Chapter 8: Black Knight Mercenary Corps

In Demon Town, the territory of the Black Knight Mercenary Corps.

The Black Knight Mercenary Corps is an elite team with over a hundred members, serving as both mercenaries and adventurers. While each member lives their own adventurous life, they can gather under the call of the captain to execute certain large commissioned tasks.

Such organizations as mercenary corps aren’t exceedingly common within the United Kingdom; instead, they’re quite popular in the Ost Empire, located in the eastern part of the world, with the vast and powerful Holy Empire in between.

Most of the situations between adventurers and mercenaries are similar, but if one had to point out some obvious differences, it’s that mercenaries tend to operate in groups, while adventurers prefer solo missions or small teams.

In other words, mercenaries, being predominantly group-based, easily create the phenomenon of “claiming territory,” distinctly dividing “homes” across different cities, with each city having a particularly strong representative, while the adventurers managed by a guild rarely exhibit similar issues.

Of course, at least in the United Kingdom where mercenary culture isn’t rampant and most mercenaries are former adventurers, things haven’t escalated to that level yet.

In the mercenary corps’ reception room, Lester, having removed his black heavy armor, sits across from Vilyric and others, with hot tea and snacks already laid out on the table.

“So, you left West Sea City and came to Demon Town in the northern part of the kingdom because you had a conflict with another group of adventurers and were worried about retaliation?”

“Yeah, that’s exactly it. It’s been over a year now, hasn’t it? Who would’ve thought I’d run into you two here?”

It’s been over a year…

When Vilyric accidentally heard that priest guy mention Lester’s name before, she recalled those few adventurer leaders she had encountered in the dark jungle when she first came to this world.

She remembered parting with him, having given Lester a mystical-level shield as a parting gift because his equipment had been damaged in battle, which surprised him.

Vilyric had thought it was just naivety of a small-town person, but later she gradually realized that the equipment forging technology in this world was generally quite backward.

Although she occasionally considered asking Liliya to send someone to check on him in West Sea City during her time in the City of Courage, it wasn’t a high priority, and eventually, she forgot all about it. Had it not been for someone mentioning it, the Priestess wouldn’t have remembered at all.

Even though Lester didn’t make things too clear, likely because there were others in the hall, Vilyric understood from previous vague hints that he probably had just received that “Soul of the Black Knight Shield” and wasn’t quite sure how to hide it, leading to someone taking an interest, perhaps.

So he had to leave his home and escape to the unrecognizable northern Demon Town to rebuild.

“We’re all doing quite well, Uncle Lester. What about your former teammates? Did they not come with you?”

Vilyric glanced around, and whether in the past or present, she hadn’t seen that young guy named Leon, whom she saved on a whim, or the little girl priestess and ranger girl among the Black Knight Mercenary Corps members.

Remembering the past, Lester gave a bitter smile.

“Ah… everyone has their own lives. I’m just all alone here. We gathered together because we shared the same goals, but how could I drag others down because of my own issues? Their only goal was me; having left, they’re safer now. After all, West Sea City is a place governed by the kingdom; it can’t be lawless.”

“I see…”

Nodding, and without further comment on the matter, Vilyric glanced again at the large black shield leaning against Lester’s leg and smiled slightly.

“However, who would’ve thought that in just a year, you’d make such tremendous progress, Uncle? You’ve reached this level already!”

Judging by his aura, Lester was now nearly at the Earth Level, and one of the conditions for a mercenary corps to be rated is that the captain must possess abilities corresponding to that level. Which means that, helped by the mystical “Soul of the Black Knight Shield,” he could even exhibit powers comparable to the Sky Level.

Saying his growth was remarkable wouldn’t be an exaggeration.

Upon mentioning this, Lester couldn’t help but feel sentimental.

“There have been many things that happened on the way to Demon Town. If it weren’t for the opportunity that Miss Vilyric provided, I probably wouldn’t have reached this level in my lifetime.”

“Haha… talking about opportunities is overblown. To be honest, I was a bit shortsighted back then; otherwise, you wouldn’t have had to leave your home. Moreover, your strength grew through your own efforts; it has nothing much to do with me.”

The tall man shook his head.

“Though I, Lester, am a rough man, I can still distinguish between gratitude and animosity. It’s true that Miss Vilyric’s actions might have ignited everything, but those ill-intentioned, wanting to seize treasures, are the real culprits. If Leon and the others knew about this, why did they not take any action? Instead, after the incident, they worked hard to help me escape and even chipped in for my travel expenses?”

“Speaking of which, I haven’t even apologized yet. That Cyril kid is quite ungrateful, arrogant, and offended you and your companions. It’s my failure to discipline him… He used to be part of the Ghost Thieves, spoiled by his bad temper, although he’s trying to start anew now…”

Clearly feeling the topic was inappropriate to continue, Lester paused, then slammed his hands on his thighs.

“Anyway! Miss Vilyric and the others have come from afar, so let me take good care of you. Don’t hesitate to ask for anything you need; as long as I can do it…”

“No need, no need! We’ve already booked a hotel.”

Vilyric quickly raised her hand to stop the overly enthusiastic guy. It wasn’t politeness; to be honest, the conditions at the mercenary corps’ base… were really quite mediocre.

After all, adventurers doubling as mercenaries are mostly a rough bunch who weather storms, what sounds better is “simple,” but in a blunt way, it just means “untamed.” The snacks and tea here are awful, and the Priestess, spoiled by some royal lady, can’t handle it at all.

It’s better to stay at their high-priced hotel instead; Miss Vilyric is a rich lady now and doesn’t need to scrimp on small expenses.

Lester noticed the black-haired girl’s little thoughts but didn’t point it out, instead laughing heartily and taking a big gulp of tea.

“Haha, indeed, Miss Vilyric hasn’t changed at all! By the way, is your visit to Demon Town for business? If it’s tourism, this is not the best choice right now.”

Look at that, now the intel is available, which is much simpler than her fumbling around like a headless chicken flipping through a task board.

Someone pretended to ponder for a moment.

“Hmm… it’s mostly tourism, but I heard there’s been quite a stir in the Mountains of Ten Thousand Demons recently. I wanted to come take a look, join in on the excitement. Any insights?”

“Just as expected of you, daring to join in on such matters. Sigh… the Mountains of Ten Thousand Demons…”

When the conversation went here, the captain’s expression visibly drooped, and he let out a soft sigh, looking particularly helpless.

“It’s not just a stir; the north is in complete chaos! Miss Vilyric, you’ve surely heard about the Abyssal Calamity in the south, right? Even with such an event, the entire northern army hasn’t dared to send a single soldier for support. Now, I hear that military forces are moving rapidly towards here, and the gates of Demon Town are all under martial law.”

“I’m afraid we might be on the brink of a magical beast war.”

   

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