The Extra's Return

Stepping out of the Mine Dungeon

Together with me, the soldiers also emerged from the Mine Dungeon.

We didn't rush out. Although we quickened our pace, we didn't flee like prey being chased by wild beasts.

The same went for the slaves who exited with us.

The slaves came out in an orderly manner. They didn't come out empty-handed; most of them carried a wooden bucket or a wheelbarrow filled with Magic Stones they had mined today.

After handing over their mining results to the waiting soldiers outside, they immediately lined up to receive food.

The food was prepared by the female slaves.

As the slaves lined up for food, they whispered to each other. It turned out they were discussing the dungeon explosion.

The soldiers had not previously announced to the slaves that a dungeon explosion was about to occur. Perhaps they were afraid the slaves would start causing chaos. However, it seemed that the slaves were beginning to realize that something was happening.

Maybe a slave accidentally overheard my conversation with the soldiers earlier.

Unlike the slaves lining up for food, I was guided towards the master district. Along the way, I passed by the slaves in the food queue and unintentionally noticed a gaze from a woman who was distributing the food. It turned out to be the woman who had flirted with me before.

I thought she would look at me angrily upon seeing me carrying Sharon, but she still gave me a flirtatious look. Truly a consistent woman.

"What's the matter?"

"Nothing."

***

I arrived in front of the largest building in the master district.

Not only was it large, but the building was also magnificent, luxurious, and aesthetically pleasing. The pillars supporting the building were enormous. The roof tiles covering the top of the building were neatly arranged, resembling black waves.

The day had turned into night. There was no longer sunlight coming through the large round hole in the ceiling. However, the building emitted a bright light from the magic lamps placed at various points.

Entering this grand building, I was guided further inside.

"I can't take you directly to meet Lord Rafferty. So, for the time being, you have to wait in a room first."

I was not immediately taken to the room where the boss of the Nest of Slavery was located.

He said it was just to follow the procedure, but I was sure he was afraid of punishment if he suddenly brought a slave before the boss himself.

***

Finally, Sharon and I were placed in a room. This room was similar to the living room. But this room was less luxurious than the living room I had seen on my way here.

There was a sofa inside. I laid Sharon down on it.

"Should I call someone to take care of her?"

Before leaving, the soldier who escorted me made a reasonable suggestion. He wanted to call a nurse to thoroughly examine Sharon's condition.

I certainly wouldn't allow him to call someone to take care of Sharon because Sharon was only pretending to be injured from a fierce battle.

Fortunately, Sharon immediately told the soldier that there was no need to call a nurse.

"In that case, wait here for a moment. I will come back here shortly after informing Lord Rafferty."

And so, the group of soldiers who had escorted me here disappeared.

I realized that the courteous behavior of the soldier was not directed towards me but towards Sharon.

After we were left alone in the room, Sharon sat up, holding her head as if she were truly in pain.

I also sat on the sofa.

In front of us, on a table, were fruits and a bowl filled with cold porridge. All of it had been brought by a servant before our arrival.

How did I know? It was because, on the way here, the soldier who escorted me ordered a servant.

Perhaps because my footsteps were slow on the way here, the servants had time to go to the kitchen and get the food.

Don't be surprised, even though this place was underground, inside here—inside the residential building of the ruler of Nest of Slavery, there were servants complete with nurses. The nurses here were people who possessed healing abilities.

The food here was also abundant, unlike the food given to the slaves, which was only a steamed parsnip.

"Do you already know what you need to do next?"

I asked Sharon.

Before coming here, I had given Sharon complete instructions on what she needed to do next.

Before chaos truly erupted, there was one thing I needed to ensure, and that was to save the slaves.

I didn't want them to get caught up in the chaos and potentially become sacrificial victims.

To succeed in the plan to rescue the slaves, I planned to send Sharon to secretly move the slaves out of the Nest of Slavery.

Sharon nodded while reaching for the porridge that was already on the table and started eating.

"But what about you? If I follow your plan, won't you still be here?"

"Don't worry, I can take care of myself. Besides, you will need a lot of time to transport all the slaves, right? I will buy you and the slaves enough time to escape from here."

Sharon had previously mentioned that she could activate the teleportation gate. So, I just needed to buy time during the chaos inside the Nest of Slavery.

"Furthermore, if I truly want to free the slaves, I have to find the slavery agreement papers, which are most likely kept by Rafferty."

My plan was quite simple.

I would meet with the boss of the Nest of Slavery to inform him about the dungeon explosion. Then, the boss of the Nest of Slavery would mobilize the soldiers to stand guard at the entrance of the Mine Dungeon. While everyone's attention was focused on the Mine Dungeon, that's when Sharon could move freely to save the slaves. And I would be able to search for the Agreement Paper.

Furthermore, my task was to oversee the progress of my plan as a whole.

"Use this to activate the teleportation gate."

I handed Sharon a bag filled with magic crystals. I had replaced the previous contents of the bag, which were food, with magic crystals.

Although the quantity was smaller than the number of magic crystals used by the soldiers who had brought the new batch of slaves into the Nest of Slavery, the high level of the magic crystals made me believe it was enough to transport all the slaves inside the Nest of Slavery.

"Why are you doing this?"

Sharon asked while accepting the bag full of magic crystals.

Ugh! Please don't look at me with those sparkling eyes.

I felt like closing my eyes because Sharon was looking at me as if I were an exceptionally kind-hearted person.

"Don't misunderstand, I'm not doing this because I want to be a hero, but because I have my own reasons."

Although I answered like that, it seemed Sharon didn't believe me.

Even though I felt like crying when I handed over all those valuable magic crystals.

But I managed to convince myself that I would soon receive a greater return.

It's the nature of poor people to always want to cry when they lose money.

"Remember, you should only move when the circumstances allow. Don't force yourself."

"Don't worry."

"Take this too."

I handed her the final item.

I took off the earring I was wearing.

It was a Slime that I had transformed into an earring. This Slime was a magic item that could change its shape according to what I imagined.

I couldn't give it in the form of a jelly lump. I was afraid she would find it too disgusting. So, I immediately gave her the Slime in the form of an earring.

"W-What do you mean by suddenly giving me this?"

Sharon looked puzzled. It was understandable; anyone would never expect to receive a piece of jewelry in such a tense situation. However, I quickly explained that the earring was a magic item.

"This magic item can change its shape. You just need to imagine what item you want it to transform into while channeling your Mana into it. Since you're a magician, you can surely do it. I don't think I need to provide an example."

"I thought you were giving me this as a gift."

"Do you think I intended to commit suicide and leave this as a memento or inheritance?"

Then I explained further.

I instructed her to transform the Slime into a key, a key that would unlock the shackles binding the slaves. It would be extremely difficult to rescue the slaves if they were still wearing shackles. On the other hand, it would be easier to transport them if they were completely freed from the shackles.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

I stopped explaining to Sharon as a soldier came knocking on the door.

For the last time, before parting ways with Sharon, I looked into her eyes, and we nodded simultaneously.

"Don't forget, prioritize the slaves of the beastman race!"

That was my final important message.