The Women Who Abandoned Me Are Now My Slaves

My childhood friends and former party members were in a state of personality erasure plus body modification? I was shocked, but showing any emotion here would let the seasoned slave merchant notice immediately. I kept my face blank, projecting complete disinterest, and studied the information floating above their heads.

The number on the left represented their current stats—the higher the figure, the stronger the individual. The number on the right showed their potential at their peak; the higher it was, the more powerful their hidden talent. Combining their level of ability with my leadership would be more than enough to become an F-rank hunter officially recognized by the empire.

The academy served as a stepping stone for becoming a hunter. If I bought my former childhood friends, now reduced to slaves, and controlled them exactly as I pleased, my admission was all but guaranteed.

My heart pounded. Even after losing their personalities and undergoing body modification, they had not lost their strength. On the contrary, they were roughly ten percent stronger than when they had left me. Their growth rate was faster than I had imagined.

Still, I had no idea what had happened to them after we parted ways. I felt not the slightest interest in those bitches. Yet the women who had abandoned me had met miserable ends and lost their very selves. Suddenly my mouth watered at the thought of taking the very women who had thrown me away and making them my slaves.

“Um~ Are those girls catching your eye? Let’s see… Ah. They’re those poor slaves who wandered into the Tentacle Dungeon by mistake, had their personalities erased, and their bodies modified. Everyone who showed interest in buying them eventually realized what had happened and quietly backed away.”

It seemed my brief glance had become an obvious stare. The bunny-girl slave merchant Darling immediately offered an explanation. I couldn’t afford to slip up here. I had been prepared to pay extra, but surprisingly her expression was clouded.

“The Tentacle Dungeon?”

The Tentacle Dungeon. Just thinking about it sent a chill down my spine. It wasn’t a place of simple cruelty; if a woman stumbled inside, supreme pleasure would shatter both her body and mind. Yet the tentacles’ core secretions were powerful elixirs, and their nuclei served as beautiful gems for crafting weapons or accessories. The dungeon’s strategic value was enormous.

They had probably entered to earn money and ended up like this. I didn’t even want to imagine what came afterward. The thought of the dungeon packed with large and small, transparent, sticky bundles of tentacles made me shudder.

“Exactly. A dungeon women must never enter. It’s only recently become known, but many women who went inside suffered the same fate.”

Darling, still dressed in her bunny-girl outfit, sighed as though she had a terrible headache.

“You know how it is, right? For a woman to become a slave, she must be a virgin. When we examined them, every single one who had her personality erased and body modified inside the Tentacle Dungeon was still a virgin. At first we brought in quite a few, but the moment anyone tried to touch them they turned violent. We have no idea why, so they’ve been left almost completely alone. Well? Want to buy them? I’ll let you have them cheap.”

The word slave sounded convenient, as if you could do whatever you wanted, but reality was far stricter. A slave owner had to register the slave with the empire’s management office and manage her with absolute care. Various taxes applied, and periodic reports were mandatory. If the slave possessed abilities, the owner faced the empire’s rigorous screening process. Anything the slave did was the owner’s responsibility; if she committed a crime, the owner ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠would be punished for failing to control her, no matter how unrelated the matter seemed.

If Darling’s words were true, these slaves carried the absolute worst conditions for trade.

“I was planning to report them to the empire since they have no personalities left. But if you’re interested, take them. I’ll give you a genuine special price.”

It looked ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠like Darling wanted to dispose of these four troublesome slaves while she had the chance. In my heart I wanted them, but snatching them up immediately would make me look like a fool.

“You want me to buy them? They sound like an enormous penalty and a bomb that could go off at any moment.”

“True… Tsk… Sigh… Who on earth would take them?”

Darling let out a long breath. Worry and concern appeared on her seductive face.

An unwelcome reunion. They had once been my childhood friends. Now they were nothing to me. Thinking that, I tried to turn my attention to other slaves. But at that moment, something completely unexpected happened.

No one else received rectangular messages like these, but I did. It was one of my abilities. The information visible only to my eyes set ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠my mind spinning at full speed. My eyes especially flashed at the part that said I could completely control the slaves.

I could turn the women who had once been my childhood friends—the very ones who had abandoned me—into my slaves? Honestly their abilities were only average, but I knew their skills intimately. I knew exactly what techniques they used. Most importantly, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠once I became their master I could use and exploit them however I wished.

The academy entrance exam was not far away. These former childhood friends, now treated as nuisances after losing their personalities and having their bodies modified, would be put to work by me. I made my decision.

Reporting them to the empire and disposing of them would cost a considerable sum. While thinking of ways to save money, I decided to take advantage of that very fact.

“Then how about I dispose of these slaves for you in exchange for a small disposal fee?”

“You? These slaves?”

The bunny girl’s face filled with doubt. She obviously wanted to get rid of them immediately, but she also feared that if I used the slaves and ran afoul of imperial law it would become a major headache. I read her concern at once and continued.

“Yes. If we write up a slave transfer deed, every action they take becomes my responsibility. That way there would be no trouble for you, correct?”

“Well… that’s true, but why? Why would you take in slaves everyone else has given up on? Is there some story behind this?”

“Of course. They are the party members who abandoned me.”

“Ah… I see. Understood.”

I kept it short and vague. There was no need to pour out my entire history. As a slave merchant, Darling had heard every kind of story imaginable. She nodded, indicating she roughly understood my simple explanation.

“Fine. I’ll write the transfer deed and give you part of the disposal fee. If those slaves cause any problems, it will not be my responsibility. It will be entirely yours. Clear?”

“Yes, I understand.”

Darling was happy to be rid of the troublesome slaves, and I was happy to obtain useful slaves through my skill. The trick worked only because Darling had no idea about my ability. As long as I kept my mouth shut for the rest of my life, she would never realize she had been taken advantage of.

In this way I obtained slaves I could trust one hundred percent. The disposal fee I received was simply a bonus. To think I could obtain this much information about people even if they possessed non-combat abilities—what an absurdly overpowered ability. Of course, I had never once bragged about my real power. It was a secret known only to me.

“Sign here. Once you sign, the slaves are yours. This is the money. One-third of the disposal fee should be enough, yes? Take good care of them from now on.”

And so I purchased the four women who had once been my childhood friends and had abandoned me, turning them into my slaves.

New information appeared the moment I acquired the slaves. Restoring the personalities of slaves who had none was possible? I pictured the entertaining academy life and master-servant life that lay ahead and felt the corners of my mouth lift into a smile.