My Master Loves to Play
I was staring blankly ahead when one of the staff members escorting me struck up a conversation.
“You’re pretty lucky, you know. The Wittelsbach family is one of the absolute best. At the very least, you won’t have to worry about being abused.”
“...”
“And you went for twelve hundred million, didn’t you? I don’t know how much debt you racked up to end up sold off like this, but that should cover a good chunk of it, right?”
The man kept talking to himself, then finally shook his head.
“Honestly, what am I even saying to a five-year-old? You probably don’t understand half of it anyway.”
“I understand just fine.”
“Huh?”
I brushed past him and kept walking. Before long, the entrance to a room decorated in an elegant, old-fashioned style came into view.
“Alright, your master’s in there. Try not to make a bad impression...”
“Let’s go in.”
“Is this kid really five? You some kind of early bloomer or what?”
I’m a reincarnator, actually. The words rose all the way to my throat, but there was no need to say them.
I ignored him completely and walked on. The man sighed and opened the door.
“You’re here.”
“This is the child you purchased earlier.”
Stepping inside, I saw the middle-aged man from the auction house. From a distance I hadn’t noticed, but up close he was quite muscular—the kind of build that made you believe he could actually run a famous family as its head.
I was staring blankly at him when a soft, squishy sensation suddenly pressed against my cheek.
“...Huh?”
“Wow! Daddy! Her eyes are red!”
A little girl who looked about seven jabbed her finger into my cheek over and over.
What on earth...
“Julia, come sit down. That’s rude.”
“B-but...!”
“Now.”
A few words from Ludwig, and the girl who had been pouting sat down in the chair with her head hanging low.
“Your daughter is truly beautiful—she takes after her mother.”
“You’re too kind. I ought to start teaching her statecraft soon, or at least help her develop her unique ability, but she hates both so much it’s a problem.”
“Haha, she’s of Wittelsbach blood, isn’t she? When the time comes, she’ll figure it out just fine.”
“I appreciate you saying so. More importantly, how shall I settle the payment?”
“However you prefer. Slave transactions are more complicated than ordinary goods, though, so let me explain the details first. Ah—you, come sit over here as well. You probably won’t understand any of it, but legally we’re required to explain it to you.”
I sat on the sofa and looked at the man. He cleared his throat a few times and began.
“Ahem. First, the circumstances of the slave contract. This young lady here is listed on the documents as Seo-hyun. That is you, correct?”
“Huh? Ah—yes.”
I had no way of knowing the original owner of this body’s name, so I’d been in the dark until now. Apparently that was my name.
A Korean-style name, at that. I’d assumed an isekai would mean a medieval fantasy setting, but this world seemed closer to modern fantasy. Come to think of it, I’d already seen latex and cell phones—there was no way it was medieval.
“Miss Seo-hyun’s debt amounts to one billion won, or roughly seven hundred sixty thousand dollars. Ludwig Wittelsbach purchased her for twelve hundred million. After deducting the auction house’s one-percent commission and various acquisition taxes...”
The staff member checked a calculator and nodded.
“It comes out to about one billion. What a coincidence. That lets us skip a number of inconvenient procedures.”
He made a call somewhere and had a contract brought over.
“Now then, Miss Seo-hyun: once you repay the full one billion in debt, you will be released from slave status and return to being a free citizen. You might think it will take forever if we calculate by minimum wage, but since every hour of the day is counted, it should take twelve years. By the time you’re seventeen, you’ll be free again.”
“One billion...?”
What kind of five-year-old racks up a billion-won debt?
“Of course, the period can be extended or shortened depending on circumstances. For example, if you manage to gather the full one billion early and pay it off. I’ve heard of someone with a natural gift for investment who shortened a three-hundred-seventy-year term of service down to fourteen years.”
Ah. I was starting to understand how this system worked.
The “slavery” they were describing wasn’t the kind people usually imagined. It was closer to an employer-employee relationship.
A system that forced people who, due to age or ability, had no means of repaying their debts into a kind of compulsory service until the debt was cleared.
The main differences from ordinary employment were that the employee couldn’t unilaterally end the relationship, and the scope of labor was a bit broader.
“Basic food, clothing, and shelter must be provided by the Wittelsbach family. Medical care and education are also ‘recommended’ to be provided by the employer. And if you ever receive an order that you believe violates human rights or the law, contact the Human Rights Commission—we will cooperate with everything we have.”
Having finished, the staff member held out the contract to both sides.
“I’ve explained everything that needed explaining. Please review the contract for any issues and sign. That will complete it.”
The guardian signature field on the copy given to me was already filled in—probably by the auction house.
Come to think of it... do I not have parents?
Well, if I’d had normal parents, they wouldn’t have stood by while their daughter was sold as a slave at auction.
Refusing to sign wouldn’t give me any way to repay the debt, so I signed the contract under half-forced circumstances and set the pen down.
In the process, my handwriting from my previous life slipped out, drawing everyone’s eyes—a minor disaster. I mumbled something about having practiced really hard, and they seemed to let it slide.
“You can read and write? Both English and Korean?”
“Yes, um... I learned a little from a foreigner I knew...”
“Hmm... this level isn’t something you pick up from ‘a little’ learning...”
“Daddy! Daddy! Can I go play now?”
“Wait. We’re almost finished.”
Ludwig took a key from the staff member and unlocked the handcuffs and leash.
“That concludes the transaction... but if I may ask a personal question?”
Ludwig nodded as if to say it was fine.
“Speak.”
“Then... how do you intend to use this child?”
Under normal circumstances it would have been an extremely rude question. How an owner used something they had purchased was entirely their right.
But given that this had been an auction of a young child, he couldn’t quite hide his unease.
Ludwig, however, seemed unbothered by the staff member’s concern. He beckoned the man closer.
Once the staff member had approached, Ludwig whispered in a voice only he could hear.
“I plan to make her Julia’s personal maid. It bothers me that she’s six years old and still doesn’t have a single friend. I’ve also heard that Inferiors are generally quite intelligent.”
“Well, I’ve heard that on average, yes... but it’s not scientifically proven...”
“What does that matter? Unique abilities aren’t scientifically proven either, are they?”
With that, Ludwig allowed himself the faintest smile and turned toward me.
I hadn’t heard what he said, but I knew the conversation had been about me, and somehow my body tensed.
“I’ll explain your duties once we reach the mansion.”
What exactly was he planning to make me do?
Since things had turned out this way, I could only hope the work would be relatively easy.
Carrying a tangle of emotions and thoughts, I climbed into the car that would take me to the mansion with the servants.
And the work environment I found waiting for me was...
Truly the worst.
“Seo-hyun! Let’s play house!”
“Ah, young miss...? Could we rest a little...”
“Ta-da! This is my faaavorite one. His name is Wilson!”
“What?!”
Were all little children this energetic?
I felt like I’d already played with her for a good three hours, yet she showed no sign of tiring and was now demanding we play house.
And not with an ordinary doll—she was holding up a bizarre-looking volleyball.
“Th-that’s a doll?”
“Yep! Some big brother I know made it when he got shipwrecked in Oceania while hunting monsters. I don’t know the details!”
This family was insane.
I could say that with absolute certainty.
What kind of person hands a toddler a volleyball smeared all over with red paint and tells her to play with it?
Normally I would have politely refused and taken a break...
But the head of the household himself had ordered me to become Julia’s friend.
I’d already been sold; I couldn’t just freeload. So I’d resolved to play along with her. What I hadn’t expected was that Julia’s stamina far exceeded that of any ordinary child her age.
On top of that, my own physical condition wasn’t great. Even while minimizing my movements as much as possible, I felt ready to collapse.
“Hey, are you all right?”
A butler who saw my face turn deathly pale rushed over at once.
After checking my complexion several times, he called a maid who managed the mansion and had me carried to the infirmary.
When I came to, I was lying beneath a white ceiling, listening to the adults talking.
“It would be best to have a thorough examination done.”
“It doesn’t seem like an illness... but in cases like this there’s also the possibility of a genetic disorder...”
“...I see. Understood. Then when would be a good time to schedule the full examination?”
“You could do it right now if you wish. All the equipment is ready...”
“Doctor! The patient is awake!”
“Miss! How are you feeling? If anything hurts or feels uncomfortable, you must tell us immediately...”
No matter how I looked at it, this body was little better than garbage.