Chương 20: The Prisoner Experience (2)

Hale drifted into a dream. A remarkably warm, tranquil dream. He was sitting atop a towering roof, gazing out toward a fading horizon. The entire city below was bathed in a brilliant, fiery orange hue. A hand reached out, gently touching his left hand. It hesitated for a split second, pulling back slightly before slowly covering his palm. He could hear the thumping of his own heart echoing loudly in his chest. Sitting beside him was a beautiful young girl.

Her golden hair swayed gently in the evening breeze, her cheeks flushed a soft crimson under the twilight rays.

"Thank you for the advice regarding fire magic," she murmured softly.

"It really helped me out a lot." He heard his own voice reply, "I guess everyone has their blind spots. For me, it's water manipulation, and you've been a huge help on that front too." The girl smiled, the rosy blush on her face deepening. The two slowly leaned closer toward one another, until their breath almost intertwined... Hale jolted awake, instantly blinded by the harsh morning sunlight. He instinctively tried to raise a hand to rub his eyes, only to remember he had no functional arms available.

He felt as though he had just emerged from an extraordinarily sweet dream, a lingering warmth still hovering in his chest. Yet the moment he tried to reconstruct the memory, the details dissolved into mist. All around him, the escort unit was already packing up tents and preparing the convoy for departure. Venessa was no longer seated beside his cage. Hale's neck felt as stiff as a wooden plank after spending the entire night sleeping upright.

He was genuinely surprised his body had managed to stay asleep continuously in such an uncomfortable posture. The slumber hadn't refreshed him in the slightest; if anything, he felt significantly worse. A dull, pounding headache hammered behind his temples, accompanied by a hollow stomach and a parched throat. Still, the rest had cleared the lingering panic from yesterday's abrupt ambush. His head was more clear now. A sudden wave of irritation washed over him.

Whether I like it or not, I'm stuck carrying the notorious reputation of a feared archmage. Why on earth am I letting myself suffer like a pathetic dog? He raised his foot, slamming it hard against the iron bars of the transport cage, bellowing at the top of his lungs:"Hey! I'm starving! If you don't bring me a proper meal right this second, I swear I'll drag every single one of you to hell with me!" The soldiers packing up supplies froze simultaneously, exchanging anxious, hesitant glances.

Hale yelled louder:"Are you all deaf or dumb?! Are you saving bread or saving your own lives?! You think I don't have the nerve to blow us all up?!" Venessa, who had only managed to catch an hour of sleep inside her carriage, was snapped awake by the racket. Stepping out into the crisp morning air, she found the man who had looked utterly anxious and subdued yesterday now cursing up a storm from inside his cage. Pinching the bridge of her nose, she turned to a nearby aide.

"Fetch him a plate of bread and cured meat. Put it on a proper dish, don't throw it onto the floor like yesterday." The soldier hesitated, stammering, "B-but he's bound in chains... how is he supposed to eat?" Venessa weighed the issue for a brief second before sighing softly.

"Hand the plate to me." Watching the young Archmage personally approach his cage carrying breakfast, Hale maintained a fierce, defiant glare.

"Unchain me." Venessa offered no verbal response, quietly gesturing for a guard to unlock the cage door. Hale felt a flicker of hope in his chest, assuming she was going to release his left hand, and shifted closer to the opening. To his absolute disbelief, she simply reached onto the plate, picked up a thick piece of bread, and extended it directly toward his face. Hale stared at her, blinking in total bewilderment. The girl met his gaze, her tone detached and icy.

"Eat. Don't waste your breath asking to be unchained. That isn't happening." If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. Hale couldn't believe his ears.

"You're... actually going to hand-feed me instead of taking off these damn chains?!"

"You are far too dangerous. I am not risking the lives of my subordinates." Hale let out a dry, exasperated scoff. But his stomach was screaming, and being fed by a stunning Archmage was infinitely better than crawling on all fours to eat off dirt like an animal. Besides, it wasn't like he was unaccustomed to it—Maddie had been feeding him every single day up until recently anyway. So, setting his pride aside, he opened his mouth and bit into the cold slice of bread.

Venessa's hand flinched backward a fraction, clearly unaccustomed to playing caretaker. Hale licked his lips, shooting her a slightly provocative look.

"If you're embarrassed, just unchain my hand so I can feed myself. No need to make things awkward for yourself." Venessa didn't reply, simply shoving the remaining piece of bread right into his mouth. Hale winced, his brow furrowing.

"This is way too dry. I need water. I haven't had a single drop since yesterday afternoon." Venessa gestured for a guard to bring over a canteen. The soldier approached with trembling knees, his hands shaking so violently it looked as though he expected Hale Wallace to manifest a wind blade and sever his arm at any second. A large splash of water missed Hale's mouth entirely, soaking the front of his tunic. Terrified that he had enraged the dark mage, the soldier scrambled backward several paces in a panic.

Venessa began seriously considering whether she needed to implement stricter courage drills for her unit. An elite unit serving under an Archmage couldn't be this skittish when approaching a securely bound prisoner. Then again, transporting a high-threat entity capable of catastrophic destruction was an exceptionally rare deployment. She mentally noted that she might write a specialized tactical handbook detailing this experience for future reference.

Left with no alternative, Venessa picked up the canteen herself, methodically feeding Hale three portions of salted meat bread and tilting the flask for him until his thirst was quenched. Finishing his meal, Hale let out a loud, dramatic sigh.

"Not a single green vegetable or fruit in sight. I'm going to end up constipated at this rate." Venessa: "..." Right. Now I have to figure out how to handle his bathroom breaks. The realization crossed Hale's mind at the exact same moment. To be completely honest, he... wasn't overly fussed about it. He certainly wasn't shy about having someone pull down his trousers for him—the size of "that thing" on this body were actually quite something to brag about.

Ultimately, they decided against letting him step out of the cage entirely. Instead, the transport wagon was wheeled into a secluded thicket, where a small trapdoor built into the cage floor was unlatched to let him handle his business. The rest of the day proceeded considerably smoother. Having realized the distinct "perks" of being a feared villain, Hale stopped letting himself take the short end of the stick.

Essentially, as long as he didn't demand the removal of his chains or shackles, his basic comfort requests were granted to a reasonable extent. Meanwhile, he kept his brain working overtime, analyzing potential escape routes. Every so often, when scanning the distant skyline, he would catch a glimpse of a massive pair of wings gliding through the clouds.

Due to the vast distance, he couldn't verify whether it was Maddie or simply a large bird of prey, but he maintained absolute faith that she was trailing the convoy from the shadows. The primary hurdle now was figuring out how to break out of the iron cage itself. Even if he activated an Invisibility Cloak from the system shop, he still needed to physically clear the iron bars. The guards were exercising extreme caution, refusing to let him step foot outside the cage for even a second.

Willing the system interface to open, a translucent blue screen materialized before his eyes. This was his first time navigating the shop menu without using his hands, and it turned out to be far easier than he had expected. Browsing through the directory, one item caught his attention: the Master Versatile Key. It was described as capable of bypassing 98% of physical lock mechanisms across the world with a tiny infusion of Mana. A permanent acquisition.

It was precisely what Hale needed right now, but the price tag sat at a steep 200 Merit points. Currently, his Merit balance stood at 567 points. The Invisibility Cloak cost 500 Merit points. If he purchased the cloak, he would be short on points for the versatile key, and vice versa. Buying the key without the cloak meant he'd be spotted the instant the cage door swung open; buying the cloak without the key meant he'd just be an invisible guy trapped inside an iron cage.

As he weighed his limited options, a bizarre metallic sound echoed through the air—resembling two metal goblets clinking rapidly against one another. The sound was emanating directly from Venessa's person. Venessa reached into her cloak, retrieving a delicate, circular metallic device roughly the size of a pocket compass. The moment she flipped the latch open, the metallic clinking ceased, replaced by a clear, projected voice:"Emergency broadcast to all Archmages. Repeating, emergency broadcast to all Archmages.

A new Dungeon has manifested in a wheat field three miles northwest of Soulake City, east of Stonefield Town. Zero monster emergence detected thus far. Knight Luke Simpton of Soulake has been deployed to secure the perimeter. All available Archmages are requested to transmit their current coordinates for immediate deployment." Hale and every guard within earshot heard the transmission clearly. Some kind of magical walkie-talkie, Hale deduced. An instant wave of hushed whispers rippled through the ranks.

Venessa's chief lieutenant stepped forward, his expression grave.

"Our current location sits extremely close to that dungeon coordinate. However, we are currently hauling a high-value, dangerous target. What are your orders, M'Lady Venessa?" Venessa's brows knitted together. She tapped the metallic device, projecting her voice: "This is Venessa Halley. My unit is positioned roughly five miles from the reported coordinate, but we are currently escorting Hale Wallace."

A brief silence hung over the line before the projected voice responded:"Target Hale Wallace represents an extreme security threat. You are strongly advised to maintain your primary escort directive. Archmage Brian Wilson's unit has reported an estimated time of arrival in five hours to assume dungeon exploration duties."

"Five hours..." Venessa murmured, her eyes fixing onto the distant horizon as her tone turned tense.

"Will they be able to hold out that long?"