NOVEL NEXT Chapter 660
“For justice!”
Rio wore a bewildered expression. It was hard to comprehend why Ghislaine was suddenly acting all buddy-buddy after just watching calmly.
Despite Rio’s weird looks, Ghislaine continued to support him and added, “Alright, let’s not waste time. We should discuss this while we move. Hey, you guys, hurry up and pack! This is our first job!”
“……”
The three of them just blinked at Ghislaine, overwhelmed by the sudden change in atmosphere.
But when Ghislaine bit his lower lip and glared, they snapped to action.
Rio regarded Ghislaine with suspicion, questioning why he was acting so friendly all of a sudden.
He honestly didn’t have any expectations for the three of them. They looked too young and soft for mercenaries. What he needed were experienced, powerful fighters.
Plus, Ghislaine’s earlier words lingered in his mind.
“You said… ‘first job’?”
Who exactly was Ghislaine? He instantly picked up on the unease and distrust in Rio’s tone.
“Ha ha, no need to worry too much. I’m a 5th Circle Mage, you know.”
“5th Circle?”
Rio was taken aback. He had never met a 5th Circle Mage before. Those were rare high-level mages.
But to see someone who looked so youthful claim to be one was hard to believe.
Ghislaine smirked and waved his finger. A gigantic spear of magical energy materialized in the air.
“O-oh…”
Rio gasped in awe as Ghislaine waved his hand again, sending the magical spear soaring into the sky.
Bang!
The spear shot through the roof in an instant. Rio’s face lit up with excitement.
“Whoa!”
Without realizing it, he cheered. With that kind of power, he felt like even a decent knight would be taken out in one go.
Though it’s true that in a direct fight, mages have their disadvantages against knights, Rio felt no fear.
‘This is enough! I can take them out before they get too close!’
The spear was conjured within the blink of an eye. He could kill them before the knights even got near. For someone with little battle experience like Rio, that was about as much as he could think.
With newfound hope, he grasped Ghislaine’s hand, repeatedly expressing his gratitude.
“Thank you! Thank you so much!”
“No problem. I’m just happy to help take down evil. Let’s get moving, shall we?”
“Yes!”
Ghislaine’s group immediately followed Rio. Jackson, who had been standing there dumbfounded, muttered while staring at the hole in the roof.
“Ugh, those bastards…”
It looked like the repair costs would be quite hefty. But considering the money they had already received, he didn’t feel like complaining.
Jackson shook his head and sighed.
“What’s with these newbies acting all tough from the get-go? They have some serious guts.”
Even if they won the duel, they’d probably have to run away to another region. Jackson was a bit disappointed, having wanted to befriend them.
Yulien quickly leaned over to Ghislaine and asked, “What’s going on? Why all of a sudden? You were saying we should hear both sides. And that a duel with a great warrior wouldn’t really be a beneficial commission.”
“I think we could help, honestly.”
“But they could be the bad guys!”
“Gold’s not bad.”
“What?”
“Wait, that’s not what I meant. Anyway, I can tell just by looking.”
“……”
“I was just saying that to teach you all.”
“……”
“Oh, don’t worry, I have my plan. Just follow me.”
“……Got it.”
Ghislaine was someone who could change his attitude at any moment. The three were confused but focused intently on learning.
Rio introduced himself again to Ghislaine.
“I’m Rio, the heir of the Rax Merchant Group. Thank you for considering our commission. How should we proceed with the contract?”
“We’ll decide the commission after hearing the full story. Let’s go over the details first.”
“Sure, the situation is as follows…”
The House of Rax was a fallen noble family. They held no title, but the current head was excellent at managing, leading a pretty large merchant group.
They managed to acquire a sizable estate by trading with the lord of Baron Magrell’s territory.
“As long as we paid taxes on time, the lord didn’t interfere with us. Our tax contributions were quite considerable. But recently, a gold mine was discovered in our territory.”
Some of that mine extended onto lands owned by the Rax Merchant Group.
This was a huge boon for the merchant group. While it was only a part, they could still claim mining rights.
They legally paid half of the mining rights to the lord, as gold was one of the region’s key resources.
They were only entitled to half of the mining rights for a portion of the mine, but even that could yield tremendous profits, so they were satisfied.
“The problem is that the lord has started to get greedy about our mining rights.”
The amount of mining coming from that “portion” was monumental. So it made sense the lord would get greedy.
However, the Rax Merchant Group had legally gained their rights with permission. Baron Magrell had no justification to take them away.
So, they devised a scheme.
Rio continued, his expression twisted with indignation.
“Our chief officer, who worked with us for 20 years, betrayed us.”
“The chief officer betrayed you? That kind of Claude… no, please continue.”
“Yes. He manipulated the mining quantities to conceal part of the gold and falsely claimed we hadn’t paid our taxes properly. My father was shocked by the betrayal and collapsed.”
Separately from mining rights, they still had to pay taxes on profits. So the excuse the lord had to pressure the Rax Merchant Group was tax evasion.
The lord had come with fake ledgers and accused the Rax Merchant Group of crimes. The chief officer had already forged evidence along with the servants who sided with the lord.
“The lord said he would forgive us if we handed over all our assets. We asked for arbitration from the royal family and requested time for a proper investigation. But…”
It was obvious that the opposing party had no intention of granting that time since they were set on seizing the mine.
In this era, tax evasion was akin to treason. But the Rax Merchant Group was quite respected in the area.
There was justification, but it was obvious to everyone that the lord was being greedy. Thus, the lord called for an Honor Duel.
“If we lose the duel, all the assets of the merchant group will be seized. The gold mine will be a bonus.”
Desperate, the Rax Merchant Group offered to relinquish the gold mine to the lord. But the lord, having decided to take the entire merchant group, refused that as well.
Everyone in this day and age could act on their greed without a second thought if given the chance.
Ultimately, the Rax Merchant Group had lost everything they had built up to that point.
“In a time like this, being powerless is a sin.”
Rio finally shed tears.
The lord had brought forth the strongest knight of his territory. Yet the people they had hired just wouldn’t be able to measure up.
They had a few who could use mana, but they all fell to poison.
“There are traitors within the merchant group. But we can’t even identify who they are.”
This left them with no fighters for the duel. They had tried to hire mercenaries, but by now, rumors had spread, and everyone was turning them down.
Even if they could barely defeat the lord’s strongest knight, winning wouldn’t guarantee anything afterward.
That was how Rio had ended up coming to this town, quite far from the estate.
Ghislaine nodded. It was a common scheme where the powerless had no choice but to suffer.
“Understood. So that was your predicament. Our ‘Yulien Mercenary Group’ can definitely help with that. But won’t it be a problem even if you win the duel? The lord will surely retaliate.”
Rio’s expression darkened. Even if they won the duel, it would only buy them a little time.
They had to expect the lord to craft different excuses to create conflict.
At that point, it wouldn’t just end with an Honor Duel. He would certainly mobilize an army.
“So… for now, if we can just get through this one ordeal, I plan to renegotiate and hand over just the gold mine to keep whatever is left. We can’t request arbitration from surrounding regions right now.”
It was a gold mine. Any surrounding lords would want a piece of that if given the chance.
If the Rax Merchant Group asked for help, they’d have an excuse to start a war.
That very reason was why they couldn’t seek help from other regions.
“The lord is probably keeping a close watch on us. If he detects any attempts to seek help from another region, he’ll take us out first.”
That’s why the lord was calling for an Honor Duel. It was a way of saying they could keep their lives as long as they didn’t ask other lords for assistance.
Of course, whether he’d really spare them was another matter altogether.
Rio sighed and continued, “Within the merchant group, there are traitors, and we have no way of identifying who they are. If they make even the slightest move, the lord’s army will move against us. There’s nothing we can do.”
“If you want, we can help you with that.”
“Huh? How do you mean?”
Ghislaine said casually, not making a big deal out of it.
“We could protect the merchant group until the armies of the surrounding regions arrive.”
Rio stared at Ghislaine in disbelief. How could they, only a group of four, hope to hold off the lord’s army?
No matter how skilled they were, it went beyond his common sense. And even if they had that kind of power, Rio had no intention of allowing that.
“No thanks. We can’t wage war over a gold mine. Innocent people would die.”
“Are you serious?”
Rio chuckled awkwardly.
“This is my hometown where I grew up. The employees of the merchant group and the people of the region are all old customers and friends. How could I watch them get hurt?”
“Aren’t you a merchant?”
“My father always said I had no talent for merchant work. But what can I do? This is what my heart tells me…”
Ghislaine, who had been watching Rio scratch the back of his head, couldn’t help but chuckle. The sincerity on his face was evident.
“You’re definitely not cut out to be a merchant.”
He had a character that didn’t quite fit in this era. So, it made sense he was floundering with something so simple.
In reality, if one had a ruthless heart, there were plenty of things they could do even now.
But if someone didn’t want that, what could be done? He had no intention of forcing it. After all, pulling in other regions would only lead to more woes for the Rax Merchant Group.
‘Seems like I keep running into suckers. Did I bring them into this era to help these fools?’
Ghislaine chuckled at that thought.
Yulien and Deneb, who had been listening quietly, smiled as well. They were touched by Rio’s warm heart.
Only Kyle whispered to Dark, “That guy seems a bit off.”
After a while, the group arrived at the main base of the Rax Merchant Group.
Surrounding the merchant group were quite a few small houses. People who either worked for or depended on the group had basically formed a small village.
They all understood the situation, wearing somber expressions. But upon seeing Rio, they forced smiles and greeted him.
“Young lord, welcome back!”
“Don’t worry too much about the merchant group’s affairs.”
“We’ll manage the transactions well.”
Rio nodded with a smile at the people reassuring him.
Just that moment showed how much respect he had earned in the area.
The moment they arrived at the merchant group, Ghislaine’s party was treated with utmost hospitality. Ghislaine, sitting like it was the most natural thing, munched on fruit and tea.
Yulien, Deneb, and Kyle felt a bit uneasy but had no worries. They believed Ghislaine’s skill could take on even decent knights.
Rio cautiously spoke up.
“By the way… you still haven’t mentioned the commission fee.”
Ghislaine glanced at Rio and nodded.
“Right. As it’s your first commission, I’ll give you a special deal.”
“Thank you. How much will it be?”
Ghislaine raised three fingers as usual. That gesture had practically become his trademark.
Hoping for a discount, Rio hesitantly asked, “Three gold?”
“……”
“Ha ha, I’m sorry. Then… it can’t be 30 gold, so would it be 300 gold?”
At Rio’s words, Yulien, Deneb, and Kyle were taken aback. 300 gold? The three had never even seen that amount of money.
300 gold was a huge sum. For any run-of-the-mill mercenary, it would be worth risking their lives for.
But Ghislaine merely looked bored. For him, 300 gold was far too little.
‘Even when I had nothing, I received a donation of 20,000 gold from Amelia.’
As he stood there, Rio gulped, saying, “I’d be willing to offer 3,000 gold.”
This left the heroes utterly stunned. Kyle even started planning his retirement.
But Ghislaine closed his eyes and shook his head.
“……”
Next up was 30,000 gold. That amount would likely destabilize the merchant group. In fact, there was no way to even gather that much cash right now.
The sheer amount had everyone turning pale.
Rio spoke in a trembling voice.
“30,000 gold… I’ll manage to gather it somehow.”
After all, if the merchant group fell, everything was lost. They had to give the lord what he wanted.
Ghislaine smirked and shook his head again.
“I think there’s been a misunderstanding… I don’t plan on receiving such a large sum all at once. That would disrupt the operations of the merchant group.”
“Are you serious? Then what do three fingers mean…?”
“30% of the mining rights would be fair, I think.”
“Huh?”
“I’ll take 30% of the share of the gold mine you hold.”
Ghislaine beamed.
This was a sign that he wanted to maintain a good relationship moving forward.