Leap, or culling (3)
late night.
The leader of the Fernity Merchant Corps distorted his expression as he listened to the reports of his subordinates.
“You can’t reach me?”
“… … sorry.”
“Tsk. It’s bothering me.”
The subordinates moved to catch the idiot who escaped.
They hadn’t been sending any more communications since the last report that they had entered the capital’s shopping district.
If there was a problem, they would have sent an emergency call right away. If there is still no news, it means that something unexpected has happened.
However, the words he murmured, ‘It has become a nuisance’, were never concerned about his subordinates who had lost contact.
“If we had lost contact in the capital, we would have been caught by the Bona Mana Guard.”
“You stupid bastards, I told you not to make a fuss.”
“How do I handle it?”
Hearing the voice of his subordinate expressing his intent to kill in a blunt tone, the gunman took out a cigarette and replied coldly.
“Send the assassins.”
A hidden power at the top that exists only to prevent information from leaking out.
Of course, the target will not be the idiot who ran away, but my subordinates who disappeared.
It was then that the gunman brought a lighted match to the tobacco leaf.
smart tock-
“Sir.”
“… … Tsk. It feels like even taking a break after a short period of time is being caught up in some f*cking thing.”
A nervous response came out of nowhere.
The gunman slowly removed the cigarette from his mouth, clicked his tongue, and winked at his subordinate to open the door.
Standing outside the door was a guard guarding the entrance to the headquarters of the corps.
“What?”
“A while ago, a man named El Bardo came to the upper ranks.”
“El Bardo?”
It was definitely the name of the idiot the upper class was chasing.
But there’s no way he knows this place… … .
“What did he say?”
“yes. He said that he wanted to negotiate and that he must see the chief. In the party, there were two mercenaries who appeared to be escorts, and the commander’s subordinate.”
“… … I see.”
The commander smiled and nodded his head.
I didn’t like the fact that I presumptuously ran away from the debt collector… … It seems the idiot has finally come to his senses.
Although the words were for negotiation, it would be as if they were actually captured.
“I’m sorry I haven’t been in contact with you, but since I’ve caught him, I’ll let you go.”
What is there to say about negotiations?
It would be nothing more than a cry for the research results in return for the cancellation of the debt.
If there’s something that bothers me, it’s that he came with two useless humps as an escort.
“What shall we do, Commander-in-Chief? Are we going to kill the escorts we brought and bring in only him?”
These were the words of a subordinate who quietly whispered in my ear.
But the gunman shook his head and replied arrogantly.
“no. bring them all You need to act like an ordinary merchant in front of him, so there’s no reason to be wary of killing him. If you know, let’s go out.”
“Yes, I understand.”
Even after the guards and subordinates had left, the commander was smiling contentedly.
A scholar’s research came to light by chance.
It was a content that had not yet been completed or paid attention to by the world, but the thick scent of gold coins felt in it was enough to stimulate his sense of smell.
And now. It wasn’t long before that sweet fruit came to fruition.
‘Heh heh. He’ll like it too.’
If you take these research contents, how great will you be rewarded?
How high will my position rise in the future?
Feeling satisfied, the gunman rubbed the cigarette he was holding into the ashtray.
* * *
smart-
After a while, a small knock was heard outside the door.
was a guard
“Let them in.”
kiik-
As soon as the commander’s words were finished, the door opened and three In-Youngs appeared.
“… … hello.”
“Mmm.”
The emaciated man in the middle who just greeted him is El Bardo, a scholar he knows well. The other two were first-time acquaintances.
Judging by the atmosphere, they must be the ones who came to eat as the seed of the nobility? I don’t know who they are, but at best they’re escorts turned mercenaries.
The gunman, who was smoking a cigarette, fixed his gaze on one of them.
“Who are you arrogantly putting on a robe in front of? Didn’t you get proper training at the mercenary guild?”
“… … .”
Unlike other escorts who looked like ordinary wizards, the body shape revealed through the robes was delicate.
His immature body is embarrassing to even call him an escort.
However, the appearance aroused displeasure.
It was a feeling of displeasure for no reason.
“joy! done.”
Anyway, mercenaries are all ignorant of the topic, and the installation is just ruthless.
It was embarrassing not to even respond, but the mercenary he had hired wasn’t important right now.
We’ll see that cheeky bastard later… … .
“okay. Did you come to me to negotiate?”
“… … That’s right.”
El Bardo bit his lip and nodded.
It’s a look of pride in the form… … .
At this, the gunman laughed and rubbed his cigarette into the ashtray.
“Hey, there must have been no way to pay off the debt worth 10 million gold. It would be better to throw away half a lifetime of research.”
“… … .”
“But it won’t be like that anymore?”
“… … What do you mean?”
“There was an extra charge. About two million gold.”
“… … !”
Did you pay extra?
El Bardo’s eyebrows twitched so wide that they could be seen at a glance.
The current debt was also the amount that was forcibly attached and attached, citing ridiculous false accusations and provisions.
That’s their method. There shouldn’t have been any more clauses added there… … .
“In the first place, didn’t you just hand over the research results just a while ago?”
“Um… … ! What are you talking about? To be honest, have I forgotten that there is interest in our industry?”
“What are you saying… … .”
As El Bardo said, his eyelids trembled.
“Are you lying that I don’t have a contract?”
he was a scholar
Although he realized his negligence at the point of being scammed, there was no way he couldn’t remember the provision that he would earn two million gold in a matter of days.
“There was definitely something about interest! But that’s just an interest rate approved by Esteban’s royal family! If you check the contract… … .”
“Ah, by any chance, is that what the contract refers to?”
“… … !”
What the gunman took out was a royal ‘official’ contract with his signature on it.
There was no magical coercion, but it was literally an ‘official’ contract that could not be modified from the moment it was signed, and officially recognized even by the royal family.
However, the writings written there were not what he knew.
“Chae, from the point of maturity of the debt day, you have 10% interest every day… … Even when it was signed… … .”
“Isn’t this the contract you signed and checked yourself?”
“but… … !”
“Ugh! This person keeps doubting me!”
The gunman looked at the confused El Bardo and stroked his nicely curled mustache.
The smile on his lips was clearly a mockery.
“If you really think you cheated on the contract, you can ask the royal family. But that would also break the contract not to disclose the details of the investment to others.”
“… … .”
“If you think about it, from the moment you brought the escort, would you have broken the contract?”
The gunman, who was grinning like that, picked up the calculator that was on the desk and fired.
“Let’s see… … If you calculate debt compounding and include alimony for breach of confidentiality agreement… … .”
From noble mtl dot com.
Tack – Tack –
Soon, only the noise of pressing buttons on the calculator revealed its presence in the room.
My hand, which sometimes erased and wrote playfully as if it were cryptic, gradually began to speed up.
The sum of the amounts calculated in silence… … .
“hehehe. The total would be around 17 million gold.”
“… … !”
“At this rate, don’t you think it will be difficult to ignore the results of research unless you pay back with labor? Heh heh heh.”
The amount of debt increased 1.7 times in just a few days.
El Bardo, who confirmed the calculated amount, only trembled as if he was angry because he had collapsed.
“Khehehehe.”
“Heh heh heh heh heh… … What?”
… … But it was strange.
It was obviously he who was laughing, but even after feeling strange and stopping laughing, the laughter continued.
Who the hell is to laugh arrogantly in a situation like this?
Before long, the gunman narrowed his eyes and began to search for the laughing person.
“… … you guys.”
“heheheh… … ! Oh, sorry.”
The main character of laughter was an escort mercenary who looked like a wizard.
Plain looks that can be found everywhere and old clothes that look cheap and rustic.
The gunman’s face was red and contorted with anger.
“I went over to the subject of dirty mercenaries once, and the pair have no end to their arrogance.”
“So, obviously I’m sorry… … Pooh!”
“How dare you split the thread in front of anyone!”
Shuwook-!
The gunman’s arm, filled with rage, swung toward the wizard’s cheek.
That moment.
“Until there.”
“… … .”
The cold and low command of a predator heard from somewhere.
The arm that was being swung was caught in the air, ignoring even the inertia, and the body went out of control to the point where you couldn’t even lift a finger.
The thinned voice, like a linguistic spirit, had a strangely strong force.
and… … .
Tboob-
“… … .”
Tboob-
“what… … .”
“Finally found.”
Someone entered from outside the door and walked towards the gunman.
Like the mercenary who stood there silently, a man wearing a robe. And an unfamiliar voice.
However, the gunman could see the predator’s two eyes that were hidden between the hood.
Two blood-soaked, glowing red eyes under the dim light.
“What, what? When are you here… … .”
“Are you done now? I almost died of boredom.”
“It took quite a while to be convinced with fragmentary information. However, as long as I have found a reliable account book, it will be irrelevant.”
“What, what… … what the hell… … .”
A fear that engulfs the body and mind.
And in the swamp of the abyss, the man whispered the truth.
“It is you. The operative who transferred Esteban’s technology to the Federation Empire.”
“… … !”
However, it seemed that Goddess Luck had not abandoned him.
rattle!
“Sir!”
“Are you okay?”
“… … Huh!”
Hearing the commotion, it was two magicians who came running.
The strongest hidden power at the top.
And the escort of the commander who is more reliable than anyone else.
In response, the gunman hurriedly moved his body as if crawling on the floor, and finally arrived at the wizards.
‘Sa, live!’
It really feels like coming back to life.
not that it isn’t From the moment I looked into that mercenary’s eyes, a vivid fear surged through my body to the extent that only the thought of being killed dominated my body.
It was a fear of death that he had never dared to feel before.
‘sh*t! How did you find out?’
As the unknown man said, he was an operative cooperating with the Federation Empire, not Esteban.
A spy recruited to steal technology or talent.
It had never been caught by its tail until now, but the guy figured it out.
‘Kuh… … I’ll have to prepare a new identity sooner or later!’
I don’t know how someone who looked like a mercenary knew that he was captured by the Federation Empire, but it didn’t matter that he was caught.
okay. At least in this place, there will never be any secrets leaked out.
The wizards who had just arrived were chief-level wizards belonging to the Imperial Mage Tower, who were about to reach a high-level level.
“It’s okay, you scumbags. How dare you threaten me… … !”
“… … .”
“I won’t be considerate anymore! Don’t think you’ll die in peace! I’ll make you pay the price for the crimes you dared stand against me!”
The gunman’s trembling fingers touched the three men.
“Kill! Just leave that scholar bastard alive! I will kill you with my own hands!”
“yes!”
“All right!”
Woo-woo-!
The movement of mana originating from the tips of the two wizards’ staffs began to vibrate the atmosphere.
Also, the clear flow of mana, which could be seen even by the eyes of the gunman, made me guess the quality of magic that the wizards invoked.
However, whether it was carelessness or bravado, even the moment I thought so, those who had received magic did not even move.
“Kuhhh! You’re bluffing to the end! bye!”
Soon the magic was completed and it began to eject in a straight line.
Heading towards the target so fast you can’t even see it… … .
… …
“… … .”
“Hut!”
“Oh, how can it be!”
The magic passed by so quickly that it was invisible, but the situation after that was clearly imprinted into the retinas of both eyes.
The crazy mercenary, who seemed to be a wizard, was hit directly by the magic without lifting a hand, and the one who came in later only raised his right arm hidden by the robe.
… … But the magic is gone.
I’m not talking about it in an abstract way, it literally disappeared without a trace.
It’s absurd, but the conversion attack actually triggered by the wizards disappeared before it even touched them.
“what… … .”
The gunman, who had his eyes wide open at the situation that left only questions, had no choice but to open his mouth and try to understand the situation.
And the same goes for wizards who use magic directly.
“Eh, mana is scattered?!”
“The magical power that has been activated… … I was forcibly restrained… … .”
The source of human fear was unknown.
Wizards were humans who liked to explore the unknown, and because of that, they were also a tribe that had a fear of the unknown more than anyone else.
A mysterious phenomenon that they don’t know about even though they’ve devoted their whole lives to studying comes as a greater fear to them than anything else… … .
That moment.
“Are you done?”
The hooded man murmured.
However, unlike that simple question asking if it was over, something far from simple was happening in his right hand.
“… … oh my god.”
The last thing the wizard saw was a single ray of light coming from the man’s right hand.
the magic he used.
An attack of conversion that he squeezed with his own magic power and activated with his own magic formula.
The red flower blooming from the man’s hand was the magical essence of his life.