thirty percent of slum dwellers, and in the north, it exceeds forty percent. Visibly pure-blooded demi-humans and beastfolk are generally in the nobility, though, so they're rarely seen in human settlements. Get used to it already. 'Tis a bother for you to gawk at every little thing." "Man...this really is another world, huh?" "Oh, and the fruit samples aren't free, so do avoid taking them carelessly." Flustered, Kaito drew back from the honey-pickled grape an old lady was offering to him. Elisabeth, on the other hand, plucked a juicy-looking berry and popped it in her mouth. She flipped a copper coin to the vendor. She then continued making her way through the crowd. Amid the throng of hawkers calling out to passersby, customers haggling like their lives depended on it, and scraggly dogs and rats scurrying about underfoot, her luxurious snow-white dress stood out like the lone star against a midnight sky. But she seemed to pay that fact little mind. The crowd, too, passed her by. "Hey, Elisabeth, where are you going?" "You need not worry about it. Just keep quiet and follow me." Kaito continued after her obediently. Just as he began worrying that she was wandering aimlessly, the nature of the buildings around them began to change. There were no more shops, nor were there stand-up food carts or large-roofed stalls. What surrounded them now were shabby little huts. The nature of the products being sold became more illicit. It seemed that this area, far off from the main stretch, was where you could buy spoiled goods, illegal drugs, and weapons of various sorts. Upon seeing a group of people slurping up some soup of dubious make between stone warehouses, Elisabeth stopped. When she did, Kaito overheard their comments. "They say the Bloody Marquis is looking for employees again." With a start, Kaito turned to look at the old gray-haired woman. She was talking with a group of friends, a box of medicinal herbs she'd no doubt been hawking sitting beside her. "There isn't anyone who'd sell him kids anymore, right? They say a cannibal owns that castle." "I hear Anna over from the corner did. Sold her fourth son for a silver coin, they say." "Sounds like she drove a hard bargain, but even so, to sell your own child like that... Well, that's a whore for you. Betcha she gets a gold coin for her fifth." "Better than tossing them in the brothel, I say. Word is that Marquis fella is even buying up the kids of bankrupt aristocrats to use as servants. I'll pass on being eaten, but if it's just changing bedpans, I could get behind that if it meant getting to drink warm soup for a change." "The lady in charge of collecting people is supposed to come around in her carriage today. Heh, if only I were a bit younger..." "You've got the looks of a monster, and you probably taste like one, too. Who'd pay any kind of coin for you?" The younger of the two women laughed raucously, her long ears swaying and her yellowed teeth on full display. Elisabeth nodded, then set off again. Hearing the sound of her high heels, the women looked her way with a start. Their gazes pierced Elisabeth like they were looking at something monstrous. Sensing their hostility, Kaito quickly chased after her white form. "Wait up, Elisabeth. I wanna know where you're going." "The corpses have been piling up, yet the town is not in a panic. In short, the poor must comprise the bulk of the victims. After all, they have a tendency to drop dead on their own, be it from freezing, drowning, starving, or sickness. A few dozen of them going missing would hardly be grounds for a panic." "You don't mince words, do you...?" "Ha. Whether I mince them or spit them out, it changes nothing. I came to this district in search of information, and just as I suspected, a rather juicy tidbit came and landed on my plate. Though it would be convenient to have something more substantial... Ah." Elisabeth stopped at the corner of the road. In front of the row of brick houses stood a black carriage. A well-dressed old woman who appeared to be its owner was grabbing the arm of another woman accompanied by a young girl and fervently arguing with her. The second woman wrenched her arm free, climbed a short set of stairs, and took refuge past the door at the top. The old woman clicked her tongue and walked back toward the carriage. Before Kaito could stop Elisabeth, she dashed out in front of the old woman. Kaito had no idea what she was thinking. "This is Lord Marquis's carriage, right? Oh, thank goodness! My name is Flora. I came from the main road because I heard you were looking for maids. I got into a fight with my father, who's a wealthy landowner, so I'm here in secret for a bit of fun. But I never thought I'd get this lucky! I want to live like a real lady. Would you be so kind as to take me and my servant to see the lord marquis?" Kaito's eyes widened at the stupidity of it all. But Elisabeth just tilted her head to the side, her expression so pure that it made him want to ask who the hell she was and what she'd done with Elisabeth. The old woman responded with a hard, skeptical gaze. Elisabeth then gave a beautiful smile and continued without a care. "Oh, I almost forgot. Back on the main road, Miss Anna told me to tell you that she was the one who sent me. She's awfully nice." Upon hearing this, the old woman smiled broadly and nodded. After asking Elisabeth the landowner's full name and whether or not her absence had gone noted, she cast open the carriage's door eagerly. As she stood beside the sneering old lady, an even wickeder sneer found Elisabeth's face. After leaving the town, the carriage passed a wheat field on its right before making its way along a riverside road. As it continued on, a castle came into view beside the narrow shore. The castle was built out of an uneven mixture of gray stone and yellow sandstone and enclosed by black ramparts. The thick, heavy walls were supported by cylindrical steeples and stretched out far from east to west. The shadow it cast on the water was the very image of a massive crow, gazing into the river with its wings spread wide. The carriage traversed the deep moat with the aid of a drawbridge, then it arrived at the castle proper. And so Kaito and Elisabeth reached the Bloody Marquis's castle. Perhaps corresponding to the tastes of its current lord, the castle's resplendent interior stood in stark contrast to its simple, ominous exterior. Chandeliers sparkled over the main hall's grand stairwell, and vast carpets of gold and silver thread lay across its floor. It was clear that each of the etched handrails on the stairs and plaster grapevines on the walls took no small amount of artistic prowess to create. Every element of the house looked both elaborate and expensive. Rich-people houses really are something else, thought Kaito with a squint. Following Elisabeth, he made his way across the hall and tried to cut through to the passage on his right. When he did, a large man forcefully grabbed his shoulder. "You don't look like a noble. Servants go this way." "Wait, hold up, Elisaâ€” Mistress Flora!" Kaito shouted as he was being dragged off. Elisabeth turned and gave him a thumbs-up. In other words, Figure it out yourself. You're immortal, so do your best and don't lose. You're a clever boy, after all, or something along those lines. Though he hated to admit it, Kaito was used to her attitude by now. At this point, he didn't have much choice. His expression stiffened as he gave up and followed the man. Upon reaching the end of the passage on the left, the man raised a large flag with a coat of arms on it. The hidden door behind it opened, and the man prodded Kaito down a set of stairs leading underground. A sense of foreboding welled up within him. The feeling only got worse as he continued down the flame-lit stone corridor. Finally, the man stopped before what was most definitely a prison. "Get in." "What, you're just gonna treat me like a prisoner out of nowhere?" Kaito had been hoping for the ruse to last a bit longer. Unfortunately, his complaints were in vain as the man kicked him into the cell. A small scream could be heard coming from deeper inside. As he looked around the surprisingly spacious prison, he saw a crowd of young boys and girls, human and demi-human and beastfolk alike. Their ages, genders, and races were varied, but the fear on each of their faces was evident. The scene was one of bitter nostalgia for Kaito, and he wasn't sure how to react. After agonizing over his options for a moment, he waved a hand to try to calm them down. "H-hey, guys." "Eep!" Suddenly, a new prisoner was kicked into the prison. A young girl wearing a poppy-red dress bumped into Kaito and fell over. His quick reflexes allowed him to catch her before she hit the ground. Her chestnut eyes paired well with her curly brown hair, and they gazed up at Kaito in fear. Hers was a modest beauty, her plain features standing out against the diversity of the demi-human and beastfolk captives. Her cheeks reddened when she realized that Kaito was holding her, and she straightened herself out. "My... My deepest apologies. My name is Melanie Eskrow, daughter of Earl Eskrow. Where...is this? My aunt sent me here to become a proper lady." "I'm Kaito Sena... This is gonna sound kinda rude, but by any chance did your dad pass away and leave you in your aunt's care recently?" "My, how did you know? Might you be an acquaintance of my aunt's, Sir Kaito?" "Um, well, that'sâ€” Okay, y'know what? It feels mean to tell you this, but you're better off knowing. The situation we're in right now is super dangerous. I think you should prepare yourself to make a run for it if you see an opening. There's no telling what kind of horrible stuff is about to happen." "Whatever do youâ€”? Might I ask what's going on? What's going to happen to us and these children?" "Beats me. I really don't know, but when people go into shock, they tend to freeze up. You should emotionally braceâ€”" "Get out there. You're being called." Someone cut Kaito off, and the door swung open. A group of men led Kaito and the scared, sobbing children out of the prison. In order to keep them from resisting, they held a blade to Kaito's neck. A red-haired boy about his age and one of the younger kids received the same treatment. Kaito himself was immortal, but if he wasn't careful, the other two might wind up becoming victims. He clicked his tongue in frustration, then continued on without putting up a fight. Eventually, the door at the end of the underground hallway came into view. It was made of wood marked with carved images of spiders and crows and lit on each side by a flaming brazier. The wood design featured the crows circling overhead as the spiders weaved webs to catch them underneath. It was in rather poor taste. The men threw open the double doors and kicked Kaito and the rest inside. Kaito expected the men to follow them in, but they simply stayed put and closed the door. "Good luck." Why do we need luck? As Kaito contemplated the ominous words of encouragement, he heard the click of the door locking. When he turned around, his heart stopped in his throat.