Bai Yu was surrounded by personal guards and escorted into the dungeon.

Unlike Madam, who had her hands twisted behind her back, shoulders pressed down, and hair disheveled as she was forced into the dungeon, the guards merely formed a tight circle around Bai Yu; no one dared to lay a single finger on him.

Every one of them wore a solemn expression, as if facing a formidable enemy. They maintained a strict distance of one meter from him. Rather than escorting a prisoner, it looked more like they were crowding around to protect an important guest.

Bai Yu lifted the hem of his clothes and stepped over the stairs, pausing slightly. "This is the Duke's Mansion's dungeon?"

The guard kept a stiff, deadpan face. "This is the place. Please settle in."

This was a remote small building in the Duke's Mansion, two stories high. The building's exterior facade featured seven or eight carved Roman columns. Although severely weathered, the exquisite carvings from the past were still faintly visible.

Bai Yu pushed open one of the doors. The hall was neatly laid out, with three dark green fabric sofas in the center. A red brick fireplace was built into the wall directly facing the door. Behind pure white gauze curtains was an entire wall of windows, and even a balcony. The winter sunlight was streaming in through the windows, landing on the balcony.

Bai Yu confirmed once again, "This is a dungeon?"

The guard said solemnly, "Yes, this is the dungeon of the Duke's Mansion."

Grand Duke Imuel was the sole master of the residence. If he said a place was a dungeon, it was a dungeon, even if this "dungeon" wasn't underground.

Bai Yu lowered his eyes slightly, his expression somewhat complicated.

The guard coughed. "You will stay here. An interrogator will come shortly."

He even used a respectful form of address.

Bai Yu nodded. The guard looked visibly relieved, then immediately took a step back and closed the door.

This room seemed to have been unused for a long time. The door hinges were rusty, emitting a harsh grating sound with his movements. Then, Bai Yu heard the sound of the lock clicking into place.

The door was locked dead.

55: "Good heavens, they've surrounded this house like an iron barrel."

The system's screen displayed the positions of the surrounding guards. Dense little red dots encircled this two-story building so tightly that not even a drop of water could leak through.

Bai Yu sat down on the sofa. There was actually a bookcase in the living room containing at least one or two hundred books. From customs and geography to humanities and history, it encompassed everything. Bai Yu pulled out a book and began to read.

He read aimlessly. The book introduced a city-state outside Illyria, rich in spices and beautiful servants.

After turning two pages, a knock came from the door. It was a stiff old man with silver-gray curly hair and glasses. His sharp eyes scrutinized Bai Yu before he forcefully squeezed out a smile. That smile blossomed on his weather-beaten cheeks, looking like two stems of green bristlegrass swaying in the wind growing out of a barren ravine.

He reached out his hand to Bai Yu. "Hello, pleased to meet you. I am your interrogator."

"..."

The scene was somewhat bizarre. Bai Yu paused for a moment and pulled the door completely open. "...Hello, pleased to meet you. I am Bai Yu."

The interrogator and the prisoner solemnly shook hands, then politely pumped them.

Bai Yu turned sideways. "Please come in."

The two sat down separately on the two sofas in the living room, with a marble-topped coffee table between them.

Bai Yu: "Would you like some tea?"

He had checked earlier; this house was even stocked with tea bags.

"That won't be necessary." The old man spread open his notebook. "Mr. Bai, I'm here to ask you about a few things."

Bai Yu: "Happy to oblige."

The old man was clearly an experienced interrogator, his grayish-brown eyes like those of an eagle. He started by asking how Bai Yu joined the Black Robe Society, interspersing leading statements and sharp questions along the way. If Bai Yu were a real undercover agent, he would have confessed most of the intel he knew by now.

But unfortunately, Bai Yu genuinely didn't know anything.

He hadn't been in this world for long, and his understanding of the Black Robe Society was limited to a few gatherings. The only members of the Black Robe Society he knew were Madam and Hammerhead Shark. Madam was already imprisoned, and Hammerhead Shark was dead. As for the others, Bai Yu hadn't even met them, let alone knew their identities or names.

For the Duke's Mansion, he couldn't provide a single piece of valuable intel. Even if the best interrogator in the world was sitting in front of him, they wouldn't be able to interrogate anything out of him.

As the interrogation passed the halfway mark, the old man's forehead was covered in cold sweat.

His notebook was completely empty; he hadn't written down a single word so far. This young man named Bai Yu was a master of anti-interrogation, his words watertight and devoid of the slightest flaw.

In the past, against such a tough nut to crack, the old man would have already resorted to torture.

But he couldn't.

Because Grand Duke Imuel was right next door.

The building possessed an echo-wall-like structure. Every word they spoke here could be clearly transmitted next door.

The old man clearly knew that the prisoner before him was different, whether it was due to this unusual cell or Grand Duke Imuel's ambiguous attitude. He had previously asked the Grand Duke what methods were permitted.

At that time, Grand Duke Imuel's striking features were as cold as ice. He raised his eyes to glance at the old man and said flatly, "Do not use anything that could cause physical harm."

The old man: "..."

Without causing physical harm, what kind of torture could he possibly use?

That was also why he was sitting here, trying to fish for details through conversation.

But Bai Yu was obviously not someone who could be easily tricked into talking. After talking in circles back and forth a few times, the old man had to cap his fountain pen and say sternly, "Sir, the Black Robe Society already knows you've been exposed. You know so many of their secrets. Even if we don't do anything, they will come to eliminate the root of the problem. I hope you think it through clearly. Cooperating with the Grand Duke's Mansion is your only way out."

"..."

Bai Yu genuinely didn't know.

But seeing his obstinate and unyielding appearance, the old man frowned slightly. If things continued like this, even if he were locked in this small building for years, he wouldn't spit out a thing.

Cannot cause physical harm...

The old man's eyes shifted slightly, and his gaze landed on the bridge of Bai Yu's nose.

That was the new pair of glasses the Duke had made for Bai Yu.

He had heard that this male servant had severe vision problems and couldn't live a normal life without glasses.

So, the old man smiled. "My apologies, sir. Please give me your glasses."

Bai Yu paused. The old man had already reached out and plucked the glasses off the bridge of his nose.

"..."

His vision blurred. The fireplace and bookcase warped into blocks of brick-red and brownish-black. Bai Yu's body tensed subconsciously, but quickly relaxed.

The old man: "I hope you carefully consider my words. Once you change your mind, please contact me."

Bai Yu nodded. "Thank you for the advice."

For a spy and a traitor to only receive the punishment of having his glasses taken away, Bai Yu couldn't ask for more.

In a place he couldn't perceive, the old man stood up and knocked on the door next door.

There was a one-way mirror in the next room. The Grand Duke was sitting on the couch, looking over with an unfathomable expression.

The old man presented the glasses with both hands. "Grand Duke, is this acceptable?"

"..."

Imuel wearily rubbed the space between his brows. "Put them down."

The Grand Duke ignored the faint discomfort in his heart and told himself, 'It's just taking away his glasses, it's already a very light punishment.'

The narrow-framed glasses were placed in front of the Grand Duke by the old man, who then bowed and withdrew.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the mirror, the doctor had been sitting quietly for a long time.

He sat calmly on the sofa without any movement, like a frozen sculpture. His expression was cold and indifferent, but his fingers curled up uncontrollably, and a slight cold sweat seeped from his palms.

Without his glasses, the doctor couldn't read anymore. That collection of local customs and stories was resting on his lap—the spot where Imuel used to sleep.

His vision was too blurry, bringing about a dizzying nausea. Bai Yu had to close his eyes, but the nauseous feeling didn't alleviate. Eventually, cold sweat also seeped from his forehead.

"..."

Separated by a single mirror, Imuel couldn't help but reach out and grasp the glasses frame.

The doctor looked terrible right now.

He looked as if he had been stripped of his indestructible armor and deprived of his basic rights. Like a bird locked in a gilded cage, only an empty silence remained in his eyes.

Imuel lowered his eyes, thinking silently, '...He deserves it. This is what he deserves!'

Even as he thought this, the hand gripping the glasses squeezed subconsciously, holding tighter and tighter.

As time ticked by minute by minute, the Grand Duke suddenly stood up and paced back and forth in the small room. His brows were tightly knitted, restless and agitated, his bright and beautiful face covered in dark clouds.

—Compared to Bai Yu, who was sitting quietly in the next room, he looked more like the captive who had been deprived of their sight.

55 gently poked Bai Yu, probing in a low voice: "Host, are you okay?"

Bai Yu's tone was flat: "...I'm fine."

55 pursed its lips: "But your sweat is already dripping down to your chin..."

As a captive, Bai Yu's meals were surprisingly normal. A servant brought him his food, but Bai Yu couldn't even clearly see the knife and fork. The cooked red meat sauce and the dark green seaweed mixed together, dissolving into a disgusting color. He hastily took two bites before setting it down.

55: "...Host, let's go to sleep early."

Bai Yu nodded. It got dark early in winter. It was just past seven o'clock now, and the sky had completely darkened.

55: "The light switch is at the corner about 10 steps ahead of you."

Bai Yu: "There's no need to turn on the light, I wouldn't be able to see anything anyway."

He fumbled his way to the stair handrail, went upstairs, and then lay flat on the large bed in the bedroom, closing his eyes.

The night was terrifyingly silent.

In the Duke's Mansion at night, servants came and went, with people bustling about. Furthermore, being near the lake, the chirping of cicadas and birds was inevitable. However, this small building was excessively secluded; no sound could be heard at all.

Bai Yu could only hear the sound of his own breathing. He lay flat on the bed like a corpse.

"..."

After an unknown amount of time, Bai Yu said softly, "55?"

"Yes, I'm here."

"Can you help guide me to the bathroom?"

"Of course, Host." 55 quickly replied, scanning around with its small screen. "Hmm, there isn't one on the second floor. You have to go down to the first floor. The stairs are about 8 steps to your right."

Bai Yu nodded and sat up, his fingers feeling along the wall as he slowly walked downward.

He had a slender figure and his back was perfectly straight, yet his steps were extremely slow. The huge room was completely empty. His back figure seemed to meld into the darkness, about to be entirely swallowed up.

55: "Host, be careful—"

Between the flights of stairs, there was a small turning platform, and on the platform were triangular steps. 55's warning was timely; Bai Yu stumbled slightly but quickly grabbed the railing to stand steady, preventing himself from falling to his knees.

He smiled faintly. "Thank you."

55: "...It's nothing to thank me for."

In the next room, Grand Duke Imuel suddenly stood up.

He had held his breath the moment Bai Yu stood up. When Bai Yu stumbled, he finally couldn't restrain himself and paced back and forth in the room. Muttering to himself, he constantly warned himself, "This is what he deserves. He wanted to kill me, this is what he deserves!"

As he spoke, he smashed a fist into the couch.

Imuel gnashed his teeth, his eye sockets tinged with a faint red from anger. He muttered viciously, as if only by doing so could he suppress the harsh bitterness in his heart.

"He refuses to defend himself, refuses to beg me for mercy, refuses to divulge any intelligence about the Black Robe Society... This is what he deserves!"

The pillow on the couch, having suffered two furious punches from the Grand Duke, finally could bear it no longer and fell to the floor with a smack. Imuel took a deep breath, barely managing to calm his emotions. His fingertips trembling, he summoned a guard: "Go! Bring the spare spectacle lenses!"

During the previous Grand Duke's reign, there were several madams and young masters in the mansion who were nearsighted, so the mansion always kept spare spectacle lenses in stock.

Imuel couldn't just give Bai Yu's glasses back to him. That would confirm his softheartedness and allow the doctor to act even more brazenly, relying on his favor to be arrogant. He wanted the doctor to realize his mistake, to apologize, and to know that the Grand Duke's thunderous wrath couldn't be easily dispelled. Only then could he return the glasses to the doctor.

But he could place lenses with the exact same prescription in the room, pretend they were already there, and guide the doctor to find them.

...If the doctor found the lenses himself, what did that have to do with the Duke?

The guard was extremely efficient and quickly brought over a box of lenses.

To avoid making it too obvious by only providing one prescription, Imuel deliberately mixed in seven or eight different prescriptions. The small box was densely packed with lenses, neatly arranged in different compartments. At first glance, it really looked like something casually left behind.

Imuel waved his hand, dismissing the guard.

He couldn't go through the main door to deliver things to the doctor. The door was old, and the sound of it opening would be too loud; it would definitely be noticed.

Imuel looked out the window.

The room had a balcony with French windows.

For a person to go down to the balcony would require unlocking it, which would also make a noise.

Imuel silently pinched his fingertips, crumpling his expensive robes.

He pushed open the balcony door and looked down. The guards were all active outside the courtyard of the small building, a fair distance away. Unless commanded by the Duke, no one would come in to disturb him.

"..."

So, Imuel raised his hand and grasped his shirt buttons.

Expressionlessly, he stripped off his clothes one by one. Then, his body landed lightly on the floor, transforming into a platinum short-legged kitten.

The kitten picked up the lens box in his mouth.

He padded over to the balcony with a cat walk. The soft pads of his paws touched the ground without making a single sound.

The two balconies were less than 20 centimeters apart. There was a gap between the railings, just enough to allow a small kitten to pass through.

Thus, Imuel backed up, took a running start, and then did a flying leap—

Splat.

After all, a short-legged cat's legs were truly short.

Fortunately, he still managed to successfully land on the doctor's balcony. His belly hit the floor, so it didn't make much noise. Imuel shook out his fur. Holding the box in his mouth, he looked left and right, then sneakily slipped into the living room and placed the item neatly on the table.

The table already had a lot of clutter on it, so placing the box among it didn't look out of place.

...But how could he get the doctor to notice this place and come over to check?

Imuel angrily scratched the tabletop with his claws, spun in a circle on the spot, and then drew a deep breath, using the most ferocious, savage, and least cutesy voice to roar: "Meow—!"

—Damn doctor, look over here at this Grand Duke!

He was full of anger, and his meow was likewise filled with resentment. He sounded completely different from an adorable platinum kitten, so the doctor definitely wouldn't be able to recognize him.

—It's perfectly reasonable for a stray cat to accidentally wander onto the balcony of a remote building in the Grand Duke's Mansion, right?

The doctor did indeed notice. He fumbled through the darkness toward the balcony and asked in surprise, "A cat? How could there be a cat here?"

Imuel shot him a resentful look.

The Platinum Dumpling shook his large tail, padded back to the balcony, then backed up, gathered his strength, and took a flying leap—

Splat.

He landed smoothly on the balcony next door.

Imuel flicked his tail, walked back into the room, and jumped into the pile of clothes. The Grand Duke's attire was cumbersome and complicated; there were at least ten or twenty buttons alone. He transformed back into his human form, and as he buttoned his shirt, he thought resentfully, 'Damn doctor, this Grand Duke has already delivered the glasses right to your hand. If you still can't find them, you can't blame me.'

On the other side, Bai Yu had groped his way to the table where the glasses had been placed.

The kitten had only meowed once and then went silent. He didn't know if it had left. The light at night was too dim, so 55 couldn't see clearly either.

Duke Imuel despised cats, and there wasn't a single cat in the entire Duke's Mansion. If this kitten fell into the hands of the guards, its fate would probably be quite ugly.

Even though Bai Yu couldn't even protect himself, the food delivered every day was plentiful enough. He could temporarily feed the kitten.

Thinking this, Bai Yu walked to the edge of the table and reached out to feel around.

Of course, he didn't touch a kitten, but he did touch a wooden box.

55 said in surprise: "Eh, was this box here when we first arrived? The surface carvings look very expensive. Host, quickly open it and take a look."

Bai Yu unfastened the clasp. As soon as the box was opened, he heard 55 exclaim: "My god, Host, this is a whole box of lenses!"

The system was endlessly thrilled: "Hurry and try them out, Host. See if there are any you can use."

Bai Yu paused slightly, his fingers fumbling as he tried them one by one.

These lenses were neatly arranged by prescription. His vision gradually became clearer. When he tried a certain piece, Bai Yu blinked.

He could clearly see the shifting moonlight outside the window.

A bright moon hung high in the sky, accompanied by a few stars around it. Under the moonlight, the curtains, the balcony, the fireplace, the sofas... absolutely everything was clearly visible.

Bai Yu exhaled a breath of stale air, his tense nerves quietly relaxing.

55 displayed a huge smile on its small screen: "Oh my god, Host, our luck is just too good! This place actually has lenses, and there just so happens to be ones with your exact prescription!"

Bai Yu, however, didn't speak.

He quietly examined the small box. The box had complex craftsmanship; its surface was painted with gold lacquer and inlaid with mother-of-pearl, rubies, and sapphires.

This era didn't have the craftsmanship of later generations, much less effects like blue light filtering. The lenses were pure glass, yet under the moonlight, this box of glass actually sparkled with a crystal-like luster.

"55," Bai Yu said softly, "What do you think the probability is that in a deserted small building in the Duke's Mansion, I would find a box of brand-new lenses? And among these lenses, there just so happens to be my exact prescription?"