by Daman
Roran kept sighing at the pitiful conditions of the slaves, but even he knew that there was nothing that he could do to stop slavery.
“Please… buy me! I pro… mise… to be help… full…”
A young child’s voice rang out from below Calron’s feet, just as he passed a small metal cage.
Chapter 24 – Give Me A Name, Master
“Please… buy me! I pro… mise… to be help… full…”
A young child’s voice rang out from below Calron’s feet, just as he passed a small metal cage.
Perplexed by the sudden cry, Calron looked down to his right and saw a small girl around seven years old clinging to the bars of the cage with her tiny hands. She was covered in dirty rags, and both her face and body were stained with dirt and soot.
Her dull black eyes stared into Calron, eliciting a sharp sting of pity from within his heart. Ever since entering the Slave Market, Calron had tried to steel his mind so that he would not be emotionally swayed by the environment around him, but upon seeing the pitiful state of the girl in front of him, his mental barriers crashed.
“Big brother…”
Roran gritted his teeth, his anger seething and about to explode at the slave traders.
“Stop, Roran. I know how you feel, but we cannot carelessly take action before we are in a position of power. In order to eradicate this cruel system, just our individual strength is not enough.”
Calron forcefully gripped Roran’s fist and whispered into his ear.
Once Roran slightly calmed down, Calron released his arm and knelt down on the ground to face the young child. However, before he could say anything, a sharp voice was directed at him.
“No talking to the slaves without my permission. If you just want to look around, piss off and go somewhere else! We only cater to buying customers here.”
A tall and beefy man strutted from the shop’s entrance, giving both Calron and Roran a hostile glare.
The slave trader did not think that the two youths were customers, as they appeared too young and moreover, their clothes did not give off a sense of wealth or luxury. Only the rich could afford the slaves, so it was obvious to the trader that these teens were here to cause trouble.
“How much?”
Calron’s cold and frosty voice sounded in the air, as he continued to gaze at the girl in front of him and ignored the expression on the trader’s face.
“Hah? What is with that tone, you little shit! Get the fuck out of my shop!”
The slave trader was furious with Calron’s attitude, and bellowed at him to leave his shop.
*Rrrrrrrrrrrr*
The ground underneath the slave trader started to abruptly tremble, as Calron released his true essence for a brief second.
“S-sorry, sir, please f-forgive my previous words.”
The trader shook in fright, realizing that the teen had been hiding his real cultivation.
It was clear that the youth was close to the peak of Vajra stage, and achieving this cultivation at such a young age meant that he was definitely from one of the powerhouses of the Royal court or the six towers.
“How much?”
Calron repeated in an icy tone, continuing to ignore the trader.
“That slave is on sale for three gold and twenty silvers, but you can have her for three gold.”
The trader swallowed his saliva and answered in a worried tone, afraid that Calron would be offended by the price.
Although slavery was legal under the kingdom’s authority, if a certain powerful clan or sect was offender by a trader, then they had the right to revoke their license and under special circumstances, they could even execute the trader publicly.
Without glancing at the nervous slave trader, Calron took out three gold squares from his spatial bracelet and threw them towards the beefy trader.
*katcha*
Placing both his hands on the bars of the metal cage, Calron pulled them apart until the metal rods started to break under the force.
“Thank… you…”
The little girl’s dull eyes seemed to gain a bit of life, as two streaks of tears rolled down her cheeks.
“What is your name?”
Calron asked softly with a gentle look on his face, as he ignored the stench around the girl.
“I… do not have… a name…”
The girl answered in a hoarse voice.
Her dull eyes blinked slowly with exhaustion, and it seemed as if the little girl was about to collapse.
“Please, give… me a name… Master…”
The girl said in a fading whisper before finally closing her eyes and going into unconsciousness.
“Your name will be... Ellie.”
Calron stated with a slight smile on his face, as he picked up the tiny figure from the cage and stood up.
Walking towards Roran, Calron handed the little girl over to his brother while saying, “Take her back to the inn, and ask Jolt to get some clothes her size. Get one of the maids to give her a bath and to look after her.”
“Big brother, where are you going?”
Roran inquired, sensing that Calron was about to leave somewhere.
“I just need to prepare some items for the shop tomorrow, so wait for me back at the inn.”
Calron conveyed, and after a quick glance at the unconscious Ellie in Roran’s arms, he left the area.
Calron had initially thought that it would take much longer to search for a suitable slave, and although Ellie was much younger than the slave he would have liked, he did not regret his choice one bit.
……………………………….
“My lady, some young lad is outside and says he wants to talk to you.”
A plump old maid said with a slight bow after she entered an extremely messy room, and closed the door behind her.
“Oh, Hi Romla! What do you think of this new pill?”
A beautiful blonde-haired girl turned around with a small purple-colored pill in her hand, while her spectacles hanged crookedly on her nose.
Mirane’s eyes sparkled with excitement, as she waved the pill in the air and let out a cheerful laugh.
“Please be careful, my lady…”
The plump maid smoothly walked over to the oblivious girl, and re-positioned the almost tipping boiling cauldron.
After taking care of that, Romla faced Mirane and fixed the crooked spectacles on her face.
Sigh, the little lady is still so careless…
Romla inwardly complained, but she could never bring herself to scold the innocent and pure-hearted Mirane. The poor girl was ostracized by the other nobles because of her clumsiness and lack of dignified behavior. If not for her stunning beauty, then she would have been treated even more harshly.
“Romla, did you say something before?”
Mirane asked in her sweet voice, after putting down the purple-colored pill and checking the cauldron.
“Yes, my lady. There is a young man here to see you. He said his name was… Calron.”
………………………
Would she accept this offer? Maybe…
As Calron was contemplating his thoughts while seated outside the Royal Alchemy School’s entrance, his mind kept returning to the slave girl, Ellie.
He did not realize until now why he had picked that name on the spur of the moment. He recalled that one night when his mother was pregnant, she was telling him a bed-time story.
Once the story was over, Calron had asked her what she would name the baby, and she answered him while stroking his hair and placing a soft kiss on his forehead,
“If it’s a boy, then Wilan and if it’s a girl… Ellie.”
Chapter 25 – A Deal Struck
“The lady wishes to see you, so please follow me.”
The plump woman came back outside and proceeded to escort Calron into the Royal Alchemy School.
Calron shook himself from his thoughts and got up to follow the plump woman. The guards at the entrance gave Calron a quiet st
are, but they did not block him from entering.
The inside of the Alchemy School was quite extensive and spacious. Tens of robed figures darted in and out, most of whom were carrying some equipment or simply discussing various topics amongst themselves.
“The lady’s room is this way.”
The plump woman stated briefly while glancing back at Calron, and turning into a corridor on the left.
After several doors had passed, the woman stopped in front of a wooden door which had an ornate silver plaque fixed on the top reading, “Alchemist Laxerus”. The plump woman knocked on the door two times before opening it for Calron to enter.
Once Calron walked into the room, she followed behind him and closed the door, and patiently waited near it.
The first thing that Calron noticed when he stepped into the room was how messy, chaotic, and untidy the place was. It seemed as if the scatterbrain personality of the noble lady he had met earlier was reflected by the state of her room as well.
“Ah∼ It was you indeed! I did not know your name, but after Romla described your physical traits I took a guess that it was you.”
Mirane stepped forward with a bright smile on her face, as she grasped Calron’s hand and gave it quick shake. Meanwhile, Calron stood there awkwardly not knowing how to respond.
Usually, he had to guard his mind and actions when confronting nobles, as they tended to take offense for any small thing regarding commoners. Calron recalled the trouble he had to go through because of Chax and his father, Regis.
“Hey, I apologize if I am calling in the favor too early, but I really wanted your help.”
Calron started bashfully while scratching the back of his head.
“No, it was you who helped me yesterday and because of you, I was able to finish my task in time or else I would have failed my Teacher’s class. So, I will definitely return the favor if I can.”
Mirane said with a grateful smile as she shook her head.
Romla remained silent in the back and spectated the exchange with a stoic face.
“Ah, it was no big deal and besides, you paid us more than what we purchased the beast core for. This favor… would it be possible for you to loan me hundred gold squares?”
The moment Calron finished speaking, Romla’s jaw hung from her mouth in astonishment while Mirane stood there in a daze. They did not expect the young man to abruptly ask for such a large sum of gold, and moreover, in that casual tone as if it was a simple matter.
“This… I… “
Mirane stuttered, not knowing how to respond.
“I am not asking this for free, I will absolutely pay you back the gold squares and with interest.”
Seeing the blank expression on the young girl’s face, Calron explained himself.
“Ah… this is awkward… you see, even I don’t have a hundred gold squares. I have around forty-seven gold and thirty silvers but that’s about it.”
Mirane replied hesitantly with a sad face. She would only get around thirty gold from her father every month, and most of it was spent on alchemy ingredients and other shopping items.
As if struck by a sudden thought, the blonde-haired beauty asked Calron a question.
“Do you want that gold to buy something? If it’s an item at the marketplace, then I can get the item for you instead. My family has its own stores in the marketplace, so it should not be a problem!”
Calron was initially disappointed by her answer, and thought that he had to change his plan yet again, but after hearing Mirane’s next words his mood soon brightened.
In truth, Calron could achieve his plans for the shop with the current amount of money that he had, but it would be very slow and would require a lot of time before he made a decent profit. After meeting Mirane, Calron had an idea that he could ask her for help and be an investor in his business.
He knew for a fact that the product he was going to create would be very high in demand when he launched it, so he was willing to take a large risk.
“That’s great! The item that I need is elemental metal, lots and lots of it.”
Calron conveyed in an excited voice.
“Elemental metal? If I recall correctly, the metal is fairly cheap and used mostly to create weapons for the Spirit stage cultivators. I am sure that we have those in stock, so I will ask my family to send you hundred gold squares worth of the metal.”
Mirane chuckled at the sight of the excited Calron, and pushed back her spectacles more firmly on her nose.
“My lady…”
Romla tried to intervene, but was stopped by a quick look from Mirane. The plump maid was suspicious of this boy, as no matter how one looked at it, it was simply ridiculous to ask a person you just met for a large sum of hundred gold squares.
What was even more astonishing was that Lady Mirane had accepted the boy’s ridiculous request.
“Thank you. I will definitely pay you back, and I promise that you will not regret it.”
Calron collected himself, and gave Mirane a grateful bow.
Not many people would trust a random stranger and moreover, hand him their own money. Calron decided within his mind that if the young girl before him asked him for any help in the future, he would stand by her regardless of the risk to his life.
“Hahaha, no need to be so formal. Tell me where you currently live, and I’ll have someone gather the elemental metal and send it to you.”
Mirane let out a sweet laugh, waving her hand in the air.
“Alright, I will gladly accept your generosity then. I stay at the “Wandering Eagle” inn at the outer district, so just ask for ‘Calron’ when handing over the goods. Also, if possible please have the metal cut into strips.”
“Understood. The metal should be at your place by this evening. If it’s not too rude, then may I ask what you plan on doing with all that elemental metal?”
Mirane asked curiously with a slight raise of her brow.
Gazing into her stunning emerald-gold irises, Calron answered with a mysterious smile.
“I will be creating an item which will increase the fighting capabilities of any martial artist or cultivator by several fold.”
What Calron did not mention was that, it was only one of his products. He planned on creating several items which could instantly kill any cultivator within the Vajra stage and even damage Saint stage experts.
The scary part about this item was that even a Spiritual stage cultivator could use it to kill someone at the Vajra stage!
Chapter 26 – Fourth Step Of The Blood Legacy
“Are you sure that you did not see incorrectly?”
An angry voice stated in a quiet voice.
“I am sure, Captain. I saw that same teen that we previously met entering the lady’s room in the Alchemy school.” A young knight in a light armor confirmed, as he stood behind his Knight Captain.
“Goddamn it! So Barol was killed by that little boy…”
Darton cursed furiously, his heavy armor rattling under his body’s movement.
The young knight remained silent and waited for his Captain’s following orders.
“Go inform the second young lord, and tell him that someone has set their eyes on his sister. This boy might be a spy from one of the other towers, as it’s clear he is an elite fighter if he was able to kill Barol without causing a big commotion. If my guess is not wrong, then he probably killed Barol in a single strike…”
Darton stated in a contemplative voice, and commanded the young knight to depart.
Which other Tower family dares to make a move on our Laxerus Tower?
The Knight Captain brooded while closing his eyes once his subordinate left.
…………………………….
“How is she?”
“The healer says that her bones are too fragile from months of starvation and that it will be next to impossible for her to walk again.”
Roran answered Calron, as the two youths stood outside their room at the inn.
After Calron had returned from his meeting with Mirane, he saw that Roran was standing outside their room with a wrathful expression on his face. This was because Jolt had asked for a city healer to be brought for Ellie, and the result of the healer’s examination infuriated Roran.
If not for Calron’s previous statement, then Roran would have charged directly towards the slave trader’s shop and beat him until he could no longer move.
“The tragedy that humans inflict against their own kind…”
Calron sighed after hearing the news. He had already detected the frail and weakened bones inside Ellie the moment he had picked her up from her cage, but he had hoped that the situation was not this devastating.
“Big brother, you talk as if you are not one of us.”
Roran stated in a depressed tone, his mind still occupied by thoughts of Ellie and how that poor girl had to suffer for the rest of her life.