The book is going to have mature content, and it has been warned.

The book is part of the series, but you can read it as a standalone. There is no compulsion to read the others. Other books in the series are:

Valerian Empire, Heidi and the Lord, Bambi and the Duke.

3.?If you have anything to ask me, feel free to ask in the Discord directly where there are other readers who share the same interest.?To join Discord, the author"s server: discord.gg/K63uVqN

The book is usually updated from Sunday to Thursday. If I have time you will have bonus chapters or mass release.

Be mindful and polite to other users or the author when you leave the comments. If you don"t like the book, you are free to stop reading.

You can show your support by voting for the book with your power stones which helps in ranking of the book on the site. There"s also a gift function option where one can gift the author.

Do not advice the Author on how to write his/her book.

MORE IMPORTANTLY: in the future chapters the spirit stones (SS) are set depending on the length of the chapter, therefore do not ask the author to reduce the price as it"s not in the author"s hand.

I hope you enjoy the book~

The book is going to have mature content, and it has been warned.

The book is part of the series, but you can read it as a standalone. There is no compulsion to read the others. Other books in the series are:

Valerian Empire, Heidi and the Lord, Bambi and the Duke.

3.?If you have anything to ask me, feel free to ask in the Discord directly where there are other readers who share the same interest.?To join Discord, the author"s server: discord.gg/K63uVqN

The book is usually updated from Sunday to Thursday. If I have time you will have bonus chapters or mass release.

Be mindful and polite to other users or the author when you leave the comments. If you don"t like the book, you are free to stop reading.

You can show your support by voting for the book with your power stones which helps in ranking of the book on the site. There"s also a gift function option where one can gift the author.

Do not advice the Author on how to write his/her book.

MORE IMPORTANTLY: in the future chapters the spirit stones (SS) are set depending on the length of the chapter, therefore do not ask the author to reduce the price as it"s not in the author"s hand.

I hope you enjoy the book~

The book is going to have mature content, and it has been warned.

The book is part of the series, but you can read it as a standalone. There is no compulsion to read the others. Other books in the series are:

Valerian Empire, Heidi and the Lord, Bambi and the Duke.

3.?If you have anything to ask me, feel free to ask in the Discord directly where there are other readers who share the same interest.?To join Discord, the author"s server: discord.gg/K63uVqN

The book is usually updated from Sunday to Thursday. If I have time you will have bonus chapters or mass release.

Be mindful and polite to other users or the author when you leave the comments. If you don"t like the book, you are free to stop reading.

You can show your support by voting for the book with your power stones which helps in ranking of the book on the site. There"s also a gift function option where one can gift the author.

Do not advice the Author on how to write his/her book.

MORE IMPORTANTLY: in the future chapters the spirit stones (SS) are set depending on the length of the chapter, therefore do not ask the author to reduce the price as it"s not in the author"s hand.

I hope you enjoy the book~

Ear 1778

Rain fell down from the sky on the land of Bonelake. One drop following the other making the view of the village dark and dull where one couldn't see what was ahead of them after a certain distance. Water flowed down the little street carrying the muddy dirt where a young girl stood under the umbrella with her aunt and uncle.

The young girl's jade green eyes moved left and right in front of her to ask, "Aunt Marion, do you think they will come? The rain is getting heavier."

"They will come, Penny," her aunt rubbed and wrung her hands together. The rain really was getting heavy along with the wind, moving the direction of the rain every once in a while. Her aunt gave a look to her husband who stood next to her. Her lips set in a thin line while they waited for the expected man to arrive.

They had been standing there with a sack of potatoes and turnips mixed in the sack which had to be sold to a customer today. Her mother who had raised her had passed away seven months ago and since then her maternal relatives were taking care of her who owned a little shop at the corner end of the market of the village which sold vegetables.

The shop didn't do well. Her Uncle Larry Moore worked hard, waking up early to be the first one to open the shop. But no matter how early he rose the income was lesser than the expectations. The shop wasn't located at the best spot making it so that the local folks and the people who belonged to the elites finished buying what they had to buy from the closest shops which was the opposite where their little shop was.

One of the customers had apparently requested for the vegetables urgently an hour ago and even after more than an hour had passed there was no one in sight. It made Penny wonder if the man would even come in such rain unless it was a person from the higher society who was holding some kind of party which people like her and her family weren't fortunate to look at it.

"Are you sure he is coming today?" Penny heard her Aunt Marion ask her uncle who didn't respond to her.

"Let me go check the market to make sure they aren't there," said her uncle, readying himself with the umbrella to be stopped by his wife.

"I will come with you. I don't want to find you later with you on the ground with your broken back. Penny, dear," Aunt Marion turned to look over her shoulder to meet her niece's eyes that looked vibrant in the rainy weather, "Your uncle and I shall go see if the man is waiting for us at the entrance. Stay here and don't go anywhere so that we don't come looking for you next. Okay?"

"I can go take a look instead of you. I will be quick," the young girl promised that had her uncle shake his head.

"The last thing we want is you getting lost. Do what you are told," Uncle Larry's words were sharp. He had always been sharp with her which often made her think if he didn't like her staying under the same roof as him.

"Don't worry about the vegetables. I will guard them safe," Penny smiled to have her aunt give a small nod to her before walking away with Uncle Larry under the single umbrella. The rain continued to pour, a light thunder that kept growling up in the sky. The rain was common to the people who lived in Bonelake as the days experienced rain than sun here.

The bell from the tall tower rang loud enough to be heard over the rain and thunder. The sky turning darker as a carriage passed by her without stopping to ask why she was standing alone in the rain or if she needed to go somewhere as she stood under the little roof that reduced the speed of the rain on her black umbrella.

The rain had started to move in the direction where her feet and the bottom of her dress started to get wet. Just as she stood there waiting for her uncle and aunt to return back while also keeping an eye she didn't miss the customer who had agreed to come take the goods, a particular carriage came to pass by which was dark black in colour.

Penny didn't know who it belonged to as every carriage came to appear almost the same which belonged to the higher men and women of the society. The most she had done was travel in the local carriage which was always packed and was used to travel from one village to another.

What Penny didn't know was that the carriage that had come to pass by had turned around to stop not far from where she stood. "Master is everything alright? Did you drop something?" asked the coachman of the carriage who had pulled over.

The man inside the carriage didn't reply to him, ignoring his coachman as he stared at the girl in the umbrella. The rain kept pouring down whilst she stood, her hands clutching tightly the umbrella. Her eyes scanning around her every once in a while until a loud thunder made way past the cloud.

Raising her face to look up at the clouds, he saw her smile which skipped his heart. She was a beautiful young maiden, her blonde hair tied into a single plaid where the ends came to rest on one of her shoulders. Even with the rain, he could still see her quite clearly. When the wind increased, her slender hand raised to tuck the pieces of the strands of her hair that came to cover her face.

Her features were rather delicate and if he could, he would have liked to go over but there other matters to be dealt in hand today. Pressing matters which needed his attention.

"Shall we leave, master?" the coachman asked him, waiting for his word which didn't come immediately.

"Yes," Damien breathed the word, taking a final look at the girl who had caught his eye.

Thankful that he wasn't going to get further wet in the rain, the coachman pulled the reins of the horses to start the carriage.

Penny continued to wait in the rain along with her umbrella until she felt it was too long since her uncle and aunt had left her here. It worried her if they were alright, making her wonder if she should go look for them as they weren't young and one didn't know what could happen in the rainy weather due to the slippery ground.

Thankfully in time, she saw a figure appear through the rain, walking with an umbrella. It was a man and by his clothes where he wore a coat over his body, she guessed him to be the customer. He was late! Penny didn't like that just because they were poor, the elite society could do what they wanted. Their time was as important as theirs.

The man came walking towards her and when he was in a close-ranged distance, she said, "Mister, you are more than an hour late from the given time. Don't you know the vegetables might soak in the water due to your no value for time? You will have to pay extra for making us wait," she raised her brows to make sure he understood what she said.

The customer stared at her, his black eyes scanning her from top to bottom which made her uncomfortable, "Where are your uncle and aunt?" he had a scar than ran across his mouth making her feel suspicious about him.

"They went in search of you as you didn't arrive on time but they should be back soon. Are you Mr Joseph?" she inquired.

"Yes," he said looking around the vicinity to see no one here. Most of the villagers had gone to take shade under their home to prevent themselves from getting wet and catch a fever.

"Your good is right here. Pay the money and you can take it," Penny patted the sack of potatoes and turnips that were stuffed inside the sack and tied.

The man stared at her, a smile coming to form on his lips, "The payment has already been made," it did? Thought Penny to herself. Maybe the man trusted her uncle and shared a decent business with him. Suddenly the man instead of taking the good that was next to her where she had stepped aside went to hold her wrist and pull her.

"What are you doing, Mister?!" Penny was startled by his behaviour, "Let go of my hand," she said firmly as she tried to pull it away from him but he was strong. Unable to budge away from him, she picked the carrot she had previously placed on the slab as it was a rotten one. Taking hold of it, she jabbed it right into his face which dug into his eyes making him yelp in pain. He let go of her hand and she closed the umbrella to beat his head with the edge of the handle before making a run from there.

With the rainwater that had come to fill up the ground, every step she took forward ended up splashing the water on the ground. One of her hand holding the front of her dress, she made a dash through the streets but the man was persistent as he followed her. Running behind her and she had to run with all her might, changing alleys and the little streets to go and hide behind a large pillar.

Penny heaved for air as it had been a while since she had last run like this. The last time she had run this fast was when she was being chased by a cow in the field. For an odd reason, the animal just didn't like her and prefered to chase her like it had nothing else to do in the world. Thankfully it was sold two months ago to her aunt's dismay.

Hearing the splashing sound behind her, she covered her mouth and pulled her wet dress between her legs so that it wouldn't be seen by the man. She could feel her heart pound against her chest out of fear. Carefully she moved around the pillar when the man stopped to see where she had gone. From where she stood, the alley led to three routes and she could have picked any of it but she had hoped he would have picked one of them.

As expected the man did take the straight route and she couldn't tell how thankful she was.

Penny walked around the pillar and started to run in the direction where she had come hoping her aunt and uncle had returned back. When she did reach, they weren't there yet and she wondered what to do. Taking into account that she wouldn't be able to carry the sack of vegetables easily, she decided to leave here for now and started to walk in the road to her home.

On her way in the rain she paused her footsteps to turn and see if she were being followed and when there was no one there, she let out a sigh of relief and turned back to see Mr Joseph standing in front of her. Not a second later his hand came right at her and she blacked out.

Thunder growled in the sky, the wind changing and the rain stopping as minutes came to pass by where no one saw a young girl being abducted.

Penny was woken up by the sudden thunderous sound of the rain, her heavy-lidded eyes trying to focus on the bar like rods that appeared in front of her. She blinked once, twice pushing herself up from the ground where it was wet due to the rain that had come through the window of the stone walls.

Confused as to where she was, she lifted herself by placing her hand on the ground. There was no light in the room she was in but ahead of her, she noticed the light spilling down through the walls on the ground where the lantern must have been placed. Going to the railings of the rods. She searched for the door, a way out and when she found it she tried opening it but the iron gate to the room was closed. The last thing she could remember was heading back home to meet Mr Joseph on her way.

"Anyone out there? Hello!" Penny shouted for anyone to hear not knowing where she was and why she was locked in a room, "Hello! Anyon-"

"Stop screaming," came a voice behind her sounding annoyed with her presence. She hadn't expected to have a company with her in here. The room was smaller than what she had at her aunt and uncle's house, "Are you trying to put me in trouble?" her head snapped to look behind at a woman who emerged from the shadows.

The woman had fiery red hair which had been tied into a plaid similar to her. Only that Penny's hair was well-groomed which included the dress that she wore compared to this woman whose blonde hair was a mess with clothes that had turned the color of her clothes into dirty white. Except for her hair, the woman was average looking in appearance.

It didn't seem that there was anyone here at the moment and this woman could give her answers, "Miss, where am I? There must be some sort of misunderstanding," and just as she was completing her sentence the woman laughed, her shoulders shaking.

"Miss? Wonder how long it has been someone called me with such...status," the woman gauged the young girl who had been put into the cell. It had been a while since the woman had company, the last one had been a boy kept yapping until she had to wait for him to be moved to another level, "What's your name girl?"

"It's Penelope but many call me Penny," explained Penny to have the woman wave her hand.

"I am Caitlin. Penny, this beautiful castle that you see here, you have come to be part of it. This is the slave establishment and you are in one of the cell rooms that is allowed to the slaves here."

Penny frowned listening to this. It was impossible. How could she be in the slave establishment? Had she been kidnapped?

"Miss Caitlin, there has been confusion. You see I am not supposed to be here," by what she knew, slaves were usually sold for money as a trade. It was one of the easiest and quick means of money. Though it wouldn't make one rich, it did have the slave establishment running to receive decent money by the buyers.

The woman went to walk back into the darkness and now that Penny's eyes had adjusted to the darkness, she saw the woman lie down on the ground, "None of us are supposed to be here. At least not most of us but people can be deceiving. Going by your reaction, I can say that you don't know who sold you."

"I do!" How could Penny forget that wretched man's face and name! She looked furious. The woman who had was lying down, looked at her. For a girl who had been thrown into the slave establishment, she looked in a better spirit than the rest of the ones who were brought into the place. Either the girl was a sheltered child who knew nothing that went on in here or she was trying to keep her spirits up, "It was this man named Mr. Joseph. He came to fetch the groceries from us because the market was closed due to the heavy rain. He was late and my uncle and aunt who are old went to look for him."

"And let me guess. This uncle and aunt of yours didn't come back even after time passed but the man arrived," even in the dark and low light, one could make out the bored look Caitlin gave with a sigh, "Your case is not uncommon. Congratulations, for being sold by your relatives," her voice sounded unenthusiastic.

"They would never do that!" Penny was deeply offended that the woman would accuse the relatives who had given her roof after her mother had passed away, "It was Mr. Joseph or whoever it was who needs to be hanged for sending me here."

How many girls and boys had cried with the same hope of wanting to get out of this place. It was usually the young ones who cried and wailed. Crying for the same people who had sold them off for the sake of some money. The place didn't affect the girl yet but it would soon before breaking the spirit that she had sent here. The woman was not going to waste her time on her in explaining what had happened and therefore decided to let the girl on her own until reality would come to hit her.

"Miss Caitlin," the girl came to sit right in front of her, "Is there a way to escape from here?"

When Penny had asked the simple question to the woman who shared the same cell room, the woman started to cough before laughing, one of her hand covering her eyes while the other held her stomach. After a good ten seconds had passed, the woman sat up to clear her throat where Penny waited for her to speak with a serious expression.

"Do you think I would have been sitting here enjoying this stinky little shit hole if I knew the way to escape from here?"

Penny gave it some thought, her lips setting into a thin line to ask, "Is it there or is it not there?"

The woman stared hard at the girl.

"Yes, there is one. The one that brings the slaves in and out with the guards stationed which is the entrance," which meant there wasn't an escape route.

That night Penelope didn't sleep. She had stayed awake from the time she had woken up from her conscious to find herself in a three-wall and the fourth one to be made of bars. Slave establishment. The very word filled her with dread and to think that she was in that place, she closed her eyes.

She didn't want to be here and like the woman who now had her back facing her as she slept on the hard cold ground said, no one ever wanted to be here. The slave establishment was far from where she lived with her uncle and aunt. Her relatives didn't have children of their own and her aunt had taken her in to fill that little hole in their life due to which, Penny refused to believe that they had sold her into this dreaded place. At least she tried for the first few hours until the woman's words began to sink into her mind.

Penny wasn't a naive girl. She had the ability to haggle with the street vendors and if needed she also had the ability the steal from them without notice. More importantly, she read people, observing them as they came and went in front of the little house she lived in. She had heard stories of how one's own family members had sold daughters and young son's to the slave establishment so that the people could be sold to the members of the higher society for a good amount of silver coins.

When did they even plan for it?! Penny looked mad at the wall.

The house was small which consisted of a kitchen, hall and a storage room to keep the vegetables they harvested. She was always there with one of them to not have heard their conspiracy of selling her off here. Was money of higher importance than her freedom? The anger that had peeked started to come down as sadness started to engulf her. Bringing her knees close to her, she hugged them to look up at the window which wouldn't allow her to see what was there outside this room except for the glimpse of the sky as it was built up near the roof of the room.

She missed her mother dearly since the time of her death. She had cried and wailed seeing her dead mother being descended down the coffin in the village cemetery. Thinking about it brought tears to the rim of her eyes but not a single drop fell out as she blinked them back away. She never knew who her father was as he had gone out of the house to never return back home when she was still a baby, leaving her and her mother all alone.

Lost in her thoughts, Penny had laid her head on her knees while staring into space when she heard someone scream outside. Startled and worried she raised her head, her eyebrows furrowed together. Getting up, she walked towards the iron bars without holding them in her hand. The bars were old and rusted where it had patchy orange and red skin that were being peeled as months and years went by.

Stepping a little closer she felt her heart quake when another scream was heard. It was a shrill painful cry which made her feel uncomfortable from where stood. As if the woman who cried out was being tortured.

"It is one of the slaves."

Turning around she saw the woman who once was sleeping on her sides had gone to sleep on her back with her skinny hand placed below her hand.

Penny couldn't help but ask in a whisper, "What are they doing to her?"

She frowned at the response she received before looking back at the empty corridor in front of her and the sides until where her eyes could reach. Clearly, it was the hour of the night as no one had come to walk by which made her think why someone was being tortured at this hour.

"Torturing the ones who misbehave. Slaves here are nothing less to animals who are raised by the farmer who is about to sell them out for good money. The slave establishment isn't all that people speak there in the outside world," the woman's voice was quiet as her own as they spoke the words out, "What you hear outside is barely the surface of the ground that you are trying to scr.a.p.e. The things that go in here are unethical, horrible as the traders who are responsible for sending us here. What you are hearing right now is a daily routine. There will be at least one who would have tried to defy and," the woman paused to continue, "It is always the new slaves that undergo the special treatment. So think twice before you think of escaping."

Penny narrowed her eyes this time, not happy what she was hearing from the woman, "What will happen if I do?" she held her breath waiting for the woman to answer. The screams that were heard from outside filled up the silence in the little cell she was in.

"You will wish you hadn't."

Slavery in the four lands, especially here where the pureblooded vampires were rich in living wasn't illegal. The entire trade took place in the presence of the law which was maintained by the people who were part of the council. The council was built to put laws but with everything done they hadn't gone to remove this one trade.

Most of the time, people went missing and the blame was often placed on the black witches who were one of the notorious beings who usually kidnapped men, women or children for their personal use. But some of them failed to notice that it wasn't the black witches but it was the others who helped in making young ones disappear by trading their lives to the slave establishment. It was one of the easiest ways to earn money such that the lands had now come to trade people who weren't careful.

And even if her relatives had traded her, Penny hadn't planned to stay here long. She would escape and she would do it soon.