"Then please return safely. I'm sorry I couldn't see this commission through to the end."
"It's fine. You've done more than enough already. Miss Pretzela will understand as well. Anyway, take care. May the gods' protection be with you."
"May the gods' protection be with you."
After bidding farewell to Partek, Bilmore climbed onto the driver's seat.
The three mercenaries, who had already exchanged their goodbyes the night before, silently shook hands with Partek and departed along with the carriage.
Once the carriage had completely crossed the drawbridge, Partek, Glad, and Raban approached Eugene.
"Shall we go, Sir Eugene?"
"Mm."
Eugene headed to the main building of Rose Castle together with the three men.
"Oh, you're here?"
Kamara, who had been waiting in advance, greeted Eugene warmly.
After glancing over Partek and the two mercenaries, Kamara seemed to guess what had happened and spoke with an excited face.
"So you decided to go through with it after all?"
"That's right. For now, I've decided to hire these three."
"Hahaha! A fine decision. By the way, what are your going rates?"
The answer came not from Partek, but from Eugene.
"One hundred silver coins for the four of us as a group. As for the success reward, we want payment entirely in byproducts. Excluding magic stones—half of the byproducts from the monsters we kill."
"Huh? You don't need the magic stones?"
"They're troublesome to dispose of. The byproducts are better."
"Well, if that's what you want…"
Though Kamara tilted his head in confusion, he agreed.
The proposal to receive all rewards in byproducts while excluding magic stones had been Partek's idea.
Magic stones must go through the church for purification no matter what, and if a private individual rather than a merchant guild requests purification, the process is complicated and a 30 percent fee is taken.
Under those circumstances, it was better to take only the byproducts and sell them to a merchant guild.
Monster byproducts were widely useful as well, so receiving half of them was by no means a loss.
'Bringing Partek along was the right decision.'
Moreover, Partek had already secured a method for disposing of the byproducts.
The reason Bilmore returned to Maren without complaint even though three of the original six contractors had dropped out was this:
Through the anxious Bilmore, who lacked sufficient results, they had verbally promised to sell all monster byproducts to the Paelin Merchant Guild.
"But will it really be enough with just you and these three? You could hire two or three more, you know."
"I appreciate the concern, but it's fine. And won't Sir Galfredic be hiring more than ten anyway?"
"Yes, since our side has fewer people, we'll hire about twenty. Tsk! It would be troublesome if our performance were outshone…"
Although he said that, Kamara had no real choice.
Where would he immediately find a proven knight capable of killing five highwaymen alone?
Galfredic was the odd exception. Truly capable knights usually went long ago to wealthy, high-ranking nobles and rarely came to places like this.
'And if a knight or mercenary is too outstanding, they might start eyeing the territory itself.'
It was better to fail the dungeon raid and be buried in debt than to face such a worst-case scenario.
"Oh, and this next condition is rather meaningless, but…"
"Hm?"
Eugene shrugged once up to his shoulders and spoke as if it truly meant nothing.
"If I happen to kill a high-ranking monster or above in the dungeon, I'll be keeping that magic stone."
"Hahahaha! That really is a meaningless condition. Do as you please. Hahaha!"
Not only Kamara, but also Partek and the mercenaries laughed secretly to themselves.
Humans did not subjugate demon realms solely for the purpose of obtaining magic stones.
If monsters were left alone, their numbers would gradually increase and eventually spill outside the demon realm, so the primary aim was to regulate their population in advance.
However, high-ranking monsters at the very top of the demon realm's food chain rarely ventured outside.
Thus, when a few mid-ranking monsters appeared, humans would usually stop after dealing with just those and withdraw.
If they mistakenly provoked a high-ranking monster that mainly dwelled in the heart of the demon realm, the entire subjugation force would be annihilated.
And yet here was an unknown knight entering a newly opened dungeon, claiming he would kill a high-ranking monster.
It truly was a meaningless condition.
"Ha! Well, a knight ought to have at least that much confidence. In any case, let's do our best. Hahaha…!"
Apparently finding it utterly absurd, Kamara could not stop laughing.
"Sir Eugene, you say?"
"That's right. In any case, the more knights we have, the better, isn't it? And if the Paelin Merchant Guild is willing to hire those fellows, their skills can't be bad."
"What are the contract terms?"
"One hundred silver coins as an advance for Sir Eugene and his three men together. The success reward is half of the monster byproducts they capture. They don't want the magic stones."
"…Is that so?"
Bertel stared at Eugene with cold eyes.
At last night's dinner with Pellid, he had also heard stories about Eugene.
Though there was likely some exaggeration, the fact that he had wiped out five bandits with nothing but a short sword was more than enough to prove that the man was indeed a knight.
'The terms aren't bad. But I still have a bad feeling about him.'
It would have been easier if he were arrogant and reckless like other knights, but the gaze behind that hard-to-read helmet made him uncomfortable for some reason.
"Sir Galfredic, are you fine with this as well?"
In the meantime, Kamara spoke to Galfredic.
"If he's a capable knight, I'm always happy to welcome him. A pleasure, Sir. I'm Galfredic of Crema."
Up close, Galfredic who was even larger than Partek—thrust out his hand.
"A pleasure. I am Jan Eugene."
The two knights shook hands through their gloves.
Squeeze!
Feeling the powerful grip, Eugene applied strength in return.
"…!"
For a moment, Galfredic's thick, caterpillar-like eyebrows twitched.
"You're remarkably strong. I look forward to your performance, Sir."
"And to yours."
Releasing Eugene's hand, Galfredic grinned and said to Bertel,
"I haven't seen his swordsmanship yet, but I can vouch for his strength."
"Very well."
With Galfredic—whom he had personally invited—speaking like that, Bertel had no grounds to refuse.
Moreover, as Kamara said, it was much better to have even one more knight.
'My elder brother's influence will grow a bit, but that's not bad. More importantly… there's no guarantee this man will even come back alive.'
Bertel decided to accept Eugene.
"Welcome to the dungeon opening expedition, Sir Eugene."
"Ha! Then the members are more or less gathered. Shall we talk in earnest now?"
At Kamara's words, Eugene, Galfredic, and Bertel each took a seat at the square table.
"Sirs, we'll excuse ourselves."
"All right."
After Partek's group bowed their heads and left, Bertel began.
"As you know, the knights are Sir Galfredic, Sir Eugene, and myself. However, I will not be participating in the subjugation. Someone must remain behind to defend the castle."
Eugene learned this for the first time, but Kamara and Galfredic merely nodded lightly, as if they already knew.
"The mercenaries number twenty-three, including the three who came with Sir Eugene and those gathered by Sir Galfredic and myself. The advance pay and success rewards will be issued as discussed. The minimum condition for the raid is seventy low-ranking monsters and three mid-ranking ones. Anything beyond that will be left to your judgment on site."
The minimum condition was, quite literally, the number of monsters that absolutely had to be killed no matter what.
However, no prideful knight was ever satisfied with merely meeting the minimum.
By custom, they usually returned after killing at least one and a half times the minimum quota.
At that level, they could cover all the costs of hiring knights and mercenaries and still retain a profit of thirty to forty percent—provided, of course, that the raid was successful.
"There will be six porters. We'll prepare seven days' worth of water and provisions. All mercenaries should arrive within two days at the latest. Then we'll rest for one day and depart immediately."
According to what he had heard from Partek, once they entered a dungeon or labyrinth, they usually stayed inside for three to four days.
Since this was a newly opened dungeon and route exploration was essential, it seemed they were preparing an especially generous supply of water and food.
"Do you sirs have any questions?"
"What about a dismantling specialist? And aren't six porters a bit few? Even low-ranking monsters yield quite a lot of byproducts."
"Three of the porters are former hunters, so dismantling monsters won't be a problem. And…"
Bertel thought for a moment at Galfredic's words, then said,
"Very well, I'll add two more porters."
"Seriously wounded men can simply be left behind. What about the lightly wounded? May I handle that as I see fit?"
"Field decisions will be left to your judgment."
"Well, Sir Eugene? You're not one of those philanthropists so popular among the noble elites of Kals Begin, are you?"
"They aren't my subordinates but hired mercenaries, so I don't care in the slightest. And I doubt there's any fool who would join this mission without that level of resolve."
Eugene replied coldly.
Asking whether a vampire would show compassion to unrelated humans was laughable to begin with.
"Ha! I like that answer!"
With Galfredic's booming laugh, the brief meeting came to an end.
"Then, sirs, until the day of departure, rest well and keep yourselves in good condition."
"If I rest too much, my body stiffens. Is there a nearby hunting ground? Nothing loosens you up better than a hunt. I hunt—"
While chattering as he walked out, Galfredic suddenly turned back.
"Sir Eugene, how about we loosen up together?"
"..."
Not understanding right away, Eugene remained silent. Galfredic grinned.
"I'm suggesting a spar."
"Sir Galfredic and the knight who arrived yesterday are clashing!"
"Really? What? A duel?"
"They say they're sparring right now!"
The people of Rose Castle began gathering in the courtyard one by one.
The top of the castle wall and the stairways—prime viewing spots—were already packed with spectators.
And because it was a small castle, even just sixty to seventy people gathering gave the courtyard a crowded, noisy feel. A large circle formed in the center.
"Just look at his size. That's Sir Galfredic, right?"
"Who do you think will win?"
Since Rose Castle had only one knight—Bertel—sparring matches like this were extremely rare, so the people of the castle watched Eugene and Galfredic with excited eyes.
"It'll probably be Sir Galfredic! He lost in the semifinals of the jousting tournament, but he made it all the way to the finals in the swordsmanship competition."
"They say he's incredibly strong."
Expectations were especially high for Galfredic, who had reached the finals in the swordsmanship tournament.
Ever since Lord Tywin, no one in this territory had ever placed in either jousting or swordsmanship competitions.
"Huh? They're going to fight like that?"
"He doesn't have armor."
"Hm. Well, in that case…"
With a grin, Galfredic grabbed both ends of a wooden sword similar in shape and length to his usual longsword and stretched his body.
Though it was only a wooden-sword spar, he, like Eugene, wore a helmet and even had his own plate mail on his upper body.
"Let's make it a single round. It'd be trouble if one of your bones broke, so let's take it lightly."
"I'll try."
"Heh! I'm starting to like you more and more. Then shall we begin?"
Galfredic swung his wooden sword into an X.
Whoosh!
A sharp tearing sound, hard to believe came from a wooden sword, rang out.
Galfredic began circling as he swung the sword back and forth.
At first he seemed to be wielding it with both hands, but then he suddenly began switching between right and left hands. Eugene's eyes sharpened as he tracked the blade.
'This is a strange sword style, different even from Jung Diricht.'
During his life on the run before his regression, Eugene had learned that knights all used similar yet subtly different sword techniques.
And Galfredic, even if from a rural region, was a knight who had reached the finals of a tournament hosted by a count.
He must have mastered a unique and powerful sword style of his own.
Shing!
Then, without any warning, Galfredic's wooden sword shot straight toward him.
At the razor-sharp strike, Eugene instinctively twisted his body and knocked it aside with the short sword–shaped wooden blade in his hand.
Thud! Whoosh!
Just as the tip of Galfredic's sword seemed to lift slightly upward, it immediately swept across in a horizontal slash—a rapid follow-up aimed precisely at Eugene's forehead.
It was an attack so fast that in the past, Eugene would have had no choice but to take it head-on.
But thanks to the black scales, which allowed him to exert beast-level physical strength even during the day, Eugene simply leaned his body backward.
Slash!
At that moment, Galfredic's wooden sword fell straight down at a right angle, as if it had been waiting.
Bang!
A heavy impact rang out.
"…!"
The spectators who had been watching the spar between real knights flinched in unison, mouths agape.
An unbelievable sight unfolded before their eyes.
"Ugh…!"
Staggering back several steps while clutching his helmet—it was Galfredic.
The instant Eugene leaned back, he had kicked Galfredic's chin upward with his foot.
"Whew!"
Removing his helmet, Galfredic shook his head vigorously from side to side.
"Amazing! Sir, where did you learn a move like that? I pride myself on being pretty good at unarmed combat too, but I've never seen anything like that before."
Caught off guard by the reaction, Eugene was slightly taken aback.
Weren't all knights supposed to be arrogant, prideful, and fiercely competitive?
"When I was young, an elder from my family taught me."
In truth, it was an attack born of a vampire's physical ability and quick improvisation, but Eugene gave the excuse he had prepared.
"Is that so? If I get the chance, I'd like to learn it myself. Still, if I'd been wearing my actual combat helmet instead of a practice one, that blow wouldn't have done much damage."
That was true. A knight's full-face helmet was designed to protect the entire head.
"Even so, it was enough to break your balance. I didn't use my full strength either. I was afraid you might break a bone."
Eugene spoke naturally and sincerely, having dropped formal speech.
"What? Hahaha! I like you more and more! Hahahaha!"
Bursting into laughter, Galfredic tossed aside the wooden sword and strode toward Eugene.
"If we'd been in armor and it was real combat, things might have been different—but this time, you won. Sorry for underestimating you."
Eugene clasped the hand Galfredic extended, his preconception about knights being shattered.
Galfredic raised Eugene's hand high and shouted,
"It may not have been a splendid sword duel, but this spar goes to Sir Eugene! You lot! Applaud the victor!"
Woooooo!
Cheers and applause thundered through the courtyard.
(To be continued in the next chapter.)