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When Renji returned to Roland, the several cages of demi-human slaves he saw the day before were all empty, except for one that still housed a single occupant. Clearly, this was the goods Roland had prepared for him.
"Mr. Renji, see, I didn't lie to you. She's a purebred, top-notch Catgirl," Roland enthusiastically led Renji to the cage.
Roland was about to further elaborate on Ashe's specific breed, lineage, and domestic skills when Renji, seemingly impatient, raised his hand to interrupt.
Renji then circled the cage, scrutinizing the merchandise. Inside the cage, the cat-girl, like most demi-human slaves, was curled up in a corner, her face buried in her knees, trembling.
Seeing that Renji hadn't spoken for a while, Roland, afraid of Renji changing his mind, hurriedly tapped the cage a few times as a signal to Ashe. The cat-girl inside was forced to lift her face. Though tear-streaked and dirty, it wasn't hard to see she was quite beautiful – typical of female Cat-race, who generally possess features that align well with human aesthetic standards.
Renji paused for a moment when he saw Ashe's face. Not because he was mesmerized, but because he felt a sense of familiarity.
"Mr. Renji? Mr. Renji?" From Roland's perspective, Renji seemed spellbound by Ashe's appearance, so he hurriedly called out a few times, hoping to strike while the iron was hot.Th1s chapter is updated by n)ovel/\bin/\
"That's fine, I'll take her. How much?"
"Two hundred thousand Ashen coins. As you know, Mr. Renji, a Cat demi-human is very sought after in the market."
The rest of the process went smoothly. For instance, Roland explained to Renji that he couldn't immediately establish a slave contract between Renji and Ashe, as Ashe had recently changed owners and needed to wait a week before a new contract could be established. This was common in slave trading. Roland gave Renji a contract pendant, which could temporarily control Ashe until the new contract was in place after a week.
These measures were actually to cover up the fact that their slave contracts were fake. Both Roland and Ashe were extremely cautious and nervous in every step with Renji, but they were overthinking it. Even when Roland prepared to let Renji test the slave contract as a part of the inspection, Renji simply waved it off and skipped it.
The entire process probably took less than ten minutes, with the only unexpected incident being...
"Mr. Roland, are you... still a follower of the Church?" Renji pointed out a cross pendant accidentally exposed at Roland's neckline.
"No, no, I'm just curious. I've only recently come across it and found it interesting."
Roland quickly adjusted his neckline to hide the cross again. In the Dragon Nation a few days ago, this would have been unremarkable, but now, with the Empress at war with the Holy Kingdom, showing such an item could lead to trouble.
Fortunately for Roland, He was relieved that Renji didn't pursue the topic further. After this brief interlude, the slave handover was completed.
Standing at the entrance of his shop, Roland watched Ashe, who was taken away by Renji, growing more and more distant. His eyes reflected nothing but worry.
The other hidden demi-humans emerged, and Nozomi, the Fox Lady and the 'big sister' of the group, spoke up.
"Now isn't the time for sentimentality; we need to prepare for our operation and strive to bring Ashe back as soon as possible"
Roland: "Right, we must trust Ashe!"