If master wishes...

'Is Remi's mother a slave? Isn't she Kaiser's wife?' Aiden was a bit confused.

He had read about the slave system, but it was used in the old many nation eras. It was abolished from the roots after the federation had formed.

He has read about sex-slaves or similar types of slaves, but their cases don't look the same. To be precise, Aiden had no idea about how slavery had affected the world after the Apocalypse.

But Kaiser's anxiety about Remi was real. And it seemed that Jewel was also worried. Even if she's a slave daughter, they don't have any kind of prejudice against her. Still, the whole situation has come as a shock to Aiden.

However, because of the angry growling of his stomach, Aiden swiped the subject away from his mind. Aiden checked everything after the meal and came down with an empty tray and a bowl in his hand.

He had no idea what he was supposed to do with it as he had come down. Unable to find someone, he moved to Jewel's room with the bowl and tray in his hand.

"Where am I supposed to put this?" Aiden's question came to Jewel with a shock.

"Why do you carry this in the first place?" Jewel could not help but ask.

"I have eaten in this."

"So?"

"Shouldn't I put away the dish after I've eaten?" Aiden said, looking at his amazed look, "That is how we do things back at home."

"Oh! Jewel gave a nod of understanding, "but we're not doing that here. Just keep them out of the door and someone's going to take care of it.

After he had done as he had been told, Jewel spoke again, "So you were wearing that slave collar." Aiden touched it instinctively and nodded.

"Good thing. Once you get out, you'll understand the importance of it." Jewel nodded, adding, "Sorry Aiden, I'm not going to be able to personally show you the city."

"The lord of the city had called for a meeting; both Kaiser and I had to go to the mountain town." It didn't seem like he was lying, "If we don't go, we might miss the chance of big business."

"But if you don't have a problem, I can ask Remi to show you around." And Aiden had no reason to disagree. It's better to go with someone who knows things than to go alone.

"But ..." Jewel was serious, "You've got to listen to her. You may not know the law here, so don't fight, don't argue, and always listen to her words."

After a few words of caution, Jewel left Aiden with Remi and went to the mountain city.

About an hour later, Aiden was wandering around the city, asking about everything he could see.

"How can there be so many mana stones?" Aiden asked carefully about the source of the mana stone, as Kaiser had never answered.

"I don't know." Remi never looked back at him as she spoke. Aiden did not know the reason, but he was happy as long as she answered his question.

"I want to buy some of them. There are very few mana stones from the place I am from. Can't I buy it somewhere?"

"You can't do that. Only the town lord manor sells these things. But you can't buy it. You don't have any ID.

'The source of the mana stone is also regulated here.' Aiden asked, "Can't I buy from Jewel?"

She shook her head, "It's illegal to sell mana stones."

'Why is that?' Even if Aiden wanted to ask, he knew she wouldn't be able to answer that question.

As he moved around the city, Aiden's feeling wasn't much different from the feeling he had when he moved around the mana slums outside the desert stronghold 3.

People were selling food, clothing, utensils, jewellery as they had seen in the pre-apocalyptic records. If he didn't know about the slaves, the mana stones, and the tall wall around the city, he would have thought it was just the earth.

There were three types of people on the road. Other than the common people there are slaves, either with a tattoo, a shackle or a collar. And the last type of people was a lot bigger and completely covered in robes.

Looking at all the big people who were covered in robes, he couldn't help being curious. He closed in and whispered in her ears, "What are these big people? Why are they covering themselves up?

"Keeee" To his surprise, Remi jumped while making a funny sound. Her face was flushed red when she turned to Aiden. She stared at him, "What are you doing?"

"I am asking why they are hiding."

"Can't you ask that from a distance? Why are you whispering in my ears?"

'Have I done something wrong?' Aiden wanted to ask but he didn't get the chance.

"Look at that, if it's not Remi."

"So you've come back? I thought you were going to the forest to enjoy yourself with some bandit."

"Hey, is that a way of talking to a woman?" Aiden wanted to ask, but to think about Jewel's advice, Aiden let Remi do all the talk.

"Let's go, Aiden." Her voice was so low that Aiden almost missed it. Her intention was clear, and even if Aiden wanted to rebuke them for a hateful remark, all Aiden could do was follow her.

But those people didn't want to let her leave. The path was barred by two people. A man with bronzed skin and a man with a bald head. Lower garments are the only thing they've got on their body.

But the most prominent thing about their body was the tattoo. The red tattoo covered the bald head and the grey tattoo decorated the bronze skin of the left chest.

'They are blood slaves.' Aiden had a better understanding of the slave system thanks to Remi's explanation.

These slaves have no free will at all. In contrast to those who are controlled by a slave collar or shackles, disobedience means death to a blood slave. Thinking about that, Aiden shook his head. 'It is better to die than to live as a slave. Then again if dying was so easy…'

"What the hell are you doing?" As Aiden contemplated the life of a slave, Remi cried out in anger. Aiden was startled. When he looked, he found that the slaves did nothing. They were just standing there without giving Remi any space to go back.

"Oh! She can talk so well to the slave. I can't even force myself to look at those lowly beings."

"I know what you're talking about. Every time their shadow touches me, I have to take a bath." The girl standing behind Aiden sighed, "I envy her? She could accept them so casually."

Aiden frowned as he turned around to find out that there were three people like Remi's age. One is a girl, and the other two are boys.

'Do they have any kind of enmity with Remi?' Looking at the face of both sides, Aiden understood that something was wrong. Even if he didn't know what it was, Aiden was sure there wasn't anything cordial between them.

And then the boy said, "You don't know, her mother is a slave."

"Shut up." Remi had given up trying to get out of here and pounced towards the three of them. She zoomed past Aiden, but before she could reach, another slave stopped her again.

Her punch had been grabbed by the slave. He said, "Princess, you're not supposed to fight with your delicate hand."

Failing to hit her target, she was angrier than she was before. Even if the slave took her hand, she rotated her body in the middle of the air and threw a kick at the slave's head.

But her kick was caught by the slave, and a moment later Remi was hanging upside down with her leg grabbed by the slave.

"You're supposed to be careful with her. Perhaps she's the only one with such noble birth. "The boy on the back spoke with a satisfied smile.

"Yes, mast..." the slave could not finish his words. His face, decorated with a perverted smile a moment ago, is now distorted by the pain, "Ahhh"

His painful scream sent shivers down the spine of the spectators. Whether they were the three arrogant teenagers, roadside vendors or uninterested roadside walkers, none of them could believe that the human hand could bend in that direction.

Remi, on the other hand, had no idea what had happened. She struggled to free herself while she was hanging upside down in the air, and the next thing she knew she was going to fall.

She closed her eyes in fear and braced for impact, but the pain never came. When she opened her eyes again, she found that Aiden was staring at her.

"What?" Finding that Aiden was carrying her, her face flushed red. Her heart was beating so hard first that her heart had almost burst. She was struggling to free herself.

Looking at his face, Remi could no longer control her breathing. By the time her leg touched the ground, her whole body had heated up again. She no longer dared look at Aiden.

"What did you do?" however the furious cry shattered the moment. Only then did she realize what Aiden had done. Looking at the slave's hand, she couldn't help but shudder a little. His forearm was broken and he was bent in a right angle with the rest of his hand.

He was smiling at her when she turned to Aiden. He said, "If the master wants, I can kill him."