Chapter 32

The waitress asked.

"…Even if it's a mission no one has ever completed?"

Ian nodded and took another bite of the sausage.

After a moment, the waitress sighed and nodded.

"It's a matter where the lord himself has put up a bounty."

"What's the content?"

"There's a sewer underground. It was made by fairies a long time ago, so no one knows the entire structure. People just use it to dispose of things, which then flow out through the drains. Anyway, something lives there. Sometimes you can hear growling sounds coming from the sewers."

Ian nodded.

"I've heard rumors. A man-eating crocodile."

"Only one person who went in to exterminate it came back. Thanks to him, we found out what it was. It's said to be a crocodile with four eyes. But we can't be sure if that's true. No one else came back. So, it's better not to go. Besides, if you go in there…."

The waitress lowered her voice.

"You have to wade through sewage water."

"……"

Ian and Philip's expressions simultaneously twisted.

Ian, exchanging glances with Philip, asked.

"Where do I take it if I kill it?"

"Just bring it here. The guards will come for it."

Nodding, Ian handed over another silver coin and said.

"Give us a room with two beds, and buy two sets of clothes for me and this guy to change into tomorrow. Also, prepare water for us to wash when we come back. This should be more than enough, right?"

"Are you really going to do it?"

"Tomorrow afternoon. Right away."

"…I tried to stop you. With all my might."

The waitress, who had shown them to their room, shook her head and walked away.

"Sewage water… sigh…."

Philip, dipping a piece of hard bread into the stew, sighed.

Ian shrugged.

"To me, it doesn't matter whether it's here or in sewage water."

"A man-eating crocodile in the underground sewer. The Viscount Burchard really lets such things go unchecked."

"He probably doesn't want to sacrifice soldiers. He's preparing for war."

"Even if he can only send a couple of hundred soldiers, he's such a stingy guy."

"Maybe… he has something in mind."

"……?"

Philip looked at Ian with a puzzled expression.

Without responding, Ian put the sausage in his mouth.

Since he would be moving intensely tomorrow, he needed to eat a hearty meal, even if it was tasteless.

***

The mercenary Patton, as usual, woke up only when the sun was high in the sky.

Holding his throbbing head from last night's drinking, he went out alone and was puzzled to see the mercenaries gathered earlier than usual.

"What are you all doing?"

"Huh? We were betting. Do you want to join?"

"Betting…?"

He approached the table.

"What kind of bet?"

"It's about the guys who came last night."

A guy called Six Fingers, who was missing two fingers on each hand, gave a meaningful look.

"They went into the underground sewer."

"The sewer…? Surely they're not trying to catch that monster alone."

"Exactly."

"They're crazy."

Patton's brows furrowed.

He signaled the waitress for some stew and sat down.

"So, what are the betting conditions?"

"Whether they come back by midnight tonight or not."

"…That's a pretty obvious condition."

"So, we're discussing whether to bet on them coming back or not."

Another mercenary chimed in.

"If they come back, the one who bet on them wins all the money. If they don't, they buy everyone a drink."

"Rather than that, it's better to just buy a round…."

Muttering, Patton scratched his cheek.

Just then, the waitress brought the stew.

As he slurped it from the plate, he recalled the appearance of the wanderers he had seen last night.

One of them looked like a kid, but the other had a strange aura of authority.

Despite not being particularly large or having a scary face.

He had thought about keeping an eye on them and approaching them, as he needed capable people.

"…Then I'll bet on them coming back."

After a moment, Patton put down his plate and said.

The corners of the mercenaries' mouths turned up.

"Are you serious, Patton?"

"Yeah. If they come back, I'll make some money. If not, I'll buy you all a drink, which is fine too."

Patton placed a silver coin on the table.

Six Fingers quickly collected the money and put it in the betting bag.

"You're a good guy, after all."

"There's a reason the young master values you. You're similar to him, right?"

Patton snorted at the obvious flattery from the mercenaries.

"Cut it out, you guys. Save that sweet talk for some other sucker-"

Boom-

Patton's words stopped.

A heavy tremor spread from somewhere.

One of the puzzled mercenaries spoke up.

"What was that just now?"

Rumble-

Another tremor.

They realized the tremor was coming from somewhere underground.

As they exchanged glances,

Boom- Boom- Rumble-

The tremors continued.

If they could feel it this strongly here, it must have been even more noticeable in the outer and inner city.

The room fell silent again.

After a long moment of exchanging glances, Six Fingers chuckled.

"Quite impressive, but it seems to be over, doesn't it?"

"Right? I don't know what they did, but-"

Bang-!

This time, a loud explosion echoed.

The entire building shook as if an earthquake had struck.

The cups on the table fell and rolled on the floor.

But no one thought about picking them up.

This had never happened before.

The sound of someone swallowing hard spread.

Kiaaaaaa-

A scream they had never heard before echoed in the room.

It was a sound that seemed to come from all the city's drains.

Then, silence. A strange silence descended on the room.

No one spoke as the inn door burst open.

"Did you hear that? What was that?!"

It was a mercenary who had been out in the city.

He was followed by other mercenaries scattered around, who gathered at the inn.

Sitting in groups, they chattered about what they had heard and seen.

"It sounded like they were smashing everything underground with a hammer. They must have blocked the sewer to catch the crocodile."

"I heard curses and shouts. They were blocking the drains to prevent it from escaping, I heard clearly."

"It was oil. They took oil and set the sewage on fire. The burning crocodile was screaming."

Amidst the baseless speculations and bets,

Creak-

The inn door slowly opened.

The red light of the sunset and a long shadow fell into the room.

The room fell silent instantly.

A man walked in, preceded by his shadow.

It was Ian, covered in filth and bodily fluids.

"……"

But no one commented on his appearance or the stench.

They were completely captivated by what he was carrying.

Ian looked around the room, spotted the waitress, and threw what he was carrying.

"Go get someone."

Thud-

A massive head fell on the inn floor.

It was the head of a crocodile, as big as a cow, with four eyes.

"Since we killed the monster in the underground sewer."

As Ian spoke, Philip, who had followed, threw what he was holding next to the head.

It was a tail, torn to shreds like the head.

"Didn't you hear? Call the guards or the captain. Right now."

"Y-Yes, sir!"

Annoyed, Philip added, and the waitress ran out of the inn as if burned.

The silence was broken by Patton, who sprang to his feet.

"Bring me all my money, you guys! Thanks, man! You made me a fortune!"

His shout was followed by cheers and exclamations from all around.

Mercenaries jumped up and gathered around Ian and Philip.

"How did you do it? Oil. Oil, right?"

"You smashed it with a hammer, right? I bet on that."

"To actually kill that thing! Amazing! How did you do it?!"

Ian's brows furrowed as the questions and cheers poured in.

Philip felt the same.

It was an understandable reaction, but not one to have while covered in filth and excrement.

Just as Ian's eyes started to flash with anger,

"Cut it out, you lunatics! Can't you see what state they're in? I'll buy everyone a drink, so drink that!"

Patton, who had won a lot of money thanks to Ian, shooed the mercenaries away.

He smiled at Ian, who met his gaze.

"I heard you asked for bathwater. It should be ready inside. You guys, the stench is unbearable."

"…A tub of water won't be enough."

"I'll tell the waitress when she comes back. Thanks to you, I can live off this for a month, so I'll help you out."

Nodding, Ian moved, and Philip, muttering curses, followed.

A premature drinking party started around the crocodile's head and tail.

Patton, who had been watching the two enter the corridor, muttered to himself.

"Seems like some incredible guys have rolled in… I need to bring the young master here quickly."

***

The captain of the guard took the four-eyed crocodile's head and left, promising to pay the bounty within four days.

Ian had tidied up everything, including requesting masons to repair the slightly damaged underground sewer to prevent any potential issues.

He didn't want to create a conflict with the lord of Ordell before uncovering the truth about the Gandaesu incident.

"Such an experience is enough once. I can never do it again."

Philip, sitting across from him, muttered gloomily.

He barely touched the food in front of him.

"I agree."

Ian nodded.

Even after washing his body three times and changing his clothes,

he still felt the smell of ammonia.

The equipment he had taken was washed and dried, but

he didn't think it would ever be completely clean.

In any case, their treatment had dramatically changed.

No one looked at them with the wary eyes of last night; they nodded or raised their cups even when their gazes met.

Ian was used to this change.

In the world of mercenaries, reputation and skill were everything.

From now on, no one would question their actions.

Or,

"Can I have a moment?"

Someone might even extend a hand first.

Ian turned to the approaching man.

The friendly-looking man who had shooed the mercenaries away earlier.

Behind him stood a young man he hadn't seen before, looking like a subordinate.

Ian nodded.

"Get to the point quickly."

"Hehe. Your personality matches your skills. Nice to meet you. I'm Patton."

The smiling Patton sat in the empty seat.

"Ian."

"Philip."

Philip, who had been glaring at the young man standing behind Patton, also nodded.

"It's strange I haven't heard of such skilled individuals. Where are you from?"

"The swamp."

"Eh…? Hehe. You don't want to say, I see. Got it. Where did you operate before? Your skills suggest you must have been famous somewhere."

"If you're going to do such a thorough background check-"

Philip, frowning, shut up at Ian's glance.

Ian looked at Patton.

"Proving I'm not a criminal by listening to this nonsense is enough. Get to the point. Not him…."

His gaze shifted to the young man standing behind Patton.

"Let the one who has something to say speak directly."

"……!"

Patton looked surprised, and Philip's brows furrowed even more.

Ian nodded.

"Why is a nobleman imitating a freeman? Or, a big shot in the underworld?"

"……?!"

Philip's eyes widened.

The polite young man smiled sheepishly.

"I didn't think I'd be found out. Was my acting that bad?"

"If you want to imitate a veteran mercenary's bodyguard, you should have a few scars on your face or hands."

"Good advice, but that's hard. I consider this face my asset."

"Sorry, young master. We've been found out."

Patton stood up. The young man patted his shoulder and smiled.

"It's fine. It seems you couldn't be fooled from the start."

He naturally took Patton's seat and smiled at Ian.

"I apologize for the rudeness. As you know, some mercenaries have very dangerous pasts, so some verification was necessary. I'm not good with swords, hehe."

A tone closer to a freeman than a noble.

Ian nodded.

"I understand. I accept your apology."

"Thank you. I'm Declan Burchard."

"Burchard…."

Philip's mouth opened.

Ian, without showing surprise, said.

"You're the lord's son. Why are you checking the identity of mere mercenaries like us?"

"My role is to manage the mercenaries in this city. Besides, you two are especially skilled."

Ian nodded.

No wonder the mercenaries were unusually peaceful.

He wondered if it was the same in the game, but he couldn't be sure.

In fact, there were more parts of the story and additional settings he didn't know or had changed.

"Prince, it's impressive that you're handling such a difficult task. Please forgive my earlier rudeness."

Philip said politely.

Declan chuckled.

"I'm not a prince. I'm a bastard."

"Ah… I see."

"So, are you convinced about my identity? Do you need more proof?"

Ian asked calmly.

Declan shook his head.

"No. It doesn't seem necessary. Of course, there's no need to test your skills either. Shall we get to the main point? Is that okay?"

He looked at Ian and Philip in turn.

Philip looked at Ian, who nodded.

"We'll listen."

"Great. Would you two like to work for me?"