Interrogation

After their brief conversation, the female soldier—whose name Levi had learned was Rose—had sent him a rather lavish meal with roasted meat and vegetables. Levi devoured it as if he had never seen food before, and once he was satisfied, he collapsed like a log, only waking up when morning came.

Now, Levi was enjoying a hot shower. His body, once covered in blood and wounds, had mostly healed, though some scars remained, and a few injuries were still in the process of mending—like his left leg, which had nearly been severed by the tall boy.

Even if only psychologically, the scent of blood and despair still clung to him. Nevertheless, Levi hadn't bathed in probably a week, so it felt wonderful to wash himself under the hot water.

'Ah, I'm in heaven,' Levi thought, allowing himself to momentarily forget the looming disaster he was about to face.

He was alone in the government dorm's showers, relaxing under the streams of hot water. After some time, he reluctantly turned off the tap and walked over to the towel rack. As he reached for a towel, his reflection in the mirror caught his eye.

The changes in his physique were subtle but noticeable. His pale skin looked a bit healthier, his muscles more defined. He appeared slender and lean, rather than the frail and skinny figure he had been before. There was even a slight luster to his dark hair and a new shine in his eyes.

'Amn't I handsome?' Levi thought, admiring himself.

In reality, he was mediocre at best—not exactly a picture of masculine handsomeness. 

Nonetheless, he donned the clean clothes provided by the government and walked out of his dorm.

A soldier was already waiting outside his room to escort him to his inevitable doom. Levi nodded briefly to the soldier and began following him toward the place where he would be interrogated.

They walked through the corridors of the massive building and came to a halt at a certain point.

'Bless me, O great demon!' 

Levi prayed as he stood before the interrogation room.

****

An unsettling thing happened today! 

Maya, a priestess of the 'Truth Seeker' God was called upon to the government-managed spire for the same reason.

Today, the followers of Faithful Abundance who were in the Paradise, witnessed a red light pillar- which indicated the birth of a new demonic follower.

But despite their quick actions of pursuing the source of light - they didn't find anything! 

So to be safe - they ordered all the bliss portal stations connected to their stronghold from Earth to be investigated and each member who came out of the bliss portal to undergo the investigation.

Maya was personally called for this reason - one of the trait abilities of those who follow the truth seeker god is their ability to detect if the other person is speaking the truth or not.

Maya had been interviewing the youngsters who had come back from the Paradise for the whole day now. She had already met around 30 youngsters still now.

Both the ones who made contracts with gods and the unfortunate ones who came back with their dreams shattered. 

And despite that, she had yet to find anything suspicious.

She just waited in the government office - waiting for the next youngster and not long after a young man walked in.

The young man who entered the office looked young - she wondered if he was really around 18 because he looked like someone in his 14. He had a thin frame, pale skin, and black hair with occasional grey hairs growing amidst them.

His face was not handsome either, at best he was slightly above average - not that it had anything to do with her.

As he entered the office, Maya introduced herself.

"Hello, I am Maya, a priestess who follows the Truth Seeker. Please take a seat."

The young man nodded at her and sat down before answering.

"I am Levi, Levias Drake"

Maya nodded and saw the form projected from her watch, she checked the box next to Levi and closed it for now.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Levias. You must have been briefed about why the interview is taking place already, so let's not waste any more time. I will be asking some questions - just answer them truthfully and you will be able to walk away just fine."

Levi nodded to her, although curious to know what would happen otherwise.

"I will answer all the questions truthfully to the best of my knowledge."

Maya gave a smile satisfied with his reaction and asked her first question.

"First, when did you enter the Paradise, and how long were you there?"

"I entered the day before yesterday. I don't remember exactly how long I was there, as I was badly injured and lost consciousness. When I woke up, I was back on Earth."

Maya narrowed her eyes slightly at Levi's statement. "You said you were back on Earth when you opened your eyes? How did you return?"

Levi considered lying, claiming he had come through the bliss portal, but he knew that lie would be uncovered sooner or later. So, he decided to tell the truth.

"My patron teleported me back to Earth."

Maya's eyes widened in surprise, but she realized he was telling the truth; otherwise, she would have detected it immediately.

"A patron who cares for their follower that much... interesting," she said, thinking for a moment. She decided to cross-check this information, silently sending a message to those in charge of the bliss portal.

"Then, Levias, I have one last question for you: Which god did you make a contract with?"

Here it was.

The question Levi dreaded the most. He hesitated for a few seconds, unsure of what to say. He couldn't possibly admit that he had made a contract with a demon—he could already envision Maya screaming in horror and the guards stationed outside rushing in, their spears poised to pierce his neck.

But lying wasn't an option either. The priestess in front of him would instantly detect any falsehood. Torn between two impossible choices, Levi's mind raced, his fingers nervously fidgeting as he tried to think of a way out.

But he couldn't stall forever. Maya's eyes bore into him, silently urging him to answer. The pressure mounted until Levi was about to speak—when it happened.

[God of the Forgotten Realms]

"God of the Forgotten Realms?" he blurted out.

'Crap!'

The providence had displayed the message, and Levi had read it aloud without thinking!

---***---

Lore Snippet 08 - Rank

The rank of an individual represents their power level in comparison to others. This rank is bestowed by Providence itself, and when an individual surpasses a certain threshold, they evolve to the next rank.

Human Ranks:

Follower → Priest → Paladin/Templar → Holy Knight → Bishop → Cardinal → Archbishop → Saint.

For humans, this progression is straightforward, but monsters follow a different ranking system. Their power level is determined by two key factors: the number of cores they possess and their level of intelligence.

Monster Ranks:

Dormant Monster → Essence Monster → Vile → Fallen → Terror → Behemoth → Overlord → Mythical Colossal Beast.

However, Levi, being human with a demonic soul, will follow an entirely different path.