Help, I'm in Another World and All the Men Are So Hot! [BL]-Chapter 152: Marked by Compassion

"Um, what exactly does slave registration involve?" Damien asked.

"Slaves are required to have an indelible mark placed on their right ankle as proof of their status. Slave registration involves applying this mark and officially registering the owner with the authorities."

Oh, right, the branding. Sebas had mentioned that. The permanence was troubling, but it wasn’t something Damien could change.

"And, uh, how is the mark applied?" he asked cautiously.

"It is quite simple. The owner’s crest and the slave’s designation are burned into the skin using a branding iron."

A branding iron... Damien winced at the thought.

"However!" the trader interjected dramatically. "If you register through our agency, we can apply the mark using a magical process that is far less painful for the slaves!"

"Please do that!" Damien exclaimed immediately.

"Thank you for your patronage!" the trader replied with a smile.

Clever salesmanship, Damien thought, feeling slightly defeated.

"You two seem to be having fun," Cedran muttered dryly, watching with an unimpressed expression.

"My apologies," the trader said politely. "Now, if we handle the registration, the fee will be 10% of 105 gold coins, rounded up to the nearest whole coin, making it 11 gold coins. That brings the total to 116 gold coins. Is that acceptable?"

"Yes, that’s fine," Damien replied.

"And shall we bill the Crowell family for the payment?"

"Yes, please," Damien confirmed.

At that moment, Elyon shot the trader a sharp look, his eyes narrowing dangerously.

Wait... how does this guy know my name? Damien wondered.

"Information is the lifeblood of merchants," the trader said smoothly, bowing slightly toward Elyon.

If that was true, then this trader was clearly well-connected and powerful, Damien realized.

"Now, if I could have your signature on these documents," the trader said, presenting a set of papers.

"Let me see that," Elyon interjected, snatching the documents before Damien could touch them.

Since Damien couldn’t read, he figured Elyon was reviewing the papers on his behalf. Elyon scanned the documents thoroughly before giving a small nod of approval.

"It seems there are no issues. You may sign," Elyon said, giving his approval.

If Elyon said it was fine, Damien trusted it. He signed his name, "Damien Crowell," as Sebas had instructed him before. Sebas had explained that signatures were simply for personal confirmation and didn’t need to be readable by others.

"What a unique and beautiful signature," the trader commented.

"Curiosity killed the cat," Elyon interjected sharply.

"My deepest apologies," the trader said with a bow. "Now, with this, the products officially belongs to you, Lord Crowell. Shall we proceed with the branding process for the slave marks?"

"Um, could you wait a moment? Could you first give them some water and something light to eat? I’ll, of course, pay for it," Damien requested.

"Understood. The cost will be included in the registration fee, so no need to worry," the trader assured him.

With that, the trader clapped his hands twice. Moments later, a woman in revealing attire entered, carrying a silver tray with a pitcher of water, five cups, and five slices of what looked like soft sponge cake.

How did she know what the claps meant? Damien wondered.

The woman approached Damien with the tray.

"Um, could you feed them, please?" Damien asked.

"If that’s what you wish, I will, of course, obey. However, these people are now your property. If we provide care, we must charge an additional fee," the trader replied.

That made sense. Still, the condition of the lizardmen worried Damien. If the branding process took too long, they might not survive.

He decided to at least ensure they drank some water. Damien took the tray from the woman and approached the lizardmen.

The shackles were in the way.

"Excuse me, could their hand restraints be removed?" he asked.

"I’m afraid not. The restraints cannot be removed until after the branding process," the trader said apologetically.

Damien sighed. It couldn’t be helped. He set the tray down, poured water into a cup, and approached the one who had been shouting yesterday, now lying motionless with his head pressed to the floor.

...He’s not dead, right?

"Um, could you lift your head, please?" Damien asked.

The lizardman slowly raised his head. Damien decided to temporarily call him "Scale." Scale had seemed more composed than the others earlier, but now his eyes were vacant. Maybe slamming his head to the floor had worsened his state.

"Here’s some water. Can you drink it?" Damien offered.

No response.

Thinking he’d have to force him to drink, Damien brought the cup closer to Scale’s lips. As soon as he did, Scale’s nose twitched, and he clasped the cup with his shackled hands. He began gulping down the water, though much of it spilled. Still, Damien felt relieved that Scale was managing to drink on his own.

Once the cup was empty, Damien picked up a slice of the cake-like dessert and held it out.

"It’s food. Can you eat it?"

Scale still seemed dazed, but his vacant eyes now showed a glimmer of awareness. When Damien brought the food closer, Scale reflexively took a bite. Tears welled up in his eyes.

"It’s... sweet..."

"It’s okay now. Take your time. Eat slowly if you can," Damien said gently.

"...Thank you... thank you... thank you..."

With each bite, Scale muttered his thanks until he finished the slice.

That should suffice for now, Damien thought. Now, the younger brothers.

"Is it okay to give your brothers water and some of this too?" Damien asked Scale.

"Please... my brothers... help them... I beg you..."

Tears streaming down his face, Scale pressed his forehead to the floor.

Don’t cry too much, Damien thought. You’ll waste precious water.

"I understand. It’s going to be okay. Everyone will be saved," Damien said, despite having no real basis for the assurance. Seeing Scale like that, he simply wanted to say it.

"Ooooh... thank you... thank you..." Scale sobbed.

Damien silently hoped that everyone would still be alive.

Meanwhile, from across the room, Damien overheard the slave trader speaking with Elyon.