episode_0016

“Hmm… What the leader asked me to do…”

One ordinary sunny day. As the peak of summer was approaching, Cerise walked out while wiping away her sweat under the strong sunlight that seemed to burn and melt her flesh.

Because I was going to carry out a task that the leader had personally asked me to do!

After being equipped with mithril armor, the Scar mercenaries were growing rapidly day by day. Now, 3-star monsters can be defeated with just a warm-up exercise.

So, of course, the awareness of the Scar mercenaries began to rise through word of mouth. It was to the point where I might have known someone even on the other side of the empire.

As awareness rose and the skills of the Scar mercenaries were proven, jobs came in waves.

Now, requests for nominations are coming in not only for minor chores but also from various distant areas.

As a mountain of work poured in, the Scar mercenaries were receiving requests almost every day.

Of course, as work piled up, Director Venice was overloaded with documents.

‘I will definitely succeed…!’

Because I was busy processing documents, I was only entrusted with the simple task of conveying a minor message to the mercenary guild…

Since it was a task entrusted to Seris by the ‘leader’ herself, she went to the mercenary guild with her fighting spirit burning.

“The leader asked me to deliver this document.”

“Yes…Yes… Thank you…”

“Tsk.”

“Hiik-!”

I glare at the receptionist at the mercenary guild I always see. Now, I’m only accepting it because it was a direct order from the ‘Captain’…

She was a woman who always looked at the leader and blushed like a bitch in heat.

How dare you?

‘I don’t like it.’

The same goes for the bitch in the workshop who was doing spins or something. The same goes for the woman in front of me… Why is she looking at the leader like that?

You guys are the type of people that should not be buried with the great leader.

“I’m watching you.”

“Hipp… Sorry… I’m sorry…”

Seris glared at the receptionist, who was shrinking like a cornered rat, and soon left the mercenary guild.

I couldn’t confess first because I was afraid of being rejected by the leader, but I didn’t like it anyway.

“Holhol… Girl over there… Come here and see.”

“…..?”

“Yes, yes… You are right..”

Seris was happy to have completed the leader’s mission and killed a female who did not know the subject. As she was returning to the mercenary guild, she heard an old man calling her.

‘I don’t think it happened just now…?’

Clearly, before entering the mercenary guild, I had not seen the shabby tent where the old man was.

Since there was no one around other than himself, he immediately approached the old man since he was clearly calling to him.

Since I was feeling a little better now, I decided not to think about such trivial things.

“Elderly. Why me…?”

“Holhol… Are you interested… in these items..?”

“Ah.”

It was just an act of soliciting customers. No matter how much Seris respected the elderly, she had no intention of subjecting herself to this kind of solicitation.

“I have no thoughts. Well then…”

So Seris bowed politely and tried to head towards the mercenary guild.

“There is a guy I like… Holhol..”

“……..?!”

Until the old man said those words and stopped.

“Uh…how…?”

“You can see everything when you look at his face… Holhol… So, would you like to take a look?”

“Ugh….”

Although her feelings for the leader were already stronger than anyone else in the world, Seris couldn’t muster up the courage to turn over the blanket every night before going to bed.

“Maybe I know a way to capture that man…? Holhole…”

“….I’ll just take a look.”

As the words lingered in her mind, Seris pretended not to win and entered the shabby tent.

‘Something… it feels mysterious.’

The inside of the shabby tent looked much larger than it looked from the outside. Because it was the peak of summer, everything was heated by the sun outside, but for some unknown reason, it was cool inside this tent.

“Please take a look… Holhol…”

Seris, who had been looking around the inside of the tent for a moment, looked at the items on the table with the red tablecloth at the old man’s words.

book. A dagger with an unknown energy. Mirrors, buckets… there were a lot of other items whose meaning I really couldn’t understand.

“What is that?”

As Ceris was carefully examining the objects, only one object caught her eye.

-How to captivate men. If you can read this book completely, you will already be a married woman!

A cover with a suspiciously large number of hearts and a lot of red. If Seris was her usual self, it would have been a book she wouldn’t have looked at with a frown, but…

‘.Me too… with the leader…?’

gulp.

The Seris before meeting the leader and the Seris now are completely different people.

Seris stared at the book, imagined something, and swallowed her saliva.

“Holhole… Is that what you like…”

“Keuhum. How much can I buy this book for?”

“It’s a price… Please hold out your hand for a moment.”

When I was about to pay, the old man suddenly told me to show my hand.

If it were an ordinary person, she might have been suspicious and not given her hand, but Seris was confident that she would react, so she gave her hand without saying anything.

Kkook-

“Holhol… It’s amazing, yes…”

The old man folded Seris’s hand with both his hands, looked at Seris’ hand and face in turn, and smiled as if he was interested.

“It was worth the price. The book is now yours.”

“Yes? Is that really going to work..?”

“Okay then. This old man doesn’t bother to change his words.”

-Then, go ahead and capture your man. Hol hole…

After finishing the old man’s words, which were difficult to understand until the very end, Seris went out of the tent.

I couldn’t even tell if the old man was female or male, and I couldn’t even tell if he was really alive.

And even though Seris knew most of the residents of Leria Village, this was the first old man I had seen.

“You’re an amazing person.”

However, unusual things sometimes happen in the world. Seris thought nothing of it and opened the first page of the book as she headed toward the mercenary guild.

“First method… push…pull?”

-Hoo… this method…?! Unbelievable…!

Seris, who was studying with a light in her eyes while continuously letting out exclamations, put her eyes on her book and walked towards the mercenary group.

“…That’s how it happened…”

The old man who watched Seris leave quietly disappeared in the blink of an eye.

Just like that, the old man and the tent were quietly forgotten, undiscovered by anyone, as if they had never existed in the first place.

***

Puddeuddeuk-!

“Ugh… I finally finished playing today…”

I had been stuck in a chair doing paperwork for a long time, so I relaxed my stiff body by stretching and left the office.

‘Wow… why is there so much going on? I really can’t come to my senses.’

As suggested by Spin, our Scar mercenary group went to the steel mine to retrieve mithril ore and were provided with spin-made mithril armor.

From that day on, the mercenary members who had adapted to the hard yet light armor began to run wild.

Those who had sufficient talent and effort to begin with were provided with excellent equipment. It would be natural.

It is enough to take care of the 2-star monsters one by one, and the 3-star monsters can be easily defeated as a warm-up exercise if everyone goes together.

He even killed a few more 4-star monsters. Of course, a few people were injured, and it was almost dangerous… but the fact that they defeated the 4-star monster without anyone dying was a surprise even to the empire.

one month. Only a month had passed since I took office as the 6th leader of the Scar mercenaries.

According to information received from imperial sources and rumors that can be heard as the leader,

As a joke, it was often heard that the dignity of the Scar mercenaries that ruled the empire in the past had already been restored.

‘I’m proud.’

It was an achievement I could never have achieved just by working hard.

It’s all thanks to our mercenary members following along well, and Vice-Captain Seris also working hard to help me.

There is an anecdote that comes to mind when speaking of Vice-Captain Seris. Apparently… it was a week ago.

Suddenly, a rickety carriage arrived at Leria Village and came straight to our mercenary group’s base.

The person who got off the carriage was a noble man with so much dignity that anyone would think he was a nobleman.

-Is someone named Seris here?

“I am Seris.”

-I suggest it bluntly. Do you have any intention of joining the Imperial Knights of the Empire?

Imperial Imperial Knights. A group of monsters made up of only the strongest throughout the entire empire.

From there, he personally sent a manager to scout Seris.

Perhaps he was aware of the growth of the Scar mercenaries spread throughout the empire and the talent of Seris shining brightly at the center of it.

“Vice-captain Seris. I think it’s a good opportunity. I leave it to your choice.”

“…….I am.”

It was an opportunity that would never come again for Seris, who would become the future Sword Master and decorate the history of the empire.

Although he belonged to the Scar mercenary group that was showing rapid growth, it seemed more natural to join the empire’s strongest knight group.

Well, I planned to respect whatever decision Ceris made.

“Sorry. I will refuse.”

-is it. I understand. Okay then.

Seris’ choice was to remain with the Scar mercenaries.

I was curious about why I stayed with the Scar mercenaries, so I asked Seris. Why did you throw away an opportunity that will never come again?

“Just the path I wish for… Because my light is here.”

In Ceris’ eyes, which burned brighter than the shining sun, I could feel a will that could never be broken.

what. Even after that, Seris didn’t stop training, and I could see her getting stronger day by day.

Because now he’s so strong that I can’t even fight him.

And perhaps it is only a matter of time before Seris becomes a Sword Master, but staying in the Scar mercenaries will not prevent her from becoming a Sword Master.

If a person is overflowing with talent and makes perfect efforts, a genius who will be honored in history is created.

“Let’s warm up a bit.”

After finishing the thought that had been in my mind for a while, I picked up a knife that was lying on the parade ground.

Maybe it’s because I’ve been sitting on a chair too much these days, but my body is itching.

Unlike usual, the spacious parade ground was empty except for a few mercenary members.

Everyone has excellent skills and we work well together, so there is no need for Seris and I to go on requests together, so these days we send them separately.

Thump, thump.

At that time, familiar footsteps were heard from the entrance of the parade ground.

“Hmm…hmm!”

I knew it. As expected, it was Seris. Cerise’s face was a little red, perhaps because of the hot sun, but her expression looked a little gloomy for some reason.

“Vice-captain Seris. Are you here?”

“Hmm! Yes, of course… of course!”

“……..?”

what. I think it feels a little different than usual.

I spoke to Ceris, feeling an inexplicable wonder.

“Hmm. Thank you for your hard work. Vice-captain Seris. To the mercenary guild instead of me…”

“Okay…that’s it!!”

Tak-ssang-!

I reached out to put my hand on Seris’ shoulder, but Seris slapped my hand away and quickly ran into the base.

“…………………..”

….what? Is it puberty?

When I saw Seris for the first time, I could not help but freeze in place.