Published at 20th of February 2020 6:52 am

Chapter 14 – Slaves

This chapter is updated by NovelFree.ml

MTL: uniquegasuki

Editor/ Proofreader: (not proofread)

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「I’ve finished. Come inside and have a look.」 (Domoor)

Domoor said.

Haruto, Lora, Pudding, and Rusk are on the land where the factory was scheduled to be built. To be accurate, they are on the land where the factory had been built.

「Amazing, you really did complete everything in 3 months.」 (Haruto)

Haruto commented as he observed the repairs that were done to the factory’s roof and slave lodging house.

「Perhaps, did this place used to be that haunted-looking building? Amazing~」 (Pudding)

Pudding said as she jumps excitedly up and down.

「That once run-down building is this lovely now.」 (Lora)

Lora said in admiration.

This pretty building couldn’t be mistaken to its previous self. In the past 3 months, the former run-down building had appeared to have been blown away. Nearby, there is a building that can be used as a storehouse (warehouse). The pots and ingredients can be stored there.

「For the time being, I’ll try going inside and check first. We are your guards after all.」 (Rusk)

Saying so, Rusk enters the building. Haruto and company followed him shortly afterward.

The interior was also solidly repaired and it showed no dangers of collapsing. Upon entering the building they arrive in a large hall with 20 small rooms.

「Umm, where would be a good place to leave the alarm?」 (Haruto)

「Hmm, let me see. How about in the hall as it is quite spacious. Setting up the device is rather easy, just insert a magic stone into the device. If you place the alarm in the hall it will make a louder sound when a person without a key enters the building.」 (Rusk)

As Rusk informed him, Haruto inserted a magic stone into the device. The magic emits a dim light. Haruto then placed the device on the wall in the large hall.

「Is this okay?」 (Haruto)

「I think so.」 (Rusk)

After having looked at every room, Haruto and company exited the building.

「So, how is my handiwork; is it good enough for you?」 (Domoor)

「Haha, it is perfect. Here is the money we settled on.」 (Haruto)

Along with the documents, Haruto hands the man 16 gold coins; 160,000 Doraria.

「Thank you for the business. If you need any more repairs done, do come and give me request.」 (Domoor)

「Haha, next time then.」 (Haruto)

Haruto shakes hands with Domoor. Domoor and the other carpenters then swiftly took their leave.

「Now then, we will split up into groups of two. Rusk and I will go receive the slaves. Lora, you and Pudding will go fetch the pots from Bacchus and then afterward, the two of you will go buy bread (food) for the slaves.」 (Haruto)

And thus, the members divided into 2 groups of 2 people.

◆◆◆

「Hey, Boss. Why is it you bought child slaves? Is it not better to use adults for manual labor?」 (Rusk)

Before they boarded the carriage, Rusk asked Haruto a question.

「For two reasons. The 1st is because children are cheaper. I don’t have much money, you see. And besides, children are good enough for this sort of work that is why going the cheaper route is the better option. 2nd, Lora and I are still young. It would be difficult to manage someone older. As such, we won’t have to be concerned when dealing with 10-year-old children. Do you disagree? There is no need to worry as the working conditions will not be anything like in a mine.」 (Haruto)

Hearing this from Haruto, Rusk’s expression softened.

「I see, I get it.」 (Rusk)

As the two rode the carriage on their way to the slave-trading company, the swaying of the carriage almost made Haruto vomit several times along the way. That matter will be left unspoken.

When they entered the slave trading building, Wujek was waiting inside.

「Finally arrived, this way then.」 (Wujek)

Haruto and Rusk moved to the backroom inside of the building. Since this was the first time Haruto had been back here, he looked around. In a single jail cell, 20 or so slaves are chained up together; a mismatched group of people of various race, gender and age. The only thing they have in common is their emotionless (dead-like) eyes.

Because it wasn’t a pleasant feeling, Haruto decides to keep looking forward.

「These are your slaves. Please confirm them. Hey now, this person will be your owner, line up!」 (Wujek)

Upon Wujek’s shout, the children with emotionless eyes lined up.

「Here, this document has their information (profile). It is listed in order from right to left.」 (Wujek)

Haruto looked over the document on the slaves that he was handed from Wujek.

Starting from the right,

Ann (アン) – Female – Age 9 – from the Kingdom.

Ein (イン) – Male – Age 10 – from the Empire.

Urs (ウルス) – Male – Age 10 – from the Kingdom.

Emil (エミル) – Female – Age 10 – from the City-State Union

Oreste (オレスト) – Male – Age 9 – from the Empire.

Kay (カイ) – Male – Age 8 – Origin Unknown

Kil (キル) – Male – Age 10 – from the Empire

Kroll (クロル) – Male – Age 10 – from the Empire

Caimie (ケイミー) – Female – Age 8 – from the Empire

Costos (コストス) – Male – Age 9 – from the Empire

Saul (サウル) – Male – Age 10 – from the North

Silk (シルク) – Male – Age 10 – from the Empire

Susan (スーザン) – Male – Age 9 – from the Empire

Cecil (セシル) – Male – Age 8 – from the Empire

Sol (ソル) – Male – Age 10 – from the Northeast

「……how troublesome, then starting from the right A,B,C,D,E,F,G,H,I,J,K,L,M,N, & O?」 (Haruto)

Being bad at remembering names, Haruto gave up on the idea.

It seems that most of them are from the Empire.

「Hey, what are the North and Northeast? And, what’s with the “origin unknown” part?」 (Haruto)

It was on his mind thus Haruto asked about it.

「North, is it not obvious that that refers to the hunter tribe who live in the north. As for the Northeast, that is the equestrian tribe who live in the northeast. About the unknown origin, I don’t know. Go ask the person himself.」 (Wejuk)

Wujek doesn’t know either. Since the work will not change as a result of a person’s origin, Haruto wasn’t particularly concerned about the matter.

For the time being, Haruto decided to turn around and introduce himself.

「From today onwards, I will be your owner; my name is Haruto Asuma. Feel free to call me Master, Boss or just Asuma-sama. Don’t worry, nothing bad will happen to you if you obediently do your work. I will release you from slavery if you earnestly do your work so work hard alright.」 (Haruto)

Haruto spoke as gently as he could. Although he wanted to give them peace of mind, nothing changed. They still had their dead-like eyes.

He shrugs his shoulders and goes to speak with Wujek.

「They will be going with this person, open the cell.」 (Wujek)

Following orders, Wujek’s subordinate opened the door and undone the chains.

「Follow me.」 (Haruto)

Hearing so, the children followed after Haruto in silence.

「Well now, 15 people will not fit in the carriage (wagon)…… how about we transport them in groups of 5. Rusk, first start from A,B,C,D, & E.」 (Haruto)

With a wry smile on his face, Rusk places Ann, Ein, Urs, Emil, and Oreste on the carriage. He transports them from the slave trading building. Because it takes the carriage 20 minutes per trip, Haruto has 40 minutes of free time. He decides to talk to the children to pass the time. For him to build a mutual understanding with the children conversing with them is indispensable.

「Hey, you……Ka……Kaito?」 (Haruto)

「It’s Kay.」 (Kay)

「Oh yeah, it was Kay. On your profile, it states that your origin is unknown. So, where are you from?」 (Haruto)

「……」 (Kay)

「……」 (Haruto)

After Haruto spoke, Kay didn’t answer and stayed silent.

「Well, you don’t have to say if you don’t want to.」 (Haruto)

A person always has a thing or two that they don’t want to speak about. Although Haruto could force the information out of Kay, there is no reason to do so.

Rethinking the matter, Haruto goes to talk to a different child.

「So……Sora? You are from the equestrian tribe, correct? Can you drive a carriage?」 (Haruto)

「How is it you can speak our language?」 (Sol)

For a moment, Haruto didn’t know how to response. He noticed that he hasn’t spoken with any other language expect from the Kiris (キリス) language. This probably was the result of his blessing.

「I’m good with speaking other languages and I excel in the liberal arts. Oh yeah, can you handle a horse?」 (Haruto)

「Well, I have used one before…… it might be possible. And the name is, Sol……」 (Sol)

Haruto thought about having Sol drive the carriage.

They continued to converse and the wariness in the children’s expression seemed to fade a little; although, Haruto didn’t believe their expressionless eyes were cured.

◆◆◆

On the other side, Lora and Pudding approached the blacksmith’s shop.

「Ahh, I’m nervous……」 (Lora)

「Huh, why is that?」 (Pudding)

Pudding addressed Lora who is showing a tense expression.

「This person is scary. He seems like the sort of person that would try to extort you on false charges.」 (Lora)

「Hmph, trust me, Bacchus-san isn’t that sort of person. When I heard that he was the best craftsman in Clarice, I wanted a sword made so I asked Wujek-san to introduce me to him. He told me that he wouldn’t forge a sword. Anyhow, despite his appearance, Bacchus-san is a pacifist~.」 (Pudding)

For a while, Lora and Pudding continued their rude conversation.

「I can hear you……」 (Bacchus)

Upon hearing this, Lora’s was startled while Pudding played dumb as if she was whistling.

「Sorry for the intrusion.」 (Pudding)

Pudding said in a loud voice before opening the door. A flustered Lora follows after her.

Upon opening the door, they are greeted by Bacchus. He shows a pouting expression and his arms are crossed over one another.

「You are a customer I presume? After having said as much, naturally, you will be buying something, yes!」 (Bacchus)

A flustered Lora hides behind Pudding. While smiling, Pudding begins to talk.

「Umm, we are customers~. On Haruto Asuma-san’s behalf, we have come to pick up an order~. Lora-chan!」 (Pudding)

Having been called upon by Pudding, a flustered Lora presents the contract to Bacchus. After reading over the contract for a short while, Bacchus disappears to the back room.

「Uuh, I don’t want to come here again……」 (Lora)

「Now, now.」 (Pudding)

Some time later, Bacchus and his subordinate carried out several big pots.

「Here, this is your order. Confirm it. Should I have it placed in your carriage?」 (Bacchus)

「Please do so~.」 (Pudding)

With a disinterested expression, Bacchus’ subordinate stuffs the pots onto the carriage.

「Thank you for your work~.」 (Pudding)

Pudding says so with a grin and thanked the man. Without saying a word, Bacchus returns to the back room.

「Now, what else did we have to buy?」 (Pudding)

「Umm, let me check the memo…… we need to buy bread and ingredients for cooking. “Blankets and clothes for the children” is also written here.」 (Lora)

When Lora reads the memo, Pudding frowns.

「What a pai~n. Let us hurry and get it over with~.」 (Pudding)

The two decided to get the bread before going to buy the ingredients for cooking.

「Oh my, onions, cabbage, carrots…… there is nothing but vegetables.」 (Pudding)

「Well, the policy will be that they must buy meat with their own salary. That way, they would have some motivation.」 (Lora)

Lora says with a wry smile. Being able to eat vegetables is considered good as there are some owners that only give slaves bread to eat.

「By the way, Lora-chan, what will be your role? Manual labor, perhaps?」 (Pudding)

「Umm, I don’t know what Haruto will have me do. It could be something only I could do.」 (Lora)

「Hmm~.」 (Pudding)

Having paid for the good, the two head to the clothes shop.

「Now that we are at the clothes store~, what does Haruto-san want us to buy?」 (Pudding)

「Umm, let me see, something that can withstand getting dirty and it has to be as cheap as possible. As for the blanket, something thin would be alright as it is summer.」 (Lora)

After buying several pairs of cheap clothes, the two returned to the slave’s lodging house.

◆◆◆

「Ah! Haruto-san did you just arrived. We also just finished up.」 (Lora)

「Ah, uh, I feel sick.」 (Haruto)

His complexion is blue and he is barely hanging on.

「Are those the child slaves you bought?」 (Lora)

Lora looks toward the group squatting down behind Haruto.

「Yeah, I’ll introduce you. This person is Lora. She is your senior slave. Follow her instructions.」 (Haruto)

「Hello, my name is Lora, please to meet you all. I will be the one looking after everyone.」 (Lora)

As she greeted the children with a smile, they bowed their head while remaining seated.

「The other two are mercenaries, Rusk & Pudding. They are bodyguards. If you see anyone suspicious, tell those two.」 (Haruto)

「Hi~, I’m Pudding. Feel free to call me Pudding-chan!!」 (Pudding)

「I’m Rusk, please to met you.」 (Rusk)

As usual, Pudding is pumped while on the other hand, Rusk seems a little nervous. Although he loves children, Rusk seems to be the type that gets nervous around them.

「Now that we have introduced ourselves, it is your turn. Please, go in order.」 (Haruto)

On Haruto’s command, the children stood up and began to introduce themselves.

With a nervous expression, they stated their name and birthplace. Despite that the Empire, the Kingdom, and the City-State Union’s share the same official language; the children’s pronunciation of the Kiris language differed. Although the children from the North and Northeast region speak a different language, Wujek had instructed them enough that the children could be understood. It appears that Haruto blessing isn’t necessary.

「Now then, I plan to have you all do manual labor. Today, we will instruct you on the work you will be doing but before that…… you will have your meal. Lora pass out the bread.」 (Haruto)

Lora distributed the bread to them one by one; although, while by no means was it much,

The children took 15 minutes to consume their meal.

「Well now, we will get to work without delay.」 (Haruto)

With the intention to instruct them on how to make soap, Haruto immediately brought them to the factory (workshop). There was a single pot placed in the factory.

「Well, let the demonstration begin. Lora show them how it is done.」 (Haruto)

「Alright.」 (Lora)

During those last 3 months, Haruto had been strictly teaching Lora on how to make soap until she was proficient in doing so. He had explained every detail of the process to her.

The children eagerly watched the manufacturing process.

After the process finished, Haruto directed his attention towards the children and confirm that they understood the process to make soap. With the children properly listening, Haruto answered any questions they had.

「Alright, properly remember it okay as tomorrow you all will be doing this work. Now then, I will be assign roles (positions). Is there anyone among you who can cook? It is fine even if it is to the degree of having assisted your mother cook?」 (Haruto)

When Haruto called out, the 3 girls raised their hand.

「Alright, I’ll leave the cooking to your group. 3 hours before lunch, stop working to go prepare lunch. Okay that is settled!」 (Haruto)

The 3 girls replied in a low voice with, 「Understood」.

「Let’s see, you all must be quite worn out today I bet. Everyone, go prepare dinner and then have an early rest. Lora, I need to have a chat with you.」 (Haruto)

He called for Lora. With a puzzled expression on her face, Lora rushed over to him.

「What’s the matter?」 (Lora)

「Here you go.」 (Haruto)

「Huh, an appointed position?」 (Lora)

On the slip of paper, 『Asuma Company: Lora Summer, Accountant & Director of the Slave Board』 is written there.

「I see, this is the thing only I can do…… certainly, I do have confidence in my studies of accounting. I graciously accepted.」 (Lora)

Lora appears to be glad that she was appointed an official position in the company.

「Is that so. Then, I will give you your first order as the Director of the Slave Board. Go spend time with the children today and explain things to them.」 (Haruto)

「Yes!」 (Lora)

Lora gave a lively reply.

Next, Haruto goes to address Rusk & Pudding.

「We’ll be officially in your care from today.」 (Haruto)

Rusk and Pudding grin and smile.

「Fufu, leave it to us~.」 (Pudding)

「Don’t worry. We will properly defend the children.」 (Rusk)

At that time, 3 large dragon-carriages came.

「Your order of olive oil has arrived. 170 barrels has been delivered. Please sign for them.」 (delivery person)

The olive oil from the Ainsworth company has arrived. Haruto pays 1.3 Million Doraria and receives it.

「Lora, have these moved to the storehouse. I will be going to Wujek’s place and ask about a loan.」 (Haruto)

Right after the carriage left, Haruto made his way to the slave trading building.

「Lend me money.」 (Haruto)

「Hey, why so sudden.」 (Wujek)

Wujek made a wry smile.

「How much do you have left?」 (Wujek)

「300,000. Next month, I have to pay the rent for the shop I’m borrowing from you and there is also the need to pay Rusk’s & Pudding’s salary. Please lend me an additional 5 Million.」 (Haruto)

Wujek pondered about it for awhile. Naturally, he is troubled by the amount.

「Okay, I understand. I’m already on board anyhow. Remember, you must properly repay me.」 (Wujek)

「Thanks, you’re a life saver.」 (Haruto)

Haruto exited the slave trading building. Ever so gradually, his sense of money becomes off.

Haruto returned the carriage back to the rental shop and then returned to his shop (home) once again. Hot water is prepared and he washes up alone. Usually, Lora would barge in and joke about washing his back from him but currently, Lora is spending time with the children.

「It has been a long time since I slept alone. It is nice to have this spacious bed all to myself.」 (Haruto)

That day in after a long time, a lonely night passed for Haruto.

====

Income: 5 Million

Expense: 3.5 Million

Olive Oil (1.3 Million), Meal for slaves for 1 month (400,000), Clothes & etc. (50,000), Rental fee for 2 wagons for 1 month (50,000), Seaweed Ash (120,000), Repair Cost (1.6 Million)

Debt: 10 Million

Remaining Balance: 5.3 Million

Assets (Actual): -4.7 Million

Other Assets:

16 Slaves

Employees:

Lora Summers: Accountant & Director of the Slave Board

Mercenaries: Rusk and Pudding

Storehouse/Warehouse 1 (attached to the shop): 0

Storehouse/Warehouse 2 (attached to slave lodging house):

Pots 7, Olive Oil 170 barrels, Seaweed Ash 120 barrels

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