I was no different from my father

Mr.Dorothy's office was decorated as if it were a graveyard, the walls were lined with bookshelves that towered high with numerous books, each labeled with titles I couldn't understand. The air was stale, as though it had been trapped here for years.

The desk was large and imposing, its mahogany edges intricately carved, but buried under a chaotic mess of ink-stained documents.

There was a single window that was barred, the light filtering in.

Mr.Dorothy himself sat behind the desk, illuminated by a desk lamp whose light flickered occasionally. The scratching of his quill as he signed documents was the only sound in the room, other than the distant rumble of the city outside.

The bondmaster didn't even glance up from the papers he was signing. "You're Kuire? Your name has Solvarian origins.

You must be the next consignment," he said, voice smooth as oil but twice as cold. His black shoulder-length hair was tied in a ponytail behind him, showing his beady black eyes and sharp nose that had round glasses sitting on it.

I forced a grin. "Oh, good. I was worried I wouldn't make the cut."

Dorothy's lips twitched at my words, his eyes narrowing. He didn't smile. "Cute. Keep that spirit, boy. The mines will drain it out of you soon enough."

The grunt beside me smiled, "C'mon, boss, at least let the kid have some hope. How else will he survive Cansite?"

Cansite. The word hit like a brick. Out of all the places I could've been sent, it was the mine famed as a death trap that replaced workers more frequently than ladies of the night satisfying clients. I needed to see if I could talk with this man, maybe we could settle it by paying later, or I could be sent elsewhere, even if it meant increasing my years of servitude.

"Uhm, Mr.Dorothy, is there any way we can work this out? I could pay it back slowly."

Mr.Dorothy paused, his hand hovering over the paper he had been signing as if contemplating my words. 

Was he considering it!? I felt the urge to curl my lips.

"It seems like I've been too lenient with your treatment, haven't I? I don't just want your money, although I'm aware that you could never pay it back. What I need is your body. There is a quota that needs to be met."

"But…!"

"There are no buts, child. Let's say I let you wander off on the premise of paying back slowly, you won't be able to pay. I wonder If you also wouldn't be able to pay with one less eye? Too many missed payments could result in you losing your sight and hearing."

I could sense his seriousness, he would cripple me if I didn't comply.

" Is there any way I can be sent to another mine? Anywhere but Cansite, I'll do anything you ask, I'm even willing to increase the number of years working…" I felt my breath getting shallower.

"I would've much rather have your father here, for your and my sake, but he abandoned his responsibility and we're working on a tight schedule. It's just a coincidence that you'll be taking the fall."

A tight schedule for replacing the dead?

What else could I give when my life was already taken? I craved peace, but that wasn't meant for someone like me. I needed strength to get what I wanted but strength like the Paladins of Luminaris belonged in another reality, not mine.

My hand trembled, and I clenched my fist to stop it. "I'm smart. I learn fast. Just... please, not Cansite."

The man who brought me chuckled with a low, guttural sound. "Ya can only blame yer luck, kid. We also don't feel too good about this, but it needs to happen all the same."

Mr.Dorothy leaned back in his chair, folding his hands over his chest. "The manager there is generous when it comes to keeping the workforce... stocked and the higher-ups uninterested. It's not personal, boy. Just business."

My mouth gaped open, there was nothing I could do to change the outcome. Mr.Dorothy showed an unreadable expression at my plight, refraining from writing with his feathered quill as he looked up at me.

"You're asking me to jeopardize a profitable arrangement. Cansite, let's just say, you'll be keeping company with the unknown. The Commonwealth turns a blind eye as long as the gold flows." He paused, letting the words sink in. "But that's what makes you expendable. Disposable. No one's coming to save you, and the higher-ups won't notice until it's too late."

Why is my father involved in this? This man isn't even working for a loaning agency.

"But how? My father only gambled his way into debt. Why would you have any authority over me?"

Dorothy tapped the papers on his desk, his smirk deepening. "You don't know how it works, do you? No? Of course, you don't." He leaned forward, speaking as if imparting a valuable lesson to a particularly dense student.

"Your father, bless his desperate soul, took out a loan. Couldn't pay it back and let's say I picked up what was discarded with some help. It may be unfair, but then again, that's how the market works.."

What did he mean by that? Did he somehow get to take our debt for himself? So this was all planned? How many lives had he claimed this way? For him, it was just another day of business

Death was set in stone. If I could not change something during this conversation, I would have no other chance.

Gritting my teeth, I thought of the 8 years I'd have to spend and spoke, "Is there any possibility of reducing my years?"

Mr.Dorothy looked at me with widened eyes and laughed while clapping his hands, perhaps he was surprised by my willingness to continue talking.

"As a matter of fact, there is a way. An adventurer on stand-by sensed the presence of an artifact but no one knows where it is. It might as well be searching for a needle in a haystack. If it ever makes an appearance, bring this artifact back to me, you will have your freedom and more."

I felt hope surging through my blood. The rumor that the grunt told me was true? If I ever found this artifact, why would there be any need for me to hand it up?

It was then I realized. I had no background to sell such an item, and most likely wouldn't be able to use it. If I ever got a hold of it, not being robbed, beaten, and killed would be the best outcome. I felt dreary, there was no easy solution.

"It seems you understand, thankfully you are not as foolish as your father."

If I trusted him, I would truly be as foolish as my father. What is stopping this man, who already considers me dead, from simply killing me if I find the artifact? he was not a person I could trust, and that was dependent on the fact that I was able to find the artifact, which was as likely as getting a gold coin from a passerby.

Mr.Dorothy wrapped the table to gain my attention and slid a piece of paper over to my side. I assumed it was the contract of indentured servitude, however, I couldn't read it. I stared at the unfamiliar symbols on the paper and looked up at the bondmaster.

My father didn't bother with such things. In his mind, all I ever was to him was a mouth to feed. Leaving money with me to buy food, and that money would be stolen by others, he had no care when he appeared weeks later and found my sorry figure starved. 

Even though I didn't understand what the contract said, I felt my eyes water at its appearance. This piece of paper that even I could tear was threatening my life, but I wouldn't let tears escape my eyes, only to look more pathetic than I already do.

This hierarchy that was above me, I would crush it if I could. The nobles, the officers, Mr. Dorothy, I would crush them all given the chance.

Mr.Dorothy let out an awkward laugh. "Ah, even if you're a homeless kid, to think your father didn't even bother teaching you is a bit…"

He signaled his grunt to come closer, "Read this contract to the boy."

The man nodded and spoke mechanically, "This agreement acknowledges the debt of [Kaid], now transferred to Mr. Dorothy. In exchange for a settlement, the undersigned, Kuire, agrees to serve as a laborer in Mr. Dorothy's mines for a minimum of eight years. All terms are irrevocable upon signature.

The undersigned acknowledges all responsibilities assigned by the bondmaster. These responsibilities include, but are not limited to, excavation, mining, and transport. The undersigned also agrees to remain in service until the full debt is paid."

'This contract is non-negotiable and cannot be altered once signed. Any attempt to break the terms of this contract will result in the immediate forfeiture of the undersigned's right to freedom.'"

The man let out a deep breath and smiled to himself, he seemed to think he had done a job well done, even though there were instances where he was left speechless for twenty seconds.

 Mr. Dorothy slid a bottle of ink over to my side of the table, and time slowed. I felt it, I knew it would truly be set in stone once I signed it, the weight of the ink on my fingertips crushed me, it crushed my chest and heart, and took my breath.

"You'll have to sign in your thumbprint since you can't write."

I dipped my trembling finger into the ink bottle, only wetting the tips. 

Hesitating, the ink dripped onto the table. Rubbing my shaking finger into the piece of paper, it felt light even though it held so much power. My chest felt so tight, I couldn't breathe. 

I did what I refused to do.

I cried as I nodded to myself. I was the same as my father, I valued my life above all else.