#003 The Youngest Son of the Notorious Newly Rich Family (3)
The youngest girl of the “Brown Wolf Mercenary Group” found herself unusually free today.
Their current employer, the Midas Guild, had provided them with one of the buildings they owned to stay in and even offered meals that, while not lavish, were satisfactory enough.
The preparation of living and dining arrangements within the mercenary group typically rotated among the members, but the girl was an exception, always fixed in her role, leaving her with barely any personal time.
One could say it was harsh, but the girl didn’t mind much.
She knew this was Clark’s way of showing consideration.
There were many members who harbored dissatisfaction about having a young child, especially a girl, as a companion. However, as her responsibilities within the mercenary group increased, those complaints began to dwindle.
They came to realize that if the girl were to endure bullying and eventually leave, all the various “annoying tasks” she was handling would come back to them.
And in that precious spare time, the girl was—
Swish, swish.
—deeply engrossed in maintaining her weapons.
She was sharpening the blade of her short sword with a whetstone, cleaning it with an oiled cloth.
It wasn’t just the short sword she was working on. There was also a dagger with a straight edge and another with a gently curved blade, along with a gnarled wooden club covered in dark stains lying in one corner.
“…Aren’t you ever tired of this?”
“Not particularly.”
Clark, watching her, asked in disbelief, but the girl replied with an emotionless tone.
Her casual tone was quite informal for a youngest member addressing the group leader, but from Clark’s perspective, it was nothing new.
After all, she had been like this since they first met.
He was one of the luckier ones. Most of the members thought the girl was mute and couldn’t speak at all.
Initially, they assumed she was shy or simply wasn’t good with words, but after observing her over the past few months, he had come to a different conclusion.
Usually, she didn’t respond out of annoyance; this little brat was far more talkative than one might think, had a nasty streak, and above all—
“Isn’t it a bit much, though?”
His thoughts were abruptly interrupted by the girl’s words.
Clark asked back, “What is?”
The girl shrugged her shoulders.
“Me. It seems like the employer dislikes me.”
“No problem. What does that brat even have to say about kicking a member out or not?”
Recalling what had just occurred, Clark declared with an irritated expression.
“You saw it earlier. He was squirming in front of that lad. It was the first time I realized just how flexible he is. He won’t dare to utter a word about this matter for a while.”
“Even if he doesn’t say it, he’d still hold a grudge.”
At the girl’s flat comment, Clark was rendered speechless.
He thought it was very plausible.
“There were some complaints from other members too.”
That followed along his painful realization.
In the past, when the Midas Guild had first sent a request, it was Clark himself who had quashed the internal dissent and forced through the contract.
Fifty years ago, during the “War of Supremacy,” the four kingdoms fought fiercely, culminating in the rise of Barhart Kingdom as an empire.
Twenty years ago, the Barhart Empire clashed with the Ibustan Empire, which had received support from demon tribes across the sea, resulting in Barhart’s victory during the “War of Judgment.”
Unlike the past, when many mercenary groups were established and sometimes left legacies, the present was a peaceful era, and the need for mercenaries had decreased.
The “Brown Wolf Mercenary Group,” which had boasted over a hundred members during its founding, had dwindled to just around twenty since Clark took over as leader a decade ago.
#003 The Youngest Son of the Notorious Newly Rich Family (3)
As Clark observed the dwindling requests and daily deficits in the accounts, he realized there was no future in sight. Thus, he decided to endure the cold gazes around him and shook hands with the Midas Guild.
If he could secure a position within Midas, even if it meant receiving scorn, the members’ lives would stabilize.
However, today was different; Clark suddenly rebelled against Dorf, the representative of the Midas Guild. As the girl had pointed out, it was a situation where he could be blamed for prioritizing her over the long-serving members.
“It’s not like I singled you out. I would have said the same if it had been another member,”
Yet, this was the one truth Clark spoke without a hint of deceit.
Thus, the girl chose to let the matter be instead of pressing him further.
“Well, if I had gotten the go-ahead from there and sent someone out, they probably would have cursed me behind closed doors, complaining about how they’re getting treated like mice in front of money. You did well.”
“…Do you hold some kind of grudge against me?”
Shooting a sideways glance at Clark, who seemed oddly hurt despite his size, the girl thought to herself that they probably wouldn’t stay in this place long.
<><><>
The next morning, while riding in a carriage presumably for some charity event or another, I finished sorting through the events of the previous night and arrived at one conclusion.
“Ignoring matters that won’t yield any results is best.”
Was this place really the same ‘planetarium’ that I knew?
If so, did that mean I was a character within this game?
What about the other players aside from me?
Many questions popped up and vanished throughout the night, but clear answers eluded me.
I wasn’t some simpleton; overthinking would just give me a headache.
Therefore, I decided to bypass the finer details and assume this was a ‘world strikingly similar to the game I knew.’
In that case, there was one significant problem at hand.
The sheer number of impending death flags lurking within this world!
The hallmark of the ‘Planetarium’ was its vast storyline and diverse events.
From the viewpoint of a gamer, this was exciting! So many enjoyable activities!
But from the perspective of a resident who had to live in that world? It was like stepping into a minefield.
Just off the top of my head, there were more than three major antagonistic forces, and there were over five disaster-level events likely to impact the entire continent.
Considering the events I hadn’t experienced and the additional expansions that were supposed to be added, avoiding danger by hiding or running away wasn’t even an option anymore.
It wasn’t necessary to tackle every event myself, but I would need to be prepared to confront as many significant threats as possible.
To achieve this, the action to take was clear.
Recruit companions!
While the ‘Planetarium’ certainly overflowed with hazards, it also scattered elements for resolving those issues throughout.
One of the most representative was the existence of players and various companions that players could recruit.
“I’ll make the most out of the ‘Greedy Debauchee’s’ abilities to gather and strengthen my allies. And brace myself to deal with those damned events.”
It was bound to be a long journey, a fight whose end was shrouded in ambiguity. But rather than throw away this newfound life in fear, it fit my character to make an effort.
“By the way, if ‘Hero Assembly’ has been activated, then do the protagonists from other templates also exist somewhere in this world?”
Fundamentally, the characters eligible as templates possessed the highest-class qualities within the universe, and if they existed, they could be a great asset.
“But considering their gender and names are entirely random, how on earth will I distinguish them?”
Facing one obstacle after another, I let out a sigh.
<><><>
After approximately three days of traveling by carriage—surprisingly smooth and comfortable, contrary to my expectations—I arrived at the territory that had ordered a large supply of food from the Midas Guild, and my first impression could be summed up in one word.
‘A dying village.’
The streets were nearly deserted, and the stalls that should have displayed various fruits and ingredients were instead covered in dust. The few faces I encountered showed signs of fatigue and poverty, their gazes swirling with a strange mix of hostility, fear, and expectation as they looked at us.
“The Baldwin family, who are the lords of this territory and our trading partners, once boasted a prestigious lineage of knights. The lord was recognized by the former royal family for his loyalty and martial prowess, and the knights and soldiers of this territory were among the finest in the region.”
As if he read the question in my eyes, Dorf Brams began to unravel a tale.
“But right there lay the seeds of their downfall. Young Master Chrome, are you familiar with the ‘War for Supremacy’?”
I recalled in tandem the memories of my life as Chrome and my past life and replied, “Fifty years ago, the four kingdoms of ‘Barhart,’ ‘Morian,’ ‘Spero,’ and ‘Nahat,’ fought each other for the continent’s dominance. Ultimately, due to the death of the previous king, it was Ludwig Barhart, who ascended the throne at just 15 years old—now known as the ‘Great Emperor’—who emerged victorious.”
After all, this war was also the reason the current Midas family became an overnight sensation, thanks to the chaos surrounding the birth of the new empire. In a way, it marked the beginning of our family’s rise.
“Indeed. The head of the Baldwin family and his troops fought fiercely under the banner of the old Spero royal family, but that led to their heavy losses. The head and most of the key figures in the territory died, and the once-elite forces were nearly annihilated.”
Well, that certainly sounds like a massive blow. A family that thrived on martial prowess had lost its core.
“But it’s been decades; how could the aftermath lead to the territory’s current state?”
“Of course, that wasn’t the whole story. The heir of the Baldwin family remaining in the territory worked hard for decades, and by the time he handed over to the current lord, things were somewhat back to a decent level.”
-However, we all know that misfortune tends to follow one after the other.
“Five years ago, a significant earthquake struck this region. While it didn’t cause major casualties, the issue was the subsequent poor harvests that plagued the area.”
Dorf continued, his expression becoming more scheming. “By the time they realized there was an issue with the spring that served as the region’s water supply, the surrounding soil had already been thoroughly damaged. Disease even began to spread among the residents, making their decline instant. Thankfully, the lord threw money around to continuously import food and medicine from outside, which kept things from going completely downhill.”
“So, it was our guild that supplied that medicine and food?”
“I did mention it was for charity, didn’t I?”
No, I couldn’t help but feel that calling it charity was a little lacking in conscience.
Well, no wonder this newly rich and greedy family had earned such a bad reputation.
I wouldn’t be surprised at all if these guys had sabotaged other suppliers to monopolize trade or hiked prices sky-high while capitalizing on their opponent’s predicament.
I never expected them to conduct business honestly and fairly!
But if Dorf’s words were true, then they’ve been siphoning funds from the lord’s assets to feed the territory’s inhabitants for quite some time now. Financial issues surely must be looming.
I mean, being a noble and a lord, surely they wouldn’t be ordering goods without the funds to back it up, right?
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