「Nothing good ever comes from these guys! These guys are soldiers of Princess Ricolette. What are they even thinking!?」[¹]

The owner of Miraya, Akima, was fuming with anger. The soldiers quickly occupied the stage and started talking about something with the slave traders. There were a few customers left, but the auction was completely disrupted. Akima showed her intention to return home. I decided to accompany her and headed outside together with Peris.

「Master, what was this event all about?」

「Ah, Peris might not know it. It is a place for buying and selling of slaves」

「Slaves?」

「It is about buying people with money. The slaves have to listen to their buyers no matter what」

「Are they treated as goods? I thought that those, who were bought, were going to be released 」

「Ho, an interesting opinion. I want this girl to teach some things to my girls! 」

Akima teased Peris and laughed. Once we went outside, a man from the slave trader’s side approached me.

「I’m sorry for the inconvenience. Dear guest, I will hand over your slave immediately」

Apparently, the slave traders will be penalized for opening the slave market, it ended up without anyone being harmed. I bid farewell to Akima and followed the man. We arrived in a room in the hotel.

After a while, a nice looking man came into the room.

「Thank you for coming. It might be too hasty, but let’s finalize the purchase right away. The money…….yes, that is enough. Let’s proceed to the slave contract. Oi, bring her over here! 」
The sheep beastwoman was brought inside. Unlike the previous time, she was wearing a one-piece clothing. Previously, they wanted to display her bodyline to the audience. However, her appearance before my eyes was truly mesmerizing.

「I apologize, but can I receive a drop of your blood?」
Un? Blood? I do not remember anything like that when Elsa-sama bought me.

「Isn’t the slave contract done through a spell?」

「In the case of a crime slave, there is a need to bind it using blood. If you complete the blood contract, the slave won’t be able to resist you in any way. After all, the crime slaves couldn’t be given any freedom. It is enforced by the law so I ask you for your understanding」

The handling of the crime slaves is a difficult matter.

「When it comes to the blood, you can use this magic tool. Put your finger on it, and it will suck out your blood by itself. It won’t be painful and won’t leave any wounds」

I put my fingertip on the glass rod. The rod quickly sucked out my blood. The slave trader received my blood and dropped it on the palm of her hand while casting some kind of spell. Her hand glowed.

「With this, the slave contract is complete」

「How do you cancel the contract? What will happen to her if I die? 」

「Because it is a blood contract, the slave will die together with the owner. If you don’t like it, you should be able to cancel it in the slave store nearby. Please, do not hesitate to contact us if you need anything」

「Understood. There should also be a method to release a slave. How is it done? 」

「We do not hear about releasing the crime slaves too often, but if you want to, you need to get the permission from a priest.」

「Priest?」

「Correct. To release a crime slave, you need to prove to the priest that he atoned for his crimes. However, you need a lot of money, and it is not guaranteed that the priest will be convinced of his atonement」

In others words, once you become a crime slave, it is almost impossible to regain your freedom. What did this beastwoman do?

「I heard that she poisoned a village. If you look at her casual attitude, you should understand what kind of person she is. Please, be careful with her」

Saying his piece, the slave trader left the room. The sheep girl, who was left behind, approached me and kneeled.

「Thank you for purchasing me. I will be serving you with my utmost effort from now on. Feel free to order whatever you want」

「U~n, for now, how about leaving this place? My name is Rinos. What it your name? 」

「……I don’t have one. I would be happy if Master could give me a name」

「No, you should have a name, which you used before. What was your name before? 」

「……Merias」

「Then, I will call you Merias, are you fine with this?」

「Thank you」

「All right, Merias. I know that it is sudden, but we are hungry. We didn’t have the chance to eat lunch yet. Ah, her name is Peris. Our chef. Did Merias eat her lunch? 」

「…….No, not yet」

「Then it is decided, let’s eat lunch. Is beef stew all right with you? 」

「I’ll be glad to!」

「Let’s go!」

Merias followed after me and Peris. When we went outside, the soldiers were still running around. While I was silently praising their diligence, I heard an unexpected voice directed at me.

「Rinos-dono, so you wanted a slave too」

Princess Ricolette showed her face from the carriage’s window.

「The soldiers stormed the slave market some time ago. Was this your order? 」

「Yes, people shouldn’t sell each other in the open」

「I agree. It would have been nice if people stopped trying to buy each other with money」

「Are you really saying this? Didn’t you buy the beastwoman behind you? Don’t you think that you aren’t qualified to say these things? 」

「Maybe I am. In truth, I thought about releasing her from the crime slavery. But it seems that the procedures are too difficult」

「Release a crime slave? How ridiculous…….」

「I agree with Ricolette-sama. The life of a slave is full of uncertainties. The kids shouldn’t taste this feeling. I may not be qualified to say this, but I do think so」

「You’re just…….」

「I’m a former slave myself」

Princess Ricolette frowned for a moment. Perhaps, I shouldn’t have said it. Well, I will solve the problems when they actually appear. I took the two with me, as I distanced myself from this place. Soon enough, we arrived at the hotel with delicious beef stew and entered the restaurant.

「Isn’t it Rinos-sama? I’m glad to see you here again」

「Today, I brought my chef and a newcomer with me」

「Isn’t it Peris-sama, welcome. The newcomer is…..! Rinos-sama, this person……..」

「A new addition to our household」

「U-Understood. Please, this way……」

The always-polite boy became agitated. Ah, Merias’ curse is affecting him. Let’s cast a barrier to isolate this influence for now.

We were guided to our seats. However, Merias didn’t sit down and stood behind me.

「How about sitting down? Feel free to order whatever you like. Beef stew in this place is wonderful! 」

「To-To dine on the same table as Master is inappropriate!」

「I don’t mind. I can’t calm down with you standing here. For now, just sit. This is an order. Also, do you have anything you want to eat? The things you dislike? Nothing? Are you fine having the same as me? Then, three beef stews with salad, and three omelets please」

Very soon, the dished were delivered to our table.

「All right, let’s eat. Peris, you are free to steal the taste」

「Leave it to me!」

Peris started eating while muttering the names of ingredients from time to time. Merias too unintentionally muttered「Ah, delicious」. It seems that she liked it.

「All right then, Merias. Actually, I intended to release you from slavery, but it seems rather difficult so you will be staying with us for quite a while. I will look after you, but I want you to promise me one thing first」

Yes! She stopped eating and stood up as if she was a rocket.

「No, you can sit. Listen to me while eating. It’s not that big of a matter. First, do not ever lie to me. If something is too difficult, I want you to tell me. If you don’t like something, I want you to tell me. Second, my secrets should remain as secrets. The slave contract took care of it, I guess. However, I want you to keep it even after you obtain your freedom. Third, the last one, take care of yourself more. Your sad face makes me sad a well. I want you to be as happy as possible. Of course, there is no need to force yourself」

Yes…….she nodded like a pigeon pecking its food.

Having finished the beef stew, we left the hotel and headed to my store. There, we were joined by Irimo, who was already waiting for us.

「Irimo, she is our new companion starting from today, Merias. This horse is Irimo. Take care of each other in the future」

B-Best regards. Nervously greeted Merias. We left the city, and after confirming everyone’s presence

「Merias, I’m going to reveal you some of our secrets. You should never talk about it」

I said that and revealed Peris’ and Irimo’s appearance.

「Be-Belial!? Unicorn pegasus!?」

「Peris can fly by herself. Merias should mount Irimo. Hold on tight」

I forced Merias, whose eyes were spinning, to sit behind me on Irimo, and she flew into the sky. The feeling of her breasts against my back made my heart race, but let’s keep it a secret.