"Kill me!"
The golden-haired elf's face was filled with humiliation. Since leaving her homeland, this was the first time she had tasted such bitterness.
The outside world was nothing like the beautiful place described in stories. Just as fairy tales had their villains, there were far more wicked people in reality than good ones.
But no matter what, she had never expected that she would encounter such people the moment she left her village. Had the number of villains in the world already grown so great that they stood right at her doorstep?
She could no longer control her thoughts. They drifted in that direction uncontrollably, and the more she thought about it, the more convinced she became that it was true...
The elf girl's name was Ryuu Lion, from the Forest of Rumi Lumea. Compared to elves from other villages, the elves of her home had an even more severe obsession with purity.
Ryuu hated that kind of family, which was why she ran away from home. But...
After coming outside, Ryuu realized that her own obsession with purity was just as severe as theirs. She was the very sort of person she despised.
The realization struck the girl hard. In her shaken state, she had been careless—and that was how those people captured her.
She did not know where they intended to take her, but it certainly would not be anywhere good. Especially not with the way those men looked at her. Their gazes made her feel sick.
If it weren't for the fact that she still held considerable value, they would probably have already laid their hands on her.
"Hahaha, boss, did you hear that? This little wench says she wants us to kill her. That's hilarious!"
The group burst into laughter after hearing Ryuu's words, as though they had just heard the funniest joke in the world.
"Don't worry. We won't kill you. We'll even take good care of you."
"If you die, where are we supposed to make our money?"
Those words made Ryuu's expression darken. She knew there was no way these people would let her go.
What should she do?
In truth, Ryuu had little hope of being rescued. She had been captured by these people for quite some time already, and she had rarely seen anyone else during the journey.
They had once passed through a village, and Ryuu had tried to call for help. But those villains had stuffed cloth into her mouth.
After great effort, she had managed to attract the attention of outsiders with her muffled cries. The people outside had clearly seen her situation.
Her body bound with ropes, her mouth gagged—anyone could tell she had been kidnapped.
Even Ryuu had believed those people would help her escape. Yet the moment they saw her clearly, their expressions changed drastically. They turned around and left immediately, as if nothing had happened.
Ryuu had been utterly shocked. Why had they chosen to ignore her instead of helping? When someone was in trouble, shouldn't others lend a hand?
After experiencing all of this, Ryuu's mental state deteriorated further. Her eyes now resembled those of someone on the brink of death.
No!
She couldn't let this drag on any longer!
Soon they would enter a harbor city and transport her away by water.
Ryuu understood perfectly well that this was her last chance. If she failed to find an opportunity to escape now, she would never escape again!
She had to find a way out!
Relying on her own strength alone was impossible. Ryuu had to seek help from outsiders.
But could outsiders really be trusted?
Would they simply glance at her once more and then walk away, just like before?
Ryuu had no way of knowing. She desperately wanted to free herself by her own power, but she was simply too weak. Without the blessing of a god, she did not even possess the strength of an adult man.
And yet, this was her only option!
She had to do something!
Ryuu had been carefully observing her surroundings. Her body was bound, her mouth stuffed with cloth. Aside from making muffled noises, she could do nothing.
Even the cage holding her had been covered with a pitch-black cloth. Not a single ray of light could penetrate it.
Around her were only the cold iron bars of the darkened cage... Wait!
Suddenly, Ryuu seemed to think of something. She quickly extended her hand outside the cage. Though bound, she could still squeeze half her hand through the gaps between the bars.
She could not reach very far, but she could just barely touch the edge beneath the cage.
This cage was not particularly sturdy. When she had seen it earlier, it had looked crudely made. Perhaps there might be something sharp along the edge...
After persistent effort, Ryuu finally found a small protruding spike. There was only this one.
The chances of cutting through the rope were slim, but cutting her finger... It didn't matter! Ever since her earlier failed escape attempt, the traffickers had become increasingly vigilant.
She had to use a more subtle method.
With her resolve made, Ryuu gritted her teeth.
Even if this plan failed, those traffickers would gain nothing from her.
She dragged her finger hard against the sharp protrusion. Before long, she felt a warm liquid begin to seep from her hand.
She was bleeding.
Even without seeing it, she could tell.
Ryuu extended her injured finger outside the cage. Drops of blood fell one by one onto the ground, leaving behind a faint trail.
She hoped someone nearby would discover the signal she had left and come to rescue her as soon as possible.
If this plan failed...
Over the next few days, she would use that spike to carve more wounds into her hand and spill even more blood.
The best outcome would be that she could not endure it and slowly die. That way, her purity would certainly be preserved.
The worst outcome would be that she would be left covered in scars, her value greatly diminished. Even then, she might still be sold and subjected to terrible treatment... or perhaps not.
Looking on the bright side, maybe someone would find her too scarred and simply release her.
Ryuu could only comfort herself with such fantasies.
But...
"I don't want to die... and I don't want to suffer that kind of treatment..." the elf girl whispered softly.
"If possible, I hope someone can follow the trail of blood I left behind..."
If one could survive, who would choose death?
"Please... whoever you are, come quickly!"
...
"Mm... The fish tastes quite good, though the cooking skills are still lacking a bit."
Inside a restaurant in Melen Town, Elise was sampling one of the local specialty dishes.
Dimite had once said that Elise's cooking could already rival that of the gods themselves. A palate raised on such cuisine was bound to be picky.
Of course, it would be impolite to say that aloud, so Elise chose a seat by the window and dined alone—though people continued sneaking glances at her all the same.
A beauty like Elise was something the people of Melen had never seen before.
"Hm?"
Suddenly, Elise seemed to sense something and abruptly turned her gaze toward the window.
A carriage was slowly passing by outside. Behind it was a large crate that looked like cargo, covered with black cloth so its contents could not be seen.
But Elise did not rely on her eyes to perceive things...
Especially not when something appeared to be dripping from the back of that carriage.