"Sorry I'm late."

As Yinla spoke, he gently embraced the orc in front of him who didn't seem to be seriously injured. Looking into the orc's lifeless eyes, he didn't say anything, he just kept holding him.

He would hold her tightly, as if time were standing still in that moment, and he would hold her for as long as he could… But in reality, it would only last about ten minutes.

Or until...

"……Thanks."

The other party engages in any form of conversation.

Upon hearing such a sound, Yinla gently released her and led her towards Shilina, then he embraced the next person... embracing those slaves whose hearts were ashen.

I'll keep holding them until they stop treating me like a slave...

In the inter-racial slave trade, orcs always outnumbered the other races. The most popular were the rarest elves, followed by monsters with unique charm. However, elves were more difficult to capture due to their innate strength and the way monsters lived in groups.

Therefore, orcs were the most numerous among slaves... However, if we disregard this group, the majority of slaves on the market were naturally humans, perhaps plundered on the battlefield, perhaps bankrupt and in debt, or perhaps from small countries that had been destroyed.

However, humans do not fall under the category of "inter-species trade," and most of them were sold into slavery for various reasons, but their fate was equally tragic, and they also needed to be treated with the same gentleness.

However, apart from a few monsters, the slaves in this batch of Black Shackles Pirates were all orcs... Human slaves are cheap and not worth the effort of shipping them by sea. Is this a blessing or a curse?

"Sorry I'm late."

As Yinla spoke, he hugged another orc. Looking at her sobbing, he thankfully escorted her toward the three sirens... The orc's injuries were severe; the three sirens would take care of them.

Crying is a good thing, but I'm afraid it will all come to nothing.

"Sorry I'm late..."

"Sorry I'm late."

"Sorry I'm late..."

"..."

Yinla repeated himself, but no one found it boring, nor did he himself get tired of it. Each slave either cried, remained calm, or gratefully embraced Yinla, said something, and was then rescued.

Soon, only one person remained in front of Yinla... It was a catwoman whose body was covered with all sorts of scars, with black hair, and even her breathing was very weak.

The physical wounds on the other person's body have long since healed, but the wounds in their heart have not.

"Sorry I'm late..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

Embracing them allows them to realize to the greatest extent possible that they are intelligent beings treated as equals, not slaves of the lowest rank, and not commodities.

This simple action is far more powerful than many words... Usually, Yinla would hug each child for ten minutes, one by one, and then bandage the children who were not moving.

We'll then try other methods to save them...

However, at this moment, only silence responded to Yinla. Everyone in the Demon King's territory, as well as the slaves, watched the last slave in silence... waiting for the moment when she would truly become human again.

Ten minutes had already passed.

"..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

“Mr. Yinla, we’ve taken them back to the ship. Your friend gave us a lot of extra supplies this time, so we don’t need to buy any more… However, the route will be changed, so we may have to go back to the Orc Kingdom to send them back.”

After saying this, Shirina looked at Inra, who was nodding, and then led the others back...

"..."

"..."

"..."

The onlookers on the dock dispersed; they no longer found the scene entertaining. The most important thing now was... to prepare for the great changes that were about to happen in Hazlosa.

Only Yinla remained on the dock, along with a squad of guards and one other person, and it fell silent...

It was so quiet that they could hear each other's heartbeats, and one could even feel the overflowing gentleness and tenderness of Yinla... but there was no pity.

Pity is for cats and dogs... at least that's what slaves think, so no [human] needs pity.

"..."

"..."

"..."

Yinla held the cat-woman slave close, their petite bodies pressed together, until the other finally spoke, murmuring in a very soft voice, "I'm sorry I'm late."

"No...you did nothing wrong."

The cat-person whispered in Yinla's ear in a voice as soft as a mosquito's buzz: "It's our own fault. I shouldn't have been so playful and left the tribe... It caused my parents, who came looking for me, to be killed."

It seems the reason the other person is avoiding reality is... because of self-blame.

"But you didn't do anything wrong either."

As Yinla spoke, he breathed a sigh of relief as the other party finally made some movement. He helped her walk towards the direction of the Demon King's ship and said, "The victim... can never be wrong."

"..."

Catman: "But it's me..."

Yinla: "It wasn't you."

"..."

The cat-girl, interrupted, fell silent, leaning against Inra and almost entirely dependent on her for support... She spoke again, preparing to confess her sins: "It's all because of me..."

"It wasn't you!"

"..."

Hearing the other person's silence, Yinla softened his voice and said, "I don't want to say that it's the world's fault. The ones who are at fault are the nobles who want to buy slaves and the slave-catching teams. If it's not you, then it must be someone else."

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!