Chapter 120: Just Here to Trade (1)
The capital of the Ruthania Kingdom, Cardenia, was impressively vast, displaying the might of a powerful nation.
The moat surrounding the castle wall was full of water, resembling a wide river.
You could feel the grandeur that seemed capable of stopping any invaders.
The mercenaries following Ghislaine were speechless, astonished by the overwhelming sight before them.
“Wow… incredible. This is the Cardenia I’ve only heard about…”
“The castles in other territories were like toys. What we had in our territory wasn’t even a castle. It was just a cave.”
“Not only is it big, but it also looks different somehow. Doesn’t it seem cooler? Must have cost a fortune to build.”
Cardenia had developed over hundreds of years as the capital of the kingdom.
It was characterized by a unique atmosphere blending classical-style buildings with newly constructed ones.
Even though it was better off than Perdium, their previous territory was ultimately just a poor border region.
They couldn’t have imagined such a massive city existing.
Even the talkative Belinda was left wide-eyed and speechless, while Gillian, who had lived long as a mercenary in foreign lands, couldn’t help but express his admiration.
“Whoa… just looking at it makes me feel small.”
The mercenaries sighed as they looked up at the castle walls.
Just seeing it had robbed them of their will to fight.
If something were to happen in this castle, it was questionable if they could even get over the walls.
No, it seemed unlikely they could even scratch the walls.
On the other hand, the desire for their lord not to cause an accident here grew stronger.
“Whoa… what is that?”
Suddenly, exclamations of admiration erupted from the onlookers.
The sunset painted everything red.
The red glow reflected off the countless high spires within the city, scattering in every direction.
It was as if the entire city was emitting a crimson light.
While everyone was spellbound by the breathtaking scene, only Ghislaine stared at the castle with a cold gaze.
‘Cardenia…’
Unassailable, undefeated fortress, a city blessed by the goddess.
This place, praised in countless ways… had been mercilessly shattered by his hands.
As soon as the Army of the Mercenary King declared war, they swiftly overwhelmed Cardenia.
As soon as the declaration of war was made, Ghislaine swiftly overwhelmed Cardenia.
Within just a week of the war starting, he pierced through all the lords in the way and captured Cardenia.
It was an unprecedented speed and destructive power in history.
At that time, Ghislaine plotted the quickest route into the royal castle with his staff officers and burrowed in. This was why Cardenia was breached so easily.
Of course, it was only possible because his target for revenge was solely the newly ascended Duke Delphine.
“While it didn’t take long to capture Cardenia… ultimately, it was a failure.”
His goal was not to occupy Cardenia, but to kill Duke Delphine.
However, by the time Ghislaine entered the royal castle, Duke Delphine was already gone.
Even now, Ghislaine does not know why the ascended duke was not in the castle.
He only knows that he failed.
Furious, Ghislaine rummaged through the entire kingdom to find Duke Delphine.
“It was my mistake. I should have retreated and maintained the front lines.”
He burned the North, trampled the South, massacred the West, and plundered the East.
From that point on, he became known more as a vengeful evil spirit than as the King of Mercenaries.
The Ruthania Kingdom would not sit idly by either.
Hidden powers emerged to block his path.
Crack.
Lost in thought, Ghislaine unknowingly ground his teeth.
The crimson light of the sunset draped over Cardenia Castle resembled the color of blood that his followers had shed during that time.
Even now, Ghislaine vividly recalls the sensation of his neck being sliced and the emotions he felt in that moment.
‘This time, I will definitely get you bastards…’
— Hiiiiiiing!
“Young Master!”
“Lord!”
Startled by the urgent voices calling him, Ghislaine snapped back to reality and raised his head.
The horses sensed the murderous intent he emitted and were thrashing in fear.
“W-whoa.”
Ghislaine quickly contained his killing intent and calmed the horses down.
Belinda couldn’t hide her worried expression and asked, “Why are you suddenly like this?”
The others also seemed a bit tense.
It was understandable to be flustered when chaos suddenly erupted while they were enjoying a tourist spot.
After collecting his emotions, Ghislaine scratched his head with an awkward smile.
“Well, it’s just…”
“It’s just?”
“Uh… I didn’t like that castle.”
“Why on earth wouldn’t you like it?”
“It’s bigger and cooler than our castle. It bothers me. It feels like it’s showing off.”
Ghislaine shrugged as he feigned nonchalance.
The group stared at him in disbelief, their expressions frozen in shock.
“So, what you’re saying is… you released killing intent out of jealousy toward that castle?”
“Seriously, you have a unique personality. I can’t understand you.”
Murmurs of confusion floated around.
It was an absurd excuse, but perhaps because Ghislaine had built such an eccentric image until now, everyone seemed to accept it.
However, only Belinda and Gillian did not take his excuse at face value.
At first glance, Ghislaine may seem to act whimsically, but upon closer inspection, he had his own principles and plans behind his actions.
It seems like they’re acting all willy-nilly, but if you take a closer look, there’s a method and a plan behind their actions.
They had never shown such a sudden intent to kill for such a ridiculous reason.
The two seemed worried and were about to say something, but Ghislaine waved his hand to stop them.
“Alright, alright. I just got really absorbed in my own thoughts. Let’s head in quickly.”
With the lord saying that, they couldn’t argue further.
The group fell silent and hurriedly followed the advancing Ghislaine.
Even though the sun had set, there were still many people at the castle gate. They were waiting for their turn at the checkpoint.
Being the capital, the vigilance was tight, and the inspections were thorough.
“Please show your Identity Tag.”
A knight clad in armor blocked the way for Ghislaine and his group.
His expression was so still that he looked like he wouldn’t bleed even if you stabbed him.
The other knights around him looked no different.
They were on a whole different level compared to the soldiers at the checkpoint they had seen when heading to Brivant.
The knight examined Ghislaine’s Identity Tag, turning it this way and that, and then pulled out a map from his pocket and spread it out.
“Vassal of Duke Perdium, Baron Ghislaine Penris. Confirmed. What business do you have in the capital?”
The knight tilted his chin up and spoke in an intimidating manner.
Seeing that, Belinda and Gillian frowned from behind.
Normally, they would have scolded him for being rude, but here, they hesitated if that was acceptable.
They felt cowed by the overwhelming presence of the massive castle.
However, unlike the two, Ghislaine casually nodded along.
“Just came to do some trade.”
“Who is the head of your Merchant Group?”
The knight asked formally, assuming Ghislaine was simply traveling with the owning merchant.
“I’m the head.”
“…Are you saying that the Baron is personally doing the trading?”
“Why? Is that a problem?”
“No, that’s not it. Then please provide the personal details of your group and your product list.”
Ghislaine gestured to Claude and replied.
“He knows the personal details… and as for the products, there’s no list to speak of. It’s cosmetics. I made it myself.”
“Excuse me?”
The knight frowned at the unexpected answer.
Even that slight change was so minor that you wouldn’t notice unless you looked closely.
But Ghislaine’s group, who were staring intensely at the knight, caught that fleeting moment and felt a strange sense of victory.
“See? You’re just as baffled, huh?”
The knight checked each of the wagons with a dubious expression.
Even though he thought it was strange, he couldn’t help but thoroughly search with the soldiers, and Ghislaine felt quiet admiration.
“The discipline is impressive. Our territory’s soldiers should be like this.”
After checking a few wagons, the knight cautiously asked, “You said… cosmetics?”
“Yeah, I made them.”
“They’re not toxic or anything, right?”
“It’s just cosmetics. If you don’t believe me, open one and check for yourself.”
The knight picked up a jar and carefully opened the lid.
Smelling it and rubbing a little with his finger, he still couldn’t shake off the look of suspicion.
“Hmm, the scent is nice. It seems alright on the skin…”
“Want one? As a celebration for coming to the capital.”
The knight shook his head. The scent was good, but he didn’t want to receive such a suspicious item.
Ghislaine smirked and asked again.
“It’s expensive, you know? Don’t regret it later and just take it. It’s a luxury item that you knights can only dream of.”
At his provocative words, the knight frowned.
“I don’t need it.”
“Right, well if you don’t want it, fine. Just don’t say anything else later, alright? Don’t blame me.”
“That won’t happen.”
The knight glared at Ghislaine, who kept poking him with his words, with icy eyes.
Kaor chuckled at the sight.
“Wow, now you’re finally looking like a human. Your expression hasn’t changed so much I thought you were a wooden statue.”
At this, the knight turned to Kaor, his gaze filled with hostility.
Other mercenaries, who looked no different from Kaor, were also smirking.
The knight nervously scribbled some letters on the visitor list and spat out harshly.
“Pass through!”
Ghislaine chuckled and gestured to his group.
“Alright, let’s go in. Safe passage.”
Belinda followed Ghislaine closely, looking at the knight with pity and couldn’t help but throw in a comment.
“Sir Knight, you’ll regret not taking it now.”
“What?”
Belinda didn’t continue and passed by him.
Claude, who was entering behind them, winked at the knight.
“What the heck is up with those weirdos?”
Regardless of how bewildered the knight was, Ghislaine’s group was busy admiring as soon as they entered the castle.
“Wow!”
Inside the castle, after passing through three layers of castle walls, it was truly another world.
It was a bustling place that couldn’t be compared to any territories they had visited before.
The streets were filled with shops selling all sorts of items, and people swarmed in every alley.
“I’ve never seen so many people gathered in one place.”
Everyone nodded at the mercenary’s remark.
There were so many people it made their heads spin. The city felt like a living creature.
Unlike Brivant, no one seemed to care about Ghislaine and his group, even with their noisy chatter.
That was because there were plenty of people just like them.
Ghislaine let his group explore the surroundings and quickly booked two large inns before complete darkness fell.
With too many people and not enough space to store their wagons, one inn wouldn’t suffice.
Then, as soon as they settled their baggage at the inn, Ghislaine called Claude to confirm what needed to be done.
“First, we need to secure a place to stay.”
Having so many people and luggage staying at the inn would be costly and inconvenient to move around.
They needed a suitable base in the capital like other merchant groups.
Claude nodded in agreement.
“Besides, we need a shop to sell our goods. We should probably look for a decent building. After that… we should start our promotions slowly, right? How about participating in a feast to build connections with the nobles?”
The response was flat.
“Do we have to?”
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