A small box with a red gem embedded in it.

There was only one small creature that could fit inside that box.

'A pixie.'

It was the small fairy, a pixie, that had stepped up to help Skir before.

In the past, there were quite a few people who caught pixies and raised them as pets because of their small and cute appearance. But they all met a bad end, and the perception that pixies were unlucky creatures was strongly ingrained.

'But to think that there are still people who catch and sell pixies.'

Seeing that they had even embedded a mana control stone on top of the box, they also knew to some extent about the pixie's abilities.

They, who were called the shamans of the forest, could bestow blessings and curses.

It wasn't that their shamanistic abilities were great, but pixies were a group that lived in villages. That's why they could increase their power by stacking curses on top of curses.

That's why the humans who had received the pixie's curses in layers had met a bad end.

The strange possessiveness and obsession of humans were endless.

What was the reason for catching and raising that creature, which was so notorious for casting curses that there was even a saying, 'May you encounter a pixie on the road!'?

And what kind of life would a pixie that was caught like that live?

'Can't they just be raised within the category of pets?'

Lucas actually hated the act of buying and selling animals itself.

From his point of view, humans were also just living creatures, but to think that they, who were slightly more advanced creatures, would put a price on life with their currency and buy and sell it?

The same went for slaves.

Lucas found such humans pathetic.

Lucas, who had arrived at a place that looked like a barony, scanned the mansion once.

A luxurious exterior that was strange to be in such a remote area. This was not an empire, but a small kingdom.

"Hmm..."

As he stood in front of the main gate and looked at the place for a long time, the knight who was on guard sent him a suspicious look.

"What is your business?"

Perhaps because Lucas's appearance did not look like a commoner's, the knight asked politely.

"I would like to meet the lady of this house."

"...?"

The knight seemed to be at a loss for words for a moment at Lucas's words, which were spoken as if he could naturally meet her.

"The lady of this house is not someone you can meet just because you want to. Please state your identity first."

"Hey, can't you tell just by looking? He's a peddler who came here after hearing that our lady is gullible. Hey, mister. I don't know what you're selling, but get lost quickly."

Then a man who seemed to be a senior knight stepped forward and gestured for Lucas to get lost, pointing his finger at him.

"Brother, I don't think that's it..."

The junior knight said, looking flustered.

'What would be a good way.'

Lucas was lost in thought for a moment at the sight.

He couldn't just destroy this place to save one pixie. And he had to stay here for another day, so it wouldn't be good to cause such a commotion.

"I understand."

As Lucas, who had finished his thought, turned his body and walked away again, he heard a voice from behind, as if they had expected it.

"What do you mean it's not? You bastard! We were both almost f-cked. Hey, spit!"

Lucas, who had felt the Veneta party entering the village, planned to go back first and then come back here again.

'I'll have to come back later.'

***

The party from Veneta, as soon as they entered the village, looked for a high-class inn.

"As expected, the inn is also small because the scale is small."

"Still, where is this?"

"Right. It's a great fortune that we're not camping."

Lucas, who saw the party entering the inn, also followed them and got a room in the same inn.

After a while, the men who had come down to the first floor took a seat at a table and began to talk quietly.

"Did you see? I was right, wasn't I?"

"That's right. No, but is it really okay?"

"I've already contacted them with the crystal ball. So if that bastard just orders food here, it's over!"

They, who had lowered their voices as much as possible, continued to talk, looking around constantly.

"Kya. This younger brother is really... it's a relief that he's on the same team, but if he were an enemy... ugh!"

Joni, who shuddered as if the thought alone gave him the creeps, shrugged his shoulders and took a sip of the juice in front of him.

"Ah, and you said you have a business partner here, right?"

"Yes. A big business partner. A very good... no, a good customer."

Howard answered Serano's question.

"That's right. A crazy woman who's crazy about rare things."

"Kh, if I had met my brothers earlier, I wouldn't have had such a hard time in Veneta. I was really surprised at first, you know?"

"Khaha! Right, wherever people live, it's the same. So why didn't you stick with us from the beginning?"

Joni laughed heartily at Serano's words.

"Ha, that's what I'm saying. No, brothers, how in the world did you come up with such an idea?"

"Isn't it because we're all trying to live? Did we want to do that? We had a hard time at first too. We felt guilty and all that, huh? But that was all for a moment."

Joni, who was saying the word 'guilt', held his chest once.

"That's right. Oh, I couldn't sleep well at first and had nightmares and all that. But when a person gets full and warm thanks to this, those thoughts just disappear."

"Really, I respect you. And what's guilt? No, even I would have done the same if my family was starving. And it's not even the same race... so what?"

"Kh- I really like this younger brother for this. He's so honest."

"Me too. I'm really glad I met you now."

The men, who had been talking like that for a long time, quickly shut their mouths and changed the subject as they saw Lucas coming down the stairs.

"Oh! We had a hard time today too. We have to leave early tomorrow, so let's eat quickly and go in and rest!"

"Yes. Let's do that."

Lucas, who had glanced at the men, took a seat two tables away from them.

"Would you like to order?"

"Something simple that can be a meal, please."

"Then I'll prepare bread, an omelet, and today's stew for you."

Lucas nodded his head briefly.

Lucas, who had taken a sip of water, pricked up his ears and listened to the Veneta party's story, but there was no story that would be of any help.

How much time had passed? As the ordered menu was served on the table, Lucas, who finally felt hungry, picked up a piece of bread and brought it to his mouth.

Soft bread with a fragrant butter aroma.

Lucas, who had been feeling it in his mouth for a long time, cut the fluffy omelet with a fork and brought it to his mouth.

'The food is quite good.'

The chef's skills were not bad. The eggs were cooked just right and were soft, and the tomatoes and onions filled inside were crispy.

'What's that smell?'

One strange thing was that the same smell was coming from the bread and the omelet.

Lucas, who had swallowed the omelet, took a spoon and ate a spoonful of the stew.

'Is it tomato and beef?'

It was a harmonious taste. Tomato and well-cooked beef.

'The same smell is coming from here too. Is it some kind of special herb sauce of this place?'

It was when he was indulging in the delicious food and satisfying his hunger for a long time.

'Hmm... I feel a little dizzy...'

The world spun for a moment, as if he were drunk.

'Was I very hungry...'

The gesture of scooping the stew and bringing it to his mouth slowed down.

'No... I guess... I'm getting sleepy... I guess...'

-Clang!

Then, the spoon that had been in Lucas's hand fell helplessly to the floor.

-Thump!

Lucas, who had collapsed helplessly on the long bench.

'Ah... did I get caught...'

Lucas, whose thoughts were also slowing down, could do nothing but lie there.

'I've lost my touch... I've lost my touch...'

The eyelids that were moving helplessly were slow.

After a while, darkness came.

***

"Oh, sh-t, it's heavy. No, we can just bury it roughly, why do we have to go all the way under the mountain range to bury it?"

"I don't know, I just got paid, so I'm just doing as I'm told... oh, sh-t. The sea is close, so why do we have to bury it, bury it."

"That's what I'm saying. This bastard. He didn't even have anything... oh!"

The two men who were carrying a sack that looked like it had a person in it, no matter who looked at it.

"No, but this bastard wasn't dead. Is it okay to bury him like this?"

"Huh? He wasn't dead?!"

"I'm telling you he wasn't dead. He was breathing earlier. I checked."

The other man released his grip on his hand at the man's words.

-Thud!

As the part the man had been holding fell to the floor, the other man also released his grip.

-Thump!

Then one of the men untied the mouth of the sack.

"Look. Is he dead?"

"Huh!? He's really not dead!? Hey, if we bury him like this, won't he dig his way out later?"

The man, who had confirmed that the thing in the sack was a living person and not a corpse, jumped up in surprise.

"Then we're really f-cked. Hey, you kill him."

"What!? You son of a b-tch, I can't even kill an ant. You kill him."

"My mom told me not to kill anyone. So you kill him."

The men were forcing each other to kill in order to turn the thing in the sack into a corpse.

"No, I really can't kill him."

"I really can't kill him either."

The men, who had been bickering like that for a long time, lifted the sack again.

"Hey, but this is black hair, right?"

"Huh? That's right. Kya- black hair. It's rare."

"And isn't he kind of pretty?"

"Huh? That's right! Kya- at this rate, I'd believe it if you said he was a woman."

The men who had exchanged words exchanged glances.

"...Really?"

"Hey, what's the big deal. We'll know he's dead anyway, so can't we sell him? And this bastard will be happy too."

"I-is that so? I mean, he's alive and not dead, so of course he'd be happy. Right?"

"Right. And he'll be sold to a rich family and receive a lot of affection. Huh?"

The men, who had exchanged glances again, seemed to have made up their minds and began to tie Lucas's hands and feet, opening the sack.

"Kikik... hey, we had a lot of expenses this time, so this is great."

"Who's saying it's not? It's just like the saying that there's a way out even if the sky falls, right? Look, I thought there was nothing to gain, but bam! We've got the whole thing!"

The men, who were giggling as if they were so happy, checked again to see if his hands and feet were tied well, and then they closed the sack.

"Hey, but how did he live?"

"I don't know. But if he's not dead yet, won't he keep living?"

"Well, if he dies on the way, we can just put him in the sea and come back."

"Right, right."

The men, who had picked up the sack again, began to go back the way they had come.

***

He felt nauseous.

His mind was also hazy, as if he had drunk a lot the day before, and his vision was dark.

'I've lost my touch...'

That was the first thought that came to him.

He had been careless, thinking that they wouldn't know while he was following them. And he had foolishly eaten the food that someone else had given him in the same space, even though they might have noticed.

'Although I ordered the food.'

It was a long time ago, no, it was the first time.

To be caught in a surprise attack so helplessly.

The scent that he seemed to have smelled somewhere before. The same scent that came from all the food was none other than the scent of poison.

The scent of poison, a mixture of hydra's venom and basilisk's tears.

It was the scent of something he had forgotten because it had been so long.

'What's the use of remembering it now.'

As he gradually regained his consciousness, Lucas began to grasp the situation he was in.

'It's moving. It's not a carriage... is it a boat?'

The irregular movement. Lucas realized that he was on the sea from the sound of the waves, which was distant but audible.

'My hands and feet are tied. Then the mana...'

Even if his hands and feet were tied, it was not difficult to escape from anywhere if he could just use his mana.

'I can use my mana too.'

-Snap!

Lucas, who had easily untied the rope that was tied to his hand, took off the blindfold that was covering his eyes.

"Ha."

Lucas was at a loss for words at the sight that unfolded before his eyes.