Upon receiving the scroll with the mission, Stas was presented with a far more complete description of what actually awaited him.
In this light, Jishin's words looked, if not like mockery, then something close to it.
In reality, Ordyntsev was supposed to perform this job far from alone. He was to command a whole six dozen ordinary warmasters and six advanced ones who were to act as officers.
Considering that Stas had, in fact, never commanded anyone before, he began to understand why the prince preferred to inform about the specifics of this mission through a scroll rather than in person.
Perhaps the prince had no better candidate, or maybe he was teaching Shiro to swim by throwing him into the "water" from a bridge.
Not feeling like returning to Jishin's office, the earthling wearily headed towards the administration, pondering the rest of the information he had received.
From the available data, it became clear that Rashta's city defense system was performing quite poorly. Disillusioned with the samurai, the daimyo even hired the Sumada to eradicate the Mizuno's attacks, but it didn't help much. And the fact that their enemy was facing a similar predicament changed the overall situation very little.
Yes, the Shadow Stone and the ordinary Sumada warmasters were no fools. They had taken a number of measures that definitely reduced the level of problems.
For example, they formed several squads that randomly patrolled between the cities, ready to come to the aid in case of an attack.
In addition, they calculated or received intelligence about the sites of the possible ambushes and then sent their fighters there.
But the Mizuno also had not been idle and, during the years of peace, had well ensnared the Rashta residents with their networks, leading them to treacherously report on the Sumada troop movements, thereby warning the Mizuno raiders.
And although the Shadow Stone delved deep, they simply could not cope with the onslaught of attacks.
And into all this "blaze" of an upcoming war, Stas was to be thrown.
"Hello," Stas softly smiled at the thirty-five-year-old woman sitting at the counter. And although she, like most warmaster women, was quite beautiful, without even a hint of excess fat, her all too familiar "civil servant face" noticeably marred her appearance.
"Hello," the woman quickly threw an evaluative glance at Stas, the kind that said, 'Oh, what do you need from me again,' but upon recognizing his features, she quickly became more collected. "Master..."
Interestingly, warmasters had no standardized insignia, allowing one to determine, for example, an ordinary fighter from an advanced one.
Then how was one to distinguish people and recognize their status?
The answer lay in a number of subtle signs, such as the quality of their weapons, the fabric of their clothing, and the costliness of their armor. Also, subtle personal marks and lineage were considered especially important.
It would be fair to say that, ideally, ordinary warmasters were expected to memorize the appearance of all somewhat significant warriors and officials of the clan, so as not to mess up by failing to show respect at the right moment.
Moreover, this was only the Sumada clan. If a warmaster wanted to live long and happily, they would also wish to learn about the appearance and habits of all the known warriors of the enemy clans, of which there were incredibly many.
However, considering that there was one advanced warmaster for every ten ordinary ones, and at least a dozen advanced for one supreme, the task was not so insurmountable.
"Allow me to distract you a bit from work," Stas's smile seemed to brighten the room. When he wanted to, Ordyntsev could be very friendly. "I see you're very busy, and it is undoubtedly a very important task, but I would like to take a drop of your precious time."
His words flowed freely and unobtrusively, gently enveloping the perplexed woman in a tight embrace from which one could not escape.
"Yes, but... Wait, what did you want, master?" the employee managed to recover somewhat from the initial pressure.
"Oh, just a trifle," Stas demonstratively pinched the air with his fingers to show the "trifle." "Jishin-sama, yes, our prince and son of Goro Sumada entrusted me with a mission of great significance for which I need suitable fighters. Ideally, I should go and select the people I need from the corps of warmasters, but unfortunately..." Ordyntsev, feigning sadness, shook his head dejectedly.
"I'm not well acquainted with the other warmasters and the way things work here. Could you help me with this? As far as I know, it's your department that's responsible for keeping records and reporting on the missions and successes of our renowned clanmates."
"Yes, that's correct," the man's speech greatly threw the woman off her usual track, and the effect was amplified by the mention of the prince, as well as the identity of the speaker. Although she intended to refuse, her tone carried an apology. "But you see, it's not my..."
But Ordyntsev was prepared for something like this.
"I almost forgot!" Stanislav deftly pulled out the box he had hidden until now and gallantly opened it in front of the surprised employee. "Please accept this gift from me, Shirike sweets, to make your work easier and your day happier. Very tasty candies, a real rarity in our parts. Rumor has it, they're made on the other side of the world."
"Oh, but they're so expensive," the woman hesitated but quickly came to her senses. "Take them away, quickly. If the Shadow Stone finds out I'm taking bribes, I'll be in big trouble!"
"Come on," Stas simply moved closer, conspiratorially lowering his tone. Caught off guard, the woman froze, but nevertheless did not pull away. "This is merely a gift that obliges you to nothing. After all, I'm only asking you to do your job honestly. Who would that harm? Everyone will only gain from it. We all serve the Sumada clan, and what more fits our position if not the fulfillment of orders from our princes?"
"Yes, you're right," the woman murmured enchantedly, looking into the mesmerizing serpentine eyes of the man standing opposite her. Her resistance finally fell when she saw the activated anti-eavesdropping artifact laid on the table.
"I'm glad we've come to an understanding," Stas smiled warmly. "After all, in our world, we must always remember kindness. Today, you helped us, and in time, perhaps we will help you."
"What do you need, master?" the woman, finally accepting the rules of the game, forced herself to become more serious and looked at Stas businesslike.
"If you need records on supreme warmasters, I warn you right away that it will be very difficult to obtain them. If necessary, I will try, but I'm afraid..."
"No, no, what are you talking about?" Stas waved his hand and "accidentally" touched the hand of the flinching woman. "I'm not an important enough person to be sticking my nose into the affairs of such great masters."
Ordyntsev's reply clearly made the woman breathe a sigh of relief. Who knows what she had imagined, but right now, a big stone had fallen from her heart.
"I'm interested in hiring, let's call it, about sixty ordinary and six advanced warmasters. But I would like to ask you to look for someone who is particularly skilled and experienced for me. The mission is complex and involves great responsibility. I wouldn't want to let down the treasurer himself, you understand?"
"I understand," the woman nodded slowly.
"And, to be quite frank, it's rather awkward that I didn't ask from the very beginning, but what is your name?" Stas asked with a hint of embarrassment, to which the woman genuinely blushed.
"Tekira, Shiro-san," the woman flirtatiously lowered her eyes, shooting glances from under her lashes.
"Very nice to meet you, and I'm glad you recognized me," Stas smiled. "So, when should I come for the results?"
This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.
"In two days if I do everything alone, or tomorrow if I involve a couple of my friends. Can I do that?"
"There's no particular secret to our mission," Ordyntsev replied almost immediately. "But still, don't spread the word too much. You understand, vigilance above all."
*****
Tekira Sumada did not lie, providing Stas with the best of those she could find at that moment.
And here, it should be understood that the entire list of names of his future subordinates did not evoke any feelings in Stas.
Earlier, he had spent pretty decent money on buying expensive candies to sweeten the administrative worker.
Now, he was going to perform the assigned task. Yet, in both cases, Stas was simply operating resources for something bigger. Only the names of the resources and their value changed.
Of course, he carefully read the brief characteristics of the fighters that Tekira provided him. In terms of bureaucracy and archives, the locals had taken a big step forward compared to their Japanese medieval counterparts.
On the other hand, Stas did not know enough about Japan to be completely sure. Maybe in Japan, they also liked to record everything?
Nevertheless, not a single person from his subordinates truly interested Stas. Although Tekira honestly tried, the best had already been taken by other commanders.
At the moment, Ordyntsev had just a mediocre team, but it was still better than what he could have gotten if he had not bothered to check the quality.
And now Ordyntsev was looking bored at the three rows of ordinary warmasters lined up. Each already had a bag packed for a journey and was just waiting for the order to move out.
The advanced warmasters stood before the ordinary ones, also closely observing Stas.
Leviathan, sitting behind the earthling, kept sending him information about the prana level of each fighter.
And so far, Ordyntsev was not impressed.
All of them except for two people were at the level of lower advanced rank. But even the remaining two, according to the information received, did not possess any special skills. And that meant that if they were to confront Stas, they would be in for a sad end.
Ordyntsev had spent and continued to spend a lot of effort to make his attacks as difficult to predict as possible. And he certainly did it for a good reason.
The other advanced warmasters didn't see anything special in Stas. Yes, they had heard rumors, but few had seen him in action with their own eyes. After all, Ordyntsev had only been near the frontline once, and that was in passing.
Therefore, most of the warmasters standing here, who had previously been through war, concluded that Shiro the Serpent had become their commander only because of his acquaintance with the prince, which was, to some extent, true.
Over a couple of days, Stas met with each of the advanced warmasters, giving them a dozen subordinates and a brief on who was who and what they could do. Another couple of days were spent on establishing rapport between the fighters and their commanders.
The lack of a clear command system among the warmasters was irritating, but one had to work with what they had.
Now, it was possible to be more or less confident that the troops issued would not let him down.
"Warriors, I don't want to give long speeches, so I'll say it shortly! All of you have been chosen for a mission of utmost importance to our clan. The elimination of saboteurs targeting our clan's money. Expect enemies up to the advanced level. Now, follow me!"
"Hai!" the ranks of warmasters responded disjointedly and dashed after the calmly running Shiro the Serpent.
*****
Kaede and Mari joined their company in the next city. Stas had warned them in advance about the route of the column of fighters.
The other warmasters glanced at the new faces but asked no questions.
After all, the local mentality also had its advantages.
Even if Stas was seen by the other warmasters as a mere careerist, he was at the same time a protégé of the prince, which meant that they had to listen to him through and through and not ask stupid questions.
Disobeying a commander here was equivalent to disobeying the clan, and that was already a path to the other world.
But even if they had asked, Ordyntsev had an answer and confirmation that he had hired two mercenaries to ensure the mission was completed.
In addition, Stas had the opportunity to contact various agents of the Shadow Stone.
But for the time being, Ordyntsev wanted to play his own game.
That's why he tried to keep the goals of his mission as secret as possible for as long as possible.
The man suspected that the Mizuno clan had long had their sneaky hands in the Sumada intelligence. Otherwise, it was difficult to explain the success of their raids.
And at the moment, Ordyntsev even had a couple of threads he was going to pull in an attempt to unravel the tangle.
If it doesn't work out? Then, he would go the standard way and seek advice from the Shadow Stone.
But it was worth noting which "thread" Stas had the most hope for and to which he was now hurrying.
Stas had a pretty good memory, which he was justly proud of.
And yet, when he first heard about a rather successful new merchant nicknamed Sly, who by fair and foul means amassed a fortune during the war, Stas just shrugged his shoulders.
However, when during his time in the hideout, he heard Mari mention the name of this merchant, and all the dots inadvertently connected. And after clarifying his appearance, the last doubts disappeared.
Ordering Kaede to discreetly and carefully follow his movements and actions from a distance yielded intriguing results. It was clear that this merchant was indeed not as simple as he wanted to seem.
And now Stas was going to visit him.
After all, he was curious to see how his old acquaintance was doing.
*****
Kansei Sly was contentedly counting his profits in the best inn that this town, modest as it was, could offer to a person of his importance.
The merchant scratched his protruding belly and shook his head in irritation.
'What a twist of fate? I've become a big man and can eat as much as I want, whenever I want. But no matter how much I eat, I remain skinny and with this huge belly. Hey, belly, what do you do to all that delicious food I feed you? Why can't I gain weight and acquire the dignified appearance befitting of my status?'
The belly, fortunately or unfortunately, gave no response.
The door quietly slid open, and a breathtakingly beautiful girl about twenty-five, with ash-grey hair and dressed in a grey yukata with a faint, barely visible pattern of delicate threads, stepped in, placing a tray across the threshold.
In this world, it was rare for anyone to dress so. Grey was considered the choice of the poor. People usually wore either white or black.
Yet, even though the yukata was grey, it was made of very expensive fabric. And no one would think that a girl of her figure would dress so poorly anyway.
The ash-haired beauty carried a steaming teapot.
"Oh, Katsuya, as always, you know better than I do what I need," Kansei joyfully smiled at the girl, who responded with a gentle smile of her own.
However, despite all of Katsuya's looks, there was not a hint of lust in the merchant's eyes. Instead, there was only gratitude and admiration.
The girl, in turn, looked at the not particularly handsome man with quiet tenderness.
And there was a reason for all this.
Four and a half years ago, Kansei Sly was a nobody. An unsuccessful merchant, an unsuccessful cobbler, an unsuccessful servant, and an unsuccessful ashigaru.
Kansei had tried his hand at many things but could never achieve what he so desired – wealth.
And, as mentioned earlier, at some point, everything changed.
When his master fell in battle, and then their unit was cut down, luck once again did not turn away from Kansei, letting him live up to his nickname.
Then, wandering injured through an unfamiliar forest without a crumb of food in hand and even without a weapon, Kansei certainly did not expect to find a cozy cottage standing peacefully so deep in the thicket.
There, he was met by a stunningly beautiful young hostess, who, despite his timid protests, helped him wash and bandage his wounds. Moreover, she fed him and engaged in a pleasant conversation, asking who he was and where he came from.
And for the first time in his sinful life, Kansei honestly and without embellishment told her how he had fallen into such a wretched state.
He talked about stealing and deceiving people, his scams, and much more. He hid nothing, showing himself as he truly was.
And it was his first right decision – to be sincere.
Katsuya listened attentively without interrupting.
"And what do you want now, Kansei-san?" she asked the man who, having bared his soul, was now at a loss for what to do next.
"You know, Katsuya-san, I will still go and try to achieve my dream," Kansei declared fervently, gathering his resolve. "I may die, but I will not give up."
"To become rich?" the girl clarified.
"Exactly. That's my dream."
The ash-haired girl simply nodded thoughtfully.
That was his second right decision – to be determined.
And finally, when Katsuya came to his bed late at night, Kansei did something he still didn't understand – he refused to make love to her.
What prompted him to act this way, Sly could not say. Perhaps some sixth sense. Or his nonexistent conscience.
He truly did not know.
"Katsuya-san, I am deeply grateful," the man tried to look only into the eyes of the strangely silent girl, as her naked, snow-white body was tempting his gaze. "Therefore, I believe that someone like me should not even come close to you."
That time, the girl quietly left him alone without saying a word.
The next day, when he was ready to leave so as not to cause her any more trouble, he was greatly surprised to learn that Katsuya had also packed her things and was now going with him.
"I've already decided," she replied to all his arguments. "I believe it is my fate to follow a person like you."
He tried to persuade her otherwise - until the moment the flames began to burst from the windows of the house, filling the air with smoke.
As it turned out, upon leaving, Katsuya had set the house on fire. Then he had no choice.
From that moment on, the life of the ever-unsuccessful Kansei Sly changed dramatically.
At first, Kansei feared that because of the girl's beauty, she would be in trouble. But Katsuya quickly showed that she was much stronger than she appeared. Grown men would fly away from her slender hands like broken dolls and would not get up again.
Moreover, the business ideas he came up with unexpectedly began to work and started bringing in real money.
The advice and warnings shared by the girl were always on point and propelled him forward.
Thus, thanks to having this strange girl by his side, Kansei, in just a few years, managed to acquire several successful caravans, land, houses in a couple of countries and cities, and, of course, a good capital.
Katsuya firmly took her place as his advisor and living talisman of luck.
With a piercing clang, the teapot and cups shattered to pieces as Katsuya dropped the tray.
"Release Master Kansei immediately and leave this establishment, or your fate will be grim," the merchant heard his eternal companion's voice become so cold for the first time.
Even when she spoke as she killed bandits, she did not express such negative emotions.
However, in the next second, those thoughts vanished from Kansei's mind when he felt the cold steel at his throat, and beside him, as if from the shadows, a young girl in a mask appeared.
On the other side, there was also movement as another assassin emerged, looking at the ready-to-fight Katsuya with some strange surprise.