Chapter 3 - {Mercenary}
{Mercenary}
Translator : Elizabeth
Rattle, rattle.
The sound of old carriage wheels crushing the dirt of the unpaved road rang out regularly.
Even the interior of the shaking carriage would have caused motion sickness if it weren't for his current body.
"Young Master, do you see that over there? That is the Barony of Kales."
At the peddler's words, Kang Jin-ho forced his heavy eyelids open.
Beyond the carriage awning, amidst a hazy cloud of dust, dark and dull city walls revealed themselves.
The frontier of the Imperial North.
A lawless zone where fists are prioritized over law, and survival over morality.
It was the 'Cursed Land,' Kales.
"The atmosphere is savage."
Kang Jin-ho muttered.
Guards were standing in front of the city gates, but their attire was closer to that of a bandit troupe than the formal uniform of the Imperial Army.
Rusted chainmail, mismatched leather gaiters, and clubs and rusty swords roughly stuck in their waistbands.
Their eyes glistened like hyenas eyeing the pockets of passersby.
"Pay the toll! It's 1 silver coin per person!"
One guard thrust out a spear and stopped the carriage.
It looked more like they were ripping people off rather than collecting a toll.
However, the peddler took out silver coins from his bosom as if accustomed to it and placed them in their hands.
"Thank you for your hard work."
"Uh, right. Pass through. Hey! What's with the kid in the back?"
The guard's gaze landed on Kang Jin-ho.
Kang Jin-ho sat in the cargo space and looked down at them with an indifferent expression.
The guard flinched for a moment.
Although he was a young 15-year-old boy, his eyes were strangely settled.
A bizarre pressure one might feel from veteran mercenaries who had been through all sorts of hardships.
Of course, that wasn't intended by Kang Jin-ho, but merely the eyes of a modern person mixed with 'annoyance' and 'fatigue.'
"He, he is my nephew! I brought him along to teach him some work this time."
The peddler quickly made up an excuse.
The guard spat on the ground with an uncomfortable expression.
"Tch, looking all pretty like that. Tell him not to wander around late at night if he wants to live long."
"I will keep that in mind. Let's go!"
The carriage passed through the city gates.
The scenery inside the walls was even more of a spectacle than the outside.
The streets reeked of a mixture of filth, blood, and cheap alcohol that stung the nose.
Shouting went back and forth everywhere, and people sprawled on the roadside drunk in broad daylight were visible.
Passersby all had at least one weapon hanging from their waists.
'The public order is definitely a mess.'
Kang Jin-ho clicked his tongue.
But paradoxically, this chaos was an opportunity for him right now.
City gates that don't check IDs.
Lodgings that don't ask for names.
A city that doesn't ask about the past if you have money and power.
"Young Master, first I need to dispose of my goods here."
"Ah, yes. Please take care of my Troll byproducts as well."
The peddler headed straight to the exchange.
The owner of the exchange saw the Troll's heart and leather and tried to haggle with his eyes rolling back, but he couldn't beat the peddler's seasoned speech.
Clink—.
A heavy pouch was placed in Kang Jin-ho's hand.
"Combined with the Troll heart, leather, and byproducts, it's 45 gold coins. I deducted the commission, so please count it."
"45 gold coins…."
Kang Jin-ho opened the pouch.
It was full of glittering gold coins.
He didn't know the prices of this world exactly, but according to what the peddler told him on the way, the monthly living expenses for a commoner family of four was about 5 silver coins.
Since 1 gold coin is worth 100 silver coins, 45 gold coins was a huge sum enough to live proudly for the time being.
'If it's a scam, I can just find him and retaliate later.'
Just in case he might need to retaliate later, he memorized the peddler's face meticulously.
"Thank you, Mister. I survived thanks to you."
"Oh my, don't mention it. If it weren't for you, Young Master, my life would have flown away. That money is naturally yours, Young Master."
The peddler bowed repeatedly.
With the transaction finished, it was time to part ways.
"Then I will be going now. If by any chance you are looking for mercenary work, try visiting a mercenary group called 'Grey Wolf' in the back alley over there. I heard it's the place that accepts people based only on skill in this field."
"Grey Wolf… understood."
Kang Jin-ho exchanged farewells with the peddler and moved his steps.
Perhaps due to the thickened pouch, his steps were much lighter.
First, to fill his stomach, he bought and ate stew with plenty of meat and bread at a nearby restaurant.
The taste was crude, but to a stomach that had starved for days (in terms of feeling), it was a feast.
'Now that I'm full, shall I try getting a job?'
Kang Jin-ho headed to the back alley the peddler had informed him about.
As the sun began to set, the streets became even more gloomy.
At every corner of the alley, thugs were giggling and scanning passing pedestrians.
However, as Kang Jin-ho walked steadily, they didn't dare attack rashly.
It was partly because the boy's attire was alien, but more than anything, it was because he was walking too confidently without holding any weapons.
'Either a crazy guy or a real master. One of the two.'
The thugs were quick-witted.
Ignoring their gazes, Kang Jin-ho stopped in front of a building with an old wooden sign hanging.
[Grey Wolf Mercenary Group]
The sign with a wolf head drawn on it looked precarious, as if it would fall off halfway.
Noisy clamor and the sound of clinking glasses could be heard from inside.
Creaaaak—.
As he opened the door and entered, the smell of sweat along with thick cigarette smoke wafted in.
Dozens of men were drinking alcohol.
Among them, there were those with bandages wrapped around their arms, and those with faces full of scars.
Every single one of them showed signs of having lived roughly.
And the gazes of those inside turned toward the door all at once.
"……?"
"What is it, who's that kid?"
"Hey, did the milk delivery arrive?"
Sneering giggles burst out here and there.
Kang Jin-ho, unconcerned with their ridicule, walked to the counter, no, the innermost table that looked like the Captain's seat.
There, a man of massive build draped in wolf fur was tilting a giant beer mug.
A bushy beard and even an eyepatch on one eye.
It was an impression that looked as if he had pasted 'I am a Captain who has been through all sorts of hardships' on his face.
"Excuse me."
Kang Jin-ho stood in front of the table.
The Captain put down the beer mug, wiped his mouth with a hairy hand, and looked down at Kang Jin-ho.
His remaining single eye shone fiercely.
"This isn't a playground, kid. If you miss your mom's milk, go find it at home."
The surrounding mercenaries burst into laughter, "Wahahaha."
Kang Jin-ho spoke with an expressionless face, his hands stuck in his pockets.
"I came to join. Please become my guarantor for mercenary status."
He was told that for mercenary status, having the guarantee of active mercenaries was faster and better than just registering.
Also, it was the same for securing a stable status by completing missions multiple times as a mercenary.
He heard that proceeding with fellow mercenaries guaranteeing him was faster and simpler.
"Join? Guarantee?"
The Captain's eyebrow twitched.
He scanned Kang Jin-ho up and down and snorted.
"Ha! This is a cheeky fellow. Hey, kid. Do you think being a mercenary is some kind of house play? Look at those white and soft hands of yours. You look like you've never held a sword once."
"I don't use a sword."
"Then? Are you perhaps a wizard? Even though you don't have a staff?"
"I use my fists."
For a moment, silence flowed.
And soon after, even louder laughter exploded.
"Puhahahaha! Fists? He says fists!"
"Hey, did you hear that? He says he'll catch monsters with bare fists!"
"I can't overlook this because it's so cute, really."
The Captain also shook his head as if dumbfounded.
"Go back. We have no hobby of babysitting. If you die here, cleaning up the corpse is work too."
The Captain waved his hand shooing him away, issuing an expulsion order.
Kang Jin-ho let out a sigh.
It was the expected reaction.
15 years old, pretty appearance, no weapon.
Conditions perfect for being ignored in this field.
'It won't work with words.'
In a lawless zone like this, there was only one way to prove himself.
Kang Jin-ho slowly clenched his fist.
And toward that thick oak table where the Captain was resting his arm, he lightly flicked his finger.
To be precise, as if flicking a finger flick, he flicked his index finger and hit the corner of the table.
Thwack—!
A cheerful sound rang out.
And.
Crack—! Crunch!
Right in front of the Captain's eyes, the corner of the log table, which looked to be easily 10 centimeters thick, crumbled away like a biscuit.
It didn't simply break.
A shockwave flowed along the grain of the wood, creating cracks like a spiderweb across the entire table.
"……."
The mouths of the mercenaries who were laughing and chatting dropped open.
Hands holding alcohol cups stopped in mid-air.
The Captain swallowed hard, looking at the table that had split right next to his elbow.
He wore an expression of not understanding what had just happened.
He didn't use magic, nor did he wrap aura around it.
He just flicked his finger lightly.
Kang Jin-ho dusted off the broken wood chips and asked calmly.
"I think this should be enough to earn my keep. How about it?"
The Captain slowly raised his head and looked at Kang Jin-ho.
The sneer from earlier was nowhere to be found, and astonishment and tension lingered on his face where cold sweat was flowing.
Monster.
His instinct was defining the boy in front of him as such.
"…You pass."
The Captain answered in a hoarse voice.
Like that, Kang Jin-ho became a new recruit of the 'Grey Wolf' Mercenary Group.