Operation Slave Liberation

The Royal Capital at noon, with sunlight pouring straight down from overhead.

To obtain an unconditional slave to watch the shop, Liricia, Edgar, and I had stepped into the upscale residential district on the northern side of the city.

There were few people on the streets, but because the road was wide, the sunlight fell down pleasantly.

After we had walked for a while, Edgar pointed at one of the mansions.

It was a grand estate with a large gate and a spacious garden.

The walls were white, the house had three stories, and the roof and pillars were decorated.

“Over there. That is Lord Thomson’s mansion, where the event is being held.”

“I have seen him at the castle. If I remember right, he was a high-ranking official of the kingdom.”

“There are even rumors he is the next Minister.”

At Edgar’s information, Liricia gave a firm nod.

“No wonder the slave trader could not find any wrongdoing even when he investigated… I am sure they have been sweeping anything unfavorable under the rug.”

“All right then, Edgar. I am counting on you to do as we planned.”

“Got it.”

Edgar slipped away without making a sound with his footsteps.

He turned the corner of the road, which was gleaming white in the sunlight, and vanished, making it feel as though his very existence had been an illusion.

It almost felt like having just been with him had been a dream.

—It seemed he had already activated that special technique of his.

Incidentally, we had already finished discussing our plan on the way here.

Following that plan, Liricia and I boldly walked straight up to Lord Thomson’s mansion.

The gatekeeper standing beside the fence-like gate glared at us suspiciously.

“What do you two want?”

“We were invited as guests to the Appreciation Gathering—Liricia.”

“Yes, Master.”

Liricia extended the back of her slender right hand in front of her and rolled up her sleeve so it could be seen clearly.

On her white skin was a complex slave crest.

The gatekeeper wore a grim expression, but he nodded.

“Next time, come by carriage. You will attract attention.”

“Yeah, got it. —If there is a next time.”

The fence-like gate was opened and Liricia and I went inside.

We walked through a well-tended garden. In the middle of it there was a fountain.

I glanced back over my shoulder.

The gatekeeper was in the middle of closing the gate.

Yet for an iron fence, it made no sound.

Looking carefully, there were two sets of bars.

The gatekeeper had used the illusory fence and merely thought he had closed the gate.

We went straight through the garden to the front of the mansion.

I took hold of the door-knocker and knocked twice, then three times, then once.

The door opened.

The man who appeared looked like a butler, but he wore a black hood with holes only at the eyes.

He held another identical hood in his hands.

“Welcome. Do you have your hood?”

“I forgot it.”

“I see. Please use one of ours.”

He handed me a black hood, and I put it on.

Then we were led inside to the great hall.

It was a huge room that looked like it could hold hundreds of people. The ceiling was high, and chandeliers hung down.

The party was a buffet-style gathering, and on the tables draped with white tablecloths there were all sorts of drinks and dishes laid out.

Everyone in the room, men and women alike, wore black hoods.

They were all staring at the center of the room.

There stood the elf girl Teti, crying and screaming.

Tied spread-eagled to a platform, she was being struck with a whip and jabbed with needles. Her white skin was covered in gruesome marks.

Even her long ears, the symbol of an elf, had one side torn halfway off.

“Stop… it hurts… please, stop already…!”

Twisting her slender body, the girl pleaded with unfocused eyes.

Most likely she could no longer see. Her straight, well-shaped nose, too, was now…

The face that had once been so young and beautiful was in a terrible state.

Yet no one moved to stop it.

They simply brought wineglasses to their lips, letting out sadistic little chuckles and snickers.

I cast a quick glance at Liricia.

Her face was twisted in pain, but she gave a small nod and then used her finger monocle to look over the attendees.

Then she brought her lips close to my ear and quietly told me the names of those present.

Once I had heard her out, I took Liricia with me and walked over to one of the names she had given me, Lord Thomson.

He was a fat man with a very prominent belly.

“Hey, excuse me. Are you the one in charge here?”

“Hm? Have we met somewhere?”

“Well, we have similar builds… anyway, I ended up arriving a little late. Could you put on a new show in exchange for my slave?”

At my words, the middle-aged man in the black hood looked Liricia over slowly from head to toe.

“Heh, she looks like she would let out some delightful screams… very well.”

Lord Thomson clapped his hands smartly.

A different door from the one we had entered through opened, and a crowd of young men and women in their teens and twenties filed out.

They were dressed in thin clothing through which their naked bodies were visible, and their hands were bound in manacles.

However, every one of them looked lifeless, their eyes either filled with fear or completely vacant, as if they had given up on everything.

I took off my hood and drew my sword as I spoke.

“All right, none of you move. You are caught in the act of abusing slaves—Liricia, get Teti.”

“Yes!”

Liricia ran forward as she swung her flail.

The chain moved like a snake, shifting freely as it knocked the whip from the man’s hand.

Then it wrapped around his neck and yanked him backward, slamming him to the ground.

There was a dull thud, and he stopped moving.

Then she rushed to Teti’s side, and as she freed the girl’s bound hands and feet, she pressed her hand to her and began to chant.

“Full Recovery (All Heal)—huh, the magic!?”

Her palm did not glow. Liricia’s eyes went wide in shock.

Thomson let out a low, sinister chuckle.

“You thought you could use magic here?”

“I do not know what kind of trick you have set up, but all we have to do is make it so we can use it, right?”

“What?”

I took my sword in both hands and poured all the mana I had into it.

“Haaaaah—!”

In response to my shout, the mansion shook and the chandeliers swayed.

Boom… crack, crack—!

From somewhere in the distance came the sound of something exploding, followed by the sound of something splitting apart.

Magic-sealing barriers break when more mana than their limit is forced through them.

From past adventures, I already knew that if I poured my Serâge through them at full power, I could break through.

Thomson looked around in shock and cried out.

“W-what is this!?”

“Liricia, use magic.”

“Yes—Full Recovery (All Heal)!”

Light shone from Liricia’s hand, and Teti was healed.

“It worked! As expected of you, Mas—”

—But.

In the next instant, the floor gave way.

“Whoa!”

I was startled, and so were the others.

“Wah!”

“Kyaaaah!”

“Help!”

Along with the floorboards, everyone screamed as we all plunged down into the basement.