— Ralph Freundlich,» the commander of the guard placed the report on the table, «The empire's largest slave trader.
Rachel took it and carefully studied the offered docunts.
— Is this accurate?
The knight nodded.
— Our intelligence has conducted a thorough investigation. His organization has sold more than two thousand slaves this year.
Two thousand people. Just a terrifying figure. That ans there have been auctions every week-if not several tis.
Rachel frowned.
Ever since she'd ascended to the throne, she'd been slowly eradicating all the «rottenness» in the interior of the empire that previous rulers had turned a blind eye to. A year ago she succeeded in completely banning the shipnt of illegal substances into the country. And all the owners of such business were executed for breaking the law.
Rachel was accustod to strict adherence to rules and order. In the army of the Duchy of Cassius, anyone who violated discipline was severely punished. This is what allowed the Duchy to remain the strongest for centuries, while the rulers of Azeroth allowed their warriors too much.
The girl saw this as a prerequisite for the country to continue to develop further. As her father used to say: for a tree to grow properly, the diseased branches must be cut off in ti. These were the sa thods she followed in her monarchy.
Not long ago, Rachel began to deal with other illegal activities in the country. The slave trade.
Not that the girl really felt sorry for all those people. Citizens who, for the most part, were simply kidnapped or forced to beco commodities for sophisticated aristocrats. Rachel had never been known for rcy.
She was outraged by other things. Open disobedience before her and the law. For such a thing, the girl was ready to sentence anyone involved to the highest penalty. All these people must have known — that the present order was different from the old one. No one would be pardoned.
The slave market had grown like mold all over the country. To avoid justice — the cunning masters carefully concealed their activities. Such establishnts could hide in absolutely any building — even in the underground of an unremarkable flower store. That was why they were so difficult to «catch.
Still, Rachel's people managed to find one of them. It turned out to be the largest market owner in the empire — Ralph Freindlich. If you catch him, it will not be difficult to find the rest of his «colleagues.
At this point, shutting down this business was high on the list of priorities. Rachel decided to follow up on the investigation herself.
— When is the next auction? — the girl clarified.
— According to our data… In two days,» said the commander.
— Well,» she sighed, «Then I'll make it in ti.
The man was surprised.
— What do you an? — He asked again, — Do you want…?
— Prepare everything,» Rachel interrupted him, «By the ti I get there, the guards should already have the market surrounded.
The commander of the guards was perplexed.
— But why do you have to go there in person? Wouldn't it be easier to capture them all at once?
— I need proof,» she protested.
— «Proof…?»
— These worms are very cunning and clean up all the evidence. I need to get a contract of sale to officially prosecute them under the article.
— You an…» he hesitated, «you an you're going to buy a slave there?
— That's just a cover,» said the girl at once, «I don't need a man like that. We'll let them all go as soon as the case is over.
The commander nodded understandingly.
— In that case, I'll prepare a pass for you to the auction.
Rachel waved her hand and he obediently departed. She stood up and went to the window. She watched as Camille strolled downstairs in the garden with her maid.
Perhaps she shouldn't have told her about the operation… Rachel didn't want to worry her too much. Besides, all her thoughts were now on the wedding.
Suddenly, Rachel felt a strange excitent. The thought that very soon she would be buying soone at the market seed strange…
Although, it was for a cause, after all. That was all Rachel had to think about.
***
Rachel made it safely to the right town two days later. And soon, thanks to a tip she'd received, she found the building. It had a seriously shabby exterior — and at first glance, you'd think it was abandoned.
But it wasn't. Thanks to the small crowd of people with masks at the entrance, Rachel guessed she was in the right place.
Putting her own mask on her face, the girl got in line. She didn't have to wait long.
— Your invitation, please.
The guard held out his hand to her.
Rachel handed over the invitation card, which, of course, did not have her real na on it. But after scrutinizing it, the man did not raise any suspicions.
He cleared his throat and stepped aside.
— Please, co in.
The servant in charge of escorting the guests t Rachel at the entrance to escort her inside. Without a word the girl followed him.
They walked down the stairs for a long ti until they reached the right door. Unlocking it, Rachel discovered that inside this dilapidated building was a magnificent hall. It's not even clear how he could fit in here.
— Your place is here.
The servant escorted her to the front seats and handed her an auction sign. Then he left at once. Rachel twirled it in her hands and chuckled.
Here she was.
The girl watched the scene as the auction began.
It was going on rather boringly. The slaves were brought out one by one and Rachel didn't even rember their faces. In a way, the origin of the slave didn't matter. To prove the guilt of the organizers, she could have taken any of them.
But for so reason she dragged it out to the last. Her hunch told her the most interesting was yet to co.
Finally, the last slot was left.
A girl was brought onstage-whose face was almost completely hidden by a veil. Only her amber eyes remained open.
Compared to the other slaves, the host called the lowest stage for her. All because of a defect on her face: which made the goods imdiately considered «tainted.»
No one in the audience dared raise their hand. And at the very last mont, Rachel did.
Unexpectedly she raised the sign and called out the price:
— Five hundred thousand gold pieces.
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