Chapter 14 I Lie to Myself!

"Lady Milani, I need to tell you something."

"Your last words?"

Milani made a joke that she probably didn't think was funny.

As she spoke, she embedded the final Magic Stone into the groove on the stone slab.

With a violent tremor, the Magic Matrix engraved into the slab slowly lit up, and all the nodes instantly connected.

The *Eye of the Soul* carved at the center of the Magic Matrix grew increasingly vivid and terrifying.

It felt as if some powerful, eerie presence was peering into Lynn's mind through the stone slab.

Seeing this, Lynn adopted a tone of urgency and immediately said, "Oxygen is poisonous, if we don't leave this place soon, we'll die!"

"Save the jokes for later,"

Milani chuckled lightly, finding his statement amusing.

It was futile.

*Lynn understood immediately.*

Oxygen couldn't possibly be poisonous.

On the contrary, without oxygen, humans would undoubtedly die.

For humanity, this was an ironclad rule and an immutable Law—not something that could be easily altered.

"Lie Swallowing" was currently only First Rank; it couldn't distort universally accepted truths.

As a result, the moment Lynn uttered this lie, it was instantly exposed.

But Lynn didn't lose heart. After a moment of thought, he continued, "It's unbearably hot in this room."

In reality, this room was in the manor's underground cellar, perpetually damp and isolated from sunlight.

It was definitely not hot.

Thus, it was a lie.

Upon hearing Lynn's words, Milani paused her actions, seemingly deep in thought.

After a moment's hesitation, she nodded slightly and tugged at the collar of her lab coat, trying to let more air in. "It does feel a bit—wait, no, not really. Actually, it's not that warm, and you aren't wearing any clothes. Don't try to make excuses."

The lie was exposed again.

But this time was different.

Lynn clearly noticed that this second lie briefly gained Milani's trust.

This was because the feeling of heat was distinct from immutable truths—it was an ever-changing, highly subjective sensation.

Some people might feel icy cold even during the height of summer, while others could roam outside in a T-shirt during the dead of winter.

From this experiment, Lynn began to grasp a faint understanding of how "Lie Swallowing" worked.

At the same time, a spark flashed in his mind.

*He decided to reevaluate his prior judgment of this ability.*

*If utilized skillfully, it might absolutely help him escape this experiment unscathed.*

But he needed further testing.

"This experiment is doomed to failure."

"Stop with the defeatist attitude; it'll definitely succeed."

"Lady Milani, you've fallen in love with me."

"I deeply love all my test subjects. The condition is—you have to survive first."

"Lady Milani, I'm actually quite ugly."

"Hmm."

"Hey, hey, don't believe that one!"

...

A few minutes later, Milani completed all the pre-experiment preparations.

"You've been chatting a lot just now," she remarked thoughtfully, casting Lynn an inquisitive glance. "Were you trying something?"

"Too bad, this is the deepest part of the 'cellar,' a hundred meters below ground. There are over ten more floors above this one, even if you somehow escape from here, you'll still be caught by the patrols."

"You should abandon those pointless thoughts first… But speaking of which, letting the test subject harbor resistance might affect the results."

Milani sighed, "Let me be upfront—you won't die. Her Highness Princess Ivyst specifically ordered the experiments to be conducted without endangering your life."

Lynn's eyes lit up. "Oh?"

"At worst, you'll end up in a vegetative state, never to awaken,"

Milani said matter-of-factly.

*That's even worse, damn it!*

*Lynn inwardly cursed.*

But outwardly, he maintained an air of resignation, wearing an expression of submission.

"Since you've put it that way, I'll comply… But before we start, could you grant me one last request?"

"Generally speaking, no," Milani scratched her tangled short hair, "Her Highness said that I should refrain from talking to you at all once you wake up."

"But you've been pretty chatty just now."

"That's because, honestly, I'm not a very principled person."

Milani shrugged at her own words.

However, since her oversized clothing hung loose on her shoulders, some of the fabric slipped off, revealing a patch of pale skin.

She seemed not to notice and casually pulled the clothing back into place, asking, "So, what's your final request?"

"Please give me a mirror."

Milani thought for a moment, then turned and rifled through the clutter piled on the table. After some searching, she unearthed a palm-sized hand mirror and held it out to Lynn.

"Here, take it." She recalled his earlier remarks and couldn't help but shake her head in disbelief. "You really are narcissistic."

"Can't help it; it's the gift of genetics,"

Lynn replied casually.

Then he raised his head and looked toward the mirror Milani held out to him.

The reflection showed a young man with striking looks, an air of nobility, and piercing blue eyes glowing with vitality.

But Lynn's purpose wasn't to admire his handsome features one last time before the experiment commenced.

His objective was far simpler.

Staring at the mirrored version of himself, Lynn took a deep breath and activated the power of "Lie Swallowing" once again.

*Simultaneously, he whispered inwardly,*

*I must… lie to myself!*

...

Milani had been fully prepared to sound the alarm.

After all, under these circumstances, his oddly calm request for a mirror seemed downright suspicious.

Combined with his earlier strange remarks, Milani couldn't help but feel something was off.

Though he was just an ordinary person, he was, nevertheless, under Princess Ivyst's special orders.

Still, driven by professional curiosity, she wanted to see what Lynn intended to do.

In the end, all he did was glance quickly at the mirror, as if bidding a silent farewell to his looks, then sighed heavily and said, "Let's begin."

Hearing this, despite her lingering doubts, Milani nodded.

Enough of this—it was time to focus on the experiment.

With that in mind, the scientist—true to her love of experiments—quickly discarded her confusion.

Milani approached the stone slab one last time, conducting a final inspection of the Magic Matrix and its connection to the headgear.

Then she exchanged a quick glance with Lynn, scooped up a handful of silvery-white powder from a nearby container, and gently scattered it over the Magic Matrix and the engraved Eye of the Soul.

"Boom—"

With the flash of silver flames, an intensely bright light, akin to a miniature sun, filled the underground laboratory!

Milani squinted and shielded her forehead with her palm, staring intently at the figure at the epicenter of the radiance.

Power surged palpably into the headgear, transmuting into whispers and suggestions that reverberated perpetually in Lynn's ears.

The sheer force of it resembled a mental baptism, washing over him in endless tidal waves, carving the triggers of hypnosis deep into the vast expanse of his psyche!

After what felt like an eternity, the light on the slab gradually dimmed.

Milani's pulse quickened slightly.

Without fail, this moment—the revelation of experimental results—always brought a thrill to her chest.

Once the Magic Matrix was completely dormant and all instruments stopped humming, she hurried toward the chair-bound youth.

"How… are you feeling?"

"I feel awful,"

Lynn's sluggish words drifted from his mouth.

Milani propped up his head and raised her eyes to look.

The young man's previously vivid, piercing blue irises were now dull and lifeless—a vacant gaze, brimming with emptiness.

Like a robot programmed only to follow orders.

*Could it be… the experiment succeeded?!*