Chapter 12
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 12
Chapter Title: Thief!
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"Yeah. It's a Night Tail."
The woman peering into the trap pit nodded.
The crowd gathered behind her craned their necks to catch a glimpse of the wolf trapped inside.
"It's been a while since one's been caught this close to the city."
Near the trap that had snared the Night Tail, a swarm of people had set up tents and unpacked their gear.
They were the guild's recovery team, summoned by paying off hunters at a nearby outpost to light a signal flare.
"You two really took this down by yourselves? It's E-rank!"
A brown-skinned woman with her hair tied back short—Marta, leader of the monster recovery team—turned to Ian and Rin as she spoke.
"Haha! You've got guts. I've seen plenty of mercenary groups, but you two? You'll hit C-rank in no time!"
"Th-thank you!"
Marta slapped Ian and Rin heartily on the back in praise.
They twisted away from the sharp sting, putting a little distance between themselves and her.
In the meantime, the recovery team finished clearing the area around the pit and setting up their equipment.
"Alright! Let's get to work!"
The recovery crew descended into the pit, checked the corpse's condition, and began rigging ropes around it one by one to haul it out.
Marta, watching from above and inspecting the Night Tail from every angle, turned to Ian.
"The hide's barely damaged. How'd you catch it?"
"Poisoned it with magic."
"Cheap stuff wouldn't have worked."
"So I brought the good kind, just in case."
"Nice, real nice. The pelt'll fetch a much higher price this way."
Marta circled the pit, examining the Night Tail closely and roughly calculating its value.
She nodded at the overall pristine condition of the corpse, then spoke to Ian.
"This'll net at least five gold in materials."
"Pardon? One beast is worth five silver coins?"
Rin, overhearing from the side, blurted out in shock.
She hadn't meant to butt in, stunned by the monster's corpse selling for such a sum, but Marta just burst out laughing as if she'd said something ridiculous.
"What? Haha! Five gold coins, obviously."
"Huh?!"
Rin froze in a daze, mumbling "gold coins...?" as her mind drifted into fantasy.
Having never even seen a gold coin in her life, the thought of earning five sent her on a brief dream vacation.
Rin suddenly snapped her head up and stared at Ian.
"Wh-what do we do? I haven't prepared for retirement at all! I haven't even thought about where to open a shop..."
Rin had already envisioned quitting mercenary life and living leisurely in a quaint little shop on a quiet street.
Still wearing a vacant expression, Rin asked Ian,
"Oh! How about opening a shop in Labyrinth City?"
"Rin, calm down. Those five aren't all yours."
Rin snapped back to reality at Ian's words, escaping her daydream.
She'd gotten carried away with wild fantasies at the mention of gold, but this wasn't a solo kill.
"R-right. We split it! So per person..."
Before she could conclude "two and a half," Ian explained first.
"After settling the advance we used for this job. Subtract the recovery call fee, transport costs, sales commission, mercenary group tribute, and the guild's cut..."
Rin's body jolted with each ominous deduction spilling from Ian's lips.
"After all that's taken out and split, I figure we'll each get about this much?"
"Huh?!"
Rin gaped at the number Ian showed her, asking several times to confirm before collapsing right there.
Her gold coins had vanished without a trace before she could even hold them.
"Th-thief...!"
"That's just how fees work."
"Kyahaha! Thanks to our Rin here, we can drink till we drop!"
Delighted by the rookie's perfect reaction, Marta roared with laughter and teased her.
Giggles erupted from the laborers working behind them.
"Rin. And if you want to do business in Labyrinth City, even a food cart costs ten gold per quarter."
"What?!"
Rin's dreamy retirement life, built in just ten minutes,
—running a bakery from a cozy two-story brick house with a garden—crumbled like a sandcastle before it could even begin.
"Well, we'll head out first. Gotta report to the guild."
"Sure thing. It'll take a few days to move it to the city and process everything! Want any parts for yourselves?"
"Nah. Sell it all."
"Perfect! The leather workshops were already sniffing around when we got the call."
Ian led the still shell-shocked Rin down the mountain amid the recovery team's farewells.
By the time Ian and Rin returned to the city, the sun had already set.
As the sun dipped beyond the walls, thick shadows and darkness began to blanket the streets.
Shops closed one by one with the sunset, but those operating into the night hung up lanterns.
The mercenary guild was one such place that always kept its lights on.
Regular counter hours were over, but monster-related work never stopped, so staff stayed through the night.
Ian pushed open the guild door, where a small lantern swayed.
"...Ah. You're back!"
The guild staff at the counter spotted Ian, stood up, and immediately sent someone upstairs.
Word of the recovery team call must have spread ahead, because after filling out a few forms on the first floor, Ian didn't have to wait to head up to the second.
Camilla waited in the second-floor reception room.
The examiner in charge of this mission—the one who'd assigned it to them—took the brief report Ian handed over.
She skimmed it quickly, then glanced up at him.
"We just needed the nest's location. Didn't expect you two to hunt it down."
"It spotted us first. No choice."
"According to this, you went fully prepared to kill it."
The report in Camilla's hand fluttered as she waved it.
Reading reports from illiterate mercenaries was a chore, but Ian's was logically structured and calmly detailed every event.
This guy would be perfect for guild work.
Camilla quietly rose, pulling snacks reserved for important guests from a drawer.
"Care for something? Coffee or rosemary tea."
"Coffee for me."
"...Same for me."
The captain knows his stuff, so it must be the best.
Rin, who had zero interest in tea, peeked at Ian and ordered the same.
Soon, three cups of coffee sat steaming on the table, courtesy of Camilla.
Rin eyed the pitch-black brew uncertainly, but the other two silently brought their cups to their lips.
Finally, Rin lifted hers too, sipping to play it cool.
"Gah, urk... eugh."
Camilla chuckled at Rin as if she'd expected it, offering a small sugar bowl.
Then Camilla turned her gaze to Ian, quietly sipping his coffee.
Definitely a scholar in a past life.
It was taboo to pry into a mercenary's history, but Camilla felt a spark of curiosity about Ian's.
That said, personal interests aside, she had mountains of urgent work piling up.
Camilla organized Ian's submitted papers and set them on the table.
"Most rookies charge ahead with enthusiasm, overreach, and vanish. You seem different."
Even rookies could have skill, of course. But those who rocketed up too fast often lost perspective, and their ends were usually the same.
But Ian showed no arrogance.
More like... certainty.
Not mere confidence, but a calm, matter-of-fact assurance rooted in solid ground.
"Just got lucky."
"Sure. Luck matters."
You needed skill to seize luck.
No one climbing the ranks lacked it.
Luck slipped through unprepared fingers like sand. Once gone, it couldn't be gathered.
Only the prepared could hold it.
Camilla pulled two pouches from a drawer.
"This is your promised pay. And this is extra from the guild."
One pouch jingled with coins. The other held guild coins.
Rewards for exceeding the mission goal.
Unlike before, it brimmed with over ten coins.
"Collect the material payout at the guild counter once it's settled..."
Camilla shared the last bit of news for them.
"Leave your badges on the way out. Need to update your ranks."
"Pardon? A promotion?!"
"Yes. You're D-rank from now on."
D-rank promotions didn't require exams—just sufficient fame points, granted on the spot.
This mission counted as D-rank work, more than enough to jump from E to D.
"Really?! Thank you!"
"Which brings me to..."
Thrilled at "D-rank," Rin shot up and bowed gratefully to Camilla.
Camilla smiled warmly and quietly handed something to the beaming Rin.
"Sudden jump to D-rank must be disorienting. This has helpful tips. Free of charge—give it a read."
"Yes!"
What Camilla gave them was a slim booklet titled Mercenary Life Guidelines.
The guild's seal confirmed it was official.
Ian peeked inside. It seemed filled with mercenary advice at a glance, but...
Look closer, and it subtly wove in perks and rewards for direct guild mercenaries, planting the idea that guild employment was the smart choice.
"...Thank you."
"Mm."
Ian resolved to snatch it from Rin the moment they left the guild.