episode_0041

Episode 41

How did it come to this?

I don’t know what Alice thinks, but right now, our relationship is at its worst.

It’s embarrassing to even say it, but… I was raped by Alice.

I really never thought this would happen to me…

I feel a great sense of loss, as if I have lost something precious, and a sense of betrayal towards Alice, who I believed to be my family, and my heart feels empty as if it has been pierced.

“Ha…”

I keep feeling like crying.

The thought of losing Alice, who I considered a precious family member, continues to torment me.

The wounds he received from Alice were more painful than those from Rose, Clement’s daughter.

I can’t understand Alice’s twisted affection.

And… Alice will continue to force me in the future…

-Clang…

I tried to move my body out of frustration, but the iron chain on my left ankle restrained me.

Alice, worried that I might run away, put chains on me.

“Ahahaha…!”

When I look at myself, it’s so miserable that it makes me laugh.

There is no one I can trust.

All the people I cherish and love are causing me trouble.

After I finish my revenge and return to the Duke of Normandy, will things be different?

I don’t know.

‘father…’

but…

‘I must at least avenge my father.’

I have to get out of here.

And Alice and I need some distance from each other right now.

I miss Alice, but I still love her.

So just for a moment…just for a moment, I decided to leave her.

I sat at my desk and wrote a letter to Alice.

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.

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“Hoo…”

I folded the letter neatly, which I had reread and revised several times, and placed the hairpin I had given her on top of it.

I’ve decided where I’ll go once I leave this place, and I’m ready to say goodbye.

Now all that remains is…

-Cheolguruk…

I looked at the chain on my left ankle for a moment.

To break these chains without a key, you either cut off your ankles, or…

“Ugh…”

I’m scared, it must be incredibly painful, and I might even be permanently disabled.

We have to hurry, because if we delay any longer, Alice might return.

I took a deep breath, calmed my mind, and slowly applied strength to the hand holding my foot…

-Wood thud…!

#

Alice was in a really good mood these days.

Because I finally had my first time with Leon, whom I loved.

Leon showed some reluctance, but she remembers that his body honestly felt good.

After their hot first night together, Leon’s eyes darkened, but it was only temporary.

Surely Leon will accept her heart as time passes.

“Hoohoo…Leon…”

Lately, just thinking about Leon makes Alice’s stomach feel hot.

I want to finish today’s schedule quickly and go see Leon.

And I will share a passionate love with Leon once again.

“Let’s hurry.”

While she was away, Leon was confined to his room in case he encountered any of the other women upstairs.

I hate seeing Leon talking and laughing with other women.

Leon must smile only at Alice.

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.

.

“Haa…Why is there so much to do today?”

There was more work to do than expected, so my return was delayed.

Still, Alice arrived in front of Leon’s room with a happy heart.

-Knock knock knock…

“Leon, will you come in?”

Alice wanted to see Leon as soon as possible, so she opened the door without waiting for Leon’s answer.

“Huh?”

There is no Leon, who should be there of course.

“Leon…?”

Where Leon should have been, there were only empty chains lying around.

I went closer to look and saw that there was no sign of the chains being released.

“How…?”

Her mind went blank and she couldn’t think straight.

“Leon…don’t joke around…where are you?”

It’s quiet.

“Leon? Leon!”

I lifted the covers off the bed, checked under the bed, and even checked the closet, but Leon was nowhere to be found.

“Ahh…no…that can’t be…”

Tears began to well up in Alice’s embarrassed eyes.

Alice, who had been unable to accept the fact that Leon was not there for a while and was still searching the room, found a letter and a hairpin left by Leon on the table.

Alice opened the letter Leon left behind with trembling hands.

-Sarak…

“Ah…?”

##

A mountain range on the border between the Frankish Kingdom and the Holy Roman Empire.

I am a runaway slave, crossing the mountains to avoid border checks.

-Limp…Limp…

-dump…!

“Hoo…Hoo…”

The splint on my left foot came loose, so I sat down on the floor to readjust it.

Unable to free the shackles without other tools, he broke the ankle bones to free his feet from the shackles.

It was a horrible experience that I never want to have again.

Still, I have no regrets.

If he had been held captive by Alice for any longer, he might have been restricted by the contract, preventing him from even escaping.

“Ugh…!”

-Hold on!

The splint was replaced and firmly fixed.

It is really hard to cross a rough mountain path with one broken ankle.

It’s not that I didn’t want to cross the border by road, but…

If by any chance they find out at the border that I’m a runaway slave, something terrible will happen.

“Just cross the border.”

My slave contract is managed by the Frankish Kingdom, so as long as I hide the contract well, I won’t be caught by slave hunters in the Holy Ram Empire.

As a third-tier person, I would have no trouble making a living as a mercenary in the Holy Empire.

The problem is that there is currently no suitable way to treat the leg.

If you have a healthy leg, you will have a way to make money, but ironically, you need money to fix your leg.

“Oh my…!”

I struggled to get up, using the cane as support.

It may take a few days, but we have to get over this mountain range.

-Limp…Limp…

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.

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It’s fucked.

I thought I could just vaguely get over the mountain, but I’ve been lost and wandering for days.

Even if you quench your thirst by magically creating water, there is nothing to drink.

Even if I try to catch and eat wild animals, the small ones quickly run away when I get close, and the large animals that might target me don’t even come near me.

However, if you eat any mushroom or fruit, you can easily get poisoned and die.

Now I don’t know which direction I’m going or how much time has passed.

“Haa…Haa…”

-Limp…Limp…

My head started to feel dizzy and my vision started to become blurry.

I decided to lie down on the rock in front of me and rest for a while.

I forced myself to take steps…

-Thud!

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-Dreamy…

“Ugh…”

I think I lost consciousness for a moment.

I tried to get up to leave the road again when the day was a little brighter…

-Cheolguruk…

His hands were tied with iron chains.

“Are you awake? Looking at the contract, it looks like you’re a runaway slave…”

When I turned my head, I saw people who looked like mercenaries looking down at me.

I opened my clothes to hide the contract stamped on my collarbone.

“It’s no use, I already know you’re a slave. What’s your name?”

Suddenly, I had the thought that it might be a bad idea to tell him my real name.

“…Lion”

The man who heard my name smiled faintly and spoke to me.

“I was already in a bad mood today because I had a lot of empty promises, but I’m glad I found you and was able to make some money.”

“What are you going to do with me?”

“If I were a woman, I would have had some fun, but since I’m a male slave without a master, I should just sell me back.”

“Hehehe, you ran away for freedom, but you got caught again. You’re so unlucky. ”

“…”

“Don’t feel too wronged. Even though you were a slave, you showed mercy by not killing me the moment I ruined it. ”

The mercenaries were slave hunters who tracked down and hunted runaway slaves like me.

A few days later, the slave hunters who had been dragging me up the mountain came down the mountain with more slaves in similar circumstances to me.

“The harvest is pretty good this time, let’s get back.”

###

I was captured by slave hunters and dragged deep into the Holy Ram Empire, arriving at a checkpoint in a large city.

A guard at the entrance to the city stopped the slave hunters and me and the other slaves.

“Thank you for your hard work.”

“What are those slaves?”

“They are slaves caught from outside.”

“Do you know, Master? According to Imperial law, if a runaway slave is recaptured, he must be returned to his master. ”

The guard spoke sternly to the slave hunters, his expression stern as if he were pretending to be serious.

“No, I don’t know, but are you thirsty, sir? You’ve worked hard, so why don’t you have a beer after work…”

-Sigh…

One of the slave hunters slipped a silver coin to the guard.

“Ahem… Normally, a runaway slave is supposed to find his master… but I’m busy these days, so I’ll leave that up to you. ”

“Hehehe, please leave it to me, Your Majesty.”

“Pass, go in.”

The guard gave the signal for them to enter the city with a satisfied expression on his face.

“Let’s go.”

I and the other slaves followed the slave hunters into the city.

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The slave hunters led us to a huge circular building in the center of the city.

“Welcome to the Caracalla Colosseum.”

“No! I don’t want to die!”

When I heard the word Colosseum, a middle-aged man near me started having fits and started freaking out.

The other slaves’ faces turned pale as they realized what was about to happen to them.

-Pfft!!

“Stay still!”

The hunters who subdued the man who was making a fuss saying that he didn’t want to die took me and the other slaves to someone who appeared to be the manager of the Colosseum.

“10 people… You caught quite a few, Martin.”

“Hehehe, you’ve had a hard time for a few days. How about 1 Florin per person?”

“It’s said that it’s hard to get gladiator slaves these days, but it’s almost double, and some of them even look unwell, so let’s lower the price a little.”

The manager of the Caracalla Colosseum looked at me limping and started haggling over the price.

“That guy has signs of training, his legs are a bit cut off, but isn’t that perfect for the Colosseum? ”

“Hmm…a slave with combat experience is quite rare…”

The manager, who was looking at me again with eyes that said he was seeing me again, had a look of concern on his face.

“Think about it, Luther, don’t you think the audience would rather see guys who know how to resist even a little than rookie gladiator slaves who die without a fight? ”

“…Okay, one slave with combat experience is better than nine ordinary slaves. I’ll buy them both for 1 florin. ”

The deal was concluded with a handshake between the two.

“Hehehe, excellent choice. Luther. ”