Valerie walked behind Lord Crosse with an odd feeling in her chest. He was a much different person than she was expecting him to be. He was incredibly powerful, more than anyone she'd ever met, yet he didn't lord that power over other people's heads. He was a kind man who took care of those he cares about, and strove to do the right thing. He was a far different master then Delvin was, and he actually treated her like a person.
She had found that whole meeting very interesting. As far as nobles went, Martin seemed to be far better than any of the other members of the nobility she had seen in her time. She felt she could trust Lord Crosse, and in turn, those around him. If he was going to strive to make the world a better place, then she wanted to help him. The things she saw, and the people she had met while with Delvin were things she just wanted to forget about... including the place she had been kept for so long until Delvin had come along and purchased her. Now that she felt she truly understood what kind of person Lord Crosse was, she wanted to tell him. She wanted to help people too.
"Valerie?" Lord Crosse suddenly asked, making her blink and focus her attention back on the present.
He was standing in a door way, holding it open while staring at her with a small smirk on his face. He had a very appealing face, she had to admit.
"Yes, Lord Crosse?" Valerie asked, and he just looked at her and sighed.
"I really wish you would just call me by my name." He said to her, making her feeling an odd sensation yet again.
"I couldn't possibly be so formal..." Valerie mumbled, to which he just stared at her.
"In case you haven't noticed, I'm not really one for formalities." He said, scratching the back of his neck, before saying, "Here, just come inside, we need to talk, and I have something I need to do. We can figure the rest out later. "
Valerie just nodded as she walked through the open door, with Lord Crosse closing it behind her. The room she found herself in was quite nice, well furnished, and very expensive looking. Ladies Cecilia and Clarissa were just finding seats in the living room as she had walked inside. Both were always very nice to her, as was everyone else. She especially liked Serena and her brother Benji, but the others were very kind to her as well. It was a stark difference compared to the people she had spent the past 8 years with.
"Come, Valerie. Have a seat and relax." Lord Crosse said, gesturing for her to take a seat in the living room.
She hesitated for a moment, as there were a few places to sit. She could sit next to one of the other women, but she was fairly certain Lord Crosse would be taking his seat next to his wife. There were a couple of chairs that she could sit in, but...
"Don't be shy. Come, sit next to me." Clarissa sat with a smile, patting the spot on the couch next to her.
Valerie didn't think on it very long before she nodded, walked over, and sat down on Clarissa's right. The woman just smiled at her.
"All right." Lord Crosse said, as he indeed sat down next to Cecilia, who immediately stuck to his side like a sticky paste, "That sure was fun, wasn't it?"
Cecilia snorted.
"I don't know if fun is the right word. It was interesting." She said, and Clarissa nodded.
"I had no idea the strong and powerful Duke of Arbigold was the way he is... he's very normal. It makes sense now that I think about it... the man who gave me the summons to this city, Count Reynold, is a very like minded individual. Very nice, and very respectful. Not at all like what I've heard." Clarissa said.
"You've never met any others?" Lord Crosse asked, and Clarissa shook her head.
"No. I've basically spent my entire life in Bergast. My dad kept a close eye on me, and never let me stray very far. And no other nobility ever came to the town. From what my dad told me, no one cares about a shitty like town in the outskirts, which I guess gave him the perfect cover for doing the things that he did..." She said, her eyes growing sad.
"Clarissa, nothing that he did is your fault." Lord Crosse said softly, and Lady Cecila nodded.
"And we'll keep telling you that as much as we have to for it to stick." She said, and Clarissa eyes grew misty as she smiled at them.
"Thank you... both of you..." She said, rubbing at her eyes.
Valerie was always surprised by the support and care these people gave one another, even in the presence of others. Over the years, she had done her best to supress and push aside many of her emotions in order to protect herself. The sadness had always been a constant though, and Delvin had always done his best to keep her feeling that way. For her, killing was the thing she hated doing the most, and it always ended with her turning into a crying mess while she was wracked with guilt and regret. She never even had a choice in the matter. The slave collar would all but take over her body to do what she was ordered...
"Of course." Lord Crosse replied, echoed by Cecilia with a smile that made Valerie feel... good. It was a pretty smile.
The two stared each other for a while, Clarissa's cheeks turning a rosey shade of pink as she stared into Lord Crosse's eyes, who in turn stared back at her, his gaze as equally fixed on her eyes. Having multiple partners was not uncommon, but people like Lord Crosse were very uncommon. He actually seemed to prioritize their comfort and happiness over his own, which was a stark difference to men of great power who had or were building Harems. Usually, the men who just take pretty girls to satisfy themselves, but him? He was... so much different.
"Valerie." The man in question said, pulling her from her thoughts.
"Yes, Lord Crosse?" Valerie replied instinctively, making him stare at her for a while almost in disapproval. It made her tense, but his sigh helped to ease her a little bit.
"Valerie... I am not your Lord... I am not your master... I am simply, Eli." He said, causing her to tense again, "I know it's probably a habit. You're not used to anything else... Valerie... if it's okay for me to ask, how long have you been enslaved?"
Valerie paused, not expecting that question at all. And the fact that he asked her, and didn't just make her tell him... well, she found her mouth moving before her brain caught up. She also would do her best to call him what he wished.
"My whole life. I don't remember much as a child. I was kept in a dark place for a long time. So long that I couldn't keep track..." She said, trailing off as the memories began to hit her, "I never knew my parents. All I know is that my mother was a Vampire, and my father was a human. At least that's what I was told, but that could be a lie too... I don't even know if either of them are alive, or how I ended up where I was. All I remember is how cold and dark it was... I remember a small bit of light every now and then when they opened a little space underneath my door to give me food... usually dead animals or spoiled foods."
As Valerie talked, she noticed Lord-... or rather... Eli, was clenching his fists so tight that his knuckles turned white. A bit of his aura leaked out of him, and while it was controlled, and a small amount at that, it still sent chills down her spine. Her more beastial instincts were practically screaming at her to run away, to not upset this man, and that he was a literal force of nature. That warred with the man she had come to know him to be, which was kind, surprisingly gentle, and understanding. It was odd how such a powerful man, who tortured Delvin for his actions, was so different normally.
"Are you all right, Lord... uh, Eli?" Valerie asked nervously.
Eli blinked, and then unclenched his fists and retracted his aura. He had overshadowed everything else, so she was just now noticing the rage on Cici's face, and the anger that caused Clarissa's body to shake.
"Do you remember where this place was, Valerie?" I asked, and Valerie hesitated for a moment, and then nodded.
"Yes... it's the city of Farendell, to the far East... why do you ask?" Valerie asked hesitantly.
"Because I want to go there and tear the place apart. You should have never had to go through that... I'm so sorry, Valerie..." Eli said, his face kind as he gazed at her.
Valerie's heartrate suddenly picked up tremendously as he gazed upon her, his eyes and his gentle demeanor making her chest feel incredibly warm. Then, in a motion she didn't expect, a light flashed in his hand, and suddenly, he was holding...
"My slave crystal..." Valerie said, her voice subdued.
The other women stayed silent as Eli stood up, and walked around the table in the middle of the living room. He came to stand just in front of Valerie, and got on one knee, his tall stature putting him at eye level with her much smaller frame.
"Valerie, "He began, his voice gentle, and his eyes resolute, "I do not condone slavery. I hate it with a burning passion. No one should own another person like property... and no one should be forced into to doing things they don't want to do. You've dealt with so much for your entire life..." He said, his words actually making Valerie's lips quiver and her eyes to water slightly.
"It's not right... you're such a sweet person." Clarissa said, agreeing with me.
"I want to destroy the place my damn self. " Cici added, everyone's heartfelt words making Valerie's tears begin to fall down her face.
"Valerie, I can't change the past, and I can't take back what you've been through,.. but I want to help you, and I don't want you to ever have to go through any of that again." He said, and then he held up the crystal, "Let me start with this."
Just as he said that, he squeezed the crystal in this hand, and it cracked and shattered like weak glass. Valerie stared, her mouth agape and her eyes wide. Those shouldn't be possible to break... no one but an S+ ranked individual could do that... but more than that...
Valerie felt around her neck, and touched the collar. As she did so, it cracked, the once strong magical item now feeling weak and brittle to her touch. Then, in the next moment, the whole thing shattered, and small pieces of the awful device fell to the ground, with some falling on her lap and the couch. All she could do was stare into the eyes of the man who, without hesitation, had freed her.
She no longer felt that subjugation effect from the collar. She no longer felt trapped, like a prisoner who only had control of their body half of the time. The feeling of of her mind being caged, unable to even call that her own, was simply just got. All she could do was stare as emotions overwhelmed her.
"There. No masters. No Lords. You are your own woman, Valerie. You are no one's pawn, no one's tool, not anymore. Now, you are simply Valerie Helgana, a woman who can choose for herself on what she does next." Eli said, his voice kind and soft, but this time, who he was, and what he did, hit harder than it ever had before now.
She felt the moisture of her tears are they trailed down her face in seemingly endless streams. She tried to speak, to thank him, to tell him exactly what being free after so long meant to her, but all that came out were choked sobs. It was like a dream that she never thought could happen... yet it was. The collar was gone... she was free. More sobs escaped her mouth as the weight of the moment kept slamming into her.
Suddenly, warmth engulfed her as her face met the crook of Eli's neck as he pulled her into a hug. She suddenly began to feel very embarrassed, but she couldn't stop crying, couldn't stop sobbing.
"It's okay, Valerie." Eli said, making her pause in her thoughts, "Just let it out. I know what it's like to hold all of your emotions inside of you for so long. So... just let them out. While you do that, I'll be here, to hold you, and comfort you, and to tell you everything will be okay."
With those words, it was like a seal had been broken inside of her mind, and the floodgates truly began to open. A loud sob escaped her throat as she reached up and clutched at him like a lifeline, and her faced buried itself deeper into his neck. Eli ran a hand through her soft black hair as she cried, and she couldn't help but notice how warm and safe he had been making her feel.
Soon, more arms joined the mix as the other two girls wordlessly joined in a group hug, and for the first time in her life, Valerie felt like people cared about her. No one had ever held her, hugged her, comforted her... no one had ever made her feel like she was worth something. So, as she let her emotions out, and there was only one thing on her mind. For the first time in her life... she wanted to stay right where she was.