Volume 2

Chapter 26: The Snake That Hates Sheep

As the Imperial Capital, Tianxin City’s vastness was beyond ordinary comprehension.

Even the lower city, where commoners lived, was far more prosperous than the noble districts of most imperial territories.

In a secretive area between the upper and lower city lay the Empire’s largest black market.

From gold, silver, jewelry, and artwork to alchemical tools, rare materials, and spell scrolls, the black market had it all.

“This is just—”

Wearing a mask, Hitana gaped at the bustling, vibrant market, “How are there so many people!”

“The Imperial Capital’s transient population is staggering,” Anselm said, gazing at the end of the lively street with a nostalgic tone, “This place hasn’t changed much from three years ago.”

“Eh, you’ve been here before, Anselm?”

“As Laurence said, this is one of the Imperial Capital’s most alluring spots,” Anselm smiled, “How could I not have?”

Laurence, perched on Marina’s shoulder, patted its chest, “I guarantee it’s totally different from three years ago! Young Master, where to? Wanna browse the regular market here first or head straight to the transcendent market deeper in?”

“Let’s check this area first… Hitana wants clothes, right?”

Anselm glanced at Hitana, who was looking around curiously, her excitement clear even through the mask, and said meaningfully, “There are plenty of nice clothes here.”

“…Hm? I don’t care much since you can make me stuff,” Hitana said.

Marina, growing more perceptive, caught the hint in Anselm’s eyes about what those “nice clothes” might be. Her cheeks flushed slightly, but instead of saying anything, she felt a small spark of anticipation.

The trio and rat entered the widest main street, lined with shops and stalls brimming with all sorts of items.

Hitana led the way, darting from one spot to another, brimming with excitement.

“An… Master.”

Hitana, almost calling Anselm by name, shyly corrected herself, “Come look at this.”

Anselm glanced at the plain black leather choker around her neck, met her slightly embarrassed gaze, and walked to her side, suppressing a smile.

“Look at this,” she pointed at a sapphire-blue crystal on a vendor’s table, her eyes gleaming, “It’s a northern specialty! Mom told me stories about it… what’s it called, tears something?”

“Deep Blue Tears, you’ve got a sharp eye, miss,” the vendor chuckled, “A rare gem mined from the underground glaciers of Deep Blue Territory. Only twenty-some are produced yearly, all monopolized by the Grand Duke of Gray Tower. It symbolizes eternal loyalty, steadfast love, and…”

The vendor’s lavish pitch had Hitana enthralled.

She glanced at Anselm’s eyes, then at the gem, and asked the vendor, “How much for one?”

“This was swiped from a marquis’s house by a friend, rushed here to fence it,” the vendor rubbed his hands, “It’s risky, so a bargain at 100,000 gold coins. I’ll take imperial banknotes.”

Hitana blinked, stunned, “How much?”

“100,000 imperial gold coins,” the man replied without hesitation, “At an auction, it’d go for three or four times that. If it weren’t hot, I wouldn’t sell it here.”

The enamored girl was deterred by the steep price.

Though she’d been with Anselm for a while, she had little concept of money, rarely asking him for any.

Even when he offered, Marina usually handled it.

Miss Wolf didn’t want to ask Anselm for money or have him buy it for her, so she turned a pitiful gaze to her sister.

“…” Marina sighed silently, then smiled faintly as she ruffled her sister’s hair and stepped up to the stall.

“Ten thousand gold coins?” she asked calmly, her voice gentle.

“…Y-Yeah.”

The vendor, who moments ago had been confident and eloquent, faltered under Marina’s gaze, his tone noticeably weaker, “If you don’t want it, fine. Someone else will.”

“I’m someone who knows quality.”

Marina drew a black pouch embroidered with a bird, elegantly pulling out two imperial gold coins worth a hundred each.

As if tossing alms to a beggar, she let them fall onto the table.

“Good craftsmanship. Worth this price.”

The snow-haired girl in the bird-beak mask spoke softly, but her slightly raised chin carried an undeniable air of authority, “Take it or leave it?”

The vendor froze for several seconds, then gave an awkward smile, pocketing the coins and shoving the so-called “Deep Blue Tears” into the stunned Hitana’s hands, bowing repeatedly, “Thank you for your generosity, miss. Have a pleasant day!”

Anselm couldn’t help but chuckle, patting Hitana’s shoulder, “Let’s go, Hit. Or do you want to buy something else?”

Hitana snapped out of her daze, clutching the “gem” tightly, and shouted in disbelief:

“It’s fake!?”

Her outburst drew the attention of passersby and vendors, their cryptic glances only fueling her anger.

As she moved to confront the vendor, Marina grabbed her wrist.

“Don’t make a scene, Hit,” Marina shook her head, “Let’s go. Follow the Young Master.”

Seething, Hitana wanted to crush the gem but feared breaking the stone that cost two hundred gold coins.

Her frustration surged and she shot the vendor a fierce glare before Marina dragged her along to follow Anselm.

“Lina!”

After walking a distance, Hitana couldn’t hold back, “Why’d you stop me? He sold me a fake… and dared to ask for ten thousand! I should’ve broken his legs!”

“Miss Hit, if the black market followed regular market rules, it wouldn’t be the black market,” Laurence said, crossing its paws, “What you sell, what deals you snag—it’s all about the seller’s and buyer’s skill. If you can’t spot the scam… you get fleeced.”

“That’s no way to do business!” Hitana fumed, “How does a market like this even survive?”

The thought of nearly spending ten thousand gold coins on a two-hundred-coin fake made her want to string the vendor up on the city walls.

“The black market’s foundation is built on shady goods and shady dealers.”

Anselm’s gaze swept over the items in shops and stalls as he explained to Marina, “Savage tribes settle everything with strength. Civilized societies use rules to govern. But strength or rules—they’re both forms of order.”

He looked at Marina, smiling gently, “So, Lina, what is the order?”

“It’s a set of guidelines suited to the environment, accepted by most,” Marina replied softly, “Many goods here have murky origins, and the dealers are often crooked. Only chaotic rules fit a chaotic place. The order of the light doesn’t apply here.”

Taking over from Anselm, she lectured Hitana, “Hit, you should know by now—your village ways won’t help you survive in a big city, right?”

“…Fine.”

Hitana grumbled, “I think I get it, but I still can’t swallow this.”

“Then go back and beat him up,” Anselm said suddenly.

“…Huh?”

“We came out to relax, to unwind.”

The young Hydra smiled, “We follow rules to better enjoy ourselves. If keeping rules ruins your mood, isn’t that missing the point?”

He gently pinched Hitana’s cheek, “You’ve never had to follow rules, Hit.”

The intimate nickname made Hitana’s heart skip a beat.

Though it was just a precaution to avoid revealing their identities, it filled her with sweet joy.

“That’s what you say…”

Her frustration and anger vanished, and she sidled up to Anselm, giggling, “But I’m not that unreasonable… Ah, I’m not saying you’re unreasonable, Master. I just mean it’s not worth it. I was dumb for not spotting the fake, so I’ll let him off.”

As she spoke, she looked at Marina with admiration, “Lina’s the amazing one, spotting the fake right away… It hasn’t been that long, but it’s like Lina’s turned into a whole new person with how smart she is.”

“Just like you train every day, I study every day,” Marina smiled, “Haven’t you gotten so strong I can’t even imagine it, Hit?”

“Well, I don’t really train every day…” Hitana grinned sheepishly.

The snow-haired girl with locks cascading to her waist watched her giggling sister, no longer feeling dark emotions.

She gave a wry smile, keeping her sigh to herself.

Even in her position, trusted and employed by Anselm despite being ordinary, Marina left herself almost no time to rest.

Politics, economics, transcendent knowledge, even etiquette and rules studied to ensure Anselm’s dignity remained intact, along with a heap of flashy but “valuable” noble trivia…

“For nobles, gems are a must-discuss topic,” the girl said lightly, laughing, “So I learned some gem appraisal. Real Deep Blue Tears aren’t like that. Under sunlight, they’re crystal-clear, like a miniature glacier inside. And they don’t symbolize loyalty or love… they don’t mean anything at all.”

“So that guy was just scamming me because I looked gullible,” Hitana gritted her teeth, “So annoying! I almost fell for it. Good thing I’m broke!”

“Why did you want it, Hit?” Marina asked curiously, “You’re not into gems.”

“Because… because…”

Hitana fidgeted briefly, then mumbled, “It reminded me of Master’s eyes. They’re so pretty… No, Master’s eyes are even prettier.”

At that, both Hitana and Marina glanced at Anselm’s eyes.

His sea-blue gaze reflected the masked faces of both girls.

The wolf-masked girl turned away the moment their eyes met, while the bird-beak-masked girl gazed at him softly for a moment before gracefully lowering her eyes with a slight curtsy.

Laurence, perched on Marina’s shoulder, couldn’t help but marvel—Worthy of the Young Master!

A single glance makes both ladies happy… If the boss had half his skill, he wouldn’t be so crushed by Big Sis.

Wait, where’s the Young Master going?

Anselm stopped before a shop with a stylish facade, looked up at its sign, pondered briefly, then pushed the door open.

The puzzled Marina and Hitana followed.

The shop sold ordinary items—antiques, jewelry, and odd trinkets.

A middle-aged man at the counter lounged in a chair, reading a newspaper, ignoring the customers.

Anselm walked to the counter and tapped it lightly, “Boss, got any goods?”

The man spread his newspaper, lowering his head so his glasses slid down his nose, staring at Anselm.

“Looks like a rich kid,” he chuckled suddenly, “Wearing that mask, why come to my little shop instead of checking out the high-end stuff deeper in?”

“Just asking if you’ve got goods.”

“…” The man stared at Anselm for a while, then set down the paper, lit a cigarette, and said leisurely, “What do you want? Candy? Water? Or something heavy?”

The young Hydra smiled, “I want sheep.”

The boss’s hand shook, nearly dropping the cigarette onto his leg.

“Cough, cough, cough…”

He stood abruptly, stepping back warily, “Who’re you with? Hyena? Vulture? Or Rat King?”

“Hm?” Anselm’s tone rose, “What’s that mean? No sheep in your shop?”

“…You really don’t know, or are you playing dumb?”

The shopkeeper’s hand moved behind his back, his gaze turning cold, “This is Lan Zhi’s turf. Think carefully, friend.”

“I’m really just here for sheep.”

Anselm spread his hands innocently, “I was out sailing to the other side of the Tianlu Mountain Range three years ago, just got back yesterday. What happened? Who’s Lan Zhi? Wasn’t this Fire Snake’s shop?”

At the mention of Fire Snake, the shopkeeper relaxed slightly, “…Fire Snake’s been dead for three years. Lan Zhi took over his turf… You really came back from the Tianlu Mountain Range? That’s rare.”

As he spoke, the young man flipped his palm, revealing a vial of viscous black liquid.

Under the shopkeeper’s shocked gaze, Anselm shook it with a smile, “You seem like you know your stuff. Recognize this?”

“Water of Redemption…!”

The man’s throat bobbed, staring at Anselm in disbelief, “The real deal?”

“Who knows,” Anselm shrugged, “Got it from a dying priest.The Tianlu Mountain Range got boring, so I came back.This is the priciest thing I’ve got. I planned to contact Fire Snake through Victor to offload it… but the shop’s changed hands, so I thought I’d buy a couple of sheep first. Speaking of, how’s Victor doing?”

“Dead with Fire Snake, chopped into meat paste,” the shopkeeper clicked his tongue, “Pretty brutal, friend, ahem…”

The man’s attitude toward Anselm suddenly warmed, and he leaned closer to the counter, licking his lips, “I’ll tell you, our boss Lan Zhi’s way more reliable than Fire Snake. Sell her the Water of Redemption, she’ll only take a twenty percent cut!”

“Forget it. Anyone trustworthy around here?” Anselm laughed dryly, “You think it’s my first time? I trusted Fire Snake because we’d done business before… As for your boss, no thanks. I’m just here for sheep. You believe me now?”

Seeing Anselm’s firm stance, the shopkeeper sighed, rubbing his temples, “Friend, it’s not that I don’t want to sell… Three years ago, around when you left, this place got cleaned out. Sheep sellers either quit or got wiped out. Fire Snake and Victor went down then.”

“Now, forget the Imperial Capital—the whole Empire’s got no sheep markets.”

“No way,” the buyer from the Tianlu Mountain Range said, surprised, “The sheep market’s huge. How could it just vanish?”

“Tch, who else but those two?”

“Her Majesty? Doesn’t seem like she’d care about this.”

“Of course not Her Majesty. The Hydras… specifically, the younger one.”

The man shook his head, both awed and fearful, “He slaughtered every shop in Black Street openly selling sheep. The stench of blood reached the upper city… Damn, back then I was just a lowlife under Fire Snake’s underling’s underling, scraping by. That scene kept me up at night.”

“That’s… interesting.”

The noble youth clicked his tongue, “Did anyone provoke him?”

“Who knows? And does it matter if they did?” the shopkeeper sighed, “The Hydra’s son wants to kill, who’s gonna stop him? Seems he hated how sheep were sold. Then Her Majesty banned it. Now nobody dares to deal openly.”

“Not openly? Black Street’s already shady. What’s there to fear?”

“Easy for you to say, sheep buyer. You’re not scared, but I am.”

The shopkeeper gave him a look like he was crazy, “I’m not betting on whether he’ll get bored one day, stroll through Black Street, and kill off the sneaky sheep sellers.”

“Scaredy-cats don’t do business in Black Street… Fine, do you know any shops still selling sheep?”

“That…” the man hesitated, “Can’t say. With both Hydras in the capital, even if someone’s selling, they wouldn’t dare show their face now.”

“Alright, I’ll look at myself.”

Anselm nodded, turning to leave without further ado.

“…Wait!”

The shopkeeper called out, eyeing Anselm’s now-empty hand and gritting his teeth, “Here’s the deal: you let my boss handle the Water of Redemption, and I’ll point you to a place likely still selling sheep. You need a referral and proof to get in—miss either, you’re out. I can help, and they’ve got top-notch goods, no worse than those two with you.”

The young noble’s lips curved slightly, but when he turned back, his tone was nonchalant, “Hand something that valuable to someone I don’t even know for a couple of sheep? Friend, do I look that stupid?”

“If you don’t trust her, go ask around about Lan Zhi’s rep,” the shopkeeper said, unable to resist the lure of the Water of Redemption.

“And I’ll tell you, I don’t sell sheep not just because I’m scared, but because Lan Zhi herself came from sheep. If she found out I pointed you to a sheep shop, I’d be dead! That’s my sincerity… Just mention to her that I referred you for the Water of Redemption deal!”

“Hm…”

Anselm rubbed his chin, “If your boss is as reliable as you say, maybe it’s not impossible. I’ll check out Lan Zhi’s reputation and come back if it holds up.”

“Yes, yes, yes, don’t forget me, friend! I’ll hook you up with the best sheep shop!”

Amid the shopkeeper’s ecstatic words, Anselm waved and left with Hitana and Marina.

Unable to hold back any longer, Hitana, who hadn’t understood a word of Anselm’s exchange with the shopkeeper, blurted out the moment they stepped outside, “Master, what are sheep?”

“…People,” Marina answered quietly, her expression complex, “Slaves, lower than commoners or outcasts.”

The slave trade in the Empire was… chaotic.

Over its thousand-year history, the trade had been revived and banned over ten times.

Sometimes, an Empress banned it to seem benevolent and wise; other times, an Empress ignored or forgot the laws, letting the trade flourish unchecked.

“Slaves?” Hitana froze, then said in disgust, “So this black market sells slaves? That’s gross!”

“So…” she whispered excitedly in Anselm’s ear, “You wiped out all the slave shops in the black market before?”

She hugged Anselm tightly, overjoyed, “I knew you weren’t that bad! If it weren’t for… hmph, that damn thing, you’d definitely be a super good person!”

“A good person…”

Anselm stroked Hitana’s head, sighing softly:

“What I did back then wasn’t out of kindness or morality, Hitana.”

“It was just… displeasure at the absurdity.”

In that world, slavery brought critical shifts in production and progress. In its historical context, it was undeniably a key step in societal advancement.

But here, in this era… slaves existed for a different purpose.

Transcendents, towering above ordinary people, caused those with resources but no extraordinary power to feel profound humiliation and oppression.

Unable to resist or dare to resist, they created a class even lower and more lowly than themselves—a class as far below them as they were below transcendents—to transfer their humiliation and even to fantasize about the thrill transcendents felt when oppressing them.

These “slaves” wouldn’t vanish whether the slave trade existed or not; they’d merely change names. They weren’t primarily for better labor but served as tools for venting—objects to be trampled so those trampling could find solace when facing transcendents.

At thirteen, Anselm, despite recognizing his fate and facing the crushing weight of despair, loathed this absurd, perverse reality that reduced human worth to dust.

Even now, Anselm felt the same.

But today, he no longer spared effort for such “unnecessary” matters. Change might come someday, but it wasn’t his concern now.

At thirteen, he had nearly given up caring about these things too, but back then, he still had friends.

However…

“Since we’re here to relax.”

The Hydra, who once glimpsed that world’s splendor, gazed through his mask at the unchanging Empire of a thousand years, smiling as he bared his fangs.

“I should do something… that brings me joy.”

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