I have an idea, and the more I think about it, the more it feels right. The bandits are getting what they deserve, but what about Carnelia’s feelings? I locked them up deep inside my mind so I wouldn’t have to bear her pain. But if I keep that up, they’ll just remain there forever, simmering and festering. No, if I want her to truly be able to let go and move on, I also need to release the anger and hatred that I carry inside of me. I am not looking forward to unearthing those without the guidance of a proper therapist like I did in my old world. But at least I have those experiences to go from. And maybe Kalea might be willing to help me. I chuckle at the thought, while I consider her behavior pretty normal for a dragon, to human standards, she is a psychopath. A big difference from a supportive therapist. But she’s the only one around who can help me right now, and I won’t look a gifted dragon in the mouth.

I return to the bandit’s camp, to find Kalea relaxing and snacking on some dried jerky. She looks up at me in greeting, but quickly sinks away in her thoughts again. The bandits are still where I left them. A quick checkup reveals that they are in very bad condition. And I do my best to use my magic to restore their health just a bit. Not enough to truly heal them, but just enough to prevent them from dying on me. However, I don’t seem to have much success. They will need water and food if I want them to last the week, and probably also some proper rest, not tied up against a tree.

I return to Kalea, Euhm… would you happen to know a way to force someone to eat and drink without deliberately choking themselves? I ask her, looking at the ground with some embarrassment. I can’t believe I hadn’t thought that part of the week through.

That sounds easy, she replies with a frown, just shove a hose down their throat and pour whatever you want through it. I return her frown, it’s good to know this world has those, but I didn’t encounter one in the bandit’s belongings while going through them yesterday. I was hoping for something I could use right here and now.

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Yesterday? She lifts an eyebrow at that, you mean two days ago? You spent more than a day on your first torture session. I … didn’t realize that, I admit, my perception of time can get kind of fuzzy when I’m truly absorbed in something. That does explain the horrendous state my body was in afterward.

Yeah, no shit, Kalea responds, who was the one lecturing me again about needing to keep in mind how fragile human bodies are? Looks like I’m not the only one who needs to adjust to being in one, miss not an infernal. I sigh but don’t even bother to correct her at this point. There’s no way I will be able to convince her that I’m just really bad at staying connected to my body, even if it is my own. I do perk up a bit from the news that I have one less day of torture that I still need to get through. As I return to mulling over the problem of how to keep these bandits alive to reach the end of it.

I finally found a solution in my mage hand and some good old-fashioned physics. I can use my mage hand to change out the gag that is currently in their mouth for something that still keeps it open but allows me to put stuff through as well, without risking them biting my fingers. And for the choking, if stuff does get into their lungs instead of their stomach, I’ll just hang them upside down for a while, maybe make them scream a bit to increase the airflow and force it out. That should be enough to keep them alive.

So I start by making a stew. Since I don’t have a blender, I just let it cook for a long time, and fish out any big pieces remaining afterward. Once it’s cooled down sufficiently, I feed them one at a time. Untying them from their tree, and securing them flat on their back, with a nice pulley system attached to their feet so that I can hose them upside down instantly if it would be needed. As it turns out, I didn’t need it after all, they barely have any strength left, but coughing appears to be an autonomous reaction. And just rolling them over works well enough. It’s evening once again by the time I’m done feeding all of them, and I decide to allow them a proper night’s rest to recover some strength before we continue. I lock one of their chains around a tree and connect their shackles to it instead of stringing them up again.

Tomorrow, I will put my new plan for vengeance in motion. When they are strong enough to survive it.