"We're nearing a city, Jasmine." Said Alexander lightly as he continued sprinting across the dirt trail while carrying Jasmine, who had been resting.
"A city? Haa, finally. I can take a proper bath, get some proper clothes, and even eat some proper food. N-Not that your food wasn't bad given the situation, Alex; I-I would just like to eat properly cooked food." Remarked Jasmine with a raised eyebrow as she glanced in the distance before patting her chest and sighing in relief, only to awkwardly glance at Alexander.
Raising my eyebrows, I gave Jasmine a weird look, not because she said my food wasn't great, but because she assumed we would stop at the city.
"Jasmine, do you know how to return to your home?" Asked Alexander curiously as he looked at Jasmine, who furrowed her brows before hesitantly shaking her head.
"U-Um, I-I know my home is in the Crestfallen Kingdom, and I live in the Capital City, b-but that's it." Replied Jasmine softly as she averted her gaze away in embarrassment, causing Alexander's expression to constantly twitch in annoyance.
Raising my head, I heaved a deep sigh of frustration as I looked at the sky; now, we were required to enter that city. I had hoped to run past it and continue heading to the Crestfallen Kingdom, but it seems we don't have a choice.
'Fuck me… Whatever, as long as we don't spend too long there, we should be good. Unless they've already stationed assassins in the city, which is highly likely when I think about it. Fuck me.' Thought Alexander with an irritated expression as he clicked his tongue before deeply sighing in defeat.
Since we were still a few minutes away from the city, I made a quick pit stop and dashed into the forest on my right, confusing Jasmine, though I didn't bother explaining; once deep enough, I set her down and reached into my space pouch before removing a blackish face sleeve.
"Um, what's that?" "Something Lazuli and I found in the hidden compartment of your carriage." Remarked Jasmine and Alexander, as the former looked at the blackish face sleeve in confusion while the latter brushed her hair down before forcing it onto her head.
"C-Careful, I'm delicate." Said Jasmine softly as she glanced at Alexander, who acted quick and somewhat forceful though he was slightly gentle.
Once the mask was on, I had Jasmine infuse her mana into it, which, thankfully, she knew how to do, and after doing so, the mask reshaped her entire face until it looked like a woman I'd never seen before.
"Did something happen, Alex?" Asked Jasmine in confusion as she tilted her head and looked at Alexander, who nodded before retrieving his hand-held mirror.
"I'm surprised you can't feel the effects. It's some type of mask, and it's a good one. If we're going into a city, you'll need this, as I'm sure the assassins will be looking for you. Also, remember, we'll be in and out, okay? No more than two hours." Stated Alexander lightly as he let Jasmine look at herself in the mirror, only for him to narrow his eyes with a stern voice while she seemed to barely listen, too absorbed in her appearance.
Snatching the mirror from Jasmine, I picked her back up and dashed out of the forest and continued running across the dirt trail, reaching the city a few minutes later; however, although I hadn't yet entered, I was able to see the inside thanks to [Heroes Gaze], and what I saw borderline infuriating and disgusting.
"Scratch that… One hour." Said Alexander firmly as he set Jasmine down and stood in line to enter the city while she nodded, not bothering to question why.
We didn't have to wait long, about ten minutes until it was our turn to enter, and despite not having a form of ID for the Nsemo continent, we just had to pay five copper per person, and we were allowed in, which would've made me happy, but given how the inhabitants of this city behaved, WE should've been paid five copper to enter.
I could barely take a few steps into the city without clenching my fist in anger at what I was witnessing; I didn't see myself as some kind of saint, but compared to these people, I might as well have been.
With Jasmine having explained how the Delgid Kingdom treated their slaves, I had prepared myself in advance, but I guess even that wasn't enough. The slaves here were easy to spot, as they would have a collar wrapped around their neck, not to mention they would all be non-human; however, I was surprised by their sheer number. I was expecting perhaps only the wealthy would have slaves, but it seems just about everyone had at least one, and the state most was in was downright diabolical.
The enslaved were beaten, given the various bruises that littered most of their body; the clothes they were, if you could even call it such, were just pieces of cloth wrapped around their private areas, and some didn't even get that luxury and were forced to walk around nude.
Worst of all, they weren't even treated like people; they were… I don't even know what words to use. They were treated like living objects… It was disgusting to watch. However, I think most of all, I was confused… Confused how another living being could treat another person with such ruthlessness, the enslaved couldn't even fight back to protect themselves.
"This… This is the Nsemo Continent, Jasmine?" Asked Alexander softly as he held Jasmine's wrist and walked through the crowd mix of humans and the enslaved, which consisted of various species.
"Y-Yes. I-It's not a sight I'm proud of… But yes. Delgid Kingdom is the worst when it comes to handling slaves, but even so, nearly every kingdom is like this." Replied Jasmine softly as she lowered her head and let Alexander lead her, unable to view the sight before her.
I wanted to scoff at her words, but I held it in; right now, I only cared about leaving this horrid place that dared to call itself a city.
Keeping Jasmine close to me, I maneuvered through the crowd, too unsettled to be gentle as I practically pushed everyone out of the way using my body; of course, I got various looks, but when it came to humans, there were very few bigger than me, and unless you are strong, there wasn't anyone dumb enough to call me out, which was good for them as I'd probably break the jaw of whoever called out to me.
As I walked through the city, heading straight for the Adventure Guild in the distance, one thing I noticed was how the enslaved didn't try to escape or fight back, which just goes to show how ruthless the humans were if they treated them so harshly that they even lost such desires.
The few I came across that tried to resist, well, they were beaten in broad daylight, and yet, none seemed to even bat an eye; hell, some even mocked them.
'To think I would miss the Asckbon Continent.' Thought Alexander softly with a furious expression as he kept his head down, trying his best to keep his emotions in check lest they control him.
A few more minutes passed, and when the Adventurer Guild's building was just a little bit away, I suddenly stopped; I'd been trying my best to ignore everything, but there was no way I could ignore what I saw to my left.
To my left was an enslaved elven boy, probably no older than seven or eight, and he had just tripped on the ground; he was shaking, clearly terrified, yet instead of being picked up and tended to like anyone with half a heart would do, the monster in human skin was preparing to punch him, the kind of punch you'd use against a full-grown man.
"Fucking elven bastard! Learn to fucking wa-" Said the man furiously as he glared at the little elven boy, yet before he could finish speaking, a sizeable blackish blade with purple markings suddenly sliced him in half.
As I watched the now-dead man collapse into two on the ground, I clicked my tongue and holstered Trina on my back as I continued moving with Jasmine following; the bustling crowd surrounding us made way, as I could tell most were terrified of me since believe it or not, most were just regular people.
"Wait here." Stated Alexander sternly as he stood outside the guild, eyeing Jasmine, who nodded before entering.
Releasing Jasmine, I entered the guild and approached the front desk, ignoring everyone in line who clearly didn't like me skipping.
"Oi, bastard, what the fuck you think you're doing!?" Exclaimed a muscular man as he and two other men stepped out of line and approached Alexander.
Turning around, I punched the three men, creating an explosion of fire that engulfed them, sending them skidding across the floor while their skin blistered from the intense heat, causing them to groan and howl in pain.
"Give me a map of the Nsemo Continent." Stated Alexander sternly as he glared at the woman sitting behind the desk, prompting her to quickly nod while reaching under her desk.
"O-One go-" Said the woman as she placed a map on the table and looked at Alexander, who slammed a singular gold coin onto the desk, breaking it before snatching the map.
Exiting the Guild, I stepped outside, expecting to find Jasmine directly to the left where I had ordered her to stay, yet she was missing; however, before I could get angry, I saw her kneeling before the little boy from before, releasing a golden aura that not only healed him but everyone who happened to bathe within it.