Zora, a Dog-Human Slave of Pivoda, Leader of the [Night Cat] Bandits
Previous Events: Just Before Dawn
After Pivoda finalized the price of the stolen bracelet with its owner, my group was ordered to take the bracelet to the exchange location—an old garbage dump in the slums.
Since the exchange was in the slums, the other party sent a butler and four guards instead of coming themselves.
"Thieves like you are truly despicable. Stealing and then having the gall to sell it back at a high price," one of them sneered.
"We were only ordered to make the exchange. We don' t know anything else," I replied.
"Yeah, I can tell by those collars. Lowly slaves," another mocked.
"Not quite human, not quite beast. How dare you even exist?"
"Ugh, you lot smell worse than a rotting canal!"
"Filthy as you are, even worms wouldn' t touch you if you died!"
My group and I stood silently, enduring their insults without retaliation, as per our master Pivoda' s orders. This happened every time we were sent to make an exchange. Who would be happy paying a high price to buy back their own belongings?
We were also forbidden from fighting back or defending ourselves, even if the clients took out their anger by attacking us. Pivoda' s excuse was that it would put the clients in a better mood, increasing the chances they wouldn' t kill us and take the goods instead. But the real reason? She enjoyed betting with her confidants on whether we' d succeed in the exchange and how many of us would return alive.
The items we slaves were sent to trade were usually low-value. This bracelet, for instance, was just an ordinary one given to the owner by his girlfriend—sentimental but worthless in terms of real value.
Then, out of nowhere, I was kicked to the ground. They stomped on me until my face was bloodied, my left eye swollen shut, blood dripping from my mouth, and my body bruised all over. My collar was a fire-type; if I disobeyed, it would ignite and burn my head until I complied.
"Enough! Get the item so we can finish this!" the butler barked.
Seeing us battered and barely recognizable, the butler seemed somewhat satisfied. I struggled to my feet, wiping blood from the corner of my mouth, and nodded to my team to retrieve the bracelet hidden in the garbage pile. This, too, was Pivoda' s order—to enrage the clients by making it seem their belongings were tossed in with trash.
"You filthy mutts deserve to die! How dare you defile our master' s bracelet!" one of the guards roared. "Kill them all and take the item! We won' t pay a single coin!"
The guards drew their weapons and charged. We were only allowed to flee after being attacked once, as per Pivoda' s rules. Some of my group were lucky—stabbed by a knife, they managed to escape, though I don' t know if they' d survive the blood loss. Others weren' t so fortunate. One was decapitated in a single swing. Another was cleaved in the head with an axe, collapsing after a few steps. Someone else took an arrow to the leg, slowing them down, only to be shot through the chest and die on the spot.
"Stop! Leave the last one for me!" the butler commanded, striding toward me with a menacing air.
I was at the back, untouched so far. My ears and tail drooped as I sensed the danger radiating from him. I wanted to run, but I couldn' t defy orders.
"P-please, we were just following orders! I' ll grovel, I' ll lick your feet, anything—just don' t kill me!" I begged.
"Keep your filthy tongue for lapping up canal water, you trash mutt!" he spat.
The butler reared back his fist, activating a skill. Green wind magic swirled wildly around his knuckles. I instinctively stepped back in fear, triggering my slave collar. Flames erupted, engulfing my head.
"AAAAAHHH!" I screamed.
"Impact Wave!" he roared.
His wind-enhanced fist slammed into my left arm and ribs, breaking them instantly. The follow-up blast of wind magic sent me flying, crashing through a wooden house' s roof before soaring into the air.
"Damn it! I aimed for her face, but she squirmed and made me miss!" the butler cursed.
The collar stopped punishing me after I was attacked, but my face and hair were already scorched, burning with unbearable pain. I plummeted, crashing into another wooden house.
CRASH!
In my shock and pain, I accidentally unleashed my skill.
ZAP!
A pathetic skill that only produced a weak electric shock, enough to startle someone at best.
*****
Elda Nehu
Gasp! Cough! Cough! Cough!
I' m… still alive.
It felt like something yanked me back from the darkness. My heart started beating again.
But I quickly curled back into my hiding spot as the people hunting me closed in.
"Goddamn, it stinks! As expected of slum beast slaves—so filthy! Eating garbage like this?" one of them spat before hurrying out, followed by the sounds of fighting outside.
I opened my eyes and surveyed my surroundings. The roof had a hole, and the glow of magical fire from the battle outside illuminated the area. That' s when I saw her—a dog-human slave, gravely injured in the corner. Her body was soaked in blood, her face charred as if burned, her left arm twisted unnaturally, and her left ribs caved in.
"Urgh! Cough! Cough!"
She spat out a large pool of blood, her body convulsing in pain from the effort of coughing.
ZAP!
For a brief moment, her body emitted a faint electric shock.
"Whoa! I' m not stealing your food, I swear!" I said, pushing the pile of filth in front of her away.
"…"
She shook her head at me.
"Not enough? But I didn' t even take a bite!" I protested.
"I… don' t… eat that… Urgh!"
She coughed up more blood.
"Alright, I' m outta here," I said.
Still in pain and unable to stand, I rolled over and started crawling away.
Splat!
When I glanced back, I saw her collapse and begin crawling after me.
"Why are you following me?" I asked.
I crawled faster, but she kept up despite her pitiful state.
"Help… me…" she rasped.
Uh, I can barely help myself right now! Tiara' s alone at home, and if Calika comes back and doesn' t find me, it' ll be chaos. The problem is, those hunters are still after me—I could tell from the sound of another one joining the fray. They agreed one would stay to fight while the other searched for me.
I turned to the dog-human girl. "Can you do that lightning thing again?"
She nodded weakly, pointed to herself, and said, "Zo… ra… my name… Urgh!"
I struggled to my feet and helped pull her up. Despite her injuries, she was still alive—maybe those slave masters were right about beast-humans being tougher and harder to kill than regular humans. Luckily, Zora was scrawny, so I could support her with her right arm around my neck, and we hobbled along together. It was heavy, though—my body wasn' t exactly strong to begin with.
Before we moved, I worked out a quick plan with Zora in case we ran into trouble.
Once we were ready, we slipped out the back of the house, carefully navigating through piles of garbage and debris, avoiding both the hunters and anyone in the slums who' d prey on weaklings like us. I decided to take a detour to drop Zora off near her master' s place before circling back to my own home. At least that would lure the hunters away from our house.
Halfway through a narrow alley, we were ambushed by two beggars blocking both ends.
"Hand over everything you' ve got. Strip and toss it over, or you' re dead," one growled.
I propped Zora against the wall and tapped her arm as our signal.
"Take them down, great adventurer! Thunder Roars, unleash your skill: Lightning Blood! Crush them!" I shouted.
"A named adventurer?!"
"She' s got a skill?!"
The moment they heard the made-up title and skill name, their faces paled.
"Light… ning… Urgh!"
ZAP!
"No! We' re sorry!"
"Please forgive us, Thunder Roars!"
As Zora coughed up blood and let out a small electric shock, the beggars bolted, tails between their legs.
"Should we chase them down and finish them?" I yelled after them, just in case they looked back and realized there was no grand lightning display, figuring us for frauds and coming back.
Once their footsteps faded, I let out a relieved sigh.
"It… worked… Urgh!" Zora rasped.
"Only works on idiots. And try to keep some blood in you, or you' ll die before we get there," I said.
"…"
"Don' t give me that look. If you pass out and get dumped somewhere, don' t come crying to me."
Zora shut her mouth, her ears and tail drooping.
After escaping the alley and dodging more dangerous types for a while, we heard a woman' s voice faintly calling my name.
"Elda! Where are you? It' s Calika!"
"Hide here for now. I' ll be back," I told Zora.
I set her down in a pile of garbage, covered her with some debris, and crept toward the voice.
In the middle of a group of ice-humans, a beautiful woman with golden hair was shouting my name, claiming to be Calika. No way—she didn' t even sound like her, and she was dressed like some noble, surrounded by guards. If she' d said Calika sent her and shown some proof, I might' ve taken the risk.
I stayed hidden and went back for Zora.
But as I turned, an ice-human with a dagger in one hand blocked my path, reaching for me with the other.