<Player Information (Player Status)>
[Strength 93] [Endurance 84] [Agility 67] [Stamina 83] [Mana 71] [Luck 56]
…Wait, his name is “Go-hwan”?
Ah, no, it’s Go Oh-hwan. Still, quite an interesting name.
Anyway, the Warrior Lord raised an objection. Though, honestly, it was obvious it wouldn’t be entertained. Just by looking at the records showing the vanguard unit’s current status, the answer was clear. The Warriors were positioned right behind the Mercenaries.
After exchanging a brief glance, Han So-young spoke calmly.
“I haven’t said I’m accepting objections yet. Please, have a seat.”
“I still must protest. What is this deployment? This goes against our agreement—”
“I have never made any agreement with the Warrior Lord. And again, please sit down.”
“Hah! You’re going to be like this? Back then, our Warriors—!”
At that moment—
Just as the Warrior Lord scoffed, ready to retort, Han So-young’s eyes slowly narrowed. Then, her usual gentle smile curved softly.
『User Han So-young’s unique ability, Charisma (Apriority, Rank: A Plus), has been activated.』
『User Kim Soo-hyun’s latent ability, Insight (True) (Rank: EX), is responding.』
Suddenly, the atmosphere shifted completely.
“The vanguard… uh… er…”
The Warrior Lord stammered unexpectedly.
The flow of the room changed in an instant.
Tension rose steadily, making everyone swallow hard. The once calm, obsidian-like eyes of the Warrior Lord were nowhere to be seen. Han So-young’s gaze, fixed on him, gleamed with a deep crimson light—like a woman thirsting for blood, eyeing her prey.
“Please, sit down.”
Her voice was deep and serene, yet laced with a deadly edge that sent chills down spines.
“Uh… yes…”
With a heavy thud, the Warrior Lord collapsed into his chair.
“……”
“……”
Silence fell. The conference room was so still you could hear a pin drop. Watching Han So-young look down at the Warrior Lord, her quiet but intense aura sent a shiver down my spine. It was an unyielding force—one that dared no one to defy. The room, thick with lethal tension, felt suffocating.
This was Han So-young’s charisma in full force.
She was like an empress.
“I-I’m sorry! I’ll follow Istantel Row’s orders from now on!”
Where had the proud, defiant Warrior Lord gone? Now drenched in cold sweat, he barely managed to speak. The oppressive aura in the room softened slightly, and the suppressed breaths of the others were finally released.
Han So-young continued.
“The vanguard unit plays the most critical role in the Southern Expedition. And there’s a very good reason I chose the Mercenary Clan as the lead vanguard.”
“Y-Yes, I understand, but what I mean is—”
“You’re aware of the mountain range where the recently infamous dragon sleeps, right? And which clan took on that area? The Mercenaries tackled a region everyone else had practically given up on, with just about ten people. Their achievements earned them the role of pathfinder. Is that really so hard to accept?”
“N-No, not at all. But—”
“Even though our Istantel Row has made remarkable progress over the past two years, it’s nothing compared to the Mercenaries. When quantified, the difference is about seventeen times.”
“Seventeen times…?”
“For reference, the Warriors lag behind by roughly 457 times.”
“……”
Faced with such sharp, piercing words, the Warrior Lord finally bowed his head. Whether he accepted it or not, my attention was fully captured by Han So-young’s statement. What criteria had she used to come up with those numbers?
After lowering her crimson gaze, Han So-young slowly scanned the room with her usual jet-black eyes.
“As I said before, Istantel Row intends to lead you as rationally and safely as possible. I am prepared to take full responsibility for everything that happens once we enter the Steel Mountains.”
“……”
“But in return, I ask that you respect my authority. Minor disputes here don’t matter much. However, if anyone challenges my command after we enter the Steel Mountains, I won’t be so lenient.”
“……”
“If anyone doubts this, feel free to test me. But before you do, remember how I cleaned up the night streets of Monica.”
“……”
That last remark was practically a declaration of war.
Han So-young had once publicly executed a user who tried to establish a night market in Monica. Even though that user belonged to a major clan, she ordered an immediate execution.
In other words, once we enter the Steel Mountains, everyone better fall in line. As Han So-young said, any insubordination or challenge to her command could result in summary execution.
If someone else, say An Hyo-seop, had said this, I might not have believed it.
But Han So-young was different.
Given her track record—and from what I knew of her—she was exactly the kind of woman who would follow through.
“I hope that’s clear. Now, let’s continue. First…”
While everyone listened quietly, I smiled silently to myself.
How many members does the Mercenary Clan have?
Counting combat users, non-combat users, residents, infants, and spirit beings, the number is large. But officially registered clan members total 64. Excluding the couple who run the restaurant and Marl, that leaves 61. These 61 are the actual available members of the Mercenary Clan.
Of course, there are other ways to categorize them.
By years of experience:
0 years – 2 members
1 year – 4 members
2 years – 8 members
3 years – 11 members
4 years – 14 members
5 years – 11 members
6 years – 4 members
7 years – 5 members
8 years – 1 member
9 years – 1 member
By class:
Melee – 26 members
Archers – 10 members
Mages – 14 members
Priests – 10 members
Special – 1 member
Before discussing the Steel Mountains, I spent a lot of time reviewing the clan roster.
Some members were obviously powerful users, and for them, there was no need to overthink. They could be deployed as is.
But for the others, I had to think long and hard. Unless there were experience restrictions or poor skills, all Mercenary members had decent user stats. So the issue was how to combine them effectively.
Composition isn’t just about balancing classes. It’s about how efficiently each member’s abilities can be utilized, and how well they can coordinate with others.
I submitted what I believed was the best initial lineup, but it was too soon to be optimistic. Most Mercenary members believed they were more than capable anywhere.
So announcing the lineup was a sensitive matter—it could bruise egos.
Mercenary Clan House, 4th Floor, Main Conference Room.
“You all should have received notice last night. As of this morning, the Eastern Division has begun its march toward the Steel Mountains.”
It was exactly as I said. A week after the Southern call-up ended, the central administration contacted the East. The East, having organized fastest, responded immediately. This morning, after a large-scale warp to Monica, they set off for the Steel Mountains. Everyone had seen the departure, so it was common knowledge.
Looking around, every clan member sat silently, lips sealed. Were they nervous about the imminent assault? Or distracted? Maybe both.
In any case, the message was clear: we must leave Monica within three weeks at the latest.
All 61 clan members in the room were staring at me. I felt as if my face might be pierced by their gaze. I picked up the records in front of me, and their eyes locked onto the documents. Some even raised their spiritual energy.
“Just so you know, the initial lineup has already been submitted to Istantel Row. Of course, this is only the first draft, and changes can be made up until the day before departure. But the reason I’m announcing it so late is because I don’t intend to change it unless absolutely necessary. After all, the area we’re attacking isn’t just any ruin or the dragon’s mountain—it’s the Steel Mountains.”
Despite my lengthy explanation, there was still no reaction.
Feeling the silent pressure to get on with it, I let out a short sigh.
“Sigh. Looks like I’ve been talking for too long. Well then, setting everything else aside, let’s get straight to the lineup announcement. A total of 61 people were considered, and among them, 31 will be participating in the Steel Mountain expedition. Since I’m included in that number, I’ll be calling out the names of the other 30 members. So…”
Murmurs rippled through the crowd.
Pausing briefly and shifting my gaze to the records, a faint stir of unease finally spread among the clan members. Thirty-one participants in total. I’m sure many were expecting more.
After scanning the clan members for a moment, I continued.
“Let’s start with the melee classes.”
As I turned my gaze back, the chatter quickly died down. A sudden, inexplicable tension filled the room, thick and palpable.
Calmly, I took a breath and began reading the selected names by class from the records.
“Melee class: Users Ko Yeon-ju, Gu Ye-ji, Kim Dong-seok, Nam Da-eun, Park Hyun-woo, Ahn Hyun, Woo Jung-min, Lee Yoo-jung, Jin Soo-hyun, Cha So-rim, Heo Jun-young. That’s eleven people. Including myself, twelve will be joining the Steel Mountain expedition.”
“Archer class: Users Kang Chae-rin, Seon Yoo-woon, Eom Baek-hyun, Im Han-na. Four participants in total.”
“Mage class: Users Kim Han-byul, Park Hyo-chan, Won Hye-soo, Jung Ha-yeon, Pyo Hye-mi. Also residents Vivian, Sasha, and Helena. Eight participants altogether.”
“Priest class: Users Park Da-som, Baek Seung-hoon, Seo Ji-hoon, Shin Jae-ryong, Ahn Sol, Lee Woo-seok. Six participants.”
I barely paused between announcements, and by the end, I felt a slight catch in my breath. But it wasn’t over yet—there was one more clan member to announce.
“And finally, the special class: User Baek Han-gyeol. One participant.”
Still focused on the records, I called out the last name. When I looked up, I caught Baek Han-gyeol biting his nails, then breaking into a bright smile. I returned a small smile in kind, calmly sliding the records across the table, and spoke plainly.
“So, a total of 31 members will be taking part in the Southern Expedition to conquer Steel Mountain. That concludes the lineup announcement.”
---------------------------= Author’s Note =---------------------------
The decision to reduce from four parts to two was mine alone. From the very start of serialization, I had already cut it from four parts to three, and then during serialization, down to two. I believe I mentioned this in previous notes as well. Any reader who’s been following along should be well aware of this.
I double-checked the last note to see if I’d made any mistakes, but nothing seemed off. The intention was never to turn this into a comedy, but rather to include as much humor as possible before entering the Steel Mountain arc.
Or was there something wrong with the last note? Did I perhaps include something that might have upset readers? -_-a