King on a Trip
“N-no… don’t come near…”
Trapped in a corner of a crumbling shack, the girl trembled.
A nameless village nestled in the mountains, spared by sheer invisibility even as the world was ravaged by a demon god.
Now, it was being overrun by one man and his men.
His name was Midrofan. A commander of Malart and Maxim’s forces, gathering his own band of raiders, leaving chaos in his wake.
The man leered, pressing forward to the girl while plundering outside served as his soundtrack.
“Nothing much here, but still—surprise find. A bit rough around the edges, but not bad-looking. Face, body… not bad at all.”
“N-no… please…”
“Don’t worry. I’m a gentle man. I’ll teach you what real manhood feels like. And what real woman’s pleasure is.”
Midrofan inched closer.
“G-Goddess…!”
The girl curled in on herself, hands pressed together in prayer.
A lonely, cold village. A girl too young to be anything but helpless.
She was the very image of the powerless—meant to be devoured.
“Kufufu… I’ll take this.”
And yet, also the one who’d be saved.
“Master!”
A subordinate of Midrofan burst in from outside, flustered.
Dong! Without a word, Midrofan backhanded his man across the room.
“G-gaah…”
“I said no interruptions. This is my time to enjoy. Don’t ruin it.”
“S-sorry, but it’s serious—”
“…What?”
Midrofan’s frown deepened—then twisted further.
“The Slave King has—”
☆
The True Eternal Slave, its six gems blazing, cleaved through one man and advanced toward the heart of the village.
About ten houses in total—half of them choked with black smoke, the other half with walls or doors shattered open.
Either burning down, or stripped bare of whatever meager possessions remained.
“Damn it, damn it, damn it!”
The ones responsible—another subordinate of Midrofan—charged in again.
Sliced through at the waist with a slave’s blade.
Carried forward by momentum, split clean in two, rolling behind me.
Cutting down the weak, the only building untouched by fire or ruin spat out Midrofan.
Eyebrows arched, furious.
“Why the hell are you here?”
“Chance. And magic, too.”
“Huh?”
“P-please, help me!”
Midrofan seething.
From behind him, a girl burst out.
Sprinting past Midrofan, aiming straight for me.
Then—stopped mid-step.
Grasped by Midrofan, her thin neck wrapped in his arm.
“Oops, don’t move now. You move, and who knows what’ll happen to this little girl here.”
“A hostage?”
“The Slave King’s a kind one, see? He likes this sort of thing.”
“……”
“What’s the matter? I’m not *that* cruel. I’ve no real grudge against you. How about it—let’s call it even? Let’s just walk away?”
“……”
“Got it? Yeah?”
“Ugh!”
He tightened his grip. The girl grimaced in pain.
No escape. That’s what he was saying, without words.
“Let her go.”
“Walk away safe and sound from here, and I’ll free her. I keep my promises, you know?”
“……Keep your promise.”
Midrofan smirked.
Still holding the girl, he stepped forward—trying to slip past me—then—
A sharp wind. Cold light rushing in.
Gak—!
Blocked the slash with the slave sword.
Midrofan, who’d struck first, lunged again—another slash coming in.
Caught off guard, I was shoved back.
"...You’re not running?"
"Shouldn’t I just kill you here, you lunatic?"
"Ah. I see."
"Wait—don’t think you can counterattack. If you even try—"
Midrofan, lunging in again—stopped.
Spitting blood. Dropping the sword.
"What... the hell is this?"
Staring in shock at his own body.
Six children were there.
Transparent. Adorable six little girls.
Golden hair. Pointed ears. Eternal Slave.
Each holding a tiny knife, plunged into Midrofan.
"Kids... when did—"
"That’s how it works. Everyone, go back."
The translucent little slave dissolved into light, sucked into the True Eternal Slave.
Swinging the sword again, six beams of light shot forth, encircling Midrofan in a complete circle, six children closing in from all directions.
And then they lunged forward, knives raised.
Zak-zak-zak!
Second attack. Twelve holes now in Midrofan’s body.
"Gah… hah…"
Midrofan’s eyes snapped wide, disbelief carved into every line of his face, and he collapsed onto the ground.
☆
"Treat the wounded—universal medicine is fine, as long as it's made from mana production."
"Got it. Let's go, everyone."
Led by Shasuri, the little slaves dashed off together.
They found the injured, produced universal medicine with their slave cards, and treated them.
Clumsy, but apparently effective enough to leave to them.
So they left it to the girls, turning to the young one.
"Are you hurt?"
"Y-yes…"
"Good. Lucky you."
It was pure chance they’d ended up here.
I tried out the little slave’s power in real combat—used the enemy search spell from the new card—and that’s how I ended up here.
Reaching out, I helped the girl up.
As I did, I scanned the village.
Nothing here. Just a slightly less rundown version of the ramshackle hut we’d stumbled upon when we first arrived in this world.
“Have you lived here all along?”
“Yes… um…”
“Hmm?”
“That man earlier… he called himself the Slave King…”
“Oh, yeah. I did.”
Being called the Slave King was fairly common.
“Could it be… you’re the king of a newly formed nation?”
“Yeah.”
“S-so… then…”
The girl tried to say something.
She started to speak, then faltered. Like she wanted to say it, but couldn’t.
“You want to join my faction?”
“Yes… but… this village… there’s nothing to offer…”
“Doesn’t matter.”
“Huh?”
The girl looked stunned. Like she couldn’t believe what she’d just heard.
"Risha, Ilina, Vera, Arisa, Bella, Olga."
The little slave girl shouted, having finished her rounds of treatment, and hurried over.
"Y-yes, master?"
"Build a house on the outskirts. Work here in the village for now."
"Understood."
The little slave girl ran off again.
I turned back to the girl, still dazed.
Actions over explanations. First, I’d remake the village.