Chapter 81: The City Guard

The late afternoon sunlight streamed through the window lattice, falling on the fine oak table, making its mirror-smooth lacquered surface reflect a somewhat dazzling sheen…

Yet Hilro Valentine, seated before the table, felt only darkness before his eyes.

He twisted the seal ring representing his baronial status between his fingers. A soft snap sounded, and a slight pain came from his fingers. A slight pain could help calm a person down. And the calmer his thoughts became, the more he realized how absurd his earlier actions had been.

A silver ore vein with vein of mithril meant at least millions, even tens of millions, of Phoenix gold coins. That was a fortune even the great noble families within Hayton City would have to view with new respect. However, that still didn’t justify galloping alone onto Central Avenue, right in front of Farborough Square. With his mere baronial title, he had no chance of directly seeing His Majesty the Emperor. Even having an uncle who was the newly appointed Imperial Minister of Internal Affairs wasn’t enough.

The young man silently cursed himself, cursed his excitement that had clouded his judgment… In fact, riding into Farborough Square had already broken a minor taboo. If he hadn’t held a baron’s title, the guards’ long spears would have had every reason to riddle him like a pincushion.

The Imperial Palace square was also part of the Imperial Palace. Anything even remotely connected to imperial authority was not to be lightly trespassed upon by nobles — even making loud noises there casually was forbidden.

The fact that he was transferred to the Internal Affairs department, and not to the foul, bloody-smelling cells of the Law Enforcement Office, was thanks to him mentioning the name of that uncle he saw only a few times a year.

The ornate door slowly opened. The well-oiled door hinge produced just a slight creak, but Hilro jumped up as if hearing a thunderclap.

The old man who entered wore splendid robes. Passing by the impulsive young man, his stern face showed not a trace of expression. “Marquis… your Lordship, Gerald…” Hilro’s mouth opened and closed. He felt the other’s gaze was like some sort of tool, slowly scraping over the skin and flesh of his face. Although this person before him was a relative, the young man couldn’t help but lower his head in the end. He still used the other’s prestigious title of nobility.

The old man expressed no opinion on this. He leisurely sat down in the oak armchair, picked up the silver cup on the table, took a sip of Rose Tea, and then slightly waved his hand, motioning for the young man to sit opposite him. “We are family here. Let’s dispense with those boring formalities. How is your mother?”

“Yes, your Lordship the Marquis, thank you for your concern…” The voice, speaking with a standard Hayton accent, wasn’t very aged, just utterly devoid of emotion, icy. Yet in that moment, Hilro seemed to sense a hint of warmth within it. He hurriedly responded. But the other clearly had no intention of listening to his full answer. He simply savored the fragrant tea in his cup himself, then posed the latter part of his question.

“I heard you have important matters to report to His Majesty? Could you tell me about it?”

Hilro Valentine hesitated. In truth, the reason he, after discovering that mine, had sprinted over fifty miles without rest, even daring to rush into Farborough Square demanding a direct audience with His Majesty, was precisely because from the start, he didn’t want anyone else to share any benefit from this news. But after a moment of stammering, he finally spoke. “In the vicinity of a village, I discovered a mine. It’s a silver mine, but with a vein of Mithril… Although some have already found it and privately mined a portion… a small portion. But its reserves are still quite substantial. Therefore I thought, I thought…”

“A silver mine? And with vein of Mithril? That is interesting news indeed… It certainly warrants a direct report to His Majesty.” The Marquis’s voice still held no emotion. The old man gently placed the silver cup in his hand on the table. The cup met the oak tabletop with a clear clink. He lifted his head. The area between his two pale golden eyebrows twitched slightly, revealing a vertical line. “You said it’s only fifty miles from Hayton? And it’s a small village?”

“Yes, Uncle…”

The other’s words made Hilro Valentine feel his breathing becoming more and more rapid. A deep, bone-chilling sense of oppression instantly made him feel sweat breaking out on his back. He had never thought an old man with no martial prowess could make a self-proclaimed elite Knight like himself feel such pressure.

Towards this rarely-seen uncle… he always felt an inexplicable fear. Perhaps it stemmed from his own father, who was often dead drunk, teaching him… This old man was the savior of their entire family. With one little finger, he could lift their whole family to the clouds. He could also make them die without a burial place. Especially in the last ten or so days, his father had even dared to violate a taboo, placing a portrait of him above the fireplace. The reason was that Gerald Baskett Field, Marquis, was now more than just an Imperial Marquis.

“A small village only fifty miles from Hayton. A silver mine with vein of Mithril. So, did you discover this alone, or does anyone else know about it? Hil, think carefully.” The oppression lasted only a moment, then vanished. The Empire’s newly appointed Minister of Internal Affairs repeated his nephew’s account. His words were clear, slow, and methodical, as if afraid the other might not hear or might misunderstand him.

“Just a few Adventurers. Supposedly from out of town. They had some ability, but nothing remarkable…”

The young Baron recalled his encounter, thinking hard about every possible point of oversight. But after recalling everything from start to finish, he hadn’t noticed anything particularly special about these people. “As for the original miners, they seemed to use Hobgoblins as miners, and also to intimidate the villagers from approaching the mine. Now, those Hobgoblins have all been killed. So not many people know. I think for a while, this news won’t leak out…”

“And… I think they should hurry back to report this… They have mission records at the Mercenary Guild in Hayton. If we guard the city gates, we should be able to prevent the news from leaking.” After some thought, Hilro added. Now that his uncle was undoubtedly involved in this matter, he didn’t know if the uncle would want a cut of the profits. But regardless, other people absolutely must not get involved anymore — therefore, it would be best to quickly silence those few who knew.

“Are you sure only these few people know?” After a long silence, the Marquis spoke. “As far as I know, there is no confirmed news of silver ore veins discovered near Hayton… We can’t yet be certain there really is a silver ore vein there. Therefore, these Adventurers’ discovery might be suspicious… Or someone is intentionally spreading rumors, aiming to cause public unrest… Can you recognize these people’s appearances?”

The Marquis’s rather cryptic assertion left Hilro Valentine momentarily stunned. He nodded blankly. Then, before he could make any judgment, the other’s following words seemed to make him understand something. “Go to the city gate now. I will dispatch a squad of Royal Guards to go with you. If these people show up, arrest them directly. No matter what they say. This involves deep issues, possibly matters concerning the livelihood of Hayton City.”

“Yes…” Hilro lowered his head, but inwardly muttered a quiet curse. Disregarding the unclear parts of the other’s words, he could now guess that the Marquis’s intentions were probably not much different from his own suggestion.

“Hil, your mother is my only sister, so don’t blame this old man for being long-winded…” The Imperial Minister of Internal Affairs suddenly spoke in a familial tone. “A young man like you, in any situation, should prioritize your own judgment and rational analysis. Don’t be too bound by rules. Rules exist to handle matters. More importantly, have the Confidence to believe in your own judgment.”

…

“Impressive moves, very agile. Are you a part-time warrior? Would you consider joining us? I think we could offer you a third of the mission reward.”

The carriage rumbled over the dirt road, the sound of its wheels drowned out by the thief’s enthusiastic shouts. “This is the first time I’ve seen a Mage skilled in both magic and martial arts! A Spellcaster with close-combat abilities like a warrior isn’t something you encounter every day! Although you don’t seem to have much adventure experience. But just follow us on a few missions, and eventually…”

“Jack, enough… With this gentleman’s status, he probably wouldn’t join us.” From a corner of the carriage, Miss William frowned, stopping her companion’s nonsense — no matter how young he looked, the other couldn’t possibly be someone their little group could recruit. If nothing else, the family crest embroidered on his Hunting Attire when he just took off his cloak was enough to indicate his noble status… Although she didn’t know which family it represented, even the smallest noble family was far above a few wandering Mercenaries like themselves.

“Regarding that, I actually have a different idea…”

The boy habitually rubbed his nose, then smiled at the young lady. “I’d like to hire you all. How about it?”

This offer was met with silence. After the previous battle, no one would mistake this youngster whose voice still held a trace of childishness for an ordinary child. But his age still wasn’t enough to inspire trust. After a long hesitation, Miss William spoke hesitantly. “Sir, we are all people used to being free and undisciplined. It doesn’t seem very suitable for…”

“Three hundred gold coins per person per year, with room and board provided. Also, you can each get half a month’s vacation per year when not needed. Special holidays are extra.” Constantine stated without a second thought, quoting a price that was enough to make the Mercenaries’ jaws drop. “If a task is completed exceptionally well, you can receive a commission bonus of up to 10%. If someone dies during a mission… of course I wouldn’t issue such a mission… their family would receive a thousand gold coins in compensation. How about these terms?”

This… oh… huh… A series of gasped breaths and single-syllable sounds of exclamation arose.

The boy’s immense wealth clearly stunned everyone… In this world, generally, no one was willing to spend such a large sum to hire Mercenaries long-term. Although these three were very capable, a price of over a thousand gold coins per year was enough to secure the loyalty of three times as many experts of their level. Moreover, everyone knew that long-term hiring was actually quite wasteful… Mercenaries weren’t puppets; they needed rest. The usual noble practice was to provide room and board, promise a low-ranking status and a comfortable retirement, but in return, demand a lifetime of loyalty. A long-term hiring Pact like this was almost unheard of… it’s fair to say no one had even considered it.

“I think… I could consider it…”

William’s mind was in turmoil. Mercenaries mostly lived lives where they risked death for money. One never knew when they might die in some no-man’s-land. Although most harbored the idea of quitting after earning enough, few actually managed to retire unscathed. The smart ones naturally considered pledging allegiance to some great family, exchanging loyalty for a relatively safe and stable life. But doing so meant their original freedom would vanish entirely.

“The Pact contract can be signed year by year…” Constantine threw out another condition the other couldn’t refuse.

“It does sound very good… But, I think I might not participate…”

Unexpectedly, the thief suddenly spoke. His usually frivolous face took on a thoughtful expression. “Reporting this Mithril Mine business, I should be able to get a nice reward. Enough to open a small inn and support myself for the rest of my life. Sorry, your conditions are truly tempting to me, but the timing is a bit off.”

“Jack, about the Mithril Mine, I think you can forget about it…”

At this point, Miss William on the side frowned, pouring a bucket of cold water on her companion’s plans. “That fellow has probably already reported the matter. Even if there’s a share of credit for us, it would be pitifully small… Besides… well, Sir, you must have seen the earlier scene. I hope if we encounter trouble, you won’t hesitate to help us.”

Constantine smiled slightly and nodded. Regarding the temperament and methods of Nobles, this Miss William was clearly considering things more thoroughly. But Constantine wasn’t particularly worried. His current influence might not be great, but for a second-generation noble, it seemed just a tad stronger.

“Halt! Halt!”

As might be expected, before passing through the city gate, the carriage was intercepted — “City Guard spot check! You, state your identity! Show your proof!” A small squad of cavalry aggressively formed a circle around them. A rough voice yelled.

“City Guard?”

Constantine was slightly surprised… He had thought at most the Law Enforcement Office’s military police would come to cause trouble, but he hadn’t expected that second-generation noble to have such moves… The military police of the Law Enforcement Office were responsible for maintaining city order; their functions roughly overlapped with police and city management in the boy’s memory. But the City Guard… as the name implied, they were the regular garrison troops. Generally, they were only brought out when major security issues were involved.

“Mercenaries? Lately, it seems spies are fond of using that title. You are carrying heavy weapons into the city. I suspect you are connected to the recent Undead monster incidents. Everyone in the carriage, get down! Submit to inspection!”

An arrogant voice came through the carriage’s felt covering. Then a blond fellow on horseback swaggered into view. Using the long spear in his hand, he lifted the felt flap at the carriage entrance, waving the spear tip back and forth. This made the boy sitting to the side twitch his brows and sneer coldly.

He noticed this shouting fellow, though dressed in City Guard colors, wasn’t even wearing proper Armor. He didn’t seem to be a regular Knight, but rather a military officer in charge of logistics or some other clerical role. Yet he was making a huge fuss, acting far more conspicuous than any regular Knight! And that second-generation noble was outside the circle, watching the few people getting off the carriage with a cold smile.

“What are all of you? Huh? You, yes you! Where did this blood on you come from?” The blond officer’s eyes immediately caught the already darkened bloodstain on Constantine’s cloak. He shouted as if he’d caught them red-handed.

“It seems there are always some people in this world who think having a handsome, smiling face is more important than having a brain of their own… The crest showing on your cloak might be a bit faint, but at this distance, it shouldn’t be invisible…” The Lich had obviously found something amusing. Or perhaps from the start, he had adopted an attitude of watching the show.

Constantine wearily rolled his eyes, then slowly untied his cloak, revealing the Griffin-based crest on the Hunting Attire beneath. But that small emblem seemed to draw no attention from the other at all — in fact, the guy probably had no intention of examining it closely. He had already turned back, yelling at a subordinate. “Bring the manacles! We have a dangerous character here!”

The squad leader’s gaze swept past the face of the Knight not far away. The other’s satisfied expression made him even more excited. This brat might have a noble status, but so what? His job was just to arrest them. As for how to verify things, that was the Marquis’s business. Even if something went wrong, as long as he insisted he hadn’t seen the other display his status, given the Marquis’s position, he couldn’t do much to him! Besides, a brat hanging out with Mercenaries, even if a noble, couldn’t be that high-ranking.

However, soon a caustic voice replaced that little bit of smugness in his heart with anger. “Are you a person, or a blind donkey?”

“Don’t think that just because you have a noble title, you can look down on me!” The officer whirled around, thrusting his long spear horizontally before Constantine, shouting sharply.

“I am looking down on you.” The boy shook his head slightly. His voice was calm, but changed the address to something less polite. “Get your claws away.”

Before the other could react, Constantine gently flicked his fingers. An invisible force in the air coalesced into the shape of a hand. With a slap, the officer’s head jerked backward!

“You… you!” The officer stumbled back a few steps, glaring venomously at the boy. The force of Mage Hand wasn’t great, but certain parts of the human body were always fragile — his nose was already swollen and red, a vivid line of blood flowing splendidly from it!