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“You look like you’re dying to know what’s going on,” my maid remarked, her tone laced with mockery, further aggravating me.

Of course, I wanted to know what the hell was happening. But I couldn’t even speak. All I could do was glare at her and clutch the cell’s bars. Anyone would be furious knowing she was deliberately toying with them like this.

Frustrated, I decided to make a scene to scare her off. If I kicked the bars hard enough, maybe I could intimidate her—or, in the best-case scenario, even break them.

Convincing myself it wasn’t that difficult, I approached the bars and prepared to kick them with all my strength. But just as I raised my right foot, my left leg was pulled back by the shackles, and I fell flat on the ground.

I’d completely forgotten the restraints connecting my legs.

The maid simply laughed, her derisive chuckle stinging more than any blow. I wanted to yell at her to shut up, but my voice refused to come out.

“Come to think of it, Master Kyosuke, you’ve never once called me by my name. Could it be you’ve forgotten it? Want me to remind you? My name is Anastena Vioala. Not that it matters—you’ll likely never say it, but if you do, please use my family name¹.”

I couldn’t understand why she was even telling me her name. She’d just pointed out that I couldn’t speak.

Anastena—there was no way I’d ever call her by her family name—looked down at me with an air of superiority. Then, out of nowhere, she pulled up a chair and sat down as if she intended to stay awhile.

I silently wished she’d leave, but my hopes were dashed.

“I’ll start by explaining why I’m here. It’s quite simple, really. I’ve come to tell you what’s going to happen to you from now on, Master Kyosuke. However, preparations are taking some time, so I’ve been sent here to keep you company until everything’s ready.”

Company? That was a joke. She was here purely to mock me.

“Since you can’t talk, Master Kyosuke, I’ll do all the talking. I order you to listen until I’m finished².”

Order me? Like hell, I’d listen to her.

Despite my resistance, I found myself unable to look away from Anastena. My body moved as I willed, but my eyes refused to shift their focus from her.

“First, let me make this clear: the heroes have become slaves of this kingdom—or more specifically, slaves of the royal family. That ring you’re wearing? It’s enchanted with a slavery spell. The moment you put it on, you became a slave.”

Her words made me glance down at the ring. It had seemed like an expensive piece, something I could eventually sell, but now I realized it was the source of my predicament.

(If only I could get rid of this damn ring.)

“Oh, I almost forgot,” she added with a smirk. “If you try to remove the ring by force, you’ll trigger a Death Spell. So be careful.”

The moment those words left her lips, I instinctively pulled my hand back, as though the ring itself had burned me.

“I don’t know if the world you come from has slaves or how they’re treated, but here in this kingdom, slaves are property. You are no longer human. Typically, only the royal family can give you orders, but I’ve received special permission this time,” Anastena said with a smirk.

Her words made it clear that, like it or not, I had no choice but to listen to everything she said.

“I doubt you’ll take this well, being told all of this out of nowhere. You probably have plenty of questions. Don’t worry—I’m here to explain everything. Let’s start with your training. You might think it suddenly got tougher, but that’s not true. It simply returned to how it was originally intended. If you reflect on your actions, you’ll understand why you’ve been treated this way. After all, we can’t just leave a weapon capable of beating a maid to death running loose. It’s only logical to ensure you’re properly educated to serve as a useful tool.”

Her words sent a surge of anger through me.

(She’s the one who told me to kill that maid³!)

Why was she twisting the story to make me the villain? She should have been thanking me, not condemning me.

“You seem to disagree. Let me clarify: we are grateful. Thanks to you, we rid ourselves of two annoyances. But that doesn’t change the fact that someone capable of killing with their bare hands is dangerous. Who’s to say you won’t harm another tool? So, despite our gratitude, there will be no reward. After all, no one rewards scissors for cutting well.”

“Next, you’re probably wondering why you’re locked up. It’s a natural consequence. A slave like you dared to lay hands on a noble’s daughter. For that, you’ll face punishment.”

Her condescension made me want to scream, to lash out, to wipe that smug expression off her face. But I couldn’t. The order to listen to her explanation bound me as tightly as the shackles on my limbs.

“Come to think of it, I haven’t thanked you properly,” she added with a sickly sweet tone.

I couldn’t fathom what she meant. What was there to thank me for?

“Thank you for giving us the chance to eliminate Master Makoto. Because of you, we can finally treat the heroes as tools, as they were meant to be.”

I froze. What did any of this have to do with Toriyama?

“You don’t need to know the specifics,” she said dismissively, her tone dripping with mockery. “Finally, you’re probably wondering what’s going to happen to you now. Allow me to enlighten you: you’ll participate in an experiment. It involves the use of Forbidden Magic. You might recall—though I doubt it—that Forbidden Magic can bring a dead person back to life as a monster, retaining their appearance and memories. I’ve explained this before, but judging by your expression, you seem to have forgotten.”

She laughed as though enjoying my growing frustration.

I, on the other hand, felt like I was about to explode with anger. I was so close to losing it.

If I could speak, I would have unleashed a stream of curses at her. If it weren’t for these damned shackles, I would have torn her apart. If it weren’t for the bars, she’d already be dead by my hands.

“I forgot to mention,” Anastena said, her voice as casual as if she were discussing the weather, “there’s a drawback to using Forbidden Magic. The vessel gradually deteriorates and can only sustain itself as a person for less than a year. The theory is that once a soul leaves its original body, it can’t fully stabilize if it returns to the same one. Because of that, experiments using Forbidden Magic were deemed highly controversial. However, we were fortunate enough to find the perfect tool for the job.”

She cast a deliberate, meaningful glance at me.

(She doesn’t mean me… does she?)

“If you want specifics,” she continued, “you’ll be part of an experiment to see what happens when we use Forbidden Magic to put another person’s soul in your body while your soul is still there⁴. Honestly, no one knows what the result will be. That’s why it’s an experiment. The researchers have speculated about a few possibilities, but unfortunately, I’m not one of them. Oh, and don’t worry—we’ll only use the souls of violent criminals⁵.”

That did nothing to ease my growing dread. They were planning to put other people’s souls in my body? I couldn’t even fathom what that would mean for me.

“It’s about time,” Anastena said, cutting off any chance for further questions. “I’ll be taking my leave now.”

With that, she turned and exited the cell, leaving most of my questions unanswered.

Shortly after, several men with their faces concealed entered the cell to take me away.

Even though I wanted to resist, the shackles ensured I couldn’t do anything. In the end, I couldn’t escape and was forcibly laid down on a bed in another room.

1. Robinxen: She went straight to the looking down on them thing – well in this cast it’s fully justified. He’s literally a criminal even if you remove the whole kingdom scheme context.
2. Robinxen: Would you kindly?
3. Robinxen: Actually she didn’t? You just wilfully interpreted that and felt satisfied with the results.
4. Robinxen: That’s horror an entirely different level.
5. Robinxen: Not sure if that’s better or worse, I wouldn’t want to share my body with a psycho.

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