Chapter 54

As Rey stepped out of the abandoned shack with Gus, he focused on controlling his entire body.

He could tell that he was trembling within, but thankfully no one could notice it.

Ah, and this time it wasn’t due to fear, or some other fickle emotion.

‘Billy, you…!’

At that moment, only one feeling surged through Rey, powerful enough to make him grit his teeth and widen his eyes.

It was pure, unbridled rage.

‘You're the one behind all this!’ He struggled to keep his fists unclenched and resisted the urge to lash out or punch something.

But his anger was overflowing and he desperately needed an outlet.

Unfortunately, they were out in the open, within the slums of the Black Market,

Rey knew he couldn’t act rashly now, especially with Aldred and Yuri watching him closely from a distance.

‘I don’t know if they’re suspicious of me for not killing anyone, but…’

For now, they probably weren’t going to make a move against him.

Still, he knew he had to keep his guard up.

‘Right now, I better save up all this anger for when we arrive at the location.’

He pictured Alicia in trouble, with the foolish Billy by her side.

‘The idiot let himself be captured as well… he’s just—!’

“So, what now, Sir Ralyks?”

Rey’s thoughts were abruptly cut off by Aldred’s question, pulling him back to the present.

He had already made it to the presence of his two KariBlanc helpers, and with Gus right next to him, the next thing on the list was what the next step would be.

“We’re heading to the Slave Trading Storage Facility—the one where they keep some of their merchandise.”

Rey wanted to keep Alicia’s identity secret from Aldred and Yuri.

If they knew about her, they might figure out his own identity or use her as leverage against him. He figured it was best to tell them to leave the rest to him, without revealing too much.

‘I don’t want her to be a weak link…’

However, Rey found it difficult to send them off.

Apart from their obvious reluctance to leave, Rey still needed them for his dirty work.

He hadn’t killed a human yet and had no intention of doing so.

‘I need to keep my hands as clean as possible, just in case an investigation with the TruthSeeker comes up again and I’m asked something along these lines…’

This was Rey’s excuse, but the true reason he didn’t want to take a life was far simpler.

He just couldn’t do it.

Rey was by no means a hardened killer, and the thought of ending human life and living with those consequences made him nearly retch.

Killing Monsters in Dungeons felt like a game. In video games, no matter how realistic, you could always kill anyone and go scot-free.

There would be no guilt associated with it, and most people ended up having fun with it.

That was how Rey had always felt with the monsters.

But people... they were a different story altogether.

‘I… I just…’

“I’m guessing this one here will lead us to the place?” Aldred’s question brought Rey back to the moment.

Rey nodded gently, his facade of stoicism working perfectly beneath his obsidian mask.

“Perfect! Shall we get going, then?”

“Yeah…”

The group left the hideout, leaving the bloodied interior just the way it was.

The reason behind that could only be guessed.

*********

‘I feel… really weak…’

Alicia had thought that a good night’s rest would make her feel better, but she was dead wrong.

She had never felt so terrible in her life.

‘My body won’t even move…’

It felt like she was paralyzed, unable to move even the tiniest parts of her body.

Her heartbeat also slowed down despite how scared she was. This darkness that surrounded her felt suffocating.

No one spoke, amplifying the sense of terror in the air.

Even Billy, whose chatter—despite how irritating it was—kept her company, was nowhere to be heard.

Alicia imagined him sitting helplessly in a corner, unable to be of any use.

From what Alicia could gather, the room had a box-like shape, with quite a decent amount of space within.

When she first woke up within it, she only saw Billy. However, by the time she regained consciousness and looked around her, she noticed the presence of others.

There were two other persons in the room with them.

Alicia couldn’t see their faces clearly, but she could make out their identities from the shape of their bodies.

One was a girl, slightly shorter and likely around her age. The other appeared to be a boy, and he seemed much younger than anyone else in the room.

These were the only details Alicia could gather in the dimly lit room.

‘Just how much time has passed? I have no idea…’

Alicia was growing desperate by the minute—specifically because of what Billy told her.

They were getting sold today!

‘Please… someone out there… please help!’

********

Gus led Rey and his two companions to a place within one of the most secluded areas in the community of darkness.

A place he called the Warehouse.

This place was a massive structure that occupied a wide stretch of land. It had a large fence surrounding it, along with guards who were either stationed in their positions, or were patrolling.

All of this grandiose display showed just how important the building behind the walls was.

The Workshop—

It was a place where Gus’ boss kept his merchandise—human beings, reduced to commodities, waiting to be sold as slaves.

Rey couldn't help but feel disgusted when he thought of the concept. He wondered if men like Gus and his Boss ought to even be alive.

As rage seared within him, he heard the disgusting voice of Gus.

“We drop them off at the entrance. We’re not allowed to go any further in.”

The building had two entrances—one leading to the main area where regular slaves were kept, and another at the far back for ‘Special’ products.

According to Gus, he and his goons went to the far back since both Alicia and Billy were confirmed to be Skill-Holders and had a Class.

In H’Trae, it was rare for young ones like them to possess impressive Classes and multiple Skills.

Even a single Skill and an E or D-Tier Class made one valuable as a young product in this market.

As a result, they were going to fetch a lot of money.

“T-this is all I know… I swear!” Gus pleaded, once again kneeling and bowing to ‘Sir Ralyks.’

Rey was too preoccupied with his own thoughts to take Gus very seriously.

His thoughts lay on the building, and the fact that Alicia and Billy would be somewhere inside.

‘Isn’t this too conspicuous, though?’

From the little he knew, even within the criminal underworld, Slave Trade was kept on the down-low.

‘With such a massive structure and several guards, it’s bound to draw attention.’

However, Rey realized that the heightened security also meant better protection for the merchandise.

‘Hmm…’ Rey murmured thoughtfully, surveying the scene from the distant elevated platform alongside his temporary allies.

The distance made it difficult to see any specific details within the building.

In the end, Rey did the only thing he could.

“What do you think about all this, Aldred?”

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[A/N]

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