"What the hell is this?" Henryk asked as the black knight and the merchant suddenly stopped in front of the large cave entrance, from which every prisoner in the cage could feel the thick, menacing aura.
"With great luck, this will be our grave," Someryn said, looking around at the other prisoners, who had panicked expressions on their faces.
"What's in there?" Henryk asked.
"You don't want to know."
The other prisoners began to panic and voice their objections, but the black knight quickly brought them to their feet by slamming his fist hard against one of the cages.
"Shut up!" he yelled, then walked toward the group of people standing just outside the cave entrance.
A handsome man approached the black knight, appearing to be the leader of the group. He wore light armor, and his silver hair reached down to his shoulders. He offered the black knight his hand.
"Hello, sir. My master sends his greetings," the man in black armor said.
"The pleasure is all mine," replied the silver-haired young man, sword at his belt. "I believe those men in the carriage are for sale?"
"That's right, sir. Please take a look at them," said the black knight, leading the silver-haired man to the carriage.
Looking at the prisoners, the silver-haired man looked at each one carefully, as if assessing their suitability. When his black eyes landed on Henryk, he stared at him for a moment.
"This young man is free, sir," Korin's servant said suddenly, and Henryk paled.
"...What?" he said in disbelief.
"That's great. I've already decided. Please, in addition to this boy, I also want the five I chose, as we agreed."
"Of course."
Shortly afterward, besides Henryk, five other people stood in line, chosen by the man in light armor. Next to Henryk stood a tall, middle-aged woman with cat ears, but with a black eye and a shaved head and tail that resembled a rat's. Next to her stood a two-meter-tall man with red skin and black horns. In the middle stood Someryn, who looked as if he couldn't believe such a thin and malnourished man as he had been chosen. Next stood a completely unremarkable man with shaggy black hair. And finally, an elven youth who looked younger than Henryk, perhaps sixteen.
"Are you satisfied with your choice?" the Black Knight asked, rubbing his hands together.
"Yes. Here's your payment," the silver-haired man said, tossing a purse, which the Black Knight caught.
"Pleasure doing business with you. Goodbye." The Black Knight began to walk away toward the carriage, tossing his purse of money into the air.
Sitting in the carriage, Philip looked at the group of newly minted Adventurer slaves who called themselves "Green Parsley." He sighed heavily, knowing that most likely none of the slaves would survive the expedition to the mana nest.
The black knight hurried the harnessed horses to head towards Wojtyn with the remaining prisoners. Philip followed, leaving the slaves with their new masters.
"First," the silver-haired man began, addressing the slaves. "I demand absolute obedience from my property, you. Your first mission will be to transport baggage and provisions, and to mine mana crystals. Disobedience will be punished, understood?"
The tall red man with horns gave him his answer immediately. He lunged at the silver-haired man with his fists. Apparently, the slave had little reason to live or hope of survival, so he decided to take a chance. No. He simply wanted to do something worthwhile with his life as a slave.
Unfortunately, he failed to achieve his goal. The man in heavy armor, a green hood, a large shield, and a sword on his back stopped the devil man's attempt to strike his leader and quickly knocked him to the ground, face down in the dirty dirt.
The slave tried to break free, but to no avail. The man in heavy armor struck him hard on the head.
"Now then. I think he's had enough." Someryn suddenly spoke in a disinterested voice, stepping forward, surprising Henryk, the other slaves, and the adventurers. "You've already taught your new dog humility, and you've taught the others what happens for disobedience. No need to destroy new toys, right?"
The leader of the adventurers narrowed his eyes at Someryn and said to his companion:
"He's right, Gill. Let him go."
The man named Gill cursed under his breath in displeasure, but obeyed his leader, allowing the horned man to stand and return to the line, not hiding his fear or frustration.
"Now that we've done that, it's time to get down to business," the leader of the adventurers announced, pointing to four large backpacks, each containing a mining tool. "Grab your backpacks and let's go in."
The disgruntled slaves took large backpacks onto their backs. Henryk felt a heavy burden. If he were to flee from something, the heavy backpack would have prevented him from taking even five steps, causing him to fall flat on his face, crushed by the backpack.
Every slave except the devil-man already had their backpacks slung over them. The silver-haired man clapped his hands.
"Fantastic! You go first, my dear," he said to the devil-man, not hiding his sadistic smile. He placed a hand on his shoulder. "We're counting on you."
The horned man looked down desperately, as if searching for something to save him from this situation. Of course, he found nothing.
He staggered toward the enormous cave entrance. He felt as if his heart was about to burst from his chest. He swallowed hard and glanced over his shoulder at the adventurers and slaves. Finally, he sighed and took the first step toward the cave entrance. Then another, and another, until he was inside.
Three hunters followed him, led by their leader. The other two followed those carrying the luggage, minimizing the risk of them trying to escape.
Entering the large, wide cave, Henryk felt a shiver run through his entire body. Even he sensed that something dangerous lurked within. But like the others, he had no choice. If he tried anything foolish like running away at that moment, he would be beaten like a devil or even killed.
Despite his overwhelming anxiety, the cave looked quite ordinary. Walking through the wide tunnels, Henryk saw stalactites and stalagmites. In some places, he saw water. It would have been a perfectly ordinary cave if he hadn't felt danger lurking on every side.
"Move the fuck up!" shouted the man with the large shield and sword, whose name was Gill, urging Henryk forward. He saw that he was walking too slowly and was instead looking everywhere.
Henryk gritted his teeth. He wanted to resist, but in the current situation, he couldn't. Now he was just a slave who had to follow orders. Looking at Gill, he could tell he was a rather hot-headed man with a murderous look in his eyes.
Even reluctantly, Henryk felt that the adventurer with the shield could kill him with the force of the devil-man. Not wanting to test Gill's patience, which the young man believed he couldn't handle, he quickly replied to the hunter.
"Excuse me, sir. I'm on my way," Henryk said in a tone of voice that was as pleasant to the ear as it was tender. Henryk himself was surprised by the sound of his own meek voice. But he paid no attention. He simply adjusted his backpack on his shoulders and began walking faster.