'What is Karl doing here?!' Zakar thought as he scurried away from the man he was discussing business with.

Karl was not a man to be taken lightly, and he could only be seen once in a blue moon. As such, Zakar did not know whether this sudden visit would bring him good or bad news. 'Why did he come back here twice in the same month? Did he already have his fill with the ones he bought last time? Regardless of his visitation, this lunatic is generous with how he spends his money. Maybe, maybe I could finally get that house next to Madam Matilda, hehehe.'

Although businessmen were all about the money, they tended to avoid getting into illegal activities to get gold and silver. But when you have slave dealers like Chief Zakar, how they got the money does not matter. What matters is that they had the money, even at the cost of their daughters' and sons' lives.

"Oh my, if I had known Lord Jester would have graced us with his presence this evening, I would have personally welcomed you!" Zakar said as he bowed gracefully. Zakar knew that Karl told him not to mention him by his true name but by the moniker "Jester" whenever he visited.

"What do you need for this lowly one to assist you with?" Zakar paused with his question and frowned as he looked at the guard. He snarled at him. "You! Go get some snacks and drinks for Lord Jester, and meet us at my office!"

"Enough. I do not have the time to be entertained, Zakar. Rather, tell me about the new slaves you acquired." Karl spoke in a cold tone.

Zakar didn't think much of it and waved his hand, dismissing the burly man. "Lord Jester, please allow me to talk to that man over there and send him back home. I believe you would also wish for that, right?" Zakar said while pointing his chin at the man behind him.

Karl stared at him for a moment, then ordered, "Be quick with it. "

It didn't take Chief Zakar that much time to pardon the man; as such, he was already standing next to Karl in less than a minute with driblets of sweat on his forehead. "Lord Jester, what kind of slaves do you want this evening? Bunny kin? Foxed kin? Cat kin? Recently, we have gotten a hold of a variety of demihumans; we even have Deer kin demihumans!"

Karl walked along the long cells with Chief Zakar as the slave dealer started to blabber like the usual chatterbox he was.

However, that was one of his godsend traits, as the middle-aged slave trader couldn't hide the goods he had from his customers due to his blabbermouth, making him an easy target.

"Hooh, deer kin you say? They are truly one of a kind due to their rarity. Show them to me." Karl requested with a newfound interest that wasn't there before.

Deer kin were a rare species among the demihumans due to their nature and alluring appearance. It's also said that their antlers contain a unique fluid used for making potions and other stuff, like sauce for food or painting. They were also great hunters who ate meat.

'The irony of a deer hunting for meat is hilarious,' Karl thought with amusement as he let out a chortle.

'Why is he laughing out of the blue?!' Unsurprisingly, that gave Chief Zakar quite the fright, as he almost yelped like a little girl who just saw a lizard on her brand new dress.

Soon, they were in front of a cell filled to the brim with demihumans of different kinds. They looked haggard and had torn up robes; most of them were women with few children and men.

Karl's brown eyes trailed over them, making them feel as if multiple centipedes were crawling on their skin. They all faded backward with a pained expression in their eyes. Some heaved heavy breaths, while others held them in expectation. Regret crossed their minds for being at this place because of their foolish decision to settle down near the Briskar kingdom, and they desperately hoped not to be among the chosen ones by this scary-looking man gazing at them with butcher's eyes.

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"When I was being escorted here, I was told that you had an elf in your possession; why can't I see it among them, Zakar?" Karl asked as he shifted his eyes back to Chief Zakar.

'Huh? That bastard told him about the damn elf! I will see him later.'

"Ahah..hahahah, nothing seems to escape your eyes, Lord Jester. It's just that... The elf had fallen ill while we were on the road, so I thought that he was not in any way fit to be on the market. H- he is probably better now; do you want me to go get him? " Chief Zakar offered with his back soaked in sweat while clumsily waving his hand around.

"Is that so? Well, it doesn't matter then. I want those two on the left corner—the deer kin lady with the hazel hair and her child with the chubby cheeks and brown hair, also get me that elf while I wait upstairs. The air here is not to my liking," added Karl while pointing at the slaves he chose. The mother's eyes dilated, and she felt her mouth dry up as she assumed the worst. The child could only look up at her with his little head tilted, wondering why she suddenly tightened her arms around him.

'Tch, I will really see to that crappy piece of a guard later.'

"Of course, I will be upstairs with them in 5 minutes; you can wait in the guest lounge." suggested Chief Zakar with an ugly smile, trying not to show his unwillingness in buying the elf.

"Alright. "

…

Upstairs, in the guest lounge, Karl was sitting on a sofa, waiting for Zakar. He had just finished drinking a cup of tea prepared by one of Zakar's maids. 'For a lowly maid, the tea she prepared was good.' He casually commented on the tea while berating the poor maid's status.

"Lord Jester! Here they are, dressed in modest clothes. I hope they are to your liking." A voice came from the door as Chief Zakar walked into the room while holding a chain that was linked to the slaves who had collars on their necks. Karl glanced at the blonde-haired elf, who was young and looked dewy-eyed, for a brief second. He stood up from his seat, and handed Zakar a pouch full of silver coins.

Karl then leaned over to the slave trader as he put his mouth close to his ears, whispering, "It was good doing business with you, Zakar. Take care of that guard for me; he is quite the conversationalist."

Chief Zakar once again reminded himself that he will truly see to that garbage rot in the sewers for a month!

"Likewise, Lord Jester, likewise...ahahah." Chief Zakar laughed awkwardly while avoiding eye contact with Karl.

"Good to hear that. The chain?"

"Eh? Ah, yes!"

Karl took the chain from Zakar and walked out of the building as he led the slaves to the marketplace. He purchased an average carriage commonly used by barons for the slaves.

"From now on, I'm your master, and you are my possession, so behave like your status, and no harm will befall all of you, understand?" Karl said as he spoke in the Biskarian language, since it was one of the languages widely used globally. The child didn't understand, but the two adults nodded their heads as they gripped the hems of their clothes. Their faces are pallid.

"Good. Don't misbehave when you meet my butler and listen to his words wisely," reminded Karl as a rare smile could be seen on his face. He then proceeded to tell the coachman about his address as he gave him a gold coin. The coachman was overjoyed when he received it. His salary barely amounted to 5 gold coins a month.

"I will drive them there safely, lord!" exclaimed the coachman politely.

"Mhm, naturally."

His business was finally over; now it was time to get that dessert for Milady... "I hope she lets it slide this time too.'

Karl walked away from the leaving carriage while thinking about how late he was. He headed into a famous pastry shop that sold desserts out of this world. The owner of the shop was a handsome young man in his thirties with gold hair and brown eyes.

He had many workers under him, but he personally welcomed Karl with a smile since he was a regular customer who ordered in bulk. Karl asked for two luminary cakes and a box of biscuits. The owner, who was also the main baker, already had them in stock inside his magical refrigerator that could halt the desserts from deteriorating or getting cold, so the whole process of packing them and giving them to Karl only took 3 minutes.

***

The lady in question had been impatiently waiting for Karl for 30 minutes! In her lifetime, only Karl and a few others could make her wait like this. Although she was blessed with the virtue of being patient, it had its limits. Currently, she was looking out of the window with a slight frown on her forehead, watching the scenery outside to kill time.

'Haa, this is boring; when will he get here? He better be prepared for the consequences of his actions, that ungrateful gillie-wet-foot.' She thought as her cheeks puffed up while she fiddled with her hair, her eyes drifting from person to person.

*Knock knock*

The girl quickly fixed her hair and posture when she heard the knock. She then spoke in a dignified tone befitting her. "Come in, you bastard."

"Ahahah, Mildy's words are quite harsh to her poor butler, who went through lots of ordeals to fulfill her wishes. What would the nobles think if they saw you speaking in such a vulgar tone. I, for one, know you will be breaking many boys' hearts." The door opened, and Karl came into the carriage with empty hands. He then proceeded to sit opposite her while holding his chest and feigning sorrow.

"How I speak only concerns me, not those sorners. And what do you mean by breaking hearts? As far as I remember, I have been doing that for years, haha. Besides that, where are the delicacies?" She laughed while placing her hand on her mouth.

"Hold your steeds' milady; they are in my storage ring." Karl said with a smile while gesturing to the ring on his left middle finger. "I got two of your favourite cake, and a box of biscuits for your little sister. I believe you are delighted with such news, right?"

"Hmph, at least you know how to improve my mood. Let us go home now; I can't wait to taste those cakes with a cherry drink." She spoke with urgency while facing the window, blood rushing to her ears.

"As you wish, Milady," said Karl as he bent his torso in a dramatic tone.