“Ahahaha~ sure. Is this good enough?” → Shen
I took out from my inventory a nice weapon which I created by combining some nice gauntlets I found in Gabriel’s armory, with 3 energy stones that had the elements of frost, earth, and darkness, making the stones absorb the energy of the user so they won’t get consumed.
“Oh? What is this?” → Ryu
When he saw the gauntlets he was shocked because, around them, 3 stones were levitating around, one black, one dark blue and one yellow.
“Try them.” → Shen
I threw the gauntlets at Ryu and he caught them with one hand, wearing them instantly. He opened his status window and was flabbergasted.
“What the hell?! My stats skyrocketed with over 400 points! And I got the elements of « Frost », « Darkness » and « Earth » in every attack?! What are these gauntlets?!” → Ryu
“Try to circulate your chi and prepare an attack.” → Shen
“…!!Wah!” → Ryu
When he did what I said, the 3 stones started spinning faster and faster, then forming a ball of energy around his hands with black, blue and yellow colors. They spun fast enough to create a sonicwave caused by the friction with the air.
“Bro, this stuff is the best! Completely worth the wait in those smelly bushes full with bugs while listening to the guards talking vulgarities and listening to the moans from inside the building. You’re my bro alright!” → Ryu
Everyone smiled wryly at his words. After we accommodated the slaves, I had to go around and see who was injured, sick or suffered from a contusion. I, Sylvia and Bonny healed the slaves all day while the others were bringing more clothes and food.
“Haah, there are again amputated people…” → Shen
I felt pain in my heart. There were especially children with had fingers or entire arms cut. It seems some guards were too bored in that underground cell. After I finished healing the last child, a group of female slaves approached me, a full blush on their faces.
“Hm? What’s up? Is there any injury you wish to heal?” → Shen
I was confused as to why they approached me after I finished healing.
“U-um…”
The one who seemed to be the boldest from the group, a female bear with a gorgeous body stepped forward and tried to say something.
“M-master Shen…”
Some girls at the back were too embarrassed and covered their faces with their hands.
“…Why are you lot behaving so weird?” → Shen
I looked at them with suspicious eyes.
“Y-young master Shen!”
The woman then looked at me with firm eyes and got closer, whispering in my ear.
“—“
“Eh…?”
I was shocked beyond words. I looked at every girl and woman and all of them reddened.
“…W-well…It is possible but doing so, means I’ll need to have direct contact with the injured place, you know what that means…?” → Shen
I said while turning redder in the face.
“Yes, we already know and we’re completely alright with this.”
The woman said with a smile while having a blush on her face.
“…Ah. Now that I think about it, I can ask Sylvia to do it in my place!” → Shen
I rushed inside the cafeteria and told Sylvia about it.
“…You did well in asking me.” → Sylvia
Sylvia patted my shoulder, looking at me with a proud look.
“…”
I was dumbfounded for a while then I explained to her what she has to do.
“I understand, so I have to use the Prana stones to restore the ‘maidenhead’ of the s*x-slaves that had a bad luck to get raped by the guards, right? No problem.” → Sylvia
For some reasons, Sylvia was extremely willing to help me with this.
Like hell I’ll let my man touch another woman’s when he didn’t even do it with me. → Sylvia
Sylvia thought with a blush and pout appearing on her face.
“W-well. Sorry about this and thank you for the help. If I had to do it, I would get even more exhausted mentally.” → Shen
“No problem~. Please go and rest, you already did a lot today.” → Sylvia
After I entered my room I crashed on the bed while Ryu stood beside the door.
“Hahaha! Are you not missing a lot? You could’ve caressed so many flowers but you rejected the offer.” → Ryu
After I told him the last part, Ryu laughed with tears.
“You mean you would’ve accepted the offer?” → Shen
I asked back with a slight smile.
“Nope. Bonny would’ve killed me.” → Ryu
Ryu said while shivering. We laughed for a while then silence befell between us.
“… Lucky for them I wasn’t there…” → Ryu
Ryu said with dark eyes. After he got onboard, he saw the children and the elderly. Even though they were already washed, some filth solidified on their skin, needing to rub the places till they were bleeding. Luckily, I had some magic for sealing the pain, making it more bearable for the poor kids and elders.
“I know…even if it were Gregor, I bet he would’ve snapped after seeing them and turn around to kill everyone…” → Shen
“…How come you can accept this? Don’t you wish to see the bastards who did that have their heads fly?!” → Ryu
Ryu asked me with some irritation.
“… Let me tell you a truth that barely anyone can accept…Before we get born on this world…our destiny gets chosen-” → Shen
“I know, I know…God chooses our destiny after our sins from the other life…but still-!” → Ryu
“It’s not God the one who chooses…” → Shen
I said, interrupting Ryu from continuing.
“…What do you mean?” → Ryu
“WE are the ones who choose our own destiny…even before our parents get to meet, we chose how our life will look like.” → Shen
I got up from the bed and looked at Ryu with grave eyes.
“And believe me if it were God the one who made the choices for us, he would never give us such sufferings, the ones who chose the soul’s way of life is the soul itself and nobody else. They wish to get rid of as much Karma as possible, wanting a miserable life and full of sufferings. That’s why there is that saying: ‘most blessed will be the poor while mercy shall be given to the wealthy’…is not something to raise the poor and lower the rich in the eyes of the people. Is literally what happens inside every soul. The poor will be blessed by the heavens while their soul gets purified on Earth…or Sario, here. And mercy shall the soul of the rich have with himself, because he won’t be able to forgive all the sins he has done on that life, searching on the next one a destiny more miserable than that of rats.” → Shen
I said all this while looking into Ryu’s eyes, making him involuntarily feel a chill down his spine.
“S-so…you mean all these slaves had done something incredibly evil in another life?” → Ryu
Ryu asked somewhat curious.
“Or that, or their souls simply want to get rid of the remaining karma in one go, making them suffer even though their souls are pure…” → Shen
I laid back down on the bed.
“…If this is their sins, then why are you helping them?” → Ryu
“Because the soul is mostly an idiot.” → Shen
I said while feeling irritated.
“Alright, there is sin and all that, but giving yourself more sufferings than you can handle is also an idiotic thing. Helping a poor soul to get out from their misery is also a way to help them reach higher levels of evolution without really needing for them to burn themselves in such pains and sufferings. Making them learn and understand about the laws of nature and the universe is the fastest way toward enlightenment, suffering like an idiot only to burn some little sins will show them only the hardest and longest road.” → Shen
“And why are you helping them? Do you get anything out of this?” → Ryu
“But of course. While helping them, I can get rid of my own Karma. This is basic knowledge that everyone knows about, you know?” → Shen
“…How come you don’t teach this to the others?” → Ryu
“What do you mean? Didn’t you hear what I just say? This is a truth that barely anyone can accept. If I said it to those numbskulls, they’ll start another commotion.” → Shen
I wasn’t loathing them. I was simply not saying anything because they might misunderstand and misinterpret my words again.
“I see.” → Ryu
Ryu smiled awkwardly then fell silent after a while then saying again.
“…But still, I can’t really wait for those guards to die a good death after doing such cruel things!” → Ryu
Ryu then looked coldly downwards.
“Haha~ don’t worry about them, I bet their heads are flying as we speak.” → Shen
“Huh?! What do you mean?” → Ryu
“Every slave had evaded, the guards were caught sleeping, in your case already dead, and the only huge income the lord of this village had, got stolen by an unknown organization. On whose back do you think that fat-ass would take out his anger? Even the slaves from his castles were stolen. Hahaha~” → Shen
While we left for a mass rescue of the slaves, I had Theodore go sneak inside the Lord’s castle and rescue the 3 sex-slaves and 11 maids which were working slaves. He sneaked inside while keeping on changing appearances like those of the guards he took down, then with the invisibility magic, he hid the slaves he rescued inside a room till he got every single one of them. After that, he made an underground tunnel from that room to the other side of the castle. He got even the 3 sex-slaves from the lord’s bed. He knocked the lord out with a good hit in the head, muted the slaves so they won’t scream, explained the situation, then brought them outside together with the other 11 maids.
Ahahaha~ what a smart brat! I’m so very proud of him. → Shen
Ryu looked at me with wide open eyes. Not being able to say anything anymore.
[[[POV CHANGES TO VILLAGE LORD]]]
“RAAGH! You useless pieces of trash!”
The lord of the village cut another head while screaming at his soldiers.
“How could you let an intruder inside my room to steal all the slaves, huh?!”
“W-we’re very sorry, my lord. We didn’t see nor did we hear anything when everything happened-“
Before he could say all he wanted, his head was sent flying.
“QUIET! YOU USELESS INSECTS! See how I’ll-“
“My lord! All the slaves had been stolen! Even the sick and the elderly!”
A messenger was rushing back on his horse while sending back an unpleasant report.
“WHAT DID YOU SAY!? WHAT WERE THE GUARDS DOING?!”
The Lord was already fuming.
“T-they… Most of them were found sleeping while the ones who guarded the sex-slaves we’re mostly killed, the rest are still knocked out.”
The messenger was sweating. Looking at the beheaded guards, he already knew what would happen to the sleeping ones.
“KILL THEM ALL! How dare they sleep while guarding my goods? If they are so useless then for what do I keep them?! Kill them through beheading!”
“Y-yes milord…”
The messenger left while taking with him some soldiers to sentence the guards to death.
“…YOU! Find out who did this and tell me immediately. I’ll make them pay for this 10 times over!”
The fat lord had bloodshot eyes while saying so to another guard right beside him.
“Y-yes sir!”
[[[POV CHANGES TO SHEN]]]
“See? What did I tell you?” → Shen
Ryu and I looked down from atop a tower, at more than 100 people getting their heads sent flying in front of the lord’s castle.
“…You said I’m the ruthless one. But aren’t your schemes even more dreadful?” → Ryu
“All I know is the strategy from books. Before getting into this world I read a lot of books of all kinds. Fantasy based novels, history books, science, biology…even though I barely passed the final exams in high school, that doesn’t mean I was stupid. I simply am not interested in what we are taught in schools, being unable to read that useless stuff.” → Shen
“Haha~ that’s for sure. That’s why I never killed myself with studying either. I did all my studies in the last week till final exams and still passed with flying colors. Hahaha~” → Ryu
“…Indeed, there are weirdos like you in this world too…” → Shen
After we got back, we heard from the demons and mouse-beast-men about how the soldiers searched the village for ‘slave traders’, wanting to arrest them then behead them.
“Hooh~? From a bag of gold to transform it into a bomb the moment it enters someone else’s hands? Quite shrewd, that fat-ass.” → Shen
I said with a dark smile then I continued.
“Too bad that the slaves don’t look like slaves any longer. All I have to do is to make more Energy Stones imbued with Prana and they’ll look like normal civilians.” → Shen
After I said that I grabbed another 40 Energy Stones and left in the distance, back on my ice island. This time I found a way to take control of more stones at the same time. I would surround them with mana and make them levitate in the sky, then send from where they were, strands of soul-waves to take control over them. Like this, I won’t have to get hit by the shockwave again.
“…Thinking about this only now makes me feel quite ridiculous… It seems that when my life is on the line, I never show my smart side…” → Shen
It wasn’t that nice though.
Sigh… So it really was possible. Why don’t you think about yourself a little bit more? Maybe like this, you will work more efficiently too. → Sylvia
Sylvia told me through telepathy.
You knew about this!? → Shen
I thought about it, but I don’t know how controlling energy stones work, so I never really gave much importance at that time… → Sylvia
Sylvia felt a little bit guilty for not telling me before.
Well, it’s alright. If it weren’t meant to be at that time, then that’s that. Haha~ → Shen
In the end, from the 40 energy stones, I was able to take control of over 32 of them, which was incomparably better than the time when I used over 300 stones and got only around 45. They got easily consumed by the huge amount of sick and mutilated people. I looked at the stones and smiled bitterly.
It seems that, if I’m not in my top condition I really can’t do anything well. → Shen
At that time I still had my energies deviated and my circulation perturbed, making it hard for me to focus and control my soul waves.
After I summoned again the Prana through the ring over my head with some difficulty, I made the energy-stones imitate the effect of Prana and hastily flew back at the ship to heal the kids with cut body-parts. They were so happy, they forgot the rank difference and started hugging me and crying out loud. I laughed at their reactions and released the aura from my heart to calm them down. Everyone was dumbfounded by the aura while the kids of all races were getting closer to me and sat beside me and fell asleep. I looked like some caregiver at a kindergarten. Everyone, especially women, looked my way with big eyes while letting out moaning sounds.
I feel ridiculous… → Shen
I couldn’t move because some brats were even sleeping with their heads on my lap while others were resting on my back.
Why~? You look adorable while being surrounded by children. → Sylvia
Sylvia was looking at me while making a beautiful smile. Seeing that smile I felt better.
…You know? You can emanate this kind of aura too. → Shen
I was asking for her help between the lines.
Yes, I know. But after the children wake up they will get hungry. I need to go and prepare some food for them. Good luck there~. → Sylvia
Sylvia escaped while I looked at her back with despair on my eyes.
“Haah….” → Shen
I looked around and saw the brat’s peaceful sleeping faces. Seeing them like that, how can I remain annoyed? I calmed down and started meditating while trying not to move. I was on the deck and everyone was able to stare at me. Seeing me like this, the respect of the slaves only rose, even having some of them salute me with admiration.
“Hahaha~ a true man should always be a good father. The young master has everything necessary for a man among men!”
The lion beast-man laughed when he saw me sitting on the deck, letting the kids sleep on and around me.
“Fufufu~ he is really cute. Afraid of waking them up, he won’t move but meditate in that exact position. He really has a big heart.”
The fox-spirit woman said while smiling with affection at such a view.
“Hohoho~ this young master will become something in this world. Scheming with his enemies and loving with his allies.”
The mouse old man said while looking with admiration at me.
Everyone’s impressions of me improved even more, while I thought of a way to get everyone back to their rooms without making them cry. After a while, I was left with nothing so I asked some female slaves to help me take every child back in their rooms.
