Lament of the Slave

Chapter 77: Ranks

"Can he tell the truth?" I asked about Agent Sah through the connection of union rings, afraid it would be easy for him to see through Marcus' lie. "I know Morton wasn't an actual agent, but he was able to tell."

"Who the hell is Morton?" Deckard wondered, to which I realized he'd only found out about the barracks attack yesterday when he came out of Falens Cry. "Never mind. Some kind of truth skill, huh? Yeah, these bastards tend to have them, so I'd watch my mouth if I were you."

"Oh..." I let out an inner sigh of frustration when my concerns proved to be true. However, I had to put aside my concerns about the Chief Healer as Deckard's warning brought my focus back to me. I should be the one very conscious of what I say. At least now, I knew it was pointless to make up some lies.

Why would I do that in the first place? To make myself as little desirable to the Sahal Empire as possible. Captain Rayden and the others, for whatever reason, were skeptical of the Empire, and even though they didn't outright tell me not to work for it, I got the impression that it wasn't a good idea. So I brushed up on my experiences with previous interrogations and the meeting I attended. Those were hard lessons, but I learned a few things, like to say as little as possible or just answer the questions I've been asked, nothing more. Just don't lie in the presence of agents!

"Can we get to the reason we're here, gentlemen?" Rayden prompted them without a hint of respect. I knew she didn't have a shred of it for the City Lord, but I would have thought she would have treated the Imperial Agent differently since he had a higher rank than her. He did, right? Actually, I wasn't entirely sure of his military rank. It was just my assumption that he was of a higher rank than her.

So I chose the union ring. Seriously, I loved that thing. It was like having a mobile again. Just with only one number, I could dial. And there was nothing easier than asking Deckard when I was at my wit's end.

"Well," he paused when I asked him my question. "Agents don't wear stripes. So before they start flaunting their credentials, it's hard to tell. Their jurisdiction includes investigating Lords of all ranks, even generals, and I haven't heard of or met any of them with a rank below captain. At least they don't let them out into the world."

So the Imperial Agent had at least the same rank as Rayden.

"But..." Deckard stopped me before I could think about it more. "...you have to consider that the City Guards, while still part of the Army, are not regarded as so. It's a place for retired soldiers and those who fear the battlefield. A place for those who want to protect the city they live in, not the empire. Why do you think most of the city guards have the class [Guardsman] and not [Soldier] or [Imperial Soldier] for that matter?"

Oh, I hadn't thought of that. Now that he said it, it seemed obvious. Yet, it brought up another question. I haven't seen anyone with the class of [Soldier] among the guards. Shouldn't there be, based on what he said, retired ones among them? What about him?

"Didn't you serve?" I asked while the Agent and City Lord's gaze shifted to me. It was hard not to look away and even harder not to reveal my conversation with Deckard.

"The General, the man we served under, saw the limitations of these classes. He'd be pissed if any of us picked a class like that." Deckard recalled, his inner voice ringing with a tone of mirth.

"Then let's hear what this [Slave] has to say." Baron Egerton spat out, completely baffling me with his attitude and demeanor. He didn't act the way I remembered him. Yet even though it made me angry, instead of clenching my fists, I held my breath as my heartbeat went up, and my hands sweat. I was so anxious.