It is the 5th day of Solcres, 975th year of the Empire, 119th year of Alastair IV.
'Or isn't it?'
Honestly, Eli wasn't sure anymore. The kidnappers are transporting him in a vehicle they call a wagon, with his head covered in a dark sack and both his hands tied up behind him. Fortunately, they would ease up on his security once in a while whenever they stopped to give the beasts called horses their provisions. But those times are so irregular that it was difficult for Eli to determine exactly how many days have passed.
It wasn't like this while they were still at Temani, with the first group in charge of him; in fact, the three men weren't that difficult. Probably because they are the lowest of the low, ignorant fools, or because they were just caught up in his charms, they didn't cover him and were even answering his veiled, innocent questions.
That changed when they exited the Temani walls and were passed to another group once they arrived at the nearest village.
Apparently, the group behind his abduction when he just woke up in Renaris moves in a more stealthy and organized manner than what he initially thought.
They were a large association of small-scale criminals from each territory; if his gut is right, then it might be a guild of the underworld.
The three men of Temani eventually sold him for a platinum coin and three gold coins, which were equivalent to compensation for two seasons of working at regular jobs. It was too small for his worth. Of course, that was because the ignorant fools believed his Thumb Drive identity, thus making them objects of ridicule even at the present.
"Hahahaha!"
One of the people making up the current group, which was the fourth, was a learned man who was aware of who Elior Lichtstiele was. Eli memorized the man's face, suspecting that he has connections to either the estate or some vassals or branch families.
They said they'd bypass the three remaining groups and go straight to the town of Nina, which was some sort of gateway.
'There are already six criminal groups between Temani and Nina.'
Eli smiled at the thought of bringing home information that wouldn't make the austere Sir Lancelot happy.
After a few more hours that felt like forever, the ride suddenly stopped, and he was led out of the wagon. He thought it would be similar to how they rested in the middle of their flight, but he soon suspected that they'd arrived at their destination based on the couple of creaking doors opening and closing.
"Damn it! What took you so long?!"
There was an uproar the moment they arrived. The shout came from an old woman who was pissed off.
"Do you know how valuable the goods we have are, huh? You think we've got all the time to keep the lambs in this place?"
"Oh, dear, let them speak first."
This time it was the pacifying voice of an old man. If Eli takes out the fact that what is happening is a transaction that involves kidnapping, it's just like listening to a couple with the wife kicking up a fuss over a one-minute late delivery while the husband calms her down.
That was his take before the old man spoke the next sentence.
"Well, the position of their heads would, of course, depend on their answers."
"Ahem, ahem."
"Calm down, you two."
The third voice came from a man who spoke casually, but Eli determined him to be of the highest rank in the room by how the kidnappers with him suddenly fell to their knees and responded respectfully.
"We greet the third disciple of the 10th Plague. We are your limbs from Myrdell."
"You are not the group we are expecting."
"Yes, lord. We've cut two days less of our path to immediately deliver a high-quality good from Temani."
"Really?"
When the leader indicated that he wanted to see Eli's face, the guy of Myrdell, who knew of him, grabbed the sack straight away.
The bright light of the room made Eli squint, but soon he was able to see the higher-ranked people. There were the old man and woman who look like typical Villagers A and B, standing right behind the leader on an office desk, his face covered with a thick balaclava mask with netted cloths on the eye holes.
"This is Elior Lichtstiele, my lord. Third son of the Lichtstiele's main family."
"Oh, he was the Black siblings' target for a long time, but I heard they failed days ago."
"We got fortunate. Some guys from the slums of Temani sold this child to us."
Silence ensued as the man scrutinized Eli, perhaps confirming his identity. After a while, he turned to the group from Myrdell with his calculation.
"Mm. Well done. I shall give you 30 platinum coins for the kid."
They beamed upon the leader's joyous news.
"Ah, thank you, sir."
'It's a scam.'
Even Eli feels sad for the Temani trio.
Everyone seems to be happy for the good business transaction, perhaps except for Villager B, the old woman, who was grumbling that their Villager tag team should be given more credit.
"Calm down, dear."
"Hmph! What's with that kid? I heard he was the most useless person in their family's history, a shame to the lineage…"
"Yes. Isn't the weaker the better? We only need the bloodline. Well, he is less trouble compared to the one you brought along."
The leader laughingly joined in for his defense.
"Damn, you are saying things I can't refute."
"But of course, the others you brought are also great; I heard the count's son is also quite special."
"Right?"
"Well then, I'll have you two start your journey tomorrow."
"Yes, sir."
"Yes, my lord."
"Take the Lichtstiele kid to the others."
***
"Please help! Please!"
A kid's desperate cry echoed on the hallway where Eli was led; his head was yet again covered with the sack, preventing him from knowing the outline of the criminal base.
They stopped in front of the door where the screaming and knocking were the loudest.
"Heuk --!"
Thump --!
Two bodies were flung to the floor when the door was opened; one was Eli's and the other was the kid who was shouting; he heard the old man's sneer before slamming the door shut.
"N-no! Please!"
Thud! Thud!
Eli took off the sack, revealing to himself the poor condition of the small and dark dungeon cell that was only illuminated by two dimly lit magic lamps, just enough for them to at least recognize each other's features. However, the five children that were packed into the tiny room were in a more dire state; they were dirty, and their clothes were a mess.
In fact, one boy was lying unconscious on the cold ground with the other three huddled around him, and the last boy was still desperately knocking on the door, asking for help.
The tear-streaked kids nestled together just stared at him without making a sound; they looked extremely exhausted. Only the desperate shouts and the sound of little fists pounding the wooden door were heard for a while, until even the golden-haired boy ran on empty and slumped on the floor.
"Hah, hah."
Right then, Eli finished observing everything in the room in its entirety.
"Hi."
It was the golden-haired boy who disrupted the silence as he greeted Eli with a hoarse voice.
"Yeah. Are you okay?"
"Heuk—no.""
The gold irises seemed to melt when tears began to fill them, but it was only after that Eli understood that the kid wasn't desperately crying for himself.
"The young master is dying. If he doesn't receive mana, he will die. Heuk —"
Eli turned towards the direction the kid was looking; it was the unconscious boy.
Renaris is a world of aura, magic, and divinity that is based on purity and restoration. It is said that the body of a native Renarian has overflowing vitality and the ability to recover to some extent. It was the reason why he, by himself, only took two days to recuperate when his body was significantly injured when he first woke up.
It is possible as long as there is mana, the basic unit of energy.
The six children in the room were all of noble birth; the Holy Empire's nobility ranking was based on purism. High-ranking aristocrats from Count up are family lineages with no drop of foreign blood, including Lysargian commoners, anywhere in their genealogical tree of a thousand years.
That was why there shouldn't be any problem with them healing gradually. However, one noble Renarian is dying inside the room.
"Something is keeping out the mana from this room. Heuk —"
The boy cried, revealing the reason he was losing heart.
"I can't even use my ability to heal the young master. I'm so useless, even when it was because of me that he was like this. Sob."
Eli activated his wayfinder to confirm the kid's words. And sure enough, the walls of the room got tinted in green, indicating that its material is the thing that is blocking the mana from outside, turning the cell into some sort of vacuum.
However, Eli tilted his head for another reason.
'But I can use my ability with no issues?'
Eli already looked through it twice within the period he was thrown inside.
Right then, a soft groaning sound was heard from someone who was about to wake up.