37. The Beastkin Girl
In a dimly lit, narrow stone room stood iron bars that completely denied any concept of privacy. Anyone passing by could see everything inside the cell at a glance.
In a room lined with such prison-like cells, there was one beastkin girl.
Inside the cell-like room, there were naturally no toys for the girl to play with—only the bare minimum: a toilet for relieving herself and a hard bed for sleeping.
Wrapped in a thin blanket that resembled a sheet, the girl quietly waited for that moment.
Then, the sound of a door opening echoed throughout the prison block.
The sound of the door opening wasn’t particularly loud. However, in the quiet, hard, and cold prison, even that sound reverberated clearly.
The concept of time barely existed here, but upon hearing this sound, everyone confined within understood that morning had arrived.
There were no windows in the cells, so there was no external light. Still, time flowed. Therefore, the guards changed shifts at regular intervals, and every morning, the master of this place would come to check on the condition of the “goods” in the cells.
There were probably several people who understood this. By comparing the time they were thrown in here with the master’s daily timing using their internal clock, they could easily tell it was morning.
Especially the beastkin girl—she had been thrown in during the night and had immediately seen the master through the iron bars, so she knew it was now morning.
“Good morning, Colobo-sama.” “Mm. Good morning. How are things?” “No particular issues.” “Understood. Then I’ll begin my usual inspection.” “Thank you for your hard work.”
As the conversation between the master and the guard echoed, the sound of footsteps tap tap rang out.
For the past several days, the girl’s mornings had begun this way.
The footsteps gradually grew louder, approaching the front of the girl’s cell, and then stopped abruptly.
“Good morning. Would you show me your face?”
She could have ignored him. No—she wanted to ignore him. But the girl understood her position all too well. So she obediently responded to the man’s words.
She threw off the thin blanket covering her body and stood up.
“Good. That’s enough.”
Once he had confirmed her condition, the master immediately averted his gaze from the girl and continued walking deeper into the cell block.
After reaching the back and checking the condition of all the goods, he returned to where the guard was.
“The one fourth from the back on the right side, and the second from the front on the left side. Give those two a slightly larger portion of food.” “Understood.”
Although the living conditions were poor, if anyone looked too thin or lacking in energy, the master would make sure they were given proper meals. It seemed very kind, but it was all for profit.
It was all so he could earn money by selling them as slave “goods.”
“By the way, it’s already time for the shift change. Where’s Inro?” “Um… he still hasn’t arrived…” “Tsk, that guy… I should just fire him soon…”
The person named Inro who appeared in the distant conversation was the guard responsible for the morning-to-evening shift.
He was a man who wore glasses, always acted timid in front of the master, and was disliked by the other guards.
“Now that I mention it, the beastkin girl fourth from the back on the right had slightly dirty clothes. Did something happen?” “No, nothing in particular…” “I see. Then it’s fine.”
As the master and the guard were talking, the sound of the door being vigorously opened rang out.
“I’m sorry for being late! —W-wait, C-Colobo-sama…!” “Inro. How many times has this been?” “I-I’m sorry…!” “How much trouble do you need to cause for other people before you’re satisfied?” “I’m sorry…”
The weak, stuttering voice that had been heard many times before echoed throughout the prison. And as always, it was followed by the master’s loud sigh.
“Haa… Inro. Listen carefully.” “Y-Yes!” “If you cause me trouble one more time, you’re fired.” “N-No way!” “Of course. And it’s not just me who’s troubled. If you understand, hurry up and prepare breakfast!” “Y-Yes!”
The sound of hurried running footsteps could be heard, followed once again by the master’s sigh.
“I’ll leave the rest to you.” “Yes, sir.”
The master also left, and thus another new day began.