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nThe girls helped guide me out onto a stage. This was actually only one of a dozen such stages. People left or came depending on which events they wanted to see. This one, in particular, seemed busy. A lot of people were excitedly anticipating this match, huh?

nActually, now that I paid attention to the crowds, I felt like I was getting a lot of cold looks. The other team, Dragonmight, was a team of three boys and two girls. The guys were handsome men if I was in a position to be a judge of that. As for the women, they were also quite beautiful. As they went on, there was a lot of cheering and applause. When Team Deek was called onto the stage, I stumbled on still holding Celeste’s arm, and there was a lot of whispering and doubtful looks.

nI even checked to make sure my pants were definitely on at this point. However, it was pretty clear that I was not the favored team here. I knew nothing of the Capitol city. For all I knew, Dragonmight was some popular or famous group of people. However, I had a feeling there was something else going wrong when disgusted looks were also leveled by the members of Dragonmight.

nThat wasn’t entirely true. When they looked at the girls, they were filled with smiles and polite nods. However, I seemed to get the feeling that whenever someone’s eyes fell on me, they looked slightly revolted.

n“You, you’re their slaveholder, yes?” the blonde ikemen and leader of the group stepped forward and asked.

n“Uh, yeah?” I said, my voice croaking a bit as I squinted at him; the day is way too bright.

n“So, they will fight your battles for you?” As he said this, there seemed to be a silence, as if even some of the crowd were listening to his words.

n“That’s right!” Lydia announced proudly. “Master always puts us in the front lines!”

nShe had meant it proudly, but accusatory whispering started to fill the spectators watching this stage.

n“A guy who buys slaves to fight for him.” The brunette ikemen next to the blonde made a disgusted face.

n“I’ll have you know… Master didn’t pay for any of us. In fact, he took me in a dungeon.” Celeste announced proudly, but when the whispering grew louder, she added. “He did it for my own good!”

n“Look how red his eyes are…” One of the girls on the other team whispered to the other. “And he hasn’t shaved his face. He probably beats them.”

n“I can smell the alcohol from here…” The blond ikemen said disdainfully. “You sir, are a repulsive human being!”

nYou know… words hurt. Plus, I had a throbbing headache, so I was in no mood for it. Apparently, the glower on my face along with my hungover look made me look even more menacing. Suddenly, some of the crowd started to boo me.

n“You don’t understand!” Terra said defensively. “Master doesn’t beat us at all. I mean, he can be rough sometimes, but he always heals us after. I even lost an arm once and he made sure to put it back on and told me to never do it again!”

n“W-wait…” I held up my hands.

n“He ripped off your arm?” The girls cried out, holding each other.

n“N-no! It was really my fault! I just wanted his attention!” She cried out.

n“Dragonmight! Kill this bastard!” Someone in the crowd screamed out.

nThe crowd burst into cheers. Most of them started calling out for my death. There wasn’t a single person on my side. How did it keep coming to this?

n“It’s not like that! Master just grabbed something of mine he wasn’t supposed to touch and then took control of my body, so I wanted-“

n“Terra! Please stop helping me!” I cried tearfully.

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