Without a doubt, a hundred years in Sky City had filled Teresa with the desire to return to the real world.
Or rather, she could hardly wait to see what Clare looked like all grown up.
So, after choosing a lightweight suit of silver, formfitting openwork armor and a massive Dragon-Slaying Sword enchanted for durability and sharpness, the woman the Organization had judged the strongest Warrior in its history returned to the island's Land of the East through a portal with Allen.
Looking at the familiar landscape of yellow sand swirling all around them, Teresa finally let out a soft sigh. "Ten years have passed in the outside world, but it seems nothing has changed."
"No! Trust me, in the ten-plus years since your death, the world has changed far more than you imagine. It's just that this eastern region is controlled by the Organization, so it's changed the least overall. After all, a fractured, divided world is easier for the Organization's leaders to control," Allen explained casually.
"Yes! Only when the people living here are poor and ignorant enough can they buy enough girls to turn into Warriors. Especially that lunatic and pervert Dae. Every time he modifies a girl, that sickening look of pleasure appears on his face."
Teresa's voice brimmed with undisguised loathing for the Organization.
After all, people like Clare, who voluntarily joined the Organization and underwent modification, were an exceedingly small minority. Most Warriors were bought from slave traders or parents who could not feed all their children.
In fact, human trafficking was all too common on this island.
Before Allen became lord of the Western Lands, the price of a "person" in some places was lower than that of a horse or an ox.
Girls in particular, who could not perform heavy manual labor,