The Marcus Family
The Marcus Family of the 15th Squad of the Bandits.
“This old man here is our leader, Marcus. He’s got a sharp temper and a nasty personality, so just bear with him. And there’s one more guy who’ll be joining us soon. His name’s Harry. He’s a fatso who weighs about 140 kilograms.”
“Ah, so there’s another member.”
“Until now it’s been three of us. But now that you’re here, the 15th Squad—also known as the Marcus Family—has four members total. Let’s get along from now on, outsider.”
“I’ll be in your care as well.”
Marcus set down the paper he’d been reading and turned to look at me.
“Our 15th Squad is the hardest and most dangerous squad in the entire bandit group. The mental and physical toll is heavy, and we have to slip in and out of enemy territory every single day, even at the risk of getting caught. If you don’t have sharp instincts, keen senses, and a quick tongue, you won’t survive here. One stupid mistake and you’ll be snatched up by the city guards without a sound. If you’re going to quit, do it now.”
“Hey, old man. Don’t scare the rookie too much.”
“If you’re going to run away later because it gets too hard, don’t make us suffer for it. Just don’t start at all. I’ll give you the chance right now—walk out of this tent and run. We won’t stop you. We’ll stay quiet, so if you want to run, do it now.”
What the hell is this old man saying? He’s giving me a chance to run?
I had been thinking about running away, but being told to do it so suddenly made me hesitate. How was I supposed to escape without any kind of plan? If I ran blindly and got caught by the other bandits, what then?
“I have no intention of running away now or later. I’m ready to bury my bones here, so I’ll learn the work properly. Please teach me well.”
I wet my lips and spoke calmly. The old man snorted.
“They all say that. Everyone starts out that way.”
“Whoa, newbie. You talk pretty well~ I like you.”
Phelton patted my shoulder as if he were proud of me, then pulled out some clothes for me to change into, saying what I was wearing stood out too much. I took off my T-shirt and jeans, carefully folded them, and tucked them into the very bottom drawer of the wardrobe before changing into the shabby work clothes.
When I looked in the mirror, I felt like I’d become one of the characters from The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. The work clothes I now wore were almost identical to what the characters in the story usually wore.
“Looks good on you!”
Phelton laughed and slapped me hard on the back. Good on me, my ass. The top was so long I had to roll up the sleeves several times, and the pants were too short, so I cut the legs and turned them into shorts.
“The shirt is Harry’s and the pants are mine. We didn’t have anything in your size, so just make do for now. Once you get your weekly pay in two days, go buy yourself a new set.”
“Weekly pay? The unit gives out money?”
“No one told you about the weekly pay?”
“No.”
“They pay us once a week, and you have to buy all your own supplies with it. Everything from basic toiletries to blankets, beds, clothes, shoes—whatever you need, you buy it yourself. Even weapons and armor for work.”
“They don’t issue anything from above?”
“In the Elk Bandits, aside from the meals they serve every day, you have to pay for everything. The 14th Squad sells loot to the members at cheap prices, so you can buy from them. If they don’t have what you want, you’ll have to go into the city and get it. Oh, and keep your things well hidden. There are plenty of thieves around. Some bastards will even steal your underwear for a few coins.”
Didn’t most groups usually provide basic supplies for free? Having to buy everything yourself was certainly unusual.
“Then… do I have to go around without any weapons?”
“If you don’t have money to buy any, yeah. Once you get your pay, you’d better buy a weapon first. What kind of bandit walks around without even a knife? Hahaha.”
Phelton laughed heartily as if it had nothing to do with him. Hey, I’m being serious here. How am I supposed to do dangerous work without any weapons?
“Enough chatter. Get to work. How long are you planning to keep whispering? Are you trying to ruin today’s job?”
Marcus grumbled, clearly annoyed that they were talking while leaving him out.
“Yes, yes. We should get to work. Work.”
Phelton brushed it off casually, pulled on a pair of gloves, and properly tied his loosened shoelaces. The word “work” made me tense. Just what kind of work would it be? Something ordinary? Or something bad that involved hurting people?
“Follow me. We’re heading outside.”
Phelton led me out of the tent and toward a warehouse. In front of the wooden warehouse stood a cart pulled by three horses. We took the wooden crates piled high inside the warehouse and carefully loaded them one by one into the back of the cart. The crates were quite heavy. Every time I moved one, I could hear the sound of bottles clinking together. They must be crates of liquor.
“Huff…”
As I kept moving the crates, my body grew more and more exhausted, and I couldn’t help but start panting. Compared to Phelton, who worked with practiced ease and without a single wasted motion, I was sweating buckets and grunting with effort.
“Must be tough since it’s your first time. You’ll get used to it.”
Phelton came over at some point and told me to sit down and rest for a bit.
“Thank you.”
I gladly took his offer, sat nearby, and wiped the sweat from my forehead. When I looked up at the sky, the sun was already beginning to set. We’d probably stop working once evening came, but it felt like we were only just getting started, which made me uneasy. I hadn’t slept a wink during the day—did that mean I’d have to pull an all-nighter like this?
I couldn’t rest for too long without feeling guilty, so I only caught my breath before standing up again.
“Pheeelton!”
Someone came running from far away in a hurry. It was a large young man. His belly was as big as a mountain and he was incredibly tall—probably over 190 centimeters.
“Sorry! Phelton!”
“Why are you so late?”
“Ah, well… the bed was just too warm, so… I woke up for a second but then fell back asleep. I wasn’t planning to sleep, but the spot was so warm and comfortable that I got sleepy again…”
The big man scratched his head with an embarrassed smile. So this was Harry? Phelton had mentioned a 140-kilogram fatso earlier, so it had to be him. His speech was slow and clumsy, and he looked innocent and a bit dim, but for some reason that made him seem like a good person.
“But who’s this friend?”
He blinked at me with curious eyes.
“Hello. I’m the new recruit, Kang Hyun-woo.”
“Ga… nyeon… hu?”
“Yes. You can just call me that.”
I smiled brightly. Inside, though, I felt a little frustrated. If no one could pronounce my name properly, I’d probably need to come up with a name that fit this world.
“Nice to meet ya. I’m Harry.”
He held out a hand bigger than my entire face for a handshake. When I took it, it really felt like a baby shaking hands with his dad. For a moment I wondered—would anyone actually survive getting hit by that hand?
Once Harry joined us, the work sped up dramatically. He displayed monstrous strength, tossing four or five liquor crates at a time with ease. I didn’t feel like I’d done much, but the cart was soon full. As if he’d been waiting for the job to finish, Marcus appeared with a bag slung over his shoulder.
“Here.”
The moment he showed up, he tossed a sheathed paring knife straight at me. I caught it just before it hit the ground and stared at him in confusion. Marcus shrugged with a sour expression.
“You said you didn’t have a knife, right? Use that for now.”
“Hahaha.”
Phelton burst out laughing. Everyone else carried a proper dagger, yet I got a fruit knife. Still, I thanked Marcus. He ignored both my words and my gaze, climbing straight into the passenger seat of the cart. What a hard-to-read old man. He’d insult me one moment and help me the next, then ignore me right after.
Anyway, Phelton and Harry said they needed to grab a few things for the trip outside and left for a moment. It looked like we really were heading out with the liquor crates. Since I had nothing but the clothes on my back, I simply sat in the back of the cart and waited quietly until they returned. I didn’t exchange a single word with Marcus, who sat in the passenger seat.
Before long, Phelton and Harry came back.
“Watch this.”
Phelton pulled a gold coin from his pocket, flicked it with his thumb, and let it fall to the ground.
“What are you doing?”
“Checking whether today’s going to be lucky or not.”
Phelton looked down at the coin with a grin. It had landed heads up. Looked like a good result. He picked the coin back up and spoke to me as I sat in the cargo area.
“I used to be a soldier. During the war, an enemy arrow was flying straight at me, but this gold coin saved my life.”
He proudly showed me the coin. A queen was engraved on the front, and right in the center—at the collarbone—there was a small scratch.
“The arrow heading for me luckily hit this coin that I kept in my chest pocket. After barely escaping death that day, I started flipping this coin whenever something important comes up. If it lands heads, I believe things will go well no matter what.”
“What about tails?”
At my question, Harry, who had been watching with great interest and breathing heavily, answered for him.
“If it’s tails, he won’t do anything all day and refuses to go anywhere. Every time that happens, me and the boss end up suffering. Phelton believes in superstitions way too much.”
It didn’t seem like something Phelton would do, so I stared at him blankly. He just smiled and winked at me. Then he clapped his hands together and rubbed them.
“Alright then, let’s get going, friends! I’ll safely escort you all the way to Nobern from here!”
Harry struggled to climb into the cargo area with his heavy body, grunting the whole time, so I reached out and helped him up. He sat down right beside me, pulled two blankets from the bag he was carrying, and handed one to me.
“It gets cold on the way. Cover yourself with this.”
“Thank you. By the way, what kind of place is Nobern?”
“It’s the big city where the lord lives.”