Chapter 21

Chapter 21. A New Home

The slave market was nothing like Do-yoon had imagined.

When he first heard about it in the royal capital, he had pictured a gloomy underground prison. A place filled with the sound of rattling chains, cracking whips, and people's screams.

But the reality was completely different.

Clean tents stood in neat rows across a spacious square, and merchants greeted customers with friendly smiles. The customers walked around leisurely, examining the slaves as though they were choosing goods at an ordinary market.

There were no screams.

He could not hear any whips cracking either.

And that made it even more uncomfortable.

Buying and selling people was treated as something perfectly normal.

Do-yoon slowly walked into the market.

Behind the iron bars were not only humans, but members of various races.

Beastfolk with wolf and cat ears.

Elves with long, pointed ears.

Short, stocky dwarves.

There were even demons with small horns.

All of them sat quietly with numbered tags hanging around their necks.

"First time?"

Liana asked from beside him.

Do-yoon nodded without speaking.

"Yeah."

"Everyone makes that face the first time."

"Did you?"

"Me too."

Liana gave a short laugh.

"But you get used to it."

Do-yoon did not answer.

For some reason, the words get used to it felt strangely heavy.

Meanwhile, the merchants continued calling out from every direction.

"Master! I'll give you a good price!"

"Combat slaves for sale!"

"We have porters too!"

"Mages available!"

"We even have a dwarf who used to be a master craftsman!"

Do-yoon examined the slaves one by one.

Combat slaves who could wield swords.

Laborers who carried heavy loads.

Mages who could use rare elemental magic.

Some of them had abilities that made him want to buy them immediately.

But he soon shook his head.

Not yet.

Even if he bought a combat slave, he did not have the resources to provide proper equipment.

If he brought a mage along, he would have to pay wages and supply Mana Stones.

He did not need a porter yet either.

He was still a rookie mercenary who had only just acquired a small mansion in the royal capital.

His merchant company was still in its early stages.

This was not the time to let greed get the better of him.

That was when he heard a very quiet voice from a corner.

"I'm sorry..."

Do-yoon turned.

At the far end of the market, in an iron cage that attracted almost no attention, a young girl sat curled up.

Silver wolf ears.

A slender silver tail.

Faintly glowing gray eyes.

She looked about fifteen years old.

She was smaller than other girls her age, and her face was noticeably thin.

As Do-yoon approached, the merchant immediately waved his hand.

"I wouldn't recommend that one."

"Why not?"

"She's sickly."

The merchant pointed at the girl.

"She has very little stamina and barely any mana."

"Can she fight?"

"Hardly at all."

"What about work?"

"She's slow."

The merchant smiled bitterly.

"She hasn't sold in months."

Do-yoon looked at the girl behind the bars.

She could not bring herself to meet his eyes.

She kept her head lowered, her hands clasped tightly together.

The moment Do-yoon saw her like that, memories of his own past came rushing back.

The corner of his classroom.

The seat where nobody ever spoke to him.

The days when he had been treated as though he were worthless.

Someone from whom nobody expected anything.

Do-yoon stood silently for a while.

Then he quietly spoke.

"How much?"

The merchant's eyes widened.

"Are you really going to buy her?"

"Tell me the price first."

"Three silver coins."

Do-yoon did not hesitate any longer.

He took three silver coins from his wallet and handed them to the merchant.

Liana, who was standing beside him, looked shocked.

"Hey."

"What?"

"Aren't you making this decision a little too quickly?"

"No."

Do-yoon shook his head.

"I've thought about it enough."

He silently added another thought.

Because I know what it's like to be looked at that way.

The three silver coins passed into the merchant's hand.

He immediately took out a contract.

A magic circle was engraved on the thick parchment.

A slave contract.

A contract enforced by both the laws and magic of this world.

The moment Do-yoon wrote his name on it, black mana scattered into the air.

A moment later, a silver bracelet appeared and gently fastened itself around the girl's wrist.

Click.

A faint light flowed along the bracelet.

[Slave Contract Established]

[Master: Kim Do-yoon]

[Conditions for Release]

• Death of the master.

• The master's declaration of emancipation.

The light disappeared almost instantly.

The girl spoke in a trembling voice.

"...Master."

Do-yoon thought for a moment before asking,

"What's your name?"

The girl looked surprised.

"...Luna."

Do-yoon smiled.

"All right."

"..."

"Luna."

The girl's eyes trembled.

Her name.

It had been a very long time since anyone had called her by her actual name.

Most people simply called her hey.

You.

Beast.

Slave.

That was about it.

Do-yoon spoke naturally.

"I look forward to having you with us."

Luna stared at him in disbelief.

"...Pardon?"

"You're going to be our maid."

For a moment...

Luna froze.

Liana froze.

Even the merchant froze.

"A maid?"

Liana was the first to speak.

"Not a combat slave?"

"Yeah."

"Didn't he just say she's sickly?"

"I know."

"And that she's slow at working?"

"I know."

Do-yoon smiled.

"She can take her time learning."

Luna could not say anything.

Her eyes slowly began to redden.

That afternoon, the three returned to their newly purchased mansion.

It stood on the eastern outskirts of the royal capital.

It was a modest, two-story mansion.

It was not particularly luxurious, but it had been well maintained. There was a small garden, a well, a spacious warehouse, and even an underground storage room.

Do-yoon looked around as he entered through the front door.

Sunlight streamed into the spacious living room.

"Nice."

Luna answered cautiously.

"Yes..."

She still seemed unable to relax.

Do-yoon opened the warehouse door.

Gold coins.

Silver coins.

Potions.

Daggers.

New equipment.

Even the small items he had brought from reality.

Now he finally had a place where he could organize everything properly.

A warehouse was essential if he wanted to operate a merchant company.

While Do-yoon sorted through the luggage, Luna quietly explored the house.

After looking around for a while, she spoke in a small voice.

"Master."

"Yeah?"

"Are you an adventurer?"

Do-yoon laughed.

"I guess so."

"Then..."

Luna hesitated briefly.

"Do you go into dungeons too?"

"I'm planning to."

Luna's expression changed slightly.

"Then..."

"Yeah?"

"I want to go with you."

The living room fell silent.

Liana put down her drink and burst out laughing.

"Hahahaha!"

Luna looked at her in confusion.

"Why are you laughing?"

"You?"

Liana pointed at Luna.

"You want to go into a dungeon?"

"Yes."

"Do you have any idea how frightening monsters are?"

"I do."

"You could die."

"I know."

Luna tightly clenched her small fists.

"But I still want to go."

Do-yoon quietly asked,

"Why?"

Luna remained silent for a moment.

Then she answered in a trembling voice.

"Because I want to become stronger."

Do-yoon's expression froze.

I want to become stronger.

Those words were far too familiar.

Until recently, he had lived with that exact thought constantly running through his mind.

Because he was weak.

Because people looked down on him.

Because he had been unable to protect anything.

Luna lowered her head.

"I don't want to spend the rest of my life being weak."

Do-yoon watched her for a moment.

Then he smiled.

"All right."

Luna's eyes widened in surprise.

"Really?"

"But there's one condition."

Do-yoon's expression became a little more serious.

"Don't die."

For the first time, Luna smiled.

It was a very small smile.

But she was definitely smiling.

That night, Luna began cleaning every corner of the mansion.

Liana drank in the living room.

Do-yoon organized the goods in the warehouse.

It was a peaceful night.

But that peace did not last long.

While tidying up one corner of the warehouse, Luna suddenly stopped moving.

"Huh?"

Do-yoon turned around.

"What is it?"

Luna was carefully holding a glass bottle that had been sitting on a shelf.

It was a potion Do-yoon had brought from reality.

"Master."

"Yeah?"

"Where did you get this?"

"It's a potion."

Luna's expression hardened.

"...This is..."

"What about it?"

Luna spoke with absolute certainty.

"This is a High-Grade Potion."

Do-yoon and Liana turned toward her at the same time.

"What?"

"An ordinary adventurer might go their entire life without ever using one."

Liana immediately jumped to her feet.

"Wait, are you serious?"

Luna nodded.

"I used to work as an assistant for an alchemist."

She carefully lifted the bottle toward the light.

"The color, viscosity, and flow of mana all match the characteristics of a High-Grade Potion."

Do-yoon's heart began beating faster.

He had believed this was a Standard Potion in the other world.

But what if the people of this world considered it a High-Grade Potion?

His potion business might be far more profitable than he had ever imagined.

At that moment, a familiar blue window appeared before Do-yoon.

[Greed has discovered your wealth.]

Do-yoon froze.

The messages did not end there.

[The next fruit is beginning to awaken.]

The mark of Pride on the back of his hand began to glow faintly.

Then another message appeared.

[The Tower of Suffering awaits you.]

In an instant, an enormous landscape flashed through Do-yoon's consciousness.

A black tower rising to the very edge of the sky.

A staircase so tall that its end could not be seen.

Sealed doors on every floor.

Then a number appeared.

The ninety-ninth floor.

Above it...

A final space that appeared to contain nothing at all.

The invisible hundredth floor.

Someone stood at the very top.

Do-yoon could not see the figure's face.

But he knew that the being was looking down at him.

An unfamiliar voice echoed in his ears.

"Finally."

The voice sounded neither old nor young.

He could not even tell whether it belonged to a man or a woman.

"The first Chosen One has begun to move."

Do-yoon swallowed.

The first Chosen One.

He still did not know what those words meant.

But one thing was certain.

Now that the fruits were beginning to awaken, his fate would no longer end with the ordinary life of an adventurer.