Living with Dignity as a Warrior

Freedom was within their reach…

Though it was a limited freedom, it was still far better than always wearing a collar.

Wearing a collar for too long could make one forget how to be human.

They yearned for and dreamed of the hope in front them, but they were also terrified it might be a cruel joke.

The bold Spartans were the first to step forward.

They thanked their master for his kindness and then unlocked the chains around their necks.

Spartans only revered the strong…

Thus, after witnessing Night's immense power, they became the most obedient slaves.

Seeing someone take the lead, finally—the other slaves couldn't hold back any longer.

They all rushed to remove their neck chains, and as they breathed in the first fresh air, it was as if their souls were purified and uplifted.

It was the scent of 'freedom'…

In that moment, regardless of gender, all the slaves shed tears of joy and gratitude.

"Great master, thank you for your mercy! Your kindness is as radiant as the light of Apollo; we swear to serve you with all our hearts from now on."

Night: "Now, tell me—can I trust your loyalty?"

"Of course, you are the kindest master we've ever known.

You released our bonds and gave us some freedom and dignity.

For such a kind master, we would never betray you.

How could we not be loyal to you?" The slaves were sincerely terrified and hastily declared their loyalty.

They spoke from the heart.

In Rome, the social status of slaves was terribly low.

No one treated slaves as human beings; even stray dogs lived more freely and comfortably than they did.

Having mentally prepared themselves for a hellish future, they were ready to endure abuse and torment, lacking the courage to choose suicide.

They never expected their new master—their first master—would be such a kind, great, and merciful person.

His kindness was as captivating as his handsome face.

Even the two sisters and the little girl no longer felt so afraid of the future.

Instead, they began to feel a bit of hope and anticipation for the chance to be favored by their master.

The girls couldn't help but let their imaginations run wild, wondering if they should be more proactive if their master had any intimate needs.

Setting aside their fear of his status, just the thought of his strong body and god-like handsome face made them feel like they had hit the jackpot by spending a night with him.

Even the noblewomen and ladies living on the Seven Hills would be eager to get close if they saw their master's heroic figure.

Thinking of this, the girls couldn't help but rub their legs together.

Unaware that he had become the subject of his adorable subordinates' fantasies, Night was quite satisfied after receiving their expressions of loyalty.

A slight smile curled at the corners of his mouth as he assigned tasks to the slaves.

The estate's cleanliness, his daily life, and meals were entrusted to the two sisters and the little girl.

The male slaves were tasked with training their bodies and combat skills, and they also had to do some farming.

However, Night did not burden them with heavy workloads and even provided plenty of meat to support their physical training and growth.

Night: "Do you want to eat meat?"

"Meat?! We can eat meat?"

Hearing this, the warrior slaves' eyes flashed with excitement and disbelief.

Though they had already imagined their new master to be very kind, they never dared to hope that Night would actually provide them with meat.

For slaves, just the minimum amount of food needed to keep them alive was enough.

In fact, it was common for some harsh slave owners to often withhold food from their slaves.

Slaves working with empty stomachs was a frequent occurrence; after all, for them, eating wasn't about satisfying hunger—it was a luxury.

Most of the time, they never felt full, always living in a state of hunger.

However—

Night's plan to have them train raised some concerns among the slaves.

"Do you intend to turn us into gladiators?"

Several Spartans, feeling a mix of sadness and anger, suddenly asked.

Spartans, who were sent into the mountains as children to fight wolves and survive a winter to qualify as warriors,

Each Spartan carried a sense of honor and pride in their strength as warriors.

They had formidable skills, willing to die on the battlefield, but they shouldn't be entertainment for slave owners.

If Night truly intended to force them into gladiatorial combat,

Even if they appeared to submit to his power, they would internally resist and might even rebel if given the chance.

Spartan warriors were not afraid of death.

They accepted Night as their master largely because of his overwhelming strength.

But if he intended to humiliate them and trample their dignity like other slave owners, they would rather choose death.

However, Night shook his head—

And then said something that shocked them,

"Not gladiators, but warriors! I need a group of real soldiers who can fight on the battlefield.

I'm not afraid to tell you that in the future, I might take you to fight in the Social War or on battlefields between Rome and other nations…"

He wanted these people to have the courage to fight even against Rome if necessary.

"You will be my most loyal, brave soldiers and servants, achieving great deeds with me on the battlefield,

Making all enemies tremble in fear!

I want you to fight for me!! No matter how terrifying the enemy,

You will boldly draw your weapons.

Live and die as warriors, with greater dignity.

Can you do that?"

....

Night looked calmly at the group of slave warriors and said.

"Fight for me, and I can bestow upon you the highest honor.

You will no longer be the lowest of slaves but brave warriors who make Roman women scream in admiration.

If you achieve enough for me,

I might even allow you to marry and have children, and reclaim the names that were originally yours."

In Rome, from the moment they became slaves and were sold, their names were erased, and they weren't allowed to use their original names.

They were merely talking tools—

The new master could give slaves any new name.

Even a numerical code was acceptable.

Whether they could use their original names depended entirely on the master's mood and preferences.

Reclaim their names?

At this moment, a glimmer of light seemed to rise in the dull, numb eyes of the slaves, seeing the possibility of being treated as humans rather than beasts or tools.

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.

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