Illusions Shattered and Orcs at the Gates
Chloe had made contact with the bat-eyed man and obtained information about the slave auction. The man, oblivious that the person talking to him was a real elf, spilled everything—including the fact that an elf was up for auction. For a supposedly special and secretive slave auction, he was spreading the details far too easily. Of course, Chloe didn't take his words at face value. As a genuine elf herself, she trusted him even less than Minwoo might have.
Still, just in case...
Chloe intended only to verify. Logically speaking, she couldn't imagine any other elf existing in human society besides herself. It had never happened—not once in all of history. But if, by some slim chance, they truly had captured a real elf... she couldn't just leave it be. Elves were extremely insular, but their loyalty to their kin burned fiercer than in any other race.
As time passed and the sun dipped low, approaching the hour the man had mentioned, Chloe headed to the location of the slave auction. The place looked like a rundown warehouse at first glance, but upon entering, a burly man demanded an entry fee. After paying it, he led her underground.
The underground space was far larger than the warehouse above suggested—likely some optical illusion. The empire's laws didn't outright ban slavery, but dealing in sex slaves required a degree of secrecy.
The cavern featured a high platform at the center, surrounded by seats arranged in a semicircle. A considerable crowd had already gathered, mostly men in varied attire. Some exuded obvious nobility, while others looked like street thugs who'd somehow scraped together the entry fee. Given the focus on sex slaves, many seemed there just for the spectacle. It wasn't Chloe's concern. She only needed to confirm if they had a real elf.
Even unfamiliar with human customs, Chloe could infer they'd save an elf slave for last. It would be a long wait. She took a seat as close to the platform as possible, preparing for any contingency.
"Hello?"
"...Ah, hello."
A man sitting beside her greeted her amiably. Aside from his black hair, he seemed utterly ordinary. Chloe returned a polite nod out of courtesy before looking away, but he kept pestering her.
"Is this your first time at a place like this?"
"...It is."
"Oh, what a coincidence. It's my first time too."
"..."
"Since we're fated to meet, why not introduce ourselves? I'm Minwoo."
"...Chloe."
Chloe found the man calling himself Minwoo annoying, but she didn't want to cause a scene before seeing the auction through. She decided to humor him mildly. Her face, partially visible under the robe, posed no issue—her illusion magic made her look like an utterly average human woman.
While exchanging names, Chloe glanced at his face. On second look, he was the same man from the street earlier, the one who'd loudly shouted about elves.
"A woman coming to a place like this is pretty unique. From what I hear, it's mostly sex slaves on offer... Ah, of course, tastes vary, and I respect that. Haha!"
"..."
Minwoo spouted his rudeness casually, but Chloe let it slide in one ear and out the other. His next words, however, she couldn't ignore.
"By the way, wearing that robe indoors—hiding your beautiful looks? Such a shame."
"...Pardon? What did you just say?"
Minwoo's sudden reaction flustered him instead.
"Hm? Did I say something weird?"
"You... called me beautiful?"
"...Yeah?"
Chloe stared intently at Minwoo's dumbfounded face. By human standards, he looked barely in his thirties. He didn't seem like a mage with the training to pierce her magic.
With a suspicious frown, she pressed again. "You think I'm beautiful?"
Minwoo shrugged. "Yeah. Honestly... you're the most beautiful woman I've ever met. If you took off the robe, I could judge even better..." He grinned slyly.
Chloe tossed out one retort before turning away. "...You have unique tastes."
"Hmm...? I thought my tastes were pretty mainstream..."
Pathetic humans. Chloe decided to ignore him completely. Her current appearance hid not just her elongated elven ears but her inherently stunning elven beauty, thanks to the illusion magic. Ancestral scouts had warned her that human men pestered any pretty girl they saw. When he'd complimented her looks out of nowhere, she'd briefly wondered if he'd seen through her spell.
But she dismissed it as absurd and tuned him out. Despite her blatant dismissal, Minwoo just chuckled.
"Oh, looks like it's starting."
A man in flashy attire ascended the platform, drawing the participants' eyes. Likely the auctioneer. He boomed a greeting to the crowd and began proceedings smoothly. As the auction kicked off, even the bothersome Minwoo fell silent, focusing ahead.
...
"Come to think of it, I never asked how much time had passed."
Only after sending Annie did it occur to Randel. Dragging his battered body to Roswell Village must have taken considerable time. Fortunately, Nerka had kept his word and hadn't pursued, but Randel couldn't relax. He hadn't gathered all those orcs just for games, after all. Randel figured they could storm here any moment.
"Piria..."
He still couldn't comprehend why she'd made that choice—or rather, he refused to accept it. Randel hailed from a noble house that, though not highly titled, had produced imperial knights for generations. His father, grandfather, brothers—all exemplary knights—and he'd naturally followed suit. It was his birthright, and he took pride in it.
Not the youngest ever, but young for a knight, he'd earned his title and now led a squad of ten. Talented and diligent, he'd had no time for love or romance. Nobles weren't forbidden from it, and some peers embraced dating, but not Randel.
To him, Piria was a novel type of woman. Mages weren't ideal partners—often eccentric, some even despised knights. For a model knight like Randel, they were poor matches. Yet love knew no rank or borders, they said. In the few days he'd known her, he'd felt something peculiar. Whether true love or mere novelty, he couldn't say.
One undeniable fact remained: Piria had saved him. He'd failed to protect her, receiving grace from the very woman he'd sworn to guard. To a knight like Randel, it felt like humiliation. Disgusted with his survival, he clenched his fists and gritted his teeth.
"...No more distractions. Right now, just..."
Do what he could. Report to the empire, recover, rescue Piria. Focusing solely on that, he sank into meditation. Knights valued mental discipline as much as physical. A scattered mind achieved nothing.
How much time passed? Randel's sharp ears caught the outer commotion. Footsteps echoed down the hall, and the door burst open—earlier than expected.
"B-Big trouble, knight sir!"
"...What happened?"
He'd asked for the guard captain, but Annie returned alone, panting. Randel could guess what it meant.
"Orcs... they're invading the village!"
...
Roswell Village plunged into chaos as thousands of orcs swarmed without warning. The guard captain locked the gates and rallied adventurers for a siege, but it was futile. The scale was overwhelming. The old gates shattered in under an hour.
"No! We have to hold! We can't let orcs into the village!"
The captain bellowed, urging his men, but stemming the flood of orcs seemed impossible. Defenders crumbled, and some orcs already pushed toward residential areas. The captain groaned in despair.
"Ugh... If only Aisha were here...!"
A vain wish. Utterly demoralized, he hung his head.
That moment—
"Watch out!"
"...Huh!?"
A man's shout shoved the captain rolling across the ground. It was Randel, the knight—not attacking, but saving him.
"Get a grip. You're this village's guard captain?"
A young knight approached, ragged but with fierce eyes.
"...Who are you?"
"Imperial knight Randel. Lend me a sword first."
"Ah..."
Randel took the captain's spare blade and glared where the captain had stood. Something that had lunged at him lurked there.
"That's... a bat?"
"A vampire."
"What?"
The captain gaped at Randel's words. Meanwhile, hundreds of bats converged on one spot, soon forming a small, cute girl in a maid outfit. Her golden hair and red eyes smiled seductively at Randel amid the orc-fueled slaughter—an incongruous sight.
"Hmm... I was just sightseeing, but... looks like there's a fun toy after all."