As I looked into the interrogation room through the window and examined the situation. Mahruss was sitting silently, facing our supposed cheater, radiating a perfect mixture of control and monotony.

Just like I taught. I took a mental note to reward him.

Maybe another ability stone.

It was a tricky choice to call me the moment he faced a problem. It would have been easier if he was one of those people who was happy to be a follower, but Mahruss wanted to prove himself to me.

I doubted he truly realized just how much he wanted that And, with that yearning for approval, most people would have tried to handle the situation on their own until it became too much. Yet, Mahruss called me immediately, not afraid of looking weak.

At first glance, I could see that it was a good call. I didn't know who exactly was this supposed cheater, but I was confident that he was not a professional gambler. Worse, he was too confident for a supposed solo operator.

Unlike the previous attempt, though, there were no visitors.

"I wonder what made you think that cheating in our casino would be a good idea…" Mahruss said, his tone casual and bored like he was going through a checklist with no interest in the answer he would receive. An elementary interrogation tactic, one that worked well to reduce the alertness of the suspect.

Simple yet effective technique that I had been on both sides many times. Not a bad choice.

"Why am I even here? And, what's this nonsense about cheating? I take offense to that," he answered.

I didn't like the tone he used. Confident yet measured, with a tinge of anticipation. I closed my eyes, using my Attunement and Perception at the same time to sense magic. According to Zolast, it wasn't as rare as my unique combination of Speed, Strength, and Agility, but rare enough that people didn't plan against it often.

I was slowly getting better with practice, though I had to stay still and close my eyes for a while. Hopefully, with more practice, I would be able to do it without any delay.

As I stretched my senses, I detected multiple sources of magic on him: Two hidden weapons, a ward plate with an unknown effect … and one active magical connection. It didn't have any kind of flicker, suggesting that it wasn't carrying any active information right now.

Based on his confident state, I was guessing it was some kind of communication spell that doubled as an alarm in case it was suddenly cut.

Pity it had a certain disadvantage. "Dahmut, take the guards and increase the patrols around our land," I said, glad that the casino was right next to the headquarters, which made defending it much easier. "And, just in case, activate the secondary detection wards as well, and send a signal for the outpost to activate theirs."

Detection wards, something I had implemented after my close call with the mana bomb. Apparently, for all their destructiveness, they were easy to detect with magic. I didn't want to end up in that situation again.

"What should I tell them?" Dahmut asked. "Should I raise the alarm?"

"No. For now, tell them it's an unscheduled drill to make sure the wards are working as intended," I said. "And, just in case, activate the tracking ward as well." Dahmut and the rest left after that.

Tracking ward, something Zolast had designed based on my request, one that would allow us to get a general direction of the message. Ordinarily, it could only get a general direction of where the signal lead unless the receiver was also in the town … but if he was going to maintain an active connection, maybe we could use it to pinpoint the location even more accurately.

While I was giving those orders, Mahruss was placing several cards slowly and one by one, alongside a simple sleeve mechanism on the table. Likely the tools our mysterious guest had been using to cheat, in order to stretch the silence further.

Another piece of evidence implying there to be a problem. They weren't exactly terrible, but they weren't particularly well-made either. Certainly, they were nowhere near the best such a man could afford to have based on his other equipment even if he was cheating for fun.

"What are those?" he asked, implicitly denying that they belonged to him, but not even bothering to look convincing, like it was a little game for him. "I've done nothing wrong. When are you going to let me go?"

I used my Charisma to give Mahruss a signal rather than tapping, giving him a secret order. It wasn't as efficient as using the Heroic Party connection as a modified Morse code, but it still worked well enough to give some general commands — especially since he was aware of what to expect.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

The order was to take the interrogation slow and to probe him.

Of course, I could have just gone in and taken over, but I did not. It was better for Mahruss to have some hands-on practice. I wanted to see his interrogation instincts.

"So, are you saying that our guards have planted those on you?" Mahruss said, keeping his tone calm as needed.

"Maybe. It's not like I would know," the cheater said.

"And, several people saw you cheating," Mahruss said, and he just continued to smile genially. "Incompetently, I might add," Mahruss added.

That earned a flicker of emotion. He didn't like his competency being challenged. Good.

"Nonsense," he said, a bit faster than necessary to cover up. "How could they see me cheating if I never cheated," he added.

"Oh, really? You didn't secretly slip an additional card from the Necrotic suit during the game when you bet fourteen denicas," Mahruss said, calling him on his cheating. An accurate call, if his face was any indicator.

More importantly, he recognized the emotional weakness of his target and pounced on it. He was coming along pretty well.

"Of course not. It's nonsense," he said, his voice smooth. Not a bad liar. Just not good enough to trick a man I had trained.

"How about the hand you bet six denicas on, where you managed to get a very nice streak of elemental cards that gave you a nice tidy win. Are you going to say that you were lucky as well?"

"This is getting ridiculous," he responded. "Do I have to stay here and listen to these pointless claims?"

"Yes," Mahruss answered, calm as water, before he started giving several more examples, each making our cheater more frustrated. I was impressed. Mahruss was able to catch a surprising amount of incidents. Though, I didn't miss the pattern. For some of the events, he went into detail, while the others, he just alluded to … and made sure to mix the chronology of the events to make it more convincing.

It was a difficult role to play, but Mahruss acted it well enough.

Our guest got angrier and angrier as he was repeatedly slapped by his failures. He eventually grabbed the table hard enough to leave a crack, his frustration building higher.

I prepared to intervene just in case. Anger was an unpredictable emotion. It could be helpful in loosening lips, but it also made people act out.

Mahruss was strong, but not as strong as the cheater that we had caught. His cheating abilities already showed his Agility, and his Strength was shown by the ease he shattered the table. Not exactly a rare combination, but that didn't mean it wasn't dangerous.

Especially if they were as high as I guessed. He either had a worker class but higher than level sixty, or he had a better class.

My money was on the latter.

At that time, Dahmut returned. "Boss, the ward worked as intended, and we managed to identify the other side of the constant communication," he said, passing me a map, with a location marked. It was a spot near a hill.

Between Town Yoentia and Town Maell, though much closer to our town.

The problem, it was even closer to our hunting outpost, barely five miles away.

"Interesting location," I said, wondering if it was an attempt from House Maell, or someone trying to sell me that idea. "Bring back the guards, and be ready to support Mahruss if necessary, while I go and have a talk with Knight Artmiss," I said. At the same time, I used Charisma to give another order to Mahruss:

Stall.

With that, I left the casino, found an alleyway before I activated Concealment, and rushed out of the town. Two minutes later, I was near the hill, searching for their presence.

They were well hidden. Even knowing their general location, it took a while for me to find their outpost, which was mostly underground. I could only see four concealed guards, watching to see if there were any visitors.

Two of them, I recognized. They were soldiers of House Maell. Guards of the manor, to be precise.

Considering there was only one well-guarded entrance, sneaking in would have been extremely difficult, and assaulting would have been even more troubling. Even if I succeed, it would still be an attack against a noble house, bringing a lot of trouble along.

Luckily, I didn't need to dirty my own hands. Why shouldn't I use the official channels to handle it … and, if I could manage, spread the blame around.

When I returned to the town, my first destination was my office. I picked a hidden set of armor, and then went to the interrogation room. Dahmut and the guards were standing guard as I had requested, while Mahruss was continuing the interrogation.

"… and, that was another hand where you were playing a bit loose with the cards," Mahruss delivered, while the expression of the target was mired with boredom. After all, even the most scathing insult would lose its importance eventually.

Just as I had hoped. Now, I just needed to give him a push, one that would leave him suspicious.

I sent all the guards away except Dahmut, and once they left, I changed into my new armor. The distinct outfit of the officers of the Night Blades, followed by a helmet.

"Boss?" Dahmut asked, looking confused.

"From now on, I'm a Night Blades officer, here to take him as a prisoner, understood?" I explained. "Any idea why?" He shook his head, showing that, unlike Mahruss, he still needed quite a bit of work to be trusted with any independent commands.

We had time … well, hopefully.

"Now, I want you to open the door and call Mahruss out. Then, I want you to go and reduce the guards in a way that leaves a clear escape path, but try not to make it too obvious," I said.

"Yes, boss," he said. He opened the door and called out Mahruss. That also allowed our prisoner to get a glimpse of me, the sudden interruption to his boredom making it very hard for him to react.

His first reaction was a deep sense of indignation, like he had just experienced a huge betrayal, further confirming my guess that he was working for House Maell. The betrayal of their nominal allies surprised him.

Of course, it was hardly the most convincing ploy, but luckily, Charisma allowed me to take some shortcuts. A little push to his emotions and that sense of being betrayed solidified in his mind, along with pure anger.

Solidifying his conclusion that he had been betrayed by the Night Blades.

"Good work," I said to Mahruss, who recognized me easily despite the armor. "Now, go and make sure the prisoner escapes."

"Yes, boss," he said, his expression implying that he understood the operation I was going for immediately. Good adaptability. "Anything I need to do?"

"Stay near the escape path, and make sure he doesn't injure anyone," I ordered. Meanwhile, I moved to a shadowy corner and used my Concealment, ready for the next, and the most important, stage of my plan…