The Necromancer Who Was Despised

As soon as I finished selling the leather, I got down to business.

“I want to buy a slave.”

“…A slave, you say?”

“Yes. Since I’ll be working with Kuman-nim for the time being, I’ll probably be staying here for a while, so I need someone to do the housework.”

“It’s not hard work, just running errands and doing odd jobs. My pockets are a little light right now anyway.”

“Excuse me. I didn’t think you’d ask to buy a slave…”

Well, it didn’t seem like there was anyone around here who had the financial resources to buy and maintain a slave.

At most, the lord?

There was no reason for someone with enough purchasing power to keep a slave in a dangerous pioneering territory to come here.

‘Come to think of it, this place is close to the supply center.’

Kuman is here, but he’s just a newcomer among slave traders.

So he comes here himself to open up a deal with Matop and treats me well.

“I understand. Please wait a moment.”

I grabbed Alber as he was about to leave.

“If it’s all the same to you, I’d like to see them and choose for myself.”

“In person… hmm…”

Alber seemed a little troubled, but he soon nodded.

“The master told me to treat you well… Okay. Follow me.”

The place I followed Alber to was a familiar underground space.

The size of the mansion was large, and the basement where the slaves were kept and trained was also enormous.

Three floors underground. To be honest, it was bigger than the mansion above ground.

It was a scale that was excessive for a new slave trader, and if it weren’t for the pioneering territory on the outskirts, it would have been impossible for Kuman to have a building of this size.

“The first floor is mostly empty. We put those who have finished some of their training here, but most of them have been taken by the master this time, so I’m afraid the timing is not good.”

“That’s fine. As I said, I’m not looking for trained people.”

Those are expensive.

“The second basement floor is still a bit lacking, but it’s where we keep those who have been broken in. The third floor… honestly, they’re not even aware of themselves as slaves, so they’re not worth selling. “

I knew that well.

I started on the third floor myself.

The second basement floor we entered was completely different from the first floor.

There were iron bars like in a prison, and several people were locked inside.

A strange emotion grips me.

“If it’s housework, then a female slave would be more suitable, I think.”

“Yes. It would be better if she was a little young so that she’s easier to handle.”

Is it because I’m choosing a slave in the same place I was once imprisoned? To be honest, I feel like throwing up.

Since I returned, the memories of Earth have been flooding back, so my mood kept getting worse as I spoke.

However, I thoroughly concealed my feelings.

They knew that I had once been a slave trader.

If they were to find out that I’m now feeling this way, it would only be disadvantageous to me.

Therefore, Alber calmly said only what he needed to say.

“A young slave. Then, please come this way.”

The place we were guided to had young female slaves.

“They may be petite, but it’s only because they’re malnourished. They’re all over 15 years old. They’re also quite obedient. They haven’t been properly trained yet, but they won’t rebel, at the very least.”

None of them were particularly outstanding in appearance, probably because I had mentioned that my financial situation wasn’t great.

I calmly looked for someone with black hair.

“Of these, which ones have experience with housework….”

I cut off Alber’s words and said.

“That one with black hair over there.”

“Yes?”

“I’d like to see the face of the girl with black hair.”

“Ah, that child is….”

Looking in the direction I pointed, Alber showed a slightly troubled expression.

Tia. Unlike the other children, she was kept alone in solitary confinement.

‘Is it because of an illness?’

The girl with black hair raised her head at the words referring to her.

‘Crimson eyes. That’s for sure.’

I also thought that her appearance slightly resembled Athina’s. However, while Athina seemed a bit spirited, her younger sister, Tia, seemed to have a gentle impression.

Certainly, perhaps because she’s Athina’s younger sister, she had the most outstanding appearance among them.

However, her complexion was pale and her body color didn’t look good. She looked like she was sick.

“Um… That child is beautiful, but she, she’s sick.”

“Sick?”

“Yes. I called a doctor, but they couldn’t figure out what kind of illness it was. I even took her to the temple, but they told me to take her to a high-ranking priest.”

‘A high-ranking priest….’

Now I understand why Kuman abandoned Tia.

Even though she’s Athina’s younger sister and is like a leash for her, calling a high-ranking priest isn’t something that can be done with just money.

A great deal of money is needed, and on top of that, a certain level of authority is also required.

Simply put, it means that you have to be a noble or have connections to the temple.

Even a minor noble wouldn’t be enough.

Even when he found out that she was Athina’s leash, he couldn’t cure her. At this point, there was even less reason to make such an effort.

‘…But why do I feel like I know her….’

I quietly observed Athina’s face.

She lowered her gaze, looking a little frightened.

Then she suddenly realized that she was feeling a familiar aura.

‘… A curse, it’s a curse. That’s it.’

It’s not a disease.

She’s been cursed.

‘Yes, that’s it.’

It’s incredibly subtle. I can see why the priest told her to go to the high priest.

Even I, who have received the blessing of the Magi, only realized it after looking at her for a long time, so it would have been difficult for an ordinary priest to discover it.

I was surprised.

A curse torments a person for a year before finally leading them to death.

An ordinary priest wouldn’t even be able to detect it.

‘To think that there would be a black magician capable of casting such a curse in this remote area?’

Honestly speaking, it wasn’t impossible.

‘Could it be that the monster wave… .’

No, it’s not that.

A black magician capable of doing something on that scale would most likely belong to the Black Star of the Southern Forest or be a public black magician.

‘In the first place, would a black magician of that level not have noticed my existence?’

In my first life, the only time I came into contact with a truly high-ranking black magician was through my teacher. That is to say, from my experience, there are no high-ranking black magicians in this era that I can’t handle. I don’t know about the past, but at least in the present, I don’t think there are any.

‘She hasn’t come into contact with high-ranking undead… has she come into contact with a cursed object?’

I needed to find out.

“… Jimna-nim?”

“Ah, ah. “I apologize.”

“Anyway, I don’t recommend this child. The disease isn’t contagious, but she probably won’t live long.”

Although they were keeping her around in case something happened, they still didn’t want to recommend her.

“Hmm… in that case, the price wouldn’t be that high, would it?”

“… That’s true, but… .”

“Even so, you won’t use her for more than a year. By that time, I’ll have more money, so I’ll just buy a new slave. She won’t have any energy, so she won’t run away.”

“But she won’t be able to do her work properly.”

“Well, I’m not going to make her do anything difficult. She has a lot of shortcomings, but from my point of view, she doesn’t seem that bad.”

Was it because I was strangely fixed on her? Alber looked at me as if I was strange.

“What, do you not like her appearance? She’s a face you’ll see often, so it’s better than her being ugly.”

“… “I understand.”

I didn’t like talking about her like this, but I didn’t have a better excuse.

And so, the cost of purchasing Tia was 30 silver.

If she had been healthy, she would have sold for at least twice that, maybe even in the gold range.

She was getting a lot of discounts because she was sick and because she would also be helping Kuman.

‘Tsk. It’s still expensive.’

“Hmm, I need to brand her with the slave mark… .”

“Don’t you have a branding iron?”

“Yes. I’m afraid she’ll die if I brand her.”

‘Good.’

“Then let’s do it at two. Please give me a chain or something thick. I have the deed, and you said I won’t live long anyway.”

The chain has a seal engraved on it anyway.

“It’s illegal to have a slave without a seal on their body, but…well. Since it’s a special case and considering your health… I understand.”

In the first place, it’s illegal to capture civilians and make them slaves.

Besides, the law in this world favors the wealthy, and if you don’t get caught, you’re fine.

‘Even if you do get caught, most of the time it can be resolved with power, connections, or money.’

That’s why I was able to acquire Tia without difficulty.

As soon as I received Tia, I asked Albert anxiously.

“When will Master Kuman return?”

“He said it will take about a month. Siglen is the closest territory with a Demon’s Tower…”

“I see. “I understand.”

“I will send someone separately when the master returns.”

“No. It’s okay. I’ll stop by once in a while. I’ll hunt regularly, even if I don’t capture anything.”

“Is that so? I understand. Please be careful when you enter.”

After finishing my conversation with Albert, I left the settlement, leading Tia.

Even though I had put a traveler’s robe over her, she attracted the attention of many people because of her race, but I ignored them.

Tia didn’t say a word until we left the settlement.

However, she seemed to be observing me unknowingly.

Of course, she needed to quickly figure out what kind of person her new master was.

She would have to respond accordingly in order to suffer as little as possible.

We continued walking in silence for a long time after leaving the settlement.

Tia, who lacked stamina, began to pant slightly, and I decided it was a good enough distance and finally spoke.

“Tia.”

“Yes, Master.”

Since I had learned her name during the contract process, it wasn’t strange for me to suddenly call her by name.

However, she couldn’t hide her shock at my next words.

“Your older sister’s name is Atina, right?”

Tia looked up at me with wide eyes.

“Your answer?”

“I, I’m sorry.”

Tia quickly apologized and then answered immediately.

“My sister’s name is Atina.”

She quickly rolled her eyes as if she couldn’t figure out how I knew Atina’s name.

However, given her status, she couldn’t question me first, and her expression began to turn anxious.

She seemed to be imagining something bad.

“Atina sent me here.”

“…Yes?”

“Atina joined my party. As a condition for joining the party, she asked me to take you away.”

Tia seemed to not understand what I was saying for a moment.

But soon, she seemed to realize what I was talking about, and soon tears began to flow from Tia’s eyes.

Was it a habit? Tia didn’t groan once while she was crying.

Only after she had calmed down to some extent did I speak to Tia.

“I want to unchain you, but I don’t have the equipment right now. I’ll unchain you later. For now, we need to move quickly, so get on my back.”

When I crouched down in front of her, she seemed to hesitate for a moment before getting on my back.

She was definitely thin, even with a collar and chain around her neck, she was still light.

As I walked a little faster with Tia on my back, Tia buried her head in my back and muttered softly.

“Thank you.”

“It’s just a deal.”