Mash thought about it and realized that it probably wasn’t a life-or-death situation. Even if there were people over his level, it wasn’t like he would magically become that easy to kill. While he might not be able to win, he was probably able to survive. Even now, he could just escape into his world with as many people as possible. That alone would practically assure his own safety. His friends too since Jill could teleport them there. The only problem with that was abandoning the city and the army to their fates. Which admittedly could be anything. He felt somewhat responsible because he had been the catalyst for everything that happened there, but he didn’t need to be there. The city would change now, and regardless of what happened, most of the slaves would probably remain free.

Not all of the northern kingdoms supported slavery, and every kingdom would take in skilled laborers. Which practically every slave was more than qualified at. The only people who would suffer were the strongest of the slaves. Those who would be greedily desired by the stronger kingdoms. Also, many people would probably be enslaved as they attempted to find a new place to live.

They couldn’t remain in the kingdom. Kings upheld their kingdoms with skills that were exclusive to them. Skills that would aid kingdoms in the long run. There was a lot known about king classes, and they were actually desired later by most rulers. Getting the class early often left people without skills to use in reference to solely themselves. The King of Jewels was an example of that. Whereas his king was more like the traditional one. Someone who had made his name in a combat class prior to taking the class that actually made him a king. Mash didn’t have to think hard about which one was better. And the people here would probably agree.

Mash turned as the space around him shifted slightly. Jill appeared a moment later and stepped away in abject horror. She yelped and almost fell but caught herself by putting her weight on her back leg. Her expression shifted from surprise to anger very quickly and then to confusion, as she spoke.

“Don’t just stare at where I’m going to appear! And why are you in your dragon form anyway?”

The question surprised Mash a little. Had Priscilla not told them of the fight? Did she think it was unimportant? Well, it wasn’t like anyone was likely to die in it, and that was probably the only criteria she cared about. He didn’t bother mentioning it either. Red and Luke had both appeared too. They were flanking Jill and seemed similarly unsure about his appearance.

“What do you guys think we should do? I think running is the best strategy is running. I leave and draw their attention while you guys get the army into my portal. Then do the same with the rest of the city, and then come get me. Although I’ll take any buffs I can get.”

“Then why did we come here? We can help distract them. I would be able to help you avoid them. In fact, I can just teleport you back home, and then just get you if we need to.”

Mash considered Jill’s response. That might actually be a better plan. It wasn’t like these people would invade just to chase him down. But even that was unnecessary. He could just go to his world and wait until Jill got him for things.

“Wouldn’t they just target you guys or the people we freed?”

That was the real concern that stopped him from agreeing instantly. It felt like he was just abandoning everything after creating a mess. He hated that idea more than the others.

“Mash, sometimes the best plan is just to leave. The people that are coming don’t really know anyone other than you.”

Red said the words slowly. Her expression was worried, and her eyes darted over Mash. She was obviously trying to be delicate as if the statement was especially callous. He didn’t really take any offense and chose to just nod. His plan had already been to run away, this would just speed up his escape. And it wasn’t like he couldn’t come back if they needed him. Honestly, his mind felt surprisingly clear. Maybe he was just tired. It was very possible considering everything that had happened.

Mash let his transformation drop. His scales receded into his skin, as Lisa rejoined them. To his surprise, Jorg joined her. He wasn’t enlarged or enraged and walked up to them with a smile. A smile that was far too friendly considering how hard Jorg had been trying to kill him earlier.

“I’m Jorg its good to meet you all. As for your plan, it's terrible. Lisa kind of told me about the situation. If Mash leaves now, the pursuers will definitely know and go after the slaves or the city.”

There was no doubt or room for questioning in the way he spoke. Everyone had questions though, but he held his hand up to forestall them.

“Let me explain. At least one of them will have a tracking skill to know if Mash is still nearby. As for the rest, if Mash flees faster than they can catch, then they will just turn to secondary tasks. Which in this case will be taking and holding the city. After they succeed, the rest of the kingdoms will cut up the city and take what they want. And some people will wind up as slaves again.”

And just like that, Mash’s mind wasn’t feeling clear anymore. It wasn’t anger that filled him this time. Instead, he was just annoyed and disgusted. This whole continent was terrible. Luke wasn’t as annoyed. His face was red with anger, and his words were harsh.

“Is this whole place that stupid? Don’t they know what slavery is? Why would- “

Jorg spoke over Luke.

“Yeah, it's stupid. But it is my home, and it wasn’t always this terrible. Why would they do it? Why do high-level people support it? Isn’t it obvious? It’s convenient and the highest-level people on the continent either support or tolerate slavery’s existence.”

He wasn’t angry as he spoke. Instead, his words carried his disappointment and disgrace. Lisa’s expression mimicked the commanders, both of their faces were marred by shame. Mash didn’t understand why, but he felt like he should keep his mouth shut.

“What do we do then? Even if Mash is strong, he can’t fight a group of people that out-level him. Our group couldn’t do much either.”

Jill asked as everyone else couldn’t find a way to break the awkward silence. Her voice reminded everyone of the urgency of the situation, and Jorg nodded along agreeably.

“Yeah, if you guys fight normally you will almost certainly die. Or wind up as slaves yourselves. No, that would be a bad choice too. We should try and be as violent as possible. Kill them while they underestimate you. You guys don’t know it yet, but everyone can die even before their health hits zero.”

Jorg said it like it was some grand secret, but almost everyone back home knew that. A cut-off head was usually enough to kill just about anyone. Mash was sure there were exceptions. Red might already be able to survive if she had mana, not that anyone would test something like that. Health as an attribute usually meant things akin to durability and recovery. If the commander was being serious, he wanted to try and ambush the pursuers. Kill as many as possible before a fight can even break out. Hopefully, that would scare them off or get them to retreat.

It wasn’t a bad idea. As Mash thought about the plan, his eyes swung to Jill. He wasn’t the only one either. Red and Luke were watching her with just as much enthusiasm. The meaning of those gazes was obvious.

“Got something means?”

Jorg looked almost pleased as he asked the question. Jill gave a very small nod, and she replied hesitantly.

“I do, but it's dangerous. I mean really dangerous and depending on the size it could be bad.”

“Just tell me what you need to do to set it up.”

He seemed to understand her reluctance, and just went to the heart of the matter. Jill then explained what she needed. Mash watched the conversation and saw the commander’s smile grow more prominent. His eyes flashed with hope. Actually, it was something closer to resolve.

“Would that kill you?”

That question was directed at Mash, and he almost responded automatically. The question itself bothered Mash a little, but most of the things he did were pretty risky. Then he froze and gave it some more thought. It would probably kill him, but he had never tested it. And he did have his anti-magic which should be able to suppress some of the damage. If he had some monster corpses and was in his treant form, there was a pretty good chance that he would be fine, so long as he wasn’t directly next to one of her barriers. Luke could heal the damage too.

“I’d say there is a good chance I survive. Especially, If I’m past the range of the initial explosion.”

His words brought terror to his friends, who stared at him with disbelief.

“Good enough. We will work with a simple bait plan then. Thankfully, we don’t need to waste time figuring out who their target is.”

“Wait, we are not going to risk Mash’s life like that. It’s not worth it. Just let Jill blow up whoever she can. And not use Mash as live bait.”

To everyone’s surprise, it was Lisa who protested the decision. She seemed horrified by the very thought.

“He saved us. We don’t need him to die for us. Just let them go, we can fight for our freedom. Get as many people out as possible. They can take some with them at least.”

Lisa’s words brought Mash back to reality. She was right, and he realized why Jorg would suggest a plan like that. He didn’t care about Mash or any of them. It wasn’t that he hated them, but he would risk everything if it meant he could help everyone. To him, it was a waste to try for anything less than everything. He wouldn’t settle for it. Lisa was different. She wanted to save as many as she could, even if that ended up with her in chains again. Or she was resolved to die if it came to that. Mash realized that she was a friend and Jorg wasn’t. With that, he nodded and rejected the plan too.

“Nope. I agree with her. That plan might kill me, and I don’t want to die yet. But it did give me another idea. A significantly safer one too.”

Mash rarely came up with good plans, but he felt surprisingly good about his current one. The others saw his confidence and his friends looked at him with obvious doubt. Jill poked Luke and then proceeded to pinch one of her arms as Mash began to explain some of it. He had to rush, but it wasn’t that long or complex. Honestly, it was probably simpler than Jorg’s plan. That didn’t mean it was worse. If anything, he felt like it was more likely to work.