"Is there no more? This is a young lady from the prestigious Lindhart family of magic! And she's still a virgin!"
The man wearing a comical mask gestured exaggeratedly towards the center of the stage.
The rough iron cage looked as if it could hold even a wild beast. But inside was not an animal, but a person.
No, perhaps it should be said that he was once a person?
After all, slaves have no human rights whatsoever.
Perhaps sensing the uncomfortable gazes around her, the woman in the iron cage huddled in a ball, her face filled with terror.
Her platinum blonde hair shimmered under the light, and her fair skin flushed red with shame.
Her dress was made of very little fabric, leaving more areas uncovered, but strangely, it didn't come across as vulgar.
If you were to use a painting to depict nobility, this would probably be the feeling.
Her figure, delicate yet beautiful like a fine work of art, exudes a captivating charm…
But one factor completely changed her impression.
Those were her eyes.
Those red eyes, even more dazzling than real rubies.
Her red eyes, wet with tears, looked around anxiously like a startled rabbit.
Because of this alone, she went from being an untouchable work of art to a vulnerable person who could be bullied by everyone.
This appearance aroused the man's instinctive possessiveness.
Attracted guests began enthusiastically raising their number signs.
"1,000 gold coins!"
"I'll offer 1,500 gold coins here!"
"You think you can get it for that little bit of money? I'll offer 3,000 gold coins!"
Prices soared, skyrocketing to record highs.
What followed was an increasingly undisguised desire.
However, in contrast to their boundless desires, their funds were limited.
"Ten thousand gold coins! Someone has offered ten thousand gold coins! Final confirmation! Is there any other gentleman willing to 'take care' of this poor girl?"
Despite the host's urging in an inflammatory tone, no one in the audience responded.
Indeed, 10,000 gold coins are enough to build a huge mansion in the center of the capital, and there would even be some left over.
In a remote village, this amount of money would be enough to buy an entire village or purchase a finely crafted mithril weapon.
Even if one's heart is tempted, one can't help but hesitate about whether it's right to squander money so easily.
"If no one raises the price during the countdown, we'll close the deal! One! Two!"
After confirming that no one stepped forward until the very end, I held up the number plate in front of me.
"Oh! Another bid! According to the rules, you need to increase your bid by at least one-tenth of the current price..."
"20,000 gold coins."
"...What?"
"I said, 20,000 gold coins. In cash, of course."
The once quiet auction hall suddenly became noisy, and people began to whisper among themselves.
"20,000? Good heavens, did he just say 20,000?"
"That's right. It seems I didn't mishear."
"Who on earth is this person who could come up with such a large sum of money..."
Even for the most exquisite pieces that combine beauty and talent, this price is astonishing.
Even the wealthy guest who originally intended to buy it—the Marquis of Cyprus—was no exception.
"Uh...uh uh..."
He just looked blankly at his dimensional pocket and the iron fence, then at me, but didn't follow.
Things seem to be going fairly smoothly.
Although the Marquis of Cyprus possessed numerous slaves, he had a strong obsession with collecting them. If one were to rashly follow him, he would feel insulted and might send assassins, which would be troublesome.
But if you bid more than twice the final auction price, the situation changes. At that point, he'll acknowledge the financial gap and simply give up.
At least that's the case in the game.
"It seems there are no more bids! Therefore, the auction of today's last item—Carla Lindhart—is now concluded!"
Thump! Thump! Thump!
When I heard the bell signaling the end of the auction, I couldn't help but smile.
It was none other than Kara, whose net worth was a staggering 20,000 gold coins.
This price is a steal.
***
"Thank you for your patronage. As you probably already know, the slave you purchased is a gifted mage. Therefore, I suggest you order the destruction of her magic core, which will make her easier to control in the future."
"I know. But could you give me a suitable coat? I'm too conspicuous going out like this."
"Of course, please wait a moment."
After saying this, the shopkeeper instructed his attendant—no, judging from the thorny vine tattoo on his neck, he must be a slave.
In short, he only turned his attention to his haul after seeing the shop owner send someone to fetch his coat.
"...!"
The moment their eyes met, Kara instinctively looked away.
She was about chest-high to me, but because her shoulders were hunched over, she looked even shorter.
The thorn pattern I had just seen flashed by on the back of her neck, which was faintly visible through her long, flowing hair.
That is the mark of slavery.
Now that Kara has officially become my slave, it is only natural that she will have this mark.
It's really strange. Was this how Kara felt at that moment?
I'd only ever seen her in her madness after she became the saintess of the evil god; I never imagined she'd be like this now…
Like a frightened little animal, it is surprisingly adorable.
"I just want to eat her up."
"Waaah...!"
Perhaps it was because of the sincerity I inadvertently revealed that Kara trembled even more violently.
"Hmm... even if I heard those words in this situation, I would probably be scared too."
Just as she was feeling awkward and alone, a slave from the auction house brought her a large black coat.
"This should cover up Karana's almost half-naked outfit."
I casually tossed her my coat, watching her frantically wrap herself in it before turning away.
"Now that I have the goods, I'll take my leave."
"Okay, we look forward to your next visit."
Of course. After all, I'll be buying more than just one or two items from this auction house in the future.
Perhaps because she had covered her body, she calmed down a bit. Although she was still secretly observing my reaction, her trembling had lessened considerably. I focused my attention and turned to Kara.
More precisely, it's towards the invisible chain connecting Kara and me.
I sensed Kara's presence precisely, and spoke with conviction.
"[Follow me.]"
"Yes, yes..."
Kara obediently followed my instructions.
However, she didn't seem to understand why she was like this either, and a confused expression appeared on her face.
So this is what it feels like.
I recalled the explanations about slave contracts I had heard before.
Except for commands that strongly violate instincts—such as the demand for self-destruction in extreme cases—other behaviors can be enforced.
To be precise, it makes people feel a sense of compulsion that they must obey, but aren't they all the same in essence?
It's unbelievable that simply branding someone can turn them into something akin to a tool.
Based on these descriptions alone, slave contract magic seems like an extremely terrifying form of magic. But in reality, it's not that convenient.
Just like mental magic, it is difficult to cast but relatively easy to undo.
So, if a capable magician becomes a slave, sometimes he can remove the mark and escape on his own, right?
That's probably why the Dominator gave the order to destroy the magic core first.
However, I have no such intention.
It has been three years since I fell into the game world of "Hero Academia" (or H&A).
I've been waiting for this moment all this time.
I silently repeated this phrase to myself, a phrase that had become a habit:
Status bar.
bite!
======================
Name: Yandel
Title: Lost Stranger
Basic abilities
Strength: 11
Endurance: 10
Agility: 12
Tip: 14
Magic Power: 18 (Locked)
characteristic
Endless Magic (A) (Locked)
Elemental affinity (B)
Exceptional memory (B)
Crude Weapon Technique (E)
Magic Sensing Impaired (S)
*Some attributes and traits are sealed due to the trait "Inability to sense magic".
To remove or mitigate negative traits requires a special experience.
====================
To anyone who looks at it, these attributes and characteristics seem designed to make someone a magician.
In fact, this was indeed a secondary role created to train magicians.
At first, I didn't expect to be randomly punished with "magic insensitivity".
Not only that, but for some reason I fell into the H&A world a few years earlier than the original timeline.
I did not send a protest email to the game company, and H&A is neither a terrible game nor a masterpiece.
…Although I've played this game long enough to be considered a veteran player, there are quite a few "old hands" who have played even longer than me.
In short, without any warning, I woke up to find myself transformed into a secondary character in a game.
At first, I was really scared. To be honest, I sat there dumbfounded on the street for about three days.
However, once I got hungry, I came to my senses and started to take action.
Fortunately, as the status bar information indicated, I entered the body of the character I was playing before.
Although it's a secondary character rather than a main character, and the random penalty at the start is a headache... even so, the long gaming experience beforehand was not in vain.
H&A has a unique system where all characters under the same account can share the gold coin inventory.
If that's the case, why not just create an account warehouse? What's the point of being so stingy as to only share gold coins?
I complained about it when I was playing the game, but now that I think about it, at least I had gold coins to use, which is really fortunate.
The world set in H&A—the continent of Orellana—is essentially a fantasy world, but its technological and commercial development is approaching modern levels.
In other words, money is still the most important thing here.
Unlike online games where the circulation of in-game currency is controlled by operators, H&A is a single-player game with online elements.
Gold inflation in the later stages is almost inevitable, especially when the game time exceeds 7,000 hours.
How many gold coins can I accumulate during this period?
The 20,000 gold coins I spent to buy Kara weren't a huge sum for me, which gives you an idea of how much I was willing to spend.
However, this is a fantasy world after all.
In this world, individual strength is far more important than on Earth.
As a mage who cannot use magic, how much suffering I have endured!
The mediocre weapon skill I suddenly acquired can be considered a trace of my desperate struggle.
But all of this will come to an end today.
Once you master the Lindhart family's magical breathing technique, you can cure my magical perception disorder.
Looking at the location of the magical core on Kara's chest, I couldn't help but smile with satisfaction.
Wow, look at that magic capacity.
To wield such immense magical power, she must be proficient in magical breathing techniques.
"Waaah!"
Did she misunderstand something?
Kara panicked and tried to cover her chest with her arms.
However, this size cannot be covered up.
Oh dear, I'm not going to eat you.
I guess so.