"Splash... thud."

Xu Milu held the sleeping little Fanny in one arm and tossed the money pouch from her waist onto the tavern table with the other.

"Here are ten small silver coins. I want to buy this child."

The tavern owner was a middle-aged man in his early forties. He glanced at Fanny in Xu Milu's arms, then at her fine mercenary uniform, and a look of relief appeared on his face.

“Little Fanny is also a poor child. I brought her back from the slave market. I heard that her relatives were captured and enslaved because they owed a huge amount of taxes, leaving only this thin child…”

The tavern owner brought over a stool, stepped on it, and took a box from the top of the liquor cabinet. Inside was a parchment covered in cursive script:

"This is Fanny's slave contract, but sir, she is just an ordinary canine. She only needs two small silver coins. Please take the rest back with you..."

Xu Milu took the contract and examined it carefully. She found that the two souls attached to it were like two thin threads, one end connected to Fanny and the other to the tavern owner. The only difference was that the soul thread belonging to Fanny was much thicker than that of the tavern owner.

"There is no problem with the contract."

Xu Milu nodded calmly, summoning a ball of flame to burn the contract that represented Fanny's slave status. As the phoenix flames burned fiercely, the smell of burning parchment filled the air, and the two soul threads withered rapidly, eventually turning into two starlight that dissipated into the air.

"Smack!"

The chains on Fanny's ankles snapped, and the shackles that symbolized her restraints fell to the ground with a crisp sound.

"So you're a magician!"

The tavern owner breathed a sigh of relief: "It's wonderful that little Fanny can become a magician's slave."

He paused, his eyes quickly scanning the doorway, before lowering his voice to explain:

“I’ve heard some rumors that all the orcs in the city will be sent to the battlefield to fight the ‘Slime Witch.’ Since you are a mage, your slaves will naturally not be sent to the battlefield. Although orcs are very strong, little Fanny is still too young. She will definitely die on the battlefield… Ah, look at me, just talking to myself. I will get you the slave mark right now. With just a little blood, I can re-sign the slave contract for Fanny.”

Sure enough, although Lord Aigard had not yet given a clear order, rumors about the "punitive campaign" had already begun to circulate in Westco County.

Xu Milu was about to continue asking when she felt Fanny in her arms nervously clutching her clothes. She couldn't help but frown, gently patted the little beastman's back with her right hand, and whispered:

"No need, I have no intention of making this child my slave."

Even Fanny, who was pretending to be asleep, was stunned, her puppy-dog eyes staring unblinkingly at Xu Milu: "..."

"...You want to free your slaves?"

The tavern owner looked at Xu Milu with a strange expression, as if he were looking at a fool who didn't know anything about the place, but he didn't say anything, just smiled and flattered her:

"A wise choice. After orcs sign a slave contract, their power will be suppressed to one-third of its original strength. Although Fanny is still young, her strength is much greater than that of orcs of the same age. If you want to train an adventurous warrior or a servant, Fanny is a good choice. Hehehe."

It seems that people have long been accustomed to the existence of slave contracts, and even the tavern owner who cares about Fanny cannot understand Xu Milu's behavior of spending a lot of money to liberate slaves.

After all, in his view, providing slaves with enough to eat and a place to sleep, and not whipping them to work every day, was already considered exceptionally good treatment.

Xu Milu didn't offer much explanation, but instead inquired about gossip with the tavern owner:

"...I heard that this monster uprising is caused by the 'King-level Turtle-type Monster' in the Grebari Great Forest? But King-level monsters possess power comparable to dragons. Can the knights of Xike County really defeat the monsters?"

The tavern owner chuckled, waved his hand casually, and looked brimming with confidence.

"This expedition will be led by High Priest Chris, the Temple Master of the Royal Capital. The Earl and the noble lords will lead the knights to exterminate the monsters. High Priest Chris is a mage who has mastered holy-level magic. I heard that he can defeat dragons alone. With him here, we will definitely be able to reclaim our territory!"

Hearing this, the other patrons in the tavern also joined in the discussion:

"Hey! The 'Slime Witch' can transform into any magical beast. I heard that the turtle-shaped magical beast was turned into a giant monster by her using some kind of curse!"

"No, no, no, the 'Slime Witch' is clearly a gigantic slime. I've heard that wherever she goes, slime slime covers everything—that turtle-shaped monster is also a slime in disguise. We all know that slimes can transform into other forms!"

"Anyway, these hard times are finally over! Long live High Priest Chris!!"

"Oh oh oh!! Long live the God of Light! Long live the High Priest!"

"Ohhhhhh!!"

"Oh!! Oh!!"

A strange frenzy swept through the tavern once again, with only Xu Milu standing there with a subtle expression.

She finally found out how the rumors started.

—If the source of the rumors isn't dealt with soon, her image in the public eye will become even stranger.

...

...

As dusk approached, the last rays of the sun slowly disappeared below the horizon, and the clouds beneath the setting sun were painted into a series of dreamlike colors. Suddenly, the lights in front of the "Adventurer's House" porch turned on, emitting a warm glow.

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