Chapter 99

Unfortunately, Eleonor had not yet realized what Selvi had already noticed.

Selvi looked at her with a doubtful expression, ‘Is that person really someone who received higher education?’

Noticing the gaze, Eleonor glared fiercely.

“Don't look at me so pitifully.”

“I wasn't thinking you were pitiful.”

“Then what's with that look?”

“I was just looking at you pathetically.”

“Ugh, you traitorous bastard. I called you to help me with some work, and you immediately jumped to another field. Have you forgotten who helped you escape from unemployment?”

“Ah, why is that my fault? The captain assigned the work. And while the others didn't even show their faces, at least I came.”

“Well, that's true.”

Eleonor licked her lips.

At that time, with the sole determination not to die alone, she had sent letters to everyone she knew.

But the only one who showed up was Selvi.

Thinking of that loyalty, Eleonor couldn't scold Selvi too harshly.

A person who showed loyalty alone when everyone else ignored her calls deserved respect.

‘Honestly, who would have thought of coming to a backwater place like Fasa.’

Now, the situation had changed a lot.

The Black Company had become powerful enough to conquer the south.

Now, even if people begged to be accepted, there were no spots... well, not really.

Still, it was true that their status had changed from before.

Eleonor was proud of the fact that she had been the foundation for that.

“So what other work did the captain give you?”

“He told me to check the available routes and road conditions for an advance to the north, and to calculate all possible resistance we might encounter along the way.”

“Ugh. He's harsh.”

“Why are you talking like it's someone else's problem? You're the one doing the groundwork for that, aren't you?”

“Ah. Right.”

Selvi's expression soured as he learned the true nature of the order.

Now Selvi was also regretting not listening to other people's warnings.

He should have kept quiet and blended in with the others instead of creating more work.

Still, the reason Selvi hadn't run away and remained was because Leon didn't dump work on others and run away himself.

Every time he went to report, Leon would be writhing his whole body because he didn't want to work either, but he would at least try to take responsibility and work.

That was probably why Eleonor hadn't run away and remained either.

Because she was curious to see what Leon would create with his own hands in the future.

Because she wanted to lend a hand by his side.

Anyway, that passion was real.

‘But that's that, and this is this.’

The respect he had gained after subjugating Tospol?

That had long since been swept away and disappeared in the countless piles of documents that Leon kept pushing on them.

Honestly, the Black Company had too much work.

“If you keep making us work like this, the new people will run away too.”

“Those monks from the Holy See? Don't worry.”

“Do you have a plan? If you're thinking of confinement or kidnapping, should I go catch them?”

“What do you take me for!”

“Then what is it?”

“I'm just giving them a little work at a time so they can't run away.”

“It definitely didn't look like a little...”

Selvi clicked his tongue as he thought about the amount of documents supplied to the priests every morning.

But Eleonor, exhausted from repeated overtime, didn't care about her opponent at all.

“If you're unhappy, you should have come in earlier than me. No. If you had come earlier, you'd be my senior. I take that back.”

“Senior, aren't you even interested in what those guys used to do?”

“Uh. No.”

Selvi was taken aback as Eleonor cut him off sharply.

“No, but they're still your colleagues, you know?”

“I don't know. I don't care what those people's identities are. In fact, whether they are the one from heaven or a demon from hell, as long as they do their job well, that's all that matters.”

Eleonor seemed to have no interest in the Holy See priests.

Selvi shrugged and gave up on continuing the topic.

If Eleonor wasn't interested, then she wasn't interested.

In fact, there was no need for colleagues to know each other well.

In the first place, there was no time for dating.

Unless you were bold enough to have an office romance.

He had heard that Randolfo, the only one among the executives who was dating, had recently been dumped.

Honestly, he was jealous, but also felt a bit of schadenfreude and regret...

Knock, knock.

A bat that had flown through the darkness knocked on the lounge window.

Everyone's eyes turned to the window.

Selvi closed the book he was reading and stood up.

“I'll be out for a bit.”

“Where are you going?”

“Additional work.”

Eleonor looked at Selvi with pity.

Getting it back just as he had dished it out, Selvi got angry.

“Ah, why are you looking at me like that.”

“I didn't say anything. Have a good trip.”

“Ah, really!”

***

Meanwhile, in the Thieves' Guild hideout, Ceras was having a conversation.

“So, what are you curious about that you came to visit? It doesn't seem like you just want to know the location of treasures circulating in Fasa. If so, you must want information.”

“That's right. I want to know about the Black Company.”

“The Black Company?”

“What's wrong? Is there something difficult about it?”

Ceras asked back, puzzled.

For the first time during her visit to the Thieves' Guild, a look of bewilderment had appeared on the informant's face.

“Not really. But the question is too vague. Where should I start?”

“First, about Leon Gryph. Tell me everything you know.”

The guild member, who had been lost in thought for a long time, said.

“We don't know that much either. The rumor is that he's a merchant from Schwarzwald.”

“And you don't know which region of Schwarzwald?”

“We don't know that much. There are so many rumors. And no one is curious. As long as he makes good money, that's all that matters.”

“I see.”

Ceras clicked her tongue inwardly at the inaccurate information.

Information about Leon was always like this.

For some reason, no one knew for sure.

As if someone was controlling the information. (They were.)

Still, there was one thing that was certain.

That was Leon's origin.

All information sources said that Leon was from Schwarzwald.

‘Is a cardinal from Schwarzwald trying to expand his influence on the western peninsula? Or maybe he's a subordinate of the Emperor. That beast might be wanting to expand his territory soon.’

Her reasoning was completely off, but Ceras, who didn't know the truth, thought seriously.

“But isn't that a lie? What kind of merchant becomes a mercenary and takes over a city? Which merchant could possibly do that?”

“But it's true. It's already a legend in Fasa that Leon Gryph went to the Signori family and got an investment when the company was founded. Seeing that, life is really interesting.”

“Then there's nothing more to find out. This time, let's talk about the Signori family. What kind of people were they?”

“They were a merchant family that invested in Leon Gryph in the early days. They were always great, but now their power is through the roof. Thanks to the investment hitting the jackpot, they now occupy a position that no one can challenge, right? Even Matriarch Costanza's eldest son became the ruler of the city.”

“Ruler? Isn't he just the mayor?”

“Come on, you should have figured it out by now. It's obvious that the Signori family used Leon to get rid of the Corsini family.”

The guild member grinned.

“Then can I assume that the Signori family is controlling the mercenary company and leading this situation? What is the Signori family planning? Are they trying to establish a dynasty?”

It was a question that would have been unfair if the Signori family had heard it.

They hadn't expected the investment to be this successful either.

In fact, it had hit such a jackpot that it was becoming a problem.

But the guess seemed plausible to the guild member.

“Well, I haven't thought about it deeply, but isn't it safe to think so? Matriarch Costanza is a renowned heroine, and her eldest son is now the mayor of the city, so it wouldn't be strange if they established a kingdom in the south.”

What the guild member was saying was something Ceras had already figured out long ago.

Ceras was starting to get angry.

“Hey, isn't this too flimsy for selling information? I'm starting to regret the money.”

“What can I do? This is just a side job. What thieves are curious about is the location of gold coins, not what the great families are doing. To us, the Signori family is on the same level as the high and mighty one in the sky.”

The guild member pointed to the sky and said.

Ceras winced at the remark that insulted the Lord, but forced a laugh.

Because she understood that there were many rude people in this business.

If she nitpicked every one of those disagreeable points, there would be no end to it.

“Then that's enough. Now let's talk about the mercenary company. This company, doesn't it have too many different races?”

“You can find almost every race in this city.”

“Right. That's it. How on earth did it become like this?”

Apennia was originally a region where humans lived more than other races.

But Ceras had witnessed almost every race that existed in the world in Fasa.

“I really don't know about that either. The mercenary company accepts everyone without discrimination. It seems that many people also come from other regions because the pirates have disappeared. But thanks to that, the city seems to be full of life.”

“That's the problem!”

“Ah, why are you getting angry?”

“How can I not get angry right now?”

The diverse racial composition of the mercenary company was the number one cause that made the inquisitors, who were talented people trained by the Holy See, scream.

Dwarves, trolls, orcs, snow elves, humans, kobolds, half-elves, etc.

Except for the commonality of being bipedal, they were all different in origin, race, and physique.

As a result, there was too much to prepare in administration.

Just taking uniforms as an example, the sizes and the amount of fabric required were all different for each race.

Even the seminary school run by the Holy See would not be this chaotic.

Should she be glad that there were at least no goblins, ogres, or dragons?

But it was precisely because of that point that Ceras was having difficulty tracking the forces behind the mercenary company.

“There must be a force that is a majority in the company and also has a great influence on the upper management.”

Ceras, like an inquisitor, had an attitude of doubting everything.

It was impossible that the Black Company was created without any foundation, as the rumors suggested.

There must be a force that holds the initiative within the company.

If she could find out who they were, it would be possible to guess the forces behind the company.

However, the guild member's answer betrayed Ceras' expectations.

“There's nothing like that.”

“Why... not?”

“I don't know. The number of people from Urdino might have increased a bit since Duke Urdino joined recently.”

“What?”

“And I heard that a lot of executive trainees from Pescara and Messina came in this time.”

“?”

After listening to the story slowly, it turned out that the core executives of the company had no personal forces to speak of.

Leon Gryph had only one bodyguard, and Eleonor was originally alone.

As a result, until Duke Urdino joined, the largest force was just a few squires attached to Rhom of Aosta.

At this point, Ceras couldn't help but feel a surge of anger.

“No, what the hell is this?”

“I understand you're dissatisfied with the information, but I can't give you your money back.”

“No! I mean this mercenary company!”

“Still no.”

It was the moment the informant was about to answer.

Lightning struck outside.

Crash!

No, it wasn't lightning, but the sound of the hideout's wall collapsing.

Beyond it, a monster appeared.

The monster's form resembled a giant wolf walking on two legs.

Its thin fur shone silver in the moonlight in the darkness, and its eyes burned with a red light.

What the informant had said was true.

A monster was really roaming the back alleys of Fasa.

“Damn it.”

Ceras, who had a lot of experience with surprise attacks, calmly drew her sword and took a stance.

When you're an inquisitor, you often encounter monsters worse than this.

Naturally, she had a lot of experience both attacking and being attacked.

But the guild member, who had seen a monster for the first time, could not.

“A m-monster!”

He screamed, completely terrified.

The action drew the monster's attention.

The monster leaped from its spot and jumped at the informant.

And in one blow, it tore the informant in two.

Splat!

The Thieves' Guild hideout became as if it had been splattered with red paint.

Ceras tensed up after confirming that the monster's arm could tear a person apart in one blow.

‘Should I just run away?’

Then the monster turned to look at Ceras.

The monster opened its mouth, dripping with blood.

“This smell. You are a rat of Prydain.”

“You, you can talk?”

Ceras trembled in surprise.

First, because the monster had the ability to speak, and second, because the monster not only guessed her place of birth but also mentioned its old name.

The name Prydain was only known to the people of Caledonia.

It was information that people from other countries would find hard to know.

If so, is that monster related to Caledonia in some way?

“How do you know that?”

“Take a guess!”

The monster puffed out its chest and roared.

A sound wave full of murderous intent swept through the area.

Behind it, the darkness undulated ominously.