(Author’s note: I believe the quality of my book has declined recently. That’s why I really need reader comments. Please feel free to give unbiased and harsh criticism.)
As the morning rays illuminated everything, Thomas walked toward Morrigan.
"My Lady, I sensed a convoy of people heading this way. A big one too." Thomas looked at Morrigan, who was sitting around the fire and eating venison.
Morrigan frowned and lifted her head. She turned to Thomas and asked, "A convoy? How many people?"
"They’re close to 400."
"Why would that many people head south?" Rachel asked curiously, joining the conversation. Thomas sighed and then turned to Morrigan. "This convoy is not an immigrant convoy; it must be a slave trader’s convoy."
"There’s even someone you might recognize among them." Morrigan was puzzled, not understanding what Thomas meant. "How could I have any acquaintance with a slave trader?"
"I think it would be best for you to see it with your own eyes," Thomas said calmly, adjusting his glasses. Morrigan nodded and stood up.
"You come along too."
At Morrigan’s request, Rachel and Richard joined them, and after half an hour of walking, Thomas led the group to a location. Technically, it was a camp.
The camp was guarded by dozens of armored mercenaries. It seemed like a mixed organization, with people of different ethnicities and armor.
The carriages were luxurious, practically dripping with wealth. Morrigan thought this person’s wealth must be close to that of a count.
Morrigan’s eyes immediately focused on the hundreds of girls locked in cages. Her eyes widened. "T-these girls are just children?"
"And still, how could I have any connection with these people?"
While hiding behind the grass, Morrigan calmly asked. Thomas didn’t speak but pointed toward the lead carriage with his finger.
This carriage looked like it was made for royalty. The first thing that came to Morrigan’s mind was that this slave trader must be a noble, but since there was no crest, she dismissed that thought.
"Wait a bit and see who you’re acquainted with," Thomas said calmly. Morrigan sighed and waited. As Rachel and Richard quietly observed, the carriage door soon opened, and a man stepped out.
"Who is that man?" Rachel asked curiously. The man who emerged from the carriage was bald. Despite the scars on his face, he wore elegant clothing.
This man was none other than Gale. Recently wealthy and with an expanding gang, Gale had now gained more power by working with Thornfield.
Morrigan blinked, not recognizing the man. But when a female figure appeared behind Gale, Morrigan’s eyes narrowed in fury.
"My King, is this good?" Riko asked calmly. She had grown taller since the first time she met Morrigan. Her face had matured, and there was a smug expression on it that infuriated Morrigan.
"Does she really call that man ’my king’?" Rachel asked with a raised brow. Morrigan shook her head. "I don’t know who or what this man is, but the only thing I do know is that he’s disgusting."
"Do you know that girl?" Richard looked at Morrigan and asked calmly. Morrigan nodded, her eyes never leaving Riko. "Three of she friends tried to steal my bracelet, but because they were good kids, I gave it to them willingly."
"That bracelet must have been expensive," Rachel remarked calmly. "They could have lived comfortably for the rest of their lives with that bracelet’s worth. So why is this girl here?"
I said stay away!"
Ignoring Riko’s senseless cries, Morrigan soon stood in front of her. She gently cupped Riko’s cheeks with both hands.
"Tell me. Do you regret betraying Ren and Fred?" Morrigan asked softly, almost like a mother asking her child a question.
"I..." Riko trembled in fear, her breath shaky. She couldn’t look into Morrigan’s eyes, only lowering her head like a pitiful child.
"You have no answer, do you?" Morrigan said coldly, her nails digging into Riko’s cheeks, causing her to whimper in pain. Ignoring the girl’s pain, Morrigan quickly turned around as she sensed an attack from behind.
Gale, with his remaining arm, tried to strike her. Morrigan effortlessly dodged, as if nothing had happened. Gale’s punch missed, and Morrigan grabbed his arm and twisted it harshly.
As Gale fell to the ground in pain, his arm broken, Morrigan watched his struggling body with cold indifference. Extending her delicate hands forward, Morrigan unleashed a ruthless attack, sending hundreds of tiny needles piercing through Gale’s body.
Gale’s eyes were impaled by the needles, which also reached his brain, leaving him lifeless on the ground.
As Gale’s body was rendered almost unrecognizable by the thousands of shadow needles, Morrigan finally calmed her rage and ceased further mutilation of his corpse.
"Riko?" Morrigan turned to Riko, speaking calmly as if she hadn’t just committed an atrocity. Riko, however, was so terrified that she tripped and fell to the ground, unable to stand anymore.
"I’m calling your name. Are you deaf?"
"No! I just—"
Riko couldn’t finish speaking as Morrigan kicked her in the face, sending her crashing hard to the ground. Whimpering in pain, Riko cried and screamed for her mother.
"Your mother won’t save you, Riko..." Morrigan’s cold gaze remained unyielding. Her Mana, which grew stronger with each passing second, had now caught the attention of everyone, including Thomas.
"In this damned place, it’s just you and me," Morrigan said with a slight murmur, her eyes narrowing mercilessly. She then landed a brutal kick to Riko’s stomach.
"Ahh..." Riko howled in pain, her eyes pleading with Morrigan. But this was something Morrigan had no interest in. She intended to make Riko’s death as cruel as possible.
"Today you will die. You will join those forgotten forever," Morrigan said, grabbing Riko by the throat. Effortlessly, she lifted Riko to her own height, as if she weighed nothing.
As Riko gasped for air, darkness emanating from Morrigan’s body invaded her through her eyes, mouth, and nostrils, causing Riko to whimper in agony.
Struggling to breathe, Riko desperately tried to strike Morrigan’s hand, but of course, her attacks were completely useless against her.
After filling Riko’s body entirely with her Dark energy, Morrigan carelessly threw her into the nearby stream.
Before Riko could even comprehend what was happening, the darkness inside her suddenly began to tear its way out of her body.
"Aggg!!!"
Riko clutched her body in pain. Suddenly, her skin disintegrated, and her organs and skeletal system were swept away by the stream.
As Riko’s blood turned the stream a deep crimson, her scattered bones and organs were carried away by the flow.