The Grand Duelist

"Master!" Ezreal cried out in a panic. He rushed towards Joseph's location and seeing his injuries. He opened both his palms and pushed towards Joseph's direction

"Ugh..." A wave of green light enveloped Joseph's body and several system notifications appeared right before his eyes.

[ You are under the effects of Compassion. ]

[ You will regain a certain percentage of your Health every second for the next twenty seconds. ]

[ You have recovered from Stiffness due to the effects of Compassion. ]

Joseph stared at his Health Bar and found that at the very first second after Compassion took effect. His Health shot up by a fourth and at the next second, it recovered once again at the same rate.

"What the fuck? That's some completely unbelievable healing!" Joseph was taken aback when he realized that under the effects of Compassion.

He could recover his entire Health Bar in a mere four seconds.

But something was telling Joseph that the activation of such a cheating percentage Healing meant paying a heavy price...

Joseph raised his head and found Ezreal staring at him with a worried expression. Right now, his nose was bleeding and his neck looked pale.

"Ezreal, stop," Joseph mumbled and Ezreal was astonished.

He still looked worried but seeing that Joseph was conscious and could even speak.

He was relieved: "Master... I thought that I... accidentally killed you."

Joseph didn't know whether to laugh or to cry when he heard what Ezreal said. Even he didn't expect that he'd suffer that much damage in the face of Ezreal's fist.

Although he understood that it was reasonable that Ezreal could kill him in an instant. He didn't expect that Ezreal could kill him in an instant without using his Sound Magic, but only a single fist.

"..."

Joseph honestly couldn't understand how he survived fighting against such a monster. But then, he had an idea of how Ezreal became so weak when fighting against him back then.

But of course, that wasn't the main point right now. What's more important was stopping Ezreal from further using this so-called, [ Compassion ] skill.

"It's okay, It's okay, It's okay. In the first place, it's my fault that I tried on scaring you so can you stop doing what you're doing right now? I am fully healed, and I can walk just fine."

Joseph gently pushed Ezreal backward before standing up, he even flexed his muscles and showcased to Ezreal that he had recovered from the damages that he suffered.

Ezreal stared in astonishment at Joseph's antics and he couldn't help but chuckle: "Master, do you even lift?"

Joseph was taken aback by the response that he got as he said: "What do you mean by do I even lift? I'll have you know, but every day. I always train my body! Having a healthy body is the foundation of everything. What use is wealth when you're sickly and can't even take advantage of it!"

"That is why I train myself every day so by the time that I become filthy rich, I can enjoy my wealth as much as I want!" Joseph declared, his arms crossed in front of his chest and his head raised towards the skies in an incomparably arrogant manner.

But what he got in response from Joseph was another chuckle.

"Hahaha, so master is saying that your goal is becoming filthy rich?"

"Of course! Why else would I be working this hard if not for the sake of money!" Joseph almost immediately answered.

"Then in that case, just what is master's ultimate goal?"

Ezreal's question sounded simple but it made Joseph speechless.

That's right, just what was his ultimate goal? Just what was the reason why he wanted so much money in life?

Could his reason be only that he wanted to live a life that his parents wanted to give to him in the first place? Was that really it?

Seeing Joseph's confusion, Ezreal chuckled once again and said: "I don't think that Master needs to worry about something like that for now. One's reason for living cannot be easily stumbled upon..."

"Anyone's mind can change along with their priorities, a few years ago. One's reason for living maybe for money, but now. Their reason for living might be for their family..."

"Everything depends on circumstances, Master. And with your identity, those circumstances are ever-changing. Your reason for living and working hard can never be static. After all, master's the one and only Grand Duelist." At the end of his sentence, Ezreal revealed a wide smile on his face and Joseph felt like he was enraptured with the former's charm.

"No, no, no, no, nooo!!!"

Realizing what happened to him, he hurriedly shook his head and cried out.

"Master? Are you okay? Could it be that there's still some remaining damage that Compassion couldn't recover?"

Ezreal moved towards him and Joseph panicked: "Such a powerful skill like that couldn't completely heal me?"

"No that's not the case, master. Compassion is a skill that can heal through any abnormal statuses apart from the select few. But there's something that it cannot heal..."

Ezreal purposely lengthened the end of his sentence and stared in a cheeky manner at Joseph who now looked pale from anxiousness.

If a particular damage couldn't be healed by that powerful percentage heal, could something even heal it? His eyes radiated fear as he stared at Ezreal who had a cheeky smile on his face.

When Ezreal purposely lengthened the end of his sentence, Joseph found that something was wrong. But his hunch was immediately confirmed when he asked...

"Then, Ezreal... What are those that Compassion can't heal?"

"Mental Illness!" Ezreal almost immediately replied.

"..."

A few minutes later, inside a darkened hallway where only torches served as one's source of light. Two figures could be seen walking briskly in the midst of it all.

"Master, I'm sorry! I was just joking! How could master have a mental illness? I was really just joking, alright!" Ezreal shouted at Joseph who walked briskly in front of him.

Joseph didn't respond to his pleading and only kept on walking.

"Master, I really am sorry! Can you not give me that cold shoulder? Or wait, could it be that master is making me do that S and M play that I read from Bodybuilder's First Love?" Ezreal cried out once again, but this time. A reaction finally appeared.

Joseph immediately stopped on his tracks and stared at Ezreal who still looked quite handsome even though his expression was laced with worry.

"Could it be that not being in a relationship with the other sex for so long has made me turn into someone that swings both ways? That cannot be! Even though I don't particularly dislike them, I am a straight man! I am straight! I want women! Women with ass and tits!"

Joseph's expression hardened, he stared hard at Ezreal who gulped a mouthful of saliva due to the sudden change in the atmosphere.

"What's wrong, master?" Ezreal carefully asked.

"Ezreal, do you have any sisters?" Joseph asked in a serious manner.

Ezreal was taken aback by the question and his expression revealed confusion: "Why is master asking about something like that?"

"Just answer me," Joseph replied.

"Well, I do have a younger sister." Ezreal nodded.

"Is she beautiful though?" Joseph carefully asked.

"Of course! Those that have such a pure bloodline like mine cannot be ugly! That is something decided by the laws of causality itself! Of course, my younger sister is beautiful! Are you in doubt about what I am saying, master?" For the first time, Ezreal frowned when he heard what Joseph had said.

Shocked by the sudden change, Joseph hurriedly shook his head and explained: "Of course I believe you! Why would I doubt your words? Does that even make sense?"

Ezreal nodded his head in agreement and at the same time, he felt excited about the words that Joseph said: "Yes, master! Does it even make sense for me to lie in front of you? But speaking of my younger sister, ah... I really miss her now. I miss her cuteness and the fact that she can be cheerful in the face of everything..."

"Not only that she's also very powerful. By now she should be at least as powerful as me. Although she's quite hot-headed, she's someone that really cares for whom she loves and I think that she also cares for me just as how much I care for her!"

Ezreal suddenly became a prominent rapper as he spat bars describing his sister in a glorified manner.

Joseph repeatedly blinked in the face of Ezreal's enthusiasm as he slowly spoke up: "Ermmm, Ezreal. In other words, you love your sister very much and she also loves you as much as you love her?"

"Yes! That's it, Master! Ahhh, master really understands me the most!" Ezreal cried out loud in the face of Joseph's question.

But instead of feeling happiness, Joseph's expression turned pale when he realized that he had to deal with Ezreal's enthusiasm until they arrived at their destination...

The party of two soon arrived at the end of the darkened hallway. Of course, what greeted them when they arrived was...

You guessed it!

Another stone wall.

But this time...

As soon as the two stepped right in front of the stone wall. A pitch-black light burst forth from the stone wall and engulfed the two of them in an instant.

Everything happened so suddenly that by the time that the two were done with blinking their eyes, they found themselves inside a room that they had never seen before.

About three meters before them was a table where a familiar figure could be seen seated behind the table.

"Oh, you are finally awake."

Joseph was astonished by the scene that he saw upon opening his eyes, but when he heard the familiar words.

He couldn't help but say...

"I didn't walk into an Imperial ambush, right?"

The Jail Warden who sat behind the table asked with a frown.

"Imperial Ambush? Why would there be an Imperial ambush in here?"

"No-nothing..."

Realizing his mistake, Joseph hurriedly corrected himself with an awkward scratch on his head.

The Jail Warden didn't pursue Joseph's nonsense any further as he just handed over a command medallion towards the two of them and said.

"Both of you did well with your recent interrogations. The information that you gathered from that Old Bastard John is a piece of information valuable enough that it deserves a promotion." The Jail Warden spoke in a cold voice that felt like he wasn't even congratulating them.

Joseph and Ezreal frowned when they realized this subtlety, and the Jail Warden continued on speaking.

"As Inquisitors, the two of you are now a member of the Maximum Security Cellblock where the more powerful or tight-lipped prisoners are located. Forcing a confession out of them will net you rewards that only you can take advantage of instead of a whole group. Being an Inquisitor meant a life of wealth and higher status..."

"But unfortunately, unlike the Jail Janitors. Relationships between Inquisitors are often rough and fights all for the sake of interrogating someone powerful or rich often happen. After all, those that managed on forcing a confession out of those rich bastards are basically guaranteed with high rewards...

"But here's the problem, when those Inquisitors find that the new Inquisitors joining them were Inquisitors that haven't spent even a month as Jail Janitors. They will most likely be not convinced of your abilities. By now, they must be thinking that both of you passed by a fluke which is certainly not true..."

The Jail Warden paused and swept his gaze at Ezreal and Joseph.

After a few moments, he sighed and shook his wrist.

[Item: Inquisitor's Medallion has been obtained!]

[A medallion that could only be given by the Jail Warden of the Underground Penitentiary for Heinous Crimes of the Kingdom of Nether, vassal to the Empire. While holding this medallion, you can go everywhere within the Penitentiary and everyone will respect you.]

Joseph swiftly glanced at the system notifications and the Jail Warden suddenly spoke up.

"Okay, it is now time for the two of you to get out of my office. The promotion has been done and I think that both of you have no matters in here anymore, right?" The Jail Warden made a shooing gesture at the two.

But Joseph still had questions in his mind and so, he asked: "Now that I am an Inquisitor, honorable Jail Warden. May I ask about how one can become a Great Inquisitor and what are the benefits of being one?"

The Jail Warden froze for a moment before a small smile lifted on his lips. He stared at Joseph with a hidden glint shining in his eyes before he spoke: "Have the two of you realized yet that the Underground Penitentiary currently doesn't have any Great Inquisitors?"

The two shook their heads and the Jail Warden continued: "Great Inquisitors are figures that have absolute strength when it comes to torture and forcing confessions. No matter who they are or how dignified they are. If they are under a Great Inquisitor's torment, they have no other choice but to confess. That's how fearsome Great Inquisitors are..."

Joseph gulped a mouthful of saliva. He remembered Old Bastard John's ferocity and thought that if not for his great idea of making that bastard taste his own medicine then he wouldn't even be here in the first place.

"The process of being a Great Inquisitor back then is pretty difficult...

"But right now, it is incredibly simple, yet incredibly hard. By simple, I mean you do not have to undergo complicated processes back then where you had to harvest about a hundred vengeful souls from those whom you forced a confession from..."

"Right now, only one requirement was necessary. You only have to force a confession from a particular person imprisoned at the most secretive jail cell within the Maximum Security Cellblock. If you managed to do so then you'll be named as one of the strongest Inquisitor, a Great Inquisitor."

The Jail Warden stared right into Joseph before a small smile lifted on his lips.

Joseph gulped a mouthful of saliva and asked: "Only a single person? Just who is that person and why would forcing a confession out of him warrants a guaranteed promotion as a Great Inquisitor?"

The Jail Warden's smile deepened and he explained: "Well, that particular person isn't a nobody. He's someone that the Kingdom continuously coveted for these several years already. Unfortunately, he's too tough and his lips are perfectly sealed. In fact, without using special methods then one couldn't even make him flinch. He's that tough of a guy..."

"As for who he is..."

The Jail Warden swept his gaze at the two and said...

"He's the one and only Legendary Blacksmith of the current generation..." 

"The Legendary Blacksmith, Krid!"

His words thoroughly astonished both Joseph and Ezreal.