Chapter 57
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 57
Chapter Title: 13. The Black Mages' Festival. (2)
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Hegel's situation must have been pretty urgent, because Allen dominated the negotiations from start to finish and ended up settling on a hefty sum. Even the money-grubbing mercenaries seemed to draw the line at black mages—most of them had backed out. From what he gathered, they'd been scouring for mercenary corps for over half a month and barely scraped together ten teams, Allen's included.
With a few more days of searching unlikely to yield better results, the baron's manor finally posted an official recruitment notice and summoned the ten mercenary leaders to a conference hall. Before departure, they were to receive various instructions and select a leader for the group.
Allen, who had been invited, brought not Kallisman but the Blind Saintess this time. For an official occasion like this, the one-eyed powerhouse with a solid reputation would serve much better. After all, wasn't their whole reason for coming all the way out to this remote western region to build fame?
As the two arrived at the conference table, sharp gazes from those already seated there stabbed toward them.
Sure enough, just as expected, there was a subtle battle of egos among the group. They glared with murderous intensity, sizing each other up to see who was the top dog. Mercenaries were the epitome of the strong preying on the weak, after all.
Allen took his seat and gave the assembled men and women a quick once-over.
...And one woman among them particularly caught his eye. Her face was stunningly beautiful, to boot. ...Beautiful enough to trigger Allen's crotch radar.
Her stats were nothing special, but she had a few decent traits, including [Prodigy]. Looked like she was the brains type.
And right behind her, a hulking muscular man had some pretty solid stats. Of course, still well below the Blind Saintess.
Soon after, the last leader arrived, and the meeting began. Though calling it a meeting was a stretch—it was more like a briefing.
"This is everything we've uncovered so far. Time is tight, so we'll elect a leader right now. Any volunteers?"
The facilitator scanned the leaders and asked. The desert beauty from earlier shot her hand up like she'd been waiting for it.
"Rudra Nawishal. You've all heard of me in the west, I trust."
The Blind Saintess whispered quietly from behind.
"Do you know her?"
Allen shrugged lightly—he had no idea. Honestly, aside from the top ten or so elites, he couldn't care less about the rest. What mattered were the grunts you could scoop up, not the leaders.
But everyone except Allen nodded knowingly, clearly acknowledging Rudra's fame.
Just when it seemed like that would settle it, someone else thrust their hand high. All eyes snapped toward them. Definitely not a westerner—a pretty young man.
"Allen Dwight Pomwell. Among us, I figure I'd be the best fit..."
—!
Rudra's eyes sharpened with irritation. The other leaders glanced around, murmuring about who this Allen guy was. He just grinned slyly, unperturbed.
The facilitator hesitated, caught off guard by anyone challenging Rudra.
"Well, with two candidates... we'll go by show of hands."
Naturally, everyone except the two voted for Rudra. It could've been awkward, but Allen waved it off like he'd seen it coming.
"What a shame. Can't really show off my skills here. Guess I concede."
With the leader settled, the facilitator announced departure at dawn the next day and ended the meeting.
As Allen headed back to the lodging with the Blind Saintess, someone called out from behind.
"Leader Allen."
"...Ah, Leader Rudra."
The Arabian beauty strode right up to him, fixing him with an intense stare from those proud blue eyes. Her lips smiled politely, of course.
"Sorry it worked out that way. Can't be helped."
"No choice, is there? Looking forward to working with you, Leader Rudra."
While the two leaders traded subtle barbs, the Blind Saintess and the hulking man behind Rudra eyed each other down.
Saintess or not, she was a martial artist at heart. She wasn't above battle lust toward the strong.
...Still, he's beneath me.
The Saintess, who could gauge superiority just from auras, remained relaxed. The man, meanwhile, felt an inexplicable unease from the inscrutable blind woman.
The two leaders stared for a long moment before exchanging a light handshake and parting.
The Blind Saintess hurried after Allen as he turned and resumed walking.
"......Was there any need to step up like that?"
She meant: You knew it was a lost cause—why bother embarrassing yourself?
Allen flashed a toothy grin.
"Sister, this world's half skill, half bluff. You puff yourself up from five to ten, and you snag the pay and fame worth seven."
Ooh—. The Blind Saintess got it instantly.
"If we'd just sat there like total nobodies, we'd be actual nobodies. ...Think about it, Sister. Would you pay top coin to a bunch like that? I wouldn't."
"Right. Makes sense."
"Of course, overdo the bluff and you get yourself killed—so you need the savvy to balance it."
"I see...!"
"Anyway, that's the gist."
Who knew there was such hidden wisdom—!
This golden boy was definitely something else.
"Honestly, it would've been even better if you'd thrown down a dominance play earlier, Sister. Kinda missed that chance."
"...Oh, I didn't think of that."
"Nah, first time's always like that. You'll pick it up."
"Thank you. I'm learning so much—!"
Allen smiled like the most magnanimous man alive and lightly patted the Blind Saintess's arm.
I made the right call following him...!
......Of course, the naive girl had no clue her sugar daddy planned to squeeze her dry to the bone.
Early dawn.
The fully prepped Allen Mercenary Corps left the lodging, each with a packed bag slung over their shoulders.
The ten-odd members crunched through the dirt toward the city's south gate.
Four mercenary corps were already waiting at the south gate. With Allen's group, that made five.
"Take carriage number four."
The manor's overseer checked the list and directed Allen. He loaded his crew into the carriage first, then waited outside for the rest.
Before long, the remaining corps arrived at the gate. Once everyone assembled, the desert beauty—Leader Rudra—called the leaders together.
"We're up against black mages. It won't be easy. But follow my orders, and we'll complete the mission safely. Understood?"
"Yes, Leader Rudra."
"Then let's move out."
Rudra's piercing gaze lingered on Allen one last time. He pretended not to notice, turning back to his carriage.
The carriages soon rolled out through the south gate. Far off on the eastern horizon, a faint wriggle appeared.
Dawn was slowly breaking.
The Blind Saintess and the newbie mage silently prayed for divine blessing at the sight.
"I'm just trusting our mage here."
Captain Aiden grinned and clapped the redhead mage on the back. Having even one mage was a huge comfort to everyone. Her skills had been proven in the canyon and dungeon, after all—!
It had to be a heavy burden, but she bore it with composure.
Allen scanned his slightly tense crew and spoke up.
"...Black mages won't go down easy, of course. It'll be a tough fight. But I know them well. So don't worry too much. Have I ever bullshitted you? Just follow me—you've seen the proof so far."
They all nodded, hanging on his words. He pointed out the carriage window.
"Money and fame are waiting. Once this is done, our name spreads across the west. We'll be celebrities."
Bald one-eyed Billy cackled crudely, clearly thrilled at the thought.
"This is our big break. Chances like this don't come often. Black mages? Chop their heads off, and they're done."
"Right—!"
"Alright, let's do this."
As fervent cheers filled the air, the sun rose.
The excitement settled into calm resolve.
But the carriages pressed on without stopping.
Toward the black mages' festival grounds—.