Chapter 34: The Banished Young Girl Frees the Captives
First, we unlocked the room where Walter’s wife and daughter were imprisoned.
“Clair! Lucy!”
As soon as the door was opened, Walter rushed into the room.
“Eh? You?”
“Clair!”
They seem to be alright. That’s a relief.
“Ah! Clair! Clair! You’re safe!”
“Yes, but how did you get here?”
“Baroness Scarletford saved us! And she’s even willing to accept us as immigrants!”
“Eh? Really…?”
“More importantly, where’s Lucy?”
“Lucy is asleep over there. She’s been crying a lot, but she’s finally worn out…”
“Lucy! Ugh!”
Walter’s groan could be heard from inside the room.
He’s overexerting himself despite still being injured…
Inside the room, which was small with only a bed and a table, Walter was embracing a woman with a model-like figure.
It’s too dark to see clearly, but she must be incredibly beautiful given the atmosphere.
“Walter, you shouldn’t push yourself when you’re still injured.”
“Baroness… Yes. Sorry.”
“Eh? Baroness? This child is…?”
“Clair! This person is the Baroness!”
“Ah! I-I’m sorry!”
“Well, that’s enough for now. Clair, right? We’re going to take Lucy and escape. Walter is supposed to come with us, but you’re coming too, right? If you stay here, you might get kidnapped again.”
“Is it really okay? Thank you very much.”
“Yes. Now, I’ll go around opening the other rooms.”
“Eh?”
Walter asked, surprised.
“What? Human trafficking is a serious crime punishable by death, right? I’ve seen the scene myself. I can’t just save Clair and Lucy and leave the rest behind.”
Plus, increasing the village’s population isn’t a bad thing. The harvest was decent, so I think we can manage to take care of everyone.
“…I understand.”
Walter must be eager to escape. I get it, but I can’t just ignore the others.
“As expected of Your Highness!”
“Yes. Let’s go.”
We opened the door to the next room. Inside, two women were imprisoned. It was dark, but they also seemed quite beautiful.
“What…?”
“A girl?”
“Good evening. We’ve come to rescue you.”
“Eh? Eh?”
“Please don’t make a loud noise. Also, we are not a vigilante group, so whether you choose to escape or not is up to you.”
The two women looked stunned.
“Also, if you want to escape to my territory, I will accept you, but you probably won’t be able to return here.”
“Y-Yes.”
“Think about it before we return. If you decide to come with us, we’ll take you with us.”
Thus, we went from room to room, freeing a total of twenty-one adult women, one baby, and five children in addition to Clair and Lucy.
By the way, all the women we rescued were strikingly beautiful, even in the dark. This suggests they were specifically selected for their looks. The children left behind might have been seen as having potential due to their mothers’ beauty.
Or perhaps there was a hostage reason as well?
With the freed people in tow, we left the building confidently.
Back at the inn, Marie’s eyes widened in surprise when she saw us.
“My Lady! Who are these people?”
“Oh, well, when we arrived, we found not just Walter’s wife and daughter but many others as well. Since they want to immigrate to our place, I’m thinking of accepting them.”
Of the rescued people, thirteen women expressed their desire to join us, along with one baby, two boys, and one girl.
“…My Lady.”
“Yes?”
“How do you plan to get them out?”
“Well… I was thinking we could use the noble privilege to transport them as cargo. You know, nobles’ cargo isn’t inspected, right?”
“…Are you planning to put them in a cart?”
“Yes. Is that not okay?”
“I’m afraid they’ll be discovered. Even with noble privilege, people coming and going will raise suspicion…”
“Eh? Hmm. What should we do then?”
“Miss?”
Ugh… This look means she’s definitely angry.
“Well, how about hiding them and leaving in several trips?”
“That would look too suspicious.”
“Um, then…”
“Ah, um…”
One of the rescued women, I think her name was Anna, interrupted our discussion. She had a slightly stern face, was tall and slim, with a model-like figure—though this wasn’t the time to be envious.
“What is it?”
“If it’s alright, could we stop by my house first? My husband was a traveling merchant. Since we were kidnapped today, he might still have the wagon.”
“Really? Oh! But if that’s the case, you should go back to your husband…”
“Um… My husband was stabbed by the ones who came to capture me…”
“I see. I’m sorry.”
“No, it’s just… if we could at least retrieve his body…”
“I understand. If we leave it, it might turn into a zombie. Okay, but a driver is missing…”
“I can drive. I often helped my husband…”
“Got it. Then, once we arrive in Scarletford, can you let me take over the wagon temporarily? That way, the contents won’t be inspected at the gate. Marie, is that right?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“If that’s the case, then certainly.”
“Alright, it’s settled. Marie, please prepare for departure. We don’t know what Walter will do.”
“Understood.”
Thus, we headed to the woman’s house.