episode_0030

In the end, we had to move to another bathhouse and take another bath.

No matter how you look at it, all four of them didn’t look very clean.

After washing our bodies properly again and resting, we were all able to wake up feeling refreshed… It might have been a bit too much to say.

Still, because everyone was quite, if not completely, tired, they were able to move their bodies and gather their weapons and clothes.

Lesala also greeted us, blinking slightly squinted eyes.

“… As I talked about yesterday, there is a boat heading up the river to the island today. The captain is an acquaintance of mine, so the conversation is already over.

If you arrive at your destination, get off, and walk, you will be able to reach the island in no time.”

“It was nice to meet you after a long time. Lesala.”

“…Me too. It was nice to meet you. For some reason, every time we meet, I feel a little tired, but…

And there are other kids who want to say hello to you before you go.”

When Lesala twitched one of the tentacles, red-haired and blonde women came out and bowed their heads, dressed in the clothes of those who worked at Thermai.

For a moment I was looking at them blankly, and the next moment I recognized who they were.

“Linia. Looks like they decided to test the medicine. The human form is also beautiful.”

“Thank you. benefactor. After listening to the exchange between my benefactor and Ms. Lesala yesterday, I thought I could trust this medicine.

If it is the result of such a story, it cannot be harmful to us.”

The red woman smiled and nodded at my words and spoke in a lighter voice.

“So, what are your impressions of being in human form?”

“It’s awkward to see the ears change position and the tail disappear, but it’s really comfortable not to have to worry about what other people might think.”

Linia, who looked more relaxed than yesterday, immediately looked at her compatriot who had not yet said anything.

“…She still doesn’t say anything.

It may take more time than we think to recover enough for us to hear her story.

But nevertheless…”

As Linia paused for a moment, the blonde centaur slowly approached me.

And he gave me some trinkets.

“This is…”

I remember receiving something similar to this one day. Because I still kept Emma’s gift.

“Of course, since Epona’s blessed daughter is helping her benefactor, there will probably be very little need for me or her.

But she and I will always remember our benefactor. As the one who gave us a ray of hope in this terrible empire.”

“…I will also always remember you two.”

When the girls laughed at my words and walked away, Emma came next to me and whispered in my ear.

“That’s amazing. master. The owner must have been the first to receive tokens from multiple centaurs at the same time.”

“…Isn’t there some kind of problem?”

“No way. If that were the case, there’s no way they would have given it to the owner.

Epona would be happy if someone trusted by many of us appeared… Well… I’m a little jealous…”

After laughing like that, she added a joke at the end.

…This must be a joke, right?

Anyway, after saying goodbye, with the help of Lesala, we were able to quietly move to the dock on the river, avoiding the eyes of the countless people coming and going from Thermae Solarinae.

As there were so many people coming and going to this city of Aquarius, I slowly boarded an ordinary boat as if nothing had happened, blending in with the crowd of people trying to get on the boat.

As promised in advance, no one but us got on the boat.

“Phew… I guess I can rest a little longer while I’m on the way.”

“Hmm… But I guess I’ll wear these harnesses a little longer just in case someone might see…”

“No. Emma. You can just take it off.”

“…Okay.”

I stopped Emma, who was secretly disappointed, and took the harnesses off her. Then, I leaned on one side below the deck, put down the window next to me, and stretched out once.

‘…was 3 to 1 a bit burdensome? Still, everything worked out well in the end.’

With him, I finally shook off the thoughts of yesterday’s events from my mind.

Now I had to focus more on the previous tasks again.

“Everyone, please listen carefully. I was unexpectedly able to rest for a while in Thermae, but now I have to get back to work.

Especially since the reason we changed our course in the middle was because we were being tracked, we can’t completely relax even on the ship.”

Luvia and Emma, who had been somewhat relaxed by my words, straightened up and listened to what I said.

They were the ones who usually bickered and showed a playful attitude, but at the same time, they distinguished between situations where they had to be serious, like when I said this.

“Then the imperial palace would be inappropriate as a place to see the Empress again.”

“That’s right. Gold-level adventurers can request an audience, but there’s no way such a loud entrance would go unnoticed.

If those who were tracking us also realize that they have lost track of us, there is a high possibility that they will be waiting for us in a system where we have no choice but to go see His Majesty.

In that case, the imperial palace is a place that is too openly exposed to them. No matter how much I think about it, it doesn’t fit this request that I’m trying to handle inconspicuously.”

“The Empress must have been contacted by Lesala first, so she would already know that much information. Maybe they’ll change places. Where do you think the owner will be this time?”

“Before I left, Lesala brought up the topic of gladiatorial combat, even though I had no interest in it before.”

“Is it the Colosseum? It is certainly an event that the Empress naturally attends, and with so many people gathering, it would naturally be a perfect place to hide out.”

I also nodded at Luvia’s words.

Paradoxically, the Colosseum, where countless people gather and look down on the stadium, can be less noticeable than anywhere else if you can avoid it.

However, if you have any concerns…

“But there are also things to be careful about. It is said that some of the gladiators are connected to the Catenis family.

Sure, the gladiators can’t set foot directly in the Empress’s presence, but there’s no guarantee that they won’t be instigated by someone to interfere with us if they encounter us outside.

You will have to pay a lot of attention before meeting His Majesty and while leaving after meeting him.”

“I will keep this in mind.”, “I will keep this in mind.”

Luvia and Emma also answered my words with serious expressions.

Among gladiators, the skills of those who survived for a long time were not something to be taken lightly.

If some of them suddenly turn into enemies, they will be quite difficult opponents.

In particular, in the case of this match, it seemed that the Bestiari, who mainly fight monsters and other races, played a fairly large role, so it was especially true for them.

And most of those powerful, high-level gladiators were often born from slaves brought into the Colosseum by the Catenis family.

Some who found freedom were even hired back as private soldiers by the Catenis family.

Even in ‘Slave Maker’, making money through participating in the Colosseum was a good income if the conditions were right…

Now, it was safe to say that the Katenis family was using the Colosseum as a training center to obtain talented people.

“…Every time I think of gladiators, there is something I don’t understand…or more precisely, about the so-called combat slaves.

Like the unfortunate compatriots we met this time, there are many cases where slaves are forced to work through stigma and brainwashing, but some are actually more loyal to their masters than other slaves.

Why? Why do you act like that when you have the power to kill your master and run away if the situation arises?

Some gladiators are still so loyal even after gaining their freedom.”

“That’s why the Catenis family was able to take control of the slave empire. Because I was able to chain not only my body but also my mind.”

When Emma muttered as if she didn’t understand, I responded by recalling things I had seen before.

“When many of the combat slaves regain their freedom, they melt down some of the chains they were wearing and mix them into their own weapons.

It is usually said to commemorate the proof that one has ascended from slave to master through one’s own power. But in reality, it is as if one is still chained because of it.”

Many of the combat slaves took great pride in their military power.

Perhaps it may have started as a small consolation to endure the miserable life as a slave, but soon the rulers who noticed this refined that pride into a more subtle and strong chain.

Strong combat slaves were treated no differently than free private soldiers, and some of those who achieved freedom actually enjoyed greater glory than ordinary imperial subjects.

Driven by slave owners who showed off their glory and inflated their own pride, they gradually came to equate the process of gaining freedom with proving their own power.

Those who could not prove their qualifications were said to be unworthy of freedom, and it became a force that subtly ignored and oppressed other slaves.

Those who ignore other slaves who are extremely weak, and hope for the day when they can prove themselves to those who put chains on them and melt those chains back into weapons.

Those who are bound as part of the chain do not notice the fact, and the chains become the chains that bind others.

“… Breaking it off is something we have to do someday.”

I fiddle with the chain that hangs on my medal.

It was the family symbol I received when I was officially recognized as a member of the Catenis family some time after becoming a gold-level adventurer.

golden chain.

A sign that it is the pinnacle of a slave empire that binds and manipulates everyone else with its splendor and heaviness.

And one day, it is the family itself that I will melt down and destroy.

I grabbed it as if I was going to break it.