now?
Dan Heng pondered for a moment. "That also makes sense."
The two masked individuals: ?!!
"Stelle, watch closely."
March took out Cloud Piercer and walked straight towards the two masked individuals. "You can't whip someone to death with just a small whip. You need to use this!"
The two masked individuals immediately began struggling frantically. Their bodies contorted into various positions, but they still couldn't break free from the thin water rope binding their ankles.
"Wait."
Dan Heng reached out and stopped March again. He walked straight up to these two. "I'll give you two one more chance. Reveal your true identities and state your purpose. Otherwise... be prepared to be pierced by Cloud Piercer."
"...Cough cough cough! I... cough cough cough!"
Perhaps March and Dan Heng's actions had truly frightened these two, so much so that, driven by the will to survive, they managed to barely make some sound. "We... we'll talk."
Dan Heng turned around and looked at Stelle, his face full of helplessness. "Did you whip their necks just now?"
Stelle scratched his head. "Uh... I didn't notice."
Dan Heng sweated profusely. He casually snapped his fingers. The water ropes restraining the masked individuals' ankles instantly dissolved, turning into ordinary water droplets and falling. The two were finally free from their bonds and could catch their breath.
After a good while, one masked person said in a hoarse voice, "Sirs, we were only responsible for following you. We meant no harm!"
"Yes, yes. We only earn three thousand Shields a month. There's no need to risk our lives."
"Now, I ask, you answer." Dan Heng said expressionlessly. "First question: who sent you to follow us?"
The two looked at each other and answered somewhat timidly, "I-It was the Supreme Guardian."
Dan Heng nodded. "March, Stelle, take the one on the left away. We'll interrogate separately. If we find their statements don't match, we'll use 'special methods.'"
"Hey, hey, hey, we'll talk, we'll talk!"
Seeing that these people were indeed not easy to fool, the masked individuals hurriedly came clean. "It was Minister of Military Affairs, Mr. Tarorov. I promise we're not lying this time!"
Dan Heng snorted coldly. "Don't try any clever tricks in front of us. Second question: what did your surveillance include?"
"It included your movements in the Administrative District and the people you contacted. We were only responsible for tracking and reporting. We don't know anything else!"
...
While Stelle and the others were conducting their interrogation, on the other side.
"Ahhh~, tired all day today. Finally able to come find you and relax for a bit."
In a remote mechanical workshop in the Administrative District, Serval swaggered into the room and hung a "Closed" sign on the door. "Get me a cup of hot milk, please. Thank you."
"Oh? It's rare to see you get off work while it's still light and complain about being tired. What happened?"
Behind the front counter of the mechanical workshop, a golden-haired woman leaned against the counter with a gentle smile. She was blessed with a generous and ample figure. She leisurely heated a cup of milk for Serval. "Rest for a while first."
If Stelle were here, she would definitely recognize at first glance that this golden-haired woman was Cocolia, the final boss of Belobog in the original storyline.
"Actually, I wouldn't say my body is that tired. It's just that every single thing that happened today was incredibly information-heavy."
Serval rubbed her temples. "Have you heard of ' Visitors from the Sky'?"
"Why ask about that?" Cocolia thought for a moment. "We should have learned about it back in university, right? The monsters from the Fragmentum came from the sky seven hundred years ago. The cold wave arrived at the same time."
"Huh? Was that part of it?"
"...Hahaha, if you say it wasn't, then it wasn't."
Serval downed the hot milk in one go. "While I was on patrol outside the city today, I met several people who claimed to be from outside this world. At first, I didn't believe them, but they genuinely proved themselves... To be honest, this was the first time I've seen a photo of the world we live in."
Cocolia was stunned for a moment. "You said from outside this world?"
Serval nodded. "What? Touching on an area you're interested in? After I finish dealing with matters tomorrow, I'll take you to meet them. Haven't you always been interested in the mysteries beyond the sky? They're good people; they probably won't refuse."
What Serval didn't notice was that upon hearing the words " Visitors from the Sky," Cocolia's expression changed slightly. She silently locked a box under the counter and then said with a smiling face, "Keep going, I'm listening."