Chapter 34
When I asked Amy what she meant, she repeatedly told me to not throw her away for she’ll work even harder .
It couldn’t be helped, as I held Amy I stroked her head and her back until she had calmed down .
Being surprised at Amy’s state, Zirconia and Ayla watched over her worriedly .
I didn’t understand, so after she had calmed down I carefully listened to Amy’s story .
She took her time to gather her words and summarise the whole story .
The cause seems to be what was said by the foolish noble on yesterday’s date .
[no decent person would buy someone like you . ] .
It tormented Amy, even though the matter was settled and during our date the mood was pleasant .
At the end of the date I told her I always wanted to be together with her . But apparently Amy became more and more anxious due to my behaviour today .
To begin with, this morning the matter about the share for the white porcelain, it seems she thought she will be thrown away after repaying the debt to a certain degree .
A debt slave’s debt is equal to the total amount of their purchasing price plus the amount of debt that they had previously amassed .
Once a ‘debt slave’ can pay off their debt, they will be liberated from slavery . Therefore, when a slave has almost paid off their debt the owner usually tries to resell them .
After settling one’s own debt any connection (between master and slave) feels like it would disappear too .
Therefore, during the shopping in town, there was a strange tension in Amy where she went to buy up a huge amount of materials .
Even if it’s a little, she used what little money she had too so she wouldn’t have the money to buy her freedom .
Next was probably the purchase of Zirconia . It seems she thought that Zirconia was most likely her replacement .
Therefore, when I bought Zirconia she had a sad expression .
Me buying expensive high-class clothes for Zirconia is also another reason of her buying a huge amount of materials .
[So that’s why you said『Please don’t throw me away』? I have never thought about you feeling that way; I’m sorry Amy . ]
Amy is still sniffling although she had already calmed down considerably .
[No, I do understand . I don’t know why I became so uneasy either . ]
Maybe it was the meeting with the old Alchemist or perhaps Amy still has trauma with the goblins . Someway or another it weakened her mentally .
I feel guilty for making such a girl fight Monsters .
[What should I do?]
If I suggest to have Amy abstain from fighting Monsters, she might cry again .
What Amy is afraid of is that I have no need for her anymore . It’s that sort of thing .
[My Master, in that case, shouldn’t you make a positive bond like that beastman girl’s with this human girl?]
[Zirconia, I wouldn’t be so worried if that could easily be done . ]
Is my bond with Ayla a life long slave?
[Zir will suffice, or I want to be called Coni . ]
[Then, Zir]
[Umu . Master is err . . – was it ‘Amy’? – are you reluctant to have that sort of a relationship with her?]
Amy has a startled reaction . Don’t agitate her, please .
[There’s no way I wouldn’t like it . If it’s ok with Amy then I want us to always be together . ]
[In that case, you should make a contract . I will see to it with my own eyes]
[Contract?]
[I am a vampire . My household’s [Blood Contract] is the highest form of all contracts] .
Zir certainly has the skill [Contract (Blood)] . Although I had researched about it at a later stage, the contracts of this world seem to be enforced by various powers .
Even among those contracts, it appears that [Contract (Blood)] is a strong enforcement contract using each other’s blood . Even among the vampires there are only a small portion of them who own this contract . Therefore it has died out .
After sticking out her chest proudly, Zir brought Amy in front of me .
[Well then, what are the contents of the contract?]
Though I say so, I also think about the contents of the contract . A contract to resolve Amy’s anxiety without hindering us .
[I swear not to release or sell Amy as long as I live . ]
[I swear to be master’s slave for my whole life . ]
A small cut is applied to each other’s fingers, our blood is mixed together and we each made our separate oath by ourselves . If one of the oaths were to be broken, the other oath will still be in effect .
[Umu, the contract is complete . ]
I saw Amy’s face . Amy gazed at the blood which flowed from her finger . Honestly, it’s a bit scary . However, with this Amy will be able to calm down .
[Alright, tomorrow shall we go to Thill’s place and pick up our equipment and work for the first time in a while?]
[Yes]
[We need to confirm how our new equipment feels]
[Oh yes! We have to confirm how it feels~]
I dragged Zir to bed whilst saying so .
[W-what!! With the conversation flowing like this, we are not going to sleep as it is?!]
[Refuse if you don’t want to~ If you do I’ll stop~]
I’ll be with Zir tonight, as I thought that Amy crawled into bed .
[Shouldn’t you also check how using me feels?]
Amy certainly got more assertive than before .
Ayla joined the war a bit late . Maybe she felt a little left out after Zir joining us and the blood contract with Amy .
[Ayla?]
[Le, let me mix in with you guys too!]
Ayla was originally assertive . Always speaking her mind .
However, three people included today’s new recruit . Maybe I should prepare for a defeat .
[Alright!! I’ll take on all of you!!]
[But I don’t even particularly…] (TN: She’s slurring her speech)
[It’s useless!!]
As a man, there are always times where you have to fight even if you know you will lose . This might be one of those times .
In the next morning, we arrived at Thill’s shop before I notice it .
Is this the result after yesterday’s battle ended? I don’t remember it well .
I can only remember things like Ayla being amazing, Amy seeming to be almost dangerous and Zir’s learning ability being surprisingly high .
[What is this, your complexion is terrible . What happened?]
When I arrived at the shop, that’s the first reaction from Thill’s who is unusually standing at the counter .
[Please don’t worry about it, our master is just little bit tired]
[I see, I’ll leave it at that then . ]
Thill’s concern shifted from me to Zir .
[My, before I noticed anything the number of people in your team has increased by another one?]
[Yeah, she become our comrade yesterday]
[She can use some ready-made equipment if you want . ]
[Thank you Thill-san]
Thill stared at Zir for awhile before withdrawing back to the workshop inside .
[Who’s that dwarf?]
[Thill-san is a human, actually . ]
Thill returned with our equipment while Zir is still surprised .
[You can give it a try, I’ll fix it if there is something wrong]
We tried on our equipment like he suggested . Everyone’s equipment is a perfect fit .
The equipment Thill chose for Zir are a skull cane and a robe for magicians .
[You seem to understand that Zir has a black magic job . ]
Zir is tall so it’s not wrong if people think of her as swordman .
[Her body type is wrong . There’s no way a swordswoman would be so lanky, right?]
I thank Thill and hand over the money to Toto for Zir’s equipment and leave the store .
We’re really indebted to Thill, from now on let’s often come here in the future . I’m sure there will be more requests to create custom equipment too .
Like usual, Ayla and I blow the Monster whistle near the usual forest .
Duo and Ruo came at once and Queen came soon after, however the Goblin commander LaLu didn’t show up .
It might have been killed by the adventurers . When I was about to give up, an earth rumbling *dodododo* approached this way .
When I look in the direction of the forest, it appears that something is coming in our direction . For a moment, is that LaLu?
Thinking about it, it’s clear that the numbers are weird . 10 odd goblins will not make such a rumbling noise in the forest .
I tell everyone to be prepared for battle . Tension runs through everyone .
However, the one who appears is LaLu . No – it’s not the LaLu that I knew; but it is still LaLu .
LaLu has evolved .
LaLu Goblin Elite Commander Lv . 25
2 years old
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Skill
[Commander]
Able to command Monsters of the same race, below one’s rank .
The command range depends on the Skills Level .
***********************************
Instead of just 10 or so members, their numbers now exceed 50 . There seems to be subspecies and varieties too .
To break it down:
Goblin Elite x 5
Goblin Elite Lancer x 6
Goblin Elite Archer x 5
Goblin x 14
Goblin Lancer x 10
Goblin Archer x 8
Goblin Mage x 3
The goblin elites’ average levels are 15, while the average levels of the normal goblins are 10 .
Why did the number of goblins and their level increase more than three times in less than one week?
When hearing Lalu, it seems that they have followed my orders by strengthening their numbers and hunting monsters .
Several goblin villages have also been absorbed, thus their current numbers .
Moreover, They were able to take down much more larger monsters than before because their numbers have grown .
The guys who were caught by LaLu seemed to have evolved into the Elites . It seems the remaining goblins are the new recruits that have just recently joined . (Light: Added recruits on my own . )
Perhaps the difference in LaLu’s level is caused by a part of the experience gained by those under his command being sent to him .
When I checked my status, my own level had also gone up three levels .
This week, we didn’t fight any monsters at all though .
Apparently, the inflow of experience is coming from the [Monster Tamer] skill . Ayla’s level went up by two levels as well .
[Amazing . is Master the one who employs these goblins?]
[No, I am also surprised with the number too]
[Is that so?]
LaLu seems to have won the local turf war among the monster on this area . When I was being guided around the village, I saw that huge amount of materials and monsters are stockpiled up like junk into a mountain piles .
I sorted the monster materials which can be used . As for the remaining items, I told the goblins to do as they like . The crowd of Goblins flocked around the rubbish mountain with great joy when they heard it .
[Well, this place seems like it’s plenty out of sight . Do you mind showing me your magic, Zir?]
[Very well, behold of my [Specter Magic]!!]
fog shrouded around Zir’s hand, the dim goblin’s village become even darker .
As I watched Zir while shivering, various lights surround Zir as she’s casting .
[This is the ghost summon that I am the most skilled at . ]
These ghosts are not the souls of humans or monsters, but instead a type of undead which does not possess a body .
Using magic to corrupt the mind, it drives the opponent into a condition whereby he is unable to fight .
Physical attacks are not effective on them but magical attacks are . If you have magic power, even water magic can bring the ghost down .
This monster is a natural enemy for the party who doesn’t have magician .
[Of course, I don’t just summon regular ghosts . Even though its existence hasn’t been confirmed yet, I’ll show you I can even have the Ghost Lord work for me . ]
Ghost Lord, it seems a monster fused from a large amount of ghost . I heard it’s a considerable powerful enemy who can even use physical attacks .
[Awesome, Zir, can you summon zombies too?]
Zir averted her face . The biggest trait of a necromancer is to summon zombies and ghost .
[Oi, Zir?]
[I dislike Zombies]
[No, it doesn’t matter if you dislike it or not]
Within necromancy, the ghost skill line is different from the zombie skill line, in the sense that Zombies are physical entities which are able to perform physical attacks .
In olden times, an evil necromancer manipulated an army of zombies and singlehandedly destroyed a town . There are various legends like this .
[it’s fine right, even if it’s just ghosts . ]
Zir may be able to summon zombies, but she seems really doesn’t want to use them . Oh well, there is LaLu’s army as the war potential for physical attack .
[Well, it’s fine I guess . ]
[Specter Magic] seems to not be very user friendly, but let’s try it out in actual combat first for now .