Chapter 23 - A New Dawn
My consciousness returns. I seem to be in a bed. It feels great. No pain. It’s probably bugged how I collapse after every big fight. Still, this pillow smells amazing. I pull it up to my face, inhaling deeply. I could sniff this forever.
"Mushu?" Mizuki’s voice breaks the moment. I open my eyes and sit up. A simple but tasteful room. There’s an antique feel to the shelves and desk, but they’re well-kept. Red light filters in from the window—must be close to dusk. Mizuki and Fam are sitting in chairs nearby. Cecily, Aira, and Beazres are kneeling between them, looking pretty worse for wear, though their wounds seem healed. That narrows down who got 'cured'. And who instigated all of this. 'Wind Blade' helped me out before, hurts a bit more to off them.
"Where’s Reed?" I ask Fam.
"……"
"He slashed you after the duel, so they put him in jail, naturally, due to law enforcement systems exist here." ﾀoo wordy—Blame it on the Sword Saint.
"That's that. Makes no sense to put weapons in storage if they just throw you in jail. Magic-suppressing tools, I assumed."
"Fam, why are these guys kneeling?"
"……They’re your slaves now. Beazres’ contract got rewritten when you beat him, and Aira and Cecily just got branded." Again, Mizuki jumped in.
"You can’t keep calling me that. You got the gist of why." Not worth the moaning here.
"...izational authorities called it that. You'd know."
"Why?"
"You shouldn't just let them go after what happened. It's a cat and mouse game. Reed tried to kill you, even though you freed him, technically."
"Fair point. So slavery for, what, a year?"
"A year makes sense. At least. Just to signal that having someone killed is a big deal. And given Racshell declared you her hero and enemy 'Wind Blade', thistantum things just got political."
"So, Fam? Honest answer."
"...I still disagree. They almost killed you. That’s not forgivable. Even now, they should still be at your mercy, especially him."
"So just slavery? Y/N?"
"Yes. It’s only fair, considering. Even the world Tree thirsts for balance. And that applies to you now, Mashu. Whether you like it or not."
I sighed, digging into my storage for 10 silver coins. "Alright, here’s some cash. Stay at Asuka Inn tonight. I’ll consider the formal release tomorrow."
"Is... is that alright?" Beazres’ voice was higher than I expected.
"Yeah."
He took the money with a mix of shock and relief before scurrying off. "Last are Cecily and Aira."
"Before that, do we know what’s happening to Reed?"
"He’ll be judged by the city’s laws, naturally. Even if he was provoked."
"Then there’s no need to enslave them. Wraps things up nicely."
Better than having them cling around like parasites. Or getting dragged into his noble backing’s problems.
"True. Seems fair."
"...And Fam?"
"I still don’t like it. But if he’s in jail, I suppose it’s fine for now."
Fam still scares me. She knows more than anyone what a jail feels like. Bringing that up'd just make her defensive. "Sighs deeply. Why isn’t anyone looking at me?" I turn slowly. The room’s bigger than I thought. Maira was standing just past the bed, grinning from ear to ear.
"Maira-san... how long have you been there?"
"Long enough, Mashu-sama. And just to clarify, this is my room."
The scent made sense now. I'm fcuked. "Maira-san, you can talk now."
"Finally. It’s my turn. It’s a dangerous idea to let Aira go so quickly—"
"Why? She tried to stab me. And no matter what, they’re still criminals?" I interrupted, fishing.
"They tried to attack a hero invoked from Goddess Racshell. That makes 'Wind Blade' enemies of the state, technically. And Reed tried to kill you after you saved him, hero or not. That... complicates things. At least for a while. A while being longer than one night."
"So, you're saying a year at least. Got it. But why Aira specifically? She and Maira look gnarly similar, aren’t you worried she’d get... confused with you?"
"No. But town gossip—well, after you sleep with Aira, they’ll definitelylijah—no. As your hero, people expect a certain standard. Just look at the way they punished Fam after she defended you. Even if her conditions were mostly exaggeration. You need to set a standing. A clear line. Slavery for a while isn't unreasonable, at least until things cool down."
"Fair point. So, I can ‘use’ them but can't just let them go? What about Cecily? Just rebrand her with better gear or her old stuff? She seems milder."
"She’s still part of the group whoaturally threatened you. But she betrayed Reed for you, so I’m willing to be lenient there if you insist. Oh, and I almost forgot—I have to tell the priests you’re awake. That’s part of why I’m here. Sorry. The High Priest will want to speak to you. Regarding your 'divine' branding."
She left before I could answer. Things were going south fast. A 'real' goddess’s branding now complicates things beyond just public image. A year, huh? Maybe a silver lining—time to level. And prepare for the real enemies. Augustus was something too.
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