Chapter 84
Chapter 84
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 84
Chapter Title: Reinhardt's Rush
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"This means we're out of the running, right?"
"Hmm."
A woman dressed in southern-style clothes that didn't suit the current weather whispered into the ear of a middle-aged man wearing worn shrine priest robes.
He let out a small groan, rubbing his chin beard with a troubled expression as she erected a faint mana barrier to keep their conversation from others' ears.
"It's unexpected. I never thought she'd join a completely new party."
"Right? And we've been eyeing her this whole time. We're the ones left out in the cold."
She was capricious, hot-tempered, and didn't even pretend to listen when others spoke—a slacker through and through. But her skills were undeniably top-notch, making her the most reliable asset if you could just rein her in.
That's why most of the long-established parties in this border town of Gavioren had been scheming to recruit her.
'A brand-new party that popped up out of nowhere, and Rachel joined them?'
"I don't know what you're talking about, but mind if I join? Hehe."
A rat-like man, apparently a ratkin half-breed, scratched his hunched back and poked his head into the mana barrier. The woman frowned slightly.
"What the hell? Vincent and I are talking here."
The ratkin man chuckled at her irritated tone.
"It's gotta be chit-chat about the violence addict, right? Let me in on it."
"Reyren, Kicho has the right to join the conversation too. He worked with us to recruit Rachel."
When Vincent defended him, the ratkin called Kicho shrugged exaggeratedly, and Reyren grumbled.
"So what? Got something to say?"
"Nah, hehe. It's just weird. Wasn't it just recently we egged on the violence addict and cleaned out her pockets?"
"Hmm, true. That's why we planned to lure her in when she came down to base for some pocket change."
Vincent nodded at Reyren's words. Rachel loved solo subjugations so much that, aside from brief supply runs, she was always out hunting. They'd set a little trap to create more opportunities for contact.
Yet she'd rejected all their invitations, stuck to minor subjugations even after arriving here, and now suddenly she was with some nobleman with a pretty face.
'Something's off.'
Vincent, Reyren, and Kicho had schemed to empty Rachel's pockets, leaving her broke from booze and gambling. But if she were truly desperate for money, she'd have joined a party ages ago.
"She would've been more comfortable in our all-women party. That noble young master... I don't like him."
"Hehe, ours is way more fun anyway. Everyone's a real firecracker."
As Reyren and Kicho bickered, Vincent stroked his chin beard and spoke up.
"Our party's not bad either. Solid fundamentals. But theirs is a bit lacking."
A tall noble young master with a gentle face that didn't quite scream "threatening."
A suspicious robed man who somehow seemed even more arrogant than the noble.
A timid rabbitkin girl—rare in these borderlands due to her inherent skittishness trait—and a slender woman with doll-like blankness that stood out even more.
Aside from Rachel, whose bitchy personality was matched by standout skills and looks, how much blood did any of them have on their hands?
The rabbitkin girl? Or the girl who looked like she'd sway in a breeze?
The robed man showed almost no mana traces, so he was basically a civilian—probably just a support.
The noble who'd assembled a party of eye-catching women including Rachel? His intentions were obvious.
"It's a waste to leave Rachel with a party like that."
Reyren, leaning crookedly against the wall, laughed at Vincent's words.
"Right? She'd fit perfectly with us."
"Kick, then we're all agreed. Let's proceed."
It was a shame to leave Rachel with that young master's party. Whatever conditions he'd used to recruit her, who knew.
"If the party falls apart, we'll get another shot. Just assign them to the front lines."
A greenhorn party that looked like they had no real combat experience aside from Rachel.
A little pressure, and they'd crumble. Kicho chuckled and nodded.
* * *
Party member check, names written down.
Who would've thought Zero's changed appearance would come in handy like this.
Back when we first met in the labyrinth, he had that average, friendly country boy look.
'Now, thanks to that, he's drawing aggro like a champ.'
I heard the insults hurled at him on the way to the subjugation request office. If it had been me with the Arrogance trait instead of soft-hearted Zero, it would've been even worse.
I shook my head once, finished filling out the request forms, submitted them, and turned around. A short distance away, Luna and Zero were talking.
"My heart hurts... after lying like that without any sincerity..."
"No, you did great. Don't worry about it. I wanted to do it myself."
"No, Senior. It looked better coming from me."
What did they do?
Zero looked pale, like he'd eaten something rotten.
Leaf was patting his shoulder consolingly, and Rachel was dozing in a corner chair.
"What're you two talking about?"
"Ah, well..."
I cut Zero off with a flick before he could speak, in case anyone overheard.
Stick to the concept. Zero, playing the runaway noble young master in my place, shut his mouth at my gesture. Luna smiled and spoke up.
"We were just chatting while waiting for you, Adelrian. All done with the forms?"
I glanced sideways at the dozing Rachel, eyed the other mercenaries passing by with wary or disdainful looks, and chuckled softly.
"Wrote us down for rear support."
They wouldn't send us as is, of course.
They'd use it to test our party's skills—and keep an eye on Rachel—by shoving us to the front.
'Exactly what I want.'
Twirling a lock of hair around my finger, I looked at Leaf watching me and Luna beaming.
"Wanna grab something tasty?"
―Balanced meals reduce mana heart consumption.
"I want, uh, horned boar."
Luna raised her hand playfully, exaggerating, and Rachel's eyes snapped open.
"Me too, horned boar!"
I remembered snatching some from Cain before. It was tasty, but worth waking up for? I chuckled at Rachel wiping her jaw with her handknuckles like always, and Zero ignoring her.
* * *
"On the way, let's grab some horned boar. What else you wanna eat?"
Zero, playing the spoiled noble young master as ordered, trailed a bit behind with arms crossed haughtily. I chatted with Rachel.
"Horned boar and chewy slime pickles."
What's that?
I glanced at Luna, who nodded like such a thing existed.
"Fine, chewy slime pickles. And?"
"I want a mixed salad."
―Get about 5kg of horned boar meat, plus ingredients for slime pickles and mixed salad.
Leaf scribbled the kids' requests on her palm-sized blackboard. Outside grew rowdy.
"Out of the way! Clear the street!"
"Lord Reinhardt's coming through soon. Make way!"
Shouts and hoofbeats echoed from afar.
Two riders galloped ahead, yelling to clear the main road.
"What's going on?"
"Are those rumors true?"
I felt faint vibrations through my toes and stepped out of the subjugation office, turning to the boulevard.
About ten cavalry. Leading them was a man a head taller than most, charging fiercely.
"Hiya!"
He cracked his whip, and the ground shook harder.
Pebble scattered everywhere as people huddled tighter against the roadside. As he thundered past, I eyed him with the user's gaze.
[Reinhardt von Eisstern — The Unbreakable Sword]
Signature Traits: [Tenacity (S)] [Steel (SS)]
Hidden Traits: [Holy Power (D)] [Alchemy (C)]
Yep, Reinhardt.
He was supposed to be late sixties, but he looked way younger. High realm knight, maybe.
What's got him in such a hurry?
Pretending to check my pocket, I opened my subspace, pulled out parchment, jotted his traits in Korean, and stored it.
"Looks like it's real."
Rachel sidled up, sounding bored. I asked lowly.
"What is?"
"There's illegal pioneer villages scattered around here, even if it's against the rules."
Sometimes nobles' taxes scared people more than monsters.
"But lately, some of the remote ones have gone dark—no contact."
Borderlands meant subjugations, so even illegal villages got check-ins every few months for oversight.
"Even with subjugation squads, villages get wiped or scattered by monster outbreaks sometimes. But it's been too many lately, so they sent a scout team recently."
Rachel added she'd skipped the dispatch request due to our bet, then leaned in to whisper.
"Word is, some villages got massacred real gruesomely."
Blood-filled wells, bone towers, skin sails...
I furrowed my brow.
"Some dumb dark wizard showed up, huh. Explains why that guy's rushing out like his ass is on fire."
Heavy-hipped as he was, Rachel grinned. But dark wizard...?
"Young master..."
"I think so too."
Luna approached, hinting. I nodded.
A dark wizard wouldn't be so flashy. Rachel called it a dumb one, but I disagreed.
Definitely an evil god cult.
As a cult, they didn't clean up after themselves—maybe to spread their god's fame.
Like, see if you can find us.
The fact they hadn't been caught yet meant they had plenty of backers.
"Not confirmed yet."
If it was the cult, Reinhardt's rush wouldn't matter. He'd just come back seeing evil carnage.
"...We're getting stronger, right? We can help you, young master?"
"Of course."
Maybe my stiff face? I smiled softly at Luna's words, stroking her ear.
Rachel watched us, then squatted to lower her height, sticking her head out.
"What."
"Try it."
I stroked her red hair and the ponytail-like lock, then Leaf stared blankly.
"Leaf too."
―Golems need occasional tuning and dusting by their administrator. 'Administrator.'
Yeah, I'm the admin...
After tousling Leaf's hair, even Zero—tired of standing alone like a noble—trailed over.
Not you.
I rolled up my sleeves and said.
"Let's hit the market."
"I'll carry the luggage—no... Rachel can carry it."
Zero reflexively spoke, caught my eye, and started bossing Rachel around.
With more juniors, now he's bossing others.
Rachel grumbled about why she had to, but quieted when Leaf showed her the 5kg horned boar note.
We all laughed and headed to the market. I followed, then glanced back at the now-crowded boulevard.
'Reinhardt.'
The broken hero who'd blocked a cyclops attack with his body.
I recalled the NPC Reinhardt from the half-done Innocent Saga.
Prosthetic leg, prosthetic arm, bottle in hand—the bent sword.
'This time's different.'
I hurried between Luna and Leaf beckoning me over.