Under Chuan Wenwu's unspoken pressure, the Slave Trader soon returned with a potion prepared to remove the Slave Curse. He carefully dripped it onto Raphtalia's chest, and it quickly seeped through her clothes into the black-and-purple Slave Mark branded on her skin.
"Hiss-"
Fine wisps of black vapor drifted from the mark, accompanied by a sound like a hot iron plunged into cold water. The sinister curse was slowly dissolving.
"Mm..."
Raphtalia's brows drew together slightly. Cleansing the curse clearly wasn't pleasant; even her body trembled a little.
It was easy to imagine that if he had removed Raphtalia's Slave Curse right after taking her from the slave dealer, she would most likely have been too frail to withstand this almost torturous process.
Soon, the Slave Icon displayed in a corner of Chuan Wenwu's vision began to flicker, then vanished completely.
"Lord Hero, her Slave Curse has been removed. If you would..." the Slave Trader explained to Chuan Wenwu with a strained, ingratiating smile.
Chuan Wenwu ignored him and turned to Raphtalia instead. "Talia, how do you feel now?"
"I feel... nothing particularly different."
Raphtalia pressed a hand against her chest, which felt a little chilly from the potion soaking into it. She carefully checked for changes in her body, shook her head, then gave him a sweet smile.
"After all, you've never used this curse to control me in all the time I've been with you, have you, Big Brother Chuan? Having a Slave Mark or not really makes no difference to me. As long as I can keep following you, that's the best thing I could ask for!"
"But to me, it's important to have a companion who's free in both mind and body, without anything external controlling her. Talia, don't identify with being a 'slave' just because