After Surviving the Apocalypse, I Built a City in Another World

"Where is your slave? That blonde one. " he asked directly, feeling irksome. This made Hesso narrow his eyes at him.

"Her? Why do you want her?"

Otto's eyes flashed, but his body language remained leisurely. "I've seen her roam the market. But I found out she is your slave and did not make a move."

"Didn't you say you want undamaged goods?"

Otto's eyebrows furrowed. He meant this so the women would not get touched. Did he accidentally make it worse for her instead?

This made him very angry, and it showed in his aura, making the others flinch.

"Did you damage the goods on purpose?" he asked, voice low, and Hesso's suspicions were pushed down, feeling only anxiety.

"No!"

"Then what did you do to her?"

"Calm down." It was only Mafo, who was around similar levels, who could interact with him.

Otto looked at Hesso, who eventually managed to gather himself. "What happened?"

"Well, she has a large burn scar on her face. It happened just yesterday."

"What?"

"She… seemed to have gotten into an accident in the market while I was not with her. She used to have a scar before that I already healed—and it seemed like it happened to her often for some reason," he said, trying not to stutter. "So it's not on purpose. She was my favorite woman, how can I damage her?"

Hesso cursed. He really liked Misha, but seeing that hideous scar made him cringe. He tried to get her to drink a healing potion like before, but she said it was a flame from an elementalist.

Apparently, during her trip, a rogue elementist thought she had betrayed their kind and attacked her.

He did not kill her to make her suffer, but the damage from elementalists was not easy to reverse. Common healing potions bought from Pharmacies actually had limited effects on elementalist attacks—which was another reason why they were so valuable.

Even normal elementalist healers, if they were not extremely skilled, might not be able to fix the problem. And those healers were insanely expensive to hire, and definitely not worth using on a slave.

Anyway, no matter how smart and sexy, damaged was damaged.

"I see…" Otto said, keeping his tone as stable as possible. "But I can't forget about her. Just give her to me at a discount, then," he said. "I am willing to buy her for 50 Gold."

This was the fair price for a typical 'weak' elementalist slave in a town, especially when they were 'damaged' and were barely awakened or low-leveled.

"I see you have more than that," Mafo said, referring this his thousands in his space.

"80 gold," Otto said, acting as if it was the last price he was willing to give. "Don't try to fool me."

Mafo narrowed his eyes, though he gave way in the end. He looked to the side."Call her in."

"Yes, Milord."

White waiting, Mafo turned to look at Otto, "While we wait, why don't you check the other products first?" he asked, standing up.

He signalled at someone who then allowed a line of slaves in. The women were upfront, and Mafo was 'polite' enough to show the products himself.

He groped the women, making them flinch. "This one has good breasts."

"This one has good buttocks."

Otto was annoyed, but he kept his cool. His expression only cracked when he saw a certain blonde enter with the group. Her gait was normal, and he heaved a breath of relief when he saw her fine. She did have a bandaged face, but otherwise she was okay.

Mafo saw Otto's daze and followed his sight. "Really damaged?"

"We tried to get her to drink healing potions, but none of them worked. Damned fire elemental."

Mafo looked at him. "Have they checked the wound itself?"

"The healer said it was real."

Mafo looked at the panel, looking at Misha specifically. "Mutated Wood element?" he asked. "Show me."

"I can't…"

Mafo narrowed his eyes at her, and then at Otto. Despite wearing a mask, he did show genuine relief and care.

Mafo wasn't the most empathic man, but he could still tell signs.

It only made him more curious about this woman. "What is your name?"

"Misha, Milord."

He opened his panel to see her status and his eyebrows rose. "Mutated Wood element?"

"What can you do?" Mafo asked, making Otto and Misha flinch. "Tell me."

This was an order, and she had no choice but to be honest. "I can make nice scents."

"What are its effects?"

This made Misha and Otto frown, but they were both used to wearing masks. At the same time, even if they were ordered to be honest, slaves—if they were smart enough—could give themselves leeways as people could with oaths.

"I…mean it literally, my Lord," she said. "I can make scents from my own sweat, but it dissipates when it leaves and the effects cannot be transferred."

She made sure to appear ashamed of this, to lessen the possibility of Mafo's interest in her. At the same time, Otto also acted disappointed, sighing.

Men like Mafo and Hesso might want to hold on to Misha just because Otto showed her interest.

"I will take her, the women you sent before, and about 100 others for 7000 gold," he said.

Mafo considered agreeing, but it wouldn't be a deal if he didn't try to gather more benefits. "80, excluding her."

At this, Otto and Misha looked badly at him. "What?"

"I didn't say she's for sale," Mafo said, not liking his tone. Their levels weren't too far and didn't he say he had already fallen out of favor in a City? In retrospect, what was he so scared of?

"Maybe I changed my mind."

Misha bit her lips and met Otto's eyes for a second.

It was only for a moment, but it was full of meaning.

Now, what?

…

Seeing him silent, Mafo grinned. "I've never encountered a mutated ability before, I want to experience it for myself."

Misha bit her lips and froze in thought. However, after a few moments, her eyes lit in determination and she raised her hands, abruptly pulling off the bandage from her face.

It revealed a fresh and bleeding scar. Its appearance was like when one tried to peel a fruit, but stopped halfway.

Everyone in the room gasped at the sight of it.

It was that hideous.

Misha felt ashamed, but it was also her only way at the time. She also felt that man's stare, but she did not dare look back at him.

Would he think she was unsightly, too?