Chapter 99
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 99
Chapter Title: Not Easy
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Ian and Iri sat facing each other across the table.
A short while later, a contract was placed in front of Iri.
A mercenary corps application form and an employment contract. To Iri, who had been operating solo all this time, both were utterly unfamiliar items.
There had been a bit of a commotion where the mood cooled slightly while briefly introducing her to the members, but anyway.
Ian had already decided to accept Iri as a new member, so after various twists and turns, the two finally managed to sit down at the negotiation table.
Ian spoke first to Iri, who was hanging her head low.
"Alright. Read it over and sign here."
Ian handed Iri several documents.
Iri cautiously accepted them and glanced at Ian's face.
Was it really okay to take that literally and read them carefully?
She was a slave—wouldn't he get mad if she scrutinized the conditions?
With that thought, Iri picked up the pen right away, only to flinch in surprise at Ian's words to read it properly, and hurriedly apologized as she took up the contract.
Iri slowly read through the contract Ian had given her.
She checked it over multiple times while watching Ian's expression, scrutinizing it closely for any strange clauses.
After rereading it several times like that, Iri, convinced that the contents were off, looked at Ian and asked cautiously.
"I-Is this for real…?"
"It's the real contract."
Iri eyed the documents and Ian suspiciously, wondering if he'd brought the wrong ones or if this was some bigger trap.
The conditions were just too good.
What Ian had given Iri was a standard member contract.
But Iri was currently bound by a slave contract. There was no need to match standard member terms for her. Even if he offered the lowest conditions, she had no choice but to accept.
Considering typical slave work conditions, what Ian offered was utterly unreasonable.
"The amount seems wrong…."
"That amount's correct too."
From Ian's perspective, unless it was the very early days, skimping a bit on one mercenary's salary meant nothing now.
Pay too little, and even a slave's satisfaction would drop—no point in saving a few gold coins over that.
But from Iri's viewpoint, it was a massive sum.
Setting aside her slave status, it was jaw-dropping even compared to general mercenary life.
Iri couldn't shake her suspicions easily and pondered for quite a while.
But no matter how much she thought, what options did a slave have? Even if there was some ulterior motive, she'd have to take it.
In the end, Iri signed the contract and application form Ian offered.
"Paperwork's done. I'll get your mercenary tag updated at the guild later."
"Y-Yes…."
Now she was bound by contract for two years and had to work here no matter what.
Ian gathered the documents and stood from his seat.
Iri awkwardly followed suit, rising after him.
Ian turned his gaze to the members who had been staring intently at their table from nearby and beckoned them over.
"Well then, shall we do introductions?"
"Eek, uh…."
Introductions? Could it be that the self-introductions she'd only read about in books weren't just fictional, but actually happened in real life?
As Iri thought that and froze up, the members who had stepped out for the contract returned, filling the break room seats again.
"This is Rin…."
It had been a long time since a new member joined.
All the members gathered in the break room, introducing themselves one by one.
Iri muttered the names under her breath, trying to memorize them amid her panic.
It was her first time learning so many people's names at once, and she looked flustered.
…With her [Poor Conversationalist] trait making it hard to raise intimacy from the start, it'd probably take time to get close to the other members.
Time would sort it out anyway. It was slow, but leave it long enough and it'd fill up eventually.
After the simple introductions ended, Iri quietly asked Ian.
"You don't mean… w-we're working in parties, do you?"
"It's a mercenary corps, so of course we move together."
He planned to assign her as the ranged attacker for the first-string party.
At the word "party," Iri trembled visibly.
"I-Is there no solo work…?"
"Solo?"
Ian repeated her question, and Iri cautiously gauged his reaction as she replied.
"Like scouting, gathering, or even cleaning…."
"Cleaning wouldn't pay off your debt in two years, for starters."
"Th-That's true…."
No matter how little pay mattered, he couldn't assign cleaning after shelling out that much cost.
Iri made a sullen face but nodded at Ian's response.
"And the rest—who does that kind of thing solo?"
"I… I did…."
Iri answered Ian's question while watching his face.
"I… took those kinds of requests solo."
"All the way up to C-rank?"
Iri nodded.
That explained her high Stealth skill—she'd been wandering alone this whole time.
"Eek…."
"From the start?"
The members listening nearby all looked at Iri with shocked faces.
They'd thought her intro mention of no corps meant she was currently unattached. But no—from becoming a mercenary right up to now, she'd been completely solo.
An extreme lone wolf.
Operating solo to this extent was impressive, sure. But seeing how it led her to debt, was it impressive or just foolish?
Setting that aside, everyone took great interest in how she'd climbed to C-rank alone.
They crowded close around Iri.
"How'd you do the rank-up exams?"
"A-about eight tries, and somehow passed…."
"How do you handle requests solo?"
"W-Well… that is…."
Surrounded by members bombarding her with questions, Iri urgently grabbed Ian's sleeve tight.
"Um… c-can't I just go to the quarry…?"
"…No."
Ian deliberately left her amidst the break room members to help her bond a bit more.
Iri let out pitiful squeaks, like prey circled by sharks, as she endured the conversation.
Self-introductions.
Casual chats and tea time.
And even a welcome party after.
After finishing all those thrilling events she'd only read about in books, Iri finally reclaimed some alone time.
"Haa…."
In the bathhouse thick with rising steam, Iri sat exhausted, quietly sighing now that she was finally alone.
She'd nearly ended up entering with others even here.
But by making various excuses and stalling, she'd managed to slip in alone during an empty slot.
Alone in the quiet bathhouse, Iri finally calmed her mind and settled down.
Having crammed months' worth of conversation into one day left her a bit dizzy.
Now alone and recovering some energy, Iri finally took in her surroundings.
The guild outpost's bathhouse. Not just bathing facilities, but impressively well-maintained overall.
…The facilities are amazing.
That was Iri's belated impression upon properly checking the bathhouse she'd rushed into.
Always staying at the cheapest inns to save money, this was her first time entering a building with its own private bath.
Way better than public baths. And only the people here use it?
Realizing that at that point, Iri finally grasped that the mercenary corps she'd joined wasn't ordinary.
An incredibly wealthy corps.
At this level, it must be a famous one….
Ignorant of rumors, Iri could only guess that much.
With no one to chat with usually, she rarely heard about famous corps.
The limit of her gossip was occasionally eavesdropping on nearby table talk while eating.
…Come to think of it, had she heard the name Ian Mercenary Corps in passing somewhere?
As Iri pondered that, she cautiously poured hot water over herself.
Having this facility all to herself felt incredibly luxurious.
…I thought it was a weird corps.
Iri quietly recalled what she'd seen of the Ian Mercenary Corps so far.
……Isn't it still a weird corps?
That thought bubbled up in her mind after a moment's reflection.
Excluding leader Ian, everyone else was female.
No matter how she thought about it, the odd suspicion was unavoidable.
As Iri mulled that over and leisurely surveyed the bathhouse facilities,
Footsteps approached from outside.
"Hm? Someone in there?"
"…!"
It was Ian's voice.
Iri didn't reply, quickly scanning nearby and hiding in the corner.
She hadn't done anything wrong, but avoiding people was Iri's instinctive reaction.
"No one? Coming in?"
Hearing no response, Ian puzzledly opened the door cautiously.
There'd definitely been a presence inside, yet the bathhouse was empty.
If no one was there, he'd probably misheard.
Thinking it fortuitous timing, Ian entered the bathhouse.
Peeking ever so slightly from behind the pillar, her presence concealed, Iri spotted Ian entering.
Ian… seemed about to bathe.
Well, what else would bring someone to a bathhouse?
The panicking naked Iri hid more securely behind the pillar.
In truth, just answering that she was there would have sufficed….
But somehow, it wasn't that easy.