"Nice," Zack said. He held his palm out in front of him and stared intently in that direction as if something was in front of it. Must've been looking at his stats. "A level up!"

"Fuck you," Cameron said with a chuckle. "I can't believe you're three levels above me now."

"I can."

Countess Gladine sighed in relief. She looked at the corpses of the soldiers on the floor and frowned. Zack turned to her. His smirk widened. His brows furrowed. "Maybe I'll be fast enough now," he muttered. He charged at Countess Gladine.

Cameron grimaced. All of the slaves looked on with smiles. Countess Gladine bristled. She looked up at an approaching Zack with widened eyes. A thrill surged within Ryan's chest. She fumbled with her wooden baton. Zack's arm blurred, swinging his arm at her, about to throw his spea-

Zapping him with the baton again, his sprinting stuttered. He stumbled. He tripped. He fell to the floor and shivered. She sighed again and shook her head. "Could you just give up?" she asked whilst turning to the rest of the slaves. "The same applies to you." She wagged the baton at them. "You're my slaves and there's no chance of your escape. The cuffs around your wrists nullify your stats. This wand nullifies the strength of and paralyses humans like you.

Ryan intently stared at the wand to figure out the details of it, just like he did with the orb in the pit.

Name Manbane Wand Effect (Activation) The activation of this wand's ability zaps the target with magical energy that will reduce their stats down to what they were at Level 1, and paralyses them for five seconds. This wand's ability is activated by stating the incantation that is carved onto the side of the wand. This ability only affects people with a Human Race.

Slavery of humans must be commonplace if something like this existed. He wondered if something like this existed for elves? Hopefully there was.

He stared at the cuffs around his wrists.

Name Slave Cuffs Effect (Continuous) Any System Herald with a Slave Brand that has these cuffs locked around their wrists and chants the following incantation "Drumma thi, oumma maka," will have their stats reduced to as they were as a Level 1 System Herald.

These Slave Cuffs must've been why the elven soldiers asked him to say those bizarre words earlier. He couldn't see a way of him escaping considering the existence of Manbane Wands and Slave Cuffs. They might've even had more magical tools at their disposal to suppress them. Maybe one day he could figure something out, but for now he'd just have to hope that the slavery in this world could be somehow worked out of.

Cameron did say earlier something about attaining freedom by becoming a Gladiator, so maybe there were ways of attaining freedom. Maybe he wouldn't live and die a slave in this world. He could hope at least. Standing around in this cave stark naked with nothing but Slave Cuffs strapped around his wrists didn't feel very comfortable and getting to wear rags later on in the day didn't sound like it'd improve things much. He wanted freedom at the very least. A peaceful life would be nice.

On that note, Ryan thought he should finally check his own stats. After staring at his hands for ten seconds, a blue box popped up.

Level 1 Class None Mana 0% Blessing None Blood Skill None Skill (1) None Enchantment (1) None Strength 1 Defense 1 Agility

1 Magic

1

He tried tapping on the various boxes, just in case there was more information that could be derived from it. Once he tapped level, another blue box popped up.

XP to next Level 0/600

Not as exciting as he wished, but just as dull as he expected. Regardless, it was just the beginning. Hopefully, he could figure out how the others got their class, and learn the best way to gain XP so he could level up and increase those measly looking stats.

"Put those cuffs back on him," Countess Gladine said to Cameron. She pointed at the cuffs that laid on the floor and used to be around Zack's wrist. With her other hand she pointed her Manbane Wand at Zack who still shivered on the floor.

Cameron nodded and grabbed the cuffs. Just as Zack staggered back to his feet and reached for the spear again, Cameron snatched his arm away from the spear and clicked the cuffs around his wrists again.

Zack glared at Cameron. "You love being her little dog, don't you?" he sneered at Cameron.

He shrugged. "If it means attaining actual freedom, then sure. I'll be whatever she wants."

"Exactly," Countess Gladine said. She turned to the exit to the cave. "That mindset will serve you all well. I'll gladly provide you freedom. But you have to follow my commands in order to do so." She walked towards the exit and gestured to them all to follow. "Let's go. I'm sure you're all tired and desperate for some food and rest. I'll take you to your quarters."

Ryan and the rest of the slaves followed Countess Gladine out of the cave.

Whilst Ryan was frustrated with the prospect of living as a slave, he was confused with Countess Gladine's actions. Her enslavement of humans made her despicable in his eyes, but she was still weirdly passive about her treatment of them. He expected her to call them all monkeys at every opportunity, and punish Zack much more severely for his threats and actual attempts to kill her. If not put to death, then at least several hours of whippings. Maybe she would when they got back to her slave quarters. But wouldn't she threaten him with that?

Whilst the Manbane did seem to weaken Zack, it didn't seem to inflict much pain on him. Maybe it was because Zack was just that tough of a guy, but she didn't even seem angry with his behaviour.

They all stepped through the rocky archway and onto a stone-tiled staircase. He glanced at Cameron. She let him walk freely. No cuffs could be found on his wrists or ankles. He seemed quite pathetically loyal to his position as a slave. He even prevented Zack from rightfully fighting for his freedom. He dropped his shield and spear back in the cave as they left for some strange reason, so It made some sense that she wasn't afraid of him fighting back. But he was her slave. What sort of precedent did it set for her to not cuff him? She was quite bizarre.

As she led them up the staircase, she turned down to the rest of them. "You all must be very confused," she said. Then she turned to Cameron and Zack, and gestured towards them. "But Zack and Cameron here have been slaves of mine for quite some time. They came here in the same way as you, and probably from the same world as you. If you have any questions, just ask them."

"Ask Cameron," Zack said. "I can't be bothered to explain anything to you lot."

"If you need anything, just come to me," Cameron said to Ryan and the rest of the newcomers. "Whether it be a question, advice, or a favour, I'll be glad to help in any way I can."

"When are we gonna get clothes?" One of the slaves next to Ryan asked. "I'm freezing!"

"Once you get to the slave quarters, some soldiers will hand you some rags. Any other questions?"

"Why is Countess Gladine behaving in such a bizarre manner?" Ryan asked Cameron in a low voice. He wanted Cameron to be honest, so it'd be best to ask about this quiet enough for her not to be able to hear.

"What do you mean?" Cameron asked. Whilst he may not have had the sense to help Zack kill their slaver, atleast he had the sense to copy Ryan and keep his voice low.

"Why is she not torturing Zack for his disobedience? Why is she letting you walk freely? Why is she personally attending to our slavery induction and not dealing with more pressing matters like the deaths and desertion of her soldiers?"

Cameron shrugged. "I'm not entirely sure why she's so soft with us. Most other slavers I've seen would've hung Zack for what he tried to do. But when it comes to personally attending to us, I'm a bit more sure. The last time she had someone summon slaves for her and take them to their quarters, it ended up with a quarter of the slaves getting their tongues cut out and another quarter getting their heads chopped off."

"I see," he said. "She doesn't want other elves ruining her wares."

"Something that extreme only happened that one time, but it was enough for her to not trust anyone else with spending too much time with her new slaves or punish them without her permission."

"I guess slaves like us who've been summoned from another world would be uniquely panicky and unruly."

"Exactly. Slavers tend to get quite frustrated with us after we're first summoned. Hence the punishments."

Ryan nodded. Her behaviour was still quite bizarre, but no need to question it too much. Her inexplicable soft approach with them was ultimately in his favour.

"Any other questions?"

"I looked at my stats earlier," Ryan said. "And there were a lot of things missing, such as a Class, a Blessing, and something called a Blood Skill. I imagine that stuff increases your stats. How do you get that kinda stuff?"

"You have to go through a System Awakening," he said. "After I welcome you all to the slave quarters I'll have all of you who wish to do it go through the ritual."

"How does it work?" He asked. "Do we get to choose what class we get?"

"You get to choose your class amongst a list of what are called Foundation ranked Classes. There are higher ranked classes that are more effective, but in order to get them you have to get something called a Class Upgrade Crystal." He gestured towards Countess Gladine. "Take a look at her Class and you'll see what I mean."

Ryan and the rest of the slaves stared at Countess Gladine.

"What do you mean?" One of the slaves near Ryan asked. "Look at her and do what?"

Ryan was confused. Did some of them not figure out the video game system underpinning the functioning of the world around them yet? Well, the only reason why Ryan understood it was because he used to play a lot of video games. Maybe it'd be more confusing for those that didn't. And you did have to stare at a System Herald for at least ten seconds straight for the blue stat screen to appear.

However, Cameron seemed surprised as well and said that he assumed the same as Ryan, thinking they'd be able to figure out the functioning of the stat screen as well.

Cameron told the slaves to stare at Countess Gladine, and whilst they looked at her stat screen, he explained to them all how it worked. Ryan didn't listen to that, because he already grasped most of it. He also already saw her stat screen before.

He remembered that she was a White Mage which must've been some sort of utility mage. Because unlike the other mage, she didn't shoot any spells at the Expana Bear. All of her magic hit her allies.

He also remembered seeing 'Iron' next to her Class. Considering what Cameron was saying and her being a Countess, 'Iron' must be higher-ranked than Foundation. Was the fact that she was a wealthy noblewoman why she was able to gain access to an Iron Class, or maybe it was the other way around?

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

"What are the different ways people can get XP and level up?" Ryan asked Cameron after he finished explaining the basics of RPG mechanics to the rest of the slaves. "Considering that Zack levelled up from killing the Expana Bear], I assume killing monsters is one way."

Cameron nodded. "It's the most…" He cupped his chin in his palm and pondered. "...let's just say it's the most ideal way," he said.

"Ideal?" Zack sneered with a chuckle.

Cameron rolled his eyes at Zack and continued on, ignoring him. "You can also usually get XP by using your Blood Skill or using any other Meditation Skill. Because Blood Skills are almost always Meditation Skills."

"Don't forget the other way," Zack said.

Cameron sighed. "Go on then Zack," he said. "I know you're dying to say it."

"There's also killing other System Heralds," Zack said. "Whether awakened or unawakened. Whether soldier or civilian."

"I don't think we need to go into much more detail than that."

Ryan felt sick at the thought of that last point. Back on Earth there were already plenty of reasons why people waged war. With violence being rewarded with XP in this world it was chilling to think how much more warfare and crime would take place in this world. Gaining strength seemed to be of the highest priority for everyone and everything.

"Why is it called a Blood Skill if it's a Meditation Skill?" Ryan asked.

"Because it's a Skill you're born with," Cameron said. "It's passed down bloodlines, and mixes with other bloodlines. Which means that further down the bloodline the Blood Skill, then it will become stronger or weaker, depending on who you choose to mate with."

"What about us?" Ryan asked. "We don't come from this planet or have any ancestors from here. What will our Blood Skills be then? Will they be weaker than those that currently live here?"

"No, they'll be random. They could be stronger or weaker. The chances are that they'll be weaker than those in the nobility who specifically choose who to marry and have children with based on their Blood Skill But there's no way of knowing if they'll be weaker or stronger than commoners or low-ranking soldiers who aren't even legally allowed to acquire, let alone use, the materials necessary to awaken their Systems in the first place."

"I see," Ryan said, nodding. It was despicable, but unsurprising that the nobility would do their best to prevent commoners from gaining access to the limitless potential of being a fully awakened System Herald. If they didn't, then a group of peasants could just hunt monsters all day, train all day every day, and become powerful enough to completely rearrange their society's hierarchy.

That ought to be what could happen in Ryan's eyes, everyone should be free to gain such power. Maybe there should be some restrictions on the more violent Class like Mage, Warrior, Archer, or others. But Classes like White Mage existed. They could probably be used for medical purposes. But due to the restrictive laws the nobility were probably the only ones who had access to such groundbreaking medical techniques. At the same time, it was only natural for the nobility to fear losing what they had to an uprising. Natural, but still despicable.

"Interesting," Ryan muttered. "So if someone had a Blood Skill that increased their strength by 2 points, and they had an offspring with another person with a Blood Skill that decreased their strength by 3 points, then would the offspring have a Blood Skill that decreased their strength by 1 point?"

"Exactly. Except, usually Blood Skills don't continuously decrease your stats like that. They usually have a temporary buff or debuff because they're usually Meditation Skills."

"What are Meditation Skills?"

"I'd rather not explain that now. It'd be easier to explain when you get your own."

Ryan nodded. He was thrilled to get back into his slave quarters to awaken his system, and learn more about the other aspects of it. What were Meditation Skills? How did they get regular Skills? What was a Blessing?

However, that excitement mixed with the dread of having to see the probably super claustrophobic, unhygienic, and uncomfortable place that he'd have to live, sleep, and eat in for an untold amount of time. He didn't know how to feel. Especially as the cave he spent so much time in got so distant the further they walked up the steps. And what looked like the interior of a castle at the top of the staircase only appeared closer. They were already halfway up the staircase. So close to the beginning of his life of slavery.

"Any more questions?" Cameron asked, gazing across the group of slaves.

"When can we go home!" a slave next to Ryan blurted out. "How do we do it!?"

Ryan snorted. What a silly question.

"Didn't you die on Earth before coming here?" Cameron asked, slowing his pace to walk adjacent to the slave.

"Yeah, but there's lots of magic and stuff here, right?" He pleadingly stared at Cameron, with wide and frightened eyes. "There has to be a way to get back home and to my family, right?"

Cameron frowned, concern on his face. "I'm sorry," he said. He placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. "I don't think there currently is a way of taking you back home. We can barely comprehend the magical processes of the Mystery Summoning Orb at the moment, let alone figure out a way to reverse it."

"Is there not some kinda weird magic that would allow us to fly outside of this planet, through space, and back to Earth!?"

Zack laughed. "Might as well ask for some magic that'd give you some balls while you're at it," he muttered.

Cameron ignored Zack and continued speaking to the slave by his side. "Who knows? I'd wager that this isn't even a different planet, but an entirely different dimension."

"What makes you think that?"

Cameron shrugged. "There's no way of knowing, really. All we can do is speculate."

"So why can't I speculate that there's a way of going back home."

"You can speculate about a lot of things," Ryan said. He had enough of these stupid questions. They should be focused on figuring out how to survive in this world, not on these silly dreams of heading back home. "I just wouldn't keep your hopes up. We died. We came back to life in a world filled with elves, magic and monsters that have properties determined by a video game system. Nothing that is happening makes sense or in any way conforms to what we know of the real world. It's all random. There's no point in trying to understand it all. Let alone trying to shape it into your ideal. Best you can hope for would be mindless and meaningless survival."

Zack snorted. "I like this guy," he said.

Cameron chuckled. "Bit of a downer, aren't you?" He said to Ryan. A downer? He was just being practical. No point in aiming for the stars if you're just gonna end up getting stranded in the middle of space. Cameron turned back to the slave next to him. "I'm not saying you won't ever find a way to go back home."

The slave's face softened.

"Like the guy next to you said, it's all random from our current perspective," Cameron said. "But unlike him, I think that means there's an equal likelihood of the dice landing on one as there is a chance of the dice landing on six."

The slave smiled. His eyes watered. He nodded and turned back to the top of the staircase, staring resolutely and marching with newfound confidence. It wasn't just him that seemed cheered up. All the slaves straightened their backs and marched up the staircase with strength and resolve. There were only a few dozen steps left between them and the bright archway exit to the staircase.

Ryan snorted. A miracle could happen, or a catastrophe. And there's more suffering in the world than happiness, so it only makes sense to prepare for the worst and laugh at any mention of the best. Freedom and a comfortable living is all he'd be going for. Even that was pushing on the boundaries of reasonable ambition. Now that he thought of it, maybe he should be preparing himself to endure a life of slavery.

But to be honest, it was a bit silly of him to judge the guy for desperately wanting to go back home. Especially if he had a family to go back to. It wasn't like it was that hard for Ryan to abandon the hope of going back to Earth. He had nothing left there anyway.

Maybe if he was able to attain freedom in this world, he could forge a better life for himself. Instead of tricking himself into thinking that the fantasy of true love could be found, he could live a simple life. Free and alone. Surviving, but content with less. He wouldn't make the same mistakes like he did last time. He refused to have another Vanessa. He refused to have hope for such things again.

They finally made their way to the top of the staircase. Cameron walked ahead of Countess Gladine and pushed the double doors open for her. They exited the dark, rough, and rocky tunnel, walking through the doorways, and entered a hallway.

Twinkling chandeliers hung from a vaulted ceiling. Lanterns flickered on the walls. Slaves, humans just like them, scuttled through the hallway, carrying crates, scrubbing the floor, and dusting vases. The occasional man wearing colourful and embroidered white robes, or woman wearing shimmering snow white dresses sauntered through the hallway. But it was mostly slaves.

Lancet windows, each double the height of the tallest of men, dotted the stone walls of the hallway. Moonlight shone through them and pooled a pale blue lustre on the stone tiles that covered the floor.

Countess Gladine stopped in front of a group of wealthy looking individuals who stood in the hallway just beside the staircase they just walked up. They were all either skinny or fat, but all of them looked quite old. They clearly weren't soldiers. Judging from their conversation with her, it seemed like they were her advisors, spymasters, diplomats, stewards, and other boring stuff along those lines. She commanded them to deal with her deserted and dead soldiers whilst she led her new slaves to their quarters. She said she'd catch up to them once she finished with her new wares. Her advisors bowed, accepting her commands, and brusqely marched away to comeplete her tasks.

Then she led Ryan and the rest of the slaves through the hallway. They all trudged on behind, all gazing at their surroundings with surprise and fascination. It was nothing like the world he knew when alive. Thoughts of this being a dream floated back into his mind again, but it all felt so real. Dreams usually stop when you consider the possibility of it being a dream. And they never feel as convincing as this. Which just made it all feel even weirder. But thoughts of what was coming for him as a slave dampened that fascination, replacing it with an angering dread.

Hopefully the slave quarters weren't too uncomfortable. But they'd probably be more than uncomfortable. They'd probably be more unhygenic, claustrophobic and painful than he could even imagine considering how cushy his life was on Earth.

"To be honest," Cameron said. "The dice has already landed on 6. You died, yet you're alive. You're a human in a world where elves dominate, yet you're a slave to Countess Gladine. "

Zack burst into laughter. The slaves looked at Cameron with confusion. Ryan snorted and narrowed his eyes at him. "Did you die on Earth via a head injury by any chance?" he asked.

Cameron laughed. "Well, I got beat down pretty badly, and I guess my head was a prime target. So maybe I am just insane."

"Yeah, because you also tried to stop Zack from killing Countess Gladine earlier. If that's not insane, then I don't know what is." Ryan turned to a glaring Countess Gladine. He smirked. It's not like she did anything to Zack, so a verbal jab here or there shouldn't incur any severe punishments upon him. "No offence, madame."

She rolled her eyes and turned away. "It's not your madame. It's your grace."

"That's what I mean," Cameron said, gesturing up at Countess Gladine. "That's why I call our situation miraculous. Zack tried to kill her." Cameron turned to Ryan. "You just openly insulted her. If you said that to any other slaver in this Empire then you'd have your tongue cut out and Zack wouldn't be alive."

"Being a good slaver isn't that much of an accomplishment.

Cameron shrugged. "It could be worse."

Ryan groaned. This guy was ridiculous. He could stab him in the eye and he'd kneel before him and praise him as a saviour for not cutting off his cock. Forgiving a slaver for not being as bad as the others? What? This hyper positivity crap made him feel sick. Regardless, the guy was strong so it'd be ideal to tone down the negativity towards him. Just keep it to himself from now on. Whilst he did seem the unconditionally forgiving type, the good boy facade always crumbles. Every cathedral has its waste room.

"Fair enough," Ryan said. "But wouldn't you say that escaping slavery would be better?"

"And go where? Find shelter where? Get money where? Get what job?"

"Are there really no human civilizations surrounding this Empire or beyond?"

"East of this Continent is what's called the Continent of Manra. There are human Kingdoms there."

"We can just go there."

"We're in the Empire of Accard, an Empire on the western coast of the Elaina Continent. We'd have to travel through the entire continent, travelling through Kingdoms that are filled with all sorts of people. Whilst these people have their differences and vary wildly in their beliefs and customs, they all have one thing in common. They all hate us."

"You're a big guy. You're Level 44. I'm sure you could protect us."

"I'm nothing compared to the powers that exist in this world."

"Then we get stronger."

"Exactly!" Zack called out, a big smile on his face. "We wouldn't even need to go to the Continent of Manra to get stronger if we escaped. We could stay right here and loot and pillage! We could farm XP on the lives of this Kingdom's civilians!"

Ryan grimaced at that. Whilst this Kingdom did regularly enslave humans, bringing regular civilians into the conflict was a bit extreme. He'd be fine with killing those who were in power, but civilians who would probably mostly be regular and honest farmers? A bit too far for his liking.

"And that's the biggest reason why I don't want to escape," Cameron said, glaring at Zack with exasperation. "I do sympathize with the hatred us slaves feel. But too often us escapee slaves will resort of indiscriminate looting and pillaging, gathering XP by slaughtering innocents."

"They're elves," Zack said. "They hang us humans in the streets for merely speaking a bit too harshly."

"Slavers do that. Not regular people."

"It's not like regular people are against it. They crowd around the hanging platforms, cheering and screaming with excitement at the deaths of people like us." Zack's voice lowered, filled with venom. "I'll give them something to scream for."

"Anyway, as I've explained, and as you can see…" Cameron waved his hand at Zack. "...escaping slavery via force isn't ideal. The most likely result of our escape would be getting caught by a much harsher slave master. We're lucky to have Countess Gladine. You'd be shocked to see the horrors other slaves are put through."

Ryan nodded. Countess Gladine was still awful, but Cameron wasn't wrong. If they were to escape, the most optimal result of that would be getting captured and enslaved by a much more violent slaver. But the most probable would be getting captured, tortured, and killed in front of a crowd of elves for the sake of entertainment, and a crowd slaves to show them what happens to humans who don't know their place.

"So I assume there must be another way to attain freedom," he asked Cameron.

"There are two ways," Cameron said.

All the slaves looked to Cameron, staring with attention. Everyone was desperate to know as the Countess led them into a stairwell and stepped down a spiral staircase. She told them all to walk in single file. They did so, stepped down the staircase, and followed her down. If the slave quarters would be anywhere, it would be underground, far away from the beauty and splendor of the wide-open halways and vaulted ceilings they just passed through. They must be getting eerily close to their new home.

"The ideal way to attain freedom," Cameron said with a grin.

"Ideal," Zack said with a roll of the eyes.

Cameron narrowed his eyes at Zack, ignored him, and continued. "Is to become a gladiator."