Volume 2 Chapter 4
I was locked in an iron cage, covered with a colored cloth, and transported like cargo. All I could feel was the jolting and bumping of the cart, and all I could hear were the lively shouts and calls of vendors from outside.
It seemed the cart was passing through a marketplace.
The smell of grilled meat made me swallow hard.
Does this world have cumin too? I could smell that familiar spice even through the cloth. It made me nostalgic for my school days, when I used to buy barbecue from the little street stalls. Even after I grew up and knew it wasn’t the most sanitary, I’d still buy a bag from time to time, probably as a way to remember my childhood.
Nia sat opposite me in a W-sit, her eyes closed in silence.
I could use a teleportation gate to escape this cramped space right now and return to the Demon King’s Fortress. But that would ruin everything. Slaves vanishing from a cage would be no small matter in the Winton Empire, especially slaves on their way to fight in the Colosseum. If the rich and powerful were deprived of their spectacle, they would be furious, and the Colosseum’s administrator would face immense pressure. Resigning in disgrace would be a light punishment; unless he had enough money to buy his way out of trouble, he’d be in deep. If the amount he could pay didn’t cover everyone’s ticket prices, the administrator himself would become one of the Colosseum’s slaves on the spot.
They’d remember our faces, and it would be a huge problem traveling through the empire in the future.
Fine. I’ll play along with you for a while.
The sound of the wheels ground to a halt. It seemed we had arrived at the Colosseum.
《Weight Reduction》
《Levitation》
With two Fourth Tier spells, the iron cage we were in lifted into the air and then gently settled onto the ground.
The cloth was thrown off.
We were surrounded by heavily armed guards. Towering above us was a corner of the Colosseum, which looked just like the ancient Roman one, complete with a vast number of spectator seats.
“Females? You didn’t bring the wrong ones?”
“Lady Louise, how would I dare transport the wrong slaves? You know I wouldn’t, right?”
A woman with long, straight red hair questioned the cart driver in a highly skeptical tone.
The driver waved his hands frantically, bowing and scraping as he respectfully answered her.
The woman called Louise had lips as red as fire and hair that covered her right eye. Her left eye was the color of a green gem. She held a halberd and wore a suit of female armor that revealed her cleavage and midriff.
I’m guessing she holds a position like Captain of the Guard, I thought. A place this huge must have plenty of guards to handle unexpected incidents, like escaping slaves or brawling spectators.
“I wouldn’t dare even if you gave me ten times the courage,” the driver said.
“Guards, fit these two with the special collars and take them to Room 14,” Louise ordered.
The collars were made of steel with a red gem set in the center and black trim.
Once the collars were on, the iron chains were removed.
My magic wasn’t affected in the slightest, and there didn’t seem to be any kind of anti-magic barrier on them. What were they for? After the collars were fastened, the guards visibly relaxed. This thing must be a very reassuring tool for them, probably possessing some powerful effect to prevent slaves from escaping.
Room 14. They called it a room, but it was really just a cell.
Why would they waste money building proper rooms for slaves? Slaves weren’t people; they didn’t have the right to live in comfortable, spacious quarters.
All the slaves wore black collars. When they saw two girls enter, they all crowded the iron bars of their cells, craning their necks to get a look.
“It’s girls!”
“No way!”
“Are they kids?”
They chattered in low voices. It seemed most of them were men.
They had fierce faces, tattoos, and shaved heads. They were brawny, muscle-bound men. These guys were all capable fighters; otherwise, they wouldn’t have chosen the bloody path of the Colosseum.
The slaves were grouped together in their cells. Some were alone, some in pairs, and the most crowded cell held four. If slaves who didn’t know each other were locked up together, accidents would probably happen. How thoughtful of the Colosseum. If Nia had been put in a different cell, I can only imagine what would have happened.
