NOVEL NEXT Chapter 0 - You bought an elf as a sex slave? Are you out of your mind!?
Chapter 0 – You bought an elf as a sex slave? Are you out of your mind!?
‘You bought an elf as a sex slave? Are you out of your mind!?’
Is that really such a shocking thing? Talk about an overreaction. I try to ignore him and pour some black tea, but the merchant’s expression is unsettling.
Was he trying to play a joke? By this point, I’m starting to feel uneasy too. What’s the big deal? What’s this about an elf?
‘Listen… I’m just asking to be sure, but she’s definitely young, right?’
‘Huh? Oh, yes. She’s young.’
‘How old is she?’
‘She just turned two hundred and fifty. Since elves usually live for a thousand years, in human terms that’s about twenty-five…’
‘You’ve got to be kidding me!’
I know my joke wasn’t funny, but that’s a bit harsh. How embarrassing.
‘A two-hundred-fifty-year-old elf?’
But it seemed the merchant wasn’t surprised by my joke.
‘Listen to me. Get your head straight. If you haven’t brought her home yet, cancel the purchase now.’
‘Cancel? She’s already been living in my house for ten days.’
‘What an idiot! You know absolutely nothing about elves!’
What do you mean I don’t know? They’re slender, beautiful, and long-lived… Come to think of it, I guess I don’t know much.
‘Stop making such a fuss and just tell me what’s going on. What’s the problem?’
‘Sigh. Fine. Let me explain it simply. Basically, elves are born with spirit affinity and magical insight.’
‘I know that much.’
‘Now, think about it. When an elf, whose mana capacity naturally grows to twice that of humans just by living, reaches over a hundred years old? They reach a level of power that even the most renowned wizards would have to bow to.’
‘Uh… really?’
‘Why would I lie? And if the elf you’ve taken in is two hundred and fifty years old… it’s no exaggeration to say she’s already reached the level of an archmage.’
As I listen, cold sweat begins to form.
‘Then why did she become a slave? If she’s reached the level of an archmage, an elf living in the great forest couldn’t possibly be caught by slave hunters.’
‘She wasn’t caught—she allowed herself to be caught. You’re so clueless.’
‘Allowed herself? Why on earth?’
‘She was bored with her daily life. She needed new stimulation.’
‘And that means volunteering to be a slave?’
‘She might be an elf with perverted tendencies.’
So, according to the merchant, some perverted elf volunteered to be a slave as a hobby to escape the tedium of daily life.
Does that make any sense? It’s so absurd that it doesn’t feel real. I was quietly staring at my cooling black tea when a thought suddenly occurred to me.
‘But it doesn’t matter, right? I’ve placed a slave mark on her, so no matter what she tries, she can’t defy me.’
‘It’s fortunate you’re not a merchant. With that kind of business sense, you’d be ruined within a year.’
‘What’s that supposed to mean? Speak clearly.’
‘Ha. Fine. Who do you think engraves the slave marks?’
‘Well, the black mages of the magic realm…’
Wait a minute. No matter how magic-obsessed a black mage is, they can’t reach the level of an archmage, can they?
‘Do you really think an elf who has practiced magic for two hundred and fifty years couldn’t break a slave mark placed by black mages who live at most a hundred years?’
‘Then why would she accept the slave mark…?’
‘I told you earlier, didn’t I? She’s playing with you.’
My shoulders twitched. The elven slave who trembles whenever I approach is actually playing with me?
Impossible.
Right. That’s nonsense.
That merchant must be talking rubbish just to mess with me.
I emptied the rest of my tea with that thought.
*
As I entered the mansion, an elf wearing clothes no better than rags was waiting for me in a dogeza position.
‘W-welcome home, m-master…’
The same behavior as usual. The stammering speech still irritates me.
Still, I didn’t scold him. Perhaps because of the merchant’s fuss, today I felt like I needed to be… cautious.
‘I’ll eat first.’
‘Y-yes, of course…’
The elf answered politely, got up, and left to prepare the meal.
I returned to my room, washed up briefly, and entered the dining room. The table was laden with a feast of dishes prepared by the elf.
Meanwhile, the elf’s food was placed under the table. It was worse than dog food—just yesterday’s leftover scraps roughly mixed together.
After giving the elf a glance, I sat at the table and picked up my utensils.
‘Eat.’
As if waiting for my command, the elf flattened himself on the floor and was about to eat the dog food.
This was normal behavior, but today something felt off. I raised my hand to stop him and pulled the elf up.
‘Today, sit at the table to eat.’
‘Y-yes…? No, no… Garbage like me wouldn’t dare to share a table with the master… Please allow me to dispose of yesterday’s leftovers at your feet…’
‘It’s fine. I won’t punish you.’
‘B-but…’
The elf made a strange moaning sound before sitting at the table. Then he began picking at the food timidly.
Is he not happy? After watching him briefly, I finished my meal without much thought.
‘Wine.’
When I ordered wine for dessert, the elf stopped eating and got up to fetch it.
The problem was that he seemed to trip over his own feet and fell.
‘Ah…!’
With a short cry, crash! My precious wine bottle shattered, staining the floor reddish.
‘M-master, I’ve committed a terrible sin…!’
The elf prostrated himself with a face pale as death. The familiar back of his head was trembling visibly.
‘I’ll accept any punishment…! I’m s-sorry…!’
Anger rose to the top of my head, but I decided to let it go this once. I sighed deeply and waved my hand.
‘It’s fine. I’ll clean it up. You go to your room.’
‘What…? Master…?’
‘Didn’t I say it’s fine?’
‘But, but I must be punished…!’
‘Don’t argue.’
When I cut him off, the elf’s expression instantly turned cold.
It wasn’t that she had turned pale. She had turned cold. It was a subtle difference, but I could clearly tell.
‘Today’s master seems… somehow kind…’
Words forced out with difficulty. The elf left that comment and went up to her room.
I took that opportunity to activate the surveillance object I had installed in the elf’s room.
I had set it up just in case, and now was the chance to use it.
Creeeeak─.
The sound of the door opening. Then I could see the elf entering and sitting on the bed.
The elf stared straight ahead with empty eyes and then smiled with contempt.
‘Can’t even perform his role properly. Arrogant bastard. Should I kill him?’
Her utterly cynical voice sent chills down my spine. No way. Could everything the merchant had said been correct?
This elf was sold to me so she could enjoy being abused? The truth I witnessed was too absurd. I covered my mouth and sighed quietly.
‘Maybe I should look for another master…’
The mana rising from the elf’s hand took on a sharp, threatening edge.
Oh shit! Startled, I jumped up and rummaged through a nearby drawer.
I grabbed whatever I could find and ran up the stairs, flinging open the door to the elf’s room.
‘Eh…?’
Despite having just been badmouthing me, the elf looked at me with innocent eyes.
‘M-master… why… you said I could rest today…’
At first, that trembling appearance seemed cute, but now it looked like nothing but disgusting acting.
But if I showed that I knew, I’d be killed by that elf. What should I do now? As I frantically calculated my options, I realized I was holding a dog collar in my hand. It was what I had grabbed from the drawer.
‘I changed my mind.’
As calmly as possible. I spoke in my usual tone and threw the dog collar toward the elf.
‘Today is a naked walk. You worm.’
‘A-a naked walk…?’
The elf was shocked. No, she was pretending to be shocked. The slight smirk at the corner of her mouth was proof.
‘M-master, please… anything but that… please forgive me…’
Crazy bitch. I suppressed my rising anger and opened my mouth.
‘After the naked walk, we’ll have a time for sexual torture.’
For me to survive, I needed to train this insane elf… no, I needed to pretend to train her.