I don’t know how long it’s been. The passage of time for me has been a blur. It could have been days, weeks, or even months, but I couldn’t tell. All I know is it took me a long time to crawl out from the pits of hell that was pain.

The phantom pains deep in my ears haven’t receded at all, along with the pain in my chest. The new scar diagonally running across my chest burns as if it’s still fresh. The needle-like pain stabbing into the depths of my ears isn’t much better either. The pain hasn’t dulled even with the passage of time.

I’ve simply just gotten used to it.

I guarantee it has to do with whatever magic that Vampire witch used to heal me. It was almost like she didn’t want me to recover fully, but I could only speculate. I’ve only been conscious of my surroundings for about two days now, but I wish I weren’t. Blacking in and out from the pain was preferable to my new reality.

Out of all the things I wanted in my new life this had to be the lowest of the low. I never wanted to be someone else’s tool, but here I am. This current situation is even worse than in my old life. At least when I was a slave back then, I was still a soldier with some modicum of false freedom.

Being naive was easier after all.

Now I really had been enslaved.

There was no point in sugar-coating my current situation. Pretending that this wasn’t real wouldn’t help me at all, even if I hated it with every fiber of my being. I was thankful for the anger. It helped dull the pain, even if just a little.

Sitting in the bottom of this dark and dank cargo hold with about one hundred other people left nothing to the illusion either. I was chained to the wooden floor of the ship along with everyone else in neat little rows. The hold smelt of pestilence, blood, and feces.

It was downright disgusting. Well, it used to be until I adapted to the smells.

It seems slavery was indeed a real thing in this world. I mean I knew it was because I’ve seen some slaves in the village, but this is differnt. Even the galactic spanning Human civilization I fought for didn’t subjugate Xeno races to slavery. So on some level, I was expecting all the slaves here to be Elves, but I was surprised when I gazed at some of the faces behind me.

It appears the slavery of this world has no qualms in enslaving anyone and everyone it could. There was a myriad of different races down here, primarily Humans, though. There were other groups of Humans here as well.

Most of the Humans in Owlkirk village looked like they were of African or Pacific Islander descent, but shackled just like me were some others who looked like they have Asian and European descent.

There were also a few Beastmen down here I hadn’t seen before. A broad-shouldered young man was sitting to my left who looked like he had a set of small fuzzy brown bear ears at the top of his head. Since I had nothing but free time on my hands, I decided to distract myself with this kind of people-watching, so I noticed a few more interesting things.

There were no female slaves down here, and I was by far the youngest. I was also the only Dark Elf, as usual. Also, nobody spoke to each other at all. No voices could be heard coming from the slaves. The only voices that reached down to us were the occasional yell from up above. We also only had one guard watching us at all times. Since I was placed at the very front next to the door, I got a perfect view of our not-so-friendly overseer.

He was a tall humanoid lizard man with light green scales covering the entirety of his body. His muscles seemed to bulge from underneath the shiny natural green armor, and he exuded an aura of authority.

It was my first time seeing a Dragonkin, but they definitely fit the bill. He seemed just like a humanoid Dragon with his scales and tail. His face and eyes were very reptilian in nature as well. The small cudgel he had at his side, along with a whip, was meant as deterrence for anyone who had rebellious thoughts.

Originally I had thought we could rise up and take him out. I’m sure the bear-man next to me could probably take him head-on, but I realized that attempting to flee was a futile attempt, even downright suicidal. This ship stopped for two reasons.

One reason was quite apparent. Regularly, sometimes even multiple times, within an hour the ship would be attacked by what I can only assume to be monsters. I heard the Dagins can navigate the sea, but it seems monsters don’t care about that fact all that much.

The screeches of both man and creature alike can be heard frequently from above while spells blast off. Even if all of us revolted and took over the ship, there was no way a band of starving slaves could fight off those sea monsters. We were fed often enough to keep us alive, not fight to the death with creatures of the seas.

The second reason the ship stops is much more of a problem. The boat will suddenly grind to a halt, sometimes for hours on end. It shouldn’t be possible for a wooden ship like this, but I imagine water magic makes it possible. Then everyone and everything goes completely silent for the entirety of the event. Everyone seems to suck in their breath as if they were afraid to make too much noise. Even the guard closes his eyes and bows his head.

At first, I was confused about the shift in everyone’s attitude, but then it became clear. I didn’t just sense it. I could hear it as well. Even with my damaged ears, I could still make out the massive volumes of water being displaced in the ocean.

It was impossible to tell how big it was, but I knew it was absolutely gargantuan. The presence it exuded was just as terrifying as well. It was akin to being in the presence of something so big you couldn’t help but want to melt away into the shadows, hoping it didn’t notice your existence.

I imagined entire generations of people suffering from Thalassophobia with just a single encounter. With its overwhelming size, there was no doubt that it was a Leviathan. I could see why people other than the Dagins just decided to give up on crossing the ocean.

Knowing creatures like this were common in the deep waters was absolutely terrifying. We were all dead if it breached the water or even got close to the ship. Imagining entire naval fleets being swallowed whole by a Leviathan didn’t seem too far-fetched to me anymore.

So if we revolted, the monsters would kill us or the Dagins would leave us, and a Leviathan would wipe us out. It was a completely hopeless situation.

Compounding all of this was one more problem. I noticed some of the slaves had a bright red metal collar around their necks. Not everyone had one, and I didn’t either, so it took me a while to figure it out. But I think it’s some kind of magic suppression device. Only a handful of slaves had one, and mostly the Elves wore them. If common knowledge was that Elves had a higher affinity for magic, then it would make sense to suppress their abilities.

I tried asking the Human slave next to me, but as soon as I spoke, I got a nice lashing to my fingers by the guard’s whip. He managed to whisper that it was a slave collar but didn’t dare speak anymore. Perhaps he felt bad for me, but at least I learned something.

I was also relieved that I didn’t have one on me, which means they must not know that I can use magic. If anything, that was the one silver lining in this worst-case scenario. If I had my magic sealed, I would be completely useless.

But I could escape if I could use magic. So I just had to bide my time and wait for an opportunity to arise. Until we reached land, I people-watched, ate disgusting watered-down soup, crapped myself, and practiced my mana control.

Damn, I hate my life.

It’s been a while since I have done some concentrated mana control practice like this. Feeling the warmth of mana in my chest and spreading it out to my limbs helped soothe the painful scar on my chest. I’ve long since increased the volume and speed of mana coursing through my body compared to when I first started. And remembering where this all started brought back good memories.

I will return home. I will see my family again. It doesn’t matter who gets in my way. I’ll find a way back.

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I won’t let myself be a tool for anyone ever again.

—

How long had it been since I’d heard the sound of birds? At least a month, maybe more. The sound of squawking birds could be heard now, which meant we were nearing land. I was both afraid and relieved. I was growing tired of wondering if these were going to be my final moments every time a leviathan neared the ship.

The overwhelming pressure it forced upon me was definitely not good for the heart or mind. I was also afraid of where I would end up… if I end up on the other continent, I have no idea what I am going to do. I resolved myself to get home no matter what but being that far away would make this just that more difficult.

Being so far from home already pains me but being an entire continent away was even worse. It would also make it harder for Mom and Dad to find me… but I don’t think that’s the case. This voyage wasn’t long enough to cross to the other continent. But I also don’t know how long I was out at the beginning.

However, I was relieved that I would be able to put my feet on dry land again and get out of this cramped hell hole. Also, without being at the mercy of the ocean, I could finally start making moves to escape my shackles. These iron shackles would be no problem getting off using magic, so it was all about timing.

I can do this.

We finally made it to a port. We were funneled out onto a large dock and sprayed down with a cannon of cold water magic to wash us off. I also noticed far more slaves on the ship than I had previously thought. There were also females coming off now as well.

Most of them had dead eyes and shambled off the ship. Some didn’t even make it off the gangplank. A few dived into the water headfirst, forcing guards to jump in after them to rescue them.

Ah, I see… of course, it would be that way. These absolute monsters did this to them. I’m glad I did what I did. If Cerila were on this ship, I wouldn’t be able to live with myself anymore.

Cerila…Cerila…I’m…I’m so sorry…

The cool ocean breeze and the somewhat weak sun warmth felt refreshing on the skin and helped clear my mind of negative thoughts. I could handle those nagging thoughts at a later date…maybe.

Judging by the temperature, it must almost be springtime. I took a breath of fresh air and took in my surroundings. The port was massive and wooden ships of varying sizes were moored across the docks. As far as the eye could see, burly men wearing coats were loading and unloading cargo from the vessel and yelling orders at each other.

The port was also connected to a massive city. The giant stone walls could be seen from here and were layered like terraces. Buildings seemed to hide behind the walls. The city favored a light gray stone and dark brown wood for its construction.

However, there was still plenty of flair and color in the surrounding area to add some kind of difference. Shades of blue-green were the choice of the people that lived here. Mostly turquoise or cyan were used to paint the buildings' shingles or sides. Most of the signs were also written in bright, eye-catching cyan.

I was also surprised to see so much naval-based commerce considering the threat of the ocean. But it seems you can’t keep people from trying to make some coins. And judging by the amount, it seems they have some success at least.

But you could tell the difference between the workers and the slaves. Although they were doing the same job, the slaves were dressed poorly and looked the part. I was surprised to see just how many slaves could be seen.

They probably outnumbered the actual civilians three-one. There were even a few children who were slaves that were working. Most of them were probably only a few years older than me.

There were also giant sea birds flapping around, attempting to snatch anything they could as well. Actually, those aren’t birds. They are definitely monsters.

The things were far too big to be ordinary animals, and they were pretty aggressive at that, with their long spear-like beaks diving at people. They looked like somebody had a nightmare that involved a seagull and spear combined into one.

If the circumstances were different, I’d probably be enjoying the sense of adventure right now. Seeing new monsters and new things in a new place lit a small fire inside of me. Perhaps being a young boy myself made me enjoy these things.

But any feeling of enjoyment was quickly destroyed by the weight of the iron shackles latched to my wrists or the faces of those around me.

It was impossible to enjoy watching people in collars work to the bone, especially kids my age. I don’t even want to be here. What did I do to deserve this? Even after death, the sins of my past are still punishing me.

There were guard towers posted regularly along the docks with archers in them. Anytime one of the bird monsters made a dive, an archer would take a shot at it, either hitting it or deterring it from making another pass.

I watched as one dived for a young Human slave boy carrying a box, but the archer in the nearest tower didn’t even bat an eye. Thankfully the boy had some foresight and dropped to the ground quickly, avoiding the flying spear that was headed straight for him. It must be an everyday hazard, so the workers have adapted to their… hostile work conditions?

We were corralled and placed into small groups by the guards. Not long after, a familiar voice called out. “And how did my favorite little commodity fair on his trip?” an ugly voice called out to me.

It was the same voice I heard in my final moments with Cerila. The same voice that separated me from my family. I just glared back at the man in response. He was a tall Human man with short brown hair around his late forties, wearing a brown cloak.

He was also well built and had a short sword strapped to his waist. If not for the fact he was a scummy slave trader, he might be passable for being a somewhat good-looking swashbuckler. But the ugly glint in his eyes when he ogled me like merchandise was revolting.

So when the time comes, I’m going to enjoy watching him burn.

“Don’t glare at your master, you dog!” a woman yelled out. She went to strike me as well, but the man stopped her.

“Now, now Jessine, I will have none of that. This is my most prized item right now so injuring it would be troublesome. Please do refrain from using unnecessary violence against it,” reprimanded the man. “Besides, I doubt it can even understand you. They only speak Elvish in Syn’nari, so the odds of something so young knowing more than one language is low.”

Good, if they didn’t think I could understand them, it was just that much better for me. They were both speaking in the Human language, so I had no problems understanding what they were saying. On top of that, he didn’t even recognize me as a person… absolute scum of the earth.

Also, Jessine was the name of the Vampire that cornered and captured me. Under her black hooded cloak, it was apparent to anyone that she was extremely alluring. Her pale white skin and rose-red lips would be able to snag any man if they didn’t run away from her odd red eyes or deathly aura. But unlike the beauty you might find in a flower, she was the kind of beauty that exuded danger.

She was more akin to a poisonous snake than a beautiful wildflower.

She nodded reluctantly and stood behind her master. Seeing her act like a whipped dog helped sate some of my anger. Our small group was ushered to a sort of warehouse where we would be spending the remainder of the day at rest. Unfortunately, it seemed they needed to procure something to transport us in, so we had to wait the day out.

The number of slaves in my group was eight in total. Two Wood Elf men, four Human men, a Human woman, and myself. This must be the group of slaves directly under the control of our new master. I still hadn’t heard his name yet, so I was unsure what it was.

Typically I wouldn’t want to sleep in the middle of the day, but after being cramped for so long, I finally had a chance to rest correctly. My sleeping position aboard the ship had been… uncomfortable, to say the least. Now I could fully lay down on the albeit cold ground, but at least it didn’t sway all the time.

---

Sometime during the night, I awoke to someone muttering to themselves like a madman. I cracked my eyes open and saw the Wood Elf man lying next to me, rocking back and forth.

“I-I’m gonna get out of here. This is it. My time is now,” he kept repeating.

The man looked like nothing more than a bag of bones, which was obvious since we were wearing nothing but a simple loincloth to cover ourselves. The man had clearly been a slave for a long time. Rather than getting involved, I was curious to see what would happen.

Would he risk it now of all times?

Jessine was sitting above us in the rafters, dangling her feet in the air. Her quarter-filled crimson eyes peered down at us. There was no doubt she could hear the man muttering, but she made no moves to stop his escape or silence him preemptively.

The man stopped mumbling, took a deep breath, and shot up with surprising speed for a walking corpse. Sadly he tripped over himself just after a few steps, landing with a loud thud. The sudden noise woke everyone up, and we all watched in silence as he made his escape.

I was expecting many things, but what I had not expected was for the Vampire to do nothing. Instead, the man ran straight through the doors with a loud crash and continued on. Jessine let out an audible sigh and dropped down from the rafters with a graceful landing. She didn’t even bother to run after the fleeing man.

It was only about two-three minutes max when everyone heard the scream.

That Wood Elf man didn’t come back.