Chapter 42: Return to the City (V)
"Everyone, you all are going to take a bath now," I commanded. "Each one of you will receive new clothes, a towel, and a bar of soap. Please head towards the waters."
Everyone stared at me, confused and surprised.
"Bath? Now?" Siva asked. "In this weather?
"Yes, You guys are not eating until you are clean. Don't worry, the water is heated so you won't become cold."
"We're eating too?"
"Why do you think you were cooking such large meals?"
"I-" Siva went silent. She felt embarrassed for asking such a stupid question, but it was understandable. She probably did not have a decent meal since her capture.
"Come on. Let's get this over with." I quickly went over to the pile of soap and towels. "Take one of each. When you finish washing, come back this way, and I'll give you guys a new pair of clothes. One pool of water is for females, and one is for males. Please divide yourself accordingly."
A line was forming in front of me. I was busily handing out the items for each Beast-kin. While handing things out, I noticed that they were different types of Beast-kin present. From tiger, dogs, rabbits, and even lizard types were all present. Every single one of them was a blend of human and animal. The majority of the slaves were quite young. With the last of the soap and towels handed out, I too went to take a bath,
I quickly changed into the towel that was hung up. Wrapping it around me, I ran in. I noticed that all the female beast-kin was quite voluptuous and muscular. Almost half of their bodies were covered in fur or scales. I took a quick bath and even ran out. I got dressed, and I went to the crate of clothes.
Some of the Beast-kin was coming out from the Bath and making their way towards me.
"Need some help?" Don appeared out of thin air, and almost scared the crap out of me.
I nodded, unable to say any words.
The first one to arrive was Seth, who was wrapped with only a towel on his waist. I couldn't help but ogle at his spectacular muscles. Every ounce of his body was ripped. He did not look a bit mangy and starved like Siva.
"You're drooling," Don spoke.
I quickly snapped out of the stupor and blushed. Crap, I was caught red-handed. "Here you go." Don gave Seth clothes, trying not to stare. He quietly took it without a word.
"Berry!" Siva was running towards me with a bright smile. Her golden hair fluttered behind her with a towel wrapped tightly around her body. "I'm finished!" Underneath the moonlight, Siva looks completely different from before. She looks more graceful and exotic.
"Siva, are you done?" I thought she would have taken a bit longer in cleaning herself.
"Mhmm. I was hungry." She bashfully stated. Don was eyeing at her ears.
"I love your ears," Don spoke unconsciously.
Siva turned red and smiled. "T-thank you." She didn't know what to say.
Was Don one of those animal lovers? I couldn't help but wonder if he was a huge player. Already he was making his move towards Siva. Maybe a ship was building between the two? I smirked at them.
I even heard her stomach grumble in protest. With a gentle smile, I handed her clothes. "Well, the food is ready. Grab something to eat when you change into your clothes."
"Thank you." She ran towards the trees and quickly changed into her clothes. Then she sprinted towards the food, where a couple of the guards were eating. They did not give her the same disgusted look as the people in the city. Instead, they welcomed her with delight.
More and more, Beast-kin came out from the Bath and made their way towards me. Don and I diligently work in handing out the clothes to the Beast-kin. With our job done, I made my way to the food. I didn't know how hungry I was until now.
Grabbing myself roasted chicken and a drink. I made my way over towards the fire where Siva, Seth, Don, and Phil were also present. Sitting down, I began to eat.
"So how many types of Beast-kin are there?" Don asked. He was sitting next to Siva. Seth was observing Don, making it difficult for Don to advance.
"Six in total: Tiger Clan, Wolf Clan, Lizardmen, Blue Clan, Rabbit Clan, and the Hidden ones."
"Hidden ones and the Blue Clan? I get the other four, but those two don't make much sense."
"Well, the Blue clan are Beast-kin that have blue skin with tattoos that decorate their body. They are the only ones that can use magic. The Hidden Ones we don't know who they are. Everyone believes that they don't exist. The Tiger and Wolf Clan are known for their combative abilities, while the Lizard and Rabbit Clans are known for their technology."
"That's quite fascinating."
Siva turned towards me. "Why did you buy us all?"
The question caught me off guard. Everyone went silent to hear what I had to say. I swear that even the crickets were quiet at that moment.
"It was a spur of the moment."
"Was that really all it was?" Siva was looking at me intently. Even Seth was staring quietly, waiting for a better explanation.
"Honestly, it was, at least until Porky came over. I disliked his whole attitude and wanted to give him a piece of my mind. Also, I could tell you guys weren't being treated well, and I'm against the whole slavery issue. It's not something I see every day." I replied. I was against animals, or was it beast-kin cruelty?
"Is it true you will free us?"
"Yes, I'm not the type to go back on my words, you know. Though, I would like to take a closer look at your collar."
Siva came over and sat in front of me. I leaned in to examine the collar around her neck. Golden words appeared around the collar as I reached over.
"Owner Berry Drakel. Death magic incantation when one attempts to take it off and total obedience." I read it out loud, realizing how serious that the magic was. If one wrong move, this collar probably snapped their neck in half or choked them out into suffocation.
"You know how to read it?" Phil asked with a wide eye. "When did you learn how to read magic?"
"What are you talking about? I can read it perfectly fine." I gave him a strange look. Wasn't it a normal everyday thing?
"I didn't know your knowledge of languages was so extensive."
"What?"
"It's Magic Language, just like your Ancient Draconian Language. Even though the Magic Language, the root is derived from the Ancient Draconian Language, it's still considered different."
I stared and realized that my skill had activated, allowing me to read and learn new languages at a rapid pace. When I look upon it closely, I could see where the familiarity between the languages were. Reading was a lot easier than I thought.
An idea struck me, fishing through my pocket. I pulled out the box of magic stones and a level C Common Magic. It's multi-colored stone glimmered, gently catching the rays of moonlight. The Magic Stone took a lot more magic and time to create. It had drained almost all my magic for three days straight, which caused me to sleep for days. This specific stone was a lot harder to create than any other Magic Stones that I have made.
"What is that?" Siva stared curiously.
"Well, you could say something like a Hacking Magic Stone." I held it up towards the collar.
"You made another type of stone?" Phil looked at me curiously, wondering what I would do. He scooted closer.
"Well, it's just a test trial. I really don't think this stone should be taught so easily."
"Why is that?"
"It's a stone that can unravel and bypass all the magic defense. Though it only works on contacts."
At that moment, a message shot through my mind. Would you like to bypass the enchant? The chance of success is less than 30%.
Only 30%? That was a lot lower than I thought. Yes. I thought, and the Hacking Magic Stone turned bright red causing my hands to feel hot. The magic from the stone pulled a heavy amount of magic out from my body and into the stone. Even the collar turned bright red.
"W-w-what's going on?" Siva stuttered in fright. Her hands quickly lifted towards her neck in the hope of stopping whatever was going on, but the magic energy pulse shot throughout her whole body, causing her to stiffen.
"Just keep calm," I had difficulty even speaking out those words to her. The hardest part was keeping my focus.
My mind dived into the magic stone. Words that I had never seen before fluctuated and zipped all around me like a train. Out of all the words that flew by, only one out of the whole group was red in color. Reaching out, I touched the word in red.
A burst of bright red light erupted from the word blinding me in seconds. I could not help but cover myself in the hope of stopping the pain. Just as the flash of light appeared, the world around me began to crumble like broken glass. It was an oddly surreal sight that made me wonder if this was what all magic looked like. In a jolt, I was brought back to my senses.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone