NOVEL NEXT Chapter 25
Chapter 25: Meeting the Same Bunch of Losers (2)
The mercenary whose leg was broken by Gillian screamed as he fell over.
Then, five mercenaries who had been watching slowly stood up, exuding an ominous energy.
“Looks like these bastards started losing their fear just because they’re nobles.”
“Do they think we’re scared of them just because they’re nobles?”
“It seems they haven’t heard the rumors about who we are.”
The mercenaries each pulled out their weapons and began to approach the two.
This is why they were called mad dogs.
If something doesn’t sit right with them, they won’t hesitate to fight, even against nobles.
In short, the Cerberus Mercenary Group was a place packed with rebellious spirits.
So, there’s no way they could be properly controlled, and the relationship with their employers often soured, resulting in low success rates for quests.
“Yeah, these guys are definitely wild.”
A cruel smile appeared on Ghislaine’s face.
They were just perfect for being deployed in the Forest of Monsters.
To deal with mindless monsters, you needed rough individuals like those.
Ghislaine looked at Gillian and said, “Don’t kill them.”
“I understand.”
Gillian confronted the five ‘mad dogs’ armed with weapons.
Even though they had numbers, they couldn’t match up to Gillian, who was a semi-knight level fighter.
As they were swiftly taken down, the mercenaries who had been lying down all stood up.
Even those who had been sleeping in the tent crawled out with weapons and surrounded the two.
“Don’t even think about getting out of this with your body intact.”
“Since you touched us, you must be prepared, right?”
“What a gutsy rookie noble, thinking he’s untouchable.”
Once the mercenaries realized Gillian’s strength wasn’t a joke, their expressions changed entirely.
They no longer looked like they were toying with easy prey but like they were carefully facing a wild beast.
Ghislaine smiled in approval at the change.
“Who knew they could exhibit this kind of behavior?”
They seemed reckless, yet when faced with a crisis, they were showing a willingness to cooperate in their response.
Indeed, they were a bunch of fools, but they seemed quite capable in battle.
“Well, that’s probably why they’ve managed to keep the mercenary group going despite causing trouble over and over. Enough with the brawl, go get your leader.”
“What?”
“I’m going to hire you, but if I turn all of you into idiots, I won’t be able to use you, right?”
“This crazy bastard!”
The mercenaries of the Cerberus Mercenary Group were taken aback, unable to comprehend the situation.
Just because they had a pretty decent bodyguard, they thought some rookie noble could act so arrogantly.
“Let’s just cut them up right here.”
“Don’t even think about coming back alive.”
“We’re living out here for a reason. If you die here, they won’t even find your bodies.”
The mercenaries gradually surrounded the two with cruel gazes.
Gillian slowly drew his sword from his waist.
“This time, the Grand Duke misjudged. It would be better to find another mercenary group.”
In Gillian’s eyes, there was no way to hire them properly.
He intended to kill all the mercenaries of the Cerberus Mercenary Group.
As one mad dog said, this place was just outside, and no one passed by.
It was truly a situation where no one would care if someone died.
In this tense situation, a young man stepped out from a tent beyond the mercenary group.
“Why are you looking for me?”
As he appeared, the once bloodthirsty mercenaries seemed to calm down a bit, taking a step back.
What stood out first was his fiery red hair.
His rebellious gaze warned that if you touched him recklessly, you might get bitten instead.
Ghislaine looked at the man and asked.
“Are you the leader?”
“Yeah, I’m Kaor, the leader of the Cerberus Mercenary Group.”
“I came to make a request.”
“A guy who’s here to make a request dares to treat my subordinates like that?”
Kaor growled, and Ghislaine glared at him.
“Are you upset because taming them failed? You should know when to stop playing. If you mess with the wrong person, you’re all dead.”
Receiving a chilling glare, Kaor hesitated for a moment. But soon, he made a fierce expression.
“Do you think I’ll be scared just because you’re a noble? I could kill you here and run away to another country.”
“I like your spirit.”
Ghislaine chuckled and continued.
“Thanks to you, I’ve been delayed for quite a while. I don’t want to mess around any longer, so let’s get to the point. I want to hire you to develop the Forest of Monsters.”
Kaor raised his eyebrows for a moment, then asked in disbelief.
“The Forest of Monsters? Do you mean that forest adjacent to the Perdium Territory?”
“Yeah, I’m planning to develop that place.”
“The lord of Perdium is hiring people?”
“No, this is my own business.”
“Who do you think you are?”
“I’m Ghislaine, the Grand Duke of Perdium.”
Kaor was momentarily taken aback by the unexpected answer, then burst into laughter.
“Hahaha, that bratty duke? You think a kid like you can develop the Forest of Monsters? Hahaha!”
After laughing for a while, Kaor looked at Ghislaine with a fierce expression and said.
“Get lost. I have no intention of doing such a dangerous job under a kid like you. I’d rather participate in a territorial battle.”
The Cerberus Mercenary Group usually took on dangerous requests compared to other mercenary groups, but that depended on the employer’s capability.
If they had to operate under a kid’s whim, the risk would be too high, so they refused.
Ghislaine chuckled at Kaor’s response.
“You’re more cowardly than I thought.”
“What?”
“You’re not scared of nobles, but you’re afraid of monsters huddled together in the forest?”
“You little punk, who do you think you’re talking to…….”
As the two men glared at each other, the atmosphere began to grow tense again.
Gillian prepared to draw his sword, and the other mercenaries tightened their grips on their weapons, ready to attack at any moment.
Kaor, who had been twitching his lips for a while, finally turned his body and threw out a remark.
He spun around and threw out a line.
“Someone like you isn’t even worth killing. I’ll let you go, so just cough up some treatment fees and get lost.”
Kaor was planning to ignore Ghislaine and send him on his way.
He decided not to bother with the noble brat who couldn’t tell heaven from earth.
At that moment, Ghislaine quietly spoke while looking at Kaor’s back.
“I request ‘Moriana’s Acknowledgment’ from the leader of the Cerberus Mercenary Group.”
The mercenaries around them looked dumbfounded.
“What, what?”
“Does that noble brat even know what that means?”
Kaor stopped in his tracks, turned around, and glared at Ghislaine.
It wasn’t just the mercenaries who were stunned. Even Gillian, confused, shouted loudly.
“Your Highness! What do you mean by that!”
What Ghislaine requested was an old gambling method passed down among mercenaries.
The rules were simple.
Within a small circle, they fight with only one dagger while binding one arm together.
No mana can be used, and stepping outside the circle means defeat.
The rules were just two simple bets, but even seasoned mercenaries often avoided this type of gamble.
With space limited and movement restricted, it was tough to dodge properly. Just getting stabbed a few times with a dagger could easily lead to death.
In fact, it was not uncommon for someone to win a match this way and end up dead.
Kaor glared at Ghislaine, his eyes twitching.
“You noble brat. Do you even know what you’re asking for?”
“I do. If I win, you follow me.”
This method was usually used for life-and-death bets among mercenaries.
Unless one was seriously insane, they wouldn’t use this method, but once the challenge was made, refusing was not an option.
Refusing would imply one recognized themself to be weaker than their opponent.
If someone of a high rank like a leader avoided a duel, they would lose the trust of their subordinates, and the organization would inevitably fall apart.
Kaor had taken the position of leader from the previous one using this very method.
‘This will be interesting!’
For a moment, Kaor’s incredulity faded as the mercenaries looked at him with glimmering eyes.
Think about it — it’s quite a spectacle. A duel between a noble brat and a leader.
If they were normal mercenaries, they would either dissuade the leader or laugh at Ghislaine.
But if they were normal folks, they wouldn’t be called mad dogs either.
Frustrated by the mercenaries’ reaction, Kaor gritted his teeth.
“You aren’t a mercenary. And you dare to challenge me with a mercenary’s method? You must want to take my position, you noble brat!”
“I’m not interested in a lousy mercenary group’s position. I just want to prove I’m not a brat. Showing it through a mercenary method is the best way, right?”
Kaor’s eyes began to sparkle with anger.
If he rejected the noble’s request in front of his subordinates, his authority would plummet.
With only crazy folks around, if that happened, he would end up being eaten alive.
“Heh, fine. Since the noble brat wants to be acknowledged by the mercenary method, there’s no need to haggle further. You’re sure you won’t regret dying, right?”
“Of course. But if I win, you all take orders from me.”
“Deal. Your escort and my subordinates will bear witness to this duel.”
“I agree.”
As Kaor accepted and the mercenaries prepared for the battle, Gillian stepped in front of Ghislaine and shouted loudly.
He shouted loudly.
“No! What on earth are you thinking!”
Gillian’s face was flushed bright red.
Belinda understood his feelings. Her young lord was endlessly courting danger.
‘Why on earth go this far!’
Gillian simply couldn’t understand.
He might want to enter the Forest of Monsters due to youthful bravado, but to gamble with his life on such a dangerous bet was beyond reason.
However, he owed a lifelong debt of gratitude to this person. He couldn’t let him get caught up in this dangerous game and die.
“Rather, I’ll do it! Young Master, you stay back!”
Having lived as a mercenary for a long time, Gillian knew how perilous this wager could be.
Even as an exceptional fighter, he honestly wished to avoid this kind of folly.
Without being able to use mana, they had to rely solely on raw strength and technique in this duel.
If there was a significant skill gap, it might not matter, but if the opponent had any level of skill, he too could be at risk.
Yet Ghislaine, undeterred by Gillian’s heated response, answered calmly.
“It’s fine. I’ll do it. Just trust me.”
“No, that’s not acceptable.”
Gillian was firm. Ghislaine regarded him with a serious expression.
“Gillian, this is something I really need to do. I may not seem trustworthy right now, but please believe in me.”
Gillian was left speechless.
Those eyes didn’t seek provocation nor were they bored.
It was a gaze that only one with conviction could possess.
Unable to resist that gaze, Gillian nodded and stepped back.
Yet even so, he couldn’t just let his lord be put in danger.
His eyes were filled with sharp hostility.
‘If a single blade enters my Young Master, I will sever Kaor’s head immediately.’
Gillian grasped his sword, gathered mana, and concentrated all his spirit.
If there was even a chance that Ghislaine would be pierced, he intended to cleave Kaor’s head and eliminate everyone here.
Whether he knew it or not, Ghislaine tied Kaor’s hands and stepped into a small circle.
Kaor looked at Ghislaine with glistening eyes.
“Is the dramatic play over? There’s no chance to run now. Let me show you how foolish it is for a noble to adopt a mercenary’s style.”
Kaor truly intended to kill Ghislaine.
Opting for mercenary-style combat as a noble was an immense arrogance. This was a direct affront to him, and he had no intention of forgiving such insolence.
As the preparation for the duel concluded, Kaor fixed his gaze on Ghislaine and said.
“You must have picked something up somewhere to charge in fearlessly… but I’ve done this five times already.”
No matter how skilled a mercenary, attempting something like this in a lifetime is hard, yet Kaor had experienced it five times at a young age.
Naturally, he had won every one of those five times, allowing him to stand here now.
It was clear evidence of how wicked and skilled he was.
But Ghislaine just chuckled and replied.
“I’ve done it over a hundred times.”
“What?”
As Kaor was left flabbergasted, a mercenary standing nearby shouted loudly.
“Go!”
At the signal, Ghislaine’s and Kaor’s daggers flew toward each other.