PAMPERED BY MY THREE BROTHERS: THE RETURN OF THE NEGLECTED HEIRESS-Chapter 1805: Cells

Slater stopped when he finally reached the prison cell, located in a secret passage from the wine cellar. The hallway leading down was lined with stone walls, much like those of old castles. Lights were scarce, but still sufficient to illuminate the path.

At the end, there was a metal door with only a small opening to peer inside.

Standing before it, he was about to reach for it when he suddenly heard a voice.

"Hey!"

Slater froze and gulped, turning his head towards the sound. Two guards, wearing uniforms identical to his own, were marching in his direction. When they stopped, he calmly faced them, meeting their gaze.

The first man looked at Slater, his brows knitted. "Who are you? I’ve never seen you around here before."

"Ahh..." Slater nodded to himself, his eyes darting between the two men. "I was told to check the prisoners by the commander. He said they’d be taking them later, so I was instructed to check."

The man standing before him narrowed his eyes suspiciously, while the other intuitively gripped the rifle strapped across his body. Slater noticed this but remained calm, meeting the first man’s eyes again.

"Why would the commander want you to check them?" the man asked suspiciously.

Slater shrugged. "I’m just following orders..." he trailed off, raising his brows as he looked at them. "...should I have asked and gotten killed?"

The men didn’t answer, their eyes never leaving Slater. It was true that when orders were given, there were no questions asked. If they were lucky, all they’d get was a warning. However, not everyone was lucky, as those unlucky ones didn’t meet the same fate.

Slater didn’t know this for certain, but with an organization like this, he assumed that was the case.

"Make it quick," said the first man as he took a step forward, causing Slater to step back. "We’re ordered not to let anyone in here, so don’t take it personally. We’re also just listening to orders."

The man explained this while unlocking the door with his keys.

Slater, on the other hand, watched the keys jingle in the man’s hands. He then offered a small smile and a nod.

"Of course," he replied. "Why would I stay in here?"

The three of them heard the lock loosen with a sharp clang, and the man turned to Slater. "Stop smiling at me, boy. Fix that."

The slight smile on Slater’s face instantly faded, and he mentally clicked his tongue. However, the next second, the man pushed the metal door open. It creaked loudly and sharply, enough to make everyone wince at the noise.

Once it was fully open, the man stood to the side and tipped his head in. "After you."

Slater glanced at them and then set his eyes inside the prison cells. No light allowed anyone to see clearly. Only the faint light from the hallway shone in, but even that wasn’t enough.

Without saying anything, he walked in, followed by the two guards. As they entered, the two people who had been guarding the place went to each corner of the underground cell. There weren’t any switches they could turn on to bring some light into the place; instead, they simply lit up a lantern hanging on the wall.

The little round light it cast on the floor wasn’t even enough to illuminate the area. Even so, the men just took the lantern from its hook and walked back to where Slater was.

"Here," the other man said, handing the lantern to Slater. "Go check."

"With just this?" Slater blurted out as he reached for the lantern. "How can I see with just this?"

"Not my problem." The man shrugged. "We’re doing our job, so do yours. Don’t get too close, though. Those rascals will take any chance they get—they bite."

Slater kept his lips drawn into a thin line, staring at the men standing before him. After a shallow breath, he nodded and then turned his back on them. He carefully approached the first prison cell, holding an old-style lantern in front of him.

His steps slowed, moving the lantern closer to the metal bars. As the light stretched inside, he paused. His grip on the lantern trembled slightly as the light inside flickered.

"..." His eyes dilated a bit as he breathed out heavily.

Inside were multiple people, crammed in like sardines. The cell wasn’t small, but with so many people inside, even Slater felt suffocated. Some were almost stacked on top of each other, barely breathing.

But what stood out most was that most of them were heavily injured. Those who were also injured but not as fatally were also forced to stand in the corner to give more space to others. They all looked back at Slater, some with their eyes shut against the light.

Slater pressed his mouth into a thin line, then moved on, checking the next cell. Just like the first one, the situation was the same. He even wondered if some were still alive or had already died. It was the same for the third and fourth cells.

Then, he walked across and checked the cell opposite them.

But unlike the first four prison cells, there were only three in this fourth cell across the last one. However, all three were lying motionless inside. One was on his stomach, another on his side, and the last was on her back.

They had one thing in common, though.

All three were heavily injured, not unlike those in the previous cells, but these individuals were worse. Two of them had their ankles twisted backward.

’Damn!’ Slater mentally winced, feeling his own ankle ache. But then, he sensed the other two guards staring at him. Hence, he continued and moved on to the next one.

Just like the last cell in this row, there were only a few people in there as well. The next one had more people, but their injuries were just as severe. Then, the last cell, which made Slater stop once more.

’Those are...’ he blinked, moving the lantern closer. ’...are those kids?!’

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