Chapter 147: Military report
"Put all those people in complete isolation. Ensure zero contact with anyone. Their food will be the same every day—a simple piece of bread with water. Also, disrupt their sleeping pattern with loud noises at irregular times." Vlad’s eyes were cold as he uttered those words.
Grand Marshal Anglius’ eyes narrowed as he heard those words. While that sort of sentence might seem mild, his military training told him the truth: that form of punishment was horrifying. People are social creatures, and their minds crave patterns. Stripping them of these would break them from the inside out.
Complete and utter isolation is considered a form of psychological torture that could break even the strongest minds, and the disruption of sleep patterns would lead to severe mental deterioration, capable of inducing madness in those too weak to endure it.
The truth was that breaking someone’s bones and cutting their fingers would be less horrible. However, it would also be less effective because people would scream anything to make the pain go away. With Vlad’s method, in a few weeks, those prisoners would be so broken that they could not lie, even if their lives depended on it.
"We’ll make sure it is carried out, my King." Although Grand Marshal Anglius considered the punishment horrifying, those people had tried to ambush his soldiers, and their actions would have caused the deaths of hundreds of refugees. Why would he show any mercy to those who would not show it to old men and children?
Vlad nodded, his eyes cold as he decided to take care of that problem before it could escalate into something bigger. He would not allow a threat to remain hidden in the shadows and would not hesitate to do whatever it took to protect his people.
"How are things going with Orion and the Strong Hammer Military Base?" The coldness in Vlad’s eyes grew stronger as he mentioned the forces controlled by the angelic woman who had diverted the high demonic horde in their direction.
"As you commanded, we have placed spies around the Strong Hammer Military Base. Their power has been rising as more angels appear, and they take in refugees from their side of Inkmetal City. We have yet to see signs of the caste system, but there are clear signs of disparate treatment between soldiers and civilians." Grand Marshal Anglius’ face grew solemn as he knew how dangerous the Strong Hammer Military Base was.
Their power was growing very fast, especially with the addition of new angels that seemed to appear out of nowhere. If the Xaos Kingdom wanted to expand its influence beyond Inkmetal City, it would need to take care of Orion and her troops first.