There was a restless buzz in the air.
While the slave arena was always noisy, today's commotion felt different.
Slaves forced to fight in the arena were mostly criminals or captured prisoners of war from neighboring countries.
Naturally, they were a bunch of rough men, hot-headed fools covered in dirt.
I had been lazily spending my days in a cell-like room that was supposedly called a residence for slaves. Three years ago, when I was captured by soldiers under orders from the Dystiana Empire, I resisted, killing several of them in the process. And as a punishment, they gouged out one of my eyes.
Since then, I had been living with only my remaining left eye, but recently, probably due to malnutrition, the world around me often appeared blurry.
I had survived these three years in the enemy nation after being sold off, enduring as a slave gladiator in an arena where I was brought as a display.
I wasn’t eager to die, nor had I ever wished for death. There were times when I felt indifferent to everything, lacking a strong will to live, but so far, there hadn’t been any formidable opponents capable of ending my life.
The sole reason for my survival was only that.
Amidst the commotion, several sets of footsteps approached me.
Chained up, I sat on the hard, exposed dirt floor in a small, stone-divided space. Leaning against the cold wall, the place was only slightly better than outside, offering some shelter from the rain, but it was a musty and dusty environment.
There were times when I contemplated revenge. I considered returning to the Dystiana Empire that betrayed me and taking the head of the emperor who sold me to the enemy country.
However, I wondered what that would truly accomplish. There was nothing left for me in the Dystiana Empire, as I had no one dear to me.
For me, the only reliable friend and family I had was my flying dragon Helios, whom I raised from an egg. If we could fly together again, nothing else mattered.
So, nothing mattered to me—the unusual commotion, the footsteps. Thinking that, I kept my eyes closed without directing my gaze anywhere.
“This person is Black Prince Julius, right?”
The voice that echoed was inappropriately cheerful.
It was a young girl’s voice. It wasn’t particularly high-pitched, nor was it low.
It was cheerful but not annoying. Just a pleasant voice.
“This is Black Prince Julius. Captured by the Empire three years ago to form a truce agreement, Julius, the battle-hardened undefeated general, the Black Prince.”
Following that, a vulgar male voice could be heard.
It was the voice of the slave arena’s manager. He had rough rings tightly fitting onto his fingers, and when he opened his mouth, golden teeth were visible. A muscular and gigantic man. Just hearing his voice was enough to build up irritation.
“Exactly five million gold, Chloe-san. I can’t imagine you, a mere alchemist, could afford such an amount...”
“I’ll buy him! I’ll buy him right away. What a great deal!”
“...Huh?”
After the woman’s voice, I heard the bewildered voice of the manager.
When I opened my eyes slightly, I saw a fluttering red skirt in front of me.
A petite woman, along with the manager, was standing before my eyes.
She had spring-like, pale peach-colored hair, with a red headkerchief tied around her head. Her large eyes were also a peach-like shade of pink. Although not flashy, she had a charming appearance.
Finally, I thought an angel had come to take me away. Is it finally over? I chuckled at the thought that my life would end not by someone killing me but due to malnutrition—how anticlimactic.
The woman took something out from her cloth bag, and it seemed to be a heavy bag. She handed the bag to the manager, pushing it towards him.
“Alright, exactly five million gold. Do you have the contract? The contract is crucial, so please bring it. If you violate the contract to sell for five million gold, Chloe-chan’s special contract violation enforcement bomb will explode, so be careful.”
With a smile, the woman persistently repeated the word ‘contract.’
What in the world is a contract violation enforcement bomb?
I furrowed my brows, not understanding the term. The woman referred to herself as Chloe—Presumably, that’s her name.
It was my first time dying, and it seemed that even when taking a dead person, some kind of contract is necessary. I pondered over trivial matters.
“Th-The contract, right... But, Chloe-san, are you sure about this? This man is the ruthless Black Prince Julius. He’s cruel, and he’s killed many people. He’s not someone a delicate lady like you can handle,” the manager said, looking anxious.
Chloe, holding the contract in her hands, clasped them lightly in front of her chest.
“Manager, I’m Chloe, the genius alchemist beauty! If he turns out to be a violent person who can’t obey orders, I’ll create an appropriate alchemical device to handle him! By the way, I’ve already thought of the concept. The other day, when I was taking a walk, I saw a muzzle for a ferocious dog. So I came up with something similar—a rod-shaped device. When you do something bad, it releases an electric shock, making it impossible to speak unnecessarily. See, it should be fine, right?”
“Chloe-san... I’ve been a manager in the slave arena for a long time, but I’ve never thought of attaching such a cruel thing to the slaves…”
“Is that so?”
“Well, if you say so, it’s fine. Honestly, Julius Craft was too strong and difficult to handle. I’m the type who wants to show respect to the strong, so there’s a part of me that felt shame about his life ending here. If Chloe-san still insists, I’ll sell him to you.”
“Yay, thank you so much! I’ve been thinking that I really want someone strong. Then, someone told me that Julius-san is being put up for sale in the slave arena. It was Roxy-san from the cafeteria who told me. I thought maybe he was already sold, but I’m glad I came to buy. It feels like fate.”
The woman spoke with an out-of-place cheerful tone. She was quite talkative.
Strangely, her voice didn’t irritate me. I didn’t like people who talk a lot, but maybe it was because the woman’s voice was pleasant to the ears.
“Well, there was also the matter of the price. Not many people would want to buy a former enemy general like Julius for such a high price. The royal family has entrusted me with handling Julius in the slave arena. In other words, I have the authority to sell him. Chloe-san, please take him home. If anyone can handle him, it might be you.”
“What do you mean? If it’s because I’m a beautiful, talented, and genius alchemist, I understand. Chloe's Alchemy Shop has wonderful alchemical items to spice up the slave arena, so please come and buy them! With alchemy, even the jewels on the manager’s fingers can be transformed into splendid alchemical items. Unlimited abilities, depending on the money!”
“That is... certainly, someday. Now, Chloe-san, I will transfer the rights of the magic lock to you. Do you know how to use it?”
“Yes. I can use magic reasonably well. I just need to re-establish the contract under my name, correct?”
“That’s right. Be careful with the terms of the contract. If you feel pity and decide to release him, there’s no guarantee you won’t be stabbed in the back.”
“Thank you for your concern. I used to think the slave arena was a scary place, but I’m relieved that the manager turned out to be a surprisingly normal person.”
Him? A normal person?!
I clicked my tongue in my mind.
Is this woman stupid, or does she not realize that a man like him, who makes money by having slaves kill each other in an arena, can’t be a normal person?
“Julius-san, Julius-san. Hello!”
The woman approached me without any hesitation and squatted down in front of me.
With an unadorned yet charming face, her beautiful eyes, like flowers in full bloom in spring, earnestly gazed at me.
“Starting today, I am Julius-san’s master. Nice to meet you. I’m the genius alchemist, Chloe-chan! Let’s get along, okay?”
“...An unnecessarily loud woman, aren’t you?”
I said what I thought.
Chloe widened her eyes and said, “Julius-san spoke,” looking surprised. I wondered what she meant. Perhaps she thought of me as some sort of beast who couldn’t even understand human speech.
Still, the messengers from the heavens these days seem to have a lot of unnecessary chatter.
I wasn’t dying, and I vaguely realized that Chloe was a living person. Yet, Chloe, descending to me when I was on the brink of death, looked like an angel.