When I Infiltrated the Enemy Nation as a Slave, the Yandere Beauties There Started a Civil War Over Me - Chapter 02: Slave Auction

Chapter 02: Slave Auction

“Alright, you guys, line up here and shut up. When you’re called, get out there one by one, starting with the first person in line.”

After giving us these instructions, the man in charge of the backstage area of the slave auction walked toward the main stage.

“Ooooooohhhh!!”

As soon as he left, a loud cheer erupted from the auction hall. It seemed like this was the signal that the slave auction was starting.

Most of the people attending this auction were probably nobles of the Elenorde Empire, considering they had enough money to buy slaves. How low could they be?

Or maybe it was just these particular nobles who were this disgraceful… Either way, no nobles in Sandrotheim would ever take pleasure in something like this.

“…”

Since I’m here on a mission, the mental strain isn’t too much for me, but the other slaves don’t have that luxury.

Just thinking that among these slaves there might be people from my kingdom—or even innocent civilians—made my chest ache.

If I could, I’d love to tell them that I’m here undercover as a royal and promise to rescue them someday. But if I did, my true identity would be revealed, so I had to keep quiet.

As my resentment toward the Elenorde Empire grew stronger…

“The first piece is this one!”

It seemed the man from earlier was also acting as the auctioneer, as he called out in a loud voice. The first slave, who had been standing at the front of the line, stepped onto the stage.

Immediately, the auction hall erupted with cheers—

“The bidding for the first slave begins now!”

“Five thousand!”

“Twenty thousand!”

“Fifty thousand!”

“Hundred thousand!”

With each shout from the man, the audience kept raising their bids to higher and higher amounts.

I took the anger I felt toward this disgusting display and turned it into determination—I will defeat the Elenorde Empire.

“The auction is really heating up today! Next up, the twentieth piece—this one!”

Soon, it was my turn at the front of the line, and as instructed, I stepped onto the stage.

The audience’s cheers grew even louder.

“Look here! This one’s a real star of today’s auction! A handsome young man with blond hair and red eyes! Let the bidding begin!”

“Fifty thousand!”

“Hundred thousand!”

“Two hundred thousand!”

“Five hundred thousand!”

“A million!”

“Oh! We’ve broken the million mark for the first time today!”

The bids kept climbing higher and higher, perfectly illustrating the concept of a bidding war.

I glanced at the crowd of Elenorde citizens who were eagerly calling out their bids… As expected, nearly all of them were wearing noble attire.

As I looked around the crowd of nobles with a cold gaze, I suddenly made eye contact with someone I recognized.

It was the white-haired woman I had met earlier.

She sat with a slight smile, maintaining an elegant posture… If she stayed quiet like this, it was easy to believe she really was from a duke’s family.

“Three million!”

“Three million seven hundred thousand!”

“Four million!”

Amid the shouting bids, the white-haired woman smiled at me and, raising her hand, spoke in a clear and beautiful voice that cut through the noise.

“Ten million.”

The moment she said it, the once noisy auction hall fell silent.

Whispers started to spread among the crowd.

“T-Ten million… for a single slave…?”

“Is this some kind of joke…?”

“That’s… the Duchess!”

“Wait, so it’s not a joke?”

As the murmurs continued, the auctioneer, visibly flustered, raised his voice to confirm.

“The highest bid so far is four million… Are you sure you want to offer ten million?”

I didn’t know much about the norms of slave auctions, but this was clearly an unusual situation. The auctioneer’s nervousness showed as he asked, and the white-haired woman responded.

“Yes, that’s fine~. If anyone here is willing to offer ten million, I’ll raise it to twenty or even thirty million.”

The moment she said that, the entire room fell into complete silence.

“Is there anyone who wishes to bid more than ten million!?”

The auctioneer tried to stir up the crowd, but no one responded. While it wasn’t impossible for a noble to have that much money, the idea of going up against someone willing to spend twenty or thirty million was clearly enough to make them give up.

As the silence continued, the auctioneer finally declared:

“Sold for ten million! Sold for ten million! This is the highest bid ever recorded at this slave auction! Everyone, let’s have a round of applause!”

The hall filled with applause, just as the auctioneer requested.

That white-haired woman… she really bought me.

But in a way, this works out perfectly. I’ll do whatever it takes to gather information from her and find the weakness of the Elenorde Empire.

After that, I was led down a corridor behind the stage, where I saw the man who had placed the slave tags around our necks earlier, sitting at a desk. And then—

“Hey, it’s been a while~! Hey, did you hear? We just set a new record at this auction! The two of us made history together!”

When she opened her mouth, her carefree tone made her seem nothing like someone from a duke’s family, but given her aura and the fact that she could casually spend ten million, there was no doubt that this white-haired woman was indeed a noble.

As I stood there, feeling conflicted about this woman who seemed out of place in such a setting, the man sitting at the desk gestured toward a paper and spoke.

“Alright, once you sign this slave contract with your name, it’ll be official. Please sign here, Your Grace.”

“Okay~!”

With that, the white-haired woman signed the contract.

“Confirmed… The slave now belongs to the Duchess.”

“Yay!”

She shouted excitedly and walked over to me, asking with a cheerful tone.

“What’s your name, boy?”

“…L-Luke.”

As soon as I answered, the man at the desk stood up, approached me, and stretched out his arm, shouting.

“Hey! You’re speaking to a duchess! You should answer her more clearly—”

Before he could finish, the white-haired woman suddenly stepped between us. In a swift motion, she slammed the man against the wall by his neck.

Then, without hesitation, she drew her sword and pressed it against his throat, her eyes cold and her voice devoid of warmth.

“This boy’s mine now, right? So, if you ever try to touch him with those filthy hands without my permission again… you know what will happen, don’t you?”

“Hiiii…! P-Please forgive me, Duchess…!!”

The man, trembling with fear, begged for forgiveness. The white-haired woman released her grip from his neck. 

Afterward, as the man collapsed to his knees, trying to catch his breath, she lost interest in him and turned back to me, her eyes once again bright and her voice lively.

“Alright then, Luke~! From today, let’s get along!”

I see now… I had thought she was just a bubbly woman, but that’s not the case. 

Her brightness comes from the confidence of her absolute power and authority… This woman is undoubtedly a duchess.

“Yes, please.”

I had hoped that I might be able to easily gather information from her, but… it seems like she might be a far more difficult opponent than I initially thought.