Chapter 3 (1/2)

The master-slave contract took about thirty minutes to complete.

All I had to do was place the tip of a special needle in a dye containing my blood and use it to lightly prick the area where Kaede's heart is meant to be.

Then a black pattern emerged and the contract was completed.

When Kaede became my property, she was so weak that she couldn't even walk, standing on her own was impossible.

I carried her on my back, and left the store.

Before leaving, the slave driver gave me a little advice.

”If you plan to go to a drugstore to get her medicine, she may be able to recover a little. However, her illness is quite serious. In order for her to be completely cured, she will need a potion made from the heart of a Dragon.”

”Will a Wyvern heart work?”

”No, I'm talking about a real Dragon. I'm not sure a subspecies will work.”

”Well, thanks for the information.”

The slave driver smiled and said, ”No, no, please don't hesitate to visit us again.

On the way to the inn, I felt uncomfortable because of the lightness of the girl on my back.

I guess it's good that I bought her, but still, I don't know how to handle this.

Why did I choose a girl? If my plan is to have a slave to bring along on an adventure, I should have chosen a boy.

But I couldn't leave this girl alone.

...Probably because in a way, I empathize with her.

Her weak, downcast and lonely appearance was how I felt at this moment.

That's why I wanted to help her.

I want to show her that there are still people in this world that she can trust.

It may be ridiculous, but there is no other reason than that.

And it's true that I was intuitively drawn to her.

I found it strange just by looking at her.

”Gohogoho!”

”Are you okay?”

”Yes...”

Should I go to the pharmacy before I go to the inn?

I looked for a pharmacy while asking people for directions.

”It's a pretty rare disease that affects beastkin”

The doctor looks into the girl's mouth and mutters.

That word created a question mark in my head.

”Are you telling me she's not human?

”It's hard to understand because she doesn't have ears or a tail, but this child is of the beastkin race. You see, the pupils are vertically long. There is also a slight bump around her waist, as if she has a tail.

If what you say is true, then will the basic physical ability be high?

This is quite unexpected news

”What can I do to cure your disease?”

”As the slave master mentioned, you'll need a potion made from a Dragon's heart. But it's ridiculously expensive to buy, and you'd have to be a hero to kill a Dragon.

”Can I make a potion out of a Dragon's heart?”

”Yes, it's possible to do so...”

The doctor seemed to want to say something else, but quickly closed his mouth.

He must have realized that it was useless to stop me.

Once I set out to do something, I will not rest until I have accomplished it.

Fortunately, I now have the power. I have no reason not to.

”Gohogoho!”

I stroked her head and said, ”Don't worry, I'll be back soon, and I'll cure you.”

“.......”

She was looking at me through the gap in her bangs as she breathed heavily.

I'm sure she was worried. She doesn't know what kind of person the master who bought her id and what purpose he has in helping her.

”For us to reach good results, you must first be cured, or do you find it strange that a master would take care of his slave?”

Kaede shook her head as she shook herself.

She is a good and honest child. I have to build a proper relationship of trust to make us friends.

”I'll give you some cough and fever pills, you can come back when you run out of medicine.

”Thank you. Old man.”

”Who are you calling old? I'm not even 30 years old!”

The doctor hit me on the head.

I heard that in a forest near the city, a real Dragon has been living there for a while.

It's been three hours since I started walking in the forest.

I'm not tired yet, but I'm mentally exhausted by the same scenario.

”They told me I could find it if I walked to the mountain, but where?

I advanced through the foliage.

Occasionally I see goblins and orcs, but when I look at them, they slip away.

I wonder if they use their wild intuition to detect danger.

It still feels odd.

”Guoooooooooo!!”

A roar so loud that it shook the forest.

It's definitely from a Dragon.

This is where I finally got nervous.

A thoroughbred Dragon is a monster that I've never seen or fought before.

The usual way to defeat them is with a carefully planned military campaign.