CHAPTER 112: MERCHANDISE OF THE OASIS

By the time Shirley finished her explanation, one could witness the "saved" female dancer trembling in fear.

Not a single merchant or guard had approached her.

She was all isolated in her own special space. Her eyes darted around, seemingly trying to find a client to service. There were traces of panic, fear, and an overwhelming loss in her expression.

It was just like Shirley had stated.

A female dancer of her status would become useless and disposable once she was no longer wanted by anyone else.

She couldn’t even leave Velastra either because of the magic contract she was compelled to sign.

Unable to continue her work or leave, she was destined to rot away in the slum.

By then, she would be ravaged by the vile people who look at her like easy prey. And even after the deed was done, she still wouldn’t be able to get a loaf of bread.

"This is why you shouldn’t make such an impulsive action, Mr. Vincent." Caroline coolly said. She was experienced in it because she had personally witnessed multiple fallen female dancers being tossed into the slum when conducting her research experiment.

Some might call her heartless or cold. But what they didn’t know was the cruel reality.

The staggering number of fallen female dancers was too high to be counted.

Every day, new female dancers who failed to satisfy a customer or client would end up being discarded. Once discarded, there would still be a new and fresh batch of trained female dancers available.

It was a vicious, never-ending cycle!

"How can this kind of situation be allowed?" Infuriated, Mirelle’s eyes flared up.

"Ah, right, Shirley here forgot to mention this point." Caroline took a sip of her cup before explaining, "These female dancers aren’t citizens. They don’t even qualify as commoners, but as merchandise."

"Merchandise?" Dumbfounded, Mirelle subtly shifted her gaze to Shirly and the other two.

"Are you saying they’re slaves?" She raised an eyebrow.

But that didn’t seem right either!

If they were indeed slaves, then they should have a slave collar around their neck. A collar similar to Claudia, who had been silently sitting at the far edge of the corner, incapable of talking or moving because of Leonard’s order.

Shirley flashed a bittersweet smile when she was asked about such a question.

She noticed Leonard didn’t have any intention of intervening, which meant she had to answer the question.

’I guessed this is something we should get used to.’ Shirley thought to herself. She held on to some hopes that maybe their new owner wasn’t that difficult to please, but it appeared that was far from the case.

In fact, she believed her new owner seemed even more mysterious than Lord Wesley.

"We’re not slaves, but also no different than one. I originally belonged to a middle-class noble family. But after a certain incident, I’ve lost everything. In the end, I was even bagged up to be sold to the Enchanted Oasis to become a female dancer." Shirley recalled her past with a melancholy expression.

The days of being trained as a female dancer were tough and despairing.

Those who performed well in the training could be granted dinner, whereas those who performed mediocre were given only some grains.

As for those who performed horrendously, they were quickly tossed to the commendable guards to be ravaged and violated.

Once ravaged and violated, it was nearly impossible to escape the situation.

Their bodies would ache everywhere, resulting in continuous poor performance. It wouldn’t even be surprising for many of them to succumb to death while being violated a few days later.

Those who failed to endure and lost their lives would then be tossed right outside their training room.

This kind of method was purposely shown to the others to constantly remind the people who did well to never slack off. Otherwise, the next victim could potentially be you.

Not to mention, the leering and disgusting eyes used by those guards on them were extremely uncomfortable!

They all gossiped and commented on the ways to violate them if they happened to falter and received a bad grade during the performance.

"This is the life of us dancers in the Enchanted Oasis!" Shirley’s hands were already clenched tightly, with blood seeping out. "They have many branches that specifically train fallen or captured women in their training house scattered across Velastra."

To summarize, every region within the city would have a training house dedicated to creating lovely and beautiful dancers for others to enjoy.

As Shirley finished her explanation, both Sirena and Sophie’s faces had already turned somewhat pale. They all recalled their torturous and constant fear in the training house to avoid performing terribly.

While their faces had turned pale, Mirelle was already on the verge of exploding.

What Shirley omitted the most was that the females being trained were all transported over to Velastra through many unscrupulous means.

In other words, it was human trafficking, completely bypassing the slavery system.

"The Enchanted Oasis should be shut down!" Mirelle hissed coldly.

Needless to say, her comment went mostly to deaf ears.

The Rosalia Troupe didn’t even bother to react to her ridiculous statement, whereas Caroline was too lazy to even advise her otherwise.

Seeing their lack of response, Mirelle’s eyes soon landed on Leonard, whose eyes were closed.

’Indeed, this city is better off gone and renewed.’ The more things Leonard was exposed to, the more his desire to achieve his objective grew.

He had already made up his mind to send people to conduct an extensive investigation report.

Any personnel or related individuals involved in these so-called training houses should be brought to trial.

Don’t be fooled by the term trial!

By trial, Leonard meant his own trial, and not some court trial.

While Leonard added another thing to his objective, a guard suddenly arrived at the banquet and rushed to Wesley’s side.

Wesley’s expression gradually turned cold when he received the news.

"You said there are berserk slaves on the loose in the city?" Wesley held his walking cane and unleashed a powerful aura.

"Whoever is behind this surely wants to step over my head." His eyes narrowed in a cold light.