Nua looked around as they emerged, her elven eyes returned to their native blue. Rain fell so fast and thick that it was impossible to see more than a few feet ahead, even for her. Still, she looked left and right, it was clearly an ugly alleyway, debris, trash, rats and the noises they made were plentiful.

Solution stood behind her at her left hand, “Like it?” She asked as she saw Nua unconsciously raise her new left hand to stare at it as raindrops fell and ran over the smooth surface, she touched it with her right hand. There was a very faint, tiny glow to it, an almost holy white hue. Runes were etched around the spot where it joined her natural wrist. The finger joints where her knuckle bones would have been on a natural hand, were instead fragments of gems. The finger segments were of a white metal the likes of which she’d never seen, while in the center of her palm there was a single black circle.

“I’ve… never seen anything like this.” Nua replied, ignoring the rain as she took the time to stare at her teacher’s gift with greater focus.

Solution looked especially cocky, throwing her shoulders back and smirking down at her student. “No, you wouldn’t have. And you haven’t seen the half of what it can do. Of course… if it can reach its full potential, well that depends on you.”

“Full potential?” Nua asked, opening and closing the fingers of her new hand experimentally.

“Yes, now…” She placed her hands on Nua’s shoulders, and drew her student back a bit, so that Nua found herself pressed back against the breasts of her teacher. “I won’t reveal everything, but this…” She touched the black circle that protruded in a very slight dome like shape, “came from a special item owned by Lord Ainz. This is an experiment to see what happens if it was ‘split up’. These…” she reached out and traced her finger slowly over the ‘knuckle gems’ “hold enchantments that strengthen your body and your grip. And this metal?” She touched the fingers and the white palm itself, and then brought her arm back, her fingers slowly ‘walked’ up the length of Nua’s arms until she had enfolded the elf in an embrace. She then leaned in and whispered into Nua’s ear, “Don’t worry about what the metal is, just know this, if they’ve got something in this country that can even scratch it… our Lord will send armies here to conquer the place and grant you your heart’s desire, just for news of such a discovery.”

Nua felt the familiar chill of death with her teacher’s delicate whispers into her ears, but it no longer froze her bones in terror of her life.

“I see…” Nua said, the rain cloaked them from view elsewhere, but so close, they could easily see one another’s faces when Nua gently but firmly turned herself around and met the cold blue eyes of the blonde demon woman. “Thank you… truly. I could almost think you were fond of me, with something like this…”

Solution’s monstrous smile took shape on her face, “This ‘is’ fond of you, it’s just as fond as I am capable of.”

Nua raised an eyebrow, “Well, then thank you all the more.” She flexed her fingers on her new hand again. “This is… remarkable. However, better to not call attention to it for now.” She reached into her pack at her side and withdrew her gloves, then put them on, concealing the priceless artifact beneath brown leather.

“Smart girl.” Solution said, and lightly patted Nua’s cheek. “Where to now, smart girl?”

Nua didn’t answer right away, she turned away from her teacher and headed for the alley exit, “We should be in the city of Pa’sen, assuming you’re not pulling a fast one on me.” She looked over her shoulder, and Solution shook her head decisively.

“Great, a human city.” She straightened her back and looked up at the dark storm clouds overhead, the rain beat down on her face as she opened herself to sensations, her eyes closed as she took in everything else. Sound, scent, touch. [Detect Sin] And despite her closed eyes, she felt them all… she could ‘see’ as she lowered her face from the sky again, the endless hues of a populated area. She turned her body left and right, ‘So much weakness, so much sin, the worst kind of evil… the kind that does no good. But where are the worst sinners…’ She inhaled deeply, the smell of sweat and fear was not washed away even by the downpour.

Water rushed over her high boots, and Solution waited behind her, tapping her foot impatiently as her student worked. Nua took three long, deep breaths, then she found it and raised her right arm and pointed it down the street. “That way.”

She began to walk the virtually empty street, ignoring the rushing inches of rainwater at her feet as she ascended the long sloping cobblestone street, it was not a steep incline, but it was enough that the water ran like a raging river, despite it being only an inch or two high. She avoided ample garbage and debris that washed down the low rise, the noise of it sometimes hit her ears as it ran into an overflowing drain ditch and got stuck on an edge. “Disgusting place, worse than Kami Miyako on its last day.” Nua said as she wrinkled her nose.

“Yes it is. But where are we going exactly?” The blonde demon asked. Nua looked over her shoulder again and chuckled with a bit of amusement. “Lets just say that you wearing that black and green riding outfit instead of your maid uniform was a good idea.”

Solution raised an eyebrow briefly, “Oh, going for that are we? Didn’t realize you were that hard up since Raymond.” She smirked at the taunt, but Nua snapped her head around to face front again.

“You know it was never like that with him.” Nua said in a wistful way, only audible at all because of the vastly superior senses of the monster at her back. “Never, even if I’d offered, he wouldn’t have done it, not while I was… like that. And not… not while he was a cardinal, I couldn’t. Even if he’d already changed sides, it would have been a betrayal by both of us of who and what we were. I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t make a joke like that, teacher.”

Solution pursed her lips but did not apologize. Nor did Nua demand that she do so.

“But yes, we are going that way, I can smell the lust, fear, and blood. There are two things we’re heading towards, brothels and slave markets. Thankfully when we’re at one, I guarantee we’re at the doorstep of the other.” Nua spat her words out in a literal sense, sending the liquid flecks of hate and contempt past her lips to get swept away in the waters flowing past them disappearing into the dark flowing waters, and belying her spoken statement.

“You want those?” Solution asked as she folded her hands behind her back and put herself at the left hand of her student. “Wouldn’t it be better to buy real mercenaries? Ones who already know how to fight?”

Nua shook her head slowly. “Normally, yes. But the problem with sellswords like that is that they are inherently disloyal. It’s very hard to win their hearts. They won’t go above and beyond for anything but themselves. Even the best of them are inherently sinners in the worst way. They’re weak of character.”

Solution’s lips formed a little frown, “If this is some moral crusade of yours… I’m out.”

Nua shook her head, “No, this is a practical matter. Think about it, teacher. Look what I became, and what was I?”

Solution glanced sideways at the determined gaze of her student, and quietly nodded. “Alright, but how likely is it that we’ll find more like you?”

Nua’s ears twitched, “I don’t know. I know that when the Dark Savior rescued my people, they formed what eventually became crack units that are still around today. The Blood Miners, the Vines, they were relentless in fighting for her during the war against the Southern Holy Kingdom and the Slane Theocracy. Just… trust me, teacher.” Nua smiled and glanced to her left at the one who had taught her to fight, and who had twisted her soul.

“Fine.” Solution grumbled, “But this had better work.”

“If it doesn’t, I’ll give you one of my toes to eat to make it up to you.” Nua laughed, Solution did not.

“I’ll hold you to that, you know.” Solution said with a warped and sadistic smirk.

“I know.” Nua didn’t lose her smile, and it became an imitation of the cocky one Solution usually wore, which was enough to quiet her teacher as they passed by the last of the cheaply constructed buildings and began to encounter wealthier, more sturdy construction.

“Just what I thought.” Nua pronounced confidently as she looked around the square when it came into view. The buildings were far more impressive, two and three stories tall, even in the rain, there were armored guards standing watch outside holding their halberds in a professional manner, while elsewhere all others had taken shelter.

Lights flickered and reflected between the many falling raindrops, and Nua stopped where she stood, her ears twitched as she tried to catch the sounds as well as the smells she was looking for. “Brothel?” Solution asked.

Nua shook her head, “No, not that I don’t wish I could, and depending on what we find, we may still go, but I want the market.”

“They’ll be closed.” Solution reminded her and held out a hand to catch the rain, her fingers gelled together and formed a blue cup as her ‘slime’ race was revealed, the ‘cup’ that was her hand, quickly filled up. “Not sure if you noticed, but it happens to be raining.”

Nua chuckled with amusement, “That’s the point, teacher. I want a good look at them before we get started. Sadly I don’t expect any of the demon-elves to be in there but… who knows? It’s fine though, I can wait.”

She then resumed her walk when she caught what she was looking for, a brick building that stood out among the others in that it had no alley between itself and the buildings next to it, making it almost look at first glance like it was truly ‘one’ building rather than three. Thunder rolled overhead, lightning flashed and illuminated everything bright as day for a moment.

“How many?” Solution asked as they made their way to the building Nua’s ‘Detect Sin’, and her elven senses led her to.

“Not many, perhaps twenty-five.” Nua replied, “Any more than that is taking too much of a risk.”

Solution raised an eyebrow at this, but Nua offered nothing more, and there was no further time to ask before they reached the door across the square and Nua pounded on the heavy oak that was made wet even under cover as it was, by the overhanging of a second floor deck.

“What?” A gruff voice shouted through the door. It sounded slurry, and Nua detected the faint scent of alcohol through the door.

‘Drunk.’ She realized and dismissed it, but that wasn’t all she smelled beyond the door.

“Open the door, I’m here for a pre-inspection.” Nua announced imperiously.

She heard the sound of pants rising and a belt being fastened, confirming the instincts of her still wrinkled nose. She felt the faint hairs on her skin stand on end, and for a moment…

‘No…! No!’ The words raced through her mind as the memory of the warehouse she’d been stored over a century and a half before came rushing back. The smell of various bodily fluids, the little cries of fear, some of which she’d made herself, the leer of a human whose eyes lingered too long on her body in all the wrong places. Her hands went up unconsciously, and covered her breasts and sex, remembering only by the feel of touch that she was in fact dressed.

“Costs money.” A half drunken, gruff voice uttered in annoyance.

A faint sound of a casual hand slapping soft flesh reached Nua’s ears, and her hands briefly tensed when it was followed by hasty, small footsteps that reatreated away from the door, and the sound of heavy ones came closer.

“Fine.” Nua snapped and a slat in the door slid open a few inches above Nua’s head. Beady brown eyes moved around, looking out into the rain until they went down to see the hooded pair. Nua didn’t give him a chance to ask anything, she withdrew a gold coin and put it up to the hole. Fat fingers darted out with surprising speed and drew it within.

The slat closed, she heard the sound of metal scraping. ‘Checking to see if it’s real, rude, but not unreasonable I guess.’ Nua thought and took a deep breath as she forced the old fear away, and instead began to fight her rising anger. Her heartbeat began to race for a different reason and her fingers tensed.

Nua slowed her breathing down and waited while the door opened up, she could feel Solution behind her, watching her student’s struggle and doing nothing about it.

The sound of a few chains rattling could be heard beyond the door, and a moment later it opened to allow the pair admittance. ‘Potato.’ That was her first thought when she saw the man who let them in, at least his shape, he had deep set brown eyes, a vaguely potato shaped body in that it was quite ‘round’ in the middle, a head that would be called bald if not for the wisps of brown hair still clinging desperately to the top of it and swept over to one side to ‘badly’ hide that so much was gone.

His arms were hairy and sweaty, and ‘why’ he was sweaty wasn’t far away. A naked human woman sat with a thoroughly absent look on her face, in a cage large enough for her to stand in.

The smell of sex was still ripe and thick in the air, but for the moment, Nua ignored it as best she could. “What are you lookin for?” The human sentry asked indifferently as he walked over and took a whip off the wall nearby where his chair sat. Nua noticed its proximity to the isolated cage in which the human woman sat with her legs pulled up to her chest and her chin resting between her knees, with her arms wrapped around her shins and pulled tight against herself.

Nua ripped her eyes away from the pitiable sight, the woman glanced at her, then turned her eyes away, as well. The woman’s matted brown hair had not been washed in forever, a bruise on her hip that Nua could see, was about the size of a hand, nor was the bruise alone.

It was no mystery to the elf whose face was still mostly hidden by the hood, just why the human slave looked away. With the cheap leather collar on her neck and not even her body to her name, ‘I know… in my fine clothes and passing gold through a slat… I’m a foreign creature to you, no different from the one who let us in. Woman, if you only knew…’ Nua thought grimly as she focused on the one to let her in.

“I need tools that are strong, I’m happy to take discipline problems, doesn’t matter, as long as they’re strong. Show me your stock.”

The building wasn’t wide, but it ran deep in length, various cages were in place holding various numbers and races of slaves. Some were human, some were half elven, some were even elves like herself, though very few. Most cages held three or four, the only cages to hold more were those which held pregnant women or children. None had on much more than their cheap leather collars. Most huddled together for warmth as the chill leaked through the roof and let the weather in.

Nua and Solution followed behind their ‘escort’ with seeming indifference. “I’m surprised you have a stock this large.” Nua said, sounding impressed as she flung back her hood, she noted the curious looks on the faces of those who saw her unfamiliar looking armor, but none spoke.

Those who were of her race barely looked at her for longer than the humans, telling her volumes about the nature of the institution they found themselves trapped within.

“Yeah well, Komestra fell last week, so… what didn’t die…” He waved his fat hand around in front of him, “well they mostly ended up either here or in places like it. It’ll make slaves cheap for a while at least.” He said with professional confidence.

“Lucky me.” Nua said as she folded her arms behind her back and lovingly caressed the dagger Aalon had given her made with the bones of her mistress and the coins that had been paid for her.

The keeper grunted, “If you want the hardy ones, these aren’t it, most of the pregnant stock, children, captured whores from their brothels, things like that, they’re up front since they go on sale first. What you want is here at the back, captured warriors. They’re not broken in yet, but you said discipline problems weren’t an issue for you, yeah?” He asked without looking behind him as they approached an area with a series of much smaller cages, too small for someone to stand in. A long row of feet were stretched out beyond the bars as those slaves were compelled to sit to be somewhat comfortable.

The feet and legs were all she saw, because the cages all had cheap brown strips of fabric draped over them, hiding the occupants from view.

“Right, it’s no problem.” Nua answered offhandedly, glancing left and right, as she waited for the ‘potato man’ to start exposing the stock. She didn’t have to wait long, he began walking down the length of cages along the wall and yanking the cloth away one by one, exposing the inhabitants within. Their eyes squinted as if they hadn’t been exposed to much light for some time. Their bodies stank and it was clear that they hadn’t been washed since capture. Some still had wounds, others stained by the blood of those they’d defeated before their capture. They were mostly humans, but a few half elves and elves like her.

They glared at Nua and Solution with abject hatred. Some reached out and grabbed the bars in futility. Some just became sullen and refused to acknowledge that the two women existed. “Well, what can you tell me about them?” Nua asked imperiously, lifting her chin in the haughty gesture of the wealthy.

‘Potato man’ shrugged, “They were captured when the city fell, want more than that, ask them. They’re not even gelded yet, we don’t need the life stories of dogs.”

Nua closed her eyes and rubbed her forehead with her wounded right hand, “Oh you colossal incompetents. Just because someone was captured in battle, that doesn’t mean he was a warrior or had no other skills. He might have taken up the sword in desperation, or he might be a militiaman who was a craftsman in peacetime, you morons could be drastically underselling your stock.” Nua groused aloud, but so quietly only Solution could hear, and she laughed with sweet amusement as her student offered reluctant praise to the efficiency of her owner’s nation in the field of slave management.

“You.” Nua pointed to the first man on the left, he slowly turned his head to her, “Name.”

“Vargas.” He said slowly, barely looking before he looked away again.

Nua approached and crouched next to his cage, and placed her left hand on the bar and wrapped her fingers around it. “Profession? Before this, I mean.” She asked perfunctorily.

“You wanna know my profession?” He asked with seeming surprise as he leaned closer to her.

“That’s the question I asked, isn’t it, slave?” Nua replied in the haughtiest voice she could manage.

She saw his hand creep closer, “Oh I was an elfphmbr.” He mumbled.

“A what?” She inquired quizzically.

“Elffulber.” He said again, slightly louder.

“Little louder, slave.” Nua ordered.

“Elf fucker!” he snapped and grabbed her at the wrist and tried to yank her arm into the cage. His hazel eyes widened when he couldn’t budge her.

Nua’s magicine left hand didn’t move, until Nua herself released her grip, twisted her hand, grabbed his wrist, and she yanked him toward her hard enough that his face connected with the bars with a loud ‘clang’ before she released her hold and let him bounce away.

Nua looked up as Solution laughed, “That one’s a discipline problem.” Nua’s ears twitched as she spoke.

“If you don’t mind that, well we’ll take ten percent off the asking price and geld him at no cost to you, taking the balls is the best way to handle stock like him.” The potato shaped escort remarked indifferently.

Nua looked at the man in the cage as he turned pale and rubbed his face, looking at her with a mix of fear and confusion.

Nua shook her head, “I’ll buy him, no need for the gelding though, I have my… own way of handling cases like these.” Her feminine voice took on a sadistic tone and her ice blue eyes stared into Vargas’s own, sending a shiver down his spine.

One by one she went down the row, there were no more attacks, but in the end she identified twenty five total purchases, seventeen male, eight female, a total of which included nine half elves and four elves. However when she got to the end of the line, she saw there was one cage that didn’t match, this one was standing upright, and had space enough for one, and it too, was completely covered with fabric.

“What’s this one?” Nua asked, pointing to the cage.

“Oh that? That’s a rare one.” Nua’s guide said enthusiastically, “An actual demon-elf, ever see one of those?”

Nua shook her head, “Not in person, no, they don’t live near me.” She said truthfully.

Her escort rubbed his hands together, “Normally I wouldn’t show you this, but preordering our cheap stock like this and saving us the cost of gelding the males, I think you deserve a look. Just don’t get too close to it.”

He approached the cloth and yanked it away as soon as Nua stepped a few feet back.

The woman was tall, with skin such a deep purple that it was almost black, horns sprang from her forehead and wrapped backwards over the sides of her skull, and deep red eyes stared back at Nua with unutterable wrath within. Chains held her wrists fast and secured to the bars, black hair hung in a braid behind her head and down to her lower back.

“How did you come by this one? I knew Komestra was a diverse city but… demon-elves don’t usually leave their homelands.” Nua asked as she looked the woman over with evident fascination.

The red eyes didn’t blink as they glared at her, but a very slight raising of the demon elf’s brows, indicated curiosity at the unexpected presence.

“It’s name is Kaiji Najin, apparently it was an advisor to the prince of the city.” Solution barely heard him, but it gave her a way to loosen the tight lips of the captive.

“Advisor? So, were you terrible at your job, or was he terrible at his?” Solution smirked from where she stood, and the red eyes glared back, the rage was obvious from the shaking chains as the captive advisor struggled to retain her self control until she could speak.

When she did, Kaiji answered in a calm, even voice, without looking at Solution, and instead focused on the one she determined was in charge. “I gave good advice, but could not get him to take it. It is a prince’s responsibility to act wisely, and the advisor’s responsibility to convince them what is wise. He did not act wisely, and while I gave good advice, I failed to convince him it was. So yes, I was a bad advisor.” Her dark lips snapped shut when she’d answered, and the mute glare resumed. She tugged on her chains without thinking, and then stilled herself.

Nua turned to the ‘potato man’ whose name she did not care to learn, and said abruptly, “Add her to my list, I’ll take that one too.”