Online Game: I Started with Max Charisma and Caught the Goddess's Eye-Chapter 379: Flawless Countermeasures

Luca felt as though he was trapped in a strange dream. He found himself in a vast, white, empty space, with distant murmurs echoing around him. These voices were from people he recognized.

A constant throbbing headache flared up, and he shook his head, trying to clear his mind.

He wasn't sure how much time had passed, but eventually, a strange and aged voice clearly reached Luca's ears.

"I am your closest friend, and every word I say, you will believe completely."

As soon as the voice finished speaking, a thought suddenly surged in Luca's mind. The thought was so intense that his mind went completely blank, save for this one idea: he had to obey every word spoken by the strange, aged voice.

"You are my closest friend! I will believe everything you say!" Luca repeated the words mechanically.

"Very good. Let's start with something easier. Tell me who you are, and where you come from."

"I am Luca, and I come from the world of the future."

Luca's response was clearly beyond the speaker's expectations. After a long silence, the voice returned.

"What does 'the world of the future' mean? Are you a time traveler?"

"I don't know, maybe I'm just lucky. I've been given a second chance at life."

After the brief exchange, the dream world around Luca fell quiet once more. This time, the silence stretched on for an unusually long time. It was so long that Luca felt as though his consciousness was about to completely fade.

Then, suddenly, he snapped back to reality.

"Damn it, Dr. Smith is invading my dreams! If it weren't for my special abilities related to dreams, I wouldn't have even noticed!"

Luca was furious. Ever since he had acquired a set of unique dream-related skills, he had always been able to take control of his dreams. This was the first time he had been suppressed by an enemy in his own dream.

But anger wouldn't solve anything. After the initial outburst, he gradually calmed down.

Dr. Smith likely still didn't realize that Luca had fully regained his consciousness. Luca believed he could use this opportunity to cleverly mislead Dr. Smith, carefully crafting his responses to avoid revealing too much.

"This is a good opportunity. Perhaps I can mislead the people from Zenith Technology Company," Luca thought to himself.

Having made up his mind, Luca began to strategize his next steps.

Meanwhile, in the Daskhollow secret laboratory's review department office, Dr. Smith was engaged in a heated debate with his subordinates.

"Doctor, I believe this is just Luca mumbling in his sleep. He couldn't possibly be someone who traveled from the future. Time travel can only be accomplished by extremely powerful, high-ranking beings," a young scholar in a white lab coat said loudly. He was Dr. Smith's most admired student and one of the leading scholars in the field of dream consciousness.

Dr. Smith adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses. "You may be right. But as an expert in the field of consciousness, you should know that any unusual behavior in a dream has a cause."

"Perhaps this is just Luca's subconscious response?" another researcher interjected.

"That's nonsense!" the young scholar snapped. "We have complete control over Luca's dreams, and now he can only respond using his subconscious. Because of this, we can be certain that everything he says is the truth!"

The young scholar's voice was filled with authority. He felt that only he and Dr. Smith were qualified to discuss such matters in the office. Anyone else speaking up was merely embarrassing themselves.

"Liam! You're too arrogant. While you are undoubtedly the most gifted, you still need the help of others," Dr. Smith reprimanded, though he held a deep appreciation for Liam's talent.

Liam, though slightly dissatisfied, didn't press the issue further.

"I believe Luca might have undergone a significant emotional shock. In such a situation, Luca's subconscious could have split his memories into two parts. This could explain why his subconscious believes he is a time traveler. It also perfectly explains why he said he had a second chance at life," Liam proposed.

Although he didn't believe his explanation was definitive, it seemed the most plausible.

Dr. Smith nodded thoughtfully. "Your theory is very likely correct. So, how should we go about testing it?"

Liam hesitated for a moment before speaking. "I think we should gradually guide him during the interrogation. Perhaps we can ask him about the possible emotional shock he experienced. Through this, we can learn more about Luca."

Dr. Smith finally smiled. "Then I'll leave the interrogation to you. I'm looking forward to your results."

Dr. Smith, of course, hoped Liam would succeed. If Liam helped him further understand Luca, Dr. Smith could ensure that Luca's memories were fully extracted within a week.

"I'll do my best!" Liam said, and immediately sat down in Dr. Smith's seat. He began operating the consciousness interface device and re-entered Luca's dream.

"That martyr complex of yours—you really buy into this reincarnation bullshit? Do you want to use this second chance to make up for any regrets?" A young voice echoed in Luca's ears within the dream world.

"Has the person interrogating me changed? Has Dr. Smith begun to suspect that I've awakened?" Luca felt a bit nervous. He had just worked out how to handle Dr. Smith's identity without revealing anything. He never expected the interrogator to be someone else.

But no matter what, he knew he had to stick to his original plan.

"Because I've already gone through the same things. Having a second chance would allow me to save my family and friends."

Luca's answer seemed completely logical. Liam couldn't detect any issues with it. After hearing the response, Liam quickly began flipping through the files in his hands.

Zenith Technology Company had gathered some information on Luca. After the destruction of the Dragon Gate Mountain laboratory, Zenith Technology Company had spent a significant amount of time gathering data on him.

"Very good. Does the family you're trying to save include Susie?"

"Of course!"

"Does it include Donlow?"

"Of course!"

"Does it include Quagmire?"

At this question, Luca hesitated for a moment.

This hesitation was deliberate.

If his answers had been too quick and decisive, the interrogator would certainly become suspicious. In an unconscious dream state, the more important a question was, the more straightforward the answer should be, and the clearer the memories of the people who mattered should be.

For the questions that weren't so crucial, or for people who weren't so important, Luca knew he didn't need to focus too much. When answering those types of questions, he made sure to keep his responses vague.

After a while, Luca slowly responded.

"It could include him. If I could save him, I'd be willing to do so."

His answer made Liam very happy. Liam felt like he had found the key to the problem.

Liam didn't immediately continue asking questions. He turned his gaze toward Dr. Smith.

"Doctor, I think I've hit the key point. According to the information we've gathered, Susie and Luca grew up together. Donlow met Luca during a battle. Susie and Donlow were both in a serious crisis about two months ago. So, I believe the huge emotional shock Luca experienced was related to the danger Susie and Donlow faced around that time."

Liam confidently stated his hypothesis.

No one in the interrogation room questioned him. They all thought his guess made a lot of sense.

Dr. Smith nodded repeatedly.

"Very good. So, do you want to continue with this line of questioning, or do you think we should move on to more critical questions?"

Liam hesitated for a moment.

"I think it's safer to proceed cautiously. While I'm now quite confident that my judgment is correct, I still need to verify a bit more."

So, for the next half hour, Liam relentlessly questioned Luca about Susie and Donlow.

Luca's responses were flawless, but he was starting to feel exhausted.

"What is this interrogator doing?! Why is he so fixated on Susie and Donlow?! Does he have a crush on them or something?!"

Luca was growing angry. He felt like the interrogator was using a fatigue strategy on him.

Using a fatigue strategy in a dream was utterly immoral! Luca would never resort to such tactics.

The dull and exhausting first round of questioning quickly ended. His responses were perfect, and neither Liam, who prided himself on being an expert in the field of consciousness, nor Dr. Smith, the head of the Daskhollow secret laboratory, found any flaws.

Dr. Smith had already decided that after a one-hour break, he would proceed to ask the most crucial questions—those relating to the Eternal Continent and various high-level beings.

Dr. Smith believed that his interrogation strategy would yield significant results. He had even begun to draft his research report in his mind.

Although the human world was facing a tremendous crisis, for people like Dr. Smith, their research was far more important. The survival of humanity was not their primary concern.