Chapter 4 – Ryuen’s submission

How about dropping some power stones?

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Water torture, a method that leads the prisoner to mistakenly believe they are about to drown, is extremely ancient. It dates back to the time of Hammurabi's Code and is universally recognized as a cruel form of punishment.

Upon realizing the nature of this punishment, Ryuen began to lose some of his confidence, his voice not as steady as before.

Ryuen always considered himself fearless, but the sensation of drowning doesn't care whether you are afraid or not. The brain's misconception of impending death is not something that can be simply ignored by human awareness.

"Yukio, be mindful of the limits," the usually silent class advisor, Sakagami Kazuma, advised from his corner of the classroom.

He had watched the students' brawl as if it were a mere spectacle, only stepping in to caution Yukio when it came to water torture, signaling him not to go too far. After all, water torture could indeed lead to death.

Yukio responded with a laugh and then turned to Ishizaki: "What are you waiting for? Pour the water."

In that moment, Ishizaki felt a chilling terror! His skin broke out in goosebumps, as if he had seen a devil's smile hidden under a shirt.

From then on, he knew he must never cross Yukio. Silently resolving this, Ishizaki poured the water from the bucket over his jacket and onto Ryuen's face.

The water completely soaked the jacket, and Ryuen lay there, motionless as if nothing was wrong. But within half a minute, he could no longer bear it.

Water was everywhere, continuously flooding in. Ryuen could only feel the wet jacket clinging tightly to his face, completely obstructing his airways.

No matter how hard he breathed, his nostrils and mouth couldn't draw in any oxygen. It even felt like the wet jacket was vacuuming the life-saving oxygen out of him.

With his head down and feet up, blood pooled in his head, and the oxygen couldn't circulate properly. His respiratory center was stimulated, his heart rate involuntarily sped up, leading Ryuen to struggle instinctively.

But no matter how he kicked, he couldn't break free from Albert's rough, muscular arms, and Yukio firmly held down his arms and head. He was completely unable to escape this extreme suffocation.

In just over a minute, Ryuen couldn't hold on any longer. His fingertips visibly turned purple and blue. His body spasmodically twitched from time to time in extreme agony.

The overwhelming sensation of suffocation and drowning forced Ryuen to inhale the water inside the jacket, even if it meant blocking his airways.

This was not an action that human rationality could control, but a subconscious impulse for survival.

But this act was like drinking poison to quench thirst, providing only a second of brief relief, followed by water blocking the airways and intensifying the pain of suffocation.

Large amounts of water were inhaled by Ryuen into his stomach, lungs, trachea, and bronchi. The irritation of the water in these organs was unbearably painful.

This silent agony and convulsions terrified the students of Class C: "He's going to die! He's really going to die!"

"Teacher, teacher! Mr. Sakagami! Are you not going to stop this?!"

Some students had already approached the classroom's back door, ready to leave. On one hand, fear and other negative emotions had overwhelmed their fragile hearts. On the other hand, some wanted to go outside and call for help.

However, Sakagami was quite permissive of Yukio's actions, instead keeping a close watch on the classroom's back door: "Leaving now will have consequences, and in severe cases, you might even be expelled."

"What?!"

"How... How could this be?! Expelled?"

Hearing such severe punishment, which student would dare to leave? They all knew the benefits of graduating from Advanced Nurturing High School, which could lead to a class leap.

So, despite their excitement at being admitted, the possibility of being expelled on the first day of school was something they couldn't accept, nor dared to risk.

At least, from that moment, all the students in Class C understood one thing: something was not right with this school, something was definitely amiss.

Seeing that it was about time, Yukio finally helped to remove the jacket. He didn't care about the other students. Once the jacket was removed, Ryuen's face, now drenched and swollen purple like a pig's liver, was visible.

Even after getting a breath of fresh air, he coughed out a lot of water and then gasped for air desperately, like a bellows in a blacksmith's forge, making loud noises with each inhale and exhale.

After somewhat recovering, Ryuen slowly came back to his senses, gazing faintly at the ceiling, as if marveling at the beauty of life.

Shortly after, Ryuen, seemingly awakening from his appreciation of life, turned to Yukio with a mocking look, as if to say, "Is that all? You didn't dare to kill me in front of the teacher, did you? If there's no threat to life, then what's the big deal about water torture?"

"As long as I'm alive! I will always find Yukio's weakness, and when the time comes, I, Ryuen, assure you, will be like the deadliest snake, hiding in the dark, always seeking an opportunity! I will make sure Yukio knows who the real winner is in the end!"

But just as Ryuen was about to spew more venom, Yukio, without a word, wrapped the jacket around him again, ordering Ishizaki to continue pouring water, infuriating Ryuen so much that he could only choke back his curses.

Damn it!! Can't you just be human?! Can't you let him have the last word?!

Seeing Ryuen's miserable state and his recent convulsions and struggles, Ishizaki, despite his fear of Yukio, couldn't help but feel uneasy: "Do we still need to continue pouring? Won't he, won't he die?"

"Pour." Yukio gave Ishizaki a single command.

Seeing Yukio's smiling, gentlemanly demeanor, Ishizaki, for some reason, felt that this man's smile was even more terrifying than his fury.

Without any further hesitation, Ishizaki poured water furiously, and then assisted Yukio in holding down Ryuen's arms, obedient as a kitten, not daring to express any objections.

Ryuen, who was barely getting any oxygen, once again felt the deadly sensation of suffocation and drowning!

This feeling was truly horrendous! The sensation of all breathing pathways being completely blocked by water, unable to draw in even a bit of oxygen, caused Ryuen to convulse and struggle in extreme agony.

Yet he couldn't break free, forced to endure this torture. He could even faintly sense that real death was just around the corner; a few more minutes of this water torture could mean the end of his life.

Suddenly, Ryuen's struggles intensified. He twisted and writhed all over the floor, desperately trying to break free, but Albert's strong grip made it impossible for him to escape.

The students of Class C watched in horror, their faces pale, unable to bear the sight. They lowered their heads, their fear of Yukio reaching new heights.

"That's enough." Yukio finally removed the jacket from Ryuen's face. Ryuen was barely breathing, looking as if he was on his last breath, his face excessively wrinkled from soaking in water, as if aged with countless fine lines.

Even more embarrassingly, thick mucus clogged his nostrils, involuntarily exhaled and sticking to his nose, completely ruining his appearance.

"How about it? Ready to behave now?" Yukio gestured towards the still-dripping jacket, smiling radiantly.

But to Ryuen, Albert, and Ishizaki, that smile felt cold and chilling.

In that moment, Ryuen averted his gaze, unable to meet Yukio's eyes any longer, feeling like Yukio was not human at all!!

Water torture is not just about suffocation and running noses! The reason why Ryuen struggled so fiercely towards the end was because he almost couldn't suppress his body's instincts.

In that desperate situation, his body convulsed until his skeletal muscles weakened, causing significant issues with his excretory system. In other words, if Yukio hadn't removed the jacket at the last moment, Ryuen might have lost control over his bodily functions.

This was a devastating blow to Ryuen's psyche, coupled with the physical torment of suffocation. Both mentally and physically, he had been utterly defeated by Yukio.

From now on, Ryuen was unlikely to plot anything. Any small thought would involuntarily bring back memories of this deadly suffocation and mental anguish.

No matter how brazen Ryuen was, he dared not oppose any further. Even if he was subjectively unwilling, psychologically, he had already submitted.

People who have never experienced such torturous punishment can hardly understand Ryuen's complex state of mind.

But that's the reality. Those who ascend to power through violence, when confronted with a more violent adversary, are naturally pulled down from their throne and stepped on.

But Yukio could clearly see Ryuen's true state of mind. Kindly, he took out a pack of tissues and handed them to Ishizaki: "Here, Ishizaki, help Ryuen wipe his face."

"Yes! Yukio-san!"

Seeing Ishizaki obediently following orders, Yukio opened his mouth to correct him, then thought better of it and let it be.