Kai was startled by the cold wind pounding against his skin. He opened his eyes, came to his senses, and sat up immediately. He scanned the small room around him, remembering the last time he was at the doctor's house.
He looked at his body. He wore black clothes that were loose and comfortable. Then he noticed that the wounds that had gaped all over his body yesterday had now dried up with blackened marks. Miraculously, he also no longer felt the pain like yesterday.
He looked towards the door. Sunlight streamed into the house through the cracks in the wood and through the wide-open door. His eyes blinked a few times. Why was it so quiet?
Where was his master?
Kai widened his eyes, realizing his master was probably gone. Fear instantly struck. He quickly scrambled to his feet with difficulty. He hobbled to the door, looking out at the large, empty front yard.
The dry leaves seemed to fall one by one. Kai glanced around. His chest beat very fast at that moment.
He walked with uneasy thoughts, heading towards the courtyard. Where was the master? Was he banished?
"M-Master?" called Kai. His voice was hoarse. He walked around the house, looking for Sylas.
But he wasn't there. "Master?" His voice was low; he was afraid of shouting.
After quite a bit of walking around the house and not finding his master, he stopped under a tree that stood firmly in the center of the courtyard. This tree shaded most of the area.
Kai hobbled out of the courtyard, his mind full. He had been disowned by his master. The thought of living alone made his stomach turn. But more than that, his chest tightened unstoppably. He sobbed as he walked down.
"Master..." he whispered between sobs. He knew he shouldn't cry, but he couldn't help it at that moment.
"Kai, come here!"
Kai immediately turned his head at the voice of the doctor who had treated him yesterday. The old man stood beside the house with several plants in his hands.
The doctor was surprised to find Kai walking that way, with puffy eyes, like a child who had lost his mother. He shook his head, unable to believe that the slave was crying for his master.
"Come here!" he called again.
Kai quickly wiped away his tears, walking over, his feet dragging slowly.
"Why are you crying? You're not going to die here," the doctor said.
Kai looked down in silence. His hands squeezed restlessly.
"You're going to stay here. So you can help me from now on. I'll take care of you as long as you do a good job," the doctor explained quickly before the slave got confused.
"You can say anything to me. You can't hold back," the old man continued.
Kai gulped, his chest still pounding. "I-I will stay here?" he asked hoarsely.
The doctor nodded.
"B-but, where is my master?" Kai asked again.
"He can't take you away. You are no longer a slave, so don't look for a master. Live for yourself."
Kai was confused. The doctor was not his master, and the master who bought him had dumped him there. He didn't want to be abandoned.
He limped towards the courtyard again. He had to find his master.
"Hey! Come here!" the doctor ordered.
Kai instantly stopped. He couldn't move, so his legs reflexively turned around, and he walked closer to the doctor.
The doctor asked him to come in and help make potions. But all day, Kai was silent and lethargic, his face pale. His head was filled with bad thoughts. His body was hot again.
Over and over again, his mind told him he was a useless slave. He was trash.
Later that evening, Kai sat alone after dinner. The old doctor sat in the corner of the room with his eyes closed.
The slave blinked a few times. His gaze shifted towards the door. The doctor told him that his master was staying in a nearby house for the time being. He just needed to find the house.
Should he go? What if the doctor got angry? But he didn't want to leave his master. He liked the man in the white robe.
What should he do?
What if he ran away, and the doctor found him and tortured him?
Kai was in a dilemma.
"Oh, what should I do?" muttered Kai, agitated.
He placed the potion he was working on carefully on the table, then walked towards the door. He tried not to make noise, so he had to walk quietly.
Reaching the courtyard, he tried to walk faster, though his legs still wouldn't let him move quickly. He thought it would be easy to find the house the doctor had referred to. But after only a few steps, Kai had already lost his way.
He saw many houses on either side of the road, bordered by large gardens. Where did the master live?
Why did the houses look strange? Where was he exactly? Was he in a slave settlement in another village? But he did not see a single slave on the road. The streets were quiet and dark.
Only the moon lit up the way, and a few houses had torches lit at the front.
Kai looked in every direction, confused. He didn't dare ask. In the end, he came to the edge of the village, bordering a small forest that became a barrier between villages.
The forest was completely dark at this time. Kai was afraid to go further. Plus, the doctor said that his master was in a house nearby.
Finally, he turned around, trying to search more thoroughly. It was possible that his master was outside and he could recognize him. But he found nothing but silence.
Even worse, he forgot the way back to the doctor's house. He had taken so many turns and forgot where he needed to go to return.
Kai stood anxiously in the middle of a village road. Where should he go?
A few steps later, Kai saw a large building with a tightly closed wooden gate. It seemed to be the largest house there. Kai stared at the house for a moment. He found hope that his master would be there.
Didn't his master have lots of money? So his house must be very large too, Kai assumed. And so he walked towards the house.
Arriving in front of the gate, suddenly a man with a large and burly body, like a giant, appeared from inside. The man was as surprised as Kai.
"Hey, who are you at this time of night?!" the man snapped fiercely. His eyes glared angrily.
Kai immediately backed away. He bowed apologetically. "I'm sorry..."
The man stared suspiciously. The black clothes Kai was wearing made him think even worse.
"You want to steal?!" the man snapped.
Kai immediately turned pale. He shook his head. His body trembled. In Omino, if a slave was caught stealing, he would be tortured for a week in the torture chamber.
He stepped back, terrified.
The man was even more convinced Kai had bad intentions, seeing his strange behavior. He grabbed the slave's hand roughly and led him through the gate.
"No, master! I did not steal!" Kai felt his legs dragged by the big man.
The man threw Kai into the courtyard. Kai stared at him in fear. He was in front of a large house. His body ached as he hit the rocks that decorated the large yard.
"You must be the one who always steals the chickens here, right?!" the big man accused, picking up a piece of wood and smashing it hard against Kai's leg.
The slave cried out loudly in pain. He kept shaking his head. "No! Please don't hit me! I'm not a thief!"
Kai endured the pain as the man continued to yell and cuss at him several times. He cried for mercy, but the man didn't care.
He hit Kai nonstop.
The man's screams and Kai's cries woke up several people. And in an instant, the courtyard was full of people.
"What's wrong, Gim?!" shouted an old man running hurriedly from inside the house.
"I found the thief! I will kill him!" growled the big man called Gim, still swinging the wood at Kai's body.
Kai vomited blood. His body shook, battered and bleeding.
"Stop it! You will kill him!" the old man shouted, stopping Gim. He quickly approached Kai.
Kai shook his head and cried. "Please, I'm not stealing anything... I-I'm just looking for my master.... Please don't kill me...." He fell at the old man's feet.
The man helped Kai get up. The young man's nose bled.
"What's your name?" the man asked.
Kai wiped his nose and tears to see clearly. "Kai," he replied softly.
The old man pulled Kai's hand away, looking at the numbers on his wrist. "Are you a slave?"
Kai nodded, his tears still flowing. The pain returned to his body.
"Where is your master?" the old man asked.
Kai stared blankly before shaking his head. "I don't know, I'm looking for him..."
"He's lying! How can a thief confess?" shouted Gim harshly.
The old man stood up, glaring at the big man. "You can accuse anyone, but you're wrong to accuse a slave of being a thief. You didn't even ask him first!"
"You can't trust him, sir—" Gim was still adamant.
"Stop it. Take him inside! If Master finds out what you're doing, you'll pay the price!"
Gim immediately frowned. He shot Kai a fierce glare, then threw the wood in his hand roughly at random.
"Stand up quickly!" Gim snapped.
Kai was frightened and tried to stand up, but his legs hurt a lot.
"Carry him!" the man ordered impatiently.
Gim finally complied. He carried Kai on his shoulders and walked quickly inside, then threw the slave into a small room at the back of the house.
Kai scrambled away and curled up. He felt his old wounds, which had dried up, hurt again. He didn't know what was going to happen. Where was he now?
"Master, he is inside!" came a voice from outside the room.
Kai tucked himself into the corner, shivering in fear. Was he going to be tortured?