"You still didn't really explain much about how she became a slave," I said, even though the girls were getting more interested behind me.
"There isn't much to tell." Figuro shrugged. "She was born into it, actually. Her mother was a slave, so she was born a slave too. The noble in question was an avid collector and bought her more as a trophy than as a maid. He did so around 50 years ago when the last elves were dying from old age. When his son took over the estate after the passing of his old man, he ran it into the ground by gambling. Eventually, he sold off his dad's collections to pay for it. One such sale includes this woman right here.
"Don't let that convince you she's not capable. While under his employ, she made sure to learn her duties properly. Using her free time, she practiced daily, and over the course of the last 50 years, she has the full-fledged job Head Maid. It's a job with access to magical cleanup spells, cooking, and also cleaning. She is very adept at all of it."
"So, she's over 50 then?" I asked.
"Elves live much longer than human lives. If you were to put a human age to her, she wouldn't be much over 18. In fact, if you were to acquire her, she'd live long past your own life. She'd be your children's maid, and possibly their maid as well."
"Even if that is so…" I sighed. "I'd be bad to be bound too, as she wouldn't be able to break that bond easily.
I couldn't believe I was actually falling for this. To date, I had only accumulated a little over 2000 gold after finishing the last dungeon. If I bought her, I'd be losing most of it. I say most because I should still be able to use the Haggle ability and get a small discount.
"Actually, that's the other reason I thought you might be perfect." Figuro shrugged. "She had another condition on her. He slavery mark cannot be undone. She cannot be freed.
"Huh? Why would that be?" I didn't like that condition at all.
"The condition is self-imposed-" Figuro held up his hands as I gave him a hostile look.
I looked back at the women herself, frowning slightly. She took a step forward and curtseyed.
"If I may?" She asked submissively.
Figuro nodded. "Go ahead. It's best if it comes from you."
"I am the last of my kind… an extreme rarity. That means, there are many that would want to acquire me. As a slave in this country, I am protected by this country's laws. If I was not a slave, however… I wouldn't be…"
She left the explanation at that, but I was able to finish it in my mind. This was ultimately all about protecting herself. Owned by someone rich, no one could technically take her away. She'd be safe. Even if she did get taken, they could always find her by her bond. However, if she was free, she could be exploited by all manner of person. She could be stolen, imprisoned, raped, or worse. Slavery seemed like a flimsy shield to me, but it was still a shield when you literally had nothing else.