Episode 24

I wrote letters to my brothers and Uncle Harbert in the common language, and to Father Philip and my brother Richard in the ancient language.

“Your handwriting is really good.”

“How can you. Do you know the ancient language?”

Serena admired my elegant handwriting and natural archaic language.

“Okay. Serena. See you then.”

After writing the letter, I paid two silver coins for shipping.

At Serena’s suggestion to have dinner together, he promised to meet the day after tomorrow and left the Mercenary Office.

‘They said the store was in the west.’

I walked away, recalling the location of the shop Uncle Kit had told me about.

Erita is a large city where hundreds of thousands of people live.

After asking people for directions and wandering around for an hour, I finally found Uncle Kit’s store.

‘He is overflowing with affection.’

I looked at the sign at the store entrance that says Kit Volanto’s Honest Shop.

In a place where nine out of ten are illiterate, I could feel how sincere they were in running the store, even hanging up a signboard named after them.

As I entered the store, a neatly dressed female employee with brown hair approached me.

“Welcome? How can I help you?”

“Hello. My name is Ian. Is there any Mr. Kit?”

“Ah! Hello. I heard about Mr. Ian from the store owner. The store owner is currently in the study on the second floor. I’ll guide you right away.”

I followed the staff up to the second floor.

When the door to the library opened, Uncle Kit walked in with his arms wide open and a bright smile.

“Ian-kun. No, now that you’re an adult, it would be rude to call you Ian-kun. Yes, Ian. How are you?”

“Yes. Uncle, how have you been?”

“I’ve been fine. Come over here and sit down.”

We sat down at the table and exchanged brief greetings before starting a full-fledged conversation.

“Heh heh. To think that in one month they could get the harvest that other people would have to work hard for a year, and even in the first expedition. Your skills are really amazing.”

Uncle Kit was shocked when he checked the mother troll’s spine.

“Like I said, I was just lucky.”

“What’s the difference between luck and skill? In the end, the results speak for everything.”

Instead of adding to Uncle Kit’s words, I smiled slightly.

Uncle Kit brought a scale and weighed the mother troll’s spine.

“This is about 5 gold coins and 40 silver coins. What is your mercenary number?”

I called out an eight-digit identification number.

Uncle Kit wrote something in the ledger, then took the money out of the safe and put it on the table.

“Since this is our first transaction, we set the price at five gold coins and fifty silver coins.

The kingdom’s laws are strict.

If an illegal transaction that goes beyond the fair value is discovered, the shop owner will have all his property confiscated.

There was no way that a merchant who was faster at calculating profit and loss than anyone else would take such a ridiculous gamble to earn a few extra bucks.

What the merchants really fear is the surveillance of the Merchant Guild itself rather than the supervision of the kingdom officials.

Merchants always kept a close eye on competitors’ illegal transactions in order not to infringe on each other’s interests.

Sellers could not trade by-products by borrowing someone else’s name.

Borrowing or stealing someone else’s name will result in a penalty equivalent to the death penalty if caught.

You might think that it would be okay if we closed our eyes to each other, but the reality was not so easy.

The kingdom punishes only those who borrowed and used names instead of those who lent names.

If you use someone else’s name for the purpose of reducing taxes, you may be caught in a weakness and end up in a slave-like situation.

In the case of novice mercenaries who were ignorant of the law, they fell into the trap of scammers and suffered great hardships.

“Then check to see if the amount is right.”

“Ah. You suffered such a loss because of me.”

The merchant pays the seller’s tax after purchasing by-products.

As much as he paid me more for the by-products, Uncle Kit suffered a loss.

‘But it’s not polite to refuse.’

“That’s correct. Thank you.”

The by-product tax rate for Dongpai beginners is 40 percent.

The final money I received was 3 gold coins and 30 silver coins.

If I had been in the same rank, I would have received 55 more silver coins at a tax rate of 30 percent.

However, while waiting to become a superior in the same rank, the mother troll’s spine was damaged, making it impossible to sell.

“I have to thank you. By the way, have you decided on a place to stay? We have a room on the third floor. How about staying at my house? Of course, it’s not free, and we rent it out at a lower price than my inn.”

I heard that the store is somehow big, so it seems that it was used as a store and a house.

“I’m looking for a room now. And I’ve earned money, but it’s like being indebted to you.”

“Okay. Then tell me whenever you need me.”

After saying goodbye to Uncle Kit, I went out into the street.

My current fortune is over 360 silver coins.

From noble mtl dot com

Since our brother’s annual income was about 50 silver coins, he made a huge profit in a short period of time.

‘Once I get to the Proficiency Test, making money will be a piece of cake.’

I expected about 10 years to collect the Ekiever settlement money.

But that’s the story when I shared profits with my colleagues.

The moment solo hunting became possible, the period would be shortened rapidly.

‘He’s strong.’

When I thought of the heavy money bag, my heart overflowed with composure.

I went to the inn where Thalia and the others were staying and got a room.

They weren’t at the inn, probably out of town.

I ordered warm bath water and a nutritious meal from the inn staff.

I don’t feel very hungry thanks to the spring water, but I still enjoy eating delicious food.

Thanks to its good digestive power, even if you overeat, you can maintain an appropriate level of satiety without feeling bloated.

After taking a bath and eating, I laid down on the bed without thinking and went to sleep.

Eat, sleep, cheap, and wash.

There is nothing more satisfying than fulfilling a primal human need.

That evening, I met Thalia and the others again.

I had a huge dinner at a fancy restaurant with Thalia.

Talia paid for the meal.

next day.

In time for lunch, I visited the Bowen Sisters Mercenary Corps.

Just as Eva was there, we were able to have lunch together.

As Eva said, she said that she wouldn’t have to worry about Thomas for three months.

Since it has already been over a month, the actual period remaining is only about two months.

Sister Eva once again recommended joining the mercenary group.

During the meal, I insinuated a story about Talia’s party.

Sister Eva didn’t seem interested.

However, after hearing that she had obtained the by-product of the mother troll in its entirety thanks to Talia, she nodded, saying that she was a woman with a concept.

after eating.

I tried to pay for lunch as a thank you, but Eva said she didn’t mess around and paid the bill herself.

and the next evening.

I had dinner with Serena at a fancy restaurant.

I didn’t tell Serena, but I went to the same restaurant that Talia and I went to.

However, as it is a high-end restaurant, various course dishes were prepared, so I was able to finish the meal happily.

I had a casual chat with Serena and got information about the mercenary business.

During our conversation, Serena told me about the compulsory mission.

Mercenaries have to perform compulsory missions on a regular basis, and during the assignment process, Serena said that they could assign safe missions with authority.

There were also many good things about being close to the practitioners.

Sister Eva, Talia, and even Serena.

My time with these attractive women was very satisfying.

When I said one word, I couldn’t help but enjoy being with those who responded favorably by adding three or four words.

after a few days of rest.

Except for short sleep and meal times, I devoted myself to mana simbeop training.

The training of mana simbeop and the training of the soul are inseparable.

The stronger the soul, the higher the mana sensitivity, and the smoother the simbeop training, and the higher the simbeop proficiency, the more the soul is trained and the higher the mana sensitivity.

As my soul was trained through mental maturity, I felt that the path to mastery was getting closer and closer.

I hoped that if the mastery of mana simbeop reached the extreme, it would be possible to cross the border.

It’s been a week since I refined my mana simbeop.

‘Is this the limit?’

It seems that the effect of the mental growth obtained in the last trip has exhausted, but I did not feel that my mana sensitivity improved.

It’s hard for me to suddenly realize that I lack talent.

All that was left was to practice step by step rather than hoping for luck.

“I think this is enough for training. Shall we go for a drink?”

Remembering my promise to Nick, I went to the inn where Wilmot and the others were staying.

“Who is this? Aren’t you the lucky man?”

Nick greeted me with his characteristic flair.

As the sun went down, we entered a tavern called Dragon’s Cup.

First, I drank the dark beer Nick recommended.

However, the liver was so strong that even after emptying a large beer glass three or four times, I hardly got drunk.

“Heh heh. Have you seen this guy drinking? Hey, owner, don’t mind the price here and ask for two strong drinks.”

“Then I’ll give you two cups of dragon’s tears.”

I drank the amber liquor from the small glass in one gulp.

I felt the smell and taste similar to the liquor I drank in my previous life.

not bad.

After a few more drinks of the same drink, I gradually became drunk.

“By the way, did you eat anything good when you were young?”

I didn’t understand the intent of the question and asked Nick back.

“No. Why?”

“Well. It’s nothing special. He looks so healthy, I wonder if he picked up some precious herbs somewhere. The equipment he uses seems to be quite heavy. Do you think he has good strength compared to his size?”

“Yes. My family is a very business family.”

“Hmm. Is that so?”

Nick nodded his head with a puzzled look on his face.

After that, we drank and chatted about various things.

Nick seemed interested in me and asked me a few personal questions, starting with my family tree.

I gave an answer at an appropriate level.

We ordered dragon tears over and over again.

Dragon’s Tears is definitely strong alcohol, but the alcohol wears off quickly after about 10 minutes.

Nick also didn’t show a lot of drunkenness even though he was working on a masterpiece with me.

Time passed and we decided to stop drinking.

“All in all, it’s thirty-two silver coins.”

A glass of dragon’s tears cost one silver coin.

When I tried to pay half the bill, Nick refused, saying he would pay for it.

“Thanks to you, I’ve earned nearly twice as much as usual, and this is what I’m buying.”

It is true that mercenaries are high-paying jobs.

However, they do not receive lodging and equipment maintenance expenses from the government like soldiers do, and a large part of their income is lost to pay for such expenses on their own.

Nevertheless, Nick seemed to have no hesitation in eating and spending, as if he had no intention of saving money.

“Thanks to you, I drank well. I’ll buy it next time.”

It was a time when I was about to leave the bar in a good mood after paying the bill.

“Hey, there. Yes, you. The girl-looking one.”

Suddenly, on the other side of the bar, a large man got up from his seat and gestured to me.

‘What is this guy again?’

I looked at Nick while contemplating what to do in this absurd situation.

Nick raised his hands, shrugged, and grinned as if it were some sort of fun spectacle.

“This is not a place for a girl like you to come. Across the street there is a bar that girls go to, so go hang out there from now on. Don’t hang around here so that you don’t taste good.”

The man started fighting because he didn’t like my appearance.

He didn’t have a handsome face to anyone’s eyes.

‘Anyway, ugly guys do it more.’

In a previous life, regardless of gender, there would be many cases in which people show favor to people with outstanding appearance.

In a peaceful world, good looks have an influence comparable to wealth or power.

However, this world is ruled by power.

Appearance was only a secondary factor.

If he’s ugly like the man in front of him and has a dirty personality, then whether it’s jealousy or inferiority, it doesn’t matter where it comes from.

You might feel the urge to punch a good-looking person to cheer yourself up.

Of course, it’s not me who gets slapped, but that guy.

The sudden quarrel was resolved amicably.

If you fight for nothing, you could be caught by the guards and pay a hefty fine.

It wasn’t even worth a duel, so I lightly asked for a handshake.

‘Since the bones in my hand are broken, I’ll have to suffer for a while.’

After drinking with Nick.

I retreated back to the inn and devoted myself to practicing mana simbeop.

Time passed quickly, and the promised day had arrived.

This time we decided to go through the Orc Habitat and head towards the Troll Habitat.

This decision was the result of my opinion that hunting goblins would not increase merit points quickly.

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