When we entered the city, Hector stood on the first wagon with the Wolfertinger head held high on his left arm. A crowd had formed along our route to the castle, the citizens eager for any scraps of entertainment they could get.

An honor guard of knights formed up on the sides. The parade path was a convoluted one to give the most people a chance to see their future liege in his first glory. Hector had slain a level forty-seven Legendary beast. Most simpletons would believe it was in single combat but only the widows and the children of the deceased would feel the actual price of such glory.

"Lord Hector! Lord Hector! Lord Hector! Lord Hector!" The crowd cheered his name.

People loved nothing more than a hero. With my enhanced senses, I couldn't help but I hear the crowd talk. The tale seemed to have arrived before us, probably already custom-tailored, wrought, and sung by Bards. Hector had defeated a Legendary beast that was threatening the northern farms and terrorizing the woods. One that nobody else had seen before. It shot lightning from its antlers and breathed fire from its mouth. Claws as sharp as to rip a knight's steel armor into ribbons. Poisonous claws too. As the parade made progress, the tales became taller and more absurd.

Three hours of snaking through the city later, we crossed the gatehouse to the castle. A veritable army of soldiers was arranged in perfect squares of polished plate armor, banners, and swords drawn in a salute. A martial band played a victorious song at full volume. From the towers, maid's and maidens threw buckets of flower petals (minus the buckets) to shower their appreciation on the lordling. Some even tossed handkerchiefs in hopes Hector would pick them up and start a conversation.

We went around and into the main driveway. The wagon drivers were surely surprised but kept their draft horses steady. There, on the steps to the castle's main entrance, the Lord stood in full military uniform and mirror-finished armor. Next to him his generals, captains, and advisors, including Alice. When we made eye contact, she waved at me.

"Hector! Hector! Hector! Hector!" A crowd of sycophants shouted over the martial band.

Attention was a drug, one my father advised to avoid. Hector was so drunk on it as he waved the monster's severed head that I thought I would have to pry the truth put of his gnarled dying hands if I wanted to have him share the credit. His face was transfigured, ecstatic, maniacal. He must've felt like a god.

The part that really bothered me was all that talk about friendship and sharing the glory. Everything went down the drain and I was only part of "the help" along with the drivers and the rangers. Damn. Those guys kited a massive treant for hours to lose it in the deep forest.

The wagon stopped. Hector leaped off and rushed up the stairs. He got some well-deserved fatherly love, to which I tuned out the scene. I grabbed my pack and climbed off when prompted by a knight. He directed me to a side entrance.

That's when a burst of wind placed Alice right next to me in a flash. She weaved her hand around the crook of my arm and glared at the knight. I could hear the man gasp and mumble behind his helmet's visor.

The knight glanced up the stairs behind me. Then he nodded. "Apologies, Guild Master. Make way!"

The soldiers, knights and servants all parted as Alice guided me around the wagon and up the main stairs.

*

*

After several hours of waiting in which I delivered my report to my boss, we sat on the gallery of the throne room.

What followed was a drudgery of ceremonies, medal awards, knighthood and lower nobility titles thrown around, glory claimed, blessings given, and posthumous honors assigned. I only paid attention to that part. The soldiers who died in the hunt were promoted and their bereaved widows received a medal from the Lord along with the promise of a stipend.

I could see which wives genuinely loved their husbands and which ones were failing to hide their giddiness for the stipend.

Then the lieutenant was also condecorated. When I saw him limping as he walked the aisle, my eyes darted toward Hector sitting to the left of his father. His arm was perfect and uninjured. Damn. The Lord paid for the express healing from the temples. Or used an even more expensive regeneration potion.

Finally, a Taxidermist presented the Wolfertinger male's head already mounted on a plaque. A replica of Hector's sword was stuck on the head. Of course they wouldn't leave the magical sword there.

The Lord gave a speech which I totally didn’t hear as I focused it out and then the court session was dismissed. We filed out with the rest of the attendees.

Alice guided me to a meeting room where I found the families of the two mages. She handed me a piece of paper. "This is a manifest of the possessions found on the two mages, including the contents of their storage rings. See if everything is in order."

I didn't know they had storage rings. It made sense. I looked and everything seemed to be okay. "Yes, it seems right."

The elf then turned to the families. "Do you wish to pay the salvage rights for these items?"

They didn't but the families' choice was either to cough up the dough or give up on the items. With Alice's backing, they couldn't pressure me to take less than what I was owed by law or to blackmail me about the value of the items. Outfitting a mage for combat was expensive. But the biggest loss was the money invested in training those mages. The university tuition rates were basically magical highway robbery.

"Yes, we do, Guild Master," An older man who also appeared to be a mage said. The head of the other family also nodded.

The Lord had paid them a lot as wergeld for the dead mages. It was only fair that I got my share. The bad taste was the grief and loss of the deceased.

A contract was signed and two bundles of gear came out of Alice's magical satchel. These were exchanged for boxes containing precious metal bars. Alice dutifully checked the contents. We shook hands and went on our way.

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From there, we made our way out. The Lord was throwing a banquet to celebrate the feat but we weren't interested in socializing. I also believed the Lord didn't want me lingering around because I might say the wrong thing. Alice took me to one of the side exits. Once we climbed on the carriage that would take us back home, the System chimed.

> You earned an achievement: "A Medal For Chewbacca."

> Earned for being one of the key actors in a major victory but earning no public recognition at all.

> Oh, Politics. Never change. I bet the glory rushed to that dude's head faster than the blood reached the other head when he first saw a naked woman after puberty. He could've done the Chad thing and shared the spotlight but no. I also bet his dad talked him into doing that. And since I am the System, I kind of have insider information so you can trust me on that. Some would say it is your fault for having zero presence and using Charisma as a dump stat and they might have a point but from one introvert to another, I got your back. Don't ask who Chewbacca is and don't mention that name out loud. Leave the poor guy in the obscurity of a time long ago in a galaxy arm far, far away.

> Benefit: For the next forty days, at sunrise, you will gain a point of Charisma. #respect.

I forgot to breathe as I stared at the notification.

"What's the matter?" Alice asked with genuine concern.

"Nothing. Just a System notification."

"Did any of the quests you scouted returned dividends?" She asked.

"Something like that."

She didn't press further. I didn't elaborate. A minute of silence passed.

Alice smirked. "George, you are a rich man. You might even think about retiring. You can live in your apartment for the rest of your life with this kind of money."

Yes, but merely existing was different from living. People wanted to level up for one big reason. The higher your level, the more independence you had. The less powerful people could push you around and force you to do stuff you didn't want to do. Like giving up your possessions. No. I didn't want to merely exist. I needed to grow, to get stronger, and do right to my family's legacy. Scout's Oath was not only a magical weapon. It was a promise, to uphold a way of life. To embrace a duty and see it through.

"I am not doing that, and you know it. I have a job to do."

"Now we're talking!" Alice cheered. "Do you feel resentment?"

"A bit, yes. I'm not going to lie. I saved Hector's life. The Wolfertinger male had all but won the fight."

"You were regally paid for that. The Lord basically paid Hector's ransom to you."

"He bought my silence."

"Yes. But he paid a price I believe reasonable for that. Let the kid have his glory and his trophy. You have something much better than him."

I let out a rueful chuckle. "And what is it, Alice?"

"Me? The entirety of the Adventurer's Guild backing you? A living Wolfertinger, the only one known to exist? A heirloom weapon? I don't doubt they have one or two heirlooms but until the lord dies and Hector inherits, it's no good to him. And other things. Even if Hector's Class was Mythic, and it is not, he would never compare to you. He will become the Lord of a big city. You, George, will become a legend."

Alice pep talk didn't suspend my sense of disbelief. Then she said how much the Lord paid for the hunt. It was a tenth of the best offer for the Wolfertinger pup she received.

"Not only that. I got your commission for the extermination of the kobold mine. the army reported fifteen hundred confirmed kobold kills. The actual number should be anything between two or ten times that. They took three weeks of nonstop fighting to clear the mines. But since they hired an Earth mage to completely block access to the surface, I believe they didn't clear the entirety of it."

I froze. I only received seventy notifications about kobold kills. "They what?"

"I am pretty sure the mine didn't connect to the labyrinth under the continent. They wouldn't have sealed it if it did."

"No, the confirmed kills," I corrected. "How many again?"

"Fifteen hundred. They paid your share as if it was a Guild bounty. I also collected your monetary reward for this Wolfertinger expedition."

"Good. I need some time to think."

Alice smiled and went silent. I gathered my thoughts. I had reported more than a thousand kobolds inside that mine. So, why did the System only credit me with seventy? Could it be because I wasn't sure of the number? I was quite sure based on past incidents…

Wait.

My Parallel Progression Trait demanded accurate intelligence. I didn't scout the inside of the mines. I could only be accurate only about the kobolds I saw on the outside.

I had to do better next time. I am sure my father would agree with the system that my half-assed estimate of the interior of the mines was worth shit.

It was sobering. But I could have earned thousands of Attribute points. Or died trying to sneak inside the mines.

I should take my winnings and cut my losses. Monsters wouldn't just suddenly disappear and leave out of a job. Scouts would always be necessary.

"Do I have enough money for another magical items?" I asked.

She told me how much money the Lord paid for the hunting expedition. I couldn't believe.

"They are buying your silence and cooperation," Alice said. "Honestly, you can hire a handful of Assassin's with this kind of money and I don't put it beneath them to just silence you to save money."

"But since you would be mad at them if they killed me…"

"Exactly. Your connections are part of your strength. But beware of Hector in the future. No matter how much he drivels about friendship, he is looking out only for himself. Never fall for his machinations. That guy is a natural-born politician. And one who is lacking in morals."

I nodded. The award ceremony was sobering.

Alice grinned and nodded. "So, yes. You have a lot of money. Do you want me to go with you to Haru's shop again?"

And I should let myself be pampered. "Yes."

*

*

The next morning, a System notification woke me up at sunrise.

> You gained a point of Charisma! (01/40)

Wow. Whoever Chewbacca was, they had my thanks. That was way better than a medal.

I did my early morning exercise and five sets of twelve run-spin-jump-shoot, or RSJS trick shot. Given my proclivity of biting more than I could chew, it sounded like a good maneuver to work on. The goal was to have good accuracy and land without losing speed.

With that done, I took a shower and went to Melgart's clinic to let him work on the Wolfertinger pup for Class experience.

All Classes could earn experience through murder. At level twenty, they also unlocked a specific method to gain Experience outside combat. For a Veterinarian it was to treat animals, a Guard earned it while on a patrol or making arrests, and a Scout… by doing Scout things.

It didn't take long for him to call us. The Zoologist whistled as he saw how much the pup had grown.

"What have you been feeding him?"

"His own sire," I replied.

"Oh. I heard the commotion two days ago. So, is our little friend here the only known living Wolfertinger?"

"What? Thinking about stealing him?" I jested.

"Fifty thousand gold coins," Melgart said. "That's a low-ball estimate of this dude's value. More if you auction it. Could reach two hundred thousand or more if the nobles go into a dick-measuring contest."

Not for sale!" I drummed the table.

"Just so you are aware. They can try to steal it from you."

"Let's get this consultation over with."

Melgart weighed the pup, took the same measurements and before.

"Six kilograms! It is an impressive growth. You should withhold the high energy jerky and start giving out tiny bits of it when the critter displays a behavior you want to incentivize. What else have you been feeding it?"

I had a log of every time I fed the critter in my journal. He said it was good to know so they could calculate growth, energy efficiency, and so on so forth.

Melgart didn't stop until he got his Experience points. Just like every other visit, he seemed very satisfied with our arrangement.

"Pace its food intake. It shouldn't grow too big you cannot carry it around before you two can forge a bond. Try to keep in mind the specific requirements of your bond feature. See you in two days."

I waved and went on my way. Since we skipped three weeks of consultations, Melgart wanted to catch up with his Experience awards. He said nothing about it but I concluded that two days was the minimum interval for these.

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0032 - A Medal for Chewbacca