Volume 1, Chapter 15 – Slave and Knight

After parting ways with Claire, Fia returned to the slave merchant’s residence.

Though she tried her best to tread lightly as she entered, the slaves sleeping in the courtyard still stirred awake. They had witnessed Fia feeding bread to the cat-eared girl earlier, so when they saw it was her, every one of them rose from their cages and pressed against the bars, their eyes filled with expectation and longing, hoping the same kindness would be bestowed upon them.

Being stared at by dozens of such gazes made Fia feel as though needles were pricking her back.

It wasn’t dislike—it was guilt. She had no food to give them, so no matter how much hope they directed at her, she couldn’t fulfill their wishes. To put it bluntly, she was still on the same side as their master, the slave merchant. If not for his willingness to take in Anastasia, she wouldn’t even know where she’d be staying now.

How ironic.

The concept of slavery wasn’t unfamiliar in Fia’s memories. Though the era she came from was technologically advanced, the wealth gap was staggering, and keeping slaves was a common practice.

Of course, “common” didn’t mean it was the standard. In Fia’s recollection, she had even participated in certain activities opposing slavery, though she no longer remembered what happened afterward.

She guessed it must have succeeded. Even without the memories, just thinking about it filled her with joy. If it had failed, such happiness wouldn’t exist.

I’m sorry. Give me a little more time, and I’ll fulfill your wishes.

Under the slaves’ desperate gazes, Fia forced herself to look straight ahead.

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Right now, she could use her flames to melt the chains and secretly free them. But the slaves bore slave crests—as long as those marks remained, they would never be able to find legitimate work or be treated as “people.” To truly return their freedom, she had to obtain and destroy their slave contracts, which would erase the crests.

Earlier, Claire had mentioned that slaying the Gray Owls would earn a bounty of 1,000 gold coins at the Adventurer’s Guild in Aurora City. She could use that reward to buy these slaves from the merchant.

Of course, to avoid exposing her identity, she couldn’t go to the guild herself—she’d need to find someone trustworthy to handle it. As for proof of killing the owls, nothing would serve as better evidence than their corpses.

Though most of those owl-like birds had been reduced to charred remains, leaving little intact, magical creatures possessed something called a “magic core.” These cores were incredibly durable, and collecting them would serve as proof.

This was also knowledge recorded in The Secret History of Witches.

As for why Fia hadn’t collected the cores earlier—it was simply too much trouble. With thousands of birds, searching for each core would have taken ages. Compared to that, she’d much rather find a soft bed and sleep.

Of course, this was also because Fia didn’t know the value of magic cores. Had she been aware, she would’ve at least pocketed a few.

Quickening her pace, Fia entered the brightly lit first-floor hall. Unlike when she left, the hall and corridors were now filled with maids dressed in plain robes, their identities made clear by the collars around their necks.

Slaves.

What stood out was that, unlike the emaciated slaves in the courtyard cages, these women all had fairly attractive features and healthy complexions, clearly treated far better than their counterparts outside.

Even among slaves, there’s a hierarchy.

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Just like in my world.

How disgusting.

“My lady.”

As Fia walked in, a young slave maid nearby stopped her work and bowed respectfully, not minding Fia’s elven heritage in the slightest.

“Where’s Anna?”

“Answering my lady, Miss Anna is in the innermost room on the third floor. She seems to be in a hurry.”

“Got it. Go back to your duties.”

“Yes.”

Fia waved the young maid away and headed straight for the stairs, arriving at the door of Anastasia’s room.

The room connected to the underground passage was a servant’s quarters on the first floor, while the slave merchant had arranged for Anastasia’s group to stay on the third floor—both to detect danger early and to provide a more comfortable living environment.

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Before Fia could knock, heated arguing erupted from inside the room. Instinctively, she paused and listened.

“Captain, I know Her Highness’s safety is our top priority, but the other royals imprisoned in this city matter too! Are you really going to abandon them?”

“So you’d risk delaying Her Highness’s return over an unverified rumor? The main force of the Knight Order could return to Aurora City at any moment. If we run into Judgment Hall knights wielding The Unsinkable Moon, who here can guarantee Her Highness’s escape?”

Anastasia’s sharp rebuttal silenced the room. After a long pause, a male voice spoke solemnly.

“Even if the intel is wrong and those imprisoned aren’t royals, they’re still our people, Captain. I can’t just abandon them. Right now, most of Aurora City’s garrison has been sent to the front lines—their defenses are weak. We should strike while we can! With Her Highness here, and her prowess as a seventh-tier magic caster, rescuing them would be effortless!”

“How dare you! Since when do you have the right to order Her Highness around?!”

Anastasia’s furious roar made the entire room tremble.

She was furious.

Now, how was Fia supposed to enter?

She couldn’t help but feel awkward.

The discomfort was akin to visiting a friend’s house, only for said friend to suddenly get scolded by their parents—leaving would be rude, but staying felt just as wrong.

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Fortunately, Anastasia quickly regained her composure.

“Sigh. I understand your urgency to save them, but our primary mission is escorting Her Highness. We already failed to protect her once, resulting in her severe injuries and memory loss. We can’t afford another mistake—no amount of our lives could ever make up for failing Her Highness again.”

“But—”

Before he could continue, Anastasia shifted gears.

“However, we must verify whether the rumors about imprisoned royals in Aurora City are true. Here’s the plan: at dawn, I’ll take a few men to escort Her Highness back to the homeland. The rest of you will follow your lead and rescue the captured royals before the Knight Order returns.”

“C-Captain…”

The male elf’s voice was thick with gratitude and reverence, even stumbling over his words.

“No need to say more. Dismissed. I’ll finalize the arrangements before dawn. The rescue mission is in your hands. I know you’re eager to atone for our defeat in battle, but don’t let that cloud your judgment and get yourself killed.”

“Yes!”

With a series of muffled footsteps on the carpet, the people inside began moving toward the door.