Conqueror

The smell of alcohol, sweat... The voices of laughter, intellectual conversations and fighting... This atmosphere and this place. Of course its a must for every fantasy! Its a bar!

There were people everywhere and I felt like I was out of place. I thought I was ready for this but... I haven't had social talk with anyone in like 10 years!

Uh... Does online chat count?

"What would you like for today?" The beautiful maid in front of the bar asked me.

"Uh... juice!" I have zero tolerance against alcohol so I don't know what to do.

The woman just looked at me confused but soon brought out a juice for me.

I was planning to get a new companion but my horrible social skills didn't work. So I just sat there silently until the night came to no avail. Not even being able to talk to anyone.

I was just simply intimidated by the big hulking muscles of men and the women that will be able to kick me out of this tavern with a single kick. I couldn't say anything.

I just paid the juice with a gold and left and they seem to be panicking when I gave them the gold. Was it too much or something? Argh I don't even care.

I began to just wander around this place. I don't even know where I am right now. As I was walking around for what seemed hours, I found a staircase leading downstairs. 

This should've been the time that I'd say, 'NOPE.' And just mind my own business but as I promised to myself, I'd do anything. To restart the life. And this is my own adventure.

So with my absolute confidence, I just went down the stairs and there was a hallway. Filled with torches. I just walked through the hallway and just walked and walked until I found a person in front of what seems to be a door. "Welcome." Is what he said.

"Hello." I responded.

"Please come with me." He opened the door and walked inside and looked back at me.

I scratched the back of my head and stood up straight. "Alright." I followed him inside and it was just complete darkness.

He snapped his fingers and the whole room was illuminated by candles. Cages that seems to go on for forever. The room was big. It was like it was an infinite space. And every single one of those cages were filled with... monsters and people.

And I know every single one of these from all the games and anime that I've watched. Wolves, goblins, orcs and some other humanoid species like beastmen and... elves.

Golden silky hair, pointed ears, her body's perfect as it was curvy. But her whole body was filled with dust and dirt and her eyes glowed in red. I couldn't help but be fixated and unconsciously said out loud, "Beautiful."

I wasn't lying. It wasn't something that I never usually say. But I couldn't help but just admire her beauty. 

Even though she was covered in dirt and the clothes that she wore were basically rags. I didn't care for it. She was the most beautiful thing I've ever seen.

"Do you like that one mister?" The man asked me. "That's an elf. And not just an elf, she's a royalty. We got a good haul of elves because of the raid and the betrayal of their family."

I ignored him and looked at her. I placed my hands on her cage, "Name... give me your name."

But she didn't respond or anything. She just looked at me. The man got angry and brought out a whip out of nowhere and magically, it wrapped around her neck and her face were forcibly dragged in front of the cage. "SPEAK ELF! He's asking for your name!"

"Let go, if I'm going to buy her I don't want her to be damaged."

"I apologize." The whip that he has on her neck disappeared and the woman tried to grasp for air. "Give him your name you damn slave."

"...Dahlia Edelstein." She replied as she was coughing trying to inhale the air.

I didn't care about my morals. Or anything at all. I didn't care if I was committing a crime or something. I just wanted to know her. "I'll take her."

The man slightly smiled but then frowned. "I'm sorry but she's a new stock and she's a royalty that was just captured a day ago. So her price is still high. But if you really want her... I'm afraid she'll cost 80 gold."

"I don't care." I grabbed the pocket of gold that was strapped around me and gave it to him. "Release her."

"Mister this is a lot more than 80 gold!" The man smiled but I didn't care for it. "But alright," He then pulled out the keys from his pockets and opened up the cage. She was scared from getting out but the moment the man took out the whip from... something? Dahlia complied with him and instantly got out of the cage. "Transferring ownership..." I then felt something in me. I felt something change. "There we go. Now she's your property. Do you want anything el-" 

I ignored his words and grabbed her hand. I then ran away while I was pulling her with me. I wanted to travel with someone. So that I can see the world with them and I can show them the world. And there's no other one better than her.

For the first time in years... I didn't only meet someone but fell in love with them. 

It was like love at first sight.

And under the stars of the night, we were running. 

"Where... where are you taking me?" Dahlia meekly asked.

"To see the world!" At this time, I didn't know what I wanted to tell her but my mind and mouth were like the same. They just blabber everything I think about. My awkward social skills disappeared. And I thought I could converse with her. 

"To see... the world?"

"Yes!" I was excited. Extremely so. "I'm a traveler from a very far away place and I just got here! Before I was just wandering aimlessly and I want to be a hero! And you're my first companion!" I had no idea what I just said. But its just the adrenaline rush that was running throughout my entire body. Everything is just slowly getting realized by me. I'm in an another world. A fantasy, magical world. And my journey is finally starting. I wasn't scared or intimidated. I was simply... excited.

I didn't care how powerful enemies are or how weak I am. Because in this world, I have a chance to change all that. I wanted to be a hero that slays a legendary dragon, a symbol of peace and something more than that.

I wanted to be someone special. Someone that everyone can depend on and someone that can answer their prayers.

And all of that, starts with her and me.

The first step of many steps. "That's why you need to stop worrying! Being with me doesn't make you a slave, you're free! That's why everything that you and I will own we'll own together!" I didn't notice it at first but it seems that we've ran out of the kingdom I was in and I was out in the plains. I stopped and looked at her. I just couldn't believe how beautiful she was. "Don't look at me, look up at the sky!"

"Huh..? Free..?" She looked up at the sky and saw the endless horizon of stars up there. She stood there for a couple of seconds until a drop of tear came out of her eyes. She looked back at me and wiped it with her hands. She looked at it and the tears couldn't just stop flowing. 

Then suddenly, everything just hit me. I saved her out of a whim. Not knowing what that place is. It was a slave market. And everyone that was put there surely had a difficult time from before that point. And each and everyone of us surely had a difficult past to get from this point.

It might've been inappropriate but I didn't mind dying here today. Or being imprisoned for life. It was the first time in my whole lifetime that I cared about someone. And loved someone this much. I hugged her and waited for her to calm down.

After a while, she calmed down but then, I felt a chill from my spine. I didn't know what it was. But as I let go from the hug, I looked around and rustles from the bushes from the nearby forest were heard. I began to grew wary of what was happening.

I began to look carefully at everything that was going on. It was dark and scary and we could barely see anything from the darkness... But then, goblins emerged from the bushes. "Wha-"