## Chapter 23 – Escorting the Merchant Guild
Rummage, rummage. The adventurer was stripping the brigand leader’s breastplate off, seemingly oblivious to the fact that I was watching him. The corpse’s face was caved in, but he must have had a strong stomach because he smoothly removed the breastplate with greedy hands.
“Hey, what are you doing?”
Faced with this absurd sight, I had to ask. What if he was going to take the breastplate off and bring it to me? `Oh! Thanks to you, we won the battle! Here, I took it off in advance so you wouldn’t have to bother!` He might even suggest we grab a drink after work with a friendly smile.
Even if adventurers were total losers, they should still have some sense of decency. What you kill is yours. That’s just common sense.
It was more likely that my twisted mind was misunderstanding the situation. In this world, it’s best to understand the cause and effect before fighting.
“Huh? Taking off the armor. Why?”
“Why are you taking off the armor?”
“To sell it, of course. You want it? Get lost.”
But my expectations were spectacularly wrong.
For a moment, I seriously considered drawing my sword again and slicing his throat. I couldn’t understand what this bastard was babbling about. This was it. Stealing. The most basic skill used by thieves.
In other words, he was trying to steal my stuff.
Right in front of me, the owner, with complete audacity.
“No, you crazy bastard. That’s mine.”
“What the hell are you talking about, you fucking moron?”
“The only one talking shit is your mom when she’s getting plowed by an orc.”
“W-What?! You, you son of a bitch, what did you just say! What about my mother?!”
He suddenly started cursing out of nowhere, so I reflexively threw out a good old-fashioned insult about his mom.
Unlike Koreans, who are used to such insults, people in this world didn’t have any resistance to them. Even hearing a polite greeting like “Your mom’s a whore,” which wouldn’t even deal 1 damage to a modern Korean, would send them into a furious rage.
His face quickly turned bright red. He was like a walking, talking Korean flag.
Looking closer, he was shorter than me. My equipment was better since I was wearing quilted armor, and he had even left his sword on the ground while looting the corpse. If we fought like this, I felt like I could win just by drawing my sword. What was this guy thinking?
“Your mom’s an orc’s fucktoy. Besides, that guy you’re taking the armor off of? I killed him.”
“So what if you killed him? Finders keepers, right? And if you insult my mother one more time, I’ll kill you.”
What was he planning to say when I killed him, turned him into a corpse, and took his belongings?
Didn’t they teach you when you registered with the Adventurer’s Guild that it’s common sense to only take what you kill?
“Your mom’s a whore.”
Curious, I drew my sword. Throwing in another insult about his mom, even though he told me not to, was just a bonus.
I have no intention of compromising with someone I can beat.
Only someone like Winia, who could kill me in one hit, could force something unfair on me. I couldn’t tolerate some nobody trying to mess with me. It was simply unacceptable. Adventurers live and die by their reputation. If you cross the line, you die.
“You son of a bitch, spouting nonsense with that hole you call a mouth. What? You said you’d kill me?”
“U-Uh…”
He hesitated when I drew my sword. He patted his waist, looking for his sword, but idiot, your sword is lying over there. His face turned pale when he realized his sword wasn’t there.
Red, then blue, he was like a human Korean flag.
“Get lost, you moron. Just go while I’m letting you live.”
I said, pointing my sword at him. Judging by the fact that he didn’t have any decent armor, just stabbing him like this would probably inflict a fatal wound. In a fight, the most important things are equipment and physique. I overwhelmed him in both of those categories.
That’s why I could do this.
Actually… I would have killed him right away anywhere else.
But I couldn’t cause such an incident while working for the merchant guild.
“Tch… Bad luck!”
Still, he seemed to have the ability to understand the situation. He spat on the ground as if putting on a show and turned away. Logically, he should have apologized first, but the fact that he didn’t made me completely lose it.
“Where are you going?”
“What?”
“You have to hand over everything you have before you leave.”
“What the hell are you talking about…”
He tried to steal someone else’s stuff and didn’t even apologize, so I had to receive compensation for the mental damage. I pointed my sword at him even more and demanded alimony.
“You tried to steal my stuff. Didn’t your mom teach you about alimony? I need to be compensated for the damages.”
“…Hmph!”
The guy hesitated, then suddenly became bold. This guy had more guts than I thought. Why was he using that kind of courage to be a thief? If he hadn’t done that, he might have become someone great.
“Go ahead, stab me, you moron.”
“Really? Then just die. I’ll find the alimony and labor costs on your corpse, you son of a bitch!!!”
I lunged forward.
“A-Alright! I’ll give it to you!”
“You should have done that from the start.”
I didn’t lunge.
With a half-crying face, he rummaged through his pockets and threw a leather pouch at me. I caught it and stepped back five paces to check inside. It was full of copper coins. This was probably… a little less than 1 silver.
Was it a spare wallet? It’s common sense for adventurers to carry multiple wallets for security. I had already decided to get everything I could, but my mood immediately improved with this unexpected windfall, so I decided not to pursue it any further.
Yeah, well. Anyone can be tempted by someone else’s stuff! It’s okay, it’s okay! I’ll forgive you!
1 silver was enough for an adventurer to forgive even their parents’ enemies.
“What’s your name?”
“…James.”
“That’s a really common name. Your mom must have been too lazy to name you. I guess that’s to be expected since she met your dad in a brothel. Well, go on now. Say hi to your mom for me.”
“…”
James stormed off, clearly dissatisfied. He looked like he was waiting for an opportunity to get revenge, so I vowed to kill him if I ever got the chance.
Anyway, the merchant guild leader, who had chased James away, called me over.
“More importantly, thanks to you, we were able to defeat the bandits. To take down the bandit leader so quickly, you’re quite skilled.”
“No, not at all.”
It wasn’t that my skills were great, it was just that he was careless. People can easily die from a simple rock. If he had been paying attention, he wouldn’t have died so pathetically.
“You seem to have a lot of courage too. How about it? When we get to the city, would you like to work as a guard for our merchant guild? If I write you a recommendation, you’ll be hired right away.”
“Unfortunately, I’m tired of merchant trips.”
“Is that so? That’s a shame.”
Being able to receive training like the merchant guild’s soldiers was tempting, but I didn’t want to make this merchant trip my livelihood. If I lived like this every day, I would probably become a bleak, crazy bastard with no hobbies other than killing.
I couldn’t handle that kind of future.
More than anything, fighting every day as a merchant guild guard would probably increase my mortality rate compared to when I was an adventurer.
The merchant guild leader left, and I finally took the loot from the bandit leader’s corpse. It was literally farming. First, I took off the breastplate. The iron breastplate felt appropriately heavy, which made me feel good. I took off my cloak and immediately put on the breastplate. The breastplate fit perfectly, as if it had been mine from the beginning.
“Oh, fuck! Holy shit!!! Mommaaa!!!”
An explosion of intense joy…!
It perfectly protected my chest and upper back and didn’t restrict my movement at all. The thought that I could use this to defend against unexpected attacks filled me with joy.
I savored the rising satisfaction and searched the corpse again.
First, I took off his clothes. They were too dirty, so I didn’t feel like taking them. Two wallets came out when I took off his clothes. I checked the amount with trembling hands and put them in my pocket. It was a whopping 3 silver. This was probably all of his wealth. I was very happy, but on the other hand, I hated the fact that the leader was so poor.
“…3 silver!”
Bandits usually carry all their wealth on them, just like adventurers. Their wealth is like their own body, so they never leave it behind.
All the other bandits were just like him, so who would he trust to hide his wealth in a hideout?
What you have on you is the best. That’s why I was lucky. He took good care of his money, so I was able to take it all.
“Oh my god!”
He was even wearing a necklace! I immediately took it off, put it around my neck, and tucked it into my clothes. My heart felt like it was going to explode! How much was this worth! Killing one person was dozens of times more profitable than killing a monster! That’s why all the sons of bitches were doing banditry!
With overflowing excitement, I took everything worth taking.
Sword, boots, armor, money. I almost lost my mind at the feast of unbelievable drops. My equipment was upgraded in an instant. I tied the boots to my waist. I could probably sell them for at least 20 copper in the city. I also put the sword on my waist, which would also be worth something if I sold it to a blacksmith.
Wow, a side income of 4 silver in cash, some equipment, and a necklace. For the first time, I thought it was a good idea to volunteer for the merchant guild escort mission. Of course, I didn’t want to do it again.
More than anything, I really liked this breastplate that was now mine. To get something like this, you would need at least dozens of silver. Since it had come to me almost for free, I couldn’t help but scream.
It would be good to sell this to a blacksmith, but I decided to use it for the future. I should probably give this breastplate a name… Hmm, what would be good?
“Ah, right.”
Come to think of it, there was one more guy I killed. I looked around and saw the psychopath adventurer from earlier cheerfully waving his hand. He seemed to have the sense to wait for me to share the loot with him.
“Friend, let’s split the loot in half!”
He said with a refreshing smile. I couldn’t help but smile back at his energy.
“Sounds good!”
“Well, let’s split the cash in half, but what about the items?”
“Hmm, I don’t know…”
Unfortunately, the bandit that me and this mohawk-wearing adventurer had cowardly taken down 2-on-1 seemed to be poor. We each split 15 copper and wondered how to divide the only remaining asset, the sword.
“It’s a bit ambiguous to divide this.”
“We could probably get 30 copper for it if we sold it to a blacksmith.”
I think we could get a little more than 30.
After thinking about it, I made a suggestion.
“Hey, if you give me the 15 copper we just split, I’ll just give you the sword. It’s awkward to divide it, so let’s just agree on that. How about it?”
“Really? I’d be happy to.”
I was losing a little, but it would be difficult to increase my luggage any further.
With all the loot divided, the situation was settled.
There were no surviving bandits, and two more adventurers had died from bleeding and shock. I suddenly had to stand guard again. But hey, I had earned this much money, so I could put up with it. This was the first time I had ever gotten my hands on this much money in this world.
I was looking forward to the journey ahead.
I wondered what Isban was like. I was really excited.
Well, I’ve made some money… Shouldn’t I go to a decent restaurant and grease my stomach?
“Y-You there, merchant guild leader! This guy stole my money! Shouldn’t you take some action as the employer?”
Just then, James changed his tone and told the middle-aged man in the green hat, the merchant guild leader, everything. Okay, I’ve decided. I need to kill James and take all of his possessions.
“…From what I saw, it looked like you were trying to rob him first.”
“Huh?”
“If you cause any more trouble, your contract will be terminated.”
“…”
But it was a complete reversal. James trembled and ran to the other side of the carriage. He looked like he was waiting for an opportunity to get revenge, so I vowed to kill him if I ever got the chance.
Anyway, the merchant guild leader, who had chased James away, called me over.
