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Not long after Mammon finished speaking, Heukgu and Heukrang entered the reception room.

At least they were fed on time, so they didn’t look like war prisoners or anything. More like someone who’d been in prison for a few years.

Maybe they’re just prison material.

“Captain! How did you get here?”

“How do you think? I came to rescue you, duh!”

“Sniff! I’m so touched! I never thought you’d come!”

Tears welled up in their eyes as they looked at me.

Seeing their hopeful expressions, only one sentence came to mind.

“Actually, I got captured too.”

“…Huh?”

I know now’s not the time for jokes… but how can I resist?

Unable to hold back, I dropped the joke, and the expedition team members all shook their heads in disappointment.

“Ugh, Jeong Gyeoul…”

“Here we go again.”

They clicked their tongues and sighed.

Even Mammon was shaking his crow-like head.

“…Is it that bad?”

It was a pretty witty and humorous punchline, but no one appreciated it.

Life is lonely, after all.

Enough joking around. As the expedition leader and their captain, I should maintain some dignity.

“Ahem, you doing okay? Wait, is that sarcasm?… Glad you’re alive. I really did come to rescue you.”

“…Captain! I missed you so much!”

“Thank you for coming… I thought I was going to die this time!”

They rushed at me, tears and snot streaming down their faces, ready to hug me.

Even as they age, they’re still the same clueless kids. Every time I see them, they’re in some crisis, and I can’t help but feel it’s my fault. I feel obligated to take care of them.

That said, I don’t want Heukgu and Heukrang’s tears and snot all over me.

They probably haven’t showered since they were captured, and the stench is wafting over.

I used telekinesis to push them away as they approached with open arms.

“I get that you’re happy to see me, but I don’t want to get dirty. Don’t touch me.”

“…That’s too harsh!”

“Yeah! We’re only dirty because we’ve been locked up! We’re not usually like this!”

“But you’re dirty now, right?”

“….”

Let’s end this touching reunion here.

“Do you guys know about the Dimensional Contract?”

“…Of course, it’s one of our products.”

“It’s not selling. Like, at all. No one wants to use it. Why do we even have such terrible inventory…”

“I need to use it. Try selling it to Mammon.”

“…?”

If I had asked them directly, they would’ve just handed it over without a second thought.

But… why should I get it for free when there’s a customer like Mammon around?

Half of whatever Heukgu and Heukrang have is always mine.

That’s been the contract since they dug up artifacts for me in the ruins.

Might as well sell it while I can.

I glanced at Mammon, who was frowning but didn’t seem like he’d refuse.

He had a “Do whatever you want” look on his face.

Which makes sense, since he’s the one in a hurry right now.

“How’s the price? Super expensive, right?”

“Huh? Uh… since it’s dead stock, we could just give it away for cheap…”

“What? You’re saying it’s so bad that customers line up to break your head with an ashtray? In that case, we should be getting hazard pay too!”

These clueless idiots!

How did they even become the top merchants in the Demon Realm?

I set them up to sell it at a high price, and they’re talking about giving it away for peanuts.

If they’d done business like this, they’d have been scammed left and right.

Yet somehow, they managed to earn the title of top merchants.

Looking at their clueless faces, I can see why they’re always in some crisis.

Are they just pure and kind, or are they so dumb they can’t even take care of their own rice bowls?

“Anyway, where is it now? Bring it out.”

“We just got out of being locked up. How are we supposed to bring it out? If you think about it, Captain, your brain isn’t working too well either. Right, Heukrang?”

“…Captain, Heukgu’s words have nothing to do with me.”

*Whack—*

“Ugh! Your hand’s gotten sharper…”

He gets punished for saying unnecessary things.

He hasn’t changed at all.

Heukrang is okay, aside from being a bit of a chatterbox, but Heukgu is honestly a bit… weird.

“So where is it?”

“…In a dark valley.”

Heukrang stepped forward to explain in detail, since Heukgu still hadn’t gotten his act together.

“There’s a back-alley thug named Blandiya in the dark valley. He manages most of our products. We raised him, you see.”

“…What?”

“Wow… Blandiya? That guy?”

“Things are getting tangled.”

I never expected to hear Blandiya’s name here.

How could they even think of handing over their goods to some third-rate thug?

It’s like entrusting ants to an anteater.

The expedition team members were marveling at how small the Demon Realm is, while Mammon looked awkward.

Satan will arrive at the border in two days.

But it’ll take about two weeks to get to the dark valley.

We’ve been touring cities from the border, so it took us over 20 days, but if we go straight to the dark valley, it should take about that long.

A month just to go and come back.

In that time, Satan will have swept through every village and city in sight.

The soldiers’ skills and Mammon’s combat ability aren’t that far behind Satan’s, so if we decide to fight, we should be able to hold him off.

But if Asmodeus or Lucifer join the battlefield, things will change.

Mammon knows that, which is why he’s suddenly being so humble, begging us to fight with him…

After hearing that the Dimensional Contract is in the dark valley, he seemed to be deep in thought before straightening up.

“They’ve proven the contract exists, so you know I’m not lying. Once we push back the enemy army, we can sign the contract…”

“Stop talking nonsense, you scammer. If we help you push back Satan’s army, you’ll just change your tune.”

“….”

I almost fell for it earlier, but I’m not foolish enough to trust Mammon’s words again.

‘It was pretty shocking to see Heukgu and Heukrang with Mammon.’

But what were these guys doing to get captured in Mammon’s territory, not even Asmodeus’s?

That’s not the important part.

I don’t even trust humans, so why would I trust a verbal agreement with a demon?

“Then what do you suggest we do? We can’t wait a month with Satan’s army right at our doorstep!”

Typical demon behavior—throwing a tantrum when things don’t go their way.

I was about to see how far he’d go when Park Seol-hwa stepped forward.

“If we pick up the pace, we can cut it down to two weeks instead of a month. Can we hold out for two weeks?”

“…If it were just Satan, holding out wouldn’t be an issue—we’d even win. But if Asmodeus and Lucifer join the war… it’ll be over in two days at most.”

“Hmm…”

This idiot demon casually admits his own weakness.

Park Seol-hwa also seemed at a loss, her brow twitching.

Anyway, they can’t do anything without me.

I guess it’s time for me to step up.

“Hey, crow-head. I’ll get the contract and have you sign it before tomorrow’s over.”

“…Is that even possible?”

He flinched a bit when I called him crow-head, but he didn’t forget that we’re in the superior position here.

“In return, let’s sign another contract. A mercenary contract hiring us for the war.”

The first contract is a thousand-year ban on invading the middle world.

I don’t know how long Mammon will live, but at least while he’s alive, he’ll make sure no one crosses into the middle world.

If he doesn’t, some demon or something will destroy his soul, so he’ll figure it out.

Originally, I planned to help with the war in exchange for this contract… but this guy keeps trying to scam us, so I can’t let it slide.

The second contract is the mercenary contract.

We’re hired as mercenaries, and we’ll get paid.

The Demon Realm’s currency consists of copper, silver, gold coins, and paper checks.

If we take gold and sell it in Korea, it’ll be quite profitable.

Park Seol-hwa will handle the administrative details.

‘How much is gold worth these days…?’

Plus, I’ll take half of Heukgu and Heukrang’s wealth, so my family will be set for life.

Of course, Jeong Ha-yul’s job alone covers all our financial needs, but…

The more, the merrier, as they say.

Even Monk Haemins advocated for full ownership.

“Fine. Let’s sign for 1,500 gold coins, the standard fee for a top-tier mercenary group.”

“What are you talking about? Hire a top-tier mercenary group then. 1,000 per person. Take it or leave it.”

We’re beyond top-tier—we’re super-duper-extra-special-tier mercenaries.

Each of us is a war machine, so super-duper-extra-special-tier is accurate.

“…You’re nothing but highway robbers!”

“If you don’t like it, get trampled by Satan.”

“…Just bring the contract already!”

“Ah! Yes! Ho… I mean, Customer! We’ll serve you with the utmost care!”

I’ve hooked the Demon Realm’s biggest sucker!

I can almost hear the notification sound for increased sales.

“…Is this really okay, Gyeoul?”

“Be quiet. Things are going great right now.”

Except for Hayan, the team members seemed to realize we were in front of a high-paying client and stayed silent.

This is the moment I feel it was worth bringing them along.

“Everyone, wait here for a bit. Get some food from Mammon and rest.”

“…You’re going yourself?”

“Our dear Mammon is in a hurry. I’ll be back as fast as I can.”

Our dear… I mean, customer is waiting with bated breath. If he dies waiting, we won’t get paid, so it’s better if I go.

It’s been a while since I’ve gone all out.

I’ll grab some food from Blandiya and then get some from Mammon when I’m back.

 

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