'Finally…'
Rey heaved a sigh as he deactivated [Heat Touch]. It was a Skill he recently acquired in the 10th Floor, along with another pretty intense one.
Since the Manager was ready to talk, he removed his hand from her head, though he still had his other one wrapped around her neck.
If she tried anything funny, he was going to use Lightning to teach her a lesson.
'I thought it would take very long, but thankfully she's very cooperative.'
"Stand." Rey told Sylvia, and she instantly obeyed.
"Lead me there."
"W-wha—?!"
"I said… lead me there." The moment he emphasized this, tightening his grip around her, she no longer rendered any complaint.
"Let's go."
***********
The path to the Underground Area was, without being a surprise, on the Ground Floor.
It existed in a room disguised as a mere storage room where old furniture and cleaning tools could be found lying around.
However, right on the ground, there existed a clearing that could be opened up—as one would a kid in a jar.
'Impressive…' Rey thought to himself as he saw Sylvia open the entrance while he watched a short distance away.
'I wouldn't have guessed you could remove the flooring like that.'
He was still invisible, perfectly blended with his environment too, so Sylvia could not see him at all.
And so, after she was done, she looked around the room and spoke—not knowing who to address and where he stood.
"H-here it is!"
"And are there other secret entrances or openings I should know of?" Rey asked.
It would suck if he found traps or a confusing passageway, or some kind of dead end that could only be solved by someone on the know.
"N-no! To the left is the Special Center, and to the right is the General Center."
Rey looked at the scared woman's face and didn't think she was lying.
'She looks hideous.' Thanks to most of her hair falling out thanks to his Skill, and her naturally ugly face, Rey found her disgusting.
The makeup on her face was already melting off, and her massive lips add her appear more like a clown than anything else.
"S-so, I can go… right?" Sylvia slowly rose to her feet, her eyes pleading for mercy.
'If I let her go, she'll basically expose my identity and plan.'
However, he couldn't just kill her.
As a result, Rey went for the safest alternative.
'[Sleep].'
In an instant, Sylvia collapsed to the ground in a heavy thud.
Her head clashed with the hard floor, causing a loud echo to reverberate in the room.
'A-ahh... that'll hurt.' Rey winced slightly.
"I-Is everything fine, Lady Sylvia?" A guard yelled from outside
'Tch! Annoying…'
Reg activated his [Voice Mimic] Skill and yelled out in Sylvia's voice.
"Yeah, I'm fine! Now focus on your job!"
"Y-yes ma'am!"
Rey sighed and felt relieved that it worked out so well.
'Now then…' He drew closer to the considerably large opening in the ground.
'Let's go get Alicia!'
Rey plunged into the depths of darkness and was met with blindness.
His feet hit the ground sooner than he thought, revealing how the underground area wasn't as far down expected,
Still, thanks to the perpetual darkness surrounding him, he couldn't properly see.
'I can't believe I still don't have a [Night Vision] Skill…'
All of this was no problem for Rey, though since he simply used [Flare] to brighten up the place nearly instantly.
As one would expect from an underground passageway, it was surrounded by dirt.
The paths were already carved out, albeit crudely. Pillars connected the ground and ceiling together, and perhaps the most notable of all was how the paths were designed.
'It's a straight line, and then this is the exit…'
According to what Sylvia told him, he would find the Special Center if he went left.
'So left it is!' Rey was curious about how regular slaves were, and he even thought of helping them, but his first priority was Alicia.
If he had more time, or an opportunity that could bring it into fruition, then he would.
'But not now. I have no idea if I'm running out of time or not!'
Once Rey had this thought, activated [Super Speed] and [Flight].
Then, within a second—
~WHOOOOSSZHHH!!!~
—Rey had flown off in search of Alicia.
*********
"Well, well, well. Isn't this an interesting development?"
Outside the Warehouse, maintaining their safe distance from the structure, were Aldred and Yuri.
Instead of returning, since their work was done, Aldred decided he wanted to stick around and see how everything would end.
Behind both of them was Gus, who was naked and tied up ropes all over his body.
The robes seemed enchanted, since they glowed, paralyzing the massive man very easily.
As for Aldred, he was smiling widely as he narrowed his gaze on the entrance of the massive structure.
A man was walking towards it, having an entourage of two well-dressed individuals—one man and one woman.
One of them had a Warrior's armor on, while the other—the woman—was dressed as a Mage.
The man who led them, however, had a completely different look.
He had long dark hair, with an eyepatch covering one of his eyes. His attire was regal, clearly displaying his status.
He had a sly grin on his face as he neared the guards who stood around the entrance.
All of the guards instantly bowed their heads, welcoming him and the two behind with profound respect.
"Looks like Sir Ralyks will be having a bit of an interruption on his plans."
After all, the man who just entered the building was none other than the owner himself.
The Slave Trade Kingpin of the Southern Territories—Evals Redart.
"Are we really not going to assist him?" Yuri asked her superior in a calm tone.
"There's no need to."
Aldred's voice contained nothing but certainty, with a sparkling hint of amusement in his eyes.
"It's about time to see what our mysterious seller can do."
There was no doubt in Aldred's mind, though.
'Sir Ralyks will win.'
It was only a matter of 'how'.
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Thanks for reading.
