Darkness was all around.

Sounds were heard from within that darkness.

Cries, whimpers and mumbling were the sounds that came from all around the young girl. The confined space was so small that the ten people inside kept bumping into each other as the carriage that was pulling them, rattled.

There were many holes in the cloth that was thrown over this wagon. Through it the confined people were able to see that they were being pulled by another carriage. They were in a cage that’s often used by slave traders to imprison their merchandise.

“Ugh…”

“W-Where are we?”

The confusion started as their drowsiness disappeared.

It was weird. For a moment they were gathered around a big tree that their last remaining Druid Guardian was merging into but the next moment a magic circle engulfed them which made them fall asleep.

The elves heard the voices of humans before they collapsed.

Of course, the reason they knew it was humans was because their race only spoke Elven tongue whenever they are in the forest. It was a rule to speak their own language whenever they are among their own kind.

Elves could speak human language as well so they were able to tell that humans were the culprits.

‘How long has it been…?’

The girl thought to herself as she clenched her hand and opened it. She couldn’t feel it at all since it was so cold.

‘If it’s this cold then it means we’re in the mountains…’ she knew this because there was a saying that goes: “as wind ascends, its temperatures drop.” She learned this from her great-great-grandmother.

It felt like winter even though spring already came, meaning that they were travelling the mountains in the North since winter is never-ending here.

The girl cupped her ears to try and listen to what the humans—who were riding the carriage in front—were saying.

She ignored her companions who were crying for help.

“The Master said that we should bring them to his manor in Sroln, right?”

Sroln is known as the Golden City of Diacree. This was due to the fact that it was the number one gold manufacturing city on the entire continent. Because of this the city was able to boost its economy immensely compared to other territories that gained wealth from more valuable minerals like platinum.

The hundreds of tons of white and regular gold discovered there outranked any other mineral despite the values.

The city was owned by the Rynald Family, a merchant family that had business chains throughout the entire continent.

“Why the hell are you asking me? Did you already forgot?”

“Uh, yeah… S-Sorry, big bro…”

“Ugh, working with you all these years has become tiring—Yes, we should take the elves to his manor in the city.”

“Isn’t it a little much to travel the long way around? If we had taken the straight path then we should’ve been at the city by now.”

The girl heard a slapping sound followed by an “Ow! Why did you slap my head!?”

“Although Master is in a hurry to make money, that doesn’t mean that he’ll risk his activities being caught. If we were caught crossing the Great Ridge—which spans hundreds of kilometers across the continent—then we risk being torn apart by the monsters living there. Plus, the Demihuman Kingdom has their soldiers stationed close to the border. They’re like watchmen. We’d be surrounded just like that. We’ll only be safe once we cross it.”

The Great Ridge was a landscape that spread hundreds of kilometers from one part of the continent to the next. Of course, this region had a very dangerous ecosystem, even more dangerous than the Mountain of Wails.

Humans typically guarded the border of this forest that was the entrance from the north, while the elves and demihumans guarded the south.

The Pope decreed that the region mustn’t be crossed. But of course many didn’t listen. The previous Pope’s decision to combat any future civil disobedience was to make another decree. This decree revoked each and every person of their rights as living beings.

Meaning that the region was a lawless place where anyone could commit crimes and get away with it.

The girl could finally understand why the humans chose to take the mountain road. It was much safer since they would run into less criminals or bandits.

‘Ah, do I still have my slingshot?’ The girl felt around her upper thighs where she usually hid it. She was wearing a pantyhose, secured to her denim shorts with a special belt. She doesn’t have any pockets so she conceals the slingshot in there.

It was there.

‘The Ultimate Divine Harmony Slingshot that big sister gave me… Thank the gods that it’s still with me. I can protect myself at least.’ she sighed in relief when she felt the high quality rubber and the pure oak used to craft the handle.

Her sister gave the slingshot to her as a gift shortly before she left(that was three years ago). She had to hide the slingshot since her mother didn’t like it when her children used weapons. Her sister was shunned because of her love for crafting.

Orkin was their family name. They were a Wood Elf family who lived in peace for hundreds of years.

Their secret to peace? Never to use violence against others. Not even to save their own people if danger befell them. Although the elves could use elemental magic, that didn’t mean that they could fight. Well, not all of them.

There were over a thousand families of Wood Elves spread throughout the Wood Elf Country, five of whom had High Elves as their heads, from the Fairy Province which was the Fairy Province’s main capital. They were sent here to become protectors of the World Tree forest.

Well, look how everything turned out regardless of their so-called protectors.

The Fairy Province’s Queen should’ve never allowed her daughter to become a citizen of Eulia Empire. She was the only person to have ever helped the elves. With her no one needed to worry if there would be a tomorrow for them and if monsters would attack them.

Ever since her departure, monsters attack by the day. The Hiisi elder who was the Dryad Guardian was also becoming much weaker by the day. The tree he was born from was reaching out to him by its roots which meant that it was time for him to go.

Soon he will merge with the tree forever. Then die.

If things kept going as they were then the last living Wood Elves would cease to exist. Only their cousins, the Mountain Elves who lived halfway across the continent would be remaining.

The girl was certain that it was because of the World Tree’s recent declining shine. By this it meant that the leaves of the World Tree—each harboring millions of divine cells—were becoming dimmer year by year. During Peak Bloom(their New Year) it would shine so bright during the night that it was similar to the sun during the day. But that shine had been notably decreasing.

It was a bad omen.

Their eldest shaman told them something before the Hiisi elder became bound to the tree that birthed him:

The sky shall grow roots while the leaves of the ‘something’ walk on the ground! We are their nutrients! We are doomed!

Of course, everyone thought that the shaman was a crazy woman. She was basically hinting that a disaster would come knocking on their door.

The girl continued listening to the men.

“I wonder what could’ve made the Rynald family go bankrupt. Surely it couldn‘t have been because of the young master’s mistake?” the one with the bald head wondered.

“I’m sure the Master will be able to bring his family out of debt. He’s done some amazing things in the past, after all.”

“Humph, sitting behind a desk and ordering people what to do isn’t amazing at all. He should go to a real battlefield! Like us veterans!”

“Kekeke! Since when have you been a veteran? Besides, being in a negotiation with someone is war for merchants. Although war is over for us average men, wars are happening all around the world for men who trade, sell and buy.”

“Do you think he’ll be able to make us rich like he said? I mean, we’ve been loyal to him even after it was found out that he was broke. Can’t imagine many of the others who left say the same thing.”

“Well…” The girl saw the man’s head peak around the front towards their wagon, “you should know the value of elves. Especially how valuable they are to rich politicians. A million gold for a top-class whore isn’t that uncommon for elves.”

“Crazy! A million gold! I should’ve kidnapped an elf a long time ago!”

“Even brothels would pay that much for an elf whore. You know why? Because they know that their customers who have the money would definitely come back again. They can even charge twice the normal rate if their brothel isn’t doing well. None of their customers would complain. Elven women and men can also be used to establish connections between two parties.”

“Eh? You serious? Why’s that?”

“This is only hearsay but I heard rumors that the inside of an elven woman feels like hands gripping you once you’re in. I guarantee that we’ll be making dough by selling elves to brothels or displaying them around the city.”

“Ooh! Is that why the Master bought every high-class brothel in the country?”

“Indeed. He knows that hundreds of thousands of gold would come pouring in every day if he made those elves at the back into prostitutes. If we sell them then the money would skyrocket. I heard an elf’s suction is ten times stronger than a human inside. Any man with a sane mind would want some more of that bliss.”

“Damn, can’t we just take one of them for ourselves? My little brother hasn’t felt a woman in ages.”

“No, you idiot. You know what happens to slave traders who fuck their merchandise before selling them? They get maimed. One of my friends in the trade even lost his manhood because he deflowered a virgin.”

“Ugh, my dick hurts hearing you say that…”

“Then don’t fuck any of them without permission. Prostitutes are meant to serve the clients for money. Why would the master let you fuck them for free?”

‘Prostitutes!?’ the girl shivered. She hadn’t even had her first kiss yet!

She knew that deflowering hurts but a woman could withstand or bear with the pain if lost their virginities to the men they love.

Elves in general only have sex when they want to produce children and never to satisfy their disgusting desires. Unlike Wood and Mountain Elves, the Dark Elves enjoy their desires to the fullest. Part of the reason why Elves hate their brown-skinned counterparts were because of their similarity to humans.

It was ironic how humans hated Dark Elves just as much as Elves but they resembled Dark Elves so much.

The girl didn’t want to give her precious first time—that represents purity in their race—to some disgusting human who paid a measly thousand gold for her body. She’s only 83 years old!

The Fairy Goddess sculpted the bodies of the people after her own, especially the women. Their bodies were a vessel of god and may only be used to bear children for their husbands.

Staining their pure bodies due to sexual activities for money was an insult to their goddess.

“It’ll all work out fine just as he predicted it would. You should know how masterful he is at making connections. We’ll be swimming in gold by the end of the new year!”

“Yeah, the Master is really amazing.”

“Isn’t it wonderful serving such a man? Even though he’s human like the rest of us I can’t help but feel like we’re completely different beings. I would never have considered the success of such a plan. I would regret spending all my remaining money instead.”

The girl shivered again, ‘W-We’re going to become prostitutes! Is that why only the females were left alive!?’

It was obvious by now. She just couldn’t believe how her life amounted to this in the end.

Shortly before the gathering ceremony in front of the soon-to-be grave of the Hiisi Elder, strange people attacked them. The men and elderly women were killed on the spot while the younger women and children were taken and placed into different carriages.

The girl had no idea where the others were. There was nearly a thousand of them in that village alone.

‘Wait…’

If the bad humans attacked their village then what happened to the other villages in the World Tree Forest?

‘Did those people from the Fairy Province hear of this?’

The five High Elves live in a castle built under the World Tree which was in the center of its vast forest. The girl and her people were on the outskirts of the forest. It wasn’t because they were condemned or anything. It’s just that their chief preferred the climate here since the fruits and herbs that grow here are much richer and juicer than the colder climate’s fruit and herbs.

‘Where’s mama…’ She could hear whimpering and prayers to the nature gods but none of them had her mother’s voice.

Her mother had thirty plus children so could she be considered as old by those bad humans? The girl feared that might be the case.

But she also didn’t want to see her mother being pinned down by these politicians the men mentioned…

“B-Big sister… Save me…” tears fell from the girl’s eyes as she thought of her sister who left to become an adventurer.

◇◇

The temperature seemed to be much better after a few hours passed. The girl wasn’t shivering anymore. If anything, the surroundings felt warm and relaxing.

But considering the situation she was in, she couldn’t quite enjoy it.

As her mind cleared itself, she heard many noises from outside the wagon. There was the bark of some beast. But the bark didn’t sound like the wolves that had similar barks. It sounded less threatening. She looked through the hole and saw that it was a small wolf(?). She couldn’t quite tell what breed though.

People yelled in human tongue and selling what seemed to be meat. Eager customers frantically rushed into line to purchase these meaty treats.

‘Is… this a city?’

She had heard stories about these kinds of places from one of the chief’s occasional storytelling sessions. Men donning metal suits and sharp weapons were said to be from cities like these. They were the ones who started wars and fought in them.

The girl’s memory of these stories were vague since she never listened that much to the chief’s stories. She assumed them to be fake, after all. She didn’t even believe humans were real.

Well, what happened before definitely served as clarification that they were.

‘The road is so even and there’s not a single rock in the way…’ she glanced around through the hole as much as she could.

“H-Hey, what’s going on out there?” one of the others spoke to the girl.

“Uhm, it seems we’re in a city…”

“A-A human settlement? O-Oh goddess what are they going to do to us…”

The others had the same reaction.

‘Didn’t they hear that we’re going to become slaves to humans?’

Maybe it was just because the girl had better hearing than the rest of them that she could hear but not them.

The two carriages came to a stop.

The cloth that was on their cage was suddenly lifted. The rays of the sun blinded them for a second but they adjusted soon after.

An ugly man’s face was right in front of the girl’s face.

“Hiik!” she shrieked. She tried to back away but couldn’t since the cage was filled to the brim.

“Isn’t this one too young?” the ugly bald man asked while pointing at her.

He opened up the cage, pulled her out and shut the cage again. She could do nothing since there were multiple men with armor standing around them. She was scared what will happen to her if she resisted.

The girl looked around and noticed that they were outside the city now. No, it was more like the estate right in front of them was much too large to be in the city. There was a neat stone road leading up to the estate.

She turned her head around and noticed that there was a big gate in front of them with a very large fence.

A gigantic mansion was at the end of the tree path beyond the gate.

“Isn’t it a little sad to take her to a brothel?”

“This again… Master said that we should bring every female. Every. Female.”

“Yeah, but…” the man who was holding her put one of his hands down her shirt, feeling the bump in her chest.

“!!” she tried to get away but his grip was too strong.

“Don’t worry, kid!” the man impatiently tried to take off her shirt, “I’ll be gentle! I’m sorry that your first time has to be on the grass but I can’t help it!”

“No, no! Please stop him!”

The girl cried for the others to help her.

They only silently watched inside the cage. All their eyes were indifferent towards the girl.

They probably thought their fate was much better so they didn’t bother helping the girl. A few even smiled in ridicule.

“Ugh, fine. Just do it behind those bushes before we go in. We’re pretty far from the mansion and the trees are obscuring us.” the other man pointed towards a bush behind the gate.

“Huehuehue~” the man licked the girl’s face, “What supple skin! As expected of an Elf! A young one at that! Ooohee! I scored on this one!”

He dragged her towards the bushes and threw her down.

He impatiently unbuckled his belt. The girl got up and tried to run away but she was kicked and thrown down with incredible strength.

This man was definitely a warrior.

The man finally got his belt loose. His pants were about to drop but he was suddenly kicked on the side of the skull.

“Ahhhhhhh!” he landed face first onto the ground.

“—You’re damaging precious merchandise. I can’t allow that.”

The girl heard a mature woman’s voice.

She looked up and couldn’t help but think:

‘So beautiful!’

The woman had long red hair and eyes and wore revealing clothes that exposed her ample bosom and upper thighs. She had red lipstick on her lips and there was a beauty mark below her left eye.

She radiated even more seductiveness than the girl’s elder sisters who were known to be the most beautiful in the village.

The girl couldn’t help but be amazed by the woman’s beauty even in this situation.

“Stand up, child.” Her melodious voice echoed.

The girl quickly stood up.

The woman then dusted the girl off before turning to the entourage that the bald man was a part of.

“How dare you do this while on our property? Do you realize that I can chop off all your heads?”

The woman clicked her tongue. She walked up to the other man who rode in front of the carriage.

“Hiii! S-Sorry! He just wouldn’t—!”

The woman pointed her finger at his face.

A ball of mana formed at the tip of it.

“Say another word then I’ll blow you up.”

“Please spare me, Lady Rosalyn!”

The man got on his knees with his hands clasped.

“Tch, be glad you’re the only loyal people willing to serve us. However, we won’t allow rape or any other crime against our merchandise. They might be sex slaves but they are still bound by our rules. Try and fuck them again them I’ll make all your dicks go limp forever. Take this as a warning next time, alright?”

“Y-Yes!” all of them shouted while clutching their groins.

‘Rosalyn… Is she the owner of this estate?’

She said that the people who captured the Elves served them—her included.

Maybe she was the daughter of this Master they mentioned in their conversations?

“Let the slaves walk on their own. I don’t want your filthy horses parading into the estate and eating the flowers that I tend to.”

The soldiers hurriedly moved. They opened up the cage.

The elves were led out. Out of all of them, the girl was the youngest.

The red haired woman scanned them all.

“Hmm, all of them seem to be in good condition, even the older ones. Those with the biggest tits and asses will make the most coin for us. In the world of whores, that’s what you amount to – bags of flesh used for sex. Of course, those with excellent technique will also make a lot of money, even if you have the chest of a 12 year old boy.”

The beauty turned towards the girl after saying “Ah right, I have to do something about you”. Her blood-red eyes held a fiery gaze and her smile radiated warmth.

“Hmm… I think I’ll take this one as a personal slave,” said the beauty, “All our servants left the city just like most of our citizens so I need someone to serve me.”

“U-Uhm…” the girl fidgeted, “I-I don’t want to become a p-p-pro—”

She couldn‘t say the word.

“Are you trying to say prostitute? Well, that’s not what I have in mind. You’ll be my servant, someone who cleans after me and obeys orders. I promise that you won’t see a man’s thing unless it’s consensual.”

The elves who were smiling in ridicule earlier looked at the girl in shock.

“P-Please allow me to serve you as well! I know how to cook and clean!”

“M-Me too! I-I can make your hair very pretty!”

Two Elves suddenly yelled when they stepped out of the carriage.

“Hm?” Rosalyn glanced at the two.

She was silent for a moment before muttering.

“The two of you are fine young women. Your skin looks unblemished and devoid of wrinkles. Look at your beautiful hair as well. I’m sure our customers will appreciate you.”

“W-What?”

“P-Please don’t make us do it! We beg of you!” the elf looked at the one next to her, “My little sister is already pregnant with her husband’s child. If not me, please allow her to leave!” the elf bowed deeply.

“S-Sister…”

Rosalyn looked at the younger sister.

The younger sister looked at her with hopeful eyes.

“There’s actually a man who’s associated with my father who likes pregnant women, especially their lactating breasts.” said Rosalyn casually, “I’ll need to feed you more though. Pregnant women are supposed to be a little on the fatter side.”

“Wha…” the elf’s face went blank.

“I’ll have a room arranged for you in our house. You’ll stay there until you’re far enough into your pregnancy. I’ll have you serve that man when the time comes. The pay is far better than the regular services.”

“B-But!”

“I also know the perfect person who will pay good money to adopt your child. She’s a widow who can’t have her own children. A very rich sow I might add. Hmm, the way I see it you will be well-off even during your time as our slave.”

“….” The Elf fell onto the ground, her arms limply dangling.

Rosalyn looked at the other elves who were trembling with terrified expressions.

“If you serve our household well then I guarantee one of our customers will take you as mistresses or even first wives. Think about it. All of them are politicians who control this continent. They’re leaders. Aren’t we generous? If you were humans then it would be rare for them to come back more than once. Elves are a different story. Your slow aging allows you to stay youthful for decades so your husbands are able to enjoy your bodies for years until they croak. If some of you are lucky then you might inherit an entire fief and live the good life. Many prostitutes go on to become high-class nobles because they seduce and marry their rich customers. Well? What do you think?”

Everyone was silent.

“Oh well. If you won’t reap the benefits then you can die a lowly prostitute. Be warned. If our customers are unhappy then you will be disciplined.”

Her cold eyes made them all shriek.

She then turned back to the girl after finishing what she wanted to say.

“You. What’s your name?”

“Uhm, I… I’m Tessiah…”

“Well then, Tessiah. You’re going to be my maid from now on. I’m Rosalyn de lac Feni Rynald, the eldest daughter of the Rynald family.”

◇◇◇

A few hours passed by…

Rosalyn was standing outside an office door. It was her father’s office located on the second floor.

“Father, I have returned with good news.” She said after knocking a few times.

A hoarse voice came from inside the room:

“Come… in…”

She opened the door and headed inside the office.

What greeted her was an extravagant office filled with only the most valuable of furniture and decorations. The room itself was the largest space inside this manor, spanning three bedrooms’ width alone.

Considering the business deals and all the other things that happens here, it was expected of the room to be spacious. But isn’t this too much luxury?

Her father spent his wealth on a lot of unnecessary things. Her brother, Rein was the same.

Sitting behind a large desk was a very elderly man with long white hair, wrinkled skin and a deep glare. His face resembled that of a cold corpse.

Despite being only 55 years old, Howard Rovan de vac Rynald had been under such stress that he looked ten years older.

That was due to the fact that they were bankrupt as of this moment, something that has never happened.

“How… is our merchandise?” asked the old man after putting down his pen.

“One party came back. We have more than fifteen healthy young maidens waiting to become our slaves.”

“That is… still too little… What happened to the mercenaries I hired? I told them to spread out and take over all the villages… in the forest…”

Rosalyn shook her head, “I hadn’t heard anything from them yet. Maybe those fuckers ran off with the merchandise.”

“I… spent all my remaining money just to hire them… And you’re telling me… they ran with my goods…?”

“Goods” in this case were the elves.

Rosalyn mentally shook her head.

‘The great Howard Rovan de vac Rynald. He looks like an old dog that needs to be put down. Is this disgrace of a man really my father? Why did I fear this man so much in my childhood when I can break him by lifting one finger?’

Rosalyn remembered all those years of being beaten bloody by this bastard.

He always took out his frustrations on his family whenever he gets home. Rosalyn was his favorite target. He’d use his fists to break her teeth and break nearly all the bones in her face when he feels like it.

No one stopped him.

Yet why did Rosalyn stay despite what he did? Well, not even she knows that. Whether he lives or dies by her hand now doesn’t matter.

“What’s done is done. All we can do now is have the brothels take the ones we have.” She replied after a few seconds of silence.

Her father grunted in displeasure, “Are all of them virgins at least? My associates will pay double for those kinds of women. Some even triple.”

“….” Rosalyn shook her head.

Most of them were probably already married and had husbands. The youngest of the group was Tessiah from what Rosalyn knew. Only Tessiah was a virgin but there was no way in hell she’ll let her personal servant be taken away.

Taking care of herself and carrying on with her duties while balancing her experiments took a lot out of her.

Rosalyn’s father hit the table so hard that the bang echoed in the office. He breathed hoarsely.

“Fuck, I’ll hang them for everyone to see that betraying me is the worst thing you can do! Do these ants think I’ve gone soft over the years!?”

“Give it a rest, Father. We can still send the ones who came back. At least they are loyal to you.”

“…Yes… Indeed… Have them leave for the elven country immediately. They should take the women from all the villages. I don’t want the Royagard Kingdom catching wind of what we’re doing.”

The Rynald Fiefdom is a few kilometers east of that kingdom. If the king hears that Howard is illegally capturing elves to be sold as slaves then he’ll stop the operation immediately. The empire has a good relationship with the Wood Elf Country. This might ruin that.

“I think it’s better if they rest first. It’s not good to overwork your subordinates, Father. It’s better for them to stay a few days before leaving again. If our strict orders cause them displeasure then we’ll lose whatever loyal subordinates we have left.”

“….” Her father grunted again in displeasure.

‘Not everything will go your way. You don’t have the money to make things happen anymore.’

Were it not for his poor investment choices and corruption in his businesses then none of this would’ve needed to happen. Rein’s actions were the last straw.

Howard’s going to far so as to kidnap women to force them to become “night” workers for his associates in the high echelon of the political field.

Many of the people he’s associated with were old men who had old wives so they want youthful women to serve them. What better women than those from the Elf race?

Though it could take months or possibly years to get back his fortune, this was a good decision if you considered the value of high-class prostitutes on this continent.

Many go on to marry kings because of their techniques and their bodies.

If all goes well then they can expect millions of gold every week.

“How is everything going at the brothels, Rosalyn?”

“I thought you might ask that,” said Rosalyn before taking out a parchment of paper from the file she was carrying, “This is the revenue that the brothels received in the past month. I summed them all up so that I didn’t need to bring too much paperwork.”

“!?” her father’s eyes widened before he gritted his teeth, “Why did they only make forty thousand gold!? I spent millions on them and now they can’t deliver!?”

“Most of the girls who worked for these brothels left when they heard we’d be buying the brothels. No, it’s more like they left because Father is the new owner. They believe that they’ll lose their high value clients if they stay.”

Many people only attended specific brothels because of the women who worked there. These women are the so-called “favorites” of the clients. If the women left then the clients followed.

In fact, a few of Howard’s associates broke contact with him immediately when their favorite workers left. It just goes to show that their relationship was not built on trust but personal gain.

“….” Howard placed the paper down and held his face in his hands, “Get out of my office. I need to think of a way to fix this.”

“A moment please, Father.”

“What is it?” Howard glared at her. One could tell from his grumpy attitude and the bags under his eyes that he was yearning for sleep.

There were a lot of documents laying around the office so he probably didn’t even het any sleep for at least a few days. Howard’s mistress—the only one who stayed behind—usually cleans his office only when he’s not present. He doesn’t allow just anyone into the office when he’s busy.

Rosalyn could tell that he hadn’t slept for a few days not just from the abovementioned but also the stink of sweat drifting in the room. How many days had he gone without bathing?

“What will you do about Rachel? She’s been sending transmissions to my lab every day. I managed to answer one of them in time. You know what she told me? ‘Big sis, I’m so hungry. I have nothing to eat. My friends do what they can to help me but I don’t want to trouble them. Grace even suggested sharing her allowance with me. I don’t want to trouble any of my friends, not even my best friend. Please get through to Papa’. Father, she can’t finish her education if you don’t send her money.”

“Why should I concern myself with her when I have bigger problems to deal with?”

“…I know you’re upset that Mom left you and took Rachel with her but you should still support your child. She’s the only one still in the academy. Your other children refuse to help her financially while I can’t provide money to her since none of my projects have made a breakthrough.”

Rachel had visited several times throughout the year to speak with Howard but he always chases her away.

Their mother was currently living in the capital city with her parents. They can’t afford to pay for Rachel’s academy or dorm fees. Their mother had to become a lady-in-waiting for another noble just to pay for rent and food at home.

Howard is Rachel’s father so he should provide financial help. However, lately he’s been losing more and more money, not spending a dime on his children. Instead losing the money in gambling.

Even Rosalyn doesn’t receive money from this scumbag of a father despite helping him out with the issues at hand.

“Rachel has also been seen going out with old men recently… I fear she might be sleeping with nobles just to make end’s meet.”

Rosalyn knew this because she speaks to Grace often through transmissions. Rachel always comes home late at night with a purse full of gold coins and plates sometimes.

The most noticeable change about Rachel was how she became less extroverted—not hanging out with friends anymore, not practicing in the track-and-field team anymore…

Rosalyn was worried. Her little sister and mother are the only people she truly cares for. The rest of her family can go die. She hates them all, especially that bastard Rein who caused all this.

“She’s using her charms as a woman – good. I suppose she’s not useless, after all. Humph.”

“That’s all you have to say?”

“I will send that little witch money when I have it. I have too much to worry about now. Why do you care? You’ve never shown compassion to any of your sisters and brothers.”

“It’s not every day that my sister starves herself to the point of resorting to opening her legs for other men to get money because of her father’s incompetence. I pray it's a mere assumption."

Howard glared at Rosalyn, “You… You…”

“I will await further instructions in my room. Goodnight, Father. I truly hope you can change your mind and be a little kinder towards your youngest daughter.” Rosalyn curtly bowed before leaving the office.

She could feel her father’s glare up until she closed the door behind her.

◇◇◇

The transmitter in Rosalyn’s pocket vibrated the moment she left her father’s office.

‘That’s odd. My colleagues told me that they didn’t want to work with me anymore.’

These colleagues were the people who joined her in her experiments. They met through a magic guild in the Republic. Their job was to help Rosalyn with her experiments.

The most recent experiment she was working on was to see if one could breathe life into the corpse of a being without using necromancy. They called her absurd for wanting to perform these unorthodox experiments that can only be described as horrid and inhuman.

She was a recognized mage in the industry due to her groundbreaking findings but her career as a professional mage ended the moment she tried to use a living human for experimentation. The person obviously didn’t give their consent since the experiment wasn’t as simple as taking blood tests.

That wasn’t the only thing. They found many human remains in her main office. There were even live fetuses that were grown artificially.

Something like that violated human rights so it scarred her reputation.

Many called Rosalyn a crazy witch which is expected.

Unable to come up with an answer who it could be, Rosalyn activated the transmitter. The green light blinked.

“Hello?” Rosalyn spoke into the transmitter.

-“Hello, old friend.”

“Melissa…?” Rosalyn frowned deeply at the familiar voice she heard.

“I’ll cut to the chase. Come work with me at the Second Magic Tower research lab as my co-worker, Rosalyn. Are you interested?”

A smile appeared on Rosalyn’s face.

“I’m listening, my dear friend.”