206 – Hilde’s Confession (1)
After occupying Laceu Castle, the emperor seems to have gone crazy.
Being crazy definitely does not mean giving orders to massacre civilians or making bullsh*t about continuing the war.
“Captain, don’t you think the emperor is very crazy? “I can’t believe you provided alcohol and meat to a large army of nearly 70,000 people for a week.”
“Of course, Otto. Emperor, that bastard’s money seems to be very rotten.”
To feed all the meat and alcohol to over 70,000 mercenaries and noble soldiers, it would cost at least thousands of gold coins a week.
His Majesty, who seems to live as he pleases, spends money as soon as he wins the war, as if he was very happy.
Of course, I am neither a noble nor an imperial treasurer, so it is none of my business.
Our mercenaries praised the emperor’s grace and giggled while drinking and drinking meat.
“They give you unlimited meat and alcohol, not just for a day, but for a week. “I am so touched by His Majesty’s grace that I want to cry!”
“If you continue like this, you son of a b*tch will join the royal guard under the Emperor of Montmartre?”
“Shut up! Even though the positions are at the same level, the Royal Guard does not even pay half the salary of our mercenaries. Am I crazy?”
“At times like this, I’m sane again.”
Isn’t it good to save up money and retire after working as a mercenary, where you can often get huge bonuses as well as a salary even when you’re drunk?
To be honest, regular soldiers under nobles or guards under the emperor may have some social status, but they do not pay much money.
‘I wonder if I become a knight.’
As expected of a mercenary who lives and dies for money, everyone seems to come to their senses as soon as the topic of money comes up.
And speaking of money, the executives grinned at me, as if they thought this was their chance.
I feel very uncomfortable because men are laughing at me like an excited new groom just before spending his first night with his new bride.
It’s to the point where I wonder if I’m just faking it.
“Captain, captain. So, how much do you think the reward for our mercenary unit will be this time? Surely it won’t end with about 20,000 gold coins?”
Otto hit the head of the guy who spoke on my behalf.
“I fell asleep after saying bullsh*t like nobles don’t like money. Hey, how great is our achievement? Will it end with just 20,000 gold coins?”
It may be true that the 10,000 gold coins received as a down payment were given by Count Dion because he was quite unreasonable, but through this war, the emperor acquired territory equivalent to three and a half duchies.
If the end-of-war negotiations are concluded, an additional territory of one to one and a half duchies will be acquired, so in effect, five duchies.
In terms of people alone, this means securing a population of at least 4 million people.
Honestly, giving only 20,000 gold coins as bonus to those of us who are at the center of the situation and calling it a day is not something human beings should do.
“Captain Martin, I would expect about 35,000 copies.”
Hearing those words, I spread out four fingers.
“Otto, why is the wall so small, as expected from having this child? I will put my name on the line. “We will receive at least 40,000 copies.”
“40,000 Copies?”
“Well, if they give me less than 40,000 copies, I will go directly to Count Dion and demand more money.”
Others would have to take as much as they were given and be crushed, but we did a great job in this war that cannot be compared to any other guys.
Without exaggeration, it might have been possible to win the war without us, but the emperor’s achievements would have been cut to 1/4.
So, even if you can’t get to Kangpan if you don’t give them about 40,000 gold coins, I think you have every right to go to the count or the emperor and make a complaint.
“Can I just trust the captain?”
“Yes, yes. Just trust me.”
I say this because I am capable of doing everything.
In fact, it was a war waged by the emperor to ‘strengthen the imperial power’, but it became a war in which only nobles were active, so his mentality must have been quite shaken.
Thanks to the operation I intervened and proposed, wasn’t it possible to instantly eliminate three of the four fronts that were fighting Barcelo at the time by simply coming to Lamasana with a 20,000-strong army?
Thanks to this, I was able to take the position of ‘general who performed the most active role’ in this war, which the emperor had dreamed of, and honestly, if the emperor were a man with a conscience, he would give me more than 40,000 gold coins.
Oh, of course, excluding the ransom of the counts and barons I captured in this war.
“In that sense, the second round was made with public funds from the mercenary army…”
I sighed and waved my hands.
“Tell the treasurer and get a reasonable price.”
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At times like this, they become twice as quick-witted as usual and smile.
“Captain, I f*cking believed it!”
“Before that, eat all the meat and alcohol that His Majesty gave you here and then go. “I have some work to do, so I’ll be back for a bit.”
When I stood up, the other guys looked sad and tried to grab me.
“Hey, boss. Where are you going in such a hurry, leaving us behind?”
“Are you already going to see Lucia and Karin?”
“Captain Martin, his bones are dry.”
What can they say about those who spend more than half of their earnings on women, including prostitutes and the women they take with them, without exaggerating…
But I have a good way to refute that statement.
Why? I’m only in my mid-20s, and the average age of those guys is in their early to mid-40s, so if we fight this, I’ll win for sure.
“I’m still young so it’s okay.”
Hearing those words, boos poured in towards me from behind.
“Isn’t that too much?”
“If you’re going to make fun of people, you have to be prepared to be made fun of in return.”
I turned my back and stood up and went to see the guide who was drinking alone in a corner.
It would be okay to kick him out without paying him, but thanks to him, I was able to easily open the castle gate of Raseu Castle…
To give the promised 50 gold coins.
“Guide, how does the drink taste good?”
At those words, the guy smiled from ear to ear.
“Perhaps because it is a liquor given by His Majesty, it is very delicious.”
“I’m glad to hear that you like it. “Anyway, what are you going to do if you get 50 gold coins?”
“I plan to go to the territory near here and survive.”
If a farmer succeeds in moving beyond 2 to 3 villages in this world where he only spends his life farming, he may be able to completely wash his identity and live.
He did a good thing for us, but he is a bastard who betrayed his village and his territory.
So, if you go over just one territory, you won’t be treated well.
This is a guy who made such a quick decision that he immediately said that he would show the way to open the castle gate when attacking Raseu’s inner castle.
At times like this, I don’t know why my head doesn’t work like this.
“You idiot. “What’s your name?”
“This is Karl.”
“Karl, you idiot, do you think that if you move to the next territory, the villagers where you live will never know? “One day it will blow up and you will die.”
Even in Korea, where investigative methods using all kinds of cutting-edge science are overflowing, there are many unsolved cases, so what about this fantasy world?
If you just drag him to an alley and kill him, he’ll never be found.
“Besides, everyone in the village knows that the money you received is quite a bit. “How long can you live without being found out just by moving to the neighboring territory?”
Hearing those words, the guy just nodded as if he realized something.
“I don’t give you advice or anything like that because you seem like a younger brother. So, if you’re going, just go and live somewhere hundreds of kilometers away.”
Farmers in this era rarely travel more than dozens of kilometers away from their hometown unless they are dragged into a war.
So, if he lives hundreds of kilometers away, he will be able to completely wash his identity and live.
It’s quite funny to take care of a traitor like this, but he was a good traitor to us, so I want to take care of him until the end.
“Go there, get a pretty wife, buy land, and live happily.”
Then I handed him a bag containing 50 gold coins.
Carol, who accepted it, bowed several times.
“Thank you, thank you! “Mercenary leader, old man!”
“We will be so busy with the feast today that even the people in your village won’t dare to look for you. So hurry up and get out on a day like this. “I’ll give you a horse, so let’s ride.”
Of course, there is no need to give him words, but he is a good traitor who helped our side, so I think we need to do a good job so that he can survive so that he doesn’t feel bad in the future.
You never know. I wonder if he will help me if I have to betray him again in the future.
“Thank you!”
Just like that, I even handed him the horse that our mercenary messenger rides.
“Live well.”
It’s a party, so even if he runs away, there won’t be anyone to catch him.
Our security guards will let you go on their own if you tell them that they are on an errand to buy alcohol for today.
“Shall we go back now?”
As I was about to turn around and go back to where the executives were drinking, I heard Hilde’s voice calling me from behind.
“Well, my lord…”
A very cautious voice, unlike usual.
I also started to feel nervous.
“Oh, okay. “What about the other executives?”
“Lucia and Karin, the archer captains, drank too much and said they were having a hard time and went back to the barracks.”
I guess this is the confession I was waiting for?
“And the other executives disappeared into a quiet place with the village girls.”
A 1+1 miracle will happen to the mercenaries.
“So, I have something to tell you. “Can we go to a corner over there and talk to you?”