novelraw Chapter 348 : Entrance Exam
Chapter 348 : Entrance Exam
For a moment, silence enveloped the hall.
"U-uaaaah!"
"Hiiik!"
"Run away!"
"Kyaaaak!"
"The Red Eyed Devil is here!"
Crash, bang!
It took less than a minute for the guild to be completely empty.
I was so dumbfounded that I just blinked and watched the scene.
"No..."
Me, who was called a hero in the upper town.
In the lower town, I'm the terrifying Red Eyed Devil?
The guys who had been lounging around drinking disappeared in an instant.
All that was left were overturned chairs here and there, and a strange silence that had replaced the previous commotion.
"Woah! Devil, they all ran away!"
Linda, who was on my back, hugged my neck tightly and smiled brightly.
"Heehee, fools. The devil is super kind. Right, devil."
"Keck. I can't breathe, you brat."
"Heeheehee."
Shushuruta looked at me with her arms crossed.
"Accept it humbly. It is the natural consequence of your actions."
"What did I do?"
"Do I have to list your deeds one by one?"
Shushuruta recited my eventful journey through the Blake Kingdom.
Killing Baron Barankia, killing the guys who were after the dagger, killing, and killing again...
Listening to it, it was all stories of killing someone.
'Hmm.'
Whether they deserved to be killed or not.
In any case, killing a person is a great sin, and in the eyes of others, I am nothing more than a murderer.
Perhaps, the fact that these guys are so scared is, as Shushuruta said, a natural consequence.
I wonder what kind of rumors about me have spread.
"...Is that all? While defeating the Knight of Frost who was pursuing you under the king's orders..."
"Alright, that's enough."
I approached the big guy, Dogon, who was sitting on the floor in front of me.
A steadfast man who had held his ground alone even as everyone else was fleeing the guild...
"Hi-hiiiik!"
...was not the case, he just couldn't run away because his legs had given out.
Jeobeok, jeobeok.
"D-don't come."
Jeobeok, jeobeok.
"Don't come! I said don't come! Don't coooome!"
Gulp.
"Huh?"
He was a guy who foamed at the mouth and fainted on his own without me even touching him.
"...I was just trying to help him up."
It would be one thing if I had hit him and knocked him out, but I really didn't do anything.
Damn it, if someone who didn't know saw this, they would think I beat him up and knocked him out.
'This is unfair.'
This is too unfair.
If I'm going to be falsely accused of beating him until he fainted without actually hitting him, I'd rather just beat him up and become the villain.
Thump, thump.
As I was happily stomping on the fainted Dogon, a man walked out from the reception desk with a dazed face.
"...Ashuban? Is that you?"
I stopped stomping on Dogon and looked at him.
A man who was the branch manager of the Akenaten mercenary guild at a relatively young age.
Gold grade, the idler Colin.
I grinned and said.
"It's been a while."
"Haha."
Colin laughed.
***
I clinked glasses with Colin.
"It's really been a while. I never thought I'd see the famous captain of the Sherwood Mercenary Corps again."
"Me neither."
We talked while drinking cool beer.
"How have you been?"
"Just so-so. What's there to do in this remote corner? Yesterday is today, and today is tomorrow."
"How leisurely."
"It's heaven for me."
"You're a smart young man."
As I've lived, I've come to realize.
Colin, who lived a leisurely life without much greed, was the true winner.
Honor is fleeting, and power is even more so.
Colin, a wise young man who had learned the truth of life early on, took a sip of beer and asked.
"What about you?"
"Me? Well. I've lived a busier life than you."
Colin grinned.
"It seems so. Our paths have crossed again."
"I know, right."
"How did you get here?"
I pointed out the window while drinking beer.
The majestic sight of the Misty Cliff could be seen in the distance.
"It's not much different from then. I came down the cliff."
Colin chuckled.
"For some reason, it doesn't sound like a joke anymore."
"Of course not. It was never a joke from the beginning."
Colin, while sipping his beer, gestured with his eyes towards Shushuruta and Linda, who were looking at the bulletin board with wanted posters and requests.
"The Shadowless Phantom Thief, and the Madwoman Linda. It seems you've become companions."
"It just happened."
"Did you stop by on your way?"
I nodded my head.
"I'm on a trip down memory lane."
"A trip down memory lane..."
Colin smirked.
"It's a privilege that only those who have lived a fierce life can enjoy."
"...Is that so?"
Colin, who said that, seemed to have gone through a similar process as me.
A fierce life, and after everything was over, a peaceful life of leisure.
Now that I see it, Colin was a much senior senior.
"Have a drink, senior."
"Sure."
Colin readily accepted the drink I poured and asked.
"Where is the famous devil knight planning to go next?"
"Well... I'm thinking of stopping by the Starvenger Count's family first. I have a connection there too."
Colin smirked.
"My, my, it's obvious you've been away for a long time."
"?"
"It's no longer the Starvenger Count's family."
"Then?"
"It's the Starvenger Duke's family."
"...!"
Colin laughed at my face.
"You really didn't know. The Starvenger family became a ducal family as the number one contributor to the Black Crown Prince's ascension to the throne."
Come to think of it, it was a very natural fact.
When everyone else went under the first and second princes, the Starvenger family alone chose the Black Crown Prince.
And even the head of the family, Count Herman Starvenger, despite being retired, had shed blood in the decisive battle and fought for the Black Crown Prince.
I couldn't help but be amazed.
"Wow... our Count has really made it."
"So? You'll stop by the Starvenger Duke's family. And then, are you going to the capital? I heard you've been close with His Majesty the King since he was called the Black Crown Prince."
"Hmm."
Is a relationship where you unhesitatingly throw fists at each other's faces considered close?
Come to think of it, the Starvenger family and the royal family in the capital.
Other than that, there was nowhere else to visit.
It seemed that was because I had just wandered around, killing the guys who were after the dagger.
I decided on my destination as I answered Colin.
First, the Starvenger Duke's family.
Next, the Blake Royal family.
Although I really dislike nobles.
Looking back, ironically, I had formed quite deep connections with nobles.
I should stop by those two places and check on those who have a connection with me.
Who among them could be Tina?
If I see her now, will I be able to recognize her?
'Wait. Come to think of it, they said she was reborn in a different body.'
Then, is there a possibility that she was born as a man?
'Hmm.'
Since the gods didn't give many clues, I couldn't be sure for now.
The east.
One who has a connection with me.
"Ah, come to think of it. There were some guys who said they came on your recommendation."
I came out of my thoughts and looked at Colin.
"...They said they came on my recommendation?"
Then, I heard the sound of the door opening from behind.
"Ah, they're here just in time."
When I turned around, three kids were entering the guild together.
Perhaps they had just returned from a request, as they were all covered in dirt.
"What? Why is it so empty?"
"Did something happen?"
It was two boys and one girl.
The kids looked around at the unusual scenery of the guild, then looked this way.
I met eyes with the kid standing at the very front.
"...Huh?"
As soon as I saw the kid, I was able to belatedly remember a forgotten connection.
I grinned and raised my hand.
"Hey, kid. Have you been well?"
"Mister...?"
Fabio, the innkeeper's son who had grown up a lot in a few years, looked at me with wide eyes.
The kid, who had been staring at me blankly, as if he couldn't believe it, soon strode this way.
"Mister? Are you really the mister? The Red Eyed Devil? The Black King's free sword? The Devil Knight? The captain of the Sherwood Mercenary Corps?"
"Yes, it's me."
I frowned and looked the kid up and down.
"I'm me, but what about you? I'm sure I told you not to even look at being a mercenary. How come your attire is so similar to a mercenary's?"
At that, Fabio proudly puffed out his chest and said.
"That's because I've become a proper mercenary!"
I clicked my tongue.
"Bullshit. What about your father's inn?"
"My father is running it."
"And you?"
"I became a mercenary."
"Really? Don't joke around."
"It's true. I even got a mercenary badge. How is it, cool, right?"
I flicked Fabio's head, who was showing off his copper badge.
"Cool, my ass."
"Ack!"
"You're doing a great job. I just don't understand. Why do you choose the worse option when you have a perfectly good one?"
Fabio beat his chest and said resolutely.
"That's because it's my dream."
"Agh."
Thump!
"Ack!"
"Listen to me. It's wise to quit now. The probability of you dying from a sword wound as a mercenary is higher than the probability of you breaking a plate while running an inn."
"I-I can't do that!"
"Why? Because it's your dream?"
"Yes! I'm going to become a cool mercenary like you, mister!"
Thump! Thump! Thump!
"Aack! S-stop hitting me!"
"Agh. You really don't listen."
As I was hitting the much-taller Fabio's head and giving him a mental education, another kid suddenly came up from behind and pushed Fabio aside.
"Move."
"Ugh."
The kid was about the same height as Fabio.
Like Hartz and Sorrow, like Siri, he was a kid with unusually mismatched eye colors.
Thanks to that, I remembered him right away.
The kid called me in a slightly trembling voice.
"...Devil."
"Aha, it's you, right? The kid who was getting beaten up in the back alley instead of his sister."
...Nod.
"What was your name?"
"Odd."
"Right, Odd."
I saw the kid's sister peeking out from behind him and grinned.
"You protected her?"
The kid nodded his head.
"...Thanks to you."
I grinned and held out my fist.
"Well done."
The kid hesitated for a moment, then bumped his fist against mine.
Thump.
***
Looking at the kids, I decided to stay in Akenaten for the night.
Because Tina might be among them.
And because I remembered that Fabio's father's cooking skills were quite good.
Colin, Dogon who had belatedly come to his senses, the arrogant Fabio, and Odd and his younger sister, Evelyn.
We all sat around a table, drinking beer and juice and talking.
For reference, Shushuruta had disappeared at some point, perhaps to look around her hometown which she had returned to after a long time, and Linda seemed to have followed her as she had also disappeared.
As we were asking and answering about what had happened in the meantime.
"Um, by any chance..."
"Hmm?"
Odd hesitated for a long time and then asked me.
"The Sherwood Mercenary Corps. Can I... join?"
Huh?
As I was blinking my eyes at the unexpected words, Colin snorted and explained instead.
"Give it up. The Sherwood Mercenary Corps is the best mercenary corps in the Maia Kingdom, where magical beasts swarm, and only the monsters among monsters can enter. Do you think you can get in with your skills?"
Odd said defiantly.
"I have a silver badge."
"Yeah, I know you're quite talented. But that's not nearly enough. I got a silver badge when I was your age too."
"..."
"Do you know what kind of place the Sherwood Mercenary Corps is? It's a terrifying place where all the members are platinum grade. It's a legend in the mercenary world! I think there's even someone around your age. Am I right?"
I nodded my head at Colin's question.
"Right?"
Colin looked at Odd and said.
"You heard him? The Sherwood Mercenary Corps is a place where someone your age can take the head of an A-rank magical beast single-handedly. Ashuban, that guy, probably got a gold grade as a basic when he was your age. Am I right?"
"Uh, um. W-well, I guess so."
Sweat, sweat.
Cold sweat trickled down.
"Is that so..."
Odd, with a slightly dejected look, reached for his beer mug, but was hit on the back of the hand by Colin and switched to juice.
Fabio also nagged Odd.
"Yeah, you punk! Even if someone gets in, I'll get in first! Follow me after I get in, big brother."
Odd glanced at Fabio, then shook his head and ignored him.
I looked at Fabio, who was overflowing with useless confidence.
"What about you?"
"It's Fabio."
"You said you have a copper badge."
"Yes."
"Where does that groundless confidence come from?"
"Can't you see my vast potential?"
"I can't."
I left Fabio, who was muttering, "You can't see this?" and examining his own limbs, and turned my head to Odd.
"Why do you want to join the Sherwood Mercenary Corps?"
"...I want to become stronger."
"Why do you want to become stronger?"
Odd answered, sipping his juice.
"Because I have something to protect."
I looked at his younger sister, Evelyn, sitting next to Odd.
When my gaze turned to her, Evelyn became fidgety and raised the cup of juice to cover her face.
As if she thought that would hide her face.
...She was a truly shy one.
At that moment, Fabio, not giving up, said to me.
"Mister, you're the captain. Can't you do something with your connections? I'll prove my skills once I get in."
"You think so?"
"Can't you?"
"No."
"Hmph."
I finished the beer I was holding, put it down with a thud, and stood up from my seat.
Screech—
All eyes were on me at the sound of the chair being pushed back.
"However, you can take the entrance exam."
"An entrance exam?"
Of course, there was no such thing as an entrance exam for the Sherwood Mercenary Corps, but I was curious about the skills of the two, so I said as I went out to the backyard.
"Come out. Let's see your skills."
The two looked at each other's faces, and then, not wanting to be outdone, followed me with a clatter.
(End of Chapter)