After lunch was over, Joren and Gramps returned to the barn.
"Ahh, I'm stuffed. That was some good food." Gramps burped as they entered the barn
"They serve the same food, everyday Gramps. And it's not even good."
"Haha, when you get to become my age, you will learn to appreciate every meal, regardless of its taste." They closed the barn door and went back to work.
"So gramps, you were talking about how these collars stop us from using mana."
"Hmm? Ahh yes. These collars we have on are called slave collars. It forces the person to obediently serve the person whose mana signature is registered on the collar, that person is usually the master. In this case, our masters are Baron Charles and Baroness Carla."
"Can't you just run away? I mean, how does a collar stop you if they don't know where you went?"
"Haha, only if it was that simple. The slave collar has many functions. Forceful submission, mana negation, and the scariest of them all, betrayal torture."
"T-Torture?" Joren gulped as he felt a chill run down his spine.
"Yes. This function takes any form of betrayal whether it's running away, attacking the master, or disobeying orders. If you "betray" the master, then the collar will inflict unimaginable pain. It can even kill the slave. There is a limited range where the collar can work and if a slave leaves that range, the torture function will activate and if it is not turned off, the slave will die." Gramps looked at Joren with a grim face. He had a serious demeanor compared to his usually playful one.
"H-How does the collar come off?" Joren asked
"Either the master dies or it's unlocked via the key. Since a slave can't harm their master, the only way to get the collar off is by using the key. But that's the hard part. There are usually two keys kept in noble houses. One for the Master and another for the overseer of the slaves. The current overseer is Sir Bob. He's a second-circle Aura Knight, so approaching him means death."
"I-I see. Okay." Joren looked defeated. These collars kept him from using mana. Even if he trained his body, it wouldn't matter because mana exists. Was he meant to be a slave? Live his life doing someone else's bidding? FUCK NO! He didn't want to get played anymore. He didn't want to live for someone who wasn't himself. He WILL free himself, no matter how long it takes.
Joren clenched his fists tightly which caught the attention of Gramps. He softly smiled and walked over to Joren.
"Listen, Kid. I know this is tough, and I know what it feels like to be in your situation. You're young and you have your whole life ahead of you. I can't bear to watch you rot away as a slave for the rest of your life. Tell you what, I'll help you escape this place okay?"
"Really? H-How? You said it would only lead to our deaths?" A bit of hope was all Joren needed right now, and Gramp's next words would either make or break him.
"Ha, yeah you're right, we would die if we tried right now. But I can help you get strong. Help you make it out of here alive." Gramps smiled at Joren. His face was full of excitement as if he was waiting for someone like Joren to appear.
"You see before I was a slave, I was a free, wandering spirit."
"Woah!?? You're not human gramps?!"
"What? No! I mean when I was young, I did anything I wanted. I was free-spirited." Gramps explained
"Ohh, you were almost cool." Joren said with disappointment in his voice
"You brat! Anyway. Back then, I was strong enough to do anything I wanted. I robbed people who annoyed me. I killed people who spoke to me the wrong way. And most importantly, I fucked a lot of women. And when I say a lot, I mean A LOT. Married women, Older women, Young women, as long as they were legal, I fucked them. The majority of them got pregnant as well." A proud smile was plastered on his face.
'I don't think this is something you should be telling a five-year-old kid Gramps.' Joren thought to himself.
"I was strong before I became a slave. The Husbands and Fathers of the women I fucked were all angry, rightly so. But I didn't pay them any mind. The weak couldn't do anything to me after all. One day, an older lady tried to seduce me. I was thinking to myself 'Ha, you really think I'll fall for your little tricks?' but I did. I fucked her pussy like there was no tomorrow. Filled her up so much she could have gotten pregnant five times over."
'Yeah, he's totally lost it.' Although Joren was thinking this, he was very much interested in the story.
"After I fucked her, I felt weak and dizzy. Turned out, it was a trap. The perfume she put on was a mana-dispersing poison. When I was defenseless, all the Fathers and Husbands jumped me, beat me to a pump, destroyed my mana core, and sold me into slavery. Those fuckers, it still pisses me off, and it's been thirty years." Anger was filled in his voice. Veins looked like they would pop right out of his head.
"My point is, I can help you get strong. Help you figure out a way to escape this life. Living the life as a slave is not a good one."
"I don't want to be a slave. I wanna go back home to my family. A-And I want to be strong so nothing can happen to us ever again. I want to be strong like you gramps." Joren looked at Gramps with inspiration. Could he become strong like him? Of course, he can. He will!
"Haha!! Well, to become strong like me, you have to train for many, many years. I'll help you escape, but first, let me ask you something." Gramps looked down at Joren with a serious expression. His eyes were so focused, it was as if he was trying to peek into his soul.
"W-What is it?" Joren asked
"Do you know what the most important thing in life is?"
The most important thing? Well if it was his previous life, he would have said money. But since this life is ruled by the strong, then strength is obviously the answer.
"Strength is the most important thing in life. Without it, you can't do anything you want." Joren said confidently
"Wrong!! Try again!"
'Huh? How was strength, not the answer? Maybe It is money.' Joren thought
"Ahh, well then it has to be money right? I mean without it, there are many things you can't do."
"WRONG AGAIN!!!" Gramps shouted
'What the fuck! How were they not the most important things in life? I would say influence but money and strength can give someone influence. What the hell is th-' Suddenly something popped into his head
'No! No fucking way. I swear if this is the answer, I'm going to hit myself in the head again.'
"T-The most important t-thing in life is women."
"YES! YESS!! HAHA YESSS!!! You get it!" Gramps was jumping around as if he found some lost ancient treasure
'This perverted old geezer! Women? This guy only thinks with his dick. How can Women beat money, strength, and influence? Don't get me wrong, women are very important, but in a world like this, strength would be most important.'
"Listen, kid, I know you may think I'm crazy, but hear me out. So what if you're the strongest or the richest, if you don't have a woman by your side, then it's pointless. You'd become a madman. Women are there for men to keep us grounded. Focused. They quench our desires. Tell me, if you're strong, wouldn't you want to impress women? If you're rich, wouldn't you want to show off to women? Wouldn't you want to make guys jealous because of the women you have by your side?" Gramps breathing was heavy at this point. His eyes were filled with passion as if he were a preacher delivering the best sermon of his life.
'Holy shit he's right. Women are the most important. How could I have been so blind? Didn't I want Alice? Of course, I did. But I didn't have the status to court her. You don't get strong to be the strongest, you don't become rich to be the richest, you do it so you can get women!'
"Gramps, you have enlightened me! I was a fool and you have shown me the way. My young mind couldn't even comprehend the amount of wisdom you imparted to me. Please forgive me." Joren got down on his knees and started praising Gramps.
"It's okay young one. It is the duty of elders to impart our knowledge and wisdom to the next generation. So let me ask you young one. What will you do when you are free?"
"I will find women!" Joren immediately shouted
"What will you do when you become strong?"
"I will fuck my women!"
"What will you do after you fuck your women?"
"I will get them pregnant!"
"YESSS!! You are fit to be my disciple. Starting tomorrow, we will begin our training. Be ready, your future awaits." Gramps and Joren then left the barn and headed to the slave quarters to get a good night's sleep.