“S-Sir,” a quiet female voice said behind me, just after I had left the tavern where I had been looking for Amber.

  Behind us stood a short figure, with her head lowered, hands csped together in front of her, and a hood hiding her face.

  What now? I really didn't need any more trouble.

  “Yes?” I asked.

  “S-S-S-S…” she stammered, repeating the same letter over and over, like a broken record stuck on a single sound.

  “Are you okay?” I asked, stepping a bit closer, but keeping a safe distance.

  “Sorry,” she whispered, raising her gaze somewhere to my chest. She was young, cute with round cheeks, small lips, and a small button nose. “I need your help, sir!” she gasped, finally finding her voice.

  “Okay,” I said slowly, wondering if it was some sort of trap. Or more likely, she’d just ask me for money. But seeing a disturbed, young, pretty girl, I couldn't just walk away without at least listening to her.

  “You must buy Terra!” she gasped. “I-I-I-I…” And again she was completely frozen, stammering the same letter again.

  Even if it was a trap, it certainly wasn’t her that was a danger - she was too stressed and too young. On the other hand, it could all be magic. However, we were in a busy street that really didn't seem like a good pce to attack someone.

  “Marcy, can you sense her intentions?” I asked, gncing at the lioness shapeshifter.

  “She’s really stressed, scared, and worried,” Marcellina replied. “And she doesn’t have any bad intentions toward me.”

  A little bit reassured, I stepped closer to the girl and put my hand on her shoulder, rubbing it softly, trying to calm her down.

  “It’s okay, rex, and try to expin what’s going on one more time,” I said softly.

  “You must buy Terra! Please!” She looked at me for the first time, with her unnaturally big, brown eyes, pleading. “I’ll become your sve too, but please buy her!” She dropped to her knees in front of me. “I’ll be so good. I can clean, and… I’ll do anything. Anything!”

  “Hey, get up,” I said, grabbing under her arms and pulling her up to her feet. She was short, slim, and very light. “Do you want to drink water?” I asked, hoping it would calm her down a bit.

  “P-Please,” she stammered, with a soft smile. Zoe passed the girl a bottle and she took only a small sip before she returned it. “Thank you, miss.”

  “Okay, take a deep breath,” I said.

  The girl did as I asked, and then let it out slowly, following my example.

  “What’s your name?” I asked.

  “Mia,” the girl replied, sniffling.

  “I’m Tobias,” I replied. “Listen, I don't think I can help you, Mia.”

  “Look!” the girl gasped, pulling her hood off. From the top of her head, from between brown hair, rose two long ears that looked like those of a rabbit. “I-I know you like d-demon girls,” she stammered, averting her gaze.

  “Mia,” I sighed. “I can't help you. I-”

  “Please! You’ll get two for the price of one. And I’ll be very good!”

  “I can't afford to buy your friend,” I said, after she had interrupted me.

  “B-B-But…” was all she managed to stammer, her gaze shifting to Azura, Zoe, and Mari standing behind me.

  “It’s a bit complicated, but I didn't buy them. I’m almost broke.”

  “Oh no,” Mia muttered, and then fell to her knees, hiding her face in her hands, sobbing in the middle of the street at my feet.

  I wasn't really sure what I was supposed to do with her, and I really had other important matters to take care of.

  “Listen, Mia, I would really want to help you, but I don't have any money, and I’m quite busy right now, looking for a friend,” I said, crouching and stroking her back, trying to reassure her somehow.

  “T-The elf?” she asked, sniffling and looking at me.

  “Have you seen her?” I asked.

  Mia nodded, wiping tears from her face. “I-I saw you with her a few days ago, so I thought she’s your friend, and I followed her. B-But a few people attacked her. I-I was too scared to do something, a-and they kidnapped her. I’m sorry.”

  “Fuck,” I muttered. It was bad, and if that happened in the city, I doubted those were just random bandits, but someone who targeted Amber specifically. “Where did it happen?” I asked.

  Mia sniffled, looking at me. “W-Would you help me?”

  “I can’t pay for Terra,” I sighed.

  “Sell me,” Mia muttered. “And buy Terra. J-Just promise you’ll treat her well.”

  “You would lose your freedom,” I said, surprised by her offer.

  “Terra always protected me. I must repay her for that!”

  “But this way both of you would be sves,” I replied.

  “But you treat yours well,” Mia whispered.

  I would just need to sell Mia and buy her friend. I could free Terra immediately and get information about Amber. But even if that was Mia’s wish, putting a young girl into svery made me uncomfortable. And if Terra had always protected Mia, I doubted Terra would be happy about Mia taking her pce.

  “Please sir!” Mia gasped. “I’ll do anything you want before you sell me.”

  “Listen, Mia, do you really think that Terra would want you to become a sve to save her?” I asked.

  “I-I-I-I…” she stammered, and then broke down crying, hiding her face in her hands.

  “Terra would want you to be free,” I said softly, brushing Mia’s back.

  “You don't understand!” she suddenly gasped, looking at me. “They’ll hurt her!”

  “Maybe she’ll be lucky and someone good will buy her,” I replied.

  Mia shook her head vigorously, her ears fpping around. “S-She’s an… orc,” she murmured so quietly I could barely hear it.

  “An orc?” I asked, gncing at the rest of the women, hoping one of them would understand why that was important.

  “Idiot,” Mari scoffed. “Think about sves as goods for a moment, about the traits people look for in them. You want women for housekeeping or sex. Very often both. Men for physical bor. Orc women are in an unfortunate position, because they are… not quite as attractive, which makes them unsuitable for sex. On the other hand, they’re weaker than men, so they’re not good for work either.”

  “That leaves two options for them,” Mari continued. “If they have a strong css, they’re useful in dungeons. What level is Terra?” she asked, looking at Mia.

  “L-Level one,” the girl stammered.

  “That’s bad. Maybe if she were high-level, someone would buy her, but at level one the chances are slim, nobody wants to train a combat sve from scratch. Which leaves one option…”

  “Orc women are resilient and regenerate quickly. So if some pathetic asshole is such a loser that, to feel even a little manly, he needs to abuse women, it’s customary to seek an orc woman. A fragile bunny girl like Mia would die after a week of beatings and whatever other disgusting things those bastards want to do, while Terra would be able to endure it for years.”

  “Most orc women end up bought by brothels and offered to aggressive clients and sadists. Mia hopes that if you buy Terra, you’ll treat her right and not hurt her, while she will most likely end up in some rich merchant’s house as a cook, cleaner, and sex toy. This way, both of them would be sves, but at least both would have decent lives.”

  “T-That’s right,” Mia muttered, still crying.

  Even if it was supposed to save Terra from abuse, it didn't seem like a good solution.

  “Sell me, please,” Mia said, noticing my hesitation. “I-I have never been with a man… Before you sell me, y-you can do whatever you want with me.”

  “I want to talk with her alone,” Mari said. “Step away.”

  “What?” I asked, looking at her, confused.

  This time speaking slowly, she repeated, “I want to talk with her alone.”

  “About?”

  Mari sighed, rolling her eyes. “There might be another solution for this whole mess, but I want to talk about it with her one on one first.”

  I looked at the bunny girl and then nodded, stepping away with Zoe, Azura, and Marcy. Mari turned both of them so she and Mia were both with their backs to us, as they talked.

  “Master,” Zoe said quietly. “Can we help her?”

  “There’s no way to help both of them,” I replied, then gnced at Marcy. “Unless you’re rich and want to buy Terra.”

  Marcellina shook her head. “I can’t afford that,” she said, gncing at Mia with a worried look.

  Zoe looked just as sad, staring at the bunny girl. I wrapped my arm around her and hugged her softly as we waited. After a moment, Mia began to nod energetically. Not long after, Mari approached us, the bunny girl following close behind.

  “There’s another solution,” Mari said. “And knowing you, you’ll like it.”

  “You think so?” I asked.

  “They’ll both end up as your sves,” Mari replied. “So you’ll grow your perverted harem.”

  “Why are you even trying to help me?”

  “I’m not!” she scoffed. “I want to help them.”

  “But they’d both end up as sves. Is that really such a big help?”

  “Bastard,” Mari groaned. “You can’t just help them and be happy that you’ll have two more women to fuck! Do you really need me to say that? Okay, fine. Considering what a pervert you are, you treat your sves exceptionally well, and if Mia is stubborn enough to become one to save Terra, then you’re most likely their best choice!” Mari growled.

  “Thanks,” I replied, smiling.

  “Asshole,” Mari muttered.

  “You still haven’t told me how we can help them.”

  She scoffed, looking disgusted, then expined, “You make Mia your sve and take a loan, putting her up as colteral. With the money, you buy Terra. You’ll need to pay it back, but you can do it in installments over time. You’ll end up with two new girls for the price of an orc woman, you’ll hit the jackpot.”

  “Just like I did with you?” I asked.

  “Asshole,” she muttered again, crossing her arms and turning away.

  “Please, sir,” Mia said. “I’ll do whatever you want. I’ll be obedient, and… a-and I’m not that fragile,” she stammered, gncing at Mari.

  I sighed, looking at the terrified bunny girl, wondering what I was supposed to do. I needed to look for Amber, and Mia was the st person to see her - I needed her help.

  “Will you show me where Amber was kidnapped?” I asked.

  “If you help me,” Mia replied.

  She wasn’t really giving me an option. And I wasn’t risking that much. I’d go into debt, which I really didn’t like, but if I didn’t pay it, they’d take Mia away - something she had already agreed to, wanting to be sold - so I wouldn’t lose anything else. I could free Terra immediately after buying her and offer her a deal to pay off the debt in order to free Mia too.

  “Can Terra fight?” I asked, wondering if she would have a way to earn that money and help us in the dungeon.

  “Yes,” Mia replied. “She always protected me.”

  “I mean against monsters in the dungeon,” I crified.

  “Oh… She has a brawler css,” the bunny girl said.

  That could be useful for our team, but I couldn’t know if Terra would even agree to such a pn. Still, if Mia wasn’t lying, I doubted she would let her remain a sve if there was a chance to free her, especially if the bunny girl would end up in this position to save her.

  “Mari, is moneylending an official thing, or is it shady business?” I asked, gncing at the kitsune.

  “It’s legal,” she replied. “There’s a moneylending guild in every bigger city. How much does Terra cost?” she asked Mia.

  “Fifteen hundred.”

  “You shouldn’t take more than that. They’ll be happy to give you as much for Mia,” Mari said.

  Did I really want to go into debt? And what about the interest? How much would I need to pay back, and how long would it take me? Maybe I could ask Gemma to cover it for me, and then repay her ter after completing some mission. But to ask her about that, I’d need to wait until night, and I really didn’t want to waste time while Amber was somewhere out there, held captive.

  “I assume Terra is at the market here in Atranth?” I asked, trying to buy myself a bit more time to think it over.

  “Yes, sir,” Mia replied.

  “How did she even end up there?” I asked, frowning.

  “W-We were orphans, a-and a family took us in to raise us. B-But a day before Terra turned eighteen, t-they colred her. B-Before they managed to sell her, she helped me run away.”

  “Are they going to look for you?” I asked.

  “I-I-I-I-I…” And I broke her again, as she froze at my question.

  “It’s okay,” I said softly, brushing her arm. “Take a deep breath.”

  After a moment of breathing, she looked at me. “I don’t think so,” Mia muttered. “A-And I turned eighteen today, s-so I-I don’t think they can take me anymore.”

  She had just become an adult and was already in such a shitty position. I had a chance to help her, and in return she would help me find Amber. Not wanting to waste any more time, I made my choice.

  “Okay, I’ll help you,” I said.

  “Thank you!” Mia squeaked, wrapping her arms around me. But she quickly pulled away, squeaking again. “I’m sorry,” she mumbled, dropping her eyes to the ground.

  “No problem,” I replied. “And I’ll have an offer for you, so both of you can end up free. Terra would need to go with us into a dungeon, and you could help too, but we’ll talk about it ter, okay?”

  “Y-Yes, sir. I’ll do anything. Just please save her!”

  I nodded, looking down the street, wondering where Amber was and if she was still okay. Step by step, I would first help Mia and Terra. Then the bunny girl would show me where Amber had been kidnapped, hoping for some clues. If that didn’t work, I’d seek out Kalista for more information, and hope that somehow I’d be able to save my little elf.