Chapter 42
Chapter 42 – Now It’s A Bit Usable. (5)
The mercenaries, gripped by fear, didn’t stop their attacks even after the Blood Python was dead.
“Stop! Stop! It’s dead now!”
Only after Ghislaine shouted several times did the mercenaries drop their weapons and back away.
Before long, the sun began to set, painting the surroundings in a red glow.
The massive corpse of the giant snake, punctured by hundreds of weapons, looked even darker and redder in the sunset light.
Everyone fell silent as if they had made a promise in the face of that grand spectacle.
Even after a while, the Blood Python didn’t move. Only then could the mercenaries accept reality.
“Ha, haha… We won… We really won!”
With one mercenary’s exclamation, everyone started cheering.
“We caught it! We caught this monster!”
“Hahaha! It’s really dead!”
They had killed what seemed to be an unbeatable monster.
No, it was almost as if their employer had singlehandedly done it.
“But is the employer alright?”
“Let’s go check!”
The mercenaries rushed around Ghislaine.
Lying down, Ghislaine weakly lifted his hand and spoke with effort.
“Uh… Everyone… You worked hard…”
Seeing that, the mercenaries erupted in cheers.
“He’s alive! The employer is alive!”
“Wow!”
The joy of surviving in the face of an impossible opponent fueled the mercenaries’ cheers.
Ghislaine’s remarkable performance only fanned their excitement further.
“Hahaha, long live Ghislaine’s mercenary group!”
“Let’s just call it Ghislaine’s mercenary group for now!”
The mercenaries excitedly chanted Ghislaine’s name.
Watching the mercenaries laugh and chatter, Ghislaine smiled faintly.
“Simple-minded fools…”
And then he lost consciousness.
*
Ghislaine slowly opened his eyes as if waking from a dream.
Gillian, watching over him, exclaimed in surprise.
“Sir, are you awake? Are you alright?”
Still lying down, Ghislaine nodded slightly and asked in a cracking voice.
“How’s Belinda?”
“She is not in critical condition. She’s taken herbs for stabilization and is sleeping, so you don’t need to worry.”
“What about the mercenaries’ casualties?”
“More than half are dead… But if it weren’t for you, sir, we would have been completely wiped out.”
“…I see.”
“But sir, please don’t do that again. If you die, what use is any of this?”
Gillian pressed Ghislaine, looking frustrated.
As a matter of priority, even if all the mercenaries died, they should take their time to catch the enemy—where else would you find an employer who risks his life?
“…I understand. You’re starting to sound more and more like Belinda.”
Ghislaine joked, and Gillian forced a tight smile.
Kaor approached with a grin and said.
“I’ve seen many people do crazy things in life, but you’re the first to be as crazy as you are, sir. I never imagined you’d defeat that monster in such a way.”
“I don’t feel so great hearing that I’m crazy.”
As Ghislaine replied, he attempted to sit up, only to be overwhelmed by immense pain.
“Ugh!”
“Oh dear, you should move carefully. Your injuries are severe.”
Gillian was startled and helped him up.
Ghislaine slowly checked his body. His entire body was tightly wrapped in bandages.
Noting that his whole body still tingled, it seemed that the poison hadn’t completely left yet.
While the bad energy within him could be expelled by manipulating mana, recovering his broken bones and muscles would take time.
It was the first time he had used this much mana in this life.
With his current condition, having used techniques that would be difficult to endure for a short time until he lost consciousness…
It was only natural that his body ended up in ruins.
‘Time…’
Ghislaine stared blankly at the sky. The sunlight shone down so brightly, it was almost blinding.
He had caught the Blood Python around sunset, but now the sun was high in the sky.
It seemed he had been unconscious longer than he thought.
At that moment, the mercenaries, confirming that Ghislaine had awoken, rushed in.
“The leader is finally awake!”
“Leader, are you alright?”
“Oh, we knew you would pull through!”
The mercenaries excitedly gathered around Ghislaine, unable to hide their smiles.
Ghislaine looked around at them one by one.
Unlike when he first met them, their faces were filled with confidence and ease.
And he sensed trust in their eyes.
Having faced life-or-death battles repeatedly, the bond between Ghislaine and these mercenaries had become incredibly strong.
Though their relationship had started with a contract, it had transformed into one where they would risk their lives together.
‘Reminds me of the old days.’
A sense of nostalgia crept in as Ghislaine smiled unknowingly.
“I’ll rest for another day, so take plenty of time to rest and check your injuries. The monsters won’t be showing up anymore.”
The mercenaries were unsure but decided to trust Ghislaine and rested peacefully.
Amazingly, no monsters appeared at all.
Thanks to that, the group was able to recover their stamina and began to move in good condition.
After moving for a while, Ghislaine looked around and told the mercenaries.
“We’re almost there. Just ahead.”
The mercenaries could barely contain their excited glances and started to chatter.
“Will there really be something valuable?”
“Could it be gold or silver?”
“Looks like we’ll get there after all.”
With excitement, everyone hurried toward their final destination.
And soon enough, as the scenery emerged, everyone was left speechless.
“This, this is…”
“Is this real?”
“Oh, it’s incredible!”
The mercenaries were wide-eyed in shock.
Gillian couldn’t hide the tremor in his gaze as he turned to Ghislaine.
“Sir, there really is something valuable here. This… this is…”
Facing the stammering Gillian, Ghislaine smiled and responded.
“Yes, it’s quite a precious item.”
Before their eyes were sparkling pieces of crystals emitting a blue light, scattered like stones.
Each piece gave off a faint glow, but an abundance of fragments lit up even the dark forest.
These crystals, which emanate their own light, were unique in the world.
They were the minerals known as Runestones.
Runestones contained mana, making them essential for crafting magical tools and barriers. Any mage would go crazy over them.
Moreover, because they’re rare and can be found in limited locations, they were as valuable as one could imagine.
Yet, here they lay like stones.
“Wow!”
“Incredible! These are all Runestones!”
“How much is this worth, exactly?”
The mercenaries were bouncing with excitement. Ghislaine couldn’t hide his shock either.
‘Far more than I heard in my previous life.’
It was surely a different feeling to see it in person compared to just reading records and vaguely imagining it.
Seeing the grand display of Runestones unfolding before him, joy surged enough to make him forget all the hardships endured.
The mercenaries, buzzed with excitement, glanced back at Ghislaine in realization.
“There really is something valuable, huh?”
“How on earth did you know about this?”
“It wasn’t really a crazy thing we did after all!”
They struggled to suppress their excitement upon witnessing the incredible sight of the area filled with Runestones.
Ghislaine looked at the mercenaries and said.
“You all worked hard. Thanks to you, we were able to make it here.”
The mercenaries bowed their heads solemnly, carrying serious expressions.
Many had died along the way to this point, and those who survived had fought beyond their limits.
Having endured such harsh pains to reach the destination, the emotions mixed were truly significant.
Ghislaine glanced around at the mercenaries again and continued speaking.
“Now that we’ve arrived safely, I will give extra bonuses. I’ll offer three times the existing contract fee. I’ll also send the same condolence money to the families of the deceased.”
“Wow! That’s generous!”
“Truly, the best at flaunting money is our leader!”
“This is totally amazing! Incredible!”
The mercenaries tossed their weapons and cheered wildly.
They had finally arrived after tremendous hardships and numerous sacrifices.
Just surviving was enough of a joy, but now the bonus was three times larger.
Without a doubt, their leader knew how to reward lavishly when it mattered.
At that moment, Gillian approached Ghislaine and quietly asked.
“Sir, you’ve already given a lot of compensation. Is it really necessary to give more money? It will be quite expensive to send compensation to the families of the deceased.”
Where in the world would you find an employer sending condolence money to the families of the mercenaries who died while working?
The pay the mercenaries received usually included compensation for such risks.
Once they got paid, whether they lived or died, that was the end of it.
Sure, there were occasionally employers who gave bonuses after a successful job, but tripling the compensation was ridiculous.
“It’s fine. If I’m not going to use it then I wouldn’t know, but if I am going to use it, it’s better to be sure. It’s natural to reward those who risked their lives and worked hard.”
Ghislaine replied as though it were the most normal thing in the world.
Gillian silently gazed at Ghislaine.
There was no hint of hesitation.
‘Is he not worried about the money?’
Gillian had seen Ghislaine as quite frugal for a noble.
Typically, young nobles of Ghislaine’s age tended to spend extravagantly due to vanity, yet Ghislaine had never indulged in luxury even once.
Initially, people assumed he was just frugal because his territory was poor.
But from what he witnessed while clearing the Forest of Monsters, that didn’t seem to be the case.
Ghislaine spent money without hesitation if he deemed it necessary.
‘No matter what, that aspect of the young master is indeed remarkable.’
Having led a mercenary group herself, Gillian understood how difficult it was to be generous like Ghislaine.
His young lord appeared to have a bold personality unrestrained by money, causing Gillian to smile contentedly without realizing it.
Belinda, who had been sleeping after taking strong stabilizing herbs, woke up and learned the situation.
“Ah… so many Runestones… You really succeeded… Unbelievable…”
Her lips cracked from the pain, and she looked haggard, yet she forced a bright smile.
Ghislaine looked at her lying down and smiled back.
“It’s thanks to you, Belinda. If you hadn’t protected me back then, we probably wouldn’t have succeeded. You’re tougher than I thought, aren’t you? I guess you’ve been training hard.”
Belinda answered with a slight twist of her lips as if to say quit with the nonsense.
“Ugh… Don’t do that again… Why did you have to get so close to that smelly monster’s mouth…”
“Yeah, yeah. Anyway, since it’s all settled, you can relax now. Once we return, let’s get you treated first. It seems the shock has caused mana to flow back and mess up your insides completely. It’s a relief that your organs didn’t burst.”
Even after resting for a while, Belinda still couldn’t move properly.
Though she had survived the strong shock, the toll was that her insides had become a complete mess.
Neither potions nor herbs had an effect on the disrupted flow of mana, so the best option was to take rest until it stabilized.
“Hmph… I did dodge it well… It was sudden, so that scared me. Normally, I wouldn’t have gotten hit…”
Her pride still intact even while lying down, Ghislaine chuckled and covered her with a blanket.
If he had left Belinda in the territory, clearing paths would have been even harder.
Looking back now, he truly felt grateful to have had Belinda with him.
“Alright. Now get some good rest. We’ll head back shortly, so try to sleep a bit more.”
At Ghislaine’s words, Belinda closed her eyes and murmured softly.
“Don’t just eat the jerky… Take out the seasoning… and make it into soup…”
“Got it, got it. Don’t worry and just rest.”
As Ghislaine chided her, she managed a hazy smile before quickly falling asleep.
After confirming that Belinda was asleep, Ghislaine looked around at the mercenaries and said.
“Well then, let’s start copying our money.”
