Chapter 6
Chapter 6
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 6
Chapter Title: Experiment (1)
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"Enough. Get up."
—Slap!
My cheek burned. I could taste blood.
"Snap out of it."
'Ugh... that hurts.'
When I came to and opened my eyes, some woman had me by the hair.
"Wh... who are you?"
"You're awake? Then stand up."
She released her grip on my hair, and I pulled myself together and stood.
My body reeked with a foul stench and felt utterly repulsive, my slapped cheek throbbing along with every muscle in my body.
I finally got a good look at her.
She looked to be in her early thirties, with sharp features, navy-blue eyes, short brown hair, and—something I'd never seen on anyone before—'short ears'.
She wore black pants and a tunic.
The room around us was dimly lit by mana lanterns embedded along the stone walls, giving off a faint, eerie glow in the enclosed space.
'Where am I? What the hell happened?'
She watched me struggle to my feet for a moment, then perched on the edge of a desk behind her.
"You probably can't make sense of this yet, so I'll keep it short—listen up. One: you've been kidnapped. You're my property now. Two: the reason for the kidnapping is an experiment on a Long Ears half-breed, so cooperate. Every time you resist, I'll cut off a finger—just so you know. Three: don't open your mouth unless necessary. Not if you want to stay intact, anyway. Dregs will fill you in on the rest."
I was speechless at the shocking situation. What the hell was going on?
How did she know I was a half-breed? Experiments? Out of nowhere?
I tried to recall my last memory before waking up here.
'There wasn't a sound. They broke into the house quietly, shattered my mana coat, subdued me, and injected something like an anesthetic. It was all targeted right at me. Who the hell?'
I tried to piece it together further, but there were no clues—it went nowhere.
And if I didn't focus on the situation right in front of me, I had a feeling things would go very badly. This was a place that talked about chopping off fingers like it was nothing.
"Dregs, put restraints on his hands and feet, then tell him what he needs to know."
The one she called Dregs was some man.
Just from the names they used for people here, I could guess I'd been taken to a horrific place.
"Understood."
Dregs had been standing in a spot where the mana lantern light didn't reach, so he seemed to appear out of nowhere as he answered.
His face looked slightly large compared to his small frame.
He was probably of the 'short stature' race.
"Where was the room the previous 'Maggot' used? He's dead, so put him there. Give him today to adjust. Bring him for the experiment tomorrow on time. Name stays 'Maggot'."
"Understood. I'll have him stay in the old Maggot's laundry room and bring him for the experiment tomorrow. Name noted as Maggot."
With that, she vanished, and the man called Dregs fetched four single-cuff-like restraints and fastened one to each of my wrists and ankles.
—Click.
I heard the sound of them locking securely, and he spoke to me with an expressionless face.
"I'll explain the rules here, so memorize them. First..."
There was way too much to remember.
That woman's name was Mere, and I had to address her as 'Lady Mere'. The top rule was to never go against her word.
This place was the Shadow Merchant Guild in the city-state of Vera, and the third floor— the Magic Trading Post—was Mere's domain.
A warning came with it: leave the third floor with these restraints, and an alarm would blare immediately. If caught, I'd face something worse than death.
I especially couldn't speak carelessly in front of Mere, and when I did have to speak, it had to be in formal speech.
I also learned that I had to work as a servant otherwise.
On the most important topic—the 'experiments'—he only said they happened once a week, from 8 to 10 p.m., nothing more.
After rattling off minor details like onigiri ration times, he added one last piece of advice.
"This place, Vera, has a nickname: the 'City of Exiles'. It's where criminals chased out of their countries or on the run gather, and it also isolates them from spreading into the world. The Shadow Merchant Guild here is one such group. Far crueler things than you can imagine happen routinely, so always judge and act carefully."
When I didn't respond, he added as an afterthought,
"In front of Lady Mere, you should've said 'Understood'. Be careful."
"Understood..."
With that, he led me out of the room to the laundry room.
The third floor's layout I saw on the way wasn't overly complex.
A long hallway dimly lit by spaced-out mana lanterns, slits like ventilation windows high on the outer wall, and doors at regular intervals on the inner wall—lots of rooms.
Passing the hallway's midpoint, a large open hall appeared, guarded by what looked like security personnel and stairs.
Dregs stopped just past the central hall.
"Here you are. You'll live inside."
He paused a moment, then continued.
"...In case you complain, I'll say this upfront. This is the laundry room, so servants like us come and go a lot, and the washing machines can be noisy. The drains might smell damp too. You'll eat your rations here, and sleep on the floor. No pillows or bedding. Any questions?"
...This place was brutal.
Was this even treating someone like a human? At least from the earlier explanation, there was a toilet and washing area—small mercies.
'Is this a mercy? What the hell's going to happen to me?'
I didn't know how long it'd been since the kidnapping when I woke up, but the yellowish casual clothes typical of Long Ears were torn in places.
The stench and discomfort were bad, and figuring they wouldn't give me servant clothes anyway, I asked,
"Is there... anything to change into?"
I made sure to use formal speech.
"I'll bring some shortly."
"Thank you."
Afterward, he opened the laundry room door, and I stepped inside.
The floor was cracked in spots, dust swirling in the draft.
A musty smell like damp and filth assaulted my nose.
Were they checking laundry results? Mana lanterns were densely placed, making the room overly bright.
It was harsh light that wouldn't help with sleep at all.
Looking straight from the entrance, huge metal boxes—eight in total, four on each side—were lined up. Probably magic tool 'washing machines'.
Bigger than the one at home, but similar shape.
Alone for a moment, but the tension didn't ease.
'How long since the kidnapping? Grandmother must be so worried.'
Thinking of Grandmother made my chest ache.
This was an absurd situation.
Things hadn't gone perfectly, but I'd worked hard to earn the village's recognition and wanted to show her I was doing well.
I wanted to see her happy face someday...
Now that seemed impossible.
Waking up to this nightmare meant I might never see her again.
'...Or maybe it's for the best.'
If I thought about Grandmother's happiness instead of mine, maybe it was.
She'd originally had other family—not me.
Two children over 300 years old with Grandfather, and their grandchildren.
She'd only said they lived far away, but originally, she'd lived with them in the central village.
A place she couldn't return to alone because of me.
'...Ugh, no point dwelling on it.'
I shook my head to clear the negative thoughts.
To survive this, I needed more positive thinking.
'Someday I'll escape. Then I can show Grandmother an even better me.'
Clinging to that hope, I resolved myself.
Mind control—gotta do it.
The sack Dregs brought contained two servant uniforms, underwear, socks, shoes, and a toothbrush.
I grabbed the clothes and headed to the servants-only bathroom and shower room right next to the laundry room on the left.
Opening the door, I saw three short-ears.
'Two men at the sinks, and the one who just pulled back the shower curtain is a woman. No separation by gender.'
As I entered, their eyes turned to me, lingered briefly, then looked away.
I'd thought to nod hello, but the vibe wasn't right.
I spotted a towel rack, grabbed a towel, and entered an empty shower stall, closing the curtain.
Looking around, it was crude, but everything was there.
Water poured steadily from a round pipe overhead with no controls, and there was soap-like magic tool, though it looked rough.
The shelf for clothes was rusted.
"Ah..."
Undressing, I let out a lament.
My underwear and pants were crusted with my own waste.
That explained the bad smell and discomfort since waking.
I stripped quickly and stood under the streaming water.
It was late spring edging into summer, so the water was lukewarm.
I quietly wet my body, scrubbing the filthy spots vigorously, and finished showering.
After changing and checking the clock in the central hall, I returned.
4:13 p.m.—47 minutes until dinner rations.
A thought struck me.
'How long did it take to get from the forest here?'
We must've traveled far while I was out, so how did they feed me?
Or did they have some super-fast transport?
...Why was I even wondering this in a situation like this?
I sighed, rested a bit, then stood from the laundry room floor at ration time.
Screeech—
Right outside the door to the right was the cafeteria.
Five servants were already lined up in front.
The three from the showers were there; Dregs wasn't yet.
I joined the end of the line, and they peeked at me one by one.
The two new men were short-ears too.
Excluding Dregs and me, all short-ears so far—wonder if that was all the servants or more.
No chit-chat among them; no one spoke while waiting.
About ten minutes in, the cafeteria door opened, and Dregs emerged. There he was.