My skin feels the moisture in the air. The very humid air managed to attack my body's skin.
My sense of smell also manages to catch the smell of earth that is everywhere.
Not much wind movement was in the air. The air circulation around me seems really bad.
How else, because the place I was at when I opened my eyes was a place that looked like a cave.
However, even though this place was a cave, there was a bright light coming from above. I squinted my eyelids to see the top of the cave.
There is a clear sky there.
A round crack formed in the ceiling.
I can see the sky even though this place was a cave.
This cave has a conical upward shape with a round shape.
It will be easier for you to understand if you imagine a mountain where the top is cut off, then all the inside of the mountain is a huge space.
And that's where I am right now.
Even though there was light coming from above, it didn't manage to make the inside of the cave bright.
My eyesight is still limited.
Even though my visibility was limited, I could see the ceiling of the cave very high above. Looking from the ceiling and walls of the cave that looks so far away, the diameter of this cave is also very amazing.
The term cave is not suitable to describe this place.
Using the size of a mountain as a metaphor is appropriate.
Almost a few kilometers just by my rough calculations.
This place might be able to accommodate thousands or even tens of thousands of people?
Regardless, I became convinced that this place was a place I wanted to go.
The Nest of Slavery.
That's the name of the place where I'm at.
In front of the teleportation gate where I was standing there were already two soldiers. They seemed to have been waiting for us. Their clothes looked very shabby. The plate armor covering their chests already looked unkempt. The spearheads in their hands were already full of rust.
The point is, they don't look like soldiers. The suffering they suffered from serving in the Nest of Slavery was evident from their appearance.
"Down!"
The two of them ordered the five of us, who had just arrived, to get off the teleportation gate device that we stepped on.
Moments after we descended, light returned to cover the teleportation gate.
Then two soldiers appeared along with three prospective slaves. The two soldiers wore full body armor with a shiny glow.
Ignoring their luxurious armor, I recognized the faces of the two soldiers. They were the ones who escorted me from the Marquess Stronghold's residence.
When the two of them got off, they said to the two soldiers who had been waiting in front of the teleportation gate device.
"This is the last item of the day."
"Oh, we've received a report on today's item count. So we already know."
"How dare you object!"
"S-excuse us. Anyway, if I may ask, why did you two come here?"
"We have something to do. Lowly soldiers like you who are only serving in this hell don't deserve to hear it. One thing is for sure, we take orders from the young master. Just know that."
There seemed to be a level among Marquess Stronghold's underlings.
'Maybe I'll be able to put it to use later.'
When receiving the unpleasant treatment from the two soldiers who had just arrived, the two soldiers who seemed to have been cooped up in this place for a very long time let out angry expressions. Their hands clenched tightly and they bit their upper lips.
But they only dared to put out an expression. They did not dare to express their anger.
'Looks like it will be easy to detonate a bomb in this place later.'
"Very well. We will go to the Master's District first. Do your duties properly."
Two soldiers in luxurious armor walked past the two poor soldiers. They kept walking until they had almost left this place.
The place where this teleportation gate device was located had been confined by a large wooden fence. The fence is made of logs that are about 4 to 5 meters high.
The end of the fence is made sharp as if the teleportation gate device is made of a fence so it won't be damaged by the people in the Nest of Darkness.
The two soldiers with shiny full body armor were about to pass through the gate that was already open.
However, they stopped and looked at me with evil smiles on their faces. Their eyes seemed to be telling me to get ready to receive a surprise from them.
They surely wouldn't prepare a birthday surprise, would they?
After they were satisfied looking at me, they continued walking until their figures were out of sight.
On the other hand, there were people who stared at them leaving with looks of annoyance, they were the two poor soldiers.
The two poor soldiers stamped the spears in their hands on the ground and they started to open their mouths to express their irritation.
They did it in unison while looking up.
"Aaaahhh! This is so annoying! Until when do we have to work here?"
"Right, right. Being cooped up here really sucks. We can't go outside at all. There's no entertainment here."
"Speaking of which, since when have you been on duty here?"
"I've been here a few years. I'm only given the opportunity once or twice a month to see the outside world, shit. I hope new soldiers will be recruited, so we can escape from here and get better assignments."
"But that's impossible if we don't have power! Aarggh, shit!"
Cries of annoyance were voiced by the two poor soldiers. They only dared to shout in annoyance when there were not two soldiers wearing shiny armor anymore.
Their minds are as weak as the strength in their bodies.
When they are cool talking among themselves. There was one would-be slave who walked up to the two of them and innocently said, "Sorry, how long are you two going to talk amongst yourselves? Can you tell us what we should do?"
He spoke while bending his back slightly down, as if he was trying to be polite. A smile also appeared on his face.
However, he was massacred by two poor soldiers instead. He was punched, kicked, and spat by the two of them until he could only hold his stomach on the ground.
It seemed that the two poor soldiers immediately vented their anger on the innocent and stupid would-be slave.
When they finished committing a violent crime, they looked at their other potential victims, who were worried about us, would-be slaves.
"Have you guys seen?"
They still looked annoyed and started to look like they wanted to vent their anger on other prospective slaves.
However, because the other would-be slaves had seen their friend's battered fate, they couldn't help but remain silent.
"Follow me! I'll take you to where you should be!"
The two poor soldiers escorted us outside. We walked out of the room that housed the teleportation gate device.
When we had passed the door of the teleportation gate device room, one of the poor soldiers locked the door of the room where the teleportation gate device was stored.
He placed the key on his waist without much weight on his mind. He seemed to have no worries that the lock on his waist would be snatched away by someone else.
'Not for the moment.'
I don't intend to make a fuss right now.
I still have to find the place called the Nest of Darkness which is connected to the Nest of Slavery, where Reine Rosewood is being confined there.
I also have to gather as much information as possible within this Nest of Slavery.
I haven't forgotten my minor purpose for coming here, which I had a request from Callie to save people from the Beastmen race.
In order for me to save them, I need to know the layout of this place accurately. I couldn't just casually kill the two poor soldiers in front of me and grab the keys on their waists.
If I did, I'd be causing unnecessary fuss. If I make a fuss, there's a possibility that the people from the beastmen race will get caught up in the fight and die one by one like flies.
Although it was indeed quite important to take the key that was on their waist because...
The two poor soldiers started talking,
"I'll tell you something, just take it as my good intentions, but, unless you can tear this place down, you won't be able to leave. Because the only way was the teleportation gate device you came from! Remember that carefully."
Then, his friend who was beside him said, "In other words, you have to obey us if you don't want to suffer in this place!"
As they say, this place really has no other way out. The only way was through the teleportation gate device. Therefore, the place was surrounded by a fence and locked up.
Not long after we walked, we arrived at a place that had a lot of people. They were the would-be slaves who had come before me.
They stood adriftly watching the person standing on a stage in front of them.
This 𝓬ontent is taken from f(r)eeweb(n)ovel.𝒄𝒐𝙢