I looked around the room.

The Royal Guard members had no visible reaction to what their King said.

Were they told already? I wondered. I bet they aren't exactly happy about it.

“Mph...” the tied person grunted and rolled their shoulders.

[Changeling, Lvl 233 Intelligencer]

So that's a Changeling, I thought, observing the person.

They had cerulean blue skin, eyes, and hair. Their facial features were, if anything, indistinct. Neither feminine, masculine, nor androgynous. The Changeling wore a simple linen shirt and pants, and leather shoes covered their feet.

Hanna clicked her tongue, eyeing the people in the room.

The Rulers stood up one by one.

The Ork leaned close to me and whispered, “This is Zalan, Your Excellency. One of the leaders of the group.”

I nodded and whispered back, “How many leaders do they have?”

“Three,” she replied. “Cejiola, Yugulari, and Zalan.”

Cool names, I pondered. A shame they're all morons.

“How did they go about trying to kill you, Gordon?” The Nymph Overseer inquired.

The Tigea looked at me.

I nodded.

“They infiltrated a Demon into the Palace,” he answered.

There was a moment of silence in the room.

“A Demon?” The Human repeated, stroking his chin. “You mean... from Hell?”

Gordon nodded with a serious face.

“This is quite the surprise,” the Harpy muttered. “And honestly hard to believe. Not that I'm doubting your words, but I wonder how?”

Gordon's face soured and he gave me a look. “Do you mind, Your Excellency?”

I took a step forward and looked around the room. “Cover your mouths and noses. The blood has an arousing effect,” I warned.

Everyone present covered their faces with different articles. Some looked like air purifiers, others were simple masks, and others activated a skill.

I extended a hand and let the Demon's corpse flop down to the floor in front of the Changeling.

The fragrant smell of piss, shit, and vomit tickled my nose and my stomach rumbled, stimulated by a depraved hunger.

Fortunately, I managed to turn the small moan that escaped my throat into a hum.

The corpse was lax and limp instead of stiff from being in stasis. The spine moved easily and the head bobbed. The eyelids were still open, and empty black eyes pointed into the ceiling. The wound bled as if it was just been inflicted, staining the clothes further.

“This,” I began, gesturing at the body. “Is a Felyareth. Level 900 at the moment of death.” I crouched and ran a hand over the face, closing the eyes. “It... no... she, had the ability to mentally assault people and drain their Life Energy by doing so. I don't know if you saw the state Gordon was in, but it was pretty bad,” I explained and looked up.

Gordon was looking away from the corpse. His eyes squinted and the cloth covering his face had wrinkled up.

That'd be enough, I concluded and stored the body.

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

The Changeling was staring down at the spot the corpse was at with wide eyes. Their face was pale and their body was trembling slightly.

If what Nerissa said is actually true, then Zolan just saw the dead body of their ancestor, I considered. They must think I have failed the task to protect the being from which they descend... but they're not of this world so I don't care. I blinked and hummed. That's... a bit xenophobic, isn't it?

The King sighed in relief at seeing the body vanish.

I thought it'd be easy for a victim to see the dead body of their assailant, or at least help them in some way, but it seems I was wrong. The mind is a complex thing, after all.

“How did Your Excellency kill it?” Odnik asked.

I shrugged. “Just stabbed the heart,” I replied and stood up, then walked to Gordon.

“How did it fight?” Paveli, the Human, asked.

I ignored him and placed a hand on Gordon's shoulder. “You okay?” I asked.

He took a deep breath and nodded. “Yeah,” the King sighed. “Hit harder than I thought it would.”

I nodded and rubbed his shoulder. “Do you need anything?”

The closest Royal Guard perked up and turned his head to us.

“Water would be nice,” Gordon muttered.

I produced a water pet bottle and offered him it.

“Thank you, Natasha,” he chuckled and took it.

“You have to twist the top,” I told him, pointing at the cap.

He did and drank some.

“Must've been a most foul creature,” Plesani, the Nymph, commented. “Do you need healing, Gordon?” She offered.

He thought for a second then nodded.

The woman walked over and placed a hand on his other shoulder, then used a skill.

I looked at her and appraised her.

[Plesani, Darnali Nymph Lvl 262 Bishop]

“That bad, huh?” Sahaz, the Harpy, muttered. “A foul creature indeed. I propose a break.”

The other Rulers agreed, and Gordon expressed his gratitude.

After a short, 5 minute break, the meeting continued.

The Rulers' faces turned even more serious, and they were looking at the Changeling with disgust.

Zalan, however, was looking at the floor with a vacant expression. Their eyes were a little red and a few wet trails betrayed the tears they shed.

I walked to them and lifted their chin, forcing our eyes to meet. “Regretting your actions?”

Zalan denied it with a shake of their head.

“Good,” I uttered with a smile, then turned to Gordon. “Were they interrogated?”

“Yes, but nothing came out of it,” he replied in a calmer tone than before.

I returned my focus to the Changeling. “Do you enjoy pain?”

“Uh... Your Excellency,” Gordon interjected. “We didn't... employ violence.”

“Ah, well... that's why you didn't get answers,” I pointed out with a frown and replaced my clothes with a white hazmat suit. I produced a dagger and pointed it at Zalan's left eye. “Wanna know far you can bend before you break?”

Zalan scoffed through the gag.

“Let's do it like this,” I started, resting the blade of the dagger on Zalan's cheek, right under the eye socked. “I ask something, and you answer. You lie, refuse, or do anything other than reply... and I'll remove one of your organs.”

The Changeling's eyebrows furrowed.

“I'll start with your stomach,” I continued, moving the dagger down to their torso. “Your left lung is next.” I poked their chest. “Then one of your eyes. After that, I'll go for your right ear. Naturally I'll be using fire to sear the wounds. We don't want you fainting or bleed to death, after all.”

Hanna giggled.

“After I remove every single one of your non-vital organs, I'll open your skull and remove bits of brain,” I kept going. “Little by little, bit by bit. I'll use my best healing potion before you die and we'll do it all over again.” I circled around the Changeling and cut the rope that held them to the chair. I lifted them, produced a pot, removed their pants, and sat them on the pot. “You're free to piss and shit yourself. That's the only thing you'll be eating until you die.” I went back to my position in front of the Changeling and gave them a charming smile. “You better tell the truth from the start since I'm taking your stomach first.”

The room was silent except for Hanna who was nodding along and humming in delight.

“Now, let's begin.” I took the gag off and asked, “Why did this happen to Gordon?”

The sound of liquid hitting metal echoed around us.

Zalan's piss flowed. Their body was shaking slightly. Their lips trembled.

Come on, answer, I grumbled in my mind while smiling. I don't want to do any of that shit. "Let's see if you last longer than Nerissa," I pushed with a whisper.