C12 A Lunatic

"You have the audacity to detain me? I haven't broken any laws, but even if I had, there's no prison on earth that could hold me."

"Release me at once, you lawless savages!"

"I'll make sure Royal Father executes every last one of your families!"

...

As Wenn Tao approached the interrogation room, he could hear a voice from within. The words made the corner of his mouth twitch, and he pushed open the door.

"Quickly—" Zhao Sitong, upon seeing the door open, stopped speaking and turned to see who had entered. A handsome young man in his twenties stepped inside.

"What's your name?" Wenn Tao asked, getting straight to the point as he sat down.

"How dare I divulge my name to you barbarians?" Zhao Sitong retorted with indignation.

Wenn Tao looked at Zhao Sitong, at a loss for words. "Miss, if you don't speak sensibly, you're only going to make things worse for yourself."

"Why have you detained me without cause? What do you plan to do, eat me?"

Wenn Tao was at a loss for words.

The two officers were equally speechless.

"Miss, can we please have a normal conversation?" Wenn Tao implored, a mix of amusement and frustration on his face.

"You're the ones who are not normal!" Zhao Sitong accused them, as if she had yet to hold them accountable for their insolence.

"Miss, could you at least tell me your family's phone number?" Wenn Tao asked, trying to keep his composure.

"Phone number? What's that? My family? You plan to go after them too? In your dreams!" Zhao Sitong became incensed at the mention of her family. "If Royal Father learns of my imprisonment, he will surely annihilate your entire lineage."

"Bureau Director Wenn, she's delusional. Look at how she's dressed; does that seem normal to you?" one officer said in exasperation. "We've asked her everything we could, and her answers are all over the place."

"Bureau Director Wenn, perhaps we should get in touch with the psychiatric hospital and have them evaluate her," suggested the other officer.

"Hmm, that might be best. I'll make a call and see what can be done," Wenn Tao said, shaking his head as he stepped out of the room.

"Wait—don't leave! Release me now!" Zhao Sitong yelled after them as they walked away.

Wenn Tao and his group had shut the door. Exhausted, Zhao Sitong slumped down, feeling drained from the day's ordeals. Now she found herself trapped in this gloomy place—wait, there was a light dangling from the ceiling!

After yelling out a few times to no avail, Zhao Sitong curled up in a corner and unwittingly drifted off to sleep.

Come morning, a cacophony of noises roused Zhao Sitong. She blinked open her eyes, taking in her surroundings with a dazed look before her awareness gradually sharpened. She remembered being captured by two "male barbarians" and locked up here.

The door swung open with a thud. Zhao Sitong looked up to see, in addition to the three barbarians from the previous night, two individuals dressed in white mourning attire, one male and one female, carrying a box marked with an "X."

Zhao Sitong eyed them warily, her gaze darting to the door. It was empty. She needed to find a way out.

"Miss, please take a seat here. Let's just have a little chat," the man in mourning clothes suggested with a smile to Zhao Sitong.

"How could I be someone to engage in idle chatter? You're dressed in mourning attire, signaling a death in the family. Shouldn't you be at home observing the mourning period instead of coming here to chat with me? What kind of sense does that make?" Zhao Sitong was utterly baffled by the customs of the Barbarian Country.

The onlookers, except for the two psychiatrists, stared at Zhao Sitong incredulously. They couldn't believe she was sane; they would stake their lives on it.

"Miss, you refer to yourself as a princess. May I ask who you are and what your status is?" one of the psychiatrists inquired, playing along with Zhao Sitong's narrative.

"I am a princess of the Great Star Brilliance Country. Release me at once, or when the imperial army of Star Brilliance arrives, you will all face execution," Zhao Sitong declared, all the while scanning their faces for any sign she could exploit to make her escape.