When can the Mukatab pay the installments if the master is still a slave or has died?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Mukātaba (Contractual Manumission)
Primary text
If the Mukatab wishes to pay before his master is freed or dies, he pays to the judge or his trustee. The collected money is held in abeyance, as previously mentioned. The Mukatab is freed upon payment, but the master remains a slave, and no claim of loyalty (wala') is established for him. Abu Bakr states the loyalty belongs to the Muslims. The Judge states the loyalty is held in abeyance: if the master is freed, the loyalty belongs to him; if the master dies while still a slave, the loyalty belongs to the Muslims.
Supporting text
If the master was enslaved after the Mukatab's manumission and the establishment of his loyalty, the Judge holds that his loyalty is held in abeyance: if the master is freed, the loyalty belongs to him; if the master is killed or dies while remaining a slave, the loyalty is voided because a slave, being incapable of inheritance, voids the loyalty due to the absence of its rightful recipient. However, it ought to belong to the Muslims, as the property of one without an heir belongs to the Muslims, so too should the loyalty.