Chapter 74: The Return of the Doom-Grade Death Knight

Chapter 74: Treasure Hunt (2)

The image Damian had of Juan David could be summarized in one word.

Benefactor.

In his previous life, after being cast out of his family and becoming a beggar, wandering around.

Damian first realized his talent by taking down over ten thugs with a rusty dagger he had found by chance.

Damian went to a mercenary recruitment office to clear his life as a beggar. At the time, being a mercenary was the only job he could think of where he could earn a living with a sword.

However, no mercenary group would accept a beggar like Damian. Even when he insisted they test his skills, they ignored him.

"Young friend, let's see what you can do."

The only person who didn't treat Damian poorly was Juan David.

"...Huh, your sword skills are surprisingly good, despite your appearance."

"With skills like these, you won't die easily wherever you go. Congratulations on joining our mercenary group."

As soon as he confirmed Damian's true abilities, Juan David hired him.

"First, we need to clean off that filth."

Juan David used his own money to wash Damian and even bought him new clothes.

That's how Damian joined Juan David's mercenary group.

After that, there were only happy memories.

He became friends with the other members while training together.

He earned recognition from his comrades by performing well in critical moments.

He was recognized for his abilities and learned swordsmanship and mana cultivation techniques from Juan David.

He gained everyone's trust by preventing the mercenaries from being wiped out by a knight's attack.

To Damian, the mercenary group was like another family. He thought he could do anything with them.

Until everything fell apart when he met Dorgo.

'Was Juan in the Longquist Mountains during this time?'

Damian didn't know everything about Juan.

He didn't know what Juan and the mercenary group did before he joined.

"Hey."

Juan David must have found it strange that Damian was silent, so he waved his hand in front of Damian's face.

"Don't think I'm incompetent. The members under me are all very skilled."

Juan David's way of speaking was the same as in his previous life. He always praised his members more than himself.

"......I want to see the members before deciding."

"Follow me. They're all gathered here."

Juan David led Damian to a corner of the recruitment office.

Five men were sitting at two tables.

"Hey, get up right now. This could be our employer."

At Juan's words, the five men stood up immediately.

They looked somewhat naive in their actions, but all had clear eyes and well-trained bodies.

"From left to right, they are Bread, Bolt, Fish, Leg, and Bob."

Even without Juan David saying so, Damian knew all five names.

How could he not? They were comrades he had shared hardships with for over a year.

" THEIR skills are guaranteed. ...Bob is still a rookie, but he's big and should be useful."

Bob was the biggest among the group. Despite his size, his eyes were very large, making him look innocent.

In his previous life, Bob called Damian "brother" and followed him around.

"I like them. I'll hire them."

"You won't regret it. The hiring fee is......"

"I'll pay one gold coin per person."

At Damian's words, Juan David was shocked.

"Wait... Do you know the market rate? We're just copper mercenaries. One silver coin per person is more than enough!"

Damian barely suppressed his laughter.

If the employer is naive, they should take advantage of it. Juan was as straightforward as ever.

In his previous life, Juan was a foolish man who couldn't even take care of his own interests as a mercenary.

That's why he was often criticized by other mercenaries and even his own members.

Ironically, the members stayed with Juan because of his naive nature.

"I know the value of mercenaries. I raised the commission to show my appreciation. Don't worry about it."

"Even so, one gold coin per person is......"

"If you guide us well, I'll pay two gold coins."

Damian was generous with the commission because of their past connection.

Of course, it also helped that he knew how reliable they were.

After all, Damian's subspace was filled with the reward money from the duke. This expense wouldn't even make a dent.

"Guiding won't be a problem. I'm confident."

Juan David said with pride.

In his previous life, Juan was a coward but never lied.

"Then we should make a specific plan. When do you plan to enter the mountains? Which area do you want to explore?"

"Hey, something suspicious happened while I was away?"

At that moment, a group of mercenaries walked towards Damian.

There were eight of them, and they all reeked of blood. It meant they had killed many people.

"Hey, hiring those fools might get you killed in the mountains. Why not hire us instead?"

A man with dirty blond hair leaned in front of Damian.

"Griffin! What are you doing?!"

"What am I doing? I'm introducing better personnel to the customer who offered one gold coin."

The man called Griffin said with a brazen attitude.

"You're looking for a guide for the Longquist Mountains, right? Our mercenary group is perfect. We know the terrain and are even friendly with the creatures there."

Griffin said confidently.

"Hire us instead of them. It will be better for you."

"You bastard!"

Juan grabbed Griffin by the collar.

Griffin's members reached for their weapons, and Juan's members also drew their weapons.

Tension filled the air between the two mercenary groups.

"Juan, don't get too cocky. You might end up dead."

Griffin said in a mocking tone. Juan pushed him away and shouted.

"Get outside! I'll teach you a lesson this time!"

Griffin sneered at Juan's shout.

"Fine. Let's settle the ranks this time."

The two mercenary groups went outside. Soon, the sounds of fighting filled the air.

The commotion didn't last long. When it quieted down, Damian went outside.

"Ugh......"

"Ouch......"

Juan and his members were lying on the ground, groaning.

"Softies, what are you trying to show off?"

Griffin spat on the ground.

Griffin and his members were unharmed, with no signs of having been hit.

'Seeing them again, they're as pitiful as ever.'

With their mediocre skills, Damian couldn't help but smile bitterly.

Thinking about it, Juan's mercenary group wasn't very good at fighting.

The only reason their individual physical abilities were high was because Juan, a former knight trainee, had trained them in various ways.

However, they were naturally far from fighting, so they never performed well on any missions.

In contrast, Griffin's mercenary group was full of fighters.

They were rough and had no qualms about using violence.

"See? How weak they are."

Griffin turned to Damian.

"You're lucky. You met us before contracting with these scum. Shall we start writing the contract? Since we're high-quality personnel, you should pay a bit more than one gold coin......"

"I don't need you. I have no intention of contracting with you."

Damian said firmly. Griffin's expression darkened.

"What nonsense. We won, didn't we? Can't you see?"

"I never said I would contract with the winner. You just fought on your own."

Damian wasn't hiring mercenaries because he lacked strength.

He only needed a guide for the Longquist Mountains.

"This guy doesn't understand the situation......"

Griffin approached Damian, taunting him.

"Does it look like I'm asking? I'm telling you to quietly contract with our mercenary group. Otherwise, it won't be fun......"

Griffin's words trailed off as a blade pressed against his throat.

Damian had drawn his sword and pressed it against Griffin's neck.

"Is this guy crazy!"

"What are you doing to the leader!"

Griffin's men shouted curses. Griffin raised his hands, and they fell silent.

"Seeing you now, you seem to be quite skilled. But if you're relying on this swordsmanship, you'll regret it......"

Damian activated his Aura. The Aura enveloped the surface of the iron sword.

The Aura touched Griffin's skin, and a cut appeared on his neck, bleeding.

"Oh, Aura?"

Griffin's confident attitude crumbled. His face turned pale, and he started trembling.

"Do you understand the situation now?"

At Damian's position, he could have killed all the mercenaries without any issues.

Damian was a noble and an irreplaceable resource, a mid-class.

However, he was currently hiding his identity. Drawing attention would be detrimental.

Most importantly, Damian was in a good mood because he had met Juan and his members.

"Lucky bastards. I'll spare you, so get lost."

Damian sheathed his sword. Griffin and his men fled in a hurry.

After they left, Damian turned to Juan.

"Let's go write the contract. The conditions are the same. One gold coin per person."

"Why did you choose us?"

Juan asked, clearly confused.

"You seem more trustworthy."

Damian was currently heading to the hiding place of the necromancer. Hiring someone with a loose tongue would be unwise.

He knew from his previous life how tight-lipped Juan was.

Even if he didn't know Juan, he would have made the same choice.

Griffin's mercenary group was too aggressive and completely untrustworthy.

Mercenaries are inherently fierce and rough. Some were barely different from bandits. Many would extort more money from their employers.

"Hmm... You have a good eye. There are some terrible rumors about those guys."

Juan stood up and asked.

"By the way, I don't even know your name. What is it?"

Damian thought for a moment.

He couldn't use his real name, so he needed an appropriate alias.

"My name is Victor."

Juan nodded.

"Victor, I look forward to working with you."