Chapter 3: "Midnight" Part 1

Garfield Loui's mansion is usually quiet, the only thing you would usually hear are birds chirping on his beautiful garden.

But not today, maids can be seen galivanting, setting up expensive looking chairs in an orderly and neat manner in the garden, and beside the chairs a variety of foods and beverages, the kind served at expensive restaurants.

There is a reason for all this, today is one of Loui's most famous slave auctions.

Slave trading was abolished by the late King James in the Palladius kingdom, but some noble factions were opposed to this, as they simply saw peasants as their playthings and thought that King James showed them too much sympathy, so they had secretly done it regardless of the law, and ever since he died, they started doing it more openly than before.

There is a reason why Loui's slave auction was famous in the noble world; he only sold children as slaves.

His main customers were wealthy big wigs and the emissaries of nobles who preferred to be anonymous and the ''Midnight Eye'' cult that sacrificed children to their God Azrael.

Nobles are a minority of citizens in the kingdom who are of royal descent with a few exceptions, thus only they can own land and can hoard wealth for themselves, which can then be inherited by their offspring or in rare cases an S-rank and SS-rank can be given the title of a noble.

But even in noble society there exists a hierarchy in rank: Baron, Viscount, Earl, Marquess and Duke. With Baron being the lowest rank and Duke being the highest in that order, based on their wealth, land, military force and influence.

Loui had the rank of a Baron which he had inherited from his father, but Loui always had ambition to surpass his ancestors and raise his family name from being a lowly Baron to a Marquess or even Duke if the heavens permit.

Thus the reason why he was a child trafficker was to earn favor with the high-ranking nobles who did not want to sully their reputations by being involved in child kidnappings, so in a sense Loui was their reliable and trustworthy source of slaves.

The money they invest in Loui is necessary for him to achieve his ambition.

Despite being a child trafficker Baron Garfield Loui is a father himself and has a daughter, Jade Loui (14).

Anyone who has ever laid eyes on her has said that she would one day grow up to be a beauty even overshadowing the princesses of the kingdom because of her silky blond hair and azure blue eyes.

Hearing this Loui was pleased as he thought she would become useful in the near future to expand their influence if she were to be married to the son of a Duke or Marquess, albeit Loui had always wanted to have a son and have him train and become an S-rank in order to be granted the rank of Marquess by royal decree or become the 4th SS-rank in the kingdom and be granted the title of a Duke.

Before Jade was born Loui was married and his wife could not bear him any children, and so he cast her aside and decided to create a concubine from maids and slaves alike which consisted of 12 women, sadly they too could not fall pregnant.

It became apparent that Loui was unable to have children, until miraculously one of his concubines fell pregnant.

This was no mere miracle; 14 years ago, Loui went to one of the bishops in the Midnight Eye cult and sought out his assistance, to which he gladly offered to help but the price he would have to pay would be to sacrifice the child of his closest relative to the cult in order be able to sire an heir.

Loui would have to sacrifice the only child of his one and only sibling.

Loui agreed of course, it was a small price to pay for their family's name being risen to even greater heights so surely his brother would understand since he himself is a man of vision, or so Loui thought.

Loui set course for his brother's house excitedly with his usual guards mid D-rank knights Morris and Seth, and soon his brother's house started coming into view.

He looked at one of his knights and gave an order .

"Seth. Go on ahead and alert my brother of my arrival I expect a welcome well deserving the head of the Loui family."

"As you wish my Lord."

Seth departed swiftly from the carriage as it came to a halt, allowing his brother time to make all the necessary preparations to welcome him.

Loui was left with Morris in the carriage who was looking anxious.

This didn't go unnoticed by Loui.

"I do not like that look on your face Morris, you are one of my strongest knights I do not want to see you make such an expression. What is on your mind?"

"Ah forgive me my Lord, how very perceptive of you. May I have permission to speak freely?"

"hmph. Granted."

"My Lord you are about to ask your brother to sacrifice his one and only child so that you may have an heir of your own. Do you really think he'll oblige?"

"Of course, he will, this is for the benefit of the Loui family! The bishop said so himself, my son will grow up powerful to be an S-rank someday. My brother can always have more children unlike me. One mere child is nothing compared to the future that we could have!"

Morris furrowed his brow with concern.

"....But what if he does not share your ambition and refuses?"

Loui responded with blood shot eyes and a clenched fist.

"Then he is an enemy of the Loui family! Anyone who dares to stand in the way of my ambition is an enemy, even if they are my kin."

Silence enveloped the carriage. 15 minutes passed and Seth returned to the carriage which meant that preparations were complete.