"So, Red Luciar Telamon, you have come. We should begin our talk, shouldn't we?"
Red was unable to answer. This time, he wasn't ignoring. He simply didn't know how to respond to Nomin, so he kept his head lowered, showing submission to the man before him.
"Our conversation will be long and exhausting, at least for you, so you should sit," Nomin continued. His words were simple, yet filled with authority.
Red, an ordinary servant of the family, did not think much and sat down right outside the entrance, directly on the dirt.
The Clan Lord didn't stop him. He only nodded slightly, a faint smile appearing, as if pleased by Red's awareness of his own status.
"I have heard about you. Quite a lot, actually. A few days ago, my daughter made a request. Do you know what it was?"
Red shook his head, unaware of the request.
The man lifted his teacup and took a sip. "She asked me to give you an opportunity to be Awakened."
His words were heard by all. Even the six guards standing a short distance away couldn't hide their shock at the revelation.
It was as if the young lady had asked for something far too great to be granted to a mere servant.
Red, though he had already suspected it, still felt a slight shock.
To be Awakened in this world meant stepping beyond the mortal limits imposed by the laws of reality itself.
Everyone was born mortal. But at the age of sixteen, when their Spirit matured, they could attempt to Awaken it.
There were many methods, and the town of Megera held the Awakening Ceremony once every year, gathering all sixteen-year-olds to attempt it.
"Even though you are an outsider, and even though I must pay the cost, I can arrange for you to participate in the Awakening Ceremony," Nomin continued.
The town of Megara had once been founded by twenty-four great clans. Over time, only five remained in power, while the others faded into ordinary status.
Only the children of those clans were considered true citizens. Everyone else was deemed an outsider.
And only citizens were allowed to participate in the Awakening Ceremony.
For a Clan Lord to offer such a chance to an outsider, an ordinary servant, was unimaginable.
Red remained silent.
"But everything has a price, doesn't it?" Nomin asked, a slight smile on his face.
Red nodded.
"To obtain this opportunity, you must willingly accept becoming my daughter's slave and take the Enslavement Spirit, th—"
Before Nomin could finish, Peril interrupted him. "Father! That's not what we discussed."
"No, it wasn't," he replied calmly. "But did you truly expect me to give such an opportunity for free?"
"But… isn't becoming a slave too much?" she asked, her voice lowered.
"Maybe. Maybe not. Price is relative," Nomin said. "The value of water in a desert is different from its value by a river. Do you truly believe an ordinary servant with no backing would ever gain a chance to Awaken?"
"Without fortune, he would fade without a name or achievement. The chance I offer can change his destiny. In exchange, total loyalty and service to the one who granted it is not unreasonable."
His words were not wrong.
Still, he was taking advantage of the situation.
The cost to him was real, but not unbearable. In return, he might gain a loyal and potentially powerful protector for his daughter.
It was a gamble, but one he was willing to take.
'This powerless feeling again,' Red thought.
He knew this was normal. Nomin wasn't forcing him. He was simply offering an opportunity too valuable to refuse.
Even becoming a slave was worth the chance before him.
"I accept," Red said, his voice calm and indifferent.
The man heard his answer, smiled, and rose from his seat, beginning to walk slowly toward the servant.
Peril, standing beside her mother, was about to interrupt, but her mother gently patted her shoulder, shook her head, and began whispering something to her. Words Red was unable to hear.
Nomin raised his hand, and something appeared in his palm.
It was dark purple in color and small in size. A long strip formed its body, divided into two parts. One side was lined with three thorns, while the other had a handle.
A Rank 3 Human Enslavement Spirit.
"Then be prepared," the man said.
He moved it toward Red, and the second part extended toward his daughter, Peril, connecting the two of them.
"Ahh!" Red screamed and collapsed on the ground.
He was feeling as if something sharp was thrusting inside his head forcefully, overwhelming his senses with pain.
But he didn't resist it; nor was he able to, as thorns of the spirit wrapped more and more tightly around his neck.
His fragile mind was easily taken over by the spirit.
And on that day, Red became a slave... once again.
'From slave to servant… to slave once again. Truly ironic,' he thought inwardly, as unbearable pain dispared and relief washed over him.
Red had been hardened by life.
He lived ten years of normal childhood. Then something happened. Something that changed everything. He was enslaved for four years, escaped, lived as a beggar for half a year, and eventually became a servant in the noble Salamis clan.
In truth, Red was extremely afraid of becoming a slave again.
During those four years, he had seen the worst of the worst. To the point that he begged the goddess endlessly for help, yet his suffering never stopped.
But he could not hesitate.
The future was grim. If he remained an ordinary servant, he would eventually die. Either at the hands of other transmigrators or the one lurking behind all the schemes.
And he had begun to trust Peril.
She was a kind person, and he believed she would not harm him intentionally. At least, he hoped so.
So he did not fight back.
He accepted it without hatred in his heart.
"And we are done," Nomin said, extending his hand toward Red.
Red looked confused, unsure of what to do. After a moment, as if understanding what the middle-aged man was implying, he carefully took his hand.
Nomin pulled him up, and with that simple action, Red was led inside the structure, as if he were being welcomed into the family and accepted as one of them, his status rising beyond that of a mere servant.
"Sit. Sit," Nomin said casually. "I still have many things to talk to you about."
Red followed the instruction and sat down on one of the empty chairs, though his posture was stiff and clearly uncomfortable.
"I have heard that you seduced my daughter," Nomin said calmly.
"..."
Red did not answer. He kept his gaze lowered, as if unsure how to respond.
His wife suddenly chimed in. "It makes sense. I remember when he first came here two years ago. Since then, he has only grown more handsome. Even I feel a little jealous. It's not surprising my daughter has fallen for him."
Peril, who had been quiet until now, turned red and shouted, "Mom! It's not that I'm head over heels for him. He's the one who's head over heels for me!"
"Really?" both of her parents asked at the same time, clearly intrigued.
"Is that true?" Tathys asked, turning her gaze toward Red.
Red hesitated. Then, after seeing the hopeful look in Peril's eyes, he slowly nodded.
"So," Nomin said with a straight face, "should I punish you for harboring such feelings for your master?"
"..."
Red stayed silent, unmoving, like a rock that neither thought nor felt anything.
"He's joking. Just joking," Tathys said quickly, kicking Nomin lightly under the table as a warning.
Nomin glanced at her and smiled, putting on an innocent expression.
Time continued to pass. Nomin kept joking around, deliberately trying to embarrass his daughter and coax words out of Red. Whenever he went too far, his wife stopped him.
He also gave him a token that he needs to show for entering Awakening Ceremony, and other instructions that he needs to follow.
Through all of it, Red remained stiff and deeply uncomfortable, as he had just become the slave and the one who enslaved him were joking around with him.
"My Lord! It's time for the Awakening Ceremony," one of the guards announced.
"Then let's go. We shouldn't delay it," Nomin said as he stood up.
Tathys and Peril followed after him. Red rose as well and began to follow them.
'Should I have said no?' Red asked himself, keeping his eyes on the back of his new master.
There was no ambition or goal in his life; it moved forward without meaning.
He didn't seek power, revenge, or glory, and wasn't even sure if he wanted to live anymore.
The sudden flood of memories from his past life had changed nothing.
'Too late for regret, isn't it?' Red thought, quickening his pace to keep up with Peril.