Chapter 30
Chapter 30
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 30
Chapter Title: Viscount Fairchilden's Proposal
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"Yes, Lord Fairchilden said he would grant you command of fifty troops, and regardless of victory or defeat, he would pay you five hundred silver coins."
A reward greater than subjugating mana realms two or three times over.
And that wasn't the end of it.
"Additionally, daily wages for Sir Eugene and your mercenaries under him will be paid separately, and after victory in battle, full rights to all spoils will be delegated to you."
'As expected of a noble with a title?'
"Sir Eugene! This is a real chance to rise in the world! Let's go!"
Mirian blabbered on without hiding his greed, but Eugene lightly ignored him and spoke to Mills.
"How can you trust me when we've never even met? Or rather, how did Lord Fairchilden even know I was here?"
"Ah, that's..."
Any ordinary knight would have accepted without a second thought, but as expected, this knight was a bit unusual, Mills thought as he glanced sideways.
"This man told us about you, Sir Eugene."
As all eyes turned toward him, another envoy slyly pulled back his hood.
"It's, it's an honor to see you again, Sir Eugene."
The sweaty, fawning man was none other than Delduan, the merchant who had crossed Marcus Mountain with them not long ago.
* * *
"I can't believe it. So this guy really is Viscount Fairchilden's merchant?"
"Damn it. He was heading to Fairchilden territory and tricked us?"
"I'm stunned too. The group was so small, I didn't suspect a thing."
Raban and Glad's words made Partek smack his lips.
Hearing their conversation, Delduan, who had been riding with his head bowed like a guilty man, flinched.
But he soon sidled up to the three mercenaries and flashed his characteristic smile.
"Sorry about that. But I made sure your pay was generous, didn't I?"
"Ha! Look here! It's not about the money..."
"Enough. It's in the past, and he's right."
Partek silenced Glad and addressed Delduan.
"But why did you come along too?"
"I know Sir Eugene's face, don't I? He might pass us by if I wasn't here, so Lord Fairchilden sent me along. I had no desire to come all this way myself."
"Tsk tsk. With that nosiness of yours, you won't die peacefully."
As Partek clicked his tongue, Delduan smiled awkwardly, at a loss for words.
As he said, if he hadn't blabbed to Viscount Fairchilden, he wouldn't have had to go through all this trouble.
"But how did it come to requesting Sir Eugene's help? A lord like Fairchilden must have a few territory knights under him."
"Well... he has two knights he can use as commanders. One's fine, but the other one's a bit... problematic."
Worried that Steward Mills, riding side by side ahead with Eugene, might overhear, Delduan lowered his voice.
"Sir Lobos, Lord Fairchilden's cousin. He's been a squire for nearly ten years, so he's... lacking, to say the least. And that knight went and caused an incident."
"An incident? What kind?"
"You know how Sir Eugene routed those mercenaries on Marcus Mountain? He got all excited hearing about it and took his troops into Lord Bomel's territory on his own initiative. The problem is, Lord Fairchilden hadn't issued a formal declaration of war yet."
"Hah!"
Knights stirring up trouble to claim glory was nothing new.
But charging into another territory without a proper declaration of war changed things.
Of course, capturing the enemy lord or commander would make it a great victory, but half-heartedly razing a village or two...
"The bigger issue is that he charged in on his own and lost all his soldiers and mercenaries in the first battle, ending up captured himself."
"..."
That wasn't just lacking—it was incompetence—but Partek held his tongue.
"That's why Lord Fairchilden is in a real bind. I regret mentioning Sir Eugene now, but what could I do? The lord asked, and I had to tell the truth."
"Tsk tsk."
"Anyway, from what I see, Lord Fairchilden doesn't really expect to win the territory war outright. He'll make peace as soon as he can save face. So if you convince Sir Eugene..."
"All decisions are Sir Eugene's to make. We just follow his orders, so cut the nonsense."
Delduan flinched at Partek's sharp reply and smacked his lips.
Not only the knight, but his mercenaries were no pushovers either.
'This won't be easy.'
Thinking that, Delduan glanced at Eugene and Mills, who was eagerly explaining something beside him.
"...and so, if you accept, Lord Fairchilden will treat you handsomely."
"Hmm. I see."
Mills's terms were fine, but Eugene intended to refuse.
His goal was to enter more mana realms and hunt as many high-grade monsters with red jewels as possible. Money was no longer an issue.
But he had a question.
"Why me?"
The Fairchilden viscount family was a noble house with a royal title.
Unlike the Tiwin family, which had barely gained independence under Count Evergrow, they were true nobility.
They must have at least two or three knights and a decent standing army.
Even if Delduan had told them about him, inviting a total stranger felt off.
"Ah, that's..."
"If you're going to give some lame excuse, I won't go. Better tell me the real reason."
"Yes, sir."
Mills quickly gave up brainstorming and explained the incident with Sir Lobos.
"The knight was captured? Wouldn't it be better to just pay the ransom and get him back?"
"That would amount to admitting defeat without a proper fight. It's not what Lord Fairchilden wants. Lord Bomel won't consider releasing him for ransom right away either."
"So you want to clash once first and then decide?"
"Exactly."
"Couldn't Lord Fairchilden just hire more knights? I'm not the only knight in the area."
"True, but none satisfy the lord. And given the circumstances, everyone demands formal investiture, but he has no intention of taking on territory knights for the time being."
The dream of most free knights was investiture by a titled noble.
But nobles who could grant investiture were extremely picky about their choices.
It wasn't just the money; granting investiture meant staking the family's 'name' on it.
Handing them out to just anyone could tarnish the family's honor.
"Hmm. Sorry, but I have no intention of becoming a Fairchilden territory knight."
As Eugene spoke intending to refuse, Mills replied as if he'd been waiting.
"Lord Fairchilden has no intention of investing you as a territory knight either, Sir Eugene."
"What?"
"Oh, no misunderstanding, please. Lord Fairchilden said he would write a letter of recommendation for you to your father-in-law."
"Letter of recommendation?"
"Yes! To Count Winslon. Take it there, prove your valor in the count's presence, and he might grant you investiture. You're familiar with Count Winslon, right?"
Mills puffed out his chest proudly, as if he were the count's own steward.
Unfortunately, Eugene had no idea who Count Winslon was, so he pondered how to take this.
But.
'Unbelievable! Just how high is this knight aiming?'
Misinterpreting Eugene's reaction, Mills was shocked.
Contemplating when he could gain investiture from Count Winslon, one of the kingdom's four great nobles?
'His ambition knows no bounds. Unbelievable.'
Having sworn by the gods he'd never seen such a case, Mills was swept in shock and confusion.
But he couldn't just stand by, so he quickly pressed on.
"Sir Eugene, Count Winslon is famed for favoring brave knights. He treats them well and doesn't demand much from those he invests. He simply wants them to make a name for themselves under the Winslon banner."
"..."
With the atmosphere still sullen, Mills grew more urgent.
"Moreover! If a knight under him subjugates a dungeon or labyrinth he owns, the count grants full rights to the byproducts..."
"Count Winslon owns mana realms?"
Eugene, who had been listening indifferently, suddenly showed interest, startling Mills for a moment, but he hurriedly nodded.
"Yes! Two in his personal territory and two owned by his vassal families, for a total of four mana realms."
He couldn't fathom how vast the territory must be to have four mana realms.
But the territory's size wasn't what mattered to Eugene.
'A noble who doesn't meddle much with his knights. And four mana realms?'
"Does Count Winslon happen to trade with the Feilin Merchant Group by any chance?"
"Er, I'm not entirely sure about that..."
Seeing Eugene's slight disappointment, Mills quickly continued.
"The Feilin Merchant Group mainly has branches on the coast, right? Winslon County is deep inland, so probably no connection."
"I see. Is that so..."
It wasn't confirmed yet, but the Feilin Merchant Group could arrange participation in about five or six mana realm subjugations.
Add four more?
'But it's a territory war.'
He was confident fighting alone or in small groups in dungeons, but he knew little about territory wars, so Eugene hesitated.
"What's there to think about? You get to enter more dungeons! A count's a super high noble, right? Or is it because it's fighting humans?"
As expected, the spirit of greed, Mirian, latched onto something.
"My seniors said that in human wars, you don't even need to kill everyone—just grab their leader and it's over. And sneaking in to nab one guy? That's vampire specialty."
"!"
Eugene's mind flashed at Mirian's last words.
He was right.
The opponents were humans, not monsters—negotiation and intimidation worked. No need to fight and kill everyone.
"I'll meet Viscount Fairchilden first and decide."
"Thank you, Sir Eugene! An excellent choice!"
Mills, who had been anxiously watching Eugene, grinned from ear to ear.
"Kee-hee-hee! Awesome!"
The spirit of greed's mouth curved the same way.
* * *
"That's the start of Fairchilden territory from here. Whew."
Mills sighed softly in front of a small river, and Delduan cautiously suggested.
"Steward, how about a short rest before crossing the river?"
"No. Lord Bomel's troops might be patrolling. We'll rest after crossing."
There were no villages or even farmhouses around, but strictly speaking, this was Tiwin family land.
However, the Tiwin family ignored anything outside their owned villages and hamlets—they lacked both the means and ability to interfere.
So even if another noble's hired mercenaries roamed freely without notice, there was nothing they could do.
Even if caught causing trouble, as long as it wasn't murder, they'd take suitable compensation and turn a blind eye—that was noble custom.
Thus, Tiwin wouldn't know or care if Baron Bomel's troops lurked around; a bit of silver would settle it.
"Would they come this far? Didn't you say they assembled mercenaries at Langbon?"
"Langbon's less than half a day from here. If luck's bad..."
"Looks like luck isn't on our side."
At Eugene's words, Mills startled and looked at him.
"Those guys look like mercenaries. Hired by Lord Fairchilden?"
Mills's gaze snapped toward Eugene's chin gesture at lightspeed.
"Damn! They're not ours."
Mills's expression darkened sharply as he gripped his shortsword hilt.
As steward of a titled noble house, he claimed some skill with the blade.
The dozen or so armed men approaching rapidly along the riverbank were all geared for combat.
Two even had crossbows loaded and ready.
Mills eyed the mercenaries tensely.
"We'll have to try talking first, but if they're in Lord Bomel's employ..."
Neigh!
Suddenly, Silion bolted forward.
"S-Sir!?"
"Sir Eugene!"
Not just Mills—everyone jumped.
"W-What!?"
The approaching mercenaries panicked even more.
A warhorse in barding charging straight at them was intimidating enough.
Especially with a knight in full plate armor mounted atop.
And when faced with the unexpected, people make mistakes.
"Eek!"
One crossbowman, overcome by fear, pulled the trigger.
'What the hell? Are they insane?'
Unbelievable as it was for the mercenaries, Eugene—who had intended mere intimidation and talk—frowned.
(To be continued next time)