Chapter 11: The Questioning
Ning Que sat alone in the room, his wrists bound by thin mana cuffs that sizzled against his skin. They were designed to prevent hunters from using mana to launch unforseen attacks, or prisoners in confinement. Ning Que scoffed, annoyed at the fact that they used it on him.
The walls in the room were black stone reinforced with iron veining, no windows, no light, just a single bulb overhead and the quiet hum of the surveillance rune etched into the far corner. It was colder than the medical room, but more than that, it was empty.
He’d been waiting for what felt like hours. No system voice. No menu. Just the echo of his own breathing. Somehow he preferred laying in the hospital bed. The system flashed in front of him.
{New Mission Approaching. Unlock mystery box?} The robotic voice echoed.
He paused, narrowing his eyes. He glanced at the surveillance rune, worried that it could see the system. But there’s no reaction from it, so he assumed it doesn’t. Ning Que looks back at the screen, and whispers, "Yes." It had been a while since he opened any of his gift boxes, and he could see he had earned 10 since his time in the trial room.
"I’ll open those later." He said.
The mystery box floated out of the system and into the air, a faint blue light surrounding the edges. Then, it opened like a treasure chest, revealing a large red katana. It has symbols etched into the head, and the blade was as sharp as a razor. It glowed with red energy.
{New weapon: The Katana of Light}
"This is cool as hell." Ning Que muttered under his breath. The mana cuffs sizzled against him again, and he winced, cursing. Then, an idea came to his mind. "System. How do I break free from mana cuffs?"
The system processed for a while, and replied.
{Mana cuff resistance, level 6. Not attained yet.}