The Yorks were a very tragic people. More than three hundred years ago, they had been a small country next to Hollevin.
Although their country was very small, their people were very strong, could sing and dance, and were also very hospitable.
But because they were too hospitable, they were then destroyed by Hollevin. Out of more than sixty thousand people, only a few thousand were left. These thousands of people were captured as slaves, divided into several batches, and sold in Hollevin. They then struggled to survive. No one had counted how many Yorks were left, but Lloyd and the others knew very well that this batch of Yorks was probably the last of their race.
Lloyd was the only person in the Yorks who could read. The teacher who taught him to read was also the only person in the previous generation of Yorks who could read. For slaves, it was too difficult to learn after hard work. Only the extremely talented children, such as those with photographic memory, would be chosen to be the next inheritor of the language.
Now, among the Yorks, Lloyd was the only one who knew the history of their race. The others only knew that they were Yorks. As for where they came from, where their hometown was, and why they had become slaves, they knew nothing.
As an inheritor of the language, Lloyd had always been paying attention to the changes in the race. But because they were slaves, the quality of the children in the race was getting lower and lower. In the past ten years, he actually hadn't found a child suitable to learn to read.
Just when Lloyd thought that he was going to lose the inheritance, he didn't expect to have a pleasant surprise.
A very kind noble bought them. The reason why Lloyd felt that the noble was a kind person was because this noble, their new master, actually let them bathe and gave them food. He also gave them hemp flour to make clothes for themselves.
Lloyd didn't understand any big principles, but he knew very well that people were people because they had clean bodies and clothes to cover their bodies. Otherwise, they were no different from beasts.
And the new master gave them hemp clothes. He even asked them to buy dry food. If this wasn't treating them as people, what else could it be? Although the master was not easy to talk to on the surface, he was a noble, a high and mighty spellcaster noble. It would be strange if he didn't have some dignity and temper.
Lloyd walked on the street with his three clansmen. Because the slave inscription was engraved on the back, they were now wearing clothes. He was no different from an ordinary person.
Although he was a slave, Lloyd used to help other masters buy supplies, so he had a better understanding of the market.
Lloyd was very clear about the minimum amount of food that seven hundred people needed to consume in a day. He first went to the cart shop to buy a few donkey carts, then hired a few people, and went to the grain shop to buy the cheapest, but of course, the worst rations.
When the carriages of food returned to the cave, Lloyd's expression suddenly changed. Lloyd saw that the numb clansmen were all looking over at him.
That was a good thing. Lloyd knew very well that his people no longer had much of a reaction to anything. They just lived like beasts, and the only thing better than beasts was that they knew how to speak.
But now, the clansmen had clean bodies. With new clothes to wear, they gradually began to reveal their human side.
"Let the children come over and eat something." Lloyd said to his people, "Everyone can't eat too much. You can only grab a handful, understand?"
The man nodded. He went over to the crowd to eat and drink a few times, and soon a group of children ran over. Everyone obediently grabbed a handful of dry rations and stuffed them into their mouths. They ate in a hurry, and some of them even choked.
Looking at this scene, Lloyd could not help but feel some joy in his heart. Children were the future of a race. As long as the children lived well, then the race would not perish and would only slowly grow stronger.
But he was not happy for long. He saw a person walk in, and his heart suddenly turned cold.
The person who came was Beta, their new master.
There were also a few children who were holding a ball of coarse food in their hands and stuffing it into their mouths. This situation was naturally seen by Beta.
In the eyes of any aristocrat, secretly eating was a big taboo. Lloyd was very afraid that Beta would punish these children. He broke out in a cold sweat and was about to think of a way to persuade his master not to touch these children and take all the blame on himself when he saw that Beta did not seem to see the children. Instead, he walked to the front of the donkey cart and checked the condition of the rations.
Lloyd felt as if his throat was hanging by a thread.
After checking the donkey cart, Beta walked up to Lloyd and asked expressionlessly, "How much did you spend?"
"This is the amount for ten days. I only spent a total of one gold coin and 36 silver coins." Lloyd was a little worried. He was afraid that his master would think that he bought too much. After all, he had secretly calculated the minimum amount of rations that his clansmen consumed every day.
"Are you helping me save money?" Beta seemed to sneer disdainfully. "In the future, your rations will be doubled on this basis. Also, in the future, when you buy food, buy it month by month. Don't be too stingy. What's wrong with only buying for ten days at a time? You'll embarrass me if word gets out. "
Lloyd took a deep breath and said, "No problem. As you wish, my master. "
Beta grunted and then said, "Go buy the rations for the remaining twenty days and let them eat their fill. We'll set off tomorrow morning."
"Yes, master."
Beta glanced at the slaves. Seeing that their vitality was much better, he nodded. He turned and left. When he was about to walk to the entrance of the cave, he suddenly turned back and looked at Lloyd. "Those children, don't let them steal food again. If I see them again, I'll break their dog legs."
"Okay." Lloyd was ecstatic as he replied loudly. His heart that was hanging in the air had been put down.
Since his master said this, he naturally let the children who stole food go. As for his master's bad tone … How many masters would speak to their slaves in a very gentle tone? If something like that really happened, it meant that things might be troublesome.
Lloyd watched as Beta left the cave. He looked at his clansmen and suddenly shouted, "All of you listen up. Get ready to eat. We can finally eat our fill."
A moment later, there was an earth-shattering cheer.
Betta was outside the cave. Listening to the vague sounds coming from behind, he smiled and was in a good mood. As an Earthling in the information age, Beta didn't like the word "slave", but he knew very well that if he told the slaves that they were free, they would be ordinary people in the future.
Not only would the slaves not believe him, but they would also be very scared.
In the eyes of many people, even the slaves themselves, slaves were the most lowly things. They were already used to such a position. Suddenly, if someone said such a thing, they would definitely suspect that the person who said such words definitely had no good intentions. After all, once anything was out of the ordinary, there would be a problem.
Beta returned to the hotel and took Shirley and Jessica shopping on the street for a couple of hours. Jessica was very excited. She liked shopping with her master the most. Shirley, on the other hand, was much calmer, but she was still very happy.
When it was dark, they returned to the inn, ate something, and went to bed.
When they woke up the next day, Beta took Shirley and Jessica to the entrance of the cave.
Lloyd was already waiting at the entrance with his clansmen. Beside them, there were a dozen donkey carts with sackcloth on them. They were definitely filled with rations.
"Master, we're all ready," Lloyd walked forward and reported.
Looking at the slaves, Beta said lightly, "There are a lot of old guys among you … Logically speaking, they should be thrown away."
As soon as these words came out, Lloyd turned pale with fright, but he couldn't find any words to refute. After all, this was a problem that all slaves encountered. When they were old and couldn't work anymore, they would be abandoned and starved to death.
"But I'm a kind person. I'll allow you to bring these old guys. If they don't want to follow us, let them sit on the donkey carts. Anyway, the rations aren't anything precious. It's not a problem for them to sit on. "
Lloyd breathed a sigh of relief and said happily, "Master, you're really kind. You're the kindest master I've ever seen."
Beta smiled lightly and didn't comment. Then, he called for a carriage from the side, got on it, and slowly drove out of the city.
Lloyd gestured for his clansmen to follow immediately.
More than seven hundred people lined up in two rows, followed by a dozen donkey carts, majestically heading out of the city.
This was a rare sight in Charonte City, and it alarmed many people.
Francis stood in front of the window on the fifth floor, looking down at the slaves filing out. Behind him stood his butler.
"How's the investigation going?"
"It's clear. That man is indeed the Red Priest. Now, the latest news is that the Red Priest is accompanied by an extremely beautiful woman who has bright blonde hair like him. Her appearance is exactly the same as our target's. "
"Since he's the real Red Priest, there's no need for us to provoke him." Fatty Francis chuckled. "Let's give up on this batch of slaves. We can't afford to provoke someone who dares to fight with the prince and can escape unscathed. But there are always some idiots who overestimate themselves. Send two people to quietly follow behind and see which force will make a move. As long as they're defeated by the Red Priest, it'll be our time to take advantage. "
The butler bowed and left.
In the slave market, slaves that were sold would occasionally return to the seller's hands after a short period of time. There were many well-known reasons for this.
Beta sat in the carriage and chatted with Shirley. Not far from the city, Joan Of Arc, who was scouting from the air, told him that a small encirclement was being set up one kilometer ahead of them.