webnovelfull Chapter 102 : Interrogation
Chapter 102 : Interrogation
Chapter 102: Interrogation
Lilia ascended along the spiral staircase and arrived before an independent tower located on the western side of the Palace of Eternal Night.
She pushed open the door.
At the center of the room was a massive chaise longue.
Camilla was reclining lazily upon it, gently swirling a glass of wine as red as fresh blood in her hand.
Hearing the door open, Camilla didn’t get up, merely lifting her eyelids slightly in a languid manner.
“Oh? A rare guest.”
She chuckled softly, her voice still carrying a trace of lingering intoxication. “What’s this, little Lilia? Finally figured things out and decided to throw yourself into your big sister’s embrace?”
Lilia walked straight toward her expressionlessly, completely ignoring the room filled with suggestive charm.
“I came to ask something.”
“Ask something?” Camilla sat up, the few ribbons on her body swaying dangerously with her movement. “On my territory, asking questions comes at a price. For example…”
She raised a finger and lightly pointed at Lilia’s lips in the air. “Using this to pay?”
Lilia ignored her teasing.
She took a deep breath and stared directly into Camilla’s alluring eyes, her voice cold and firm.
“The batch of human slaves in the Batori mining cave that are about to be transported out.”
“Are your people handling them?”
Camilla set down her wine glass.
The sound of the crystal base tapping against the table was especially sharp in the silent room.
She slowly stood up, barefoot on the soft carpet, walking step by step toward Lilia.
“Little cutie.”
Camilla stopped in front of Lilia, the distance between them no more than a fist. Slightly taller, she lowered her head a bit, her beautiful eyes flashing with dangerous light.
“Do you know what you’re saying?”
Her voice was soft, yet carried a chilling coldness. “Some things shouldn’t be said carelessly. Some matters, once known, cost you your head.”
“I’m not speaking carelessly.”
Lilia stiffened her neck, refusing to lose momentum. “Last night, I heard everything clearly in the Batori mining cave. That batch of goods—human slaves—are to be transported across the border. The contact person mentioned ‘that lord.’”
“In the entire Palace of Eternal Night, someone referred to as ‘that lord’ who controls intelligence networks and underground channels—who else could it be but you?”
Camilla narrowed her eyes.
She reached out, her well-manicured nails lightly tracing across Lilia’s cheek, like the tongue of a venomous snake.
“Where’s your evidence?”
“Evidence?” Lilia sneered. “If you want evidence, I can go back to the inspection department right now and bring over Batori’s ledger. Vanessa and the others are probably working overtime making PPTs—want to come inspect their work?”
Camilla’s finger paused.
She stared at Lilia for a full five seconds, as if assessing whether this little maid was bluffing or truly holding a trump card.
Suddenly—
“Pfft.”
Camilla burst into laughter.
The suffocating pressure instantly dissipated, and she returned to that charming, captivating succubus duke.
“Oh my, why so serious?”
Camilla turned and walked back to the chaise longue, plopping down in an unrestrained posture. “You scared me—I thought you were here to confiscate my property.”
Lilia: …
“So, you admit it?” Lilia frowned.
“Admit what?” Camilla swung her legs, looking innocent. “Admit that I’m beautiful? Or that I have a great figure?”
“Stop playing dumb.” Lilia felt irritation rising. “You know what I mean. Human trafficking!…”
“Alright, alright.”
Camilla raised a hand to stop her, her expression turning slightly playful. “Little Lilia, don’t you think you’ve misunderstood something?”
“What?”
“You think Hera doesn’t know about these things?”
“The Demon Realm isn’t some charity organization.” Camilla picked up her wine glass again, looking at Lilia through the crimson liquid. “This is the Abyss—a jungle where the strong devour the weak. Humans? Heh, in the eyes of many demons, they’re no different from livestock.”
“Border smuggling, underground black markets, human trafficking… these things have existed for hundreds, even thousands of years. Do you think Hera alone can completely eradicate all of this?”
“When water is too clear, no fish survive. Sometimes, to maintain greater stability, one must tolerate certain ‘necessary evils.’”
Camilla’s words were like a bucket of ice water poured over Lilia’s head.
She opened her mouth, only to realize she couldn’t refute it.
That’s right.
She had transmigrated here with the moral values of a modern person, but in the Demon Realm, that logic simply didn’t apply. Here, power was everything, and survival was the supreme law.
“But…” Lilia clenched her fists, “some bottom lines cannot be crossed.”
“Turning them into those… those monsters.” Lilia recalled the disgusting insect eggs in the mining cave. “If this isn’t stopped, it will eventually backfire on the Demon Realm itself.”
Camilla raised an eyebrow. “Monsters?”
Lilia briefly described the biochemical nest deep within the mining cave.
As she spoke, Camilla’s originally indifferent expression gradually became serious.
When she heard that those creatures required no food, no rest, and could work endlessly as long as they consumed special “feed,” the wine glass in Camilla’s hand shattered with a “crack.”
The crimson liquid flowed down between her fingers, dripping onto the white carpet in a striking contrast.
“Damn it.”
Camilla cursed under her breath, her eyes instantly turning razor-sharp. “Those lunatics are still conducting this kind of research!”
Lilia immediately caught the key word. “Still? You know about those things?”
Camilla didn’t answer.
She stood up, casually shaking off the glass shards and wine from her hand, pacing back and forth in the room, looking somewhat irritated.
“That batch of goods is indeed being handled by my people.”
Camilla stopped and turned to look at Lilia. “But I’m only responsible for the intermediary channels, earning a bit of toll. As for who the buyer is—that’s a trade secret.”
“However…”
She paused, a cold smile curling at the corner of her lips.
“Since it involves that kind of disgusting technology, then it’s a different matter.”