"Luna place the drug in front of the slave."
I told Luna, who was dragging the half-conscious male slave behind her. He was too big for her to carry, but she had managed to bring him from the basement to the dining room.
She set the slave up, but he swayed and fell back, hitting the floor with a sickening crunch. Luna pulled a second container from her pocket and dangled it in front of the slave.
As if strength had suddenly been pumped into his weak body, he sat up abruptly and tried to reach for the small container she was holding. Three of the other servants rushed forward and held the struggling slave down.
"He has been conditioned to respond to the container," I explained, pointing to the slave," from the very first day we started giving him the powder, we would use the container as its storage. Like a dog, he came to understand the container was where the magical powder was."
I was trying to get them to understand why he was suddenly violent. The man was now crying, small please escaping him as he begged for the powder.
" Give it to him. Just a pinch."
Luna nodded, opened the container, and took out a pinch of the powder. She was wearing gloves and a mask I had made for her so she wouldn't be affected by the powder.
She placed the powder under the slave's nose and he inhaled it. Luna backed away from the man but the servants were a bit too late. The slave stood up and threw them against the wall.
One of the servants lost consciousness the moment he hit the wall. I nodded to Luna and gestured to the rampaging slave.
"I also added something extra inside, you can get temporary strength after using it. What do you think, Mother? It can be drunk, inhaled, or just licked"
Luna kicked the slave who had turned to us, on his stomach sending him backwards until he hit the wall. She punched him in the head and he lost consciousness.
"Good. I will use it this planting round, I do hope the results won't disappoint me."
My stomach unknotted after mother agreed to my potion. I leaned back on the chair and proudly looked at my mother, who had already lost interest and seemed to be ready to leave.
"But mother..." I started slowly pulling my words," I don't have any ingredients to make it nor the time."
She turned back to me fully, her red eyes burning into me.
" Five thousand for the recipe."
She said while calling her maid. Mother knew me best. I didn't answer but pretended to look at my small legs. I was wearing shorts today, so my legs were on display for the world to see.
Mother sighed heavily.
"Five thousand gold now then I'll add another five thousand when I see the results."
She conceded. I didn't want to push it, so I took the recipe from my inner pocket and gave it to Luna, who passed it to her. I leaned forward and waved to mother, who was looking through the recipe, her eyes filled with surprise.
" If you give me five percent of the profit for three years, I'll give you the whitening agent. The recipe will fully belong to you after that."
That had been what I was aiming for. A pure white powder would be more expensive and visually appealing than the cream one.
Mother was silent for a moment before she nodded. I knew I hadn't gone too far in my bargaining. I produced two crates of the whitening potion and handed them to Luna, who passed them to the mother's maid.
One pinch of the ilustor powder would normally cost two gold coins but with the changes I had added in. It was going to sell better than the original. I wanted to have a steady source of income and I found one.
Thoughts of selling strengthening potions using Luna had passed through my mind, but I knew mother would never allow me. I preferred to keep the family peace rather than go against her, it was a fruitless task and would only result in me being grounded or crippled, or even worse, death.
Five months later.
"I want to buy Luna Young master. Please release her."
I looked at the kneeling man in front of me begging. He was a burly man with a tanned body and a regal aura. Standing next to him was an extremely attractive woman. If I had not been born in the Bloodmoor family, I would have appreciated her looks.
She also had her head bowed clearly supporting the kneeling man. These two were Luna's teachers, whom I had employed to train her on both magic and knighthood, which Luna was unsurprisingly good at. She must have been born with a lot of talent, that was the only reason I could come up with for the monster talent.
"Why? Why should I sell my personal maid to you?"
I asked coldly. The woman flinched at my tone. If they thought I was going to release her then they were terribly mistaken.
"She's too talented to be a maid young master. Just from two years of training, she has become a nine-star knight and a thirteen-star magician. This is unprecedented talent that is only found once in a millennium. Such a talent does not deserve to be a mere slave."
The male teacher said passionately as spit flew from his mouth and fell on the floor. I had been paying them handsomely but they still wanted to take more from my backyard.
Laughter escaped me as I tried to come to terms with the stupidity in front of me. Everyone looked at me in surprise, even Luna, who had been quietly standing beside me.
I wiped the stray tear that had escaped and leaned back on the grand chair I was sitting on.
"Did you ask my maids' opinions or did you decide this on your own?"
I asked amused. They both looked at the quiet Luna, then back at me, before shaking their heads.
"She is just a child, she will appreciate our efforts when she gets older."
The woman said passionately. Even I felt the emotions in her words. They really did mean well. I was moved by their words.
"How about heading to your quarters?" I said, waving them off." I would love to have a talk with my dear maid, and if she accepts your offer, I will send her to you."
Their faces lit up, and both of them turned to look at Luna, who had watched on emotionlessly. Since they were used to her reactions they didn't find it odd. They left the hall excitedly.
"How foolish."
I said coldly. They were truly stupid if they thought I would let Luna go to them.
I got off the chair and stood in front of the quiet Luna and held her shoulders. I smiled down at her and leaned over until our foreheads touched.
"Do you want to leave me and go with them?"
I asked her directly. Her expression didn't change at all. She brought her hands and covered mine before smiling at me.
"Young master saved my life, why would I ever want to leave you?"
Her sweet voice filled my ears. I chuckled my shoulders shaking hard as laughter occasionally escaped. Luna didn't move, she stood there covering my hands.
"You'll get a normal childhood if you go. Don't you want to enjoy that?"
I pressed again after my laughter died down. She shook her head, our foreheads rubbing against each other.
"I will always belong to the young master."
She tried to convince me. It was ironic actually. She seemed to be more mature than a normal nine-year-old since she could clearly sense my unease.
I pulled her into a hug. Since she was shorter than me, she fit perfectly in my arms. Her hands hung awkwardly on her side unsure of what to do. This was the first time I had ever hugged her. I suppose I was happy.
"Hug me."
I commanded above her head. Her hands came around and wrapped around my waist. She smelled like jasmine and a faint smell of potions, her scent calmed my racing mind down.
"Prove it."
I murmured into her hair and pulled her harder into my arms.
"Yes, Young master."
She said softly against my chest. I let her go and stepped back. The sun was setting and cast its orange glows into the hall through the huge mirrors.
I walked to the window and looked at the knights still training hard in the training grounds. Sister had not come back from the academy while mother was too preoccupied to even get a glance of her.
Life was a beautiful thing, the thought passed through my mind as I enjoyed the scenery. Night was about the blanket over the whole land.