“Hmm?”
Ron tilted his head, gazing at the girl curled up in the corner of the cage.
Her entire body was shrouded in shadow—ordinary people would’ve easily overlooked her.
Staring into the hollow eyes hidden beneath her messy hair, Ron narrowed his own.
“Her pupils… are vertical?”
Sensing Ron’s gaze, the girl in the cage lifted her head and, surprisingly, met his eyes without hesitation.
Those radiant golden slit-pupiled eyes instantly mesmerized Ron!
“So beautiful…”
She was clearly a bird in a cage— yet her gaze held not a trace of lifelessness.
Through those eyes, Ron felt like he could see her noble, unyielding soul.
Ron was scrutinizing the girl.
The girl was also scrutinizing Ron.
“That noble, huh…”
“Heh…”
The corners of the girl’s lips curled slightly, as if mocking Ron’s dazed expression.
Seeing Ron take interest in the cage’s contents, the stall owner quickly set down his tools and came over.
“What species is this?”
As the owner approached, Ron voiced his curiosity.
The girl had a human shape, but her chin was lightly scaled, two horns grew from her head, and a slender tail trailed from beneath her skirt.
Add to that her slit-pupiled eyes—
No matter how you looked at her, she wasn’t fully human.
“Ah, her?”
“She’s a half-dragon.”
Upon hearing that, Ron’s eyes widened.
“Dragon?!”
“She has dragon blood?”
In Western fantasy, dragons were among the most mysterious and noble of creatures.
The mere mention of one was striking.
Seeing Ron’s surprise, the stall owner burst into hearty laughter.
“Half-dragon, not dragon!”
“Just one word off, but a world of difference!”
Ron remained confused.
“They both have the word ‘dragon’ in them. Can it really be that different?”
Seeing Ron clearly unfamiliar with this topic, Perica, standing nearby, gave a faint smile and began explaining:
“Dragons truly are extremely powerful creatures—noble by blood and born at the very top of the food chain.”
“But along with their power comes eccentric behavior. Not only are they obsessed with treasure and violence, but many are deeply addicted to teaching and raising others.”
“Half-dragons are the result of these habits.”
“They’re born from dragons mating with other species, producing offspring with diluted bloodlines.”
“The more diluted the dragon blood, the weaker the half-dragon becomes.”
“Maybe the first-generation half-dragons could match dragons in strength.”
“But by the second or third generation, they can no longer compare at all.”
“By the tenth generation or so, they’re barely stronger than regular magic beasts.”
Listening to Perica’s explanation, the stall owner nodded in approval.
“This young lady knows her stuff.”
“The girl in the cage is from a generation far removed from pure dragons.”
“At first, I saw her strange eyes and thought I’d hit the jackpot.”
“But in the end… heh.”
“She’s just an ordinary half-dragon. Weak as can be.”
“She’s got less dragon blood in her than a lizard.”
“Sigh!”
“I spent twelve gold coins buying her off a slave-hunting crew.”
“When I got her appraised, it was like the sky collapsed on me.”
The stall owner rubbed his bald head, looking distressed.
“If she were only weak, that’d be fine.”
“Some customers with… peculiar tastes still like dragon girls.”
“But unfortunately, her scales didn’t fully recede.”
“And she’s missing a hand!”
Hearing that, Ron looked at the girl with surprise.
It was only then that he noticed— the sleeve on the girl’s side that faced the wall was empty!
She’d been crouched in the shadows the whole time; without close inspection, he really wouldn’t have noticed.
Given that, she truly was a failed product—at least in terms of slave trade appeal.
People who liked dragon girls wanted women with attractive draconic features.
A half-dragon girl with facial scales and a disability wasn’t exactly marketable.
“Sigh!”
“If I can’t sell her this time, I won’t bother taking her around anymore.”
“Might as well dispose of her.”
Ron blinked at the words.
“Dispose of?”
Perica quickly clarified:
“It’s what we commonly call euthanasia around here.”
Ron’s expression turned a bit complicated as he glanced toward the cage.
The girl was still curled up in the corner, hugging her knees in silence.
Her life or death was being decided by a few words exchanged outside her cage.
It was unclear whether she even understood what they were saying.
“Well?”
“You want to buy her?”
“I’m not even looking to profit anymore.”
“Just give me what I paid for her—twelve gold coins. Sound good?”
Seeing Ron appear interested, the stall owner lightly kicked the cage.
Ron chuckled.
“No wonder you can’t sell her, boss.”
“Three gold coins can get you a top-grade slave girl.”
“A ten-coin girl could work the top floor of a brothel.”
“And you want twelve for a disfigured, one-armed little dragon girl with scars?”
The stall owner scratched his head sheepishly.
“But that really was my cost price.”
“You can tell, right?”
“I’m not like that shady stall you visited earlier.”
“I’m an honest man!”
“Twelve gold coins was just what I paid to get her.”
“And I’ve been feeding and housing her all this time.”
Ron raised five fingers.
“Five gold coins.”
“Not a coin more.”
The stall owner inhaled sharply through his teeth.
After thinking for a long while, he finally gave in with a wave of his hand.
“Fine, fine.”
“Consider it the price of my poor judgment.”
“Five it is!”
“Hey! Get her packed up!”
Just as Ron was reaching into his pocket to pay—
The girl in the cage suddenly spoke:
“Why are you buying me, human?”
“For someone like you, driven by lust…”
“My appearance must fall far short of your standards, no?”
Her cold voice caught Ron off guard.
He flinched, then scratched his head awkwardly once he confirmed she had actually spoken.
“Lust-driven? Seriously?”
“Do I really look that shallow?”
The girl in the cage snorted coldly.
“I’ve seen it all.”
“You saved those filthy Felinekin girls.”
“But afterward, every slave you picked had big breasts and long legs.”
“You clearly bought them all for your own pleasure.”
Staring into her dazzling golden eyes, Ron clicked his tongue.
“I’m the one spending money, aren’t I?”
“Can’t I at least buy something nice?”
“As for why I want to buy you…”
He trailed off mid-sentence.
The girl’s expression darkened.
“Pity, is it?”
“I don’t need the pity of a lowly creature like you.”
“Take my advice—just walk away.”
“If you take me with you, misfortune will cling to you.”
She turned her face away from Ron, coldly staring at the wall of her cage.