Four Split Personalities

About twenty minutes had passed before Motan finally clarified the whole story...

Although the act of slavery itself wasn’t complex, presenting various specific pieces of information in a coherent manner was not easy. If it were merely an exchange between players, it could be simply addressed by saying ’I have a friend.’ However, making it acceptable to the NPCs required a bit more effort.

In any case, although it took additional time (Anthony fell asleep four times during the process), Motan eventually managed to explain the Marshall Family’s slave trade, the underground Viper Chamber of Commerce’s secret operations, and the long-standing persecution suffered by the Fire Claw Territory. In the end, he resorted to using the guise of ’I have a friend’ and invoked the innkeeper of a small town inn.

My friend knows the ins and outs of this matter... and I told my friend the ins and outs of this matter, and then he knew. These two facts don’t actually conflict; the ultimate conclusion is that the friend knew. Motan simply omitted why the friend knew about it.

Being well-informed, Jadka naturally didn’t find anything amiss about an innkeeper from the Cloud Traveler Inn having a lot of information.

"I think I understand, it seems your connections are much broader than I imagined,"

The old mage stroked his beard and said with a furrowed brow, "So the group that Night Song was tracking is from that underground chamber of commerce, and what they were transporting are the civilians captured by the Marshall Territory in Fire Claw?"

"Exactly."

Motan nodded slightly and said solemnly, "I had visited the Fire Claw Territory once before and could recognize many of the clans’ totems. That day in Anka, I happened to see an orc locked in a wagon, and it was unmistakably a citizen of the Fire Claw Territory."

Dabus looked somewhat distressed as he scratched his rear end, asking doubtfully, "Then why not notify the Violet Empire? If they had already determined Duke Marshall to be guilty, they surely wouldn’t just sit by and watch those slaves be sold off, would they? That falls within their own domestic issues."

Before Motan could answer, Jadka had already begun shaking his head, "No, they most likely won’t get involved. It’d be a different story if the caravan were still within the Violet Empire’s borders, but since it’s moved here, those nobles would be less inclined to interfere. The Viper Chamber of Commerce is no ordinary organization; although it can’t compare with the Violet Empire, those guys would be a troublemaker anyone would think twice about."

"Moreover, the Violet Empire itself isn’t monolithic."

Just in time, Motan added, "On the surface, it’s an imperial system, but the Royal Family’s authority isn’t very strong. Not to mention the several dukes supporting the Marshall Family, even the Royal Family itself has its internal conflicts. Plus, the atmosphere there is very tense, so even if we relay the information back and it is taken seriously, by the time they send someone here, it would already be too late."

This was exactly what Shu・Bresen had said and totally consistent with his Chaotic Neutral character.

"So, to put it simply, we can only rely on ourselves now,"

Xiaoge flapped her wings like a chandelier hanging in the middle of the ceiling, clenched her little fists, and gritted her teeth, "Since we’ve stumbled upon this, we can’t just ignore it... Ah!"

She was tackled down by Ya Ya.

"I have no objections."

Dabus nodded agreeably, cracking his large knuckles, "Since the formal channels aren’t effective, we’ll have to figure it out ourselves. Silent Brother, hold your words; I know the risks involved, and I’m also worried about ’Anthony’s safety,’ but a man must do what he must in life, and I must teach him this lesson."

Anthony blinked twice, "Anthony, learn principles."

’Plus, I have a Talent that should be able to save Anthony’s life at the critical moment.’

Dabus added in a message to his friend.

Motan was at a loss for words, then turned to Ya Ya and Jadka, "What about you two..."

Ya Ya got up from Xiaoge, wagged her tail, and put her hands on her hips, "Ya Ya thinks selling silver is wrong!"

"Ya Ya, pronounce it clearly! It’s called selling people!"

Xiaoge, who had struggled to her feet, helplessly hugged Ya Ya and pulled on the face of the dog-mother, who had severe pronunciation issues, "If you can’t manage that, just say enslavement!"

Motan chuckled dryly, knowing the clever dog-mother was probably beyond persuading, then turned towards Jadka...

Surprisingly, Jadka hung his head in silence.

"Old Jia?"

Xiaoge also noticed and asked with a tilt of her head, "What are you thinkin... Eh?"

She noticed that Motan suddenly tugged her and, catching on, didn’t continue.

"I’m fine."

Jadka seemed to have just snapped back to reality and smiled awkwardly, waving his hand before asking the winged girl, "Night Song, did you find out... those slavers are headed to the Caselo Grasslands?"

Xiaoge quickly nodded, "Yes, but I don’t know much more. One of them quickly noticed the magic fluctuations from the close-range communication device and destroyed it right away."

"I see..."

The old mage grimaced, squeezed his ice-packed magic wand, and after a long silence, finally raised his head, "May I accompany you to the edge of the grasslands?"