Ugh*
A painful groan escaped from Mendes' mouth. The sweat ran down from his forehead, causing sunburns on his face whilst he cleaned of the board. He couldn't remember the time that he visited the land last time, thinking the ocean might be his end.
Every day he was abused by the crewmen of Marshall's ship, caused a huge toll on him both physically and mentally which exhausted his life energy, but in front of death this was worth it.
He knew he would escape at the right time.
" Ugh, boy!"
John crawled next to him with a collar on his neck. Unlike Mendes' collar, his collar was enchanted with magic that would cause electric shock when he tried to move inside.
The pungent smell of sweat and shit caused them to be weak. However, they pinched their noses while waiting for the rest time.
" Be patient, sooner or later."
Mendes said coldly, motioning him to be silent in front of the crew members. They would beat them to death at the moment when they heard about escape.
Other slaves were much more obedient than them, but to them, they were just dolls without will. They didn't want to become soulless pieces of meat that would only serve to be entertainment for the brutes.
" Shut your mouths, do your jobs. Sigh, besides their brains, they are just a bunch of fish food without any value. Well, they could catch a few coins in the slave market."
The crew member smashed the bottle on the board, shattering the pieces of glass on the ground that they had freshly cleaned. The glass pieces mixed with booze and spit caused a disgusting poodle on the board.
" Haha!"
Other crew members laughed at their pitiful state, not giving a damn about them since it was entertaining. In this sea, the strong live while the weak die and become fish food.
" Oy, whatcha babbling about there? Get back to your work."
One of the elder fighters threw his cigarette from his mouth while pointing fingers at them. Although he was an asshole and abuser, he didn't like to slack off on the board without any work on his hands because he hated being useless.
He grabbed the head of Mendes and threw him to the railings, showing his animosity towards him. The thought of killing this weak brat was revolving around his head, but Marshall warned him not to touch the boy, so he beat him whenever he saw him.
" You useless piece of shit, can't you mop a single board without any stain? Is there anything useful in you except your brain?"
He spat on him, kicking his gut and body without any mercy. The painful beating continued for 10 minutes, yet nobody stopped him because they were afraid of his wrath.
" Oy, cook decent food today. I am fucking sick of eating tuna and salmon."
He spoke coldly, throwing his cigarette butt toward his face. A groan escaped from Mendes' mouth, but his eyes never left his opponent's face. He swore he would kill him with his hands, however, now isn't the time for it.
" I understand."
He admitted his weakness, deliberately revealing his obedience whilst sharpening his mind behind the scene.
5 years have passed since their slavery.
Mendes grew up like a knight from a famous family. His body development was so staggering that even pirates couldn't tell him apart from themselves since he was rather burly, not skinny.
Moreover, he became a trusted member of their ship as Marshall greatly praised his abilities and potential to be a high-level mana user.
" Haha, boy come here and drink."
Marshall pulled Mendes down and gave him wine that was looted from the merchants. On his outer face, Mendes expressed his gratitude, but he was disturbed and disgusted inside his heart.
The image of burning ships and screams of those who were pleading for their lives were deeply stitched into his mind as they constantly haunted his dreams. The burden of breathing was getting heavier as the days passed.
He even asked about the worth of this freedom multiple times, feeling nauseous many times at the sight of the blood and massacre. Even if he atone his sins in the future, the souls of those who were slain by his hands wouldn't rest as they would probably haunt him and curse him for eternity.