Quit being a knight and become a mercenary

87 – Cleaning Up (3)

Arriving in front of Baron Pappenheim’s office, I knocked on the door three times.

All I did was knock, but I felt tension as if my heart was being squeezed.

‘Even if I was in danger of dying in the war, it wasn’t to this extent.’

My instincts must have recognized this incompetent baron as someone who could threaten my life.

“I came because you called me, Baron. “This is Martin Mayer of the Whitebeard mercenaries.”

After a while, inside the office, the Baron gave permission to come in in a cheerful voice.

“Martin, come in. “I was waiting for you to come.”

When I opened the door and entered, Baron Pappenheim was smiling so kindly that it reminded me of Buddha.

For a moment, a shiver ran down my spine.

‘Why is that bastard smiling at me?’

“Deacon, please give me a chair so that Captain Martin can sit down. “Aren’t you a precious guest?”

“Yes, I understand.”

As I sat down on the chair, Pappenheim looked at me with a dazzlingly bright smile.

“Until now, I was so busy that I couldn’t even open my eyes or nose. It’s too late to call you and encourage you in person. “I feel sorry.”

“No.”

“No, no matter how much I had to talk about with the mayor of Marseille, the guild master, and the city council members, I should have met you earlier and encouraged you, as you were the number one contributor to the Battle of Pastek Hill. “If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t still be stuck in Fortress Sheikh, suffering like hell and not being able to achieve anything.”

If you just look at this scene that exalts me based on objective facts, it is truly indistinguishable.

Is this bastard an incompetent bastard or a capable commander who strictly distinguishes between rewards and punishments?

“When there is a formal merit award, you will receive a bigger reward. “This is a personal reward from me.”

The Baron placed a small box and a key on his desk.

“I put my heart here, open it.”

When I opened the box, platinum and gold coins were sparkling inside, revealing their presence.

‘This guy’s hands are surprisingly big?’

When I saw this, I felt my prejudice against Pappenheim melting away just a little.

“If you exchange it for gold coins, it’s about 170 coins. “I was able to achieve a great victory thanks to you, so I think I should give you this much.”

170 Gold coins, which is enough money to buy enough food for 34 households of 4 serfs to survive for a year, and when converted into Korean money, it is a large sum of approximately 34 million won.

No matter how much the Baron disliked me, he gave me this much reward… I immediately bowed my head deeply and expressed my gratitude.

When Papenheim heard me, he waved his hand and smiled sheepishly.

“Compared to your achievements, it is not a big deal. Also, this money is part of the ‘legally received protection money’ from the city’s influential figures and nobles after occupying Marseille. “Don’t feel pressured and take it.”

“Thank you, Baron. We will do our best to avoid any disappointment in the future.”

It’s my job to do my best to satisfy him as long as he gives me money and doesn’t do anything like the dark independence activist Mr. Mudaguchi.

You don’t need anything, please don’t make any fuss while I’m here and just eat what I feed you in moderation.

Then, I will do whatever it takes to win this war for my success and for my beloved Lucia and Karin…

‘God, Buddha, Allah, please….’

The Baron tapped my shoulder and sighed.

“Hey, this is what I thought when I saw you.”

From noble mtl dot com

“Yes, Baron.”

“Nothing different, I am appreciating your ability, intelligence, and courage and would like to give you a special opportunity to commission me as a middle-level knight. “What do you think?”

A mercenary swordsman who is an Auror expert can be commissioned as a knight from any family by simply submitting an application form.

No, if you really want to, you can join any order of imperial knights except the royal guard directly under the emperor.

This is because it is such a rare and powerful being that only about 4-5% of the many knights reach expert level.

Furthermore, my price has jumped significantly due to my duel with Schwafen and my performance in the surprise attack on Pastek Hill, so now I will have to give ‘a few villages’ as fiefs for a high-level knighthood to be able to try to recruit him.

Someone like the Baron is giving me a ‘special’ opportunity to be commissioned as a mid-level knight?

‘Has this guy really gone crazy without even knowing the topic?’

As I was gaping at my mouth in bewilderment, Baron Pappenheim tapped me on the shoulder and said,

“hahahaha, I guess I was surprised because it was such an unconventional offer.”

I was surprised that he hit me so unexpectedly, damn it.

“To be honest, among the knights under my command, there is no one as intelligent and brave as you. No, compared to you, they are just very insignificant and incompetent.”

You crazy guy, now you’re even criticizing your own knights in front of me.

If a rumor were to spread that a titled nobleman insulted his vassals in front of someone like me, don’t you know what kind of repercussions this would cause? Or am I just not thinking?

‘Have you got a bowl of udon noodles in your head?’

Other than that, there is no way to explain such crazy remarks and actions.

Even though I have lived in this world and been on the verge of death, I have never felt a truly ‘fearful’ feeling.

As I listen to this Baron, his body is shaking and I am scared.

Was Won Gyun, who also gave up on General Yi Sun-sin, this type of person?

“Thank you very much for your recommendation. However, I owe my life to Dalton von Prime, leader of the Whitebeard mercenaries. Therefore, please forgive me for not being able to accept the Baron’s invitation to be commissioned.”

When I brought up the grace and loyalty that are more important than life to the nobles, the Baron sighed and said, perhaps because he thought he had no choice but to give up.

“I made this suggestion because I thought one of you would be of greater help than 10 knights who are my vassals… But under such circumstances, there is nothing I can do.”

“Thank you for your understanding, Baron.”

“Instead, I would like to ask you something about future operations.”

“Please tell me.”

The Baron spread the map in front of me and spoke.

“According to the regular soldiers under my command, they have confirmed that there are two small units of 1,000 men within a day and a half’s walk from here. According to the Montmartre soldier they captured, they said they had come to support Count Résumé.”

The experience I gained while playing the original game of this world and living as a mercenary in real life has rang an alarm bell.

‘Ah, this is definitely a decoy operation.’

Even if they came to support Count Résumé, unless those 1,000 troops were idiots, they would have sent scouts around.

It would have been confirmed whether the flag hanging on this castle was the flag of the Kingdom of Montmartre or the flag of the Rhine-Palatinate Empire.

If they had seen the flag change, they would have known that if they continued like this, they would be destroyed individually, and they would have quickly retreated to where the main force was.

But wouldn’t staying still be bait for anyone to see?

Nevertheless, the Baron smiled and even began to snort.

“The distance between the two units is considerable, so I think that if we take our time and attack them, we will be able to repel the 2,000-strong Montmartre army. “What do you think?”

I feel like I want to shout out like this.

‘That’s f*cking bait, you idiot!’

However, just as it is necessary for humans, whether in a company or the military, to flatter their superiors by smiling and saying that they look impressive and handsome, even if they are uglier than a pumpkin that a cow has stepped on.

Now, the Baron is the superior who holds the life line of our mercenary corps, and he is a crazy man who criticizes his vassals in front of me.

If you point out a guy like that’s flaws, it’s like he’s openly protesting and asking me to kill him…

‘Let’s stop him by talking about the success and political secrets he likes so much.’

“Baron, this is certainly a golden opportunity. You must not act carelessly now. If you make a mistake, nobles from other empires may find fault with you.”

The Baron gritted his teeth at those words, but also twitched his eyebrows, showing interest.

“…… Let’s listen to what you have to say.”

I started acting like I was a loyalist.

“Baron, I will be very honest with you. Although the nobles of the empire are all noble, don’t they sometimes fight politically with each other depending on their interests? “To gain territory and power.”

The Baron nodded his head in agreement with what I said.

“However, the way to definitely increase your value more than fighting politics is to establish a ‘major.’ In that sense, the Baron succeeded in capturing the enemy’s 5,000-strong army and the Count with only 2,000. Therefore, he will already be able to receive status, power, and considerable rewards in the future based on his achievements so far.”

Pappenheim couldn’t hide his smile when he heard what I said.

“But, will other nobles view the Baron’s achievements favorably? “Isn’t it possible that there are people who want to find fault with a great achievement that could result in a title?”

Then the Baron gritted his teeth and slammed his fist on the desk.

“Such nonsense shouldn’t happen! “How can you try to tarnish the achievements I’ve made?”

It is said that the more simple and stupid a person is, the more distracted he is by the rice cake in front of him.

“From what I have heard, the order you received from the Baron is to stay in Marseille Castle and then move to the next destination when there is an order. So, for now, I recommend sending a messenger to the Count, informing him of the current situation, and waiting for instructions. Then, you won’t be denied recognition for your major because of something called ‘anti-myeong’.”

Pappenheim listened to me and closed his eyes to think for a moment.

After a few minutes, he looked at me, sighed and said,

“Yes, you are right. All of these are my achievements, so why would I give other nobles a chance to make a blemish? “It’s a shame we can’t kill those 2,000 soldiers, but… I’ll listen to you.”

“It is an honor, Baron.”

“No, if it weren’t for you, I would have suffered a great loss because of the nobles who were blinded by jealousy. “It’s late at night. Let’s go in now.”

The Baron waved his hand at me and ordered me to leave.

And as I returned to the barracks, I felt anxious inside.

That bastard won’t just take what I say out of courtesy when I say that all credit belongs to the Baron, and think that everything is thanks to him, right?

…… Yeah, f*ck. Even Mr. Mudaguchi, who deserves the title of Dark Independence Army, is probably not to that extent.

So we stayed at Marseille Castle for about three weeks until the Baron’s superior, the Count, came here as I recommended.