Chapter 6
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 6
Chapter Title: Trap Caution
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"Rin! Focus! Right side first!"
"There are too many of them!"
"You're too slow! You can dodge them just fine!"
Rin gripped the hilt of her sword tightly as she eyed the three wolves snarling in front of her.
The three wolves tried to lunge at Rin, but they couldn't move properly due to the transparent, spiderweb-like threads clinging to their fur.
Rin grumbled under her breath at Ian's orders—easier said than done.
But when she looked at them coldly as he suggested, it wasn't impossible to dodge, which only made her a bit annoyed.
Rin put some distance between herself and the wolves ensnared by the webs, unable to charge. She swung her sword down at the one isolated on the far right.
The wolf, already quite wounded from the ongoing fight, collapsed after taking Rin's blade.
"Rin! Left side!"
"...!"
Ian, watching the situation from behind, shouted.
As Rin turned her head, two new monsters emerged from the bushes, drawn by the noise of the battle.
"More... more are coming! Should we run?"
"It's fine. We can handle this."
Ian checked the two new wolves that had joined the fray and confirmed the remaining HP of the other monsters, then reassured Rin.
Ian's blanket assurances of "it's fine" felt like absurd demands to Rin, who had to fight up close...
But based on their experiences so far following his instructions, they had always won somehow, making it hard for her to argue back.
"Paralysis Orb."
"Uh, right..."
"Not that one—the gray one! Aim for the left."
"Here goes!"
The orb shot from Rin's hand struck the monster squarely on the head.
Mist rose from the shattered orb, freezing the two newcomers in place.
Rin let out a sigh of relief upon seeing her throw hit true.
This orb was a convenient item that activated its embedded magic simply by throwing and breaking it.
The method was no different from chucking a rock, but the problem was the price.
Every time she pulled one out, Rin's hand trembled at the thought of its cost.
Ian said consumables were meant to be used, and misses could happen in the heat of battle, so it was okay...
But to Rin's small-town sensibilities, wasting something this expensive on a bad throw would leave her with no defense even if the captain chewed her out all night.
Of course, Ian didn't seem like the type, but still—how could she throw it carelessly?
"Rin. Two on the left first—40 seconds."
"...Got it!"
The monsters she'd been fighting were already battered, so while the newcomers were paralyzed, she quickly took them down in the order Ian specified.
The orb's description warned that paralysis duration varied by monster and situation, so use with caution.
But Ian called out precise priorities as if he could see the remaining effect time ticking down.
"Hoo..."
Rin flopped down onto the ground, having defeated all the monsters single-handedly.
She'd been on several missions since joining the mercenary corps, but battles like this still didn't sit right with her.
Even if she'd pulled it off in the end, it was far too nerve-wracking for a rookie who'd shrugged off 1-on-1s with goblins not long ago.
The corps had only two members.
Ian, the captain, never joined unless it was truly dire, so Rin was essentially facing the monsters alone.
Rin worried if she could really handle it...
But thanks to Ian's lavish use of outrageously expensive consumables, her fights felt almost suspiciously easy.
Magic items lived up to the name, it seemed.
Just as Ian said, they were pricey, but they more than earned their keep.
While Rin caught her breath, Ian—who'd collected the wolf fangs for the mission—sat down beside her.
Too caught up in the urgent fight earlier to bring it up, Rin finally asked Ian.
"Captain, what about the trap we set yesterday?"
"We don't need it."
"......"
Rin thought back to the forest trap they'd slaved over all day yesterday.
If they'd lured the wolves into it, they could've caught them easily without all this fighting.
"We could've made it even easier by leading them there."
This mission had two goals:
Install a trap in the wolves' territory,
and hunt the wolves.
They'd been given the installation fee and tools for it.
In Ian's words, it was a guide mission introducing trap objects.
E-rank beginner quests often included ones to practice using such tools.
"Then why make it if we weren't gonna use it?"
"Making it was the request. We got paid for installation. Not doing it would've been embezzlement."
"No, I mean... If we'd used the trap, we wouldn't have needed the orbs. They're super expensive..."
"We can use the trap later if needed."
A close read of the mission showed traps were required, but not mandatory for catching the wolves.
As long as the trap was made, any method of wolf-hunting cleared it.
That left the unused trap sitting in place.
Traps took time and effort to set, but their effects were strong and long-lasting.
Not just Ian—most players who'd cleared a few runs knew how to use them efficiently.
Free traps from missions or abandoned ones found on-site? Save them for later instead of wasting on trash mobs.
...Though most such hoarded traps ended up forgotten and abandoned anyway.
Rin stared blankly, not grasping the idea of saving it for later at all.
She suddenly understood a bit why her village elder grandpa ranted about nobles being stubborn know-nothings.
After finishing the mission and returning, Ian collected their pay from the guild and pointed to a still-open shop.
"Let's stop by the shop for a bit."
The shopkeeper had spotted Ian from afar and rushed out, ready to guide him.
Ian promptly restocked the items they'd used on the mission, seamlessly filling his inventory.
Thanks to that, Rin could gauge exactly how much they'd spent today by tailing him.
"...Captain?"
Rin tried not to meddle in corps operations lest she seem cheeky, but her curiosity finally won out.
Even in their short time together, she'd sensed he wouldn't snap at a question like this, so she ventured carefully.
"I'm getting my proper pay..."
Rin wasn't savvy with finances, but she could tell the books weren't balancing at this rate.
Ian was reinvesting everything beyond minimal operating costs like salaries and living expenses. His share included.
"You're not making any profit at all, are you, Captain?"
Wasn't a mercenary corps ultimately for making money?
Mercenaries flocked to this city for coin.
Among them, becoming a captain was for those chasing far bigger bucks than solo work.
Who'd take on the hassle and responsibility without the rewards?
In that light, Ian's no-profit-for-himself approach made no sense.
"It's fine. Money isn't the priority right now."
Ian bought combat supplies with every incoming payment, keeping only what he needed.
If a bit extra, he'd stock new varieties.
Funds always scraped bottom, but in character-growth games, money was just another resource.
How efficiently you spent it without waste defined player skill.
[Rin] (Lv. 8)
Nearly level 10.
Ian had deliberately picked foes slightly above her level where orbs worked best, making her growth top-tier for E-rank.
Normal mercenaries got big boosts and new traits every 10 levels, so at 10, the corps could aim for D-rank promotion.
"E-rank pays are pretty low."
"R-Really?"
To Rin, current E-rank pay felt huge.
A shocking step up from village sewing pocket money.
...Of course, city prices were murderously high, but the generous pay let her splurge on snacks she'd have fainted over back home.
From her view, Ian's money talk was alien territory.
"D-rank's several times more."
"Several times?!"
"Think about it, Rin. Better to rank up fast and grind more D-ranks than pinch pennies on E's, right?"
Rin looked half-convinced.
Even if she got it now, it wouldn't stick.
D-rank would just lead to the same logic for rushing C-rank.
"That's it for today."
"Yeah... Ah! Let's get some of those! I'll buy yours too, Captain!"
Rin's eyes locked on the street vendor's skewers, and she tugged Ian's sleeve.
Dusk, when hungry mercenaries returning from missions thronged the streets.
The merchants' wicked trap that always hooked Rin.