## Chapter 138 – 138. The Plum Blossom Swordsman Reincarnated Into A Baron’S Family
138. The Plum Blossom Swordsman Reincarnated into a Baron’s Family
Gulp.
Conphard swallowed hard. His whole body was tense. He didn’t even feel this nervous when meeting Baron Bailen, the owner of this city.
The reason for his tension was the woman following behind him.
‘My neck feels cold. This woman is dangerous.’
Conphard had over 50 years of experience as a slave trader. His father and grandfather were also slave traders, and he had been helping his father since he was old enough to understand, leading him to where he was now.
In the process, he had developed one ability: the ability to observe people. He was confident that no one could match his ability to understand and see through people.
And that ability was telling him that this woman was dangerous. The moment he made a mistake here, he and most of the people here would die at her hands. He had a feeling.
‘It was better when her master… Eugene Prukerus, was around.’
Even though he felt she was dangerous, it wasn’t like having his head in the mouth of a wild beast like it was now.
‘The woman Eugene Prukerus takes around… probably his exclusive maid. Her name was Yuria, wasn’t it…?’
Eugene Prukerus was not a mediocre noble, so he had memorized that information. This place, Bailen, was also quite close to the Prukerus territory.
“It seems like we’ve been walking for quite a while… Where are you headed?”
Yuria asked Conphard.
Around him, two burly male slaves were on guard, staring at Yuria.
“We’re almost there. This is where the female slaves are kept. By the way… the slaves here aren’t just mine.”
“I know that without you telling me, Conphard.”
This place was under Conphard’s overall responsibility, but other slave traders also operated here.
The shares of this slave market were 20% for Baron Bailen, 40% for Conphard, and 40% for the remaining slave traders.
Conphard opened a door.
Creak. Clang.
The place was a series of rooms, reminiscent of a marketplace. There were also dozens of staff managing the slaves.
“This is the Bailen Slave Market. There are over 80 slave traders doing business here, and over 1,000 slaves are sold here.”
The mansion-like place they had been in earlier was a place where special and unique slaves were gathered for VIPs.
“This is where the general slaves are, but if you look carefully, you might find a special slave here as well.”
“The explanation is enough. The slave I want is a young and pretty female slave. It doesn’t matter if she’s young. I don’t care about her background, but I’d prefer a virgin slave if possible.”
“Hmm. That’s quite a broad condition. It seems like we’ll be walking around here for a long time… Is that alright with you?”
“It doesn’t matter.”
“What’s your budget?”
“10 billion Ner.”
“……That’s quite a lot. But the slaves here are quite expensive. I hope you understand that.”
Yuria nodded.
As it was an illegal slave market, it was inevitable that the slaves would be more expensive than usual. And they were of higher quality, so it was understandable.
“Conphard! What brings you here?”
A male slave trader approached Conphard and greeted him.
“It’s been a while, Sutron. I’m escorting an important guest. May I take a look at your slaves?”
The slave trader glanced at Yuria. She was trying to hide her appearance as much as possible with a cloak, but her exposed face was very beautiful.
However, the slave trader quickly averted his gaze. Working in a place like this, you naturally learn things. One of them was that unnecessary curiosity only hastened one’s demise.
“Of course. What kind of slave are you looking for?”
“A female slave. I’d prefer her young and pretty.”
“I have a few decent slaves. Please take a look.”
The slave trader pointed to a cage. Inside, 12 women wearing shackles and chains were sitting. Unlike the slaves in the mansion, they were wearing ragged clothes.
“I want to see their faces and bodies properly.”
At Yuria’s request, the slave trader immediately ordered the women in the cage.
“You heard the guest, right? Take off your clothes and show your bodies! If you don’t listen properly, you’ll be locked in solitary confinement.”
As the slave trader threatened them, the female slaves began to take off their clothes.
Yuria frowned slightly. Their hygiene was worse than she had expected. Fortunately, it wasn’t severe.
The women were all of different ages, but they all seemed to have gone through their coming-of-age ceremonies.
“Are they all virgins?”
“Except for four, they are virgins.”
“……”
Yuria narrowed her eyes. By looking at their faces and bodies, she could roughly guess their personalities. Their eyes and expressions said a lot.
“I’ll take that slave.”
The most important criterion for her judgment was appearance. If their appearance was below average, she had no intention of buying them as slaves.
The slave trader spoke the female slave’s name.
“That’s Lisel.”
Conphard, who had been watching from the side, looked at Yuria as if surprised.
The slave Yuria had chosen was a girl with orange hair. Her body was so thin that she could not be called beautiful. Her eyes were also hazy, and she seemed somewhat lacking.
“That’s unexpected. Wouldn’t the woman next to her be healthier and better?”
The woman next to Lisel had a more outstanding beauty. The only flaw was that she was older, but it was only a difference of 3 or 4 years.
“I’ve decided on that slave.”
“Hmm. Are you looking at the future rather than the present?”
Yuria nodded.
As Conphard had said, she was thinking about Lisel’s future. If she was fed properly and managed well, she would have a more outstanding beauty than the woman next to her.
And above all, her physique was quite outstanding. To Yuria, a strong person who had reached the highest level of Aura Expert, Lisel’s talent was visible.
It was a field that Conphard, who was just a slave trader, could not recognize, even with his excellent ability to observe people.
“That’ll be 120 million Ner. Haha. Lisel is a virgin, so the price is a bit higher. You understand, right?”
Yuria immediately paid the price.
“Haha. Thank you! Do you need any other slaves?”
“There are no other decent slaves.”
She could haggle over the price if she wanted to, but she didn’t have enough time. She needed to buy at least 10 more slaves.
“Conphard, let’s go to the next one right away.”
Yuria took the slave certificate in her hand and led the shackled and chained slave around the market.
Most of the slave traders treated Yuria politely. However, some of the slave traders looked at Yuria with insolent eyes.
“Conphard, this woman… she seems to be worth quite a bit… can’t we make her a slave?”
“Are you crazy? This person is a very important guest. You can’t treat her carelessly.”
“Ah. She’s an important guest. I apologize. Hehe.”
The rude slave trader immediately backed away at Conphard’s scolding.
Yuria frowned. She was being followed. A group of armed men were following her from a short distance away. They were quite skilled slave hunters. The moment she left the slave market, the slave hunters would attack her.
“Why did you suddenly stop?”
“A bug doesn’t know its place. I don’t want my master to go through unnecessary trouble, so I’ll have to take care of it here.”
“Huh?”
Conphard asked back, not understanding. But Yuria, who had been in front of him, had already disappeared. Conphard hadn’t seen her move at all.
Conphard looked around in confusion. Then he found them. Three slave hunters were dead with their heads cut off.
“……”
Conphard’s face was pale. Not because of the corpses. It had only been 10 seconds since Yuria had moved. That meant that three skilled slave hunters had died in just 10 seconds.
Conphard ordered his slave to stay put and moved quickly. It was obvious where Yuria had gone.
And as he thought, Yuria was killing the rude slave trader.
“P-Please spare me! I beg you! I gave you all the money!”
“Who would believe that a mere 300 million Ner is your entire fortune?”
“That’s all I have! The rest of my assets are all slaves…”
The slave trader’s head fell to the floor as he spoke.
Conphard saw it. The black aura wrapped around her right hand was taking the shape of a blade.
‘To be able to create such a technique with aura… she’s at least an Upper Expert.’
He had expected it, but seeing it directly sent a chill down his spine. It seemed like that woman would kill him too if things went wrong.
“Conphard, the management of your slave traders is a mess.”
“I-I’m sorry. I’ll manage them properly from now on.”
“We don’t have time, so let’s go right away.”
Conphard wiped the cold sweat from his forehead as he watched her walk away.
Then, he asked into the air.
“Can you kill that woman?”
A small voice was heard in his ear.
“It’s impossible. That woman has noticed my existence and even my location.”
“……Bailen’s best assassin, and you were discovered?”
This assassin was someone he had secretly called when he came here. Not to harm Yuria. Conphard had called him to protect himself.
“To be honest, I missed her movements when that woman killed the three slave hunters earlier. Currently, the best assassin in Bailen isn’t me, but that woman.”
“You’re at the Upper Expert level of aura, aren’t you?”
“That woman is beyond that.”
“Beyond that means the highest level…”
“If I have to kill that woman, I’ll just give up the request. Contract or whatever, I’ll just live… oh.”
“Why, why is that?”
“That woman is sending me a signal. Probably… it means I should stay within her sight. If I run away, I’ll be dead for sure. Conphard, where did you get that monster of a woman?”
“…I didn’t bring her. She came to me.”
Conphard swallowed hard. She had stopped and was looking at him. It probably meant he should hurry up and guide her.
•••
“I’ll take this child as the last one.”
Yuria looked at a young girl whose height didn’t even reach her waist. The silver-haired girl looked up at Yuria blankly, then turned her head to the side.
“Nephia! Don’t take Nephia away! If you take her, take me too!”
A boy with brown hair was screaming from inside the cage.
“……Sister. Can’t Terius come with us too?”
“No.”
Yuria said firmly.
“I’ll do anything. I want to be with Terius.”
“No. Your friend is not as valuable as you are.”
“……”
“Uwaaaaaaaa!”
“Wait a moment… Can I have a last conversation with Terius?”
Yuria nodded.
Nephia approached the boy trapped in the cage. Nephia and Terius were childhood friends who had grown up in the same village. Their village had been targeted by a bandit group and was devastated, and they had been captured by the bandits and sold as slaves.
They had been relying on each other and living strong, but it was over now.
A little while later.
Nephia approached Yuria. Terius, who had been screaming in the cage, shouted at Nephia.
“Nephia! I’ll definitely! I’ll definitely find you! Keep that with you!”
Yuria looked at the ring Nephia was holding in her hand.
A shabby iron ring made by bending and twisting a thin wire.
It seemed she had secretly kept it hidden from the slave trader’s eyes. Perhaps the slave trader had pretended not to notice. Such a small iron ring looked like nothing more than trash that no one would take even if it was given for free.
“Is the conversation over?”
“Yes. Terius said he’ll come find me later. This ring is the proof. ……Can I keep it?”
“It doesn’t matter.”
Yuria, who had spoken simply, began to return with Nephia.
“Nephia! Never lose that ring! If you have it, I’ll definitely come find you!”
“Okay, Terius. I’ll wait for you!”
Yuria had purchased a total of 41 female slaves from the slave market. Among them, 10 were children. They had quite decent talents, so it was worth raising them.
Yuria called the slaves she had purchased before putting them in the carriage. They were women of different ages and appearances.
“You will all become maids. Maids are beings who serve their masters in everything. You must never forget that fact.”
