The mont Adam and his team reached the entrance of the town, a squad of ard officials blocked their path.
Their uniforms bore the insignia of the Tower's Enforcent Unit, and their weapons seed modified for both physical and mana-based combat which remained firmly in their grip.
The leader of the squad, a tall woman with a disciplined posture, narrowed her eyes the mont she saw Adam's red na hovering above his head.
"Please do not resist and co with us."
She said, her voice calm but firm.
"Considering you walked into town voluntarily, I assu you have a proper explanation for why you and your group are red-nad."
Her gaze swept over Adam's teammates, analyzing them for any sign of hostility.
So of the other officials adjusted their stances, ready to act at the first sign of aggression.
Adam let the silence stretch for a few monts before exhaling through his nose.
He barely spared the woman a glance before slipping his hands into his pockets, his posture relaxed, almost dismissive.
"Lead the way." he said.
The woman's expression remained unreadable, but she gave a slight nod.
With a swift hand motion, her squad repositioned themselves, surrounding Adam's group before guiding them through the town's streets.
[TheIsekaiKing has donated 5 coins]
[TheIsekaiKing] : I wonder if they'll execute you on the spot...
[NLE_immortal has sent 15 coins]
[NLE_immortal is saddened by the strear's sudden upcoming execution.]
[Frog Eater] : Morons...
"..."
While walking, Adam didn't say much about their mocking comnts as a sudden idea popped up in his head.
He was quite curious about what would happen if he tried to copy a skill from these strange viewers...
Glancing towards the system, he acitvated [Temporary Copy].
This ti, it was directed to the viewer with the userna of [NLE_immortal]...
[Temporary Copy has been activated...]
A notification popped up, but what happened next weren't from the usual.
[Temporary Copy failed]
[Due to target's higher dinsionality, Temporary Copy cannot be used]
Adam's stride faltered for half a second.
'Higher dinsionality?'
His mind raced through possibilities, but he had no ti to dwell on it. T
he group finally arrived at their destination.
The Judgnt Hall.
A fortress-like structure lood before them, built from blackened stone and lined with tallic reinforcents.
Tall banners bearing the insignia of the Tower's Authority hung from its walls, marking it as the seat of justice... or execution for those deed threats to the system.
Adam had been here before.
In his past life, he had seen red-nad challengers dragged into this place, so never walking out again.
The Judgnt Hall was where criminals, rebels, and potential recruits were sorted.
So were executed, so imprisoned, and others... if deed useful enough, were forcibly conscripted.
His grip tightened slightly.
'She should be working here...'
The squad led them through the main entrance, where more officials stood guard.
A brief exchange between their escorts and the hall's gatekeepers confird their arrival.
The heavy doors groaned open, revealing a long corridor lined with prison cells.
Adam's group was guided forward, passing by several red-nad prisoners.
So slumped against the walls, their bodies battered from recent fights, while others stared at him with dull, empty eyes.
One of them, a man with a scar running down his cheek, lifted his head at the sight of Adam.
"New guys?" he muttered.
Another prisoner snorted.
"Hey look, one's a female... hopefully we end up in the sa cell, hehe."
"The one in front is quite good looking for a man, he'd do pretty well too..."
They taunted.
Elara and the others wore disgusted looks on their face.
Adam ignored them, he knew that this was the prisoners way of putting up authority just in case they ended up in the sa jail cell.
Then, just as he was about to ask for the person he was trying to find—
She walked in.
Evelyn Roth.
Her arrival was imdiate and commanding.
A stark contrast to the dark, oppressive interior of the Judgnt Hall.
She wore a crisp white coat over her uniform, marking her as soone far above the lower-ranking officials.
Her silver eyes swept the room with the sa analytical sharpness Adam rembered from his past life.
Cold, precise, and unreadable...
For a brief mont, Adam searched her face, looking for sothing familiar.
A trace of the woman who had once fought by his side, who had trusted him, laughed with him.
The one who had been like family.
But when she finally turned her attention to him, there was no recognition.
No warmth.
Just duty...
"Report."
She ordered, not even addressing Adam directly.
The squad leader straightened.
"These red nas entered the town without resistance. No other information as of yet—"
Evelyn raised a hand, cutting her off.
She studied Adam for a mont, then finally spoke to him directly.
"You walked in on your own." She said.
"That ans you have a reason for being here. Explain."
Adam tilted his head slightly, amusent flickering in his eyes.
'Straight to business just like always...'
His voice was relaxed when he answered.
"I have soone I'd like to turn in. Him and the people who he worked with to ambush us told us sothing interesting..."
He paused, letting his words settle, before adding,
"It involves the upper floors."
That caught her attention.
For the first ti, Evelyn's eyes narrowed slightly.
He could tell she was already running through the implications, considering the weight of his claim.
The Evelyn he knew had always been ticulous, breaking down information in seconds, evaluating every possible angle before making a move.
Of course, that wasn't all.
Adam knew Evelyn well.
The reason the Governnt had worked so hard to keep her within their ranks wasn't just because of her tactical brilliance.
It was because of her B-tier skill....
[Oathkeeper]!
A skill that granted her an innate ability to detect lies.
Whenever soone spoke, she instinctively knew whether their words were true or false.
The more direct the statent, the clearer her detection.
It was an ability that made interrogations effortless, negotiations precise, and deception nearly impossible.
Of course, there were ways around it.
Vague wording, omissions, and half-truths could blur her perception...
But Adam wasn't lying.
He had stated his words deliberately, knowing she would sense their truth.
He did have information.
And it did, in fact, involve the upper floors.
That ant, despite whatever personal feelings she might have harbored, Evelyn had no choice but to acknowledge the legitimacy of his claim.
Her silver eyes locked onto his.
A silent war played out in that brief exchange.
Adam could almost hear the gears turning in her mind.
Weighing options... Calculating risks....
Then, she made her decision.
"Take them to an interrogation room."
She ordered, her voice carrying no hesitation.
"I'll handle this personally."
Her subordinates moved imdiately, tightening their formation around Adam's group.
Nathaniel mumbled to himself in complaint.
"Man it's barely been two days since we got here and we're already getting arrested..."
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