Lead The Way

Wow. What a way to keep a secret, Axis! Well, he is a child after all. Children just can't keep their mouth shut.

"So Harri lent you a unicorn?"

Axis nodded.

That's weird, though. I know Harri's chivalry code includes helping those in need, but he's not supposed to involve himself with the others. I specifically asked him not to.

So why did he do it? Why did he help Axis? It's not like if it was a minor thing, he went as far as lending him a legendary magical beast. While not a direct proof of divinity, this is definitely not something that goes unnoticed.

Yet, Harri still helped him. Which means he must have considered that the situation required it. Which means my mom was involved in the matter. Maybe it is related to my aunt's disappearance?

"Did you meet mother?" I asked.

The boy blinked at me twice, before a smile spread across his face.

"I did!" he exclaimed, clapping his hands together.

I thought so.

"She was really beautiful!" the boy continued, "I didn't know your mother was an elf, big sister. It was my first time seeing one! Although her ears were a bit weird..."

"Did you say anything to her?" I cut him off.

"I don't think so?" Axis pondered. "She did say she would help me, though!"

Ah, I get it. Harri must have prevented her from getting involved in Axis' problems by sending him to me. What a hassle. So if I just send him back, he'll probably just go back to her, huh?

"You know, if your father was kidnapped, why don't you alert the authorities?" I suggested, returning to the main topic. I need to get rid of him.

"I know they weren't of great assistance last time, but isn't it better to maximize your chances of finding him?"

Especially if he's running after a Goddess.

"We can't!" Axis flatly refused my proposition. "We can't have the authorities involved!"

…Mmh? That's a pretty strong reaction.

"Why not?"

The boy clenched his fists, his narrowed eyes cast down on the floor.

"Dad broke the law," he explained, his voice full of frustration. "If the authorities learn about this, they're not going to help him. Instead, they'll only make things worse."

I furrowed my brow. That's new.

"What did he do?" I asked.

Axis seemed unwilling to answer. However, if he wanted me to help, he knew he wouldn't have the choice but to tell me everything.

"He assaulted someone," he eventually disclosed, with much reluctance. "He attacked someone with a knife, and when others tried to stop him, he threatened to slit his throat."

…

WHAT?!

What the hell? Isn't he just a criminal then?

"But they were bad people!" Axis shouted in a desperate attempt to justify his father's actions, as he read the surprise on my face. "They deserved it!"

Well, considering this world's customs, I can only give him the benefit of the doubt. I have met Troy before, and it's true he didn't seem like a guy who would do this sort of thing without a reason.

"What did they do?" I inquired, trying to get a better insight of the whole story.

"They are holding my mom hostage," Axis promptly replied. "They've been asking for a ransom for months, but we don't have money! Dad was desperate so he…"

His mom? So he does have a mom after all! And if she's been held hostage, it's no wonder she was never in the picture whenever I met Axis or his father. Maybe Troy didn't go after Yoko, in the end.

After all, if he went as far as threatening someone to save his wife, he must be quite in love with her. So far, Axis' story makes sense. There is just one thing that doesn't add up.

"Why didn't you go to the authorities?" I questioned one more time, my eyes full of doubt. "I understand that your father crossed a line, but if what you say is true, then he had legitimate reasons to do it. The authorities would have been lenient about his actions. Besides, if your mother's been kidnapped, that's even more reasons to report it to them."

"You don't understand!" the boy got flustered. "The authorities won't help! They can't do anything about those people! My mom was kidnapped legally, and now, it's my dad's turn!"

What? What is he talking about? That doesn't make any sense. There is no way a kidnapping would be legal. No one can be taken against their will. As archaic our society was, citizens had rights.

Every subject of the kingdom had the right to be protected. For someone to be captured, it could only mean that they had lost those rights. Which means they were either a criminal, or…

Oh.

Oh, shit.

"Who are they?" I asked Axis, my voice wavering, as I just came to a conclusion.

"Those people who captured your mom and your dad, who are they?"

The boy winced, grinding his teeth. His gaze lost somewhere in the room, he let a loud sigh escape from his mouth.

"Slave traders..."

Crap.

Crap, crap, crap, I fucking knew it. Those goddamn slave traders.

That's right. In Agraal, human trafficking was allowed. So if someone, for whatever reason, lost their rights as a citizen, it would be completely legal to capture them.

Shit. This isn't funny.

"Did you tell her?" I suddenly grabbed Axis by his shoulder. "Did you tell her anything about this?!"

"What?" The boy was startled. "Tell who?"

"My mother!" I yelled. "You said she was willing to help you! Does it mean you told her about this?"

Confused, Axis shook my hands away.

"I didn't!"

Oh thank gods!

Considering mom's history with slavers, I certainly don't want her to be involved with them again. In fact, if possible, I don't want her to even hear anything about them. She's suffered enough. There is no need for her to bring up the painful memories of the past. It is a real relief, though.

For a moment, I thought mom had agreed to help him because he told her about his circumstances. Having been a slave herself, it is possible that she wouldn't have been able to refuse him. Now, I definitely can't let him go back to her for help.

"How in the world did you get involved with slavers?!" I was growing a headache.

"It's not like it was a choice!" Axis growled.

Obviously.

"We couldn't pay back our debts, so they just took my mom! And now, they took my dad as well!"

Yeah, this is what slavers do. Taking advantage of people's weaknesses to enslave them.

Shit. And here I thought it would be something trivial again. Slavers? I had been expecting anything but that. That is really not good.

Realizing the severity of his situation, the boy fell on his knees.

"Big sister…" he muttered. "I'm begging you, help them! Help my parents! If it's you, you probably can do it!"

He looked up at me, his desperate eyes full of expectations.

"I know you've already helped me once, but if you help me just once more, I'll do anything!" he continued, "I'll be your servant, your shield, your puppet, anything! I'll dedicate my entire life to you! I promise!"

As hundreds of thoughts crossed my mind, weighing the pros and cons of letting myself get involved with this matter, Axis' lowered his head. He clenched his fists tightly on his knees as he bit his lower lip.

"Please," he begged once more, worried by my lack of reaction, "they're all I have…"

Finally giving in to despair, tears started to spill from the boy's eyes. Despite his efforts to hold them in, the tears kept falling down his face.

This is not right. Such strong words should never come out from a child's mouth. Yet, here he is, begging me for his parents' life. He probably knows he's next, but he's not thinking about himself. He's not asking me to save him, he wants me to save his parents.

"Axis," I called out, "how well do you know those slave traders?"

The boy looked up at me with confused, watery eyes.

"How long have they been in the business, and have they always operated in the capital?" I clarified my question.

He wiped his tears.

"I don't know for how long exactly," he replied, his voice still shaking from his emotions, "but their organization had the monopoly in the capital for at least these past twenty years. Because of that, no one can touch them. They're not afraid of anything."

That's all I needed to know.

"You said Harri's unicorn brought you here, right? Where is it now?"

Axis squinted his eyes, not understanding the point of my question.

"I left it outside," he answered anyway.

"Mr. Harri asked me not to get it too close to human accommodations, so I left it a bit further to look for the entrance of the Academy."

Perfect.

"Get up," I said.

Disoriented, the boy still complied. I shifted my gaze to Cottontail. Seemingly unconcerned and uninterested by this whole situation, she had stayed silent until now.

"Cotton," I called.

"Yes Master," she immediately answered.

"Let's go."

Without any further delay, I headed to the door. Cottontail, who had figured my intentions out, followed me without any questions. Only Axis didn't understand what was going on.

"Where are you going?" he inquired, his eyes tight and worried.

"You wanted my help, didn't you?" I replied. "Let's get on with it."

Realizing what I've just said, Axis' eyes glimmered with renewed hope.

"You're going to help me?!"

"Yes," I told him, "so hurry up. We don't have a minute to waste."

The boy rushed to my side.

"Alright. Let's go."

To be honest, I would have normally never agreed to help him. Not that I don't care -I feel sorry for him, I really do- but in the end, there is no way I would risk my own situation for his.

Years ago, I made a decision. I vowed to never meddle in others' business. For as long as I, mother or brother aren't concerned about it, I will not intervene in any matter. Because once I start getting myself involved, I won't be able to stop. That was the one condition for me to have a somewhat normal life. But it wasn't just about me. It was also about mom and Aoban. As my direct relatives, whatever I do, it will affect them.

So I won't take that risk. I won't ever meddle in others' business at the risk of putting mom and Aoban's lives at stake. Because this is what happens when you start getting involved with others' matters: you become a target, and so do your loved ones.

I am not going to let that happen. I can take care of myself. Mom and Aoban can't.

I guess I can protect them to some extent, but ultimately, there is only so much one can do. I am not omnipotent. It only takes one second.

One second of carelessness, one second of me not looking, and the tragedy happens. There is no way I would take that risk.

So I will not carelessly expose them to danger by involving myself in other's problems. No matter how selfish it is, I will turn a blind eye to everything. My priority is those two, and those two only. The others don't matter.

This time, however, the situation is a bit different. This time, slave traders are involved. And I have a grudge against slave traders. So this isn't about meddling in someone else's business. This isn't about helping anyone. This is just my own personal vendetta.

"Axis," I called as I led the way outdoors, "those slavers, you said they were in an organization, right?"

"I did," the boy confirmed.

"And if they've led the market for the past few years, they must be quite renowned, right?"

He clicked his tongue.

"They are…" he grumbled.

My lips curled to form a smirk.

"So that means they're not hiding, right?"

"Why would they be?" Axis pointed out.

"What they're doing is not illegal. And they have a lot of wealthy clients among the nobles. Offending them would be like offending nobility, so no one would dare to tell them anything."

Good. Then they'll be easy to find.

After a few more moments, as we finally reached the borders of the campus, I stopped, turning around, my eyes halting on the fox girl.

"Cotton," I called, "lead the way."

With a single nod of the head, the girl complied and stepped forward to take the lead.

I'm not sure if it's because of the [Contract], but she really seemed to be in tune with me. It was just like if she could read my thoughts. There was no need for me to put them into words, she just seemed to guess what I had in mind.