Chapter 16

“Where did you hide the items? And where did that little brat go?”

Delophin’s underground prison.

Myara, who had taken on the role of interrogator, was questioning Carami.

A cleric would generally hold a social status above that of many nobles.

The knight order was reluctant to raise their voices against someone like Myara, and since they didn’t know the full circumstances, they comfortably delegated complete authority to her.

“Well, I think I dropped it on the way here. I was so scared they were chasing me that I lost my wits.”

“Are you asking me to believe that?”

“Wouldn’t my limbs scatter if I bumped into something? How could I not be scared?”

“Stop with the theatrics.”

The theatrics coming from that human.

This person brought a storm!

Anyway, one shouldn’t try to understand the thought processes of monsters. It only gives you a headache.

Thinking like that, Carami slouched in the chair. He sighed and lamented about life.

“Ha, that was actually really important to me, you know.”

Carami was putting on an act, making a face that looked as bitter as an emperor who had lost his world, making Myara almost falter.

“What was that supposed to be?”

“It was a book. It belonged to a goblin shaman.”

“A magic book of a goblin shaman? Sometimes those kinds of things come into possession.”

It was rare if it was rare, and common if it was common.

“But it’s not something precious enough to risk your life for, right?”

If it were a lich, it might be different, but it’s just a goblin. How good could something a goblin owns possibly be?

It was written in an incomprehensible language, and even after the trouble of deciphering it, there were many useless contents. Selling it would yield barely a single silver.

From Myara’s perspective, Carami seemed like a person who strictly calculated costs and benefits, yet he didn’t understand why he would take a risk with something so useless against the order.

“You should be questioning the person who made it.”

“The maker? The Goblin King? Not a human.”

“It could be seen as similar.”

Whether it was the operator or the Goblin King.

It’s all the same, isn’t it?

Myara couldn’t help but let out a hollow laugh at Carami’s shameless attitude.

“By the way, you’re really calm. Usually, everyone who comes in here begs for mercy.”

“Usually, it’s those with something to be guilty about.”

“You’re actually saying that out loud? Slave God Carami.”

“How did you find that out?”

Even though he was notorious, not everyone in the world could know the name of a mere slave merchant. Only in places where the slave trade was active would people recognize it; in a rural area, if you told them he was a Slave God, they’d probably just think “what the heck is that?”.

Myara shrugged as if it were no big deal.

“I did some investigating. You did something pretty impressive in Libria, right? You had a match with the Mage Guild Leader?”

“That guild leader was just like you. Judging the world from his narrow perspective and acting without understanding the situation.”

“I apologize for that. That’s why I’m even having this conversation with you now. I could easily disregard it. If it were someone else, I’d have broken a few fingers by now.”

“Thank you.”

Really, thank you.

Someone breaking fingers? Given the monstrous strength displayed earlier, just a light flick would probably send his head bursting like a pumpkin.

As such tension-less interrogation continued, Myara seemed to lose her energy, resting her chin on the table.

“So, are you really not going to tell me what kind of scheme you’re plotting?”

“In fact, I already handed the magic book to the slave.”

“Of course. But is that something to be excited about? To entrust it to a slave and end up in custody instead?”

“It’s nothing special. It’s a magic book related to souls.”

How did he know that?

Is it the intelligence of the slave merchant?

Whenever I talk to Carami, questions keep bubbling up.

“You’re surprisingly cooperative.”

“It’s my role to buy time until that girl learns the magic written in the book. Once she’s done, I’ll return the magic book.”

“And when would that be?”

“She’s a talented girl, so it’ll be just a few days.”

Carami’s words were tightly wound with trust. It seemed like he was dealing with a beloved daughter rather than a slave.

“You seem to treat her quite preciously. So why kill the slaves? Is that your preference?”

“I’m not killing them; I’m setting them free. It would be more accurate to call it a hobby than a preference.”

“You twisted perverted bastard.”

“…”

Getting tired of justifying himself, Carami fell silent. He had realized long ago that no matter what he said, he wouldn’t be believed.

He turned his head and blankly stared outside through the iron bars.

He was worried about the girl who should be alone by now.

‘Is she doing well?’

She had no choice but to believe she was doing well.

***

In a world where even the moonlight was obscured by clouds.

The room, devoid of any light, was pitch dark.

Like someone’s innermost thoughts.

Mirabel, capable of using magic and even casting spells, didn’t think to light a candle. She simply sat there with her face buried in her knees, listlessly.

How long had it been since she entered this room?

She had no way of knowing.

Loneliness often makes the flow of time ambiguous.

Mirabel was accustomed to loneliness.

She was alone in the wagon carrying her to be sold as a slave. Alone in the cage where she was confined until the auction.

From the moment she was abandoned, she had been entirely alone.

Inside the cage, in what felt like an eternity, Mirabel vowed that she wouldn’t trust anyone. Because she had been betrayed by blood.

Yet loneliness never became familiar. Familiarity and adaptation were two different stories.

Moreover, even if the one she felt longing for was a slave merchant.

Slave merchant.

Slave God Carami.

Carami was a peculiar person.

From the first moment, he had burrowed into her heart by declaring his intention to abandon her. Without the chance to regain her composure due to his quirkiness, she was enchanted.

To make matters worse, her master locked himself up in prison for the sake of the slave. Just the thought made her want to laugh.

However, the biggest reason Mirabel felt favor toward Carami was the soul’s shackles. As long as they were bound together, she wasn’t alone.

He had said he wouldn’t discard her if she proved her worth, so as long as she did well, she could be with him for life. She wouldn’t have to be abandoned.

Even if it meant dying.

Because Colton had said so.

What could her master be doing right now?

He must be undergoing terrible torture at the hands of the wicked cleric.

Not properly eating.

Not being able to sleep.

She needed to save him as soon as possible.

Only then would liberation come to her.

Mirabel opened the magic book. The magic book filled with incomprehensible words. Yet for some reason, she could discern its contents just by looking at it.

It was as if knowledge flowed into her brain.

From the fragments of that knowledge, Mirabel could understand Carami’s intentions. He had certainly instructed her to learn the magic written here and come back.

Divine Punishment.

That was Carami’s intention.

To unleash divine punishment upon all those who hindered the noble plan of liberation.

Carami was what one could typically refer to as filth.

So much so that he would confuse reality with a game in his subconscious. There were moments when he thought, ‘If I raise a dog and take it for a walk, wouldn’t it be similar to walking around with a slave?’

Thanks to playing the game, he gained a lot of information.

Yet due to playing the game, he missed out on a lot of information.

Even though he was aware that many things had changed now that the game had become reality, it was impossible to know everything.

This also applied to items dropped by monsters.

For example, if the magic book dropped by a goblin shaman had a 100% chance of being the [Soul Magic Book], now it could be titled [57 Tips on Collecting the Soul of the Old Man☆: Divine Punishment Edition].

What had once been considered obvious may not remain obvious at all.

Unaware of the detailed circumstances, Mirabel began to swiftly learn magic to faithfully carry out Carami’s orders.

***

How many days had it been since I entered prison?

It hadn’t been that long.

The sun had risen twice and set three times, with meals coming out eight times, so it had been three days.

The treatment in prison was better than expected.

When I first transmigrated and worked at the inn, I had to sleep on hay in the stable, but here I was sleeping on a bed, even if it was cheap.

What kind of prisoner gets to enjoy such comfort in the world?

It was all thanks to Myara’s kindness. She was considerably concerned about the incident at the tavern from last week. Not someone who wouldn’t repay a debt, she intends to pay back as much as she could.

It wasn’t a bad deal for me, so I didn’t refuse. I’m someone who doesn’t know how to say no.

She also said she would release me soon. That was due to her natural way with words.

Of course, she said she would check the magic book first, but at this point, I wouldn’t mind if it was taken away. I had bought enough time. Mirabel must have learned at least how to communicate with the soul.

After all, she was an exceptionally talented girl.

Who knows?

“She might have mastered all the magic in the book.”

The journey with Mirabel was slowly nearing its end. Parting would be regrettable, but I still had a long way to go. I didn’t have the luxury to hesitate.

“Wasn’t the next main story slave surely an elf?”

Did he really buy an elf slave? Are you out of your mind? No need to hear that out loud.

A trash character even among elves.

I should start planning ahead.

That would ensure things go as smoothly as they did this time.

There was indeed a time when I thought like that.

The beginning of the trouble was after the mysterious earthquake happened.

At first, I thought Myara was coming down again, making noise between the floors.

She actually did come down. But even when she was right in front of me, the vibrations didn’t cease.

So what is this?

Is it really an earthquake?

Around the time I was thinking that, Myara’s face turned pale, and she hurriedly spoke.

“That little brat wasn’t an ordinary mage, was she?”

“That’s right, but why do you ask?”

“Because of her, there’s chaos outside!”

Was Mirabel’s cuteness overflowing to the point of causing an explosion?

If that were the case, it would have been better.

When I went outside with Myara, lightning struck the blue sky, and at the center was Mirabel.

She was smiling brightly at me.

“I came to rescue you, Master.”

In that moment, Mirabel had transformed.

[Abandoned Witch Mirabel]

[Representative of Death: Judgment Witch Mirabel]

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