“I want to hire mercenaries,” Seth said, turning to face the bartender and setting down five silver coins on the counter.
The bartender with white sideburns stopped wiping the glass and sized up the young man before him. Then he ignored Seth.
Seth was also aware of the fact that he was a nobody, that the business was kept under wraps, and that the person who owned the business was leery of strangers.
Seth’s brows furrowed. “What? Is Boss Silas not available?”
Only a handful of people knew the tavern owner’s real name. They were either people that Boss Silas trusted or people who were capable of thoroughly digging up his identity. Of course, Seth was neither of them. He knew him from the novel. He had never met Silas before.
The bartender glanced at the coins before stuffing them into his pocket and then directing Seth to the second floor, advising, “Go up to the second floor and head to the farthest room from the stairs.”
Following his instructions, Seth ascended the stairs and rapped on the door. A voice promptly invited him to come in.
Upon opening the door, Seth found himself in an office, facing a man with a prominent beer belly seated behind a sturdy wooden table. The man had a round face with a thick, greying beard that framed a pair of sharp eyes. His outfit consisted of a leather vest over a simple cotton shirt. A pair of weathered trousers and sturdy boots completed his attire. Despite the casual appearance, the man exuded an air of authority, and his eyes bore the marks of shrewd intelligence.
“Oh, you are?” Silas asked with interest, with his left hand hiding under the table while the other was holding a cigar.
Seth closed the door behind him and smiled calmly. He knew that Silas, with his wary nature, was holding a weapon under the table. “I’m only a traveller. I come here to hire mercenaries.”
Without waiting for Silas to respond, Seth went to sit on the couch like he owned the place.
Silas raised his eyebrow with both a hint of wariness and interest. “I’ve never seen you before. You must not be someone from the capital.”
“That's true. I’m only here for a while. You can call me Cain.”
Silas was used to keeping his client's business confidential, so Seth was not worried that his identity would be known to others.
Silas sized up the young man in front of him, who had no outstanding features. He knew that he should not offend anyone, lest there be people who could crush him with a single breath. He was just dissatisfied that the young man was too confident.
He pulled out the weapon underneath the table, placed it on the table, and watched the reaction of the young man in front of him. But the young man did not say anything; either he was ignorant of him or unafraid of him.
Silas leaned on the creaky chair as he spoke. “I have some people for you. Just tell me what you want them to do.”
“Look for a man named James in Tudela Village. He is in his middle forties. I don't have a picture of him, but that person is tall and thin with brown hair and dark yellow eyes. If you aren’t sure, he should be trying to find two kids. And if he's not in there, then he should be in the area outside of the kingdom’s gate. Another mission I have for you is to investigate all the property that Count Malgerius has.”
Silas did not have an opinion about the first mission. “What do you want us to do once we find him?”
“Bring him here to some safe place. I want to meet him.”
As for the second mission, Silas remembered that Count Malgerius was mentioned in the newspaper from yesterday. ‘The man is dead. Is he the one who killed him?’
Silas sized up the young man, who seemed harmless. “Since Count Malgerius is a noble, the people from the Royal Court should be paying attention to him at the moment.”
“I know that. Make sure nobody finds out about your people. So, how much should I pay for the missions?”
The missions that Seth asked for were common, so Silas did not have trouble naming the price. “For a search mission, it can vary from 50 to 200 silver coins. As for the second mission, it’ll take around 100 to 500 silver coins, depending on the complexity and risk involved.”
One hundred silvers equals one gold coin.
Silas gauged the facial expression of the young man, but he found that the young man was calm and still had a slight smile on his face.
“I’ll pay four gold first and then the rest of the payment after the mission is completed.” Having said so, he placed the gold coins on the table.
Silas's eyes fixed on the coins for a brief moment before he shifted his gaze away. A smile curled up on his lips. “How should we contact you?”
Seth thought for a few seconds. “I’ll come here in a week.”
“The search mission will take longer than that before it can be completed.”
“I know.” Since there was nothing else for him to say, Seth stood up, preparing to leave.
The new client was not stingy or difficult. Silas’ impression of him became favourable as he also stood up from the chair and escorted him to the door. An exaggerated, wide smile was on his face. “It's a pleasure to work with you.”
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“Likewise.”
…
In the royal palace.
Agnes stood before the imposing double doors made of rich, dark wood. After a brief moment of contemplation, she inhaled deeply and pushed open the doors to enter the crown prince's office.
Stepping inside, a lavish office bathed in sunlight unfolded before her. A grand table faced the expansive window, and beneath the filtered light, there was a tall man in his twenties with dark red hair, his hands clasped behind his back. Sensing her presence, he motioned for her to step further into the room.
Crown Prince Lucius Valerian Reginald.
As Agnes approached, she could not help but notice the scrolls laid out on the table. Agnes moved her eyes away from the scrolls and asked politely. “Your Highness, do you need something from me?”
“We got the report on the Everwood Village.” Lucius gazed at the window.
Agnes had heard that some people were proclaiming that they were villagers of the Everwood Village, and they had been trapped inside for several years. Outsiders called the place the Cursed Village. Some informants from the court were sent there to gather information.
“What did they say?”
“One of the members of the Demon King’s Worshipper had been captured and interrogated. According to the information we had gotten, they had been conducting experiments on a dragon for several years. And about three weeks prior, they carried out a ceremony to offer the dragon to the Demon King in exchange for his ‘blessings’. However, before they could accomplish anything, a group of people interrupted the ceremony. They killed the leader of the Demon King Worshippers and took the dragon away.”
Agnes listened quietly to the information before asking, “Is there any information about the group that disrupts the ceremony?”
“There was a knight and a priest. The priest should be a believer in the Sun Sovereign since he used light magic.”
‘A knight and a priest…’ Agnes repeated it silently. The information was too little, and there were many knights and priests in the kingdom, so she could not suspect anyone. “Is that all?”
“The situation was too hectic, so the captured member wasn't able to see the other people clearly. But there should be more members of the organisation there. If we’d gotten there early, we could have gotten more information…” Lucius covered his mouth with his hand as he thought of something amusing. “If the ritual was successful, would the Demon King have personally come into the kingdom? After all, a dragon is a precious being.”
Agnes felt as though a cold shivered down her spine. As one of the strongest knights in the kingdom, she was not afraid of many people, but they were talking about the Demon King, the entity who would cause world destruction in the near future.
‘Without us knowing, we would have long been obliterated...’ She smiled bitterly. At this moment, she realised that she was hopeless when facing the imminent threat hovering over the whole world.
No wonder the crown prince rushed to his office instead of joining the celebration of the king’s birthday outside. The threat was enough to cause the kingdom to be in turmoil.
Lucius could see that she was concerned. He tried to smile warmly, but instead, it looked sinister on his face. “I wonder which organisation it is. They are strong enough that they can disrupt the sacrifice ceremony, kill the leader, and steal the dragon. Shadow Syndicate? Eclipse? Red Lotus? Alternatively, it might be the second man on the Ten Most Wanted Criminals list, the Hellhound. He is known for finding treasures and killing rare S-rank monsters. No matter who it is, we must apprehend them and ascertain their intent. This is for the safety of the kingdom.”
“I will try my best to investigate the matter, Your Highness.” Agnes solemnly vowed. “What about the villagers? How is their situation?”
“They will be assigned to Tudela Village, and necessary supplies will be dispatched. They are wary of strangers and are hesitant to provide details about the recent event.”
“It’s as expected. The last seven years have been enough suffering for them. They no longer have faith in the court or the nobles.”
Lucius nodded in agreement. “However, this information should be kept under wraps for the next few days. We have numerous envoys from other kingdoms, and the news would only lead to chaos.”
Without waiting for Agnes to reply, Lucius continued. “It appears that Tudela Village has a lax border, and the guards are lenient towards travellers. As a result, the Demon King Worshippers and the mysterious organisation easily slipped inside the kingdom without anyone noticing.”
Agnes could sense that Lucius was thoroughly disappointed, and at the same time, she also acknowledged the dire situation. “I will strengthen security at the border and replace the guards.”
As a member of the Knights of the Order, she had a say in the army.
Lucius did not object. He glanced out the window, seeing servants rushing around getting ready for the evening feast. There was an event in the morning, but he only showed up for the parade before leaving a little while later.
“I heard that the Silver Skull Guild's leader is dead.”
Agnes flinched. Wyman's father, a powerful merchant, had not yet disclosed the situation to anyone. However, it would be difficult to keep the matter hidden from the crown prince.
Agnes maintained her serious expression. “I’ve heard about it.”
She did not say anything more, even though she was the one personally overseeing and making sure the corpses of the Silver Skull Guild members were thoroughly disposed of without any evidence pointing towards her younger brother. Since he insisted on taking revenge, she could only take care of the aftermath. In fact, after mulling over the thought and asking the few close people around her (without telling about the actual situation), she realised that the majority of them would also rather take revenge if their loved ones got hurt instead of handing them to the court for punishment. Thus, she gained new insight.
“How is your brother?” Lucius was aware that some Silver Skull Guild members had nearly killed Agnes' younger brother.
Agnes's serious face broke into a solemn smile at the mention of Seth. “He’s doing fine.”
“Still going on quests?”
“Yes…”
“From your expression, I can see that he's being troublesome again. I wonder when he’ll change.” Lucius still remembered the small Seth, who would follow his own sister wherever she went. Unconsciously, a small smile appeared on his lips.
Agnes did not say anything.
“You must be busy; go.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
As Agnes was approaching the door, Lucius spoke up again. “Tell someone outside to bring Count Malgerius’ eldest son for me.” There was a cold smile on his face.
Such a nobody, it was only natural for the prince not to know who the son was.
Count Malgerius was the one responsible for overseeing the territory that includes Everwood Village, but now he is dead. He had stated that the territory was doing well when there was suspicion directed towards the village, and when court personnel arrived to look into the matter, the evidence indicated that nothing out of the ordinary was occurring in the village. Creating illusion magic that could deceive a large number of people would require the skills of a highly skilled mage.
Agnes knew that only a bad thing would happen to the count’s eldest son. She politely bowed to the prince before leaving. “I will do so, your highness.”
Lucius turned back to the window and looked in the distance, his gaze unknown.