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Suddenly, Raphtalia recalled many things.
In the past, her parents often told her the legend of the Shield Hero.
"The Shield Hero is the patron saint of our demihumans; he will protect us and lead us out of the darkness."
Now, the Shield Hero was finally here, and just as the legend said, it was all about protecting oneself.
At some point, Raphtalia found her eyes filled with tears.
"Cry, cry to your heart's content. Vent all your fears, hardships, and pains so that... you can welcome a new life with a bright smile in the future."
Jason hugged the small Raphtalia into his arms.
Feeling Jason's firm chest, Raphtalia felt like a child who had been wandering for many years, suffering endlessly, finally returning home one day.
Unable to hold back any longer, Raphtalia burst into tears. She was just a child, but her life had been harder than anyone could imagine.
At this moment, as Jason had said, she let go of all her negative emotions.
Jason didn't say anything else; he simply held her, motionless, with a gentle smile on his face.
Time seemed to stretch indefinitely. Perhaps it was the exhaustion from crying, but Raphtalia quietly fell asleep in Jason's arms.
"Ding! The selection condition is completed, and the reward storage shield is rewarded!"
The system's voice echoed at that moment. Jason noticed he had gained a new skill, a storage shield with a capacity of 10 cubic meters that could store any non-biological items and could be upgraded as well.
"It's such a heartwarming scene," the slave trader remarked. "Sir Shield Hero, your speech just now really gave me goosebumps; it truly touched me. But I don't understand something: obviously, being a slave is more convenient, so why would you want to remove the slave mark?"
Although he had no tears, the slave trader pretended to take out a handkerchief and dabbed at the corners of his eyes.
"I don't need to explain myself to you, do I?"
Looking at Raphtalia, Jason's eyes were gentle, but to the slave trader, they were cold.
"Of course... I was just asking casually."
The slave trader smiled awkwardly.
"By the way, you should have medicine to treat her condition, right? Bring me some!"
Jason said while still cradling Raphtalia.
"This... Master Shield Hero, you really think highly of me. I'm just a first-order slave trader, not a pharmacist..."
Before the slave trader could finish his sentence, Jason's cold voice cut in again: "Do you think you can deceive me? For you, the slaves here are your property. In an emergency, you'd never allow your property to suffer a loss, meaning you wouldn't let any slave die easily."
"I really can't hide anything from Lord Shield Hero. To prevent this raccoon subhuman from dying before being sold, as well as several other slaves with similar ailments, I did procure some potions. They treat only the symptoms, though; after all, heart disease requires proper heart medicine. Besides..."
"Besides, the medicine isn't cheap, so it would be a waste of money to use it on her, right?"
"That's correct. If Master Shield Hero needs it, I can resell it to you."
The slave trader rubbed his hands together, revealing the signature merchant's demeanor.
"Hey... I haven't settled things with you for wanting to turn me into a slave before."
Jason placed Raphtalia on the sofa beside him, then turned and openly expressed his killing intent.
"Didn't you say you already forgave me?"
The slave trader was not easily intimidated and brushed aside Jason's menacing aura.
"I never claimed to forgive you."
With that, the murderous aura emanating from Jason intensified.
"Okay, okay. After all, you'll become my regular customer, so it's only natural to give you a bit of a discount this time. But I must remind you, that potion cannot completely treat panic attacks, and... there's only enough for three doses."
The slave trader shrugged, finally reaching a compromise, and quickly instructed his subordinates to bring the medicine to Jason.
"Thank you very much."
Jason took the medicine. Although he wasn't sure if the slave trader indeed had it, he believed in himself; as long as he had these medicines as reference, he could prepare them himself.
"By the way... do you have any monster egg lucky draws?"
Jason remembered that in the original story, Iwatani Naofumi had bought a monster egg from a slave trader and hatched Filo. Since he was already here, he figured he might as well purchase one and see if it could hatch.
"There is indeed a lucky draw for monster eggs, but it seems they're currently sold out, and it will take a few days for the next batch to arrive."
The slave trader thought for a moment before replying.
"Understood. I'll come back next time."
Jason picked up Raphtalia and walked out without lingering.
After all, if the egg hatched early and it wasn't Filo, it would be a significant loss.
.....
"It's so warm... Where am I? The surrounding sounds seem so noisy, wait... Master Shield Hero!"
Raphtalia opened her eyes suddenly, seeing Jason's face almost close at hand. She breathed a sigh of relief, then shivered.
For she realized she was being cradled by Jason, and a whirlwind of thoughts flooded her mind.
So many jumbled thoughts caused her mind to briefly shut down, and she didn't know how to react; all she knew was that her cheeks turned red.
"Are you awake? Did I disturb you?"
As Jason walked down the street, he ignored the strange gazes of the people around him and noticed that Raphtalia had woken up. He asked softly, "Um..."
Raphtalia nodded slightly, almost like a mosquito, then suddenly remembered something. "Master Shield... Shield Hero, can you let me down? I can walk by myself."
"All right!" Jason carefully set Raphtalia down.
Perhaps it was because she had been locked in a cage for too long. As soon as Raphtalia's feet touched the ground, she stumbled. If it weren't for Jason's quick support, she would have nearly fallen.
"No problem," he assured her.
"I can do it," she insisted.
After a moment of adjustment, Raphtalia managed to stand firm, although she still walked unsteadily, as if she might tip over at any moment.
"Be careful and hold my hand."
Without waiting for Raphtalia's consent, Jason took her little hand in his. "Remember... don't call me Lord Shield Hero in the future. Call me Brother Jason. After all, I'm not that old."
As Raphtalia felt the warmth of Jason's larger hand, she experienced a sense of security she had never felt before.
Yet, after everything she had been through, unease crept into her heart. Timidly, she asked, "Dun... Brother Jason, where are we going now?"
"Of course, we're going to eat. You must be hungry. Let's have a big meal, shall we?"
"Why did you invite me to dinner?" she inquired.
"Because I'm your brother now."
"Oh..."
"Haha... Raphtalia is really cute!"
"Raphtalia? Brother Jason, I don't think I've told you my name yet, have I?"
"Actually... you were talking in your sleep just now and mentioned that your name is Raphtalia."
"Really?"
"It's true; I'm not the type to lie."
"Then did I say anything else?"
"Hmm... it seems you mentioned something about marrying me when you grow up."
"Nonsense! I... I never said that!"
Under Jason's gentle influence, Raphtalia gradually began to brighten up.
Behind them, two happy-looking figures strolled along the street, hands held tightly together.
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