Chapter 151: Wavel (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 151: Wavel (3)
'This isn't something the Guard Captain should say, but personally, I recommend you get out of this city as soon as possible.'
'...Why?'
The bitter scent of tobacco scattered on the wind.
As I was about to leave his office, the Guard Captain said to me:
'Because this is a nauseatingly corrupt city.'
As he looked out the window with a self-deprecating smile, his back showed not a shred of affection for the city.
There was only blatant disgust. Nothing more.
“Whoa, elves sure are pretty.”
“Heh heh, right? Those young ones look like her kids, and is that the mother? My wife can't even compare to a beauty like that.”
“Ah, I wish I could have an elf of my own.”
“Come on, now. Even most nobles, let alone wealthy merchants, are reluctant to bid on elves. They'll probably be sold at the auction house in the noble district.”
In the gazes of the passersby watching the terrified, weeping elf family, there wasn't a trace of sympathy.
Instead, they were busy shouting and cheering in excitement.
Wavel, a city built on the blood of slaves.
I thought I understood what the Guard Captain had hinted at.
The citizens' cheers struck my eardrums like unpleasant noise.
“Hah, haah...!”
“Iris...?”
Iris, who had been watching the scene, suddenly collapsed.
She was covered in a cold sweat and hyperventilating, as if having a seizure.
While I was distracted by Iris, the carriage carrying the elves had disappeared.
I wanted to chase the carriage and save the elves, but causing such a commotion in the middle of the city would inevitably lead to innocent casualties.
I had no choice but to focus on getting Iris out of there first.
However, the streets were overflowing with people everywhere I looked, so I had to stick to the less crowded alleyways.
Only after turning down several alleys could I finally relax and remove Iris's hood.
I loosened her clothes and gave her some water, and her breathing slowly began to even out. A moment later, her expression softened, and she seemed to have calmed down.
“...Iris.”
But her pale complexion and the complex emotions swirling in her eyes remained.
Seeing her like that, I couldn't bring myself to say anything.
I couldn't possibly fathom the shock Iris must have felt.
“Hyun-woo...”
Iris struggled to lift her head. The rims of her eyes were red, as if tears were about to spill over at any moment.
I pulled her into a silent embrace.
Before long, my chest began to feel damp.
I rubbed her back to help her calm down.
Her faintly trembling shoulders felt so small and frail.
That was when an uninvited guest appeared before us.
“Finally found you.”
The uninvited guests were four burly men and one of a smaller build.
Judging by the various weapons, ropes, and sacks in their hands, they didn't seem to be simple passersby.
“Master, what should we do with the man?”
“Hmm... I was just going to dispose of him, but it seems the man is quite a high-quality product himself. Keep the woman unharmed, but the man can take some damage. We can just heal him with a potion anyway.”
The moment the small man finished speaking, the four men rushed toward us.
In that instant, I heard something snap.
It was my reason.
*
Elmar, the master of the Elmar Merchant Company which specialized in slaves, was a man of considerable influence in Wavel.
He had yet to capture an elf slave, but he had made a substantial profit over the years by selling several rare beast-kin slaves at auction.
Normally, he wouldn't have left his office, but perhaps the news that a rival company's slave hunters had captured an elf made him impatient.
As soon as he heard from a guard at the checkpoint that a woman of incredible beauty had entered the city, he had personally led a few hunters out into the streets.
Finding the woman wasn't difficult.
This was Wavel, the city of slaves. There were plenty of people who would sell information whenever an outsider with striking looks or a suspicious air appeared.
'She's with a man who looks like a guard... but he's just one person. He can't do anything alone.'
Elmar had lived in this city for decades, so chasing them through the alleys was a simple matter.
And before long, he found his targets.
However, because she was being held in the man's arms, her most important feature—her face—was hidden. But after decades in the slave trade, he could tell high-quality goods from low-quality ones without even needing to see a face.
'A premium product...!!'
This one was the best of the best.
What's more, the man who was her guard was quite handsome himself. His skin was fair, his features were clean-cut, and he had a large build.
Of course, he didn't know how skilled the guard was, so it could be dangerous, but that's why he had brought his company's best hunters.
These four could capture even a gold-rank adventurer without much trouble.
Elmar wasn't worried at all.
“Hey.”
Which was why he couldn't understand how things had turned out like this.
Elmar sat collapsed on the ground, looking around.
The hunters he had brought with him were scattered across the alley, their limbs torn from their bodies.
Sticky brain matter and blood stained the surroundings crimson.
In this hellscape, he was the only survivor.
And a few steps away stood a man radiating a vicious killing intent toward him.
He felt like a naked villager standing before a ferocious dragon.
“P-Please spare me...”
Thump, thump. Elmar repeatedly slammed his head on the ground, begging for his life. He shamelessly pleaded for mercy to save his own skin.
But no answer came.
Cold sweat poured down like rain, and fear made Elmar want to cry like a child. But as they say, there's always a way out.
“...Do you know about the elves that were captured in the city today?”
In that moment, Elmar saw a tiny glimmer of hope.
“Y-Yes, I do! If you're talking about the elves captured by the Lake Merchant Company, I know all about them!”
“Then do you know when and where the auction is being held?”
They had only exchanged a few words, but he felt as if a sharp blade was pressed against his throat.
His voice kept trembling, so he had to pinch his thigh so hard he nearly tore the flesh.
“Th-The auction is tonight...! It'll be held at the auction house in the noble district! If you wish, I can arrange an invitation for you!”
As he finished speaking, Elmar's mind raced faster than ever before.
Should I have offered gold coins instead of an invitation?
Or maybe a high-quality slave?
He knew all too well that the ones who survived were always those who proved their usefulness, which was why his hands and feet couldn't stop shaking.
“I'll come find you when the sun sets. If you fail to have the invitation ready by then...”
The man trailed off.
The beads of cold sweat on his forehead dripped endlessly.
“I-I'll have it ready no matter what!!”
Elmar had never been more grateful for the fact that he was the master of an influential merchant company.
About thirty minutes later, when he cautiously raised his head, the man was already gone.
Elmar was more relieved that he had survived than he was concerned about his soaked trousers.
*
I took Iris to a nearby inn.
Business seemed slow, as there were no other guests, so I was able to rent the best room.
Of course, even the best inn in a medieval fantasy world was bound to have worse facilities than an old modern-day motel.
Just looking at the bed made me not want to lie on it.
I roughly cleared it away and took another bed out of my inventory. I gently laid Iris down on it.
The sight of the elves being carted away must have been a greater shock than I'd imagined; Iris's eyes were swollen as she lay there, exhausted.
I stroked her hair and looked out the window.
'...The Lake Merchant Company, was it?'
I didn't have to think for long.
Right. It would be faster and easier to just crush a few of the merchant companies that deal in slaves than to negotiate with a lord who might not even listen to me.
I focused my magic and killing intent, casting a barrier around the room.
I couldn't take Iris where I was going, so I needed to set up at least some basic defenses.
After about ten minutes, using thirty percent of my magic, I completed a personal defense-type barrier.
Now, if anyone with hostile intent tried to force their way into the room, a 2nd Circle fire spell would activate and turn them to ash.
Trying to break down the door or walls would be useless, too. They wouldn't even get a scratch on them without launching consecutive 2nd Circle spells.
It was an application of the fixed defense barriers and mobile detection barriers mentioned in my Introduction to Barrier Theory class.
Of course, I'd already told the staff not to enter until tomorrow morning, so there wouldn't be any innocent victims.
I took out a piece of paper from my inventory.
-I'm stepping out for a bit. If you wake up, please wait here. I'll be back by tomorrow morning at the latest.
P.S. Don't worry about the elves in the carriage.
Thanks to the app's ability, I didn't have to worry; anything I wrote in Korean would be automatically translated into the language of this world.
After placing bento boxes for dinner and breakfast on the table, I left the inn through the window.
Unless it was me, the caster, it would be impossible to even open the window, let alone break it.
With the setting sun at my back, I walked through the still-crowded streets.
Retracing my steps from memory, I soon arrived at the guard's building.
I used an invisibility spell and went up.
As expected, the soldiers couldn't see me.
I opened the door to the Guard Captain's office and went inside.
In that instant, a sword came flying straight for my neck.
It was a clean, sharp trajectory, but its power and speed were nothing special, so I was able to dodge it just by shifting slightly to the side.
“Tch, you dodged it.”
The one who had swung the sword was the Guard Captain. He must have swung it instinctively when the door opened on its own.
The man had sharp senses.
I dispelled the magic before any unnecessary problems arose.
“...You?”
“We meet again.”
Finally seeming to relax, the Guard Captain sheathed his sword and collapsed onto the sofa.
“Hah... I thought you were an assassin.”
“An assassin? Are there assassins who target Guard Captains?”
“...Who knows.”
The Guard Captain avoided the question with a meaningful look.
I wasn't curious about some other guy's business, so I didn't press the issue.
“So, what is it?”
“Nothing much. I just came to give you a heads-up, as a small way of repaying your kindness.”
“Hm?”
“Tonight, if a request for support comes from the auction house in the noble district, ignore it.”
“...Are you serious?”
“Unless you're the type to value your convictions more than your life, in which case, feel free to come.”
The man looked into my eyes, realized I wasn't joking, and let out a deep sigh.
“...Not a chance.”
“Good.”
“In return, can I ask a favor?”
“What is it?”
He expertly lit a cigarette with a match, took a drag, and then spoke.
“Try not to kill the city watch if you can help it. If they die, it just makes more work for the guard.”
“I'll try.”
“Thanks.”
With that, the conversation between us ended.
Watching the sun set completely, I stepped out the window of the office and followed the trace of magic I had left on the man from the alley.
I arrived at a rather respectable-looking building.
Knock, knock. When I knocked on the door, a rough-looking man answered.
“...I've been waiting for you.”
I followed the man inside and met the small-statured man in what looked like a reception room.
It was the man I had spared in the alley.
“Th-Thank you very much for visiting the Elmar Merchant Company.”
“The invitation?”
“Of course, I have it ready!”
At the man's gesture, a female employee who was on standby brought over an invitation.
As I was looking it over, the employee brought something else.
“What's this?”
It was a rather luxurious-looking lion mask.
“Th-The slave auctions in the noble district are, as a rule, anonymous. All participants must wear a mask.”
“Anonymous, huh...”
Well, it wasn't hard to understand why.
I suppose a renowned nobleman wouldn't want others to see him buying a sex slave.
“Um... the auction house has a dress code. Would it be all right if we prepared some formal wear for you...?”
“Fine.”
Only then did the man seem to relax slightly, straightening his back and giving an order to the female employee.
As I put on the black formal wear the employee brought, I spoke to the man.
“Are you participating in the auction too?”
“N-No!”
I fastened the cufflinks and put on the lion mask.
“Lucky you.”