In the Slave Carriage
Nikolai Volkov looked around the carriage and noticed numerous slaves sitting beside him.
Most of them looked terribly malnourished. Their clothes hung loosely on their bodies, and some appeared so weak that they could barely move.
Nikolai stared at them in silence.
Is this really the end for us?
Before he could think further, Lucien de Montclair suddenly woke up.
"What is this?!"
He looked around in confusion.
"Where are we?"
Then he noticed the carriage's interior and the people surrounding him.
"Huh? Hey! This is a slave carriage!"
His eyes widened.
"Why are we inside a slave carriage?!"
Tears began to fill Lucien's eyes, and he started crying.
"No! No! Please, stop this!"
He clutched his head in despair.
"I was living such a good life!"
Nikolai approached him.
"Calm down, Lucien. Crying won't solve anything. Everyone here is watching you."
Lucien immediately turned toward him.
"What are you talking about, Nikolai?! You're telling me to stop crying?"
His voice trembled with anger.
"I don't think you understand why we're in this situation in the first place!"
Nikolai frowned.
"What? What did I do?"
Lucien glared at him.
"If you hadn't forced us to ask Lady Leyi for a holiday, none of this would have happened!"
He pointed an accusing finger at Nikolai.
"You were the one who kept insisting that we should ask her for a holiday! And what happened in the end?"
Lucien's voice grew louder.
"Lady Leyi gave us a permanent holiday!"
He paused before shouting again.
"And now, because of you, we're slaves!"
Nikolai remained silent.
"You're nothing but a useless boy! This is all your fault! We're in this situation because of you!"
Nikolai didn't answer.
He simply watched Lucien's furious eyes.
For a moment, he wanted to defend himself. However, no words came out of his mouth.
The carriage continued moving, carrying them toward an unknown destination.
And among all the slaves inside it, Nikolai could only remain silent beneath Lucien's accusations.
---
Assassin Club — The Uncommon Dog
Meanwhile, inside the Assassin Club, Amagiri Sayuki sat at the bar.
Her slave, Roroan Barganise, sat on the floor beside her.
Sayuki was thinking about the assassination request she had received from the Kingdom of Macrosel.
Roroan glanced at her.
"Miss Sayuki, what are you thinking about?"
THUD!
Sayuki kicked him in the face.
"How many times have I told you?"
She looked down at him with an indifferent expression.
"Dogs don't talk. They bark."
"Huh? You're the most unusual dog I've ever seen."
She crossed her legs.
"My usual dogs never say a word. They only bark like proper dogs. But you're different."
Sayuki tilted her head slightly.
"No matter how many times I hit you, you keep talking. Perhaps I should teach you another lesson."
Roroan immediately began making barking sounds, desperately trying to satisfy her.
"Bau! Bau bau!"
He crawled toward Sayuki's shoe and began licking it.
He hoped that demonstrating his obedience would convince her not to hit him again.
Sayuki watched him for a moment.
"Huh. Sometimes, you really are a shameless and obedient dog."
She frowned.
"Stop licking my shoe, you bastard."
Sayuki planted her foot firmly in front of him.
Roroan immediately stopped licking her shoe and struck his head against the seat in front of him.
Sayuki watched him for another moment before speaking.
"However, you dared to ask me a question."
She leaned back against the bar.
"So I suppose I should answer it."
She gestured toward the space in front of her.
"Come here."
Roroan crawled closer.
Sayuki began explaining.
"You already know that Sages and Mages once ruled the world after defeating humanity."
She paused briefly.
"But then, something strange happened."
"A mysterious meteorite suddenly appeared and crashed into the Earth. Countless Sages and Mages died because of it."
Her eyes narrowed slightly.
"However, the strangest part was that no humans died because of the meteorite."
"After the Sages and Mages perished, humans began following the path they had left behind."
"Within three years, humans established powerful kingdoms."
She tapped her fingers against the bar.
"Humans no longer believed that cities and technology alone could protect them. Instead, they began placing their faith in kingdoms and magic."
"Magic, in this era, is connected to the Mystical Energy released by the bodies of dead Sages and Mages."
She continued.
"Humans believe that this energy and the kingdoms built around it possess the power to protect them from almost any disaster."
Sayuki suddenly looked at Roroan.
"I suppose you don't even know that one city called New York still exists in this era."
She gave a faint, mocking laugh.
"But here's the funniest part."
"New York City cannot even surpass a single Rolist Territory."
Roroan looked at her blankly.
Sayuki clicked her tongue.
"Huh. I doubt your brain can even understand what a Rolist Territory is."
Roroan barked in agreement.
"Bau! Bau!"
Sayuki ignored him and continued.
"Listen carefully."
"Rolists are nobles. You could also call them wealthy and powerful people."
"A Rolist Territory is land controlled by a Rolist. The villagers living within that territory are under their authority and must pay taxes to them."
She rested her chin on her hand.
"Each territory usually has one enormous palace where its ruling Rolist lives. The remaining buildings are mostly small houses arranged like ordinary villages."
"The villagers are generally farmers. They cultivate crops and sell their agricultural products to the kingdoms."
She paused.
"After selling their products, they must pay seventy percent of their earnings in taxes to the ruling Rolist."
Roroan continued listening.
"Rolists earn money through various means, including producing valuable medicines and hunting for treasures left behind by Sages and Mages."
Sayuki's voice became slightly more serious.
"Most Rolists are mysterious. There are even rumors that some have connections with fairies and angels."
"Another rumor claims that fairies and angels provide them with money."
She shrugged.
"Whether those rumors are true is another matter."
Sayuki continued.
"There are 455 Rolist families, but only seventy Rolist Territories."
Roroan tilted his head.
Sayuki noticed his confusion.
"Huh. I suppose you're wondering how there can be 455 Rolist families but only seventy territories."
She waved her hand dismissively.
"Let me explain."
"Being a Rolist doesn't automatically mean that you rule a territory. There are two types of Rolists."
She raised two fingers.
"First, Liberty Advocates."
"Second, Kingdom Advocates."
Sayuki leaned against the bar.
"I've already explained how Liberty Advocates control their territories and the people living within them. So I'll explain the other type."
"Kingdom Advocates are Rolists who work toward the success and development of kingdoms."
"They help kingdoms grow stronger and more prosperous."
"Unlike Liberty Advocates, they don't directly control territories. However, that doesn't mean they're poor."
Sayuki scoffed.
"They're just as wealthy as Liberty Advocates. They possess their own palaces, lands, and servants."
"The difference is that they don't rule territories themselves. Royal families govern the kingdoms, while Kingdom Advocates work alongside them."
She folded her arms.
"There are seventy Liberty Advocates and 385 Kingdom Advocates."
Sayuki suddenly stopped.
"Oh, right. I've changed the subject."
She looked at Roroan.
"Let's return to what I was talking about."
"There are more than thirty-five kingdoms in this world."
She paused.
"According to Monk Cheon's Traveller theory, there are forty kingdoms. However, I only know the names of thirty-five of them, so I say there are more than thirty-five."
Sayuki's expression became thoughtful.
"Recently, the fifth prince of the Orephis Kingdom offered me an assassination job."
"He wants me to kill the third prince of the same kingdom."
She tapped her fingers against the bar.
"And now I'm wondering what I should do."
"They've offered me a substantial amount of money, but this isn't an ordinary assassination."
"If I accept, I could trigger a political conflict between powerful people and kingdoms."
She sighed.
"And I don't want to get involved in political wars."
Sayuki looked toward Roroan.
"So I think I'll reject the job."
She paused before adding casually, "By the way, Roro."
Roroan immediately looked up.
Roro was the shortened name Sayuki used for Roroan.
"I've just shared such valuable information with you. What are you going to give me in return?"
She smiled faintly.
"Don't worry. You can talk now. I won't hit you for speaking."
Roroan hesitated.
"What do you want from me?"
Sayuki answered without hesitation.
"I want to test a medicine on you."
She tilted her head.
"Don't worry. It'll be easy."
Roroan froze.
No. Please, no.
Don't tell me she's going to use Ulas O9 on me!
He remembered what he knew about the medicine.
Ulas O9 is one of the deadliest medicines created by the Nightglass Covenant. It can cause a dog's tail to grow from a human's back.
I've seen some of Miss Sayuki's other slaves. Some of them have one or even two tails growing from their backs.
But that's not the worst part.
The medicine can damage the brain and turn a person's mind into something resembling a dog's. The effects can become permanent.
There is an antidote, but it's extremely rare.
Roroan began trembling.
"Please, no!"
He hurriedly lowered his head.
"Please! You can use me however you want, but please don't use that medicine on me!"
Sayuki kicked him in the cheek.
Roroan fell sideways.
She then placed her shoe against his tongue, preventing him from lifting his head.
"Huh?"
Sayuki looked down at him.
"Did you think I'd listen to your refusal?"
Roroan struggled to speak.
"Please... show some mercy..."
At that moment, Benson, the bartender, witnessed the scene.
He could no longer remain silent.
He hurried over.
"Miss Sayuki, please stop! He's already in a lot of pain!"
Sayuki slowly turned her head toward him.
Benson froze.
The moment their eyes met, he felt unable to move.
Sayuki studied him for a few seconds.
"Hmm. You're fortunate."
She removed her shoe from Roroan and looked directly at Benson.
"Sir Julian considers you his favourite bartender. That's the only reason I haven't killed you."
Her voice remained cold.
"If anyone else had interfered like this, I would have killed them."
She gestured toward the bar.
"Now, go back to work."
Benson lowered his head and immediately returned to his position.
Sayuki turned back to Roroan.
"Hey, Roro. Listen carefully."
She crouched slightly to look at him.
"I can do whatever I want with you because you belong to me."
Her expression remained indifferent.
"Do you understand what that means?"
Roroan swallowed nervously.
"Y-Yes. I understand."
Sayuki smiled faintly.
"Good."
---
Nightglass Covenant — An Unwelcome Request
Meanwhile, inside the Nightglass Covenant, Black ViSage received an invitation from Ashryn Mordelle, one of the Nightglass Covenant's Highers.
The invitation was for Ashryn's wedding ceremony with Ariya Dukenben.
Ashryn and Ariya were finally getting married.
Black ViSage had received the invitation because Ashryn considered him a friend.
He opened the invitation and read its contents.
The formal invitation itself was perfectly acceptable.
However, something else had been included with it: a personal letter from Ashryn.
Black ViSage began reading.
My dear friend, Fenhert Greygrious,
I want you to attend my wedding ceremony as Fenhert Greygrious, not as Black ViSage.
You already know that my wedding won't be an ordinary ceremony. Many guests will attend, including numerous Rolist families and members of royal families.
Kings and queens from several kingdoms will also be present. There won't be any unimportant guests at this wedding. Every person attending will be someone of considerable importance.
Even my fellow Highers from the Nightglass Covenant will be there.
That's why I want you to attend as Fenhert Greygrious.
Please accept my request.
Your friend,
Ashryn Mordelle
Black ViSage finished reading the letter.
For a moment, he remained silent.
Huh...
I really don't want to use the name Fenhert Greygrious.
He looked at the letter again.
However, I'll accept.
Ashryn is my friend, after all.
He paused.
But I really don't want to attend this wedding.
Black ViSage let out a quiet sigh.
Huh...
Still, refusing to attend would be a bad thing to do.
He placed the invitation down.
Although he had decided to accept Ashryn's request, he wasn't particularly pleased about it.
After all, attending a wedding filled with Rolists, royalty, kings, queens, and important members of the Nightglass Covenant was the last thing he wanted to do.