Chapter 45
Chapter 45
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 45
Chapter Title: Counterattack
-----------------------------------------------------------------
“I'm Anna, Madam Brilda's personal maid.”
Inon gritted his teeth.
If he hadn't, his flustered expression would have shown through.
'I have to pull this off no matter what. This is for my lord and the goddess.'
He repeated the vow he'd made to himself hundreds of times on the way here.
Then he reached out and gently stroked Anna's shoulder.
“Anna? You've got a pretty face on you. When do you get some time off?”
He mimicked the rough mercenaries he'd seen countless times during his own days as one.
It wasn't hard at all.
But.
'What's this? Why no reaction?'
Women always hated it when mercenaries acted like that and left the scene.
This maid should do the same.
He wanted her to hate him, to distance herself on her own.
“Please follow me.”
'Because she's Brilda's personal maid? She sure manages her expressions well.'
As he followed Anna, he draped his arm over her shoulder.
Inon was tall, but Anna wasn't short, so the position wasn't uncomfortable.
They were walking down the corridor like that when
another maid passed by.
“Hey!”
The maid startled and stopped.
Inon released his arm from Anna's shoulder and approached the other maid.
“What's your name?”
“Uh... I...”
The moment he reached for the terrified maid's shoulder,
thwack.
“Don't touch the other maids.”
“You're fine, though?”
“Please follow me. Madam is waiting.”
Inon draped his arm over Anna's shoulder again and walked down the corridor.
They passed the first floor, then the second, arriving at the third.
In front of Brilda's room, he straightened his disheveled hair.
Then he entered.
“Greetings, Madam Brilda.”
He greeted her politely, unlike before.
“They said you had a good image for a mercenary. Seems it's true.”
“Of course. Dealing with mercenaries is all about handling people, isn't it? At least, we treat clients and nobles well. Gotta manage our image to make a living.”
Brilda let out a small laugh and
got straight to the point.
“Anyway...”
Brilda mentioned the situation in West River.
Inon's monster subjugation commission.
The declaration that the mercenary group with the most subjugations would be appointed as castle lord.
And the Innocent Mercenary Group being the closest contender.
“What I want is simple. When you sign the contract, there'll be a clause about mobilization orders for defense. Just add the phrase 'monsters only' before it.”
“And what do I get out of it?”
Brilda pointed to one corner of the room with her finger.
Anna went there and opened the chest that was placed there.
It was filled with a considerable sum of money.
A large amount.
But he couldn't accept it just like that.
He needed to stay in the mansion longer to uncover the information his lord wanted.
“That's all? What if I make the demand and the castle lord position goes to another group? The risk is too high.”
“That money... is too little?”
“Considering the risk, you should offer at least four times that amount.”
Brilda's expression hardened.
She had offered more than enough, and now he wanted four times that.
The bigger problem was she couldn't gather that much cash on the spot.
“Fine. I'll give you four times that. So...”
“Show me the money first. It's our first contract; I need to verify it.”
“Wait in the reception room. I'll show you the money.”
“Thank you, Madam.”
After the conversation,
Inon left Brilda's room.
Anna was guiding him again this time.
Thud.
He draped his arm over her shoulder.
And brought his face close.
“Shall we pick up where we left off?”
Anna silently headed to the reception room.
No change in her expression this time either.
'What's going on? Not even this works?'
If she was as smart as his lord said—smart enough to earn his recognition—then a battle of wits with her was beyond him.
That's why he'd clung to her instead.
To make her pull away on her own.
'Do I need to go harder...'
Inon closed his eyes and prayed to the goddess.
Then he slowly lowered his hand.
From her shoulder down to her wingbone.
Even then, he didn't stop.
When his hand reached her waist,
scrape.
Anna stopped walking.
“We've arrived. Please rest.”
The members were watching Inon through the open door.
“Wheeeew.”
“Ptoo. Ptoo.”
Someone whistled,
and another mimicked a trumpet.
Inon entered the reception room and closed the door.
“The captain looked like a total playboy.”
“He fit the part so well, even I was fooled.”
“Kya— I knew it from the first time I saw him. Look at that face. Total playboy vibe.”
Inon ignored the members' teasing.
He just sat in a chair, lost in thought.
This mission had to be completed perfectly.
'After all that, that maid should avoid me now.'
He clenched his fist, still feeling the texture of Anna's clothes on his hand.
'Next up is investigating her backers...'
He had completed the first mission.
He'd figured out why Brilda had summoned him.
Now for the second.
Uncovering Brilda's backers.
'Even Brilda wouldn't have that much cash on hand. She'll have to source it from somewhere else.'
He organized his thoughts and stood up.
“Captain, where to now?”
“Wheeeew, off to find that maid?”
“It's personal.”
“Have fun.”
“Captain, fighting!”
He left the room and walked the corridors.
He investigated the paths money might take if it arrived.
Whenever he encountered someone, he used a different excuse.
“You there, maid!”
“Y-yes...? Do you need something...?”
“Where's Anna's room?”
“What!?”
“I mean the maid Anna's room. Tell me where it is.”
“I can't tell you that.”
The maid fled with a flustered face.
.
.
While wandering under the pretense of looking for Anna's room,
he spotted suspicious movement.
'Sun's down, and a carriage is coming in?'
A worker was unloading something from the carriage.
'That's... money?'
It looked just like the chest he'd seen in Brilda's room.
And there were exactly three of them.
Added to the existing one, that made four.
It matched the amount he'd demanded.
'Those guys.'
Inon hurried back to the reception room.
“We're leaving now.”
“Right now, sir?”
The members questioned him but moved their bodies anyway.
They were used to risking their lives daily, so their actions were faster than words.
It took only a few minutes for them to prepare.
“Let's go.”
“Understood.”
Alf Village.
Cultivated fields.
He removed the demonic energy from the fields again today.
'I wonder how Inon's doing.'
His mind hadn't been at ease since sending Inon to Brilda.
'What could he be up to right now? Searching the mansion? He hasn't gotten caught, has he?'
He moved to another spot.
He knelt there and continued his thoughts.
Repeatedly using his skills.
'Can't check on him, so it's frustrating.'
Investigating the mansion or contacting Inon from here could put them in danger instead.
So he'd left it entirely to Inon.
'Make up some excuse and visit the mansion?'
As he pondered deeply,
the edge of the field grew noisy.
A mercenary group was approaching quickly from there.
'Inon? Already?'
The group heading toward the village veered in his direction.
“Greetings, Lord Elwin.”
“Ah... yeah.”
“Can we meet again at the same place as last time?”
“Of course. In 30 minutes.”
.
.
Alf Village.
Central Temple.
“So, the reason she called you was about the castle lord contract?”
“Yes.”
It must have really gotten under her skin, the castle lord appointment.
'Makes sense.'
Great lords sometimes appoint vassals as sub-lords.
Of course, the titles they can grant are limited by the great lord's own rank.
Either way, appointing a sub-lord that way binds them to follow the great lord's orders.
Just as regular lords pay taxes to the emperor and respond to military drafts, appointed sub-lords must pay taxes to the great lord and heed mobilization orders.
His relationship with the castle lord would be similar.
'That's why she wanted to add 'monsters only' to it.'
With those words, she wouldn't interfere in human conflicts.
“So what did you do?”
“I left a note and departed.”
“A note?”
Inon had left a short note when leaving the mansion.
“You left that in a hurry? Why the rush?”
“Actually, I think I uncovered Brilda's backers.”
“Oh?”
Inon had pursued the carriage carrying the gold chests.
“Something off about the gold chests?”
“They matched the ones in Brilda's room. And she needed money right then.”
“Got it. Go on.”
The place they ended up after chasing the carriage was
“the Silnia Merchant Group.”
A few merchant groups operated on Monster Island.
They mainly traded between the island and the continent.
Silnia was one of them.
“A complete smokescreen.”
“Pardon?”
“Do you know about the Silnia Merchant Group?”
“No, sir.”
Silnia Merchant Group.
The group that dominated Frontier territory's commerce.
Even worse, they were one of the few factions not aligned with Brilda.
Those living in Frontier had sided with either 'him' or 'Brilda.'
Everyone except Father's direct troops.
'Though only Hans sided with me, of course.'
Even in that situation, Silnia had stayed neutral.
'I showed them plenty of consideration for that. But they're funding Brilda behind the scenes?'
He found Silnia more infuriating than the openly Brilda-aligned vassals—
pretending neutrality while aiding her in secret.
“Call Russell.”
“Yes, sir.”
A short while later,
Russell arrived.
“We're expanding the merchant group.”
“You've decided?”
Until now, the merchant group had played only a supporting role.
Trading produced food for monster byproducts,
selling them on the continent to buy slaves.
In other words, the group's scale was limited by the farm's grain output.
This was to minimize damage to Silnia.
He'd been grateful for their neutrality amid everyone siding with Brilda.
'But no longer.'
Now, he planned to go beyond efficient food sales
and actively expand.
“From now on, war with Silnia Merchant Group. We take Frontier's commerce.”
“Understood, my lord.”