I wanted to ask Alya about him, but she had already vanished.
She was getting better and better at controlling bursts and then ending them before they could be fatal. I imagine she launched herself straight at seventy percent of the speed of sound, then slowed to like ten at the next turn in the dark hallway. Her skin was tougher than mine because I would surely be damaged even at that.
All the glass of the lanterns had shattered from where she passed. It looked kinda fun, moving this fast. Maybe one day I could, naturally, even, without having to be buffed, and not in unimaginable pain.
"Grrr." The dog man growled just like a dog; on all fours, backing off with a raised, curled spine. He didn't have any cuffs on him. Less work to do.
"Who might you be?! Woof." I was surprised; he spoke the same language as ours. Though with a weak woof at the end. His face was very pale, too. Guess he hasn't been fed properly. No shocker.
"I don't have time to explain, but you're free to go now. I would appreciate it if you could return the favour by releasing others, and grouping with other released, but if you can't—Just do whatever you want." I said with a casual smile, adjusting my footing and locating the next prisoner.
"Ohh!" His face immediately lit up, his long furry tail wagging.
"Wait!!" The tail went limp, noticing my departure. But then, in a loud howl, he said. "I promise, I will pay you back one day! My name's Kobi…" The loud howls were still audible even as I turned two corners.
I feel like I am doing something really heroic. Look at you, little Mark, freeing slaves and all your first day transmigrated. I smiled.
…
Fifteen minutes had passed since releasing Kobi, and I was able to release more than twenty-five people.
Most didn't leave much of an impression. Just some really miserable and sad folks… I feel grateful I was transmigrated into a strong body with such a system, and inherited Alya.
Like, those poor women who had been sex slaves for more than a decade, just switching brothels, or masters, pumped with weird drugs to the limit. The sorta drugs that unnaturally made them look younger and more curvy. Even with their beauty, I could sense their broken mental state with just one look in their hollow eyes.
Even with my kind of dubious morals, I still grouped them up and sent them to the direction of another man I released. Kael. Who turned out to be a former C class hero.
Heroes exist!
I didn't get a chance to have a long conversation with him, but from what we chat, heroes aren't like the usual high fantasy heroes I thought they would be; chosen by divine blessings, or holy swords who fought demon lords with parties, but more like a title for a member of an organization, let's say kind of like police, or Army.
Hero's association, a very big and rich organisation, way bigger than just armies or police back home. They had thousands and thousands of branches and private guilds all over the world, with heroes ranking from F class to SS class.
That's all I could learn, but heroes seem to be good guys with a very high moral standard.
At least from the impression Kael gave me, he truly believed and took pride in those heroic ideals. I could only shrug.
Dying for the sake of saving others, and living with that sole purpose, didn't seem like all that to life. But I could still respect that mindset. If it were the student version of me here, he would be hoping for guys like Kael to show up. That was something. Being the hope of others and all.
The rest were just small-time crooks or war criminals. Mari Swan's specialty was getting their hands on criminals. They had a bit of a niche in the slave business, it seems. Criminals like them were usually strong, or special, kind of rich people liked them.
I do hope Kael gathers them up and becomes their leader for the most effect, so they release anyone we missed.
I told him to gather everyone up, and he seemed skilled enough to figure things out, so… Though I couldn't gauge his strength properly. Eh, C class should be strong.
With a twitch in my dry eyes, I checked the position of the last cell in my area with the [Eye of Sanguine]. In the same second, I turned towards Alya's direction, and she was already at the meeting spot, at a crossway-like place in the middle of narrow hallways.
From there, we could sprint towards Vanitas's meeting spot. There are still ten minutes left for this godly speed, so it should be enough to get to Vanitas.
All of a sudden, I noticed something else in my line of sight. My breath hastened. What the hell…? That… looks like a brawl. More than fifty people fighting, or more like grappling twenty twenty-something guards. My lips twitched at five people grabbing a single guard, and bashing his head with fists, stomping it, then bashing it with fists.
The prisoners I released, and some of the ones Alya released, must have met up. But that brawl wasn't an issue. The problem was that it was just happening in the parallel hallway to where Alya stood. She must've noticed it too.
I gotta hurry! Guards were there, and we will have to fight them if they find Alya. It will just waste too much time.
With a quick deep inhale, my jaw tightened as I locked my eyes towards the black bricked hallway that I was so used to. And the next second, I was at the spot. I couldn't even register my moment, just the intention I had to do so. But, before I could crash, however, I raised my leg and made a kicking gesture at the same speed I was moving, with [Whisker paws] activated.
It killed the speed instantly, just the sharp jolts remaining, making my bones shiver to the deepest levels.
Using that momentum, I turned and bounced with the same speed again, like a rubber ball, making the same kicking gesture with my other leg with [Whisker paws].
Like that, I reached in front of the cell's heavy metal door in less than thirty seconds.