The Art of Using Slaves

"You still don't understand. The most amusing part is when, one day, they finally reach the limit of their endurance." Saint Ni spoke with great enthusiasm. "Will their familial affection prove stronger, or will the desire to survive be more important? What choices will they make? That is the most interesting and anticipated part!"

Miming shook his head. "Boring. Father, I actually think only powerful, vicious slaves who have killed before are worthy of your status. Pirates who have killed countless people, for example. Training them would be much more interesting, wouldn't it?"

"Besides, these are my slaves. Shouldn't I be the one to train them into the way I like? From now on, don't touch my slaves anymore. They're my toys."

"Fine! If you can train them properly yourself, I won't bother with them anymore. These little girls are only the basics for beginners. They're meant to temper your character. Those brutally fierce pirates are the graduation course!"

Saint Ni was in high spirits. "Oh, right. It wouldn't hurt to let you see one, either. Bring up that incredibly fierce Fish-Man pirate."

A Fish-Man pirate?

Miming froze. Could it be? Could it be Fisher Tiger?

But this was a perfect opportunity. Miming gave Cairns a meaningful look and ordered, "Cairns, take my slaves back and have them watched carefully. If they die, I'll hold you responsible."

Cairns reluctantly took the three sisters away. Judging by Saint Miming's meaning, he was definitely going to have Cairns waste precious medicine on the slaves again.

In truth, the medicine was extremely expensive. It was allocated to the Marines and agents like them. The Celestial Dragons used it to save their slaves, allowing them to draw a few more breaths so they could endure more torture and bring their masters more pleasure.

Cairns wasn't worried about the medicine itself. He was worried that if Saint Ni found out about this, he would be furious. Miming would certainly be scolded and beaten, but the one who would truly suffer was Cairns, caught in the middle.

Saint Ni hadn't noticed Miming's thoughts. His attention was now entirely focused on showing off his enormous Fish-Man slave. He excitedly shared his experience in training slaves with Miming, speaking with animated gestures.

Miming could only pretend to enjoy listening and flatter him incessantly.

Soon, an extremely tall, red-skinned Fish-Man slave was dragged out.

Nearly five meters tall, he was hoisted up as his chains scraped along the ground. A Hoof of the Soaring Dragon, as large as a tabletop, had been branded onto his chest, and he breathed weakly.

An ordinary person barely reached his knees. With one punch, he could smash one into pulp!

Fisher Tiger!

Miming's eyes widened as he held his breath and stared at the Fish-Man before him. In the story from his previous life, this was the Fish-Man who had escaped from the heavily guarded holy land of Mary Geoise. Later, he had led others in a surprise attack on Mary Geoise and freed all the slaves.

But looking at the scene before him, unless a miracle happened, how could he possibly escape?

Saint Ni had already become as excited as if he had been injected with stimulants, swinging his whip wildly at Tiger.

Yet Tiger continued looking at Saint Ni as if he were an ant, as though his body couldn't feel the pain at all.

"Scared now? Beg me—!" Saint Ni shouted incessantly despite becoming exhausted, as if he were the one being beaten.

Beating Tiger required two long whips, and swinging them was extremely tiring. But Saint Ni enjoyed every moment of it.

"Hey." Fisher Tiger suddenly spoke. "Could I have a sip of water?"

"Water?" Saint Ni was stunned, then overjoyed. "Hahaha! You finally can't take it anymore! But why should I give you water?"

"How about this? You seem to enjoy putting on little side shows." Fisher Tiger licked the blood running down from his forehead. "Give me some water, and I'll perform for you."

"Hahaha!" Saint Ni was delighted. "All right. I knew you would submit sooner or later."

Miming gazed at Saint Ni with pity. Father in my previous life had never been this stupid. Then again, he hadn't been this vile, either. I might as well watch the show.

An agent poured a bucket of water into Fisher Tiger's mouth, but Tiger was still unsatisfied. "A little more."

To him, a bucket of water wasn't even enough to quench his thirst.

"No. Give him only that much." Saint Ni asserted his authority. "First, tell me what sort of show you can perform."

"How about Fish-Man Karate?" Fisher Tiger gave a mocking grin.

"Karate? Do you want me to release your hands and feet?" Saint Ni asked. "I'm not that foolish. You still aren't obedient enough."

"There's no need to release my hands and feet. I can show you right now." Fisher Tiger said, "This act is called Buraikan, Water Shot—!"

He suddenly gathered all his strength and shouted. A blast of water violently shot from Fisher Tiger's mouth straight toward Saint Ni.

One guard, already on alert, instantly stepped in front of Saint Ni. At the same time, another CP0 member leaped up and punched Fisher Tiger in the head, knocking him unconscious on the spot.

After a tremendous crash, the red mist of water blasted into the wall, along with the guard's corpse.

The Water Shot had pierced through the guard's upper body and the wall behind him, blowing a huge hole through the doors and windows.

Saint Ni was so frightened that he nearly fainted. Only after a long while did he regain his composure and shout, "Take him away! Let him die of thirst! Starve him to death—!"

But Fisher Tiger couldn't hear him anyway. Even while unconscious, a triumphant smile remained on his face.

"Hahaha!" A burst of laughter suddenly rang out through the room, accompanied by applause.

Miming's face was full of delight. He showed no surprise or fear whatsoever, instead looking as if he had just watched a play whose ending he had expected all along.

His mouth, however, cried out, "Father, you're truly amazing! I've never seen such a fierce pirate before!"

Saint Ni panted heavily. Gradually, under Miming's flattery, he regained his confidence. "Very fierce, right? But I'll tame him sooner or later!"

Miming spoke with an excited expression. "Taming a slave like that really is a challenging task. But I'll start with younger slaves first."

Saint Ni watched with great satisfaction as Miming walked toward the slave pens. Then he collapsed onto the ground and cursed the CP0 agent who had just saved his life. "What are you waiting for? Hurry up and help me rest!"

I nearly lost my life today. I'll have to be twice as careful about my safety from now on.

In the pitch-black dungeon beneath the Bird Family palace, Miming saw countless cages.

"The only slaves here are those the main family keeps for collection and consumption. As for the number of slaves, the Bird Family dares call itself second. No one dares claim to be first!" Cairns said, brimming with pride.

Miming's face darkened. Does everyone in this family like collecting slaves so much?

To the Celestial Dragons, slaves were capital. They were toys, merchandise, consumables, and laborers. They had to serve the Celestial Dragons day and night while also working day and night.

They built palaces, mined mountains, served as experimental subjects, and suffered countless other horrors beyond imagination.

Inside a low iron cage that was too short to stand upright in, Miming saw the three sisters. Someone had just bandaged their wounds, and the sisters were huddled together, quietly weeping over their miserable fate.

"Big sister, I'm sorry!" the little green-haired girl sobbed.

"It's all right. It doesn't hurt at all." The black-haired girl forced a faint smile onto her face. "You did well. Only this way can we end it sooner. Keep doing the same from now on."

The moment they saw Miming, the three sisters screamed in unison, thinking the game was about to continue, and desperately shrank toward the back of the cage.

The black-haired girl frantically spread her arms to shield them while her two younger sisters desperately hid behind her. Miming bent down and was just about to speak when her vision went black and she fainted again.

It was only natural. Although her wounds had already been treated with medicine, she had suffered a brutal beating while running a high fever. Both her body and her will had reached the brink of collapse.

Only now did Miming have the chance to carefully examine the three sisters.

The eldest, black-haired girl was deathly pale, but her fair, delicate face in the darkness was unmistakably beautiful.

Behind her, the two younger girls screamed in unison. One had long, emerald-green hair, while the other had long, curly golden hair. Both had lovely faces and figures.

The black-haired eldest sister, who had been selected to serve Miming, was indeed the most beautiful. But the two younger sisters were already beauties in the making as well—if they hadn't been beaten so horribly.