Chapter 116
Chapter 116
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 116
Chapter Title: Reunion (4)
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Outwardly, there was no sign of hostility, but one could never be too sure.
After excusing himself, Galen stepped out of the shop for now. He asked the coachman to take him to the finest inn in the city, and the man knew just the place.
It pained him to say it about the Bron brothers, but their place couldn't exactly be called upscale. It was a bit lacking for housing Elisa.
"You said you even took on mercenary work because you were short on funds."
Inside the moving carriage, Elisa laid out the full story.
"It was last winter, I think. That's when I met Lord Terti on a commission we both took. We were hired on the same side and worked together for about half a month."
"Ah, what a coincidence."
"He didn't seem like a typical mercenary... Ah, of course, you're one too, Galen. Anyway, he was someone who truly deserved the title of 'lord.' Both in skill and demeanor."
"He's a good man. I only spent about a month with him myself, but..."
They say you can know ten fathoms deep in water but not even one fathom deep in a person's heart.
Unless it was some master con artist wearing a flawless mask, a person's true nature would eventually shine through after spending time together.
Whether it was during the subjugation of the wicked horde or when they were hired by the Narok Family, Terti had been consistently reliable.
He never complained even when he took on the harder tasks himself and looked after Galen, who had been a green rookie mercenary at the time.
'Come to think of it, I first heard the rumors about the eastern frontier through Terti.'
Meeting Lilia there and getting tangled up with the church had set off a snowball effect that led to where he was now.
Even if Terti hadn't intended it, he'd had a huge impact on Galen's life.
"Still, if the Nijerte Mercenary Guild is pushing him so hard, others must rate him similarly, right? Diligent, highly skilled, young—"
"Pardon?"
"What?"
"Young? You mean young for someone of his standing as a mercenary?"
"I was just talking about his age. Thirty-one or thirty-two, I think."
"...I see."
Elisa trailed off with a slightly shocked expression.
Galen could guess why, so he silently apologized to Terti in his mind.
Well, Terti just didn't care about his appearance at all, but his raw looks weren't bad. If he put in some effort, he could probably pass for late thirties. Or not.
"Anyway... I first heard rumors about you from Lord Terti."
"Pardon?"
"It came up out of nowhere while we were working together. He mentioned knowing a mage around my age who used similar magic. I wasn't paying much attention until Galen's name came up. Of course, I thought it was just a coincidence at the time."
That explained how Elisa had gotten wind of the rumors so quickly.
The order was reversed. She'd heard Galen's name from Terti first, then investigated to confirm if the rumors were real.
"But how did you confirm it was me? You probably only heard a vague description of my appearance."
"I didn't confirm it. Not until right before meeting you in person."
Elisa gave a wry smile at Galen's question.
"It was a last-ditch gamble, clutching at straws. If the person who showed up wasn't you but some other Galen with the same name... it wouldn't have been a good situation."
If it had been another Galen, he'd have come all this way thinking it was a commission, only to find Elisa broke.
He might have flown into a rage about the wasted trip, souring the mood completely. Or maybe he wouldn't have bothered showing up at all.
"Anyway, you're not on bad terms with Mr. Terti, right?"
"Quite the opposite—I'm grateful to him. If I hadn't heard your name back then... I don't even want to imagine where I'd be now."
"I'm glad you didn't end up like that, young lady. So he's done me a favor too. Understood."
The carriage pulled up in front of a luxurious building. Galen turned to Lilia.
"Could you go in first and secure a room?"
"What about you, brother?"
"I left awkwardly, so I should go back and say a proper goodbye."
As he spoke, Galen's gaze lingered for a split second on the carriage behind them—the one with the escorts.
Lilia caught his meaning immediately. She nodded.
"Leave it to me."
"Thank you."
The carriage soon departed again. This time, Galen was alone inside.
* * *
Leaving Lilia with Elisa instead of the unreliable escorts,
Galen returned to the Bron Brothers' Haven by himself.
"Sorry about earlier. Things were a bit hectic."
"No worries. It didn't bother me, but it was probably better for the brothers."
Terti accepted Galen's apology straightforwardly. Freeman and Saker grumbled in unison.
"You could tell at a glance she wasn't the type to fit in at our place."
"Hanging out with her felt a little burdensome, you know."
"Even though we'd worked a commission together, you could immediately see she wasn't a proper mercenary."
Terti added. It was obvious who he meant. Galen gave a wry smile and countered.
"Was it that obvious?"
"A woman who looks like a maid, escorted by four Silver-rank warriors? No way she's a mercenary. Naturally, I figured she was some noble's kid."
"Haha..."
"At least she wasn't some spoiled young master or lady playing at being a mercenary. She took the job seriously and did well. But I do feel a bit bad about one thing."
"What would that be?"
"She probably heard about you from me and came looking... It might have been an unwanted meeting for you."
"Oh, not at all. We already knew each other."
"Is that so? No wonder she perked up when I mentioned your name."
"From what I overheard earlier, you called her 'young lady,' didn't you, Galen?"
Saker asked slyly. Galen nodded without hesitation.
"She was someone I served before becoming a mercenary."
"...Sounds like there's a story there."
A promising mage like Galen not being from a noble house but serving one, or his family letting him leave to become a mercenary without issue.
There were more than a few questions if you dug into it, but all three were seasoned veterans of the mercenary world, so they didn't pry.
Galen smoothly changed the subject.
"Anyway, how have you all been? Doing well?"
"We're fine. Nothing special about running an inn."
"I've been good too. Thanks to you, Galen."
"Pardon?"
"You hit Gold rank, didn't you? Heard it through the guild."
His achievement of Gold rank in the Abaka Mercenary Guild had reached the Nijerte Guild, where he'd earned Silver.
Galen's official status was, for now, a 'Nijerte Silver and Abaka Gold' ranked mercenary.
"Until summer, you were honestly just a bit below me."
"That's true."
"Then winter rolls around, and suddenly you're Gold. You can imagine how flabbergasted I was."
Terti let out an exaggerated sigh.
"It hit me like a ton of bricks. Here I was, smug about being 'Gold material' when someone much younger than me had already made it. So I pushed myself hard for the next half year."
"This guy's got a silver tongue."
"Why drag it out if you're bragging?"
Freeman and Saker teased him good-naturedly. Terti cleared his throat and pulled out his mercenary badge.
"Long story short, I hit Gold recently too."
"Oh."
Galen's eyes widened slightly.
During his time in the Northeast Diocese, he'd encountered Golds like they were extras and even seen a few Gems, so the thrill had worn off.
But Gold was still elite-tier. Like a national treasure if a prestigious family was a small kingdom.
For a mercenary from humble origins to reach Gold in his early thirties was an even bigger deal.
It was heartening to see a good person succeed. Galen said sincerely,
"Congratulations!"
"Heh, thanks. Congrats to you too, Galen—even if it's belated."
Terti grinned.
Galen wasn't tone-deaf enough to mention his own Gem rank and kill the vibe.
In the warm atmosphere, they exchanged more updates.
Which regions they'd worked in, what commissions, any funny stories—kept light.
After a while,
"So, Mr. Terti, no particular jobs lined up right now?"
"One downside to Gold: my rates shot up."
"Hard for clients to hire on impulse, yeah."
"The guild doesn't want to push cheap or easy gigs my way either. Makes sense—they invested a lot in me and want a return."
"In that case..."
Galen, who'd been mulling it over, spoke up.
"Freeman, Saker—sorry, but could we talk privately for a bit? It's business."
"Sure thing. Want a room key?"
"That'd be perfect."
Freeman handed over a key to an empty room cheerfully. The two moved there.
Terti shut the door, sat, and got straight to it.
"Business, huh? You got a commission we could team up on?"
"A bit different. I'm thinking of hiring you, Mr. Terti."
"You?"
"Of course, full pay, naturally."
"No worries about the client welching, then. Haven't heard the details yet."
"I'm looking to wipe out an assassin guild."
"...Pardon?"
Galen's casual tone made Terti doubt his own hearing for a moment.
"I'm not asking you to storm their hideout, Mr. Terti."
"Good. Gave me a scare."
"That's my job."
"..."
"I need someone reliable for backup then."
"...Wait, isn't escorting the guy storming in basically the same thing?"
"Ah, it's not me who needs escorting. It's Young Lady Elisa."
"...?"
Terti's confused expression quickly settled into a veteran's calm calculation. Slow thinkers didn't last in this business.
"First off, Galen."
"Yes?"
"I trust you know the risks of tangling with an assassin guild."
"Of course."
"And you still have a reason to do it?"
"Personal grudge. One that absolutely needs settling."
"...Unrelated to whether I accept or not."
"I didn't even know you were here, Mr. Terti. This is a spur-of-the-moment hire. But I wouldn't have offered if I didn't trust you."
"Who'd take a job to hit an assassin guild seriously?"
Terti grumbled.
"You mean escorting Lady Elisa, not me?"
"In short, I can't trust her current escorts. Neither their skills nor their loyalty."
"...Sounds like a complicated family, wherever she's from."
"Very. Anyway, if you protect the young lady, I'd feel a lot better."
He'd originally planned to assign Lilia,
but if Terti took that role, Lilia could join the fight.
If the assassins obligingly gathered in one spot, Galen could wipe them solo—but that wouldn't happen.
With Lilia's support, it'd be much smoother.
If Terti were still Silver, Galen wouldn't ask for something this risky, but Gold? Reliable.
"And no need to worry about backlash, right?"
"Huh? Why not?"
"Just kill them all."
"...Well, true."
"Cut off the head properly, and who cares if a few small fry survive? Think assassins would avenge that?"
"They're not exactly loyal types. But for that to work, we need their exact base. Got a way to find them?"
"I have a few ideas. Haven't settled on one yet."
"Mind sharing?"
"If you accept the commission. You're still an outsider for now."
"I accept."
"Straightforward as ever."
"If I'd said no and you skipped it, fine. But if you're doing it anyway, how could I sit by?"
He grumbled, but affection seeped through his words.
"Thank you."
"Spill it. Now that I'm in, I need to know if it's a dumb plan so I can talk you out of it."
"Mm, the top method on my mind right now... You saw the priestess in my group earlier, right?"
"Yeah."
"It came up talking to her."
Galen grinned.
"She wants me to kill her."
"...What?"