"Umilythe, dear! I hope you haven't gotten too comfortable. We'll be leaving this camp very soon in a day or two."
Ere Majam sat on a piano bench. In the center building, she played a beautiful, melodic piece. Umilythe sat quietly as she slipped into her garments. The slave camp had returned to its hardworking state, and there was not a single break. In fact, the work seems to have gotten more grueling.
. . .
. .
.
"Acting Lieutenant Colonel! We've found what appears to be the slave camp where the head slave master is located. It's about 6 kilometers away."
"..."
Lusha van Jolen was stationed not too far away from the slave camp. A camp was set up, complete with tents, a campfire, and other essentials.
Lusha cleared her throat.
"Alright. We leave at night. An ambush."
"Ma'am."
"Yes, Major?"
In front of her stood a frail man. His hair was parted in the middle, brown, medium-length. He was equipped in light armor, a three-pronged spear at his back. The man stared at Lusha with belittling blue eyes.
"There are a lot of factors we have not taken into consideration. For example, the number of guards, the terrain, and the ready men. Also, it is a slave camp with a huge number of slaves. Realistically, these numbers could overpower ours."
"Major. They're slaves. They're gonna see an opportunity to be free, and they're gonna take it. Why wouldn't they? What's the difference between this and a subjugation?"
"The difference is that the goal isn't to subjugate the slaves. It's to eliminate Ere Majam."
"..."
In a kingdom where the slave trade is an important part of the economy... Father wants to kill a notable slave trader. Why would he do that?
Ah, it doesn't matter. Although it's strange, right now, it's none of my concern. I'll make Father regret looking down at me. He thinks I won't be able to complete this, doesn't he?
"Major, with all due respect, I am aware of your extensive military knowledge. But I do not need that right now. Only your combative and strategic skills will be needed directly on the soon-to-be battlefield."
"... Yes, Ma'am."
. . .
. .
.
Clang!
Clang!
Oscar swung down on the mana stone ores with efficiency. He was so efficient that he was able to wield two pickaxes at once. Julian watched in visible awe and jealousy.
"Hey... Oscar."
"Hm? Oh, is that you, Julian?"
The two of them mined beside each other.
"Yes, yes. It's me. I've made some major developments in the plan."
"Really?" Oscar replied. His inflection was supposed to have some surprise or emphasis to it, but his face remained still, and his voice remained unchanged.
Jeez. He's almost like a robot. Physically and emotionally. Julian shuddered, scanning the defined muscles on Oscar's body.
"Yes. A development in the freeing of slaves, in general. Not just this camp."
"..."
Something in Oscar changed.
"But there's something I need you to do. You are the strongest. Not only out of our group, but also throughout this camp,"
It's not like that's much of an achievement in a slave camp full of malnourished children, though.
"Everyone knows this," Julian continued, "and you can be the symbol of revolt. The symbol of hope. Everyone will see that since you are fighting, and they'll know that it's alright to fight too. Do you understand what I'm trying to say?"
"Yeah, yeah. One problem, Julian. These chains could kill me in less than a second. I've seen it. I might not seem like it, but like any rational human, I don't want to die."
"You won't die."
"Julian... you speak with a lot of conviction."
"I'll do the unthinkable. I'll do something so amazing, I'll put life into those dull, murky eyes of yours."
"..."
"So as soon as you feel that surge of mana enter your body... you'll be the one to strike. It doesn't matter what you do. As long as it's a sign that you are going to fight. Do you understand?"
"…"
For the first time, Oscar hesitated.
"Alright. I'll be waiting, then."
Julian turned his head back to focus on mining. The day went by slowly and grueling, like usual. But unlike usual, there was a flicker of hope in Julian's heart. One that he had seemed to lose a long time ago.
The moon hung high in the sky. Birds cooed gently.
"Have you decided yet?"
Julian stood in front of Umilythe.
She stood tall, mainly because she was standing on top of the rock they had rested on, the previous few nights.
"… Yeah. I've made my decision."
"And what is that?"
"To be free."
She reached for the shackle around her neck, pulling it apart. She threw it to the ground.
[Cast: Fireball]
Her palm stretched out. A ball of fire shot out, destroying the shackle. Julian stared in shock.
"What. You've never seen magic before?"
Well… yeah?
"I-it's been a while. Come on."
Julian outstretched his hand. Safely lowering her off the rock. His hands were a bit shaky, urgent.
"You alright?" she asked.
"Yeah, yeah. It's just… The guards are gonna be here any time soon. They think I went past the kill zone barrier thingy, and are likely gonna retrieve my body to confirm."
"Oh. Right. I forgot that I set that up."
"And… another thing."
"Hm?"
"Thank you. For not killing me, when I came to the river to wash off. Since I assume with these shackles you can kill anyone."
"Ah, right. No problem. Since we're… friends now, right?"
"Yeah. Friends."
"I'm gonna need a bit of your assistance, though. If I want to remove the mana nullifying effects of these shackles… It's gonna take a bit of energy. And time. Oh, and getting closer definitely helps."
"… You didn't prepare it beforehand?!"
"Relax. If the guards come here, it's not like they can kill me."
"But they can kill me!"
"… I didn't factor that. Okay, problem solved."
Umilythe placed a hand on his back.