Divine Call

The group of escaping girls halts its course and turns around to see who is yelling.

"Hey, why are you all standing there?" The silence was broken by a voice that was hardly more than a whisper. One of the girl asked, her face white and smeared with grime, her eyes reflecting their own horror.

Another said, her voice shaking. She stared at what was happening just a few paces away."A boy is halting the traders."

"He appears to be from a noble family based on his attire", another girl added to her response. She gestured to a young man who was standing in front of the traders' two carriages like a revolting challenge, his clothing brightly colored and clearly expensive.

"He will undoubtedly be among the treaders," replies the first female once more.

"There is still time for us to run."

The reply comes from another girl: "Do you honestly think we can escape?" Her words weighed heavily in the air, every word a death knell for their faint dreams.

"According to what I overheard traders saying early morning, slave collars will shrink till they die if they manage to escape, even if they manage to cover a set distance."

Their escape hopes were shattered. They knew they would have been dead on the ground by now if the treaders hadn't been chasing them.Three of the seven girls in the group started sobbing like streams of disappointment.

The two carriages were stopped by Ryūta, and two men landed one from each of the carriages.

"Hey, who do you think you are? Why are you blocking our path?" A big man with a loud voice, the larger of the two traders, yelled, his face twisted in anger. With his fists clenched, he stepped forward.

A wiry man with sharp eyes, the other trader, grabbed his arm and dragged him back before he could intensify the situation any more. Hissing into his ear,"What are you doing, idiot? Do you not see that he is a member of the Nobel family and that we will be executed if we provoke him?"

The furious trader's eyes became wide as he surveyed Ryūta's look, moving from the young man's exquisitely polished, soft leather boots to the pricey quality of his layered clothing. Immediately his fury subsided and was replaced by a nervous anxiousness. Quickly lowering his head, he made a small, awkward apology bow.

"I apologize for my behavior, sir. Please pardon me." He lowered his head in apology.

Ryūta looked around in uncertainty, wondering to whom he was apologizing.

'Me?'

Then he collected himself and remarked in an authoritative tone, "Hey, who are you yelling at?"

"I apologize for my disrespectful behavior, sir."To express his regret, he bowed lower.

In an effort to save the day, the second trader came forward.

"Sir, what is your purpose in stopping us? I'll inform you if you're unaware: we are authorized to trade slaves."

He produced a spherical copper coin with an official seal imprinted on its surface after reaching inside the folds of his shirt. As though to demonstrate their genuineness, he held it up.

As he gazed at the coin, Ryūta felt a chilly realization sink in. He clenched his heart and thought, "Slave traders."

"That implies... those girls." As he turned his head, he saw the tiny group of girls gathered together, their features marked with a mix of despair and terror. An unexpected and piercing sense of sympathy swept over him.

"I am willing to buy these slaves," he said, turning back to the traders in a forceful and determined voice.

The first merchant, the one who had just been so furious, saw a chance. The remained of his rage was washed away, and a fawning smile took its place.

"If that's the case, sir, the price will be –"

Once more, the more shrewd second trader cut him off. "Among nobles, he looks noble," he whispered into his ear.

"We may trick him by raising the price."

He could take advantage of the fact that the girls were worth only 10 silver coins each. The first trader swiftly nodded in agreement with his associate's reasoning.

He stood up straight and put on a confident expression.

"Good sir, seven gold coins will be the price."

He believed that by pricing the females, he had made them nearly twice as much as he would normally receive.

"Then I am happy to buy all of them for seven coins of gold each," Ryūta said without hesitation.

There was a glint of perplexity in the traders' eyes as they looked at one another. They had intended for all seven of the girls to get seven gold coins.

However, they soon discovered that they had discovered a treasure trove, an opportunity that was much above their expectations. Their cheeks lit up with greed; they remained silent, allowing the misunderstanding to continue.

In the meantime, Ryūta was figuring out in his mind how his rash choice would work out. Although he had to make the coins to come to life, he couldn't just do it in front of the traders because that would shock them all.

He came up with a strategy immediately, a mental picture of a spell, and a magical storage that he could use.

'I will cast a storage spell,' he thought, 'then make the coins appear inside of it, and then just remove them from the storage.'

Following his plan, he used a storage spell to make a circular hole in the air. After inserting his hand inside, he eventually removed a brown fabric pouch that had a string tied across its mouth.

And he tossed the pouch at a trader. The trader took the pouch and gazed at Ryūta.

Again, a girl in the throng said, "Did you see that? That boy was able to cast the storage spell."

The other girl taunted right away, "Don't you know that nobles often use a storage spell?"

The trader who caught the bag opened the mouth and took a quick look inside, finding a sizable quantity of gold coins.

They didn't even bother to count the amount because they realized they were receiving far more than the original purchase price.

After bowing to Ryūta, the traders collectively uttered, "Thank you for your purchase, we will give you a certificate o—."

At that moment, they notice Ryūta approaching the slaves.

Ryūta approached the girls and stood in front of them. One of the females muttered in the ear of the girl next to her, "Why is he coming towards us?"

The second girl responded annoyed, "How would I know?"