Boom!
The military exercise at Miraj City turned out to be real. The exploding magic crystals resounded in the mock battlefield as the soldiers prepared to participate in a mock battle. With edgeless swords marked with yellow or green paint, the two divided armies were to fight each other. The aim was to protect the white cloth on their bodies. In the end, depending on where the pain marks are on the body, points would be given—head, neck, and chest were considered death.
Yes, they had armor. But the goal was to make them into such warriors that even with armor, they'd be swift enough to dodge strikes from the enemy. It was a war game but on a massive scale.
However, the presence of so many troops also meant that the people going through Miraj city had to go through many checkpoints. The only route into the west was now heavily guarded, with the distant sounds of explosives resounding at all times.
Maklaire Martin, the one who knelt before Sylvester, found his only exit to the west blocked. The crowd of caravans was being checked thoroughly, and with the amount of gold he had, he knew he wouldn't be able to escape. Even his strength couldn't help him force his way through.
The previous Slave God had to turn around and find another way to reach the west.
But he wasn't the only one having such an experience.
…
Meanwhile, inside the Tower of Godless, Sylvester immediately checked the entire tower with his supreme authority over everything in that giant building. He left the Inquisitor High Lord with the body samples of the Slave Gods that Miraj had collected. The body samples, including hair, nails, sweat, or even saliva; were going to be used to make the dolls.
Floor by floor, Sylvester meticulously checked everywhere. As he had expected, the uppermost floors included the most 'exotic' slaves. The first ten floors in both directions were for regular slaves, primarily humans. Then, from the tenth to the twenty floors, there were specialized slaves in various things—including wizards and knights. From the thirtieth to the fortieth floor, there were non-human slaves from a wide range of species. From forty to forty-nine, the most high-priced slaves were kept in a relatively healthy environment. Elven women, elven men, vampire women, highly trained dwarves, and good-looking Beastkins were the top merchandise of the Tower of Godless.
However, unlike the fiftieth floor above, which was reserved for the Slave Gods, the fiftieth floor underground was reserved for something entirely different and sinister.
Sylvester arrived underground through the same elevator, along with a few guards. It was a dimly lit floor, and a designated guard presence was on the floor as well. However, what amazed him was the sound of little babies crying.
Soon enough, he arrived in a massive hall, larger than the arena in the Holy Land. It was filled with metal-barred cages, arranged in long rows, and stacked one on top of another for at least ten cages high.
Inside the cages were women with either bloated bellies or holding little babies in their arms. From human to non-human, the madness was indiscriminate. This was the place for those suffering the worst of fates.
"It's a breeding farm for more slaves," Sylvester immediately realized what was happening. This was how the Tower of Godless kept selling high-value slaves even when piracy was destroyed. This was how the Tower of Godless hoped to achieve their twisted form of glory.
Sylvester looked at the nearest guard to him and asked, "Were you also born here?"
The man nodded with no emotions, "Everyone who works in the tower is."
Sylvester heaved a long sigh and raised his hand. From his palm came out an orb of bright white light. It floated above toward the ceiling and remained there as if an artificial sun. It brought the much-needed warmth and light to inhabitants of the breeding ground.
"I am Pope Sylvester Maximilian," Sylvester bellowed as gently as possible. "I have outlawed slavery throughout Sol, be it human or non-human. As such, the Slave Gods have been dealt with. All slaves in the Tower of Godless shall be rehabilitated to their homes… or continents. For now, you shall be provided with good food and newer clothing until we can find a way to house all of you in better conditions."
The slaves silently listened. They felt no joy, no fear, and no pain anymore. They had heard empty promises far too many times; words only meant to torture them mentally.
Sylvester turned around annoyedly and walked to a different part of the deepest floor. He found a large chamber with small cradles filled with babies. Some female slaves were caring for them there. Then, there was another large hall filled with kids who had started walking but hadn't grown more than five years of age. The floor above housed all the kids ages five to ten, and any above that age were treated as adults.
With a sigh, he turned back and went to the ground floor of the tower. "The population of the tower stands at three hundred thousand slaves, and a hundred thousand guards, fifty thousand sellers—It won't be easy to rehabilitate them all."
"Why not send them all home?" Miraj chirped from his shoulder.
Sylvester shook his head since he knew human nature all too well. "Society won't accept those women—tainted ones, they will be called. Be it humans or elves—I know these women won't be accepted back so easily. Some of the slaves have probably been here for generations; they have no home outside. I'm their only bridge toward a new independent life."
Miraj bobbed his head and looked around. "Then… They're like me before I met Maxy?"
"Yes."
"Hehe… Then they have nothing to fear," Miraj proudly patted Sylvester's head with his soft white paw. "My dearest son will make everyone happy!"
'I'm surprised he still remembers adopting me,' Sylvester thought and continued his work.
Within a few hours, groups of men from the Holy Land began to arrive. A contingent of Inquisitors also arrived on time, and slowly, the Tower of Godless transformed into the Tower of Light.
A massive kitchen was set up to cook a hearty meal for all the slaves. The captured sellers and buyers were stripped naked and thrown into tiny prison cells, with all their money confiscated. They were in the midst of being interrogated one by one to reveal their hidden money stash or the chain of supply. Yes, Sylvester was going to make them fund the rehabilitation of so many slaves.
"That seemed easier than I imagined."
While evaluating the kitchen, Sylvester heard a known voice, "Felix, you came right on time. I think I found you a hundred thousand brothers."
Felix had just returned after finishing his assignment from the Duchy of Iceling, after punishing the Baron who used forced labor. "What do you mean?"
Sylvester smirked and pointed at the black armored guards, "All the guards here lack the same thing as you—balls."
"..."
Felix squinted his eyes painfully, as he always did whenever his balls were mentioned. "Ah… Poor lads. But, you can heal them too."
"Before that, I'll have to somehow heal their minds first," Sylvester muttered and led Felix into the tower to explain his job. "Your job is to manage the children along with the Bright Mothers. Write down their names, gender, and if they're born here or brought in from the outside world—if they remember where they're from."
Felix groaned but accepted the task. "What will you do with them?"
"If they have nowhere to go, then perhaps I will start my school and adopt all of them. I certainly have the money and resources to teach them my ideals, smarts, and way of thinking. Perhaps, one day, they'll grow and spread around the world as my proxies—making the world better for all. But above all, they require a happy and healthy life first," Sylvester revealed his simple but elaborate plan. In practical terms, it was a logistical nightmare to accomplish, but it was doable.
"What about the Tower?"
This time, Sylvester didn't say much since he was still contemplating what to do with it. "The tower is massive and quite masterfully designed. Destroying it would be a waste of space. Perhaps I should take ownership of it and turn this into the school I talked about—An entire city can be housed here, after all."
The plan was to renovate the floors of the building into something better. Give the entire tower a makeover, and then do some holy rituals for its purification. Then, spread the word around and make it a Tower of Solis instead of Godless.
Bam!
"Leave me alone! Let me go!"
"How dare you touch me?"
"Do you have any idea who I am? Aaaa…!"
Just then, some loud noises came. Sylvester and Felix turned back toward the tower entrance and noticed six horses entering. From the horse saddle, five thick ropes were attached, and the horses appeared to be straining themselves while trying to pull something.
"Aaaaargh! My face!"
Soon, the sound of something heavy being dragged resounded. A few moments later, what was at the end of the ropes revealed itself—a massive, fat blob of a human.
"Your Holiness, we caught her. She was hiding in a pigsty as her family and freed slaves stole her wealth and threw her away. She could only drag herself to a farm beyond the river," an Inquisitor commander reported.
"Who is he?" Felix stared at the monstrosity of a human being. The creature was far from human, not even able to stand up.
Sylvester shook his head and walked over to stand beside the huge body. He noticed the woman crying in hopelessness. "How does this helplessness feel?"
"P-Please let me go… You're a good man… I will pray to Solis." She cried, having turned into a mess with parts of her skin chipped and what was left of her sparse hair. She had been dragged all the way there by horses.
Bam!
Sylvester stepped on her huge face, "But Solis has already passed the judgment—You are to be eradicated as if an ailment."
"Nooo… Please!"
Sylvester looked at the commander, "There should be a pigsty here too. Throw her in there. Let her rot there and be eaten."
"What? You can't do th—"
Felix abruptly came over and stared at her face, "Wait! This is a woman? What an annoying 'thing'."
"I'm Minerva, the most beautif—"
Bam!
Felix kicked her jaw this time, breaking it, "Thing! Just like how you called your slaves—an object deserving no pity. It's useless to ask for mercy. In fact, I believe His Holiness is not being harsh enough with the punishment."
"Hmmm…" Sylvester rubbed his chin. "Is that so? Then perhaps I should throw her to the cannibal slaves from the Divine Desert."
Minerva couldn't say anything, for her jaw was broken. She merely made noises and cried in a pool of her own blood. She hadn't expected her end to come that way.
"Ummmm… Mmmm…" She groaned.
"Don't worry, the others shall join you soon," Sylvester waved and allowed the guards to take her away. "They'll suffer a worse fate once my toys are prepared."
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