Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Investing Through the Status Window.

Episode 2: The Young Master (2).

Allen completed a full circuit of the city in exactly three days, recovering all the payments. Naturally, there were no defaults. It was less about people fearing the collector Allen and more about no one daring to cross the Pomwell Trading Company.

During his collection rounds, he encountered many mercenaries wandering the city. Of course, Ji-hoo was involved in various other businesses in Guild Master, but he had truly mastered the mercenary business like no other. Honestly, while claiming a 100% success rate was an exaggeration, he was confident in achieving 80 to 90%. Even a 50% success rate would be remarkable, so 90% was monstrously incredible.

The mercenaries who flocked here to Berge were all uniformly D-grade. Their stats should at least exceed 30 to confidently declare themselves mercenariesㅡbut this place was overflowing with those barely scraping by 20. Considering that ordinary people usually hover around 10, these guys were merely thugs who looked like mercenaries but were just good at brawling in their neighborhoods.

Really, very occasionally, there were mercenaries with somewhat decent traits, but sadly, they all failed to exceed the level of [Common]. Of course, not all commons are useless, but still, it’s better to avoid them if possible. After all, if one can choose to their liking from the plethora of mercenaries across the vast continent, it’s obvious that [Talented] or [Genius] are preferable over [Common].

…This reminded him of the old days.

Of course, at the beginning of the game, you might need to invest in level 20-something nobodies. After all, you didn’t begin with much money and reputation.

Naturally, there was also a strategy for initial business investments. You just needed enough common sense, greed for money, and ambition. That made it easier to raise them moderately and sell them off.

The problem was when these nobodies had too much loyalty. Then, it became difficult to let them go when the time came. If you forced them to separate, it would damage your reputation… Of course, he wasn’t sure how the reputation metric worked here, but in Guild Master’s system, forcibly sending away a mercenary who is absolutely against the transfer would accumulate infamy.

Anyway, that’s beside the point.

As widely rumored throughout the city, several miners in the copper mines have died or been injured due to monster attacks, significantly disrupting copper mining operations. Reportedly, the current mining output is less than a quarter of the usual amount.

Because of this, Allen had to see his father’s somewhat troubled face every morning at breakfast lately. If the mining output plummets, it would inevitably affect the baron’s income. So, even the somewhat cozy family mealtime has recently been like walking on thin ice. Even his mother, who loves to chat, couldn’t help but watch his father’s mood.

After such a chilly meal, the father called his two sons to the study.

Baron Pomwell sat down in his chair and immediately took a puff of tobacco, looking at his two sons. The acrid and milky smoke leaked out from between his parched lips with a hiss.

“I suppose you’ve heard the rumors by now… There’s been some trouble around the mines.”

“Yes, we’ve heard.”

Borner, the eldest son of Baron Pomwell and Allen’s brother, answered on their behalf.

“The count’s family contacted us a while ago. They’ve decided it’s not a problem that can be solved with time. So, they’ve decided to deploy mercenaries. They’ve also asked for my cooperation.”

“Will you comply?”

“There’s no choice. Of course, I must. I own a share of the mines, too. This is about protecting our family’s wealth.”

“…I see.”

“So, Borner, I want you to act on my behalf. Organize a group of mercenaries and cooperate with the count’s family.”

‘Ah…’ Unable to respond immediately upon hearing his father’s words, Borner shifted his eyes uncomfortably.

Initially, he had rarely participated in the affairs of the trading company. Mingling with nobles and engaging in politics was his life’s goal. Dirty and rough tasks like those of the trading company were absolutely detestable to him.

As Baron Pomwell’s gaze on his silent eldest son became sharper, the youngest, Allen, noticed and intervened.

“May I do it instead, Father?”

The gazes of the other two immediately shifted to the youngest. Relief for the brother, and curiosity for the father. He hadn’t expected the timid Allen to volunteer himself.

“…Allen, you? For what reason?”

“It seems this task might be somewhat dangerous, doesn’t it? Of course, it won’t be, but just in case something happens, it’s better that I suffer than my brother. After all, Brother will be the one who will lead our family in the future.”

It was a perfectly logical argument, but his father shook his head. …There seemed to be a slight sense of disapproval.

“There’s no particular danger. When entering the demon lands, we can just appoint a proxy again.”

“But that won’t manage things well. The mercenaries are our assets, aren’t they? Even if it’s a proxy, in the end, it’s someone else. We can’t entrust the family’s assets to another. And this will also be a good experience for me. Having a good mercenary group will be of help to you later on, won’t it, Brother?”

Allen’s brother, Borner, seemed slightly moved. It was the first time he felt brotherly love for his younger brother, whom he thought had no affection for. To anyone looking, it was an act of a younger brother willing to sacrifice for his older brother.

Baron Pomwell also seemed not to have expected the youngest to say such a thing. Still, he looked quite satisfied, unlike before. Moreover, it’s much more comfortable to assign a task to someone who volunteers than to force someone unwilling.

“…Alright, good. If that’s what you think.”

“Thank you.”

“I will trust and leave this matter entirely to you. Report back to me when everything is done. Understood?”

“Yes, Father.”

“Alright, then both of you may leave now.”

The two sons respectfully bowed their heads and left the study. The older brother, Borner, for the first time in his life, expressed his gratitude to the younger brother walking beside him.

“Thank you, Allen… I didn’t know you would do so much for me.”

“It’s nothing. Family should help each other out.”

In truth, Allen’s actions weren’t purely motivated by brotherly love, but there was no need to pointlessly reveal that. A born businessman to the core, he knew how to nicely package his self-interest as goodwill. After all, it’s not like it was harming anyone.

Allen soon returned to his room. Flopping down on his bed, he let out a small sigh.

‘It’s done.’

He had been planning to talk to his father about the mercenary business anyway, and things had turned out better than expected. He had incurred a debt of gratitude to his brother, and gained his father’s trust. Of course, that trust was conditional on how well he handled this situation, but he was overflowing with confidence.

In the business of mercenaries, he was confident that he was second to none on this continent.

Ji-hoo didn’t yet know why he had entered this game world, but now that he was here, he had no intention of wandering around looking for an unfathomable reason.

Above all else, it was clear that a great crisis would someday strike the continent of the game Guild Master, and to survive that crisis, it was essential to create an excellent mercenary group.

Money and fame ultimately become powerless in the face of real violence, something he knew better than anyone. To survive such real violence, one needed real power, not money or fame.

Lying in bed, lost in thought for a moment, Allen suddenly got up and went to his desk.

‘Now, let’s think about what needs to be done.’

If this were simply a game where you click the mouse back and forth, you could just comfortably sit and scatter recruitment notices, then filter through the status windows of the mercenaries applying, and that would be it. However, game and reality were clearly different. There was a need to move around on foot and see things with your own eyes.

Of course, the fact that the status window is the main point remains unchanged, but it’s not just a simple act of accepting and rejecting with a click of the mouse. Unlike games, reality offered avenues for conversation.

Still, the fact that he has yet to make a wrong choice that led to a seriously troublesome outcome even once, was somewhat comforting. In terms of money, it would be about ten gold coins at most… Of course, considering his father, he should avoid such losses, but even if he did incur some, there was room to think of it as gaining experience.

Having finished his stray thoughts, Allen considered what needed to be done before hiring mercenaries.

Since this hiring wasn’t meant to be long-term, he first needed to decide how many to hire.

‘Not too few to be overwhelmed, but not too many to be excessive…’

To determine that number, understanding the situation in the demon lands came first. Listening to the accounts of those who had experienced attacks and roughly gauging the identities and levels of the monsters is the key.

Allen’s mind was already filled with information on numerous monsters. Knowing or not knowing that information would dictate the direction of the mercenary group’s operations, and surely a tradesman of over so many years wouldn’t be ignorant of such crucial information. Naturally, he knew it as well as the old scholars knew Confucius and Mencius by heart.

At that thought, Allen suddenly burst into laughter.

‘…If I had studied with such effort, I would have entered medical school.’

Erasing his smile, Allen began to move in earnest.