The bard fantasized again.

Chapter 194 Contracts and Slaves (6k1w)

Shyvana didn't know how long she had been asleep, but when she realized Stella had disappeared, her not-so-bright mind inevitably led her to point the finger at Tang Qi:
"You let her go!?"

"Any questions?"

There seems to be no problem.

After all, they were originally a group of people.

Sivana couldn't speak for a moment, so she rushed forward, grabbed Tang Qi by the collar, and roared:
"These cunning humans have deceived us! They said they would give us food and territory once we reached that town!"

A breath of air, along with the spittle she spat out, landed in front of Tang Qi.

He didn't even think about breaking free from Sivana's pull; he quickly covered his mouth and nose.

"So, could you go brush your teeth?"

"What the hell did you say?"

"It smells terrible."

"What does it have to do with me?"

"Ok."

Tang Qi didn't expect a savage living in the wilderness to pay much attention to oral hygiene, so he could only cover his nose and answer.

"So you're trying to say how pathetic you are? I'm sorry, as a human, I really find it hard to empathize with orcs."

"Let go of my brother!"

Seeing that Shyvana had grabbed Tang Qi’s collar and was making a threatening gesture.

Ambi, who had been cowering to the side, suddenly leaped up, baring her fangs, and jumped onto her arm, taking a vicious bite.

The orc's skin was tough enough that the little girl felt as if she were biting into wood. She had to clench her teeth tightly to get through the skin and draw out bright red blood.

A sweet and pungent taste filled her tongue, and she actually found it delicious.

The thought only flashed through her mind, but Ambi seemed terrified, quickly loosening her grip and falling to the ground.

With a sharp pain in her arm, Shyvana simply let go of Tang Qi and was about to kick the 'wolf cub' next to her in the waist and abdomen.

"Hey! Damn it—"

The stone tried to get up, but was slowed down by the excruciating pain all over its body.

Realizing a strong gust of wind was approaching, Ambi couldn't help but close her eyes—

But the expected punches and kicks did not land on him.

"Why!?"

As her boots almost touched the little girl's chest, Shyvana felt as if she were frozen in place.

This feeling of blockage makes one feel powerless, but even more so, it makes one resentful.

It reminded her of the moment she became the clan leader.

Challenge the previous clan chief through a duel.

Only the victor is qualified to lead the tribe forward.

This is a great ceremony of the [Fierce Roar] tribe, and every member of the tribe should feel honored by the birth of a new chieftain.

The old man who raised her died during the transfer of power.

That old bastard could have survived.

But the new clan chief did not let him off the hook.

Then, she also raised her axe and swore an oath to become the new chieftain—

In reality, she only intended to swing the axe blade at the murderer's neck.

"I surrender!"

The other party screamed in terror.

Shyvana continued to wield her axe, just as the orcs before her had done.

"Shivana, are you going to go against the traditions of our tribe?"

The old prophet Barbaya questioned him in a hoarse voice.

Then, all she remembered was being pulled tightly by the shoulder by Houk, and being pulled away from the noisy crowd amidst the cheers of the orcs—

That feeling is almost indistinguishable from the sense of powerlessness I feel today.

They all wanted to do something, but found themselves unable to do anything.

"Why!?" Shvana looked at Tang Qi in confusion.

“Because of the contract,” Tang Qi said.

"【Without Donkey Weinberg's permission, you shall not harm or instigate others to harm others in any way】—this is part of our contract."

"What kind of bullshit contract? I've never heard of it!?"

"You can't read, so of course you wouldn't know."

Out of caution, Tang Qi did not show the contract, but instead gestured to let her know that it was the parchment with his fingerprint on it.

"I do not believe!"

Shyvana gritted her teeth, turned around, and swung her axe at Tang Qi's head.

But just as the thought crossed her mind, her body froze on the spot, completely out of control.

"Believe it or not, this is reality. For example, I even wrote down, 'No request from Don Qi Weinberger may be refused.'"

Tang Qi took a mint leaf from his dimensional bag, gripped Shyvana's chin, and forced her to open her mouth.
"For example, if I ask you to chew this mint leaf, you won't be able to refuse."

"I do not--"

Shyvana didn't believe any of this, turned her head away, and was about to blurt out a refusal.

But then he found that his throat was being inexplicably choked, and the syllables were rubbed between his lips and teeth for a moment before he swallowed them back down into his stomach!
While she hesitated, Tang Qi shoved a mint leaf into her mouth.

The pungent, cool air filled her mouth and rushed straight to her brain.

Shyvana instinctively tried to spit out the mint leaf, but Tang Qi covered her mouth and nose: "Don't spit it out."

"I insist on—"

She wanted to refuse, but the words wouldn't come out, and she froze on the spot.

Finally, in shock, she collapsed to the ground, staring in terror at the man who had smiled at her, and said in a terrified voice:
"Why is this happening!?"

She really couldn't refuse him!

"As I said, this is the content of the 'fair contract.' It's just that you're illiterate and were in such a hurry to hitch a ride with me that you didn't realize it."

Tang Qi spread his hands,

"Don't you think about it carefully? Given our feud, if I didn't have a way to restrain you, how could I possibly get you out of prison?"

"You—cunning human!"

"It's not so much that humans are cunning, but rather that you're just too stupid."

Tang Qi outwardly sneered, but inwardly he secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

He's lying.

The Fair Contract does not grant the ability to directly control others.

Its existence is more like a long-term form of "suggestion".

It's like the deal between Don Qi and Leon.

If Tang Qi signs the contract but delays handing Iu over to Leon, he will be affected by the [suggestion spell] in the contract and will unknowingly fulfill the transaction.

In other words, the content written in the contract must be a specific event.

However, behaviors such as 'refusing to make a request' and 'harming others' are too general and cannot actually be identified by a contract.

Just like you can't use the "suggestion technique" to turn someone into your 'slave'.

What is a slave? What constitutes being a slave? These are broad concepts.

Therefore, the clause he wrote in the contract was actually: "Donkey Weinberg and Amblino are not allowed to be harmed."

And [no refusal is permitted].

In contrast, there are clauses like "Tang Qi will not harm Shyvana" and "Tang Qi will not refuse Shyvana"... which are completely irrelevant under the [Unfair Contract].

However, when Tang Qi wrote the regulations, he did not know that Shivana was illiterate.

Otherwise, he could have written some more specific and outrageous demands.

But since things have come to this, he can only sigh and say, "Fools sometimes have good fortune."

In other words, Shyvana doesn't actually have to follow Don Qi's wishes.

She simply couldn't verbally refuse; she could still follow her heart.

Knowing this, Tang Qi used her inability to speak to lead her to the conclusion that she was truly bound by the contract and had to obey Tang Qi.

Just like right now, Shyvana is trying to 'speak' to refuse, only to find that she can't even open her mouth to speak.

Her clumsy mind simply wouldn't consider or test the boundaries of this 'rejection'.

It only breeds doubt: "Am I really unable to disobey Tang Qi?"

Tang Qi believed that given enough time, even if he couldn't force the other party to become a 'slave' through strong commands, he could eventually achieve his goal.

It is also possible to make the other party believe that they are a 'slave' through similar 'obedience tests'.

In order to keep this destabilizing factor under control, he had to do this.

So Tang Qi stepped forward, bent down, and patted Shyvana's beautiful face:
"So that was actually your 'slave contract,' do you understand?"

In Tang Qi's view, apart from Shyvana's skin, which was a light green similar to that of orcs,...

Her other aspects, such as her appearance and figure, are actually quite in line with human aesthetic standards.

Her arms were slender yet powerful, her thighs were full and long, and her six-pack abs were a height that I could never reach in my entire life.

Her two not-so-sharp canine teeth, along with her messy dreadlocks braided into a ponytail, both highlight her wildness.

It's like a Pallas's cat hiding a fierce and combative nature beneath its cute and innocent exterior.

The Pallas's cat felt that Tang Qi was humiliating it, so it sat on the ground and kept moving backward.

"Fuck your slave!"

If I can't fight back against you, at least I can stay away from you, right?
Tang Qi ignored her insults and simply stated the truth:

"Incidentally, it also clearly states that, [people are not allowed to leave the area within one kilometer of Don Qi Weinberger].

In other words, during the contract's effective period, you cannot leave me under any circumstances.

This is indeed clearly written in the contract.

She was also afraid that she would run away before she could teach Ambiya.

After the few attempts she had just made, Shyvana was still unsure whether Tang Qi had deceived her.

But he understood the reason for all of this—

That parchment with my fingerprint on it!

If I just find a chance to tear up that damn contract, I should be able to regain my freedom, right?
Shyvana, caught in her hesitation, never considered testing the authenticity of 'Slave Contract'.

He looked only at Tang Qi, his brows furrowed, and asked:

"So what exactly do you want to do?"

Tang Qi, remembering the acting lessons he had taken at the Poet Academy, coughed lightly twice while suppressing a laugh, and pointed at Anbi:
"I want you to teach this child how to control anger."

Shyvana then realized that the other party also needed her help.

She instinctively wanted to refuse, but the constraints of the 'contract' silenced her instantly.

Is it really true that I can't disobey the other party?
Amidst self-doubt, Sivana gritted her teeth and replied:
"Okay, but you have to do me a favor first. Otherwise, I'd rather die with this wolf cub."

"I may not agree. But you can tell me what you think."

(End of this chapter)