Chapter 26

I slipped inside, but I didn’t participate in the bidding right away.

Keeping a cool head, I focused entirely on gathering information first.

At the first venue, I hid in the back, holding my breath and observing the flow of the auction. It was to confirm that there were no discrepancies with the information I already possessed.

However, throughout the entire time, that same unpleasant feeling I had felt when I saw the slave in the Labyrinth began to accumulate inside me. This time, though, I used my reason to discipline myself. Logically, I filtered for only what I needed and committed the data to memory.

Because I was being cautious, I didn’t end up buying a slave at the first venue.

Of course, I intended to intervene if there was an extraordinary slave, but they were all just average.

Apparently, there are different tiers of slave markets, and this first one was relatively “clean” and geared toward beginners. That was why no specialized slaves—the kind that might excel in a particular area—appeared. Those were supposedly put up for auction in the darker corners of the market.

By the way, all this information was the result of using my “Dimension” magic to eavesdrop on the idle chatter of the participants in the venue. It was a pretty aggressive move, but by consuming a large amount of MP, I managed to pull it off.

Among that information was the location and time of a special slave market that would be held afterward.

Along the way, there were many thugs who tried to pick a fight with a youngster like me, but I had them lose consciousness in places where no one was looking. There were many people at the venue bringing guards, and since I was participating alone, my youth made me stand out a bit.

While taking care to remain as inconspicuous as possible, I moved from one market to the next.

In other words, I was sinking into the darker depths of this world.

Gradually, the quality of the slave markets shifted from the general to the illegal.

The prices of the slaves rose, and individuals who weren’t simply victims of war began to appear on the stage.

Noble daughters who must have been kidnapped, and rare beastmen. There were young children who couldn’t be seen in general markets, and people with unique constitutions whose skin and hair lacked pigment. It was a diverse crowd.

“…”

Hit by the primitive fever of the crowd, I felt dizzy.

I knew this was coming.

I had prepared myself.

But there was a gap between a mental prediction and the actual physical experience.

It’s not that I consider myself some stainless, pure person. I came here with the resolve to accept the culture of slavery.

Even so, I couldn’t adapt to this space.

The drug-like fragrance clinging to my nostrils.

The various body odors of humans mixed into it.

The vulgar laughter of the rich men who dominated this space.

And to top it off, the slaves standing on the stage with eyes full of sorrow.

From a seat in a corner of the market, I continued to watch them while hiding my expression.

More than anything, the status of the slaves wore me down.

My “Display” relayed the truth to me—faithfully, and mercilessly.

“…!”

My face naturally twisted.

A slave auction held deep at night, solely for the sake of the wealthy.

Nothing good comes from its purpose.

Most of the customers were looking for slaves to work to death.

While my heart was being chipped away, I continued to check the talents of the slaves.

To avoid recognizing them as people, I looked at their levels, stats, and skills as if I were performing mechanical labor.

I absolutely would not look at their names.

I felt that if I didn’t stick strictly to that, I would end up empathizing with them.

Then, a new set of slaves was lined up on the stage, and the man acting as the emcee raised his voice, which echoed throughout the venue.

“Our next items. I will now describe slaves number five through ten—”

I ignored the emcee’s words and simply kept “Gazing.”

Number five: stats are low across the board, skills are average.

Number six: stats are average, no skills.

Number seven: high level and high stats, but no skills.

Number eight: balanced stats and four skills. However, the condition shows “missing parts.”

Number nine: poor stats and skills, and the condition is…—

“…Stop it.”

I stopped myself.

I thought I had faced this with extraordinary resolve, but it still wasn’t enough.

I could maintain my composure in the shallower slave markets.

But I didn’t think I could stay calm if I kept searching for my objective in this slave market.

The adults in the venue were laughing as they bid on slaves without any resistance. I was no different from the rich people here. Once I felt that even for a moment, I couldn’t keep looking at the slaves.

While my spirit was breaking, the masked emcee continued to introduce the “items” one after another.

Since it was an auction format, prices were quickly attached to those slaves.

I found myself thinking about what would happen to those priced slaves from here on.

I thought about what purpose the pudgy man who just bought the red-haired girl had for her. Having developed a habit of observing people, I did it unconsciously.

If she were bought as a servant or labor, it might be better. But there are no decent people among customers who buy slaves in a place like this. Depending on the customer’s tastes, she might lose parts of her body. If it was a minor, sick hobby, it would be the worst. Her life wouldn’t last until tomorrow.

It made me depressed.

The ones here are humans. Humans, just like me.

It probably isn’t a matter of it being another world. In my original world, similar people must have been doing similar things. In this world, there are plenty of dead spaces.

It’s just that this time, I unfortunately discovered it because of the “cheat” known as “Dimension” magic—

I didn’t want to see any more.

“…Let’s go home.”

It was a bitter experience, but it served as a lesson for the future.

That was fine for now. I had gained something.

Telling myself that, I was about to slowly stand up from my seat when—

“Hm, kid. Leaving already?”

A voice called out to me.

Was it because I had stood up so abruptly? It seemed I had caught the eye of a certain man, as I already stood out due to my young appearance.

He was a tall man. He was dressed like a merchant and had a sharp, fearless face—a rarity among the customers.

Though surprised, I tried to leave immediately with a noncommittal response.

“…I’m not feeling well.”

“Ah. I suppose it was too much stimulation for a young lad like you.”

“…Not really.”

There was no need for a long conversation.

With those final words, I tried to walk away.

“Ah. Haha, the girl who was just bought is in for a miserable time. That noble is famous for his bad taste.”

The man spoke loud enough for me to hear.

Reacting to those words, I stopped in my tracks.

And I ended up seeing the slave who was letting out a scream. She likely knew the rumors about that noble. The slave was resisting, as if saying she’d rather die than be bought by him.

I averted my eyes from that scene—and ended up seeing the smirking face of the man beside me.

“…What exactly are you trying to say to me?”

“Oh, nothing. I just thought you looked interesting, so I’m messing with you a bit.”

“…”

As I thought, there’s not a single decent person here.

After letting out a sigh, I decided not to deal with him and tried to leave.

“—Next, I will describe our next item. Number thirteen: from Fania, a quite rare girl with black hair and black eyes—”

As I was about to leave, I heard the emcee’s voice.

From Fania…?

Black hair and black eyes…?

That coincidental background pulled at me.

Time and again I tried to leave, only to stay because of the weakness of my own heart. While hating myself for it, I decided this would be the last time and cast a brief glance toward the stage.

“…!”

On the stage was a girl whose name I already knew.

The girl I had exchanged names with just a few days ago.

“…My name is Maria. My name is Maria.”

I remembered that voice and that name.

At the same time, I saw the hollow eyes of the girl on the stage, Maria.

By chance, she seemed to have noticed me as well. It had been a single meeting—an encounter of only a few seconds—but she apparently remembered me too.

A faint light flickered in her hollow eyes, and our gazes met.

The audience and the stage. Me and the girl.

We stared at each other, unable to look away.

“Hm, kid? Is something the matter with that slave?”

“Nothing…”

The man’s words didn’t even register in my ears.

“Hey, kid. You don’t exactly have a ‘it’s nothing’ face. That’s why guys like me can’t help but mess with you.”

Ignoring him, I continued to stare at the girl named Maria.

She was an unremarkable girl.

Her status hadn’t changed since the last time I saw her. A girl who was good at cooking—slightly gifted, perhaps. If it was just about stats, there were plenty of others.

But I had talked to this girl. I knew her name.

I had met the exact conditions for empathy that I had been dreading.

—This is the worst.

“Oh, the bidding’s starting.”

The man kept talking as if to prod my silence.

Simultaneously, the emotions I had bottled up began to swirl. I was losing my grip on my composure.

Calm down… Just calm down.

Remember what happened before…

There was nothing you could do for the slave you met in the Labyrinth…

Learn from that experience and be an adult, Kanami Aikawa…

“Yeah. At this rate, it looks like that nobleman with the bad taste is going to buy her again. He seems to be in the mood to buy out the stock today. Right, kid?”

But…

—But the situation is different from the slave in the Labyrinth.

I had realized it.

I couldn’t touch that other slave because she belonged to someone else. But the slaves here belonged to no one yet. As long as I had the money, I could easily pull her out of here.

If I just raised my voice here, I could prevent the voice of the girl named Maria from being dyed in agony.

Conversely, if I did nothing and left, I would be leaving her to die.

With my immature spirit, would I be able to endure that guilt?

I spoke to the man to confirm the procedure.

“…Hey. How do you participate in the bidding here?”

“Hm? So you are joining, kid? If you want to bid, just raise your hand and state your price. It’s not much different from any other auction. Just copy what the people around you are doing.”

Confirmation obtained.

There was no way to mess up the procedure.

And yet, my reason tried to make a final stand.

Saving one person means nothing…

It’s a pathetic act…

My mind berated me.

In response, I piled on the excuses.

If I save her here, my heart will be a little lighter. Even if it’s a pathetic act, if it prevents Skill ‘???’ from going berserk, isn’t it fine to spend money for the sake of my mental peace? Fortunately, I have more money than I know what to do with.

“—Auctioneer! I’ll pay double!”

I raised my hand and spoke loudly enough for everyone to hear.

The slave girl Maria’s eyes widened. Then, with those same eyes from our first encounter—eyes that looked like they had found something—she continued to stare back at me.

A stir ran through the venue.

Some looked at me with interest. Others jeered for fun. Some began to whisper in confusion. The wealthy people in the room buzzed as they looked at me.

“—And here we have a bid from a wealthy young man! The price is—unbelievable! It’s shot past the gold coin mark! Are there any other gentlemen interested in this slave who has caught the young man’s eye!?”

The emcee accelerated his speech.

To keep the heat from dying down, he raised his voice to stir up the crowd.

The man next to me laughed.

“Haha, kid, you hiked the price up way too fast. If you do that, look.”

The man pointed while laughing. At the end of his finger was the nobleman who had been bidding before me.

The nobleman shouted over the noise of the venue.

“Double it again!”

“Oh! A bid from Lord Febre! Doubling the young man’s offer! The price has moved from premium to ultra-premium! It has jumped to five times the market rate!”

After jacking up the price further, the noble glared at me.

The seats were far apart, but I could tell he didn’t have a good impression of me.

The emcee looked ecstatic, delighted by the unexpectedly high price of the “merchandise.”

The man next to me shrugged and spoke.

“See? He’s getting fired up.”

“Urgh…”

I had certainly been reckless.

Driven by impulse, I had done something stupid.

Because of me, people were now interested in an unremarkable girl. Because of that, the price was steadily rising. They were idiots; that girl had no special talent.

In inverse proportion to the growing frenzy of the venue, I began to cool down—

“You look troubled, kid. If you want, should I handle the winning bid for you?”

—But the man’s sweet words caused me to lose that newfound composure.

“…Handle it? Why would you help me?”

I spoke roughly to ensure I wasn’t being looked down upon.

In response, the man smirked.

“Oh, no reason. Just thought it looked interesting.”

“…If you can. I don’t have that much of a budget.”

“I can. What’s your limit?”

The man asked for my budget as if it were the easiest thing in the world.

Shaken by his casual tone, I calculated the money I could produce in my head.

“…Three gold coins. Three is the limit.”

“Hmm. Looks like we can push it to four. Wait a second.”

“I’m not saying I trust you.”

“Fine, fine. Just wait.”

With that, the man joined the bidding.

He raised his hand and bid, increasing the price only slightly each time.

I watched in a daze.

Though he was chiming in with specific prices, he didn’t seem particularly conspicuous.

However, occasionally, he would wave his hand at his competitors. The competitors would wave back at him. Apparently, this man had quite a lot of connections.

In the end, he went head-to-head with Lord Febre, but without it turning into a major ordeal, the man managed to win the bid for a little over three gold coins.

“I got her.”

The man had easily won Maria.

However, the winning bid was slightly higher than the limit I had stated.

“…I said three gold coins.”

“Oops. Well, in that case, maybe I should take this offer to Lord Febre.”

“I said it, but it’s true I asked you. I won’t go back on my word.”

“Hehe, interesting. Then, let’s make it four gold coins.”

Holding his stomach, the man demanded his cut.

I frowned at the request but quickly sighed and gave in.

“I don’t mind.”

“Oh? Is that okay?”

“I’ve realized that no matter how I struggle, I’m dancing in the palm of your hand.”

“It’s no fun if you just give up. Hehe, let me play a little longer.”

The man stood up with a spiteful smile and beckoned me.

“Kid, you can’t stand to look, can you? Let’s leave the venue and pick up the merchandise early.”

“…I’m coming.”

The man seemed to see right through my emotions.

Feeling helpless, I followed him as instructed.

The man and I left the venue. Guided by the attendant, we went around to the back.

There, the sold slaves were lined up in a cramped space.

Maria was standing among them.

Her eyes remained fixed on mine, piercing right through me.

The man finished the paperwork with the attendant and took custody of Maria.

Then, he walked over to me and held out his palm. I took four gold coins from my pocket and flicked them into his hand.

“Yup, exactly four gold coins. The registration on the slave collar is blank, so do as you like.”

The man pocketed the coins and handed Maria over to me without a fuss.

Since he was such a peculiar man, I had expected some kind of negotiation, but it was anticlimactic. I immediately pulled Maria toward me and told the man exactly what I was thinking.

“Given who you are, I thought you’d add more conditions here.”

“Nah, I’m perfectly satisfied seeing you so flustered, kid. So, I won’t be mean. In fact, I’ve actually taken a liking to you.”

“…You have bad taste.”

“But it helped, right? …Or rather, if I hadn’t been here, would you have even hesitated?”

The man continued to tease me, speaking as if he could see into my very soul.

“That’s enough. I’m taking this girl with me.”

Deciding that any further contact was a bad idea, I tried to leave.

The man stopped me.

“Wait, wait, don’t be in such a hurry. Let’s introduce ourselves at the end. I’ll even take complaints later.”

“…If you want to state your name, go ahead. I’m not giving mine.”

I had no intention of telling him my name, but I decided it wouldn’t hurt to hear his.

In response, the man smirked and began his introduction.

“My name is Palinchron Legacy. A knight of Huzya in the north. Believe it or not, I’m one of the officers known as the ‘Celestial Knights.’”

As he spoke, Palinchron made a motion as if swinging a sword with his empty hand.

The movement was far too fluid. It was such a natural motion that I momentarily hallucinated a blade being there. I understood instinctively that it was a technique acquired through tireless, repetitive practice.

Feeling a threat, I stepped back and checked Palinchron’s status.

A level that was among the highest for a human.

Extraordinary aptitude.

Practical skills with high values.

I realized that the man named Palinchron was no ordinary person.

My body stiffened, and I briefly deployed “Dimension” magic without a chant. Then, I moved my right hand behind my back, ready to draw a sword from my “Inventory” at any moment.

“Hehe. Don’t be so tense. I just came to watch today.”

Palinchron found my reaction amusing and held up both palms to show he had no hostile intent.

“Came to watch… the slaves?”

“No, you, kid. I put in a lot of effort to tail you without getting caught and snag a seat nearby.”

Palinchron spoke of his tailing as if it were nothing.

I was shocked by the fact, yet certain it wasn’t a lie. Palinchron’s status was just that high, and his bearing was far from normal.

“Why… were you tailing me?”

“I heard you were the beloved of my master. I came to see you before anyone else.”

The beloved of my master?

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. Is that ‘master’ Franleure?”

Only one person came to mind. Franleure, whom I had met in the Labyrinth.

“Franleure? No, that’s not it. …But to hear the name of the Helvilleshine daughter come up here. You really are interesting, kid.”

Palinchron said it wasn’t Franleure.

But I couldn’t think of anyone else.

“I don’t know who your master is. I have no memory of this.”

“Heh, is that so? Well, that’s fine for now. I just got curious and came early. I’m just observing, so don’t you worry about it.”

With that, Palinchron turned his back.

“See ya, kid.”

He raised a hand in farewell and walked toward the exit. It seemed he really intended to leave.

There were so many things I didn’t understand; if possible, I wanted to chase him and demand answers. However, Palinchron’s level wouldn’t allow it. I didn’t know what would happen if we fought seriously. I decided it was better not to pursue if he was willing to walk away.

While I hesitated, Palinchron disappeared from sight, leaving Maria and me alone.

When I looked at Maria, she was still staring at me. I realized she had been staring at me the entire time—while Palinchron took custody of her, and during our exchange just now.

Sensing something abnormal lurking within Maria, I slumped my shoulders at the thought of yet more trouble—and took her hand.

“Follow me…”

“Yes.”

Maria gave a small nod.

In the end, I had ransomed one slave out of pure emotion.

I understood now.

With my level of mental strength, I could never overcome the problem of slavery.

That had just been completely proven.

I swore in my heart never to return to a slave market and began walking home, pulling Maria’s cold hand behind me.