Volume 1 Chapter 4 Slave Girl Lena 3️⃣
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
I did it again.
Even when I think I’ve come to understand myself… when I see something like that, I just can’t stop.
No matter how many years pass, I keep realizing the same thing over and over.
I’m still just a child.
Now that I think about it, I’ve always been this way.
Back when I was still a half-baked cooking apprentice, learning under my master, I’d often find injured animals in the forest and bring them home without thinking.
“Have you really grown, in body or in spirit?”
“Why do you keep doing this?”
“Is it because you think they’re pitiful?”
“How many strays have I taken in just because I couldn’t leave them behind?”
“Are you planning to keep pretending to be a kind person forever?”
That’s what they used to tell me.
Back then, they were animals. This time, the situation is different. But the impulse that moved me—what sparked it—is exactly the same.
…But well.
”What’s done is done. Nothing to do about it now.”
I glanced toward the girl in front of me, her long black hair shifting with the breeze. She wore the same clothes she had on when we met.
A quiet sigh escaped my lips.
* * *
”What did you just say?”
The village head’s voice was empty, barely audible. He stared at me, frozen, even as the blade hovered near his throat.
”I said the reward is fifteen gold coins. And the girl—Lena, was it?—she comes with me.”
”But she’s the property of this household—she’s a slave—”
”I see.”
I lowered my sword slightly.
The village head visibly relaxed, a breath escaping him as if he’d just survived the worst. How naive. The ‘discussion’ hasn’t even ended yet.
”Contracts between the guild and its clients are built on mutual trust. Breaking that trust comes with consequences. Penalties, fines—didn’t you read the agreement?”
”But still…”
”If you don’t want to give up that girl, that’s fine. I’ll take one of the others instead. Any one of those three will do. She might be a handful to train, judging from her attitude, but if you sell her to a slave merchant, you’ll fetch a decent price.”
I looked over at the three girls from last night. The ones I helped.
The moment my eyes met theirs, they flinched. “Hiiee!?”
Their mouths moved silently, like fish gasping for air.
”That’s unreasonable…” the village head muttered. “This isn’t how things are done…”
Still trying to argue. I was starting to lose my patience.
I pressed my sword into the floorboards with a sharp, metallic crack.
”If you’re so eager to skip your obligations, be my guest. I’ll leave it to the guild to sort you out. Maybe they’ll be more forgiving than I am.”
My voice was cold. Deliberately so.
But mercy from the Adventurers’ Guild? That’s not likely.
It’s not just a local office—it’s a powerful, multi-continental organization with wealth, soldiers, and influence that can challenge entire kingdoms. If they ever decide their honor’s been insulted, a little village like this would vanish from the map overnight.
Whether that idiot in front of me understands the weight of that, I honestly doubt it.
”…I understand. We’ll do as you say…”
His voice came out dry, lifeless. The arrogance he once wore like armor had crumbled away. In its place was a hollow, aged man who looked ten years older than he had a moment ago.
* * *
”I’ve decided to take you from that village head. Oh, right—I haven’t introduced myself yet. I’m Soyuz. As you can probably tell, I’m an adventurer.”
I’d left the village behind.
A little way down the road, we stopped beside a stream to rest. I figured it was a good time to talk. To be honest, I didn’t know anything about her. Not even the basics.
It hit me then—how little I’d considered her feelings. I’d just taken her. No warning, no permission. What if—though it felt unlikely—what if she wanted to go back?
Before anything else, I decided I should at least give her my name.
”I’m Lena,” she replied, bowing her head politely.
Her face was calm, too calm. It lacked all the emotion she’d shown when we first met. Confusion lingered in her eyes.
”…If it’s alright, may I ask my master something?”
”Go ahead. Ask whatever you want.”
”Why… would someone like you take someone like me? I have no beauty, no education. I can’t imagine being of any use to you…”
”Why, huh…”
Honestly? It was sympathy.
A simple, selfish feeling.
I saw her. I saw someone suffering. And I couldn’t walk away.
There are plenty of people like her in this world. Slavery ensures that much. But when I’m faced with someone I might be able to help—even if it’s meaningless self-satisfaction—I still want to do something.
Because once, a long time ago… someone helped me, too.
Of course, saying that out loud would be embarrassing.
”I just didn’t like that bald guy,” I said instead, shrugging.
”…”
Lena still looked confused.
* * *
By the time the sun had set, we’d reached a small settlement.
It was nothing fancy—just a quiet rest stop along the main road—but it was a step up from camping. If I were alone, I wouldn’t care where I stayed, but with a girl in my care, I figured a roof and a bed were worth it.
I picked the first inn I saw.
There weren’t many options anyway. Just the usual cheap lodgings—tavern downstairs, rooms upstairs. The two-person room had a private bath, which was a pleasant surprise.
I booked the room and sat down in the tavern for dinner.
Lena followed behind me, quiet as a shadow. When I sat, she remained standing, lingering just behind my chair.
”…What’s wrong? Sit.”
”I… I am a slave. I cannot sit at the same table as my master.”
Her voice had returned to that flat, unreadable tone.
”I see.”
”Then as your master, I command you. Sit across from me.”
She stiffened.
”C-command…?”
”That’s right. It’s an order, Lena. Sit and eat with me.”
I didn’t want to give orders. But sometimes, when someone’s shackled inside their own mind, you need to break through the only way they understand.
”Y-yes… understood…”
Her voice was barely audible. Her hands trembled as she moved to the seat across from me. Her face was pale. She obeyed, but the word ‘command’ had clearly shaken her.
I didn’t need to guess why.
I could imagine what kind of ‘orders’ that village head had forced onto her.
Honestly… I should’ve hit that man. Just once wouldn’t have been enough.
Trying to settle my thoughts, I focused on the meal.
I ordered two plates.
Black bread. Soup. A thick stew with chunks of meat and vegetables. For a cheap inn, the portion was decent.
”Let’s eat.”
I took a spoonful of soup first.
The broth was strong—probably made from bones—and while the ingredients were few, the flavor was deep and comforting. The stew was surprisingly good too. The meat, whatever kind it was, fell apart easily and paired perfectly with the black bread. Not bad at all for the price.
When I looked across the table, Lena was staring at her plate like she didn’t know what to do with it.
She looked like a child brought into a stranger’s home, or a dog told to ‘wait’ before it could eat. The sight stirred something in me.
”Don’t hold back. Go on—eat.”
”…Is it really okay? For someone like me to have such a luxurious meal…?”
Her voice carried no bitterness—just quiet disbelief.
For her, this was extravagant. That said more than anything about the way she’d been treated.
I really should’ve hit that village head five or six times.
”I ordered it for you. If you don’t eat, I’ll be the one wasting food.”
I said it a bit more firmly this time.
Finally, she hesitantly picked up her spoon.
”…Yes. Master, thank you for the meal.”
She bowed deeply, her eyes downcast.
I made a mental note to talk to her about that habit later.
Then, slowly, she lifted the spoon to her mouth and tasted the stew.
”…It’s warm… and delicious… Master…”
The words slipped out softly.
And beneath the curtain of her black hair, a single tear rolled down her cheek.
”…Yeah. It is.”
I kept my voice as calm as I could, and reached for the black bread.
Notes:
• Lena – Female. A young slave girl in her early teens. Her appearance is emaciated with brown skin, long black hair, and grotesque scars across her face, including one that blinds her left eye. She wears a black collar and tattered clothing. Her relationship to the protagonist is that of a rescued victim. She is silent and appears to have endured severe physical and emotional abuse.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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