Chapter 20

'Why am I even doing this ? ' Valdimir asked himself probably for the hundredth time that day as he limped down the corridor. There was dampness to the brick walls as the hallway was deep beneath the ground. Just a few lanterns lit the gloomy path. Environment best suited for his job.

'I wonder what my friends would be doing right now? Enjoying a drink at this hour or spending the night warm in some woman's company I bet.' Even words like friends and woman seemed so surreal to him now.

Valdimir hummed to the rhythm, there was a rhythm to his walking, first the click of heel, then the cane, then came dragging of his foot followed by searing pain in the ankles and curses a lot of them. He has named it the rhythm of anguish, a very suitable name indeed, anguish both for him as well the hearer.

Well his anguish was yet to increase as the rhythm was obstructed by stairs. It was ironic how the torturer had to himself be tortured before torturing, like gods were at work here if there was one.

There were only a few people he hated as much as his dead step-mother or king Jamine and that was the inventor of stairs. Well the two for an obvious reason of betraying him and stairs for reminding him what a living jest he was made into. What his friends of old would think if they saw him like that, 'Valdimir Belmont the head of king's own shuddering at even the name of few steps.' Valdimir snorted in self-loath.

His whole body ached as worked his way slowly down the stairs. Each ache reminding him of how he was tortured by those bandits. Valdimir abhorred them initially and even got them killed later for what they made him into. But the whole of the blame was not their's to bear.

It was the king and his step-mother that was to be blamed for not meeting the ransom demands. Hundred gold shrillings for his life was all they demanded. He had been relieved when he heard the amount. A petty amount in exchange for the young knight of twenty-nine, the youngest to head the elite King's own battalion, a prodigy they called him back then. What would they call him if they see him now,

'Valdimir the cripple probably'.

He stopped in front of a rusty iron door for breath, air passing through his missing front teeth. With his free hand he rubbed his trembling legs, it would look bad for him to look weak. His whole job was to look intimidating and of course torturing for truths and he could proudly say he passed both the criteria with flying colors.

Once his legs were stable and his breathing normal, he gave a light knock on the metal door.

The door soon opened and a man with a huge build stood at the door. His lower face covered by a mask to hide his burnt flesh beneath.

"Assistant Sabu," Valdimir greeted the man.

The big man gave a slight nod and stepped aside.

It took Valdimir a few seconds to adjust to the brightly lit room, the ceiling was uncomfortably low, Sabu's hair brushed through the ceiling as he walked to the other corner of the room.

In between the room stood a blood-stained table, bolted to the floor and two chairs facing each other. A naked fat man sat on one of the table, his fat bulging out of the chair. Both of his hands were tied behind his back and a sharp rod was piercing through his palms right at the center.

"You learning fast. Good job" 'for starters' he appreciated his assistant, as he looked at the fat man's face. One of his eyes had a big swell and it just looked like a blue lump of mass, Valdimir was sure it won't be of any use. The man's erratic breathing was the only sound in the silent room.

With a limp Valdimir went over the chair and sat on the unoccupied one, facing the fat man.

'You ugly creature. Hope you ready to confess.'

"Okay Alok, time to give out names." Valdimir spoke resting his cane on the table.

Alok's remaining eye fluttered as he looked at Valdimir , he was sweating even when it was cold down here. "I know you will kill me," he spoke "nobody who knows about the mine leaves the place. So why should I betray others. They all will soon tell everyone outside this Island."

'That's true, I hope I could leave when my deal ends' Valdimir thought, and looked at Alok 'one last struggle to act tough.'

"This whole Kolar Island is sealed and every merchant of the Island is under custody, don't you know everything here is controlled by Cenetaur Tremeur." Valdimir felt a chill as he took that tyrant's name.

"Listen to me Alok and listen carefully." he tilted forward towards the merchant, Valdimir's back ached but it was bearable, "There are things worse than death. You think what my assistant did to you was all we had. Trust me Alok the torture part has not even started. Not even a single bone is broken, all the nails and finger are intact." Valdimir looked all over the fat man " The skin's all intact, I don't see much blood out, and not even a single vein or intestine have been pulled out yet. And you know what the best part about torturing people like you are ."

Valdimir gave a long pause, it was crucial. You have to give these people time to imagine the possibilities and ninety percent of them broke just after the pre torture.

"The extra fat. I could easily cut out handful of it and I am sure some of it would still bulge out of that chair. It takes deeper cuts to reach the organs, too much blood and too much screams."

Alok let out a deep wail but still gave away nothing.

'Some action then' Valdimir did a slight hand gesture and in the next second, Sabu walked up to Alok adjusting his brass knuckles. He punched the fat man from the side. Alok sprawled on the ground along with the chair, his cheek cut with the gash.

"You really look like a pig" Valdimir spoke absently as he heard a knock on the door. Sabu by the time was hauling up the fat man along with his chair.

"Sabu get things started, it seems merchant Alok wants to test our patience." He then looked at the fat man "And it seems he succeed."

There was another knock on the metal door. The sound echoed in the empty room.

"Wait, atleast give this cripple some time " Valdimir shouted and started limping towards the door, the same rhythm he had been hearing for the past eight months.

'It better be important. ' he opened the door and saw a man with metal armor, and a sword on the hip, holding a letter in his hand.

"Letter" Valdimir stretched his hand to the shocked soldier who was looking past him inside the room at the screaming merchant, too startled to even remember why he was here.

"Y..yes Investigator."

'Red seal.' Valdimir brows raised and he quickl snatched the letter from the soldier.

Once the letter was handed the man scurried away, without as much as glancing back.

Valdimir quickly undid the seal and read the letter, his expression changed from worry to amusement. He carefully folded it again and kept it in his pocket.

'It is like reading an adventure story with a young man single handedly taking out the whole guild.'