Chapter 450 – Loot
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You can see a sign that says Louise’s Pension Shop.
I took a step there.
-A rattle.
I bumped shoulders with a customer who was leaving the store.
-Tuk…
“What kind of bastard…”
The guy who bumped my shoulder twists his face and glares at me.
When you look at him dressed up, he looks like a mercenary.
“… What?”
“Oh, no. I’m sorry.”
The mercenary who saw my face immediately lowered his eyes and lowered his head.
“Go.”
“Yes! Okay, thank you!”
The man who looked like a mercenary bowed his head at me and disappeared as if running away.
“Good.”
What I’ve been hoping for all this time is an apology and recognition.
That was one thing.
How many hardships did you have to go through to get here?
The world has finally become a proper place.
For a world like this, I had to act like a clown on the stage of the arena. When I think about it now, I think it was a pretty good choice.
“Ah! Mr. Bark! Welcome!”
The female clerk who found me said hello.
The girl with an innocent face and chubby cheeks is attractive.
She could be said to be Louise’s assistant or disciple.
Before I duel with the Homan mercenaries.
It was a child I met when I stopped by Louise’s store.
The reason I came back to Louise’s pension store was not to monitor whether Louise had run away, but to collect the money.
Ronée takes out her heavy money bag from under the counter.
“Here is the price of the ogre by-products that Master told me to give to Bark when he comes. It’s not all yet, it’s about 30%. And… It’s the proceeds from the arena.”
Arena profits.
In short, it is the money gambled on the duel between me and the Homan mercenaries.
The parties involved in the sacred duel said they could not bet money, so they asked Louise to bet money in secret.
I don’t know when killing people became a sacred thing, but when you go to Rome, you have to follow Roman law.
Of course I bet on myself.
What was surprising was that there was almost no difference in the odds between me and Homan’s mercenary group.
It is said that it was almost half-and-half.
It was a bit of a blow to my pride, but I ended up making a lot of money thanks to it.
I put the heavy bag into the subspace bag.
I didn’t buy the Aspace bag with my own money.
This is Homan’s stuff.
All the property of Homan, who was defeated in the duel, belonged to me, and this was one of the trophies.
“Shall I call you Master?”
“It’s okay.”
Louise’s laboratory was in the basement, and there was nothing to talk about right now.
I need to contact Liliana…
I couldn’t log out yet.
When I was asked to duel by the Homan mercenaries… I was worried that they would do something strange, so I couldn’t do it…
Right now, I couldn’t log out because I was worried that a strange guy might come looking for me in order to avenge Homan’s death.
I was thinking of logging out after seeing the situation a little longer.
After finishing my business, I left Louise’s pension shop and walked down the street, and I felt eyes on me.
I became a celebrity in Ramona.
It’s a little uncomfortable to be stared at wherever you go, but it’s better than being treated like shit.
I’m used to it…
This reputation effect will be limited to Ramona.
‘It would be perfect if I could get the knight’s armor here…’
Thanks to Homan, I had a lot of money to live on, and I was in a situation where I could buy a knight’s armor.
However, it did not seem easy to obtain.
It’s not a money issue.
Making armor is expensive, but in local fiefdoms like this, you need permission from the lord…
That means I have to meet the lord in person and ask for it. It was something I was reluctant to do.
‘Is there a knight willing to duel with me…? .’
If there is this much benefit, I think it would be okay to duel one or two more times.
-Knock.
I knocked on the door of an unfamiliar house.
The door opens and a familiar girl’s face appears.
This is Karen.
We escaped from inn life.
Homan had a luxurious three-story house.
Now that house has become my home.
Although it is not an aristocratic mansion, it can be said to be a middle-class house with a backyard.
It was bigger and better than my house on Earth.
And for us who lived in an inn until recently, this is a blessing in disguise.
Karen gestures to me after I return home and expresses her opinion.
“A guest has arrived?”
-Nod.
A neatly dressed woman sitting in the living room looked at me and bowed her head politely.
It’s a woman named Emilia.
She is the person I hired to identify and organize Homan’s assets.
Well… You could say it’s similar to an asset manager.
I was introduced to Louise.
Louise, who was older than she looked, knew many people in Ramona.
I heard she is not a real property manager, she is the daughter of a small boss based in Ramona.
I’m sure I could do it myself, but it was too much of a hassle, so I hired an agent.
Most Ramona people already know my skills. So I had the mindset that I wouldn’t do anything presumptuous.
You could only be greedy if your life was at stake.
I didn’t intend to be that tight.
There was also an intention to turn a blind eye to moderate embezzlement to some extent.
“… He also operated a mercenary group building and a weapons store that dealt with mercenaries.”
Homan… That guy’s wealth kept coming in waves.
It was a very good treasure goblin.
What a person leaves behind when they die is not their name, but their property.
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Hilda couldn’t get Bark’s sword out of her mind that she saw in the arena.
Bark’s cutting of Homan’s Sword Auror made Ramona upset.
There was even a saying that his sword was a magic sword.
Although much has disappeared now… Hilda had a great desire for her knights when she was young.
It’s because of her father.
Hilda’s father told her from the time she was a child about the prowess of her knighthood. And that was strongly imprinted on young Hilda’s head.
Hilda’s father was once a knight’s squire.
Even if you are a knight, not everyone becomes a knight.
There is one most important gateway.
That is the awakening of the Auror.
Hilda’s father, who could not cross that threshold, did not become a knight.
And he became a mercenary.
Still, as if being trained by a knight wasn’t in vain, Hilda’s father became a Class A mercenary rather easily, and like any other mercenary, he died while doing a commission.
Hilda became a mercenary because of her father’s great influence.
Hilda’s development was different from her childhood.
Although she was a woman, she was taller than boys her age and did not lose much in power struggles.
Hilda learned her swordsmanship from her father.
She was talented.
Her father lamented that if she had been a man, she might have become a knight’s squire.
With her sword skills surpassing others, it was natural for her to become a mercenary like her father.
That’s why she was tempted by Bark’s strange seed offer.
That is already over.
But the regret remained.
She also had something called shame.
Now that she was here, she thought it was too cheesy to go to Bark and ask him to become a servant.
“Is it time to take care of your pride? When I see him, he’s real. Isn’t that a transparent Auror blade or something? Then, what the fuck… You’re a sword master… Why don’t you just close your eyes and give it to me? It’s not like it’s going to wear out. If it were me, I’d kick the butt right away.”
Ralph, who was drinking beer next to her, sees Hilda worried and says something pitiful.
Hilda did not reject her squire simply for that reason.
There were many men who wanted her body for themselves.
But they were just curious about her tall height and breasts.
It’s obvious that he has no intention of dating and just wants to have a taste. And the next day after she goes to bed, she’s sure to tell a saga about it to her friends.
It’s not a problem because she’s a hit.
However, no matter how good of a personality she is, it’s hard to bear to be missed the very next day.
Hilda knew the physiology of those mercenary men better than anyone else, and there was no way she could become attached to them.
It is not easy to find a normal person.
Raepard, the only normal guy I liked, is married, and only weirdos like Ralph are attracted to him.
Just looking at those guys, I think I felt an instinctive repulsion.
“Rafford, what do you think of me joining his squire?”
Lapperd thought for a moment and then opened his mouth.
“He seems like a weirdo, but… He doesn’t seem that evil.”
“Is that so?”
“Karen’s relationship with her squire may not seem normal, but looking at her, she doesn’t think he’s treating her poorly.”
“Definitely…”
If you look at the way Bark showed while requesting Louise’s escort, he was normal… No, he had manners even compared to other knights.
“You don’t know whether he will ask for your body or not. If he asks for your body, if you don’t like it, it won’t be too late to go ahead and refuse it.”
Hilda felt her heart soften as Rappard gave her normal advice.
“If it were me, I would go and see him. Well… With a knight of that caliber, you would gain quite a bit from just following his tail. You have nothing to lose by meeting him.”
“But… What kind of confidence do you have? I’m not even sure he’ll accept you as his squire now. Should he even meet you?”
Ralph, who had been quietly listening to Rafferd, asked sarcastically.
“That’s…”
Hilda didn’t know why, but she had a feeling that he would accept it.
