Chapter 017: The Slave Market in the Imperial Capital (Part 1)

After dealing with his own loyal subordinates, Du Fan found himself with nothing much to do. Coupled with his constant thoughts about what lay ahead, he inevitably felt somewhat troubled.
Regardless of his future choices or his relationship with Prince Fischer, his status as a duke was fixed, and there would likely be many tasks ahead. Since Prince Fischer hadn’t allowed him to attend the so-called state funeral these past few days, it gave him a chance to relax for a while!
After resting in his ducal residence for two days, Du Fan felt his health had fully recovered. The seven-colored stones on the Holy Radiance Staff had also stored a large amount of combat energy and magic power. In essence, he was now fully restored and ready to go.
During that time, Du Fan visited his courtyard several times, wanting to see what Chenchen and Ringtone were up to. To his surprise, they refused to see him, even sealing off the door to the basement.
With his current strength, it wouldn’t have been impossible for Du Fan to force his way in, but he didn’t do so. Instead, he became even more convinced that his recovery was likely related to those two.
Since they didn’t want to see him now, he could use the time to handle other matters.
That afternoon, Du Fan was sipping black tea in the courtyard, idly watching the flowers and green grass around him. Old Mark stood quietly beside him, fulfilling his duties as both steward and guard.
“Uh… Grandpa Mark,” Du Fan said, swallowing a sip of his tea before turning to look at his loyal butler. Blinking, he added, “If I remember correctly… I think that top expert in the inner court once said you were… the greatest warrior in the northern army back then, right?”
Old Mark remained expressionless and nodded slightly. “Young master, that was in the past. Perhaps Old Mark was the best warrior in the army back then, but it means nothing now… The current Old Mark is just an ordinary servant.”
A servant?
Du Fan rubbed his temples before saying indifferently, “These past few days, that kid Ferre must have come to discuss something with you… What do you think of him? Is he reliable?”
Old Mark nodded. “Young master, this subordinate is quite good. Whether in combat skills or military strategy, he has some talent… With further training, he could be quite useful… But…”
“But what?”

“Well, after all, he comes from the Holy See… If one day you and the Holy See have any conflicts, I’m afraid…” At this point, Old Mark fell silent. He was a smart man and naturally knew what to say and what not to say. Du Fan was momentarily stunned, but then laughed and said, “He may come from the Holy See, but what about me? Grandpa Mark, you can’t have forgotten—we spent six years together in the cathedral! Although my status is different now and I don’t need to pray in the church every day… we both won’t forget that I come from the Holy See. The people of the Holy See won’t forget, and Prince Fischer won’t forget either!” With that, Du Fan sighed again and said, “Since I, Du Fan, come from the Holy See, I naturally must be loyal to it… If you’re worried that I’ll be harmed by the Holy See in the future, you’re overthinking it… For now, let’s just take it one step at a time. Who knows what will happen in the future?” “Alright,” Du Fan said, touching his nose. “So, what’s our useful Lord Ferre doing right now?” Old Mark replied, “If I’m guessing correctly, he’s probably recruiting people… After all, you asked him to form a private army, and he can’t do that without recruiting people…” “Recruiting people?” Du Fan smiled. “If I’m not wrong, Grandpa Mark, you must know where as well, right? In that case, why not go and take a look together? I want to see what kind of people Lord Ferre will bring for me, Du Fan!” Old Mark nodded and said, “If you want to go and see in person, then I’ll go prepare first!” Du Fan’s eyes lit up. “Good! Go prepare quickly; we’ll set off right away!” Old Mark nodded and stepped back quickly, but just as he was about to disappear, Du Fan suddenly called out to him. “Grandpa Mark… If you’re not confident in me using Lord Ferre, how about you help me lead the army when I form my private army in the future?” … Warm sunlight shone on the streets in the afternoon. As people walked on the crowded streets, they couldn’t help but raise their hands to shield their faces from the scorching sun. Most of the nobles and officials in the capital city, aside from those who stayed to handle government affairs, had gone to the imperial tombs in the western suburbs. Even the main forces of the capital’s defense army and the imperial guards were stationed there…

After all, at a time like this, if someone wanted to do something drastic—like wiping out everyone in the Western Suburbs’ imperial tombs—it would be quite interesting. That’s why during state funerals, the security around the Western Suburbs’ imperial tombs is even stricter than that of the imperial palace. Due to a shortage of personnel, patrol soldiers are no longer visible everywhere in the capital’s streets, and there are fewer arrogant nobles as well. This has made the once-noisy streets somewhat quieter, yet still pleasant to be in. Du Fan lay lazily in the old carriage, with no guards around—only Old Mark sitting in front, gently waving the whip. Initially, Old Mark planned to have Du Fan bring along a hundred or so warriors, but after just a few words from Du Fan, he gave up the idea. The first sentence was, “I, Du Fan, am not even afraid of Francis—how could I be afraid of a few assassins?” The second sentence was, “Now that the entire line of the eldest prince has been eliminated, I am the hero of this coup. Who in the capital would dare touch me? Even if Prince Fisher truly wants me dead, at such a critical moment, he still needs to protect me! If I die, everyone will know it was him who did it, and then he will lose all support—how can he rule then?” These two sentences hit the mark, and Old Mark, being no fool, understood after a moment’s thought. At a time like this, bringing hundreds of guards with him would be meaningless. “Grandpa Mark,” Du Fan sat up and looked at the outside scenery, “where are we going now?” Old Mark glanced at Du Fan before answering, “The slave market.” “The slave market!?” Du Fan frowned. “Grandpa Mark, don’t tell me that Ferre has been recruiting people for me at the slave market these past few days!” Old Mark replied calmly, “It’s inevitable. No matter which province you choose as your fiefdom in the future, you won’t be able to recruit private troops in the capital—you can only do so in your own fiefdom… But since you’ve assigned this task to Ferre, he naturally wants to do his best to complete it… So, since we can’t recruit openly, buying people from the slave market is the best option…” Du Fan raised his eyebrows slightly. “Grandpa Mark, do you really think this is a good idea?” “It’s certainly not ideal, but…” Old Mark said slowly, “Considering the current situation… this is the most correct approach at the moment… Although slaves bought with money won’t be very loyal, they can be useful in the short term—better than nothing… And I doubt Ferre would be stupid enough to only buy slaves.”

Du Fan asked doubtfully, “What do you mean?”
Old Mark laughed and said, “What it means? Well… you’ll know once you get here… But I guess you’ve never seen a slave market before. It might be a good opportunity for you to broaden your horizons today!”
Du Fan curled his lips. He had indeed seen a slave market once before, but the experience had been unpleasant, leaving him with no good feelings about slave markets… However, since it was rare to see Old Mark so enthusiastic, he didn’t want to say anything and simply nodded silently.
Seeming to notice Du Fan’s displeasure, Old Mark continued, “Young master, actually, there are quite a few good items in this slave market… You should know that the sources of slaves are limited. Aside from those who have been slaves for generations, most are prisoners captured in wars between countries, aliens captured by adventure groups, or people who are so poor they have no choice but to sell themselves into slavery… Let’s not talk about the others for now, but those prisoners are all well-trained soldiers. Although they are now slaves, even if bought, their loyalty isn’t guaranteed. But I think… with your skills, it shouldn’t be hard to win them over, right? If you could buy a few thousand such prisoners, forming an army wouldn’t be a problem at all, would it?”
Du Fan’s expression shifted slightly. He didn’t know much about slave trading and hadn’t realized there was such an option…
Well-trained soldiers from various wars…
Others might not be able to tame them… but me, Du Fan… I do have some ways! Bruce in the afterlife can bear witness!