Zephyros, as Vlorine named it moments before, wasn't just large, it was a titan of feathers and fury, the pinnacle of whatever race it stemmed from.

Mr. Valen's eyes snapped to its form, his brows furrowed, his hair standing on ends at the monstrous form before him as his brain worked to understand it.

«For body size, this thing is about 12 meters comparable to a city bus. Its neck alone spans 4 meters, ending in a head larger than a grand piano. How monstrous that such a thing can fly. Could you help me calculate... No, never mind, I forgot what happened the last time I entrusted such a complex task to you, and yes, I'm saying you're unreliable, you should study more.»

«From what I just saw, its wingspan is 25 meters when fully extended. I couldn't kill it even if I tried, but it could have unknown weaknesses, size doesn't always equate to strength, and its behavioral habits could be exploitable.»

«Wait, what did you just say? Yes, that fleeting thought that you pondered just now, what was it? No. No, wait. You could be right, (you're never right), but indulge me.»

As Mr. Valen stood in partial shock, observing the thing, Vlorine drew closer, standing beside it, she barely reached its knee joints.

'If I were to estimate its weight by the way it landed, I'd say eight or nine tons, akin to a heavy-duty truck,' `Mr. Valen thought as he observed.

Though the creature scared him at a primal level, he saw that it was under Vlorine's control, meaning it would not attack unless directed.

How that had been achieved was a mystery Mr. Valen would love to learn, for now he only had theories.

"High Scioness, your father has been very worried," Calista walked up to Sophia and Mr. Valen, her expression difficult to read.

Staring at this woman who was barely shorter than him, he got the feeling that she was staring at him, despite the fact that her face was turned towards Sophia.

Sophia, the one being addressed had long stepped in front of Mr. Valen, her form poised as she responded, "Then we should hurry, is that not so, Calista?"

Sophia uttered Calista's name as though she was beneath her, her gaze firm, her eyes steady.

Calista, on the other hand, did not seem to mind this; rather, she nodded her head. "Very well, High Scioness, may we?"

"Wait, My Lady," Mr. Valen suddenly called out, his calm voice attracting a curious glance from The Veiled Oracle.

'Who is this kid, he has been unusually close to the High Scioness since I arrived,' she thought, taking note of other details. 'His weird, smaller eyes and poor-quality clothing mark him as an alien slave... hmm.'

"Boy, state your purpose before I incinerate you," Calista commanded, her tone grim as she stepped forward.

Fortunately, Sophia came between them just in time to say. "I know what you're thinking, but he's my slave."

«In name!»

"You might not know this High Scioness, but slaves like him are special," Calista spoke, her tone soft as she caressed her temples. "Making it to this world from this continent means that they have been enslaved by the Thornak Empire-"

"Don't educate me, I know how to handle myself, Olga..." Sophia said, her brows furrowed, but she stopped speaking at the mention of Olga's name.

Observing Sophia's actions, Calista softened, her mind wandering. 'She has grown stronger, more brave, but she's still the same little girl she always was, why does my lord favor her? Her sisters are much more fitting for the title, and this slave.'

"She's right!" Cerberus suddenly spoke, a sigh escaping him as he stood up and put on his helm. "The slave was found with his world brand; he's fine, Senior."

At this time, Mr. Valen leaned in and whispered something into Sophia's ear, causing her to raise a brow.

"Are you sure about this?" Sophia whispered, her eyes widened slightly, her lips curled into an excited smile.

«Such a reaction... The resource seems to be more valuable than I had thought.»

"Yes, My Lady," Mr. Valen confirmed, nodding slightly as the rain resumed its fall.

Vlorine, now perched atop the giant bird, looked upon the group before her, eyes narrowed in annoyance. "We depart now!" she commanded, her voice carrying with it a faint ripple.

Cerberus, in response to this, leaped onto the giant bird, and Calista was about to do the same, but she was stopped by Sophia, who pulled at her sleeve and whispered something into her ear.

They stood for a bit, and when Sophia was done speaking, Calista's eyes widened, a smile forming across her lips.

She looked onto Mr. Valen, her gaze inscrutable, obscured by her blindfold as she said, "You have done well, at least you are a loyal Slave."

«She is becoming annoying, no?»

"I live but to serve my Lady," Mr. Valen simply smiled and spoke, but his eyes were empty, emotionless.

"As it should be," Calista nodded before turning to Vlorine who seemed to be growing increasingly annoyed by the minute. "Senior, forgive my brazenness, but I'm afraid we'll have to make a quick stop; it would seem the High Scioness wishes to retrieve a slave of great importance."

------------------

«Forgive the protracted silence; my engagements have demanded singular focus of late. Yet, I do confess a certain speculative regret.»

«Had your cognitive thresholds aligned more precisely with my operational needs, greater responsibilities might naturally have devolved to you, thereby creating a need for us to speak more often.»

«Let us, however, temper ambition with realism—it would be a profound miscalculation to presume parity in our intellectual currents. The hierarchy of discernment, after all, is seldom negotiable.»

«Forgive me, I swayed again, I forgot you do not like it when I speak like that, but you just seem so easy to bully, I may have a task for you.»

Meanwhile, as Sophia's group mounted the large bird, Dynatós could be found hammering away at the wall.

He was not alone; other slaves could be found working around him, all deep within the volcanic cave, where the heat was unbearable, and the fumes suffocating.

Stopping to catch his breath, Dynatós thought. 'He's been gone for a long time. He'll be back, right?'

"Are you daydreaming about your new boyfriend?" spoke a fellow miner (the abused woman with green eyes) a sneer coating her words

But Dynatós did not respond; rather, he resumed hacking away at the wall. "He'll be back," he reassured himself.

"So you think you're better than us, lad?" Another old miner grunted as he stopped working, a frown on his face as he said. "He's probably been captured and killed, that violent slave-"

"Ohh, so I'm violent?" a calm voice sounded out, interrupting the Old miner, who stilled and turned back.

His eyes then fell on a familiar man with long dark hair, glowing green eyes, and a muscular yet slender physique.

Of course, this man was Mr. Valen, and behind him was Cerberus, who was now wearing his helm.

The moment he saw Mr. Valen, the old miner felt a chill run down his spine, but when he caught sight of Cerberus, his eyes lit up, a small smile coating his old face. "Haha, so you were caught," he laughed.

As the old man laughed, a look of worry graced Dynatós' face, while the rest of the other slaves either seemed elated or minded their business.

Meanwhile, the Old man grunted, "Sir, I advised him not to leave, but he threatened me, look at my head," he said while turning his head. "He bashed it against the wall."

"Sir, I also advised him."

"Sir-"

"Silence," Cerberus spoke, silencing the bunch of slaves who stepped forward to report to him. At the same time, he directed his gaze to Mr. Valen, his eyes narrowed slightly.

'He's much more wary of me now, as he should be,' Mr. Valen noted, shrugging his shoulders.

Shaking his head, Cerberus asked him. "Who is the one we're retrieving?"

"Him," Mr. Valen nodded to Dynatós, a small smirk on his lips.

At those words, Dynatós's eyes lit up, while the rest of the slaves appeared shocked or dumbfounded; the old man, however, felt his face go pale.

"So, free him," Cerberus growled impatiently, revealing the fact that he was not in the best of moods.

Mr. Valen did not have a key, but from the reports the slaves had just given and the fact that he was now free, even a fool would discern that he had a way to pick the locks.

Without a word, Mr. Valen stepped forward, retrieving a small metal shard he'd embedded in the wall.

Using that shard, he began working on the lock around Dynatós' neck, and after tinkering around with the thing for a while, it came off, hitting the ground with a thud.

Eyes widened, and not fully understanding what was going on, Dynatós looked up at Mr. Valen, who gazed back with an expressionless face.

'Who is this man?' Dynatós could not help but wonder. 'First, he'd been brought here as a slave, and yet he never seemed like a slave, and now, he's fulfilled his end of the bargain, but I get the feeling that he's scheming something, is he?'

«Ohh, but I am scheming, and if you truly consider yourself intelligent, if you truly understand me, answer this question right now: What use do I have of Dynatós?»

"You are no longer a slave here," Mr. Valen suddenly spoke after a long, unusually long pause that made it seem as though he was zoning out.

Dynatós, partly overwhelmed stood to his feet and spoke. "Th-Thank you-"

"There is no need to thank me, I have fulfilled my end of the bargain, ensure you fulfill yours," he smiled, an act that never reached his eyes.

"Sir, what about me? I could be of use. I have a deal for you," one of the slaves, the abused lady, spoke quickly, her words mirroring her desperation.

"No, sir, I have a lot of void shards. Free me!" Another slave spoke.

"I'll give you my body! You can do anything you want to me," cried one of the better-looking women.

But Mr. Valen ignored, he did, however, find the mention of void shards interesting, but he was not in a position to save anyone else, not that he intended to.

With a grunt, Cerberus turned to leave, not bothering to wait for Mr. Valen any longer.

"Follow him," Mr. Valen urged, prompting Dynatós to hurry along the path. He then walked forward as well, ignoring the pleading slaves behind him.

For some reason, Mr. Valen walked slowly, leaving both Cerberus and Dynatós to get further ahead of him. Why? Because that feeling had returned, that feeling that he was being watched, but this time it was different.

Because as Mr. Valen turned to his side, he saw it, the product of this bad feeling, it was that thing he'd seen before when he first arrived in this world, that blob of black fur.

The little thing peered at him, with its black beady eyes, and as Mr. Valen stared back, he felt his hair stand at its ends.

'What-? argh!"

Mr. Valen was forced to cut himself short as the thing moved, faster than he could perceive and as it did, pain exploded in his system.

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