Lies call for more... lies.

(...)

He didn't need to see in order to know he was taken to a cold, wooden cell with some powerful magic restraints. Luckily though, these barriers, just like the curse they cast on him upon accessing the Palace, aren't effective towards his kind of magic, the Divine Magic of the Avatars.
What blocks him from using his powers is his conscience. Everybody got to learn about the powers and skills of his present self, although still very rusty and underdeveloped, and he doesn't want to put him into any risk. But he is also blocked by his cowardice, this devouring feet he has, that if he tried to react he would only suffer worse.
He didn't become like this out of nowhere, he had his reasons and blindness, plus the way he became blind, is at the top of it.

He is also worried for Gamja, but he would never admit it. He is not sure whether it is a good or bad thing that she wasn't taken to the prisons as well.

Hours pass and finally someone comes to him. He gets taken by a couple of armored men, whom roughly pull him out of the cell and further.
He does not struggle, he feels so overwhelmed by the awareness of who he is about to face.
They proceed until a "The prisoner is here." marks the arrival to his destination.
Not surprised. If they wanted to just imprison him like a regular criminal, they would take him to the Imperial Prison, not the Palace.
"Let him in." To that, the men restraining him start to move again, then they violently throw him forward, making him fall.
He just kneels and prostrates himself.
"Leave us."
That voice gives him the same effect of being struck by a lightning, whenever he speaks.
"Ye, Jeonha!"
He hears the men leave the room. Although he can see, he can feel there is more than one person with him. He assumes it's the Sangseon.
After some moments... "Come sit with me."
He wishes he could have at least stayed in that position, but no of course. He stands up with a swift movement. His body is trembling a lot, that must be evident even for who is looking at him.
He walks very slowly, struggling to focus. He hates people to know he is blind and has this mental fixation he must hide it at all cost. In the last 15 years he learnt some tricks to look as if he could see. It's just harder when he is panicked.

As he feels to be close enough, he kneels down and covers that little space separating him from a short table. He keeps his head bowed down.
He hears a liquid being poured and shortly after the scent of tea hits his nose too. Something gets dragged on the table surface, closer to him.
"Have some tea", says LianBi.
Tero hesitates for a moment, but if there is one thing he knows is that when your Emperor, or King, tells you to drink, you drink even if you saw him pouring poison in your cup. Besides, if he wanted him dead, he would leave the job to Haru and HyunKi. Why would he want a corpse to dispose of, in his throne hall?
He bows his head and takes the cup, drinking the tea right away. It's delicious, perfect, one of the best he has ever had. It was meant to make him at ease perhaps, but it sure didn't work.
"You don't intend to say a word?"
The Emperor probably guessed by the fact he didn't greet nor thank him. The fact is that he fears someone could recognize his voice. He is being overcareful on that matter.
"I know you can speak, you apologized to me on the street of the village."
But he still doesn't intend to say anything.
"It won't be an issue, anyway."
After that, Tero can feel some movement near him and the noises of something wooden being dragged on the floor. He is not sure what happens, but struggles to keep calm, just remaining motionless in his pose.
Suddenly his hand gets grabbed, which causes him to jump. LianBi puts something in his hand.
"If you won't speak, you will write."
Great, just great. He is even left handed, there is no limit to how uncomfortable this will be for him.
Probably thinking he is trying to oppose resistance, the Emperor also placed the brush in the ink and then on the paper, moving Tero's hand.
"I suggest you answer honestly and don't try to lie. Also, every time you won't answer, it will be taken as an admission."
There we go. There was something in that tea, after all. Tero takes the border of the paper with his right hand, to try to orientate a little to write.

"What is your name?"
Hard question. But easy. He can't lie, he got it and doesn't fancy to test the effects. Luckily though, Joseon Princes had a sh*t load of names and be only used one, beside his 'nickname'. So, let's go for his birth name this time, that he sure never revealed to anyone.
[Bang-sul.]
"Family name?"
Damn. The Emperor knows Tero is a Lee and he is not yet sure how many Lee are there in the Empire. If he was the only one, that would awkward. Luckily though, languages are on his side. In Korea, Lee and Yi are the same surname. Written and spelled the same way, but in Teshing they are written using two different characters, so...
[Yi.]
"Yi Bang-sul. How old are you?"
Easy one, phew. [Thirty-three.]
"Are you a Shinobi?"
[Aniyo.]
"Are you related with Shinobi in some way?"
[Aniyo.] Assuming he meant if he was relative with them.
"Do you have some family?"
[Aniyo.] Considering that present Yang and JY are with present Tero and not him...
"Do you have a wife?"
[Aniyo!] Oook, maybe he shouldn't have given such an enthusiastic answer.
"You aren't into women?"
There we go. Oh well... [Aniyo.]
"You are fully into men, not even both?"
[Ye...] Wait, why the hell would the Emperor of Xhuanghen ask him such question??

Short, scary silence.

"Did you commit any crime?"
F*ck. With capital F. He can't lie and if he doesn't answer it will be the same as saying yes... His hand starts to tremble even more than before. [Ye...]
"Did you steal?"
[Ye.]
"Out of desperate need?"
[Aniyo.]
"Did you kill?"
[Ye.]
"In war?"
[Aniyo.]
"Out of self defence?"
[Not only...] Oh Gods, how f***ing screwed am I... - he thinks. He totally lost focus by now and can't imagine what a mess the paper must be. He can't keep track of where the previous ideogram ends anymore.
"Have you ever raped someone?"
[Ye...]
”Have you betrayed me in any way or context?"
[Aniyo...] At least one he didn't commit!
"Have you ever harmed innocent people?"
[Ye.]
Snickers. He hears snickers. What in the holy f*ck? The Emperor finds it funny?
"You have done everything that is bad..." LianBi says, still sounding amused. But then turns scarily seriously. "And you aren't even joking. Half of the crimes you committed are worth death sentence."
He feels so petrified now. Mainly because he can't understand. He summoned him all the way there just to check if he had committed some crime worth execution? What was it, needed to entertain the people and the prisons were empty?
"Take him away."

He is hyperventilating bad, but doesn't fight not even when someone grabs him by arm and forces him to stand up. This time, the person dragging him is one, more gentle and surely not wearing an armor. If it's a Sangseon it must be Ryuke...

He is left in a spacious place. It's warm and clean, no straw on the floor... it can't be the cell he was in before. He is pretty sure to be alone in the room, but he can't have proof of it, not until be manages to calm down and focus on his other senses.