After selling off the armor, I had finished everything I needed to do in Vale.
I was free. Yet, in that freedom, I felt an overwhelming sense of emptiness. I could do anything I wanted, but that also meant I lacked any particular purpose. Now that I had parted ways with the merchant, there wasn't a soul left who knew who I was.
When I thought about it that way, a sudden, sharp loneliness washed over me.
In this world, I was a stranger to everyone. I was going to have to survive entirely on my own.
The anxiety was almost unbearable.
Actually, there was one person.
The slave trader. He should be waiting for me. Not that I was particularly eager to see him, but still.
I decided to head back, partly to gather information. I needed to ask him about the labyrinth as well.
Carrying the leather armor, the leather boots, and the Thief's Bandana, I stepped into the shadow of a building. I strapped the armor on over my clothes and tucked the boots and the bandana into my backpack.
To anyone who knew what they were looking at, the Thief's Bandana was easily distinguishable from a common one. If I wore it in public, it would be the same as announcing I was a criminal.
I buckled the copper sword and the two scimitars to my waist. I was Japanese, after all. This was the Samurai Style.
After confirming no one was watching, I opened the small pouch containing my bounty money.
Inside were sixteen gold coins and a mountain of silver. That meant the bounty had come to a little over 160,000 Nahl.
I’d certainly accumulated a lot of loose change. To someone used to the simplicity of five and ten-yen coins, this world's currency—where the denominations increased at every hundredth coin—was a bit of a hassle.
The reward the Village Chief had given me amounted to fifteen gold coins. I wasn't entirely sure of the exact conversion rate, but it was roughly the same value as the bounty.
Between the sixteen bounty coins, the fifteen from the reward, and the single gold coins I’d received from the slave trader and the weapon merchant respectively, I had a total of thirty-three gold coins. On top of that, I had a massive stash of silver and copper. I gathered the gold coins and moved them into the drawstring bag that had held the reward money. It would be a disaster if I lost them, so I shoved the pouch deep into the bottom of my backpack.
I zipped the pack shut and swung it onto my shoulders.
I returned to the street where the market was being held. The road was teeming with people. Looking closely, I realized that many of them weren't human.
I saw a man with animal ears, a child with a tail, and even a woman with pointed ears.
An Elf. A real Elf!
I couldn't exactly stand there and gape, so I pretended to inspect the merchandise while stealing glances at her. She was a striking beauty, and her chest looked fairly substantial. Her age was listed as thirty-seven, but she didn't look a day over twenty.
I tried using Appraisal on her to verify her age. It seemed that for non-humans, gender appeared as the male or female symbols rather than the words "man" or "woman." Other than that, the information was the same.
Just then, a man who looked like a shopkeeper started approaching me.
I beat a hasty retreat before I could be cornered into buying something weird.
Humans seemed to make up the majority of the population, but the other races blended in seamlessly. This was definitely another world.
I idled through the market, taking it all in.
I wanted to get a feel for the local prices, but nothing had a price tag. Furthermore, more than half of the conversations between the customers and merchants weren't in Brahim, so I couldn't understand a word they were saying.
Leaving the market behind, I made my way to the Slave Trader's Mansion.
"Excuse me."
"Ah, the gentleman from before."
The same young apprentice I’d met earlier came running out.
"I’d like to see your master, Alan."
"Of course. If you would come inside and wait a moment?"
I was shown into the building, but this time I was guided to a room right next to the entrance. The reception was completely different from my first visit.
I suppose I was being treated as a customer now, rather than just someone coming to sell off property.
The room was carpeted, and expensive-looking paintings hung on the walls. There wasn't a sofa, but the chairs and table were clearly high-quality. It had the distinct atmosphere of a reception room intended for VIP guests.
"Michio-sama, I have been expecting you."
The slave trader appeared almost immediately. I hadn't even had a chance to sit down yet.
"Hello."
"This way, please."
The master himself led me further inside.
"Actually, about that slave I sold you earlier..."
"Yes?"
"The man stole a Thief's Bandana. He might have connections to a bandit group."
"I see. Thank you for the information. I shall be cautious."
A Thief's Bandana was a valuable piece of equipment that could be sold to criminals for a high price. Stealing one meant he likely had a contact who would buy it.
The Village Chief and the man's family hadn't offered a single word of protest when he was sold into slavery, so he probably had a history of bad behavior. It wouldn't be surprising if he were already plotting an escape.
I didn't want the situation weighing on my conscience, so I figured it was best to warn the merchant.
The village merchant might have hidden the man's nature just to get a higher price for him. Even if that were the case, the deal was already done, so I doubted Alan would ask for a refund.
The slave trader led me into the same room as before.
"By the way, you mentioned earlier that there was a labyrinth nearby. Where is it?"
I wanted to get my questions out of the way before the sales pitch started.
"It is just inside the forest to the west of town. The entrance was only discovered two days ago. Please, make yourself comfortable."
"The west... That’s the opposite direction from where I came in."
Since I had been traveling with the sun at my back, I must have entered Vale from the east.
As I sat down on the sofa, a servant brought drinks for me and the slave trader.
Was she a servant, or... a maid?
She was wearing a navy blue one-piece dress with a white apron and a flared long skirt.
It was a maid outfit. So maids existed in this world, too.
Roxanne. Female. 16 years old. Job: Beast Warrior, Level 6.
I checked her with Appraisal. Her name was Roxanne.
As for her face...
She was beautiful. Breathtakingly beautiful.
I’d never seen an actress or an idol who could compare to her.
She was incredible. The beauties in this world were on a completely different level than those on Earth.
She had elegant lips and enchanting tawny eyes. Her hair was a vivid chestnut color, a shade darker than her eyes. She wore a white cap that looked somewhat like a kerchief.
"Please, enjoy."
The beauty placed a cup in front of me.
As she leaned down, her breasts swayed with a soft, heavy bounce. It was almost too much to handle.
"A-Ah, thank you."
The words slipped out of me before I could think.
Clothing in this world tended to be loose and baggy, making it difficult to judge a woman's figure. This maid outfit was no different, especially with the apron over the front.
But they had definitely swayed.
My eyes had clearly observed the movement. Based on that bounce, she was hiding a lot of volume under that dress.
"Since the entrance to the labyrinth was only found two days ago, I believe it will be some time before the boss is cleared," the merchant said.
"I see."
His words weren't even registering. I mean, come on. On top of that face, she had a chest like that.
She was about my height, maybe a little shorter. Probably around 160 centimeters. Most of her skin was covered, but looking at her hands and face, she definitely wasn't overweight. And yet, she had that kind of bounce?
Since Appraisal showed a female symbol instead of the word, Roxanne had to be a non-human race. I couldn't see her ears because of the cap and her hair.
Roxanne placed a cup in front of the slave trader as well. He picked it up.
"Please, have a drink."
"...Thanks."
I was a little late on the uptake.
Encouraged by the merchant, I finally picked up my cup. It tasted like some kind of herbal tea.
I took a slow sip.
Roxanne bowed and quietly left the room.
"It seems she has caught your eye."
"Eh?"
I barely managed to keep from spitting out my drink.
"That is most fortunate."
"...I-It's a good tea."
"Of course, I am referring to the girl."
I knew it.
So that was how it was...
"Is she...?"
"She is the slave I would recommend most highly to a customer such as yourself."
Yeah. I figured.
There was no way a slave trader would be introducing me to a regular employee or a potential marriage partner.
I see. So Roxanne was a slave.
"...You mentioned before that adventurers often buy slaves."
I tried to change the subject, or at least mask my interest. Could I really buy Roxanne? A woman that gorgeous?
"That is correct. Where should I begin? Michio-sama, I assume you have experience being part of a party."
"Yeah."
I didn't, but since he spoke as if it were a given, I played along.
I could actually buy the beautiful Roxanne?
I felt the blood rushing to my face. I hoped I wasn't turning bright red.
No. I needed to calm down.
Just because she was a slave didn't mean I could just do whatever I wanted with her. It didn't mean I was allowed to do this or that.
"By forming a party, you can hunt much more efficiently. While there are solo or duo adventurers like yourself, Michio-sama, it is always more advantageous to have a full roster of six."
"I suppose so."
So a party could have up to six members.
But even if I didn't have total freedom, if I was with a slave twenty-four hours a day... surely I’d be allowed to have her sleep beside me.
Sleeping beside Roxanne...