"AAAAAH!" Pietro let out a hoarse roar, fear clawing up from the pit of his stomach.
"Alright, that's enough. If we keep him in there any longer, this kid's probably going to go crazy."
The beast-soldiers were well-practiced at this kind of "education." If someone didn't listen, they got thrown into solitary. After a few days, they'd come out obedient. Most of them had gone through it themselves, so they knew exactly how terrifying it was, and where the limit was.
Pietro was just an ordinary high school student. His willpower couldn't compare to theirs. Naturally, they wouldn't lock him up for that long. They didn't want him to suffer a complete mental breakdown.
So Pietro was dragged out.
The moment he saw sunlight again, Pietro realized for the first time that sunlight could be this beautiful.
But the next second, he was beaten again.
Wham!
Pietro wanted to ask why, but they only stared at him coldly and laid into his face and body with solid, brutal punches.
His face swelled up immediately. Several teeth were knocked loose. He collapsed to the ground, weak and limp.
"Give him a piece of bread and some water. Continue tomorrow."
Then he heard a voice.
Pietro didn't have the strength to move. He was dragged back into that room, and a piece of bread and a bottle of water were tossed in front of him.
Right after that, the freezing iron door slammed shut.
Pietro panted, sprawled over a cold, damp mound of dirt. He didn't care that filthy muddy water soaked through his pants and clothes. The bone-chilling cold drove away the tiny, pitiful warmth he'd managed to keep under his layers.
Only his eyes, slightly swollen and webbed with dark red bloodshot veins, stayed locked on the bread and water ahead.
Suddenly, his body twitched for no reason.
A thick, acrid wave of stomach acid surged from deep in his gut up to his throat. Pietro frowned hard, forcing down the nausea and the urge to vomit, and he swallowed that reflux back down.
The burning, searing ache in his stomach forced strength into his limbs. He snatched up the bread and shoved it into his mouth, chewing in a panic.
As he bit down, scattered crumbs scraped and stung the inside of his mouth. A few crumbs even slipped into his windpipe, and the sudden spasm of his muscles triggered a violent coughing fit.
Pietro choked until his eyes rolled back. He hurriedly twisted open the bottle cap, threw his head back, and gulped down water.
Once the bread and water hit his stomach, the fiery, corroding pain eased by a lot.
Then Pietro started crying.
He didn't understand how he'd ended up like this. What had he done wrong?
What am I supposed to do now?
Will Wanda notice I'm gone?
At first, Pietro still clung to hope, but he quickly came back to reality. Even if Wanda realized he was missing, it would take days. And even if she did realize, what could she do? The only thing she could do was call the police.
But if calling the police actually worked, there wouldn't be so many missing people every year.
Does that mean I'll have to live like this forever?
Despair flooded Pietro. He didn't even know why these people had taken him. Living like this for the rest of his life might even be a wishful dream.
A few days later, Zod was in his laboratory when Wanda came looking for him.
"Mr. Heath, something's wrong. Pietro is missing," Wanda said anxiously.
No matter how wildly Pietro messed around before, he still always came home. But Wanda had gone three days without seeing Pietro return.
She worked up the courage to ask the delinquents Pietro usually hung out with. They all said they hadn't seen Pietro, and they didn't know Pietro. That was when Wanda realized something was wrong.
Something had happened to Pietro, and he'd been made to disappear.
Wanda's first choice was to call the police, but the police told her to go home and wait for news.
So Wanda waited several more days. When she went back to ask again, they still told her to wait for news.
There was no other way. Wanda's only family left was Pietro. She couldn't just let him go.
So Wanda could only come to Zod Heath for help.
"Wanda?"
Zod was surprised when he saw her. Didn't Uld stop her?
Uld actually had tried. But when Uld asked why Wanda wanted to see Zod, Wanda refused to say. She insisted she had to see Zod in person. Not knowing what Zod's attitude toward her would be, Uld could only bring Wanda in.
"Please, help me, Mr. Heath. I'm willing to pay any price."
Wanda knew she didn't have anything that could move Zod Heath, so she handed the choice over to him.
Even if Zod wanted her, Wanda didn't care.
After all, Zod wasn't a playboy. His restraint and self-discipline were widely known. As for his relationship with Uld and Esdeath, Uld wasn't the type to spread it around.
In that situation, more and more girls around Wanda were being supported by Zod, and all of them were very beautiful. Of course Wanda's mind ran wild. At this age, girls were often more mature than boys. After Wanda looked into things through the "spider web," she came to a conclusion.
She thought Zod Heath probably liked the "raising" type, which was why he kept her, Jessica, and Emma around. And Morgan hadn't seen her for a long time. Rumor said Morgan had gone elsewhere to study.
Zod saw through what Wanda was thinking and felt speechless. Was his image really that awful?
In Western culture, did being self-disciplined mean he liked little girls, liked raising them?
Zod, who actually liked older, more mature women, felt helpless. He simply didn't like sleeping around. Sleeping with young models might be fun, but the moment he thought about how many upper-class people had already played with them, he couldn't accept it.
He had a cleanliness obsession in that regard.
"Pietro has been missing. Why did you only come to me now?" Zod asked.
"I… I didn't want to trouble you, but calling the police didn't work, so I could only come and ask you for help," Wanda said.
Today, Wanda had deliberately dressed in a very, well, that kind of way. In truth, she'd already prepared herself mentally.
"Uld, bring her some clothes to put on. A child wearing something like that, what kind of look is that? As for Pietro, don't worry. I'll go bring him back."
Zod called out to Uld, then said to Wanda.
Uld looked like she'd been ready for this. She came in with a set of clothes in her hands.
"Mr. Heath, please. I really can…" Wanda begged urgently.
Then a finger pressed against the center of her forehead.
"Be good and wait at home. Leave this kind of thing to the adults."
Zod stood up.
Uld had already draped the clothes over Wanda.
"Take her home, Uld," Zod said, turning to leave.
"Don't worry. There's nothing in this world he can't do," Uld comforted Wanda.
/-\
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