The man called Officer Zhou slowly released Li Ban's arm, walked into the interrogation room, dragged out a long bench with his foot, and sat down imposingly. Li Ban's gaze followed Officer Zhou the entire time. Since Tree-Person A showed him such respect, this must be the real person who would interrogate him.
"You seem frightened?" Officer Zhou smiled coldly. Li Ban's forearm, which had just been grabbed by Officer Zhou, still felt numb, making his voice tremble. "I... this is my first time on the second level."
"Yes, your first time here, and perhaps your last." Li Ban gritted his teeth, trying to calm himself. He wondered how Ze was doing. If he had already returned to the laboratory, perhaps he was helping repair the forced logout system.
"My name is Zhou Gu, a jailer of Death Prison. Answer my questions truthfully today. Answer well, and you'll be rewarded. Answer poorly... and you'll become today's extra meal for the prisoners on the second level."
"Officer Zhou, I'll answer everything truthfully." Li Ban's voice grew steadier. Zhou Gu found it interesting how quickly this little slave was visibly adapting to the second level's environment.
"Your right pupil is much darker than your left. Care to explain?" Li Ban touched his right eyelid. As expected, the matter of the former jailer was the first thing brought up.
"My right eye was bitten off by the mimic rat on the first day. When I sought help, that corpse... it spoke and said it could help me." Hearing about a talking corpse, Tree-Person A's eyes widened in shock, but Zhou Gu remained calm, as if already knowing the corpse wasn't completely dead.
"You burned his corpse, and he gave you his eye?" "Yes." Li Ban glanced at Zhou Gu's expression but couldn't discern any reaction. His past life's skill at reading people was useless here.
"Your slave records say you were picked from the mass grave by Old Man Ma and sold directly to Death Prison. How did you learn to fuse 'elements'?"
"She actually taught you?" Zhou Gu chuckled. "I promised to find meat for her," Li Ban lowered his head.
After a moment's silence, Zhou Gu turned to Tree-Person A. "Any other suspicious behavior since he arrived?" He asked this right in front of Li Ban, unconcerned about his feelings.
This time Tree-Person A hesitated. Since Li Ban's arrival, apart from the first day's mistake, he had worked diligently or stayed in the storeroom. Tree-Person A had his own affairs and rarely checked on the slaves anyway. Their lax management encouraged the slaves to turn on each other - fewer slaves meant more meals for them without consequences. Hadn't that Lu killed someone before? She stopped afterward though. The newest slave was another useless quiet one.
After waiting several breaths without a proper answer, Zhou Gu suddenly drew his sword, sliced off Tree-Person A's left arm, then sheathed his blade calmly. The wooden arm fell with a thud, revealing smooth grain without blood. Li Ban's pupils contracted - he remembered the ring-tailed panther's full charge hadn't left a scratch on Tree-Person A, yet Zhou Gu severed the arm effortlessly. Tree-Person A showed no pain but his branches drooped.
"Officer Zhou, I... I haven't seen any unusual behavior from Ban. Just... just that he seems to be learning combat from the cat-woman." Li Ban quickly explained, "The mimic rat scared me. I thought learning skills would help survive them."
Zhou Gu's unreadable gaze shifted between them before addressing Tree-Person A. "You're supposed to manage both levels, yet all you do is eat. Slack off again, and I'll chop you for firewood." "Yes yes yes, we'll be diligent, no more laziness!" Tree-Person A groveled.
Finally, Zhou Gu looked at Li Ban. "This Ban..." Li Ban braced for judgment, heart pounding. He hadn't mentioned Lu's strangeness yet, but knew sometimes less was more. "...doesn't seem like a spy." Li Ban exhaled in relief.
Zhou Gu suddenly smiled, less coldly this time. "Bold enough to burn Chen Dong's corpse in crisis. Clever enough to trade food with the cat-woman. Lucky enough to fuse 'elements' without an identity yet survive... You've got guts, luck, and a bit of brains. I like this kid, Tree-Person A. Give him the remaining attendant token. The second level's attendant post has been vacant long enough."
Tree-Person A looked surprised but quickly agreed. Zhou Gu stood, looming over Li Ban. "Work for me now. Behave." Stunned by this reversal when he'd expected disaster, Li Ban gaped silently. Zhou Gu didn't reprimand him, just shook his head slightly and left.
Only then did Tree-Person A approach, nudging Li Ban's shoulder with his remaining hand. "Dumbstruck with joy? Lucky Officer Zhou's forgiving. Next time, answer promptly." Li Ban realized Tree-Person A's attitude had changed dramatically too - previously only giving work orders, now offering guidance.
"Yes, yes, shocked and overjoyed. Thank you, Jailer." Tree-Person A glanced outside nervously. "When officers are present, call me Jailer A. If Officer Du's around, address Zhou Gu as just Zhou Gu like I do." "Understood, thank you, Jailer A." Even with Zhou Gu gone, Li Ban used the honorific, having noticed Tree-Person A liked it. "Heh heh..." Tree-Person A grinned. "Wait here. I'll get your token."
Alone in the grim interrogation room, Li Ban reviewed his performance - adequate but hardly convincing. Their easy acceptance probably stemmed from his genuine lack of spy-like behavior since arrival. Everyone here had remarkable abilities, making his combat training with the cat-woman trivial. Nodding inwardly, he resolved to continue avoiding typical spy actions - no snooping, no questions, just staying put. No handles for Death Prison to grab!
Tree-Person A returned, tossing Li Ban a bronze token. Catching it, Li Ban examined the palm-sized plain plaque bearing just two characters: "Attendant." Suddenly, his long-dormant mission assistance system activated in his mind: [Obtained Tier 1 Identity: "Attendant."]