Gulp.
Conpard swallowed dryly, his entire body tense. Even when meeting Viscount Bailen, the lord of this city, he hadn't felt this nervous.
The reason for his anxiety was the woman following him.
My neck feels cold. This woman is dangerous.
As a slave merchant with over fifty years of experience, Conpard came from a family of slave traders.
He had started assisting his father in the trade as soon as he came of age and had continued in the business ever since.
Over the years, he had developed a unique skill: the ability to observe people. He was confident that no one could match his ability to analyze and see through others.
His ability was screaming that this woman was dangerous. One wrong move, and he along with most of the people here would die by her hand. He felt it in his bones.
When her master, Sung Yujin Pruker, was around, it wasn't this bad.
He'd sensed danger before, but never this feeling of having his head stuck in the jaws of a wild beast.
The woman Sung Yujin Pruker always travels with... probably his personal maid. Was her name Yuria...?
Sung Yujin Pruker wasn't some minor noble, so he'd memorized this information. Besides, Bylon was relatively close to the Pruker estate.
"We've been walking for quite a while now... Where are you headed?" Yuria asked Conpard.
Two burly male slaves stood guard around Conpard, their eyes fixed on Yuria.
"We're almost there. This is where the female slaves are kept. Just so you know... not all the slaves here belong to me."
"I already knew that, Old Man Conpard."
Although Conpard was the overall manager of this place, it was operated jointly by several slave merchants.
The ownership shares of this slave market were divided as follows: Viscount Bailen 20%, Conpard 40%, and the remaining slave merchants 40%.
Conpard opened a door.
Click. Clang.
The corridor beyond led to a series of rooms, reminiscent of a bustling market square. Dozens of staff members managed the slaves.
"This is the Bylon Slave Market. Over eighty slave merchants operate here, and more than a thousand slaves are sold here."
The mansion-like place they had just left was a special facility housing unique slaves for VIP clients.
"While this is primarily a place for ordinary slaves, you can still find exceptional ones here if you look carefully."
"That's enough explanation. I want a young adult, beautiful female slave. She must have come of age. I don't care about her background, but I'd prefer someone healthy."
"Hmm. Those are quite broad criteria. We'll have to spend a lot of time searching this place. Is that acceptable?"
"It doesn't matter."
"What's your budget?"
"Ten billion Ner."
"...That's quite generous. But you should understand that slaves here are quite expensive."
Yuria nodded.
As an illegal slave market, it was inevitable that the slaves here would be more expensive than those in legal markets. However, their superior quality made the price understandable.
"Old Man Conpard! What brings you here?"
A male slave merchant approached Conpard and greeted him.
"It's been a while, Sutron. I'm escorting an important guest myself. May I take a look at your slaves?"
The slave merchant glanced at Yuria. Though she had pulled her cloak up to conceal herself as much as possible, her exposed face was strikingly beautiful.
However, the merchant quickly averted his gaze. Working in a place like this teaches you certain truths, one of which is that idle curiosity only hastens one's demise.
"Of course. What kind of slave are you looking for?"
"A female slave. Young and beautiful, if possible."
"We have a few decent slaves here. Why don't you take a look?"
The Slave Merchant pointed to a barred cage. Inside, twelve women sat shackled and chained, dressed in tattered rags unlike the slaves in the mansion.
"I want to see their faces and bodies properly," Yuria ordered.
At her command, the Slave Merchant immediately called to the women in the cage, "You heard the guest! Stand up, step forward, and show yourselves properly!"
The women rose and moved to the front of the cage, standing where Yuria could inspect their build through the bars.
Yuria frowned slightly. Their hygiene was worse than she'd expected, though thankfully not critically bad.
The women's ages varied, but all appeared to have undergone their coming-of-age ceremonies.
"Are any of them in good condition?"
"Except for four, they are all healthy enough once properly fed."
"..."
Yuria narrowed her eyes. One could roughly gauge a person's character by their face and figure. Their gaze and expression revealed much.
"That slave will do."
Appearance was the most crucial criterion for her judgment. If a slave's looks fell below average, she wouldn't consider buying them.
The Slave Merchant announced the female slave's name.
"Rizel, is it?"
Conpard, who had been observing from the side, glanced at Yuria with surprise.
The slave Yuria had chosen was a girl with orange hair. Her body was so gaunt that she could hardly be called beautiful. Her eyes were dull, giving her a somewhat dim-witted appearance.
"That's unexpected. Wouldn't the woman beside her be healthier and more suitable?"
Rizel possessed beauty surpassing even that of the slave girl called Rizel. Her only flaw was her age, but the difference was merely three or four years.
"I've decided on that slave."
"Hmm. Are you looking to the future rather than the present?"
Yuria nodded.
Following Conpard's advice, she considered Rizel's potential. With proper nourishment and care, Rizel would surpass the beauty of the woman beside her.
More importantly, Rizel's physique was remarkably strong. Yuria, a top-tier Aura Expert, could see the latent talent within Rizel.
This was a domain beyond the comprehension of Conpard, a mere slave merchant, no matter how keen his eye for human observation.
"120 million Ner. Haha. Rizel's potential has added a premium to her price. You understand, right?"
Yuria immediately paid the price.
"Ha ha! Thank you! Do you need any other slaves?"
"There aren't any decent slaves here."
She could negotiate the price if she wanted, but she didn't have the time. She needed to purchase at least ten more slaves.
"Old Man Conpard, let's move on to the next one."
Yuria clutched the slave certificate in her hand and led the shackled slave through the market.
Most slave merchants treated Yuria with respect. However, some glared at her with insolent eyes.
"Old Man Conpard, this woman... she looks quite valuable. Can't we take her as a slave?"
"Are you mad? She's a noble lady. You can't treat her like that!"
"Ah, a distinguished guest! My apologies. Heh heh."
The rude slave merchant immediately retreated at Conpard's stern rebuke.
Yuria frowned. She was being followed.
Armed men were tracking her from a short distance away skilled slave hunters, no doubt. They would likely attack the moment she left the slave market.
"Why did you stop so suddenly?" Conpard asked.
"The vermin don't know their place," Yuria replied. "I don't want my master to be bothered with unnecessary trouble, so I'll deal with them here and now."
"Huh?" Conpard asked, confused. But by the time he looked up, Yuria had already vanished. He hadn't even seen her move.
Conpard looked around in a panic, then spotted them: three dead slave hunters, their heads severed.
"..."
Conpard's face paled. Not because of the corpses themselves, but because Yuria had moved less than ten seconds ago.
In that mere ten seconds, three skilled slave hunters had been killed.
Ordering his slave to stay put, Conpard hurried off. It was obvious where Yuria had gone.
As expected, Yuria was killing the impudent slave merchant.
"P-please spare me! I beg you! I gave you all the money!"
"Who would believe that 300 million Ner is your entire fortune?"
"That's all of it! The rest of my assets are all slaves..."
The slave merchant's head fell to the floor mid-sentence.
Conpard saw the black aura coiling around her right hand, taking the shape of a blade.
To be able to manipulate aura into such a technique... she must be at least an upper-tier Expert.
He had anticipated this, but witnessing it firsthand sent a chill down his spine. This woman looked like she would kill him too if the numbers didn't add up.
"Old Man Conpard, your management of the slave merchants under your command is a mess."
"I-I apologize. I'll manage them properly from now on."
"We don't have time. Let's move on immediately."
Conpard watched her retreating figure, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead.
He spoke into the empty air, asking, "Can you kill that woman?"
A small voice whispered in his ear, "Impossible. She's aware of my existence and even my exact location."
"...Bylon's top assassin, got caught?"
This assassin had been secretly summoned by Conpard on his way here, not to harm Yuria, but to protect himself.
"To be honest, I lost track of her movements when she killed those three slave hunters earlier. Right now, Bylon's top assassin isn't me it's her."
"Aren't you a high-tier Aura Expert?"
"She's beyond that."
"Beyond that... that means she's at the highest tier..."
"If killing that woman is the only way, I'd rather abandon the commission. Contract or no contract, survival comes first... Damn it."
"Why? What's wrong?"
"She's signaling me. Probably... to stay within her line of sight. If I try to escape, I'm dead for sure. Conpard, where did you get that monstrous woman?"
"...I didn't bring her here. She came to me."
Conpard swallowed hard. The woman had stopped and was staring at him, likely signaling him to hurry up and lead the way.
"She will do nicely for the final purchase."
Yuria gazed down at the girl. The silver-haired girl stared back at Yuria before turning her head to the side.
"Nepia! Don't take Nepia away! If you take her, take me too!"
A brown-haired boy screamed from inside the iron cage.
"...Madam, can't Terius come with us too?"
"No." Yuria said firmly.
"I'll do anything. I just want to stay with Terius."
"No. Your friend isn't worth as much as you are."
"..."
"Uwaaaaaaaah!"
"Wait... can I have one last conversation with Terius?"
Yuria nodded.
Nepia approached the boy trapped in the iron cage. Nepia and Terius were childhood friends who had grown up together in the same village.
Their village had been targeted by bandits and razed to the ground, and they had been captured and sold into slavery.
They had relied on each other and persevered through hardship, but their journey had reached its end.
A moment later.
Nepia approached Yuria. Terius, who was screaming from within his iron cage, shouted at Nepia, "Nepia! I'll find you! I'll definitely find you! Keep that ring safe!"
Yuria glanced at the ring Nepia held in her hand.
It was a crude iron ring, fashioned from a thin wire bent and twisted into shape.
Nepia must have secretly kept it hidden from the Slave Merchant's eyes.
Perhaps the merchant had simply turned a blind eye; such a small iron ring would have seemed like worthless trash, not even worth taking if offered for free.
"Is the conversation over?" Yuria asked.
"Yes. Terius said he'll come find me later. This ring is proof of his promise. ...Is it okay if I keep it?"
"It doesn't matter," Yuria said simply, turning to lead Nepia away.
"Nepia! Never lose that ring! If you keep it, I'll definitely find you!"
"Okay, Terius! I'll be waiting!"
At the slave market, Yuria purchased a total of 41 female slaves, including 10 with potential. These ten were mostly eighteen and nineteen, but they possessed promising talents, making them worth nurturing.
Before loading the slaves into the carriage, Yuria gathered them together. The women varied in age and appearance.
"You will all become maids," she announced. "A maid is someone who serves her master. Never forget that."