Hunter Academy: Revenge of the Weakest

Chapter 730: Chapter 166.2 - Interrogation



Irina released him with a shove, her flames receding as she took a step back. She clenched her fists at her sides, her nails digging into her palms as frustration boiled within her. 'No name. No face. Just the sigil.' The same sigil she now carried in her pocket, a frustratingly ambiguous clue.

Her gaze swept the room one last time, falling on each battered figure in turn. Despite her best efforts, despite her flames and fury, she'd found nothing. No threads to follow. No names to chase. Only fear and uncertainty.

"This is useless," she muttered under her breath, her flames flickering out completely as she turned away. Her fiery hair settled against her back, no longer buoyed by the aura of her power. She clenched her jaw, trying to swallow the bitter taste of disappointment.

From the shadows near the warehouse entrance, Astron stepped forward, his calm presence a stark contrast to the destruction around them. His sharp purple eyes scanned the room before settling on Irina.

"Nothing?" he asked quietly, already knowing the answer.

Irina exhaled sharply, her shoulders stiffening. "Nothing," she admitted, her voice tight. "Whoever's behind this covered their tracks too well. All we've got is that damn sigil."

Astron stood silently for a moment, his sharp purple eyes fixed on Irina as she fumed, her shoulders tense and her fists clenched at her sides. Then, with a slow, deliberate shake of his head, he let out a faint sigh.

"Is this the first time you've done this?" he asked, his voice calm but carrying a weight that immediately caught her attention.

Irina turned to him, her amber eyes narrowing in irritation. "Done what?" she snapped, her tone edged with lingering frustration.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

"Interrogated someone," Astron clarified, his gaze unwavering.

Irina blinked, her irritation faltering for a moment. "Well... yeah," she admitted, her voice defensive. "It's not like I go around interrogating people every day. I'm not some shadow operative. And as a member of the Emberheart family, I don't exactly need to do this kind of thing. Why does it matter?"

Astron nodded slightly, his expression as calm and unreadable as ever. "It shows."

Irina's eyes narrowed further, her frustration flaring anew. "What's that supposed to mean?" "It means," Astron said evenly, taking a step closer to her, "they're lying to you."

Irina's mouth opened, but the retort on her tongue faltered as her mind raced to catch up. She stared at him, the weight of his words sinking in. "What... what are you talking about? How can you even tell?"

Astron gestured subtly toward the group of battered captives sprawled across the warehouse floor. "Their body language, their responses, the inconsistencies. It's obvious they're just lying to you."

Astron's sharp gaze remained fixed on the captives, his calm demeanor unshaken despite the destruction surrounding them. "Irina," he began, his tone measured but firm, "operatives like these don't walk into situations like this without contingencies. Before their operations, they establish a network of misleading information, specifically designed to misdirect anyone inexperienced in extracting the truth."

Irina frowned, her frustration giving way to a flicker of curiosity. "Misleading information? You're saying they planned to lie to me from the start?"

"Exactly," Astron replied, stepping closer to the group. "The moment they realized you weren't experienced in interrogation, they knew they could play you. They've been feeding you pre-crafted scenarios, designed to distract and confuse."

He crouched slightly, his gray eyes narrowing as he pointed to the younger man who had trembled and begged for mercy. "Him, for instance. Notice how his trembling increased when you asked for details about the sigil, but not when you threatened his life? That's a calculated reaction. He's trying to seem more terrified of you than he is of revealing the truth, which means he's hiding something."

The younger man's eyes widened, his breathing quickening as he stammered, "I-I'm not lying! I swear!"

Astron ignored him, his gaze shifting to the stocky woman. "And her. She claimed they threatened her family, but she hesitated when mentioning her son and mother. That hesitation wasn't fear-it was an adjustment. She was trying to remember the cover story she'd been given."

The woman's face paled further, and her lips tightened as she glanced nervously at Rovan.

Astron straightened, his focus now on Rovan, who had remained silent, his jaw clenched tightly. "And you," Astron said coldly. "You've been the quietest of the group, trying to gauge when to intervene. That's because you're the leader, and you know that if you break, the rest will follow."

Rovan's eyes flashed with defiance, but there was a subtle shift in his posture-a tightening of his jaw, a twitch in his hand-that didn't escape Astron's notice. Astron's gaze sharpened further, and he took a deliberate step forward. "You've all been lying. But the truth won't stay hidden for long."

Suddenly, Rovan's eyes widened, and his head jerked forward slightly. Astron reacted instantly, moving faster than anyone in the room could register. His hand shot out, gripping Rovan's jaw and forcing it open. With a sharp tug, Astron pulled a small, silver capsule from the man's mouth, holding it up for Irina to see.

"Poison capsule," Astron said calmly, his voice carrying an edge of cold precision. "Standard protocol for operatives who know too much."

The other captives reacted in panic, their eyes darting toward each other as two more of them moved to bite down on their own capsules. But Astron was already in motion. His hands blurred as he intercepted them, prying their mouths open with practiced ease and retrieving the capsules before they could act. He tossed the capsules onto the ground, crushing them underfoot with a deliberate motion.

The room fell into an eerie silence, broken only by the captives' labored breathing. Rovan glared at Astron, his expression a mix of fear and rage. "You... you're not normal," he spat, his voice hoarse.

Astron held Rovan's furious gaze, his sharp purple eyes unwavering as he spoke with chilling precision. "The term 'normal' is not something the likes of you can use," he said coldly, his tone laced with disdain. He stepped back slightly, tossing the crushed remnants of the poison capsules aside. "To make people like you talk, you need more than threats or brute force. You need precision."

He turned to Irina, his gaze softening ever so slightly. "Do you want to watch what happens next? It won't be a sight that... normal people enjoy."

Irina's amber eyes narrowed as she crossed her arms, her flames flickering faintly around her fingertips. "I want to see," she said firmly. "And I want to participate."

Astron tilted his head slightly, studying her with a quiet intensity. "Are you sure? What we're about to do is different from any fight you've had before. This isn't a battle of strength or flames. It's a battle of will."

"I've seen enough in my life not to flinch at something like this," Irina replied, her tone steady. Her fiery gaze didn't waver as she stepped closer. "If it means getting answers, I'm in.

I'm not fragile, Astron."

A faint curl tugged at the corner of his lips, though his expression remained otherwise unreadable. "Don't blame me later for not asking."

Without further warning, Astron moved with deliberate precision, crouching in front of

Rovan. His presence seemed to darken, his calm demeanor taking on an unsettling edge that made the air feel heavier. The other captives froze, their eyes wide as they watched him with a mixture of fear and dread.

Astron spoke softly, his voice calm but carrying an undeniable weight. "Here's how this works. You talk, and things stay simple. You don't..." He let the words hang in the air, his

sharp eyes narrowing slightly. "And we find other ways."

Rovan sneered, though there was a flicker of unease in his gaze. "You think you scare me?"

Astron's smirk returned, colder this time. "Not yet."

He raised his hand, a faint pulse of mana coalescing around his fingers. Mana twisted unnaturally around him, curling and coiling like living tendrils. The room seemed to darken further, the air growing colder as the mana had taken a physical "laser" form, expanding, brushing against the captives like icy fingers.

Irina watched with a mixture of fascination and unease.

The light wasn't like her flames-it was cold, almost ethereal, with a deadly precision that seemed to defy the natural order. It brushed past the captives, leaving faint trails of frost in its wake, the temperature in the room plummeting with every second. Irina's amber eyes narrowed as she watched, her gaze fixated on the strange energy. "The mana?' she thought, a flicker of confusion crossing her mind. 'It's similar to what I can do with compressed fire, but... this isn't a basic heat. It's rather space-ish?'

She pushed the thought aside as Astron began, his voice cutting through the oppressive silence. "Let's start simple," he said, his tone calm but unyielding. He crouched lower, his

piercing purple eyes locking onto Rovan's with an intensity that made even Irina take notice. "Who gave you the sigil?"

Rovan sneered, his earlier defiance returning as he glared up at Astron. "I already told you, I

don't-"

Before he could finish, one of the blue mana tendrils shot forward, stopping just short of his neck. The beam hissed faintly, releasing a puff of cold air that made Rovan flinch despite

himself.

"Try again," Astron said, his voice steady. "This time, without wasting my time."

Irina crossed her arms, her fiery hair glowing faintly in the dim light as she leaned against the wall, observing the scene. Her frustration had given way to a tense curiosity as she watched Astron work. There was something unsettling about the way he moved-calm, deliberate, and entirely without hesitation.

Rovan's sneer faltered as the tendril pressed closer, the frost creeping along his skin. "I-I told you everything I know!" he stammered, his bravado crumbling under the cold precision of

Astron's gaze.

"You're lying," Astron said simply, his voice devoid of emotion. "And you're bad at it."

Another tendril lashed out, striking the ground inches from Rovan's knee. The floor cracked under the impact, a spiderweb of frost spreading outward. The sound echoed ominously through the warehouse, drawing a gasp from one of the other captives.

Irina shifted slightly, her amber eyes narrowing as she watched Astron.

'This.....He really...'

It was the first time she was seeing such a side of him, and in fact, it was scary....

*********

"It was Hawkins! Hawkins..... They were our employer...." And they finally got the answer that they were looking for......