Demon King: Hero, don’t run away!

Chapter 375: Chapter 375 Chicken Ribs, Ah Chicken Ribs

”Don’t be so aggressive, your lovely face might lose its luster because of it.

I would be more than happy to serve such a charming young lady like you and tell you the whereabouts of your brother.”

Hei Yao appeared composed and calm in front of Iyas, not at all like someone whose life was under threat. He used an empathetic tone, doing his best to soothe Iyas,

”First, let me confirm what your brother looks like; that way, I can distinguish him from the many male elves and identify the brother you are looking for.

In my memory, your brother seems to be this tall with a mole on the back of his neck, and other distinguishing features include...”

Hei Yao methodically gestured to indicate the height of Iyas’s brother and described each of his features one by one.

He had some recollection of the young man who was with Iyas.

Male elves generally have delicate features, practically indistinguishable from an ordinary girl in their youth, which is particularly favored by certain individuals with special preferences.

Unfortunately, those with such preferences only make up a small portion of the clientele.

It’s common for young male elves to be captured and mistaken for girls, then sold at their auction house.

But only about half ever find a buyer.

With supply exceeding demand, the market becomes saturated, and business turns difficult.

The Sunrise Chamber of Commerce had to set a rule, accepting only high-quality handsome youths; otherwise, they would turn them away.

The problem is, within human society, it’s rare to find an elf with undistinguished looks...

Since there’s no clear definition of a high-quality handsome youth, auction houses simply continue to accept everyone just like before, leading the market towards further saturation.

However, the surge in the number of male elf slaves is intricately linked to the war between the Luo Ze Empire and the Wansheng Country.

If one day the war between the Luo Ze Empire and the Wansheng Country ended, the price of elves, regardless of gender, would soar.

In anticipation of that day to make a fortune, the Sunrise Chamber of Commerce had to keep the unsold male elves, turning them into something bland and regrettable to discard.

Initially, Hei Yao easily fetched a sky-high price for Iyas with his smooth-talking, but he had no such luck with her brother, Hake.

At first, quite a few people were interested in the pitiable Hake, but as soon as they heard that Hake was anatomically male, their faces changed drastically, and with a loud ”what the fuck,” their desire to bid disappeared.

Those who wanted male elf slaves already had them.

Only when they had spare money might they reluctantly look for a new infatuation.

The auction of male elves had fallen into a slump, and the sale of Hake was more complicated than imagined.

For Hei Yao, such niche products could only be sold at extremely low prices unless all those with similar interests were gathered together.

Thus, after one or two auctions, Hei Yao grew to detest this unsellable lot and stopped bothering with it, leaving it to others.

Now, Hei Yao had no idea whether Iyas’s brother had been sold or where he might be.

But that wasn’t an issue.

If he didn’t know, he could simply make something up, for deceit was Hei Yao’s area of expertise.

”That’s him, you’ve described him perfectly! Where exactly is he now?”

Knowing that Hei Yao had handled her brother, Iyas couldn’t help but raise her voice.

”I could tell you, but it’s not without its risks for me...” Hei Yao pretended to frown slightly, deliberately acting troubled, ”unless you swear an oath to the goddess, promising the safety of me and my mother-in-law, and vow not to tell anyone else that it was me who informed you.”

”In that case, I can tell you the whereabouts of your brother.”

”I promise you! I swear by the goddess I won’t tell anyone else about this.” Iyas agreed without hesitation, making the vow, and then immediately urged, ”Tell me quickly, don’t try to delay!”

A subtle smile that went unnoticed by most played on the corners of Hei Yao’s mouth as he spoke in a serious tone,

”Your brother, after you were sold, wasn’t sold right away. It was much later that he was finally purchased.”

”Purchased? Who bought him? Tell me!” demanded Iyas.

”Miss Iyas, please calm down. I understand how you feel. Please let me finish speaking.”

Once again pacifying Iyas with his words, Hei Yao continued,

”Although he was sold, I heard that the person who bought your brother spent a long time without being able to train him properly. In a fit of anger, he beat him and returned him to the auction house.”

”Which auction house was he returned to?”

Sensing the sharpness in Iyas’s gaze intensifying, Hei Yao quickly added,

”The very same auction house that had auctioned you both off before. It’s located in the city of Xidelaistra, after leaving this city and heading west.

Don’t worry, there’s a good chance your brother is unharmed. To fetch a good price, returned elves receive training in the auction house’s special training rooms.

At that time, I was temporarily assigned to that auction house to conduct the auction, and now I’ve been transferred elsewhere.

That’s all I know. Do you have any other questions?”

Hei Yao’s words were a mixture of truth and lies, so beyond Iyas’s ability to detect any flaw.

Seeing Hei Yao so cooperatively divulging everything, Iyas slowly relaxed her bowstring and asked another question,

”What exactly goes on in this training room? I want to know if my brother is in danger.”

”That’s not within my jurisdiction, so I can’t be completely certain.”

Hei Yao suddenly became evasive, but noticing Iyas’s gaze sharpening once again, he quickly corrected himself,

”But I can assure you, as long as they follow the instructors’ orders, they won’t suffer any physical punishment. As for life-threatening danger, you needn’t worry even more; the merchandise there is valuable. If the goods are damaged, they won’t fetch a good price and those responsible will certainly receive a thorough reprimand from the upper management of the chamber of commerce.”

Upon hearing this, Iyas’s voice turned ice-cold as she questioned, ”So if they don’t obey, will they be beaten repeatedly until they completely submit?”

Hei Yao fell silent for a moment, then could only affirm in response, ”They usually resort to a combination of threats and temptation, I cannot exclude that possibility.”

Having heard Hei Yao’s testimony, Iyas completely loosened her bowstring. She now knew her brother’s whereabouts and safety, but the dissatisfaction on her face only deepened,

”I’ll let you off this time, since you’ve been so cooperative. In the future, don’t work for such a lousy chamber of commerce, take care of yourself.”

After speaking, Iyas jumped down from the carriage and turned to leave.

The pressing matter now was to quickly bring this intelligence back to the forest so Yang Yu could head to the auction house and rescue her brother.

Despite being apart for so long, Iyas was well aware of Hake’s character.

He would not simply obey and take orders just because someone told him to.

Such a person, even if he suffered physically, would surely not submit easily. Every minute delayed meant an extra minute of pain for Hake.

If his spirit completely broke down after repeated torment, how would she face him then, or even face herself?

Iyas pulled her hood up slightly, but before it could even cover her face, an icy chill tore through the sky, hurtling towards her.