CHAPTER 10: Interrogation (part 2)

"This isn't getting anywhere!" Togon exclaimed, clutching his hair, exasperated.

Just then, Balthazar unfortunately decided that the time was ripe for him to mention Togon's crown. "Hey Crown Prince, look what I have here," Balthazar smirked, holding up Togon's crown, "I found it on the grass in the Secret Garden. How could you be so careless and lose it?"

The King frowned and made a grunt of disapproval.

"Give it back!" Togon went and tried to snatch the crown away from Balthazar. His hand grasped thin air as Balthazar raised the crown high above his head where Togon could not reach it. "Not until you tell us how you lost it," Balthazar smirked.

"I-I-It...umm..." Togon trailed off, not even able to come up with a feeble excuse. "Must... must I explain everything to you? I just lost it! How do I explain how I lost it?"

The King stepped in and intervened, "Balthazar, return the crown to Togon."

Togon could not believe his luck. He stuck out his tongue at Balthazar, seeing the look of disbelief on his face.

The King turned to Togon, "Togon, you should not be so careless. How can you lose your crown? What if Balthazar didn't find it and someone else stole it instead? I'm letting you off this time, but if something like this happens again, you will have to face the music."

It was now Balthazar's turn to grin. Dumbfounded, Togon had his mouth hanging wide open. Balthazar tossed the crown right at his face. Fumbling to catch it, Togon failed miserably and the crown landed on the floor with a clatter.

He was going to be the laughing stock of the palace. And it was all Balthazar's fault. Sighing, he put a distance between himself and Balthazar, and turned his attention back to the assassin tied up in the interrogation chair.

All this time, Gabe was staring at the scene unfolding before her eyes, bewildered at how they were completely ignoring her. Nevertheless, she decided to take this opportunity to try and find a way to escape. She tried to squiggle and squeeze her way out of the ropes, but to no avail. She could not escape from the ropes. Still, she could find another way.

Just then, as her eyes were desperately searching for something that could help her, it landed on the watch that Togon was wearing. She suddenly recalled the strange incident when she was still in her own world and her watch disappeared, replaced with the bracelet. Could it be that the crown prince was somehow involved in this? Or why would he be wearing her watch?

"Umm... sorry to interrupt, but I just want to ask, where did you get that watch?" Gabe asked Togon, who was now staring at her curiously.

"What? What watch? What's a watch?" Togon asked, genuinely confused.

Just as she thought. A watch definitely didn't belong in a place like this. It was a piece of the puzzle that Gabe was trying to figure out. A clue.

"That thing you are wearing on your wrist," Gabe gestured with her chin.

"Oh, this?" Togon asked, lifting his arm with the watch, "Does it belong to you?"

"Yes, it does. Please give it back. And I'll return you your bracelet," Gabe said. She figured that the watch and the bracelet somehow got switched and if he was wearing her watch, then the bracelet she was wearing belonged to him.

"You have my bracelet?"

"Yep, it's on my arm, tied up behind this chair"

"I'll take the bracelet, and keep this as well," Togon gestured to the watch on his wrist, "Guard, go retrieve the bracelet from the assassin."

The guard bowed his head and proceeded towards Gabe. He fumbled for a while, untangling the bracelet from the ropes. Gabe purposely tried to make it difficult for him, wriggling her hands about.

Gabe glared at Togon. "Don't you want to know how your bracelet came into my possession?"

Togon remembered how the bracelet suddenly disappeared when he was wearing it. It must be some kind of magic. Wow! He was so curious to find out what this girl was capable of, with all her magical items and stuff. "Tell me!" Togon demanded.

Just then, the guard began to slide the bracelet off Gabe's wrist. Just he was about to remove it, there was a sudden bright flash of light and he was thrown into the air by an invisible explosive force.

Gabe's view suddenly changed. Before that, she all she saw was the dungeon. Then, in a flash, she suddenly saw tall buildings, roads, and cars. The city! Her home! But it lasted for less than a second. Before she could even gasp, she was back in the dungeon, tied up in the chair.

Everyone in the room felt like their lungs were momentarily compressed due to a sudden pressure. The guard who flew up into the air landed on the ground with a thud, unconscious. Everything happened so quickly that it took everyone a few seconds to react. Immediately after, there was a huge commotion, as they all started panicking and running about, yelling at the top of their voices.